Purpose. Youth suicide and child abuse are major societal problems of the late twentieth century, with alarming rates of occurrence and significant negative effects. Prevention and treatment programs exist for students once they are identified as abuse victims or at high risk for suicide. However, the identification process is made difficult by the lack of discriminating signs and symptoms. Peers are often the first to hear about a friend's abuse or intent to suicide, but may not share that information with an adult. The purpose of this study was to determine whether exposure to information on reporting personal knowledge of abuse or suicidal intention affects the inclination of middle school students to report such knowledge to adults. Procedures. Three hundred and twenty three middle school students in public school classes in San Joaquin County (California) were included in the sample. A total of 14 classes (seven control and seven experimental) were used. A questionnaire (Peer Confidant Survey) developed to measure students' inclination to report peer disclosures was used in the study. During the study the questionnaire was administered three times to each classroom: pre-training, immediately following training and one month after completion of the training. The Peer Confidant training for the experimental group consisted of information on discrimination of disclosures, listening skills, training on whom to tell and what to tell, and discussion of what constitutes being a friend (not betraying a confidence versus reporting). Findings. Results of the study suggested that middle school students are already inclined to report knowledge of abuse and suicidal intent among their peers to adults. They also demonstrated the ability to discriminate between reportable and non-reportable disclosures. After exposure to the training program designed to increase inclination to report knowledge of abuse and suicidal intent, students appeared to temporarily increase their inclination to report knowledge of suicidal intent but not knowledge of abuse. No significant group differences were found among sixth grade, eighth grade, special education and gifted students. Implications of the study and areas for further research are discussed.

No description available.

For years, researchers have examined financial data in corporate earnings announcements and their influence on market participants. More recently, a body of research has been developing recognizing the impact of narrative disclosures and managers' deliberate language choices. However, no prior studies have investigated those language choices of managers which are likely unintentional in composing such narratives; language choices which, as previous research has revealed, escape conscious access. Using an empirically-grounded model which systematically classifies different predicates, I examined whether managers use systematic patterns of language when construing the earnings press release in a likely unintentional effort to channel or direct readers' attention. I found that managers write positive information using a more concrete construal than negative information. Additionally, I used experimental data to examine whether these systematic differences lead to different perceptions of the company and its value as an investment alternative. Nonprofessional investors performed an analysis of an earnings press release where I manipulated the valence of the narrative as positive or negative and the construal of the narrative as abstract or concrete. I found that these manipulations had an interactive influence on investment decisions. Specifically, investors were least likely to invest when a negatively valenced narrative was written concretely. I also found that the influence of the narrative on the investment decision was direct and not the result of the narrative influencing the investors' focus of attention on the accompanying financial statements. Additionally, I tested whether the investor judgments were due to intentional cognitive effects and found that the influence of the narrative on the investment decision was not conscious on the part of the investor. Lastly, I conducted an analysis of archival data to examine the relationship between managers' language use in forward-looking statements of the earnings press release and future firm performance and the extent to which the market responds to these linguistic clues. Results from the analysis suggest that construal is predictive of future firm performance and the market is incorporating this into pricing for firms that meet or beat earnings expectations.

No / This paper investigates the impact of corporate risk levels on aggregated, voluntary and mandatory risk disclosures in the annual report narratives of UK non-financial listed companies. We find that firms characterised by higher levels of systematic, financing risks and risk-adjusted returns and those with lower levels of stock return variability are likely to exhibit significantly higher levels of aggregated and voluntary risk disclosures. The results also show that firms of large size, high dividend-yield, high board independence, low (high) insider (outsider) ownership, and effective audit environments are likely to exhibit higher levels of aggregated and voluntary risk disclosures than other firms. Similarly, mandatory risk disclosures are influenced positively by firm size, dividend-yield and board independence and negatively by high leverage. The results suggest that managers of firms exhibiting greater compliance with mandatory regulations have a greater propensity to make voluntary risk disclosures. When we distinguish between high- and low-risk firms, we find that high-risk firms appear to be more sensitive to underlying risk levels, resulting in more disclosure of both voluntary and mandatory risk information than in the case of low-risk firms. The results generally support the present UK emphasis on encouraging rather than mandating risk disclosure. Nevertheless, under this regime, the voluntary risk disclosures of some firms, e.g., those characterised by higher-volatility market returns, do not reflect their underlying risk levels.

Stakeholders' risk assessments are increasingly emphasising the importance of considering the risks and opportunities posed by climate change. Therefore, TCFD has published recommendations to standardise and compare the reporting of climate-related issues. Prior research has demonstrated a low level of TCFD recommendation adherence. As a result, it is questioned what affects the scope of climate reporting according to TCFD and how the scope differs between companies. The study examines adherence to TCFD recommendations among 28 Swedish financial and real estate companies, finding that on average, they comply with most of the recommendations, but there is variability among companies. The study identifies areas where Swedish companies excel and where they need to improve. Larger companies are more likely to follow climate reporting practices, but the legitimacy theory may not apply to the current context. The relationship between debt levels and climate reporting is complex and requires more research. The proposed hypothesis that there is a correlation between adherence rate and financial performance was rejected. The study discusses promoting sustainable business practices and the link between four company specific characteristics and compliance with TCFD recommendations. The study's contributions can inform policy making, investment decisions, and corporate strategy, but the study has limitations. / Intressenternas riskbedömningar understryker alltmer vikten av att ta hänsyn till de risker och möjligheter som klimatförändringarna innebär. Därför har TCFD publicerat rekommendationer för att standardisera och jämföra rapporteringen av klimatrelaterade frågor. Tidigare forskning har visat en låg efterföljandegrad av TCFD:s rekommendationer. Som ett resultat av detta ifrågasätts vad som påverkar omfattningen av klimatrapporteringen enligt TCFD och hur omfattningen skiljer sig mellan bolag. Studien undersöker efterlevnaden av TCFD:s rekommendationer bland 28 svenska finans- och fastighetsbolag, och finner att de i genomsnitt följer de flesta av rekommendationerna, men det finns variationer mellan bolag. Studien identifierar områden där svenska bolag utmärker sig och där de behöver förbättras. Vidare undersöker studien vilka bolagsspecifika egenskaper som kan förklara graden av efterlevnad av rekommendationerna. Det konstaterades att större bolag är mer benägna att följa TCFD:s rekommendationer, jämfört med mindre bolag. Egenskaperna för miljöprestanda, skuldsättning och finansiell prestanda kunde dock inte förklara efterföljandegraden. Studien diskuterar främjande av hållbara affärsmetoder och kopplingen mellan fyra bolagsspecifika egenskaper och efterlevnad av TCFD:s rekommendationer. Studien kan bidra med underlag för policyskapande, investeringsbeslut och framtagandet av företagsstrategier, men studien har begränsningar.

The position of the whistle-blower is known to be a precarious one, with the whistle-blower often either regarded as a hero or a reprehensible traitor. Various pieces of legislation have attempted to remedy their precarious position, especially within the employment relationship, and in which the whistle-blower more often than not has the most to lose. The study at hand has the specific objective of comparing the position of the whistle-blower in terms of South African Law, against 16 specific measurables, and in comparison with the position of the whistle-blower in New Zealand, Australia (Victoria) and the United Kingdom. In the main, the protection offered to the whistle-blower within the South African context, is embodied within the Protected Disclosure Act 26 of 2000 (hereinafter referred to as the “PDA”).In examining the protection afforded to the whistle-blower in South Africa, it is concluded that the framework involved extends much further than just the mere provisions in the PDA. However, there are admitted challenges in respect of this framework as discussed, both legislative and non-legislative, especially in respect of duties of disclosures placed on persons in circumstances in which concurrent protection is not afforded to the whistle-blower. With reference to the comparison in respect of the measurement parameters set, it was found that the PIDA (UK) meets the least amount of the measurements set, with the PDA A (Australia, Victoria) meeting the most of the measurements; the PDA NZ is equally balanced in meeting and not meeting the measurements and the PDA meeting less of the measurements than not, but still meeting more than the PIDA. It was found that had it not been for the catch-all provision contained in section 4 (1) (b) of the PDA, the PDA would have ranked last. / Mercantile Law / LLD

Background and Problem: Sustainability reporting is a growing interest in today’s organizations and it is essential to report on non-financial matters. Many of the existing frameworks have been criticized for being used only of symbolical reasons which is why the concept of integrated reporting and the <IR> framework have been developed. One of the cornerstones in the <IR> framework is human capital which is one of the most valuable assets in an organization. Traditionally, employee costs have only been treated as an expense and there have been limited disclosures in corporate reports. In the current business world it is instead seen as an investment in human resources. Since previous studies have shown an increase of human capital disclosures when corporate reports become integrated, integrated reporting might be the solution to this problem. Purpose: The purpose of this study is to examine if there are differences in human capital disclosures between integrated reports and separate annual and sustainability reports in companies listed at OMXS30. Delimitations: This study’s empirical examination is limited to include the companies listed at Stockholm OMX30. Only corporate reports issued for the year 2014 are treated. Methodology: