This study reports the results of experimental laboratory markets designed to test two propositions set forth by Verrecchia 1982 . The first proposition addressed the change in the level of private information acquisition given a change in the level of public information in a competitive market. The second proposition considered the amount of informedness in the market given an increase in the level of public information and the resultant change in private information. The development of these propositions was motivated by the ambiguous results produced from the market-based accounting research investigating the impact on market price of mandated accounting disclosures. A limitation of the market based research is the inability to control for changes in the level of private information acquisition given a change in the level of public information which may explain the ambiguous results. A laboratory markets method was used to test the propositions because of the control provided by this research method. The market mechanism employed was a version of the PLATO computerized double-auction mechanism described by Smith, Suchanek, and Williams 1985 . This trading mechanism allows traders to communicate bids and offers and to form contracts to buy and sell assets in a computerized market which provides a high degree of control. In addition to the market for assets, a posted offer market for private information was used to allow traders to acquire private information. The results show significant decreases in private information acquisition in markets with higher levels of public information. Thus, public and private information appear to be substitute goods in this experimental setting. The results also indicates that the variance of contract prices around the true dividend value is significantly greater in markets with lower levels of public information. This remains true when controlling for possible confounding variables including market day, the contract number, the dollar value of private information, and the number of informed traders that executed the contract.

M.Com. / Please refer to full text to view abstract

I investigate the association between rent extraction and qualitative/quantitative characteristics of 10-K filings (i.e. readability, financial statement comparability and earnings transparency), subject to existing monitoring constraints. This study focuses on one type of such rent extraction – investment inefficiency (i.e. overinvestment or underinvestment), as extant research provides evidence that it provides personal benefits to managers, often at the expense of shareholders. Managers have incentives to invest inefficiently but such behavior may be undesirable and result in negative consequences to the manager, such as turnover. Therefore, I expect that managers are likely to obfuscate information in order to make it difficult for investors to detect investment inefficiency, although monitoring over financial reporting may limit their ability to do so. I test whether monitoring over financial reporting reduces information obfuscation. Last, I study the joint effects of investment inefficiency and information obfuscation on CEO turnover and compensation. I expect that investment inefficiency is positively associated with information obfuscation but this relation is weaker for firms with effective monitoring mechanisms over financial reporting. Further, I examine how these factors affect CEO disciplining. Managers get disciplined for inefficient investment decisions. Obfuscating information makes it difficult for investors to evaluate managers’ investment decisions. Therefore, I examine whether information obfuscation prevents managers from being disciplined as a result of inefficient investment behavior. I find that investment inefficiency is positively associated with information obfuscation. Managers are more likely to obfuscate information for overinvestment type of inefficiency as opposed to underinvestment. Further, the results suggest that, while internal monitoring does not reduce information obfuscation, external monitoring constrains information obfuscation. I find that external monitoring (i.e. auditors) provide more stringent monitoring by reducing information obfuscation. I do not find support for my last prediction that information obfuscation prevents disciplining of CEOs. / Includes bibliography. / Dissertation (Ph.D.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2018. / FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection

Over the last twenty years, there has been a rapid expansion of Islamic financial institutions that do not deal in interest-based transactions. The financial information of Islamic financial institutions issued in their annual reports is different in certain features from the annual reports offered by conventional financial institutions. This study attempts to investigate the usefulness of annual reports produced by these institutions to investors. In particular, the study is concerned with the perceptions of both institutional investors and customers in Kuwait about the annual reports of Islamic financial institutions. In addition, the study investigates the opinions of the preparers of annual reports of Islamic financial institutions in GCC countries regarding various aspects of the annual reports that could help investors make their investment decisions. To achieve the above objective, two types of questionnaires and interview were designed. The first type of questionnaire was carried out to solicit the investors' perceptions of annual reports, the importance they attached to them and the uses of these reports in their investment activities. The second type of questionnaire was specifically used to investigate the opinions of the preparers of annual reports regarding various aspects of annual reports that could help investors make their investment decisions. The interview method was mainly used to identify the customers' perceptions of Islamic financial institutions in Kuwait about the usefulness of these annual reports. The results of the questionnaire and the interviews indicated that the annual reports are considered by customers and investors to be the main source of information for investment decisions. The results also revealed that the timeliness and credibility of information were perceived by respondents as the most important qualitative characteristics that might affect the usefulness of information sources about the performance of Islamic financial institutions. Regarding the accounting regulation of financial information of Islamic financial institutions, the results indicated that there is a need for accounting information to be regulated in order to enhance the credibility of financial statements produced by these institutions and increase their comparability and transparency to the users.

Over the years, there has been a lot of discussion about the audit expectations gap. Research on the expectations gap has focused exclusively on the audit aspect, with limited attention being given to the possibility of the existence of other elements that may in fact contribute to an even wider expectations gap. This study has focused on the financial statements expectations gap. Financial statements are the public face of an organisation. It is therefore crucial that users understand their objective, message, scope and limitations. This study explores and evaluates the existence of a financial statements expectations gap in a small state economy, namely Malta. The data for this study was collected from shareholders and auditors in Malta using a mixed methods approach with a sequential explanatory design through the use of a survey questionnaire and semi-structured interviews. The findings have shown that the financial statements expectations gap exists in various areas, some of which are fundamental to the understanding of financial statements. There is a clear lack of clarity, or confusion, about the objective of financial statements. This appears to be the result of the over-emphasis on decision-usefulness as an objective of financial statements, the imprecision of the word stewardship and the failure to communicate clearly the scope and limitations of financial statements. The study has shown that the attempts by standard setters to satisfy various user needs with the same set of financial statements were unsuccessful in Malta. Communicating financial information has been identified as the primary purpose of financial statements. However, the understandability of financial statements was negatively impacted primarily by the complexity of information, the frequent changes to standards, information overload and the use of technical jargon. The study has accordingly identified those factors that are considered to be conducive to the understandability of financial statements in Malta. Based on the research findings, the study has provided recommendations to the accountancy profession and policy makers on how to address the financial statements expectations gap. Potential areas for future research were also identified.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Oregon, 2006. / Typescript. Includes vita and abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 63-65). Also available for download via the World Wide Web; free to University of Oregon users.

Thesis ( Ph.D. ) -- University of Texas at Arlington, 2008.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Ohio State University, 2003. / Title from first page of PDF file. Document formatted into pages; contains xii, 108 p.; also includes graphics (some col.). Includes abstract and vita. Advisor: René M. Stultz, Dept.of Business Administration. Includes bibliographical references (p. 65-70).

No description available.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Michigan State University. Dept. of Accounting and Information Systems, 2008. / Title from PDF t.p. (viewed on Mar. 26, 2009). Includes bibliographical references (p. 62-71). Also issued in print.