Introduction: Current recommendations by National Institute of Clinical Excellence (Technology Appraisal 51) emphasise the need for future research to examine the effectiveness of CCBT across the age span. Kaltenthaler et al. (2008) recommended future research focuses on acceptability of CCBT through using ‘survey and intensive qualitative methods, include the process of initial engagement, continuation versus drop-out, and in those completing, satisfaction or regret undertaking CCBT’ (p.1528). The pilot study by McMurchie (2011) was the first to explore the acceptability and effectiveness of the CCBT package Beating the Blues (BTB) solely with older people. Using qualitative methodology, the aim of the current study was to explore the experiences of older people who, when participating in the pilot study chose to use BTB compared to those who chose to remain with their treatment as usual (TAU). The current study aimed to gain a deeper understanding of the acceptability of BTB as well as factors that influence decisionmaking in terms of uptake to BTB and discontinuation from BTB. Method: Individual semi-structured interviews were carried out with 20 older people who took part in the pilot study (McMurchie, 2011). Participants were in one of three groups, these were: BTB-completers, BTB-discontinuers and TAU. Transcripts were analysed using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) (Smith et al., 2009). Findings: Five master themes emerged from the interviews: Beating the Blues as a Process of Change; Relevance of Beating the Blues to Older People; Challenges of Using Beating the Blues; Motivation to Try Something New and Barriers to Beating the Blues at Time of Uptake. Conclusions: Overall, the master themes reflected the experiences of either “regaining control” or a sense of “hopelessness” when opting whether or not to use BTB in the first instance and to then continue with the treatment. Experiences of using BTB appeared to be linked to the outlook participants had about using a novel treatment with either a sense of hope or impending failure. Participants who chose BTB had a more positive outlook which impacted their ability to manage perceived challenges and work towards recovery. The sense of impending failure seemed to be linked to participants perceiving more barriers to using BTB and struggling to overcome these challenges, resulting in them either declining BTB or feeling they were not benefiting from BTB and therefore discontinuing it.

Subjective tinnitus is the perception of sound despite the absence of an external stimulus. This challenging sensory event affects millions of people per year. There currently is no cure for tinnitus, but there have been many different options researched to help patients manage its effects, albeit with varying efficacy. In a viral internet video, the Beating the Heavenly Drum maneuver, found in the Eastern practice of Qigong, was said to eliminate the perception of tinnitus for the participants. In this current study, the Beating the Heavenly Drum maneuver was compared to a sham maneuver and evaluated for effectiveness in relieving tinnitus. To be included in this study, participants had experienced tinnitus for at least 6 months and were not currently receiving other tinnitus care. Exclusionary criteria included a diagnosis of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, Traumatic Brain Injury, any neurological condition, whiplash, neck injury, or severe anxiety or depression, as determined by the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale. Participants completed a tinnitus case history form, Tinnitus Functional Index (TFI), Tinnitus Handicap Index (THI), and Visual Analog Scale (VAS) ranking the annoyance of their tinnitus. Participants were assigned to groups in an alternating fashion, with odd identifiers in Group 1 and even identifiers in Group 2. In Group 2, participants received the experimental maneuver (Beating the Heavenly Drum) during the first session and the sham maneuver (circles rubbed at the base of the skull) during the second. In Group 1, participants received a sham maneuver during the first session and the experimental maneuver during the second session. Within 48 hours after each session, participants completed the TFI, THI, and rated the annoyance of their tinnitus on a scale of 0 to 10 (keeping the same parameters from the VAS) via phone call. Of the twelve participants, two reported that the experimental maneuver, Qigong, was effective for tinnitus relief; while five reported the sham condition relieved their tinnitus. The remaining five participants stated that neither maneuver altered their tinnitus sensation. Across all participants, there were no significant difference scores on the THI, and only one significant difference score on the TFI. While participants reported some change in their tinnitus with either maneuver, none of the questionnaire measures corroborated their subjective report. Additionally, the sham maneuver was perceived as more effective than the experimental maneuver. The Qigong maneuver was not effective for tinnitus relief in this study. It should be noted that a limitation to this study is the small sample size. While this Qigong maneuver did not relieve tinnitus, there are other Internet tinnitus “cures” that should be investigated for their effectiveness in tinnitus relief. With the rise of the Internet and more patients searching for “quick fixes” to tinnitus, it is vital that clinicians provide appropriate education and research to best help patients manage their tinnitus.

