Die Dissertationsschrift beschäftigt sich mit den steuerlichen Gestaltungsmöglichkeiten, die sich ergeben, wenn ein junges Technologieunternehmen saniert werden muss. Im Zentrum stehen dabei die Besteuerung von Sanierungsgewinnen sowie ertragsteuerliche Auswirkungen von finanzwirtschaftlichen und gesellschaftsrechtlichen Sanierungsmaßnahmen. Die Sanierungsmaßnahmen werden dahingehend differenziert, ob die Rechtsform des Unternehmens beibehalten wird oder durch die Sanierungsmaßnahme eine Änderung der Rechtsform erfolgt. Im Anschluss an die Darstellung der ertragsteuerlichen Auswirkungen wird untersucht, inwieweit sich die entsprechenden Sanierungsmaßnahmen für eine erfolgreiche Sanierung eignen. Dabei werden sowohl Handlungsempfehlungen für die betroffenen Unternehmen als auch für den Gesetzgeber aufgezeigt.

This study examined the perspectives of central office personnel, principals, and teachers involved in the school transformation process. This study was guided by the two main questions: (a) What strategies (structural and instructional) do high school principals implement to lead a successful turnaround of a school? and (b) Which strategies seem to be perceived as most effective by principals, teachers, and superintendents, when measured by multiple school effectiveness indicators? A qualitative case study design was used in an in-depth comparative inquiry of two high schools, which met the criteria of turnaround schools. Data collected were inclusive of interviews, documentations, and historical artifacts to provide insights into the school planning and decision-making process. In addition, the role of the principal and its impact in the selection and implementation of specific strategies were investigated and analyzed against a research-based conceptual framework developed by the researcher, exploring the following components: (a) Principal’s Leadership Role, (b) Structural Integration Practices, and (c) Instructional Integration Practices. A three-fold investigation was conducted to gain a deeper understanding of schools undergoing restructuring. This three-fold investigation was designed to: (a) Review and summarize extant research related to high school restructuring models that relate to school turnaround, (b) Collect research findings that identify effective instructional and administrative leadership practices adopted by principals to accomplish a successful school turnaround, and (c) Conduct a comparative study of two Texas urban high schools that experienced school turnaround. This research study revealed that a principal’s leadership role in effectively implementing strategies has a great impact on the school transformation and renewal process of school turnaround. In addition, the perceptions of central office staff and teachers, principals’ structural and instructional practices chosen by schools, demonstrated the utilization of specific strategies school leaders may adopt to ensure a successful turnaround. / text

The first essay tests whether Chapter 11 restructuring outcomes are affected by time constraints in busy bankruptcy courts. Using the passage of the Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act in 2005 as an exogenous shock to court caseloads, I estimate the impact of bankruptcy caseload changes on the outcomes of firms in Chapter 11. I find that as bankruptcy judges become busier they tend to allow more firms to reorganize. Firms that reorganize in busy courts spend longer in bankruptcy, while firms that are dismissed from busy courts are more likely to re-file for bankruptcy within three years of their original filing. In addition, busy courts impose costs on local banks, which report higher charge-offs on business lending when caseload increases. Using novel data that has complete coverage of claims for 136 Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection filings and that includes detailed information on claims transfers, in the second essay we provide the first empirical insight on how a firm's ownership changes during the bankruptcy process and how these changes impact bankruptcy outcomes. Pre-bankruptcy ownership concentration is important for the coordination of a prearranged bankruptcy filing and is associated with a faster bankruptcy resolution and a higher likelihood of a successful reorganization. However, as the trading of claims in bankruptcy concentrates ownership further, the probability of liquidation increases and recovery rates decrease. The third essay studies whether prize-linked savings (PLS) accounts, which offer random, lottery-like payouts to account holders in lieu of risk-free interest, can aid individuals in increasing savings levels by adding the chance to "win big." Using micro-level data, we show that PLS is attractive to a broad group of individuals across all age, race, and income levels. We find that financially constrained individuals and those with no other deposit accounts are particularly likely to open a PLS account. Participants in the PLS program increased their total savings on average by 1.1% of annual income, a 31% increase form the mean level of savings. Deposits in PLS do not cannibalize savings in standard savings products. Instead, PLS appears to act as a substitute for lottery gambling.