Årets resultat är en av de viktigaste posterna som ett företag förmedlar i sin finansiella rapportering och tidigare internationella studier har funnit tecken på manipulation av resultaten för att precis slå olika resultatmål, så kallad target beating. Syftet med denna studie är att undersöka om ett liknande beteende finns på den svenska marknaden samt om något samband mellan signaler om target beating och aktieavkastning föreligger. Finansiella kvartalsdata från företag noterade på Nasdaq Stockholm från perioden 2011 till 2019 har undersökts och resultatet visar på att ett target beating-beteende för att göra positivt resultat förekommer på den svenska marknaden, medan studiens statistiska test inte kan utföras för tidigare års resultat och analytikers resultatprognoser. Marknadsreaktionen på target beating har undersökts i en eventstudie genom att ställa rapporterat årsresultat i relation till Jacob och Jorgensens (2007) proxy för icke-manipulerat resultat. En signifikant positiv avvikelseavkastning hittas hos företag som precis slagit sitt mål efter att ha manipulerat upp resultatet.

Call number: LD2668 .T4 1985 C49 / Master of Science

This paper tests a revenue catering theory under which investors have time-varying demand for revenue growth and managers will cater to this demand by delivering higher revenue when investors place a higher premium on revenue. I document the time-series variation in the "revenue surprise premium" - a proxy for investor demand for revenue growth, where the "revenue surprise premium" is measured as the earnings announcement period stock return response to good news in revenue after controlling for news in earnings. I investigate whether managers cater to the time-varying "revenue surprise premium" by meeting or beating market expectations of revenue. I find evidence consistent with revenue catering behavior. Firms are more likely to meet or beat analyst forecasts of revenue when the previous quarter's revenue surprise premium is high. I also find evidence that firms use aggressive revenue recognition practices when catering to investors. The results are most pronounced among firms in high-tech and health sectors whose revenue surprise premiums are higher relative to other sectors.

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This thesis examines the extent to which benchmark beating by Australian firms around the earnings level and earnings changes thresholds can be reliably interpreted as evidence of earnings management. A number of recent academic papers challenge the earnings management explanation for the observed kinks in the distribution of net Income. In response to this criticisms, this thesis is motivated to conduct tests of earnings management with a refined methodology of selecting a subset of firms immediately above the threshold that have a priori incentives to achieve the benchmark. This approach allows for investigations to focus on benchmark beating observations where earnings manipulations would be more prevalent and thereby provide a powerful test for the existence of opportunistic reporting. The paper uses a number of unexpected accruals measures including the Kothari et al. (2005) performance matched models. In testing the hypotheses, this thesis utilises two approaches which were; the regression approach and the test of difference of means approach. Based on a broad sample drawn from all listed Australian firms for the years 1995-2007, small profit firms and small increase firms with high price-to-sales ratio were found to have evidence consistent with opportunistic benchmark beating behaviour. Similar results are also documented for benchmark beating firms with low book-to-market (high market-to-book) ratio. This thesis also finds that firms with equity offering incentives who reported improvement in earnings display unexpected accruals consistent with earnings management. In addition, the accounting behaviour of firms which previously incurred a loss is consistent with earnings management explanation. Firms with long strings of earnings increases also appear to use accounting discretion in order to avoid earnings deterioration. Similarly, evidence of earnings management are also displayed by small profit firms which have consistently reported negative earnings. Finally, this thesis provides evidence that resolves the apparent paradox that benchmark beating is evidence of earnings management which is devoid of the statistical artefact argument posited by Durtschi and Easton (2005) and Durtschi and Easton (2008).

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