This study describes the policymaking process and policy solutions enacted in the Kentucky Postsecondary Improvement Act of 1997 (or House Bill 1). The study employs both an historical recounting of the story of House Bill 1 and a narrative analysis of opinion-editorials and policymaker interviews to reveal and explain how political power comprised both the perennial problem of Kentuckys higher education policymaking and the tool with which conflicts over power distribution were resolved. The study uses three theoretical frameworks (the Multiple-Streams, Punctuated-Equilibrium, and Political Frame) to explore the rise of restructuring on Kentuckys policymaking agenda, its most contentious issue (separation of community college governance from the University of Kentucky), and how the conflict engendered by this issue was resolved. Use of rigorous investigative methods and theoretical frameworks resulted in understandings of not only what drove the policymaking effort but also the strategies that enabled the initiative to rise on Kentuckys policymaking agenda and to be enacted. The study concludes: (1) the presence of a policy entrepreneur increases the likelihood of a strong change effort (and to its success if that entrepreneur is the governor); (2) issue definition, or redefinition, is key to reform efforts; and (3) while prior higher education policy studies and K-12 reform may soften up and prepare the policy community for discussions of reform, they have not been shown to affect the proposal development or enactment phases of a higher education restructuring initiative. Additional insights emerged from looking at the Kentucky case, informed by those of Kentucky Education Reform Act (KERA) before it, and of similar initiatives in Ohio and Illinois. This review suggests: 1. The impetus and leadership for significant change to a higher education system will likely arise externally versus internally 2. Redefining the issues of higher education in a way that changes participants perspectives and positions is an important factor in building support and opposition to an initiative. 3. Restructuring efforts, either intentionally or unintentionally, will ultimately have to address perceived and/or real power imbalances among institutions and between institutions and state agencies. 4. Redistributing power within a higher education system constitutes a change, but not necessarily an improvement to the system. The study concludes that opportunity data, research, and rational arguments to inform policy development from academia to inform and influence elected officials occurs very early in the start of a reform initiative or even years prior. It also finds the opportunity for influence diminishes as debate over policy alternatives and enactment increases. This suggests reluctance on the part of academia to include elected officials in the issues of the campus may reduce opportunities for data, research and rational arguments to influence the opinions, policies, and decisions of elected leaders. The study recommends: (1) that academia should become more engaged, on a substantative and continuing level, with elected leaders, and (2) that researchers focus on how elected leaders form their ideas on higher education and how these influence and result in policy and political positions.

Communities on Canada’s east and west coasts have experienced profound changes as a result of environmental and economic restructuring associated with the decline of traditional resource-based industries, principally fishery, forestry and mining. This restructuring has resulted in social changes with potentially major implications for the health and well-being of individuals and communities. Coasts under Stress (CUS) examines the effects of restructuring on coastal communities in British Columbia and Newfoundland and Labrador. Within the CUS project, this study examines the relationship between socio-economic restructuring and health in four BC coastal communities―Port Hardy, Prince Rupert, Tofino and Ucluelet―by a community health survey and in-depth interview studies. The survey which was conducted in the summer of 2002 (N=1,204), collected information on individual health status and stress levels, lifestyles, socio-demographics, social capital and social cohesion in the four communities. Follow-up in-depth interviews were conducted with 41 survey respondents and an additional 25 key informants in early 2003 to explore the factors influencing people’s ability to cope with the impacts of restructuring on individual and community health. The findings of the survey analyses indicate that: the communities lag behind the province of BC and Canada as a whole in terms of self-reported health status; health status differs significantly among the communities as do recent changes in health status and stress level; the main predictors of general and emotional health status and stress are a healthier lifestyle and higher socio-economic status (SES), along with a higher level of community satisfaction. Combining the results from the in-depth interviews and the survey, it is clear that differences in health status are plausibly attributable to restructuring processes and major events in each community. There is a clear linkage between economic downturn and poorer health in the interview study. Furthermore, the interview and survey analyses reveal factors that may affect the vulnerability or resilience of individuals and communities. Employment opportunities are central to the vitality of communities and the quality of life of their residents, and are key factors related to individual and community resilience or vulnerability. The study concludes that socio-economic restructuring has had an impact on the health of BC coastal communities and their residents in the last two decades, especially in the last ten years. While traditionally resource-dependent industries have declined, the emergence of new alternative economic activities has not been strong enough in the coastal communities to withstand the economic downturn brought about by the restructuring process that has increased employment stress for both residents and their communities. Employment stress resulted in poorer health for residents vulnerable to the economic changes, such as people who have lost jobs, who lack social/family support, and who possess low SES. Such employment stress has also affected community health in vulnerable communities, like Prince Rupert and Port Hardy, which have experienced population decline, family break-ups and a variety of social problems. This study adds to the growing population health and health geography literature on the social determinants of health with specific application to advancing the understanding of the complex relationships between socio-economic change in coastal communities and the health and well-being of their residents. The research demonstrates the value of combining quantitative and qualitative methods as complementary approaches to the study of community and individual health. From a policy and planning perspective, the findings inform the debate on factors fostering resilience to restructuring in communities.

No description available.

Thesis (M.H.S.A.)--University of Michigan, 1984.

Thesis (M.H.S.A.)--University of Michigan, 1984.

The population decline and the rural restructuring of the Swedish countryside has been an issue for the last decades. The restructuring of rural areas had led to the migration of young people that leave the countryside for education and work, and a wider supply of culture and activities in the growing metropolitan regions. Rural areas have difficulty competing with the labour markets in urban areas and larger cities that can offer to a wider range of job opportunities. The rural restructuring has led to that municipalities in these areas face various kinds of challenges, such as an elderly population and big strains on the welfare system. The tourism industry has grown into one of the largest businesses of the world, and it continue to expand. The global development of the tourism and recreation brings increased share of employment rate and increased GDP. Likewise, tourism in Sweden has shown a strong growth and many people also argue that the tourism industry can be the future of many rural areas. As employment is one of the main reasons for migration, increased tourism may affect the population growth in these areas. The rural areas in Sweden need to attract young people to move, and stay, to these areas to make the demographic distribution more balanced. There are some rural areas in Sweden that are known as tourism-related areas and the purpose with this thesis is to examine whether this tourism areas have a more positive population development than other rural municipalities. This thesis is based on a quantitative method and includes information about the Swedish municipalities in aim to examine the differences and development since the year 2000.

This study is meant to replicate research by O’Toole (1997), investigating the effectiveness of Rational Emotive Behavioural Therapy (REBT), and REBT combined with REST, in reducing and treating social anxiety disorder (SAD). The present study used a counselling programme grounded in REBT and/or REST to re-examine the effects of REBT and/or REST on treating SAD in college students in a Saudi Arabian university. An experimental pre-test, post-test, control group design was utilised, and quantitative and content analysis data were collected and analysed using O’Toole’s measures after being ‘Arabicised’ and standardised. Social anxiety was measured using the Interaction Anxiousness Scale and the Shyness Scale. Seventy-five volunteers, who were undergraduate students at King Abdul Aziz University, participated in the study. The measures were used in placing the clients in their respective groups in the empirical study and for comparing pre-testing data with post-testing and follow-up results. Findings indicated that both treatments of REBT-only and REST plus REBT proved effective in the reduction of prior irrational beliefs, considering their reduced irrational thinking scores at the advanced stages of the study. That notwithstanding, follow-up post-comparison analyses confirmed that REST plus REBT therapy is more effective than REBT only. Content analysis data derived from the reflections and cognitions of the participants yielded findings that support and integrate with the results obtained from the quantitative study, which involved the use of numerical scales. The findings were later compared and contrasted with the basal study findings and in congruence with prior research reviewed. Finally, the present study recommended that REBT should be supported by REST to gain more effective psychotherapeutic results with SAD patients by efficaciously reducing their irrational beliefs. The study also recommended conducting future research to tap into the relationship between religiosity and REBT, harnessing REBT/REST counselling programmes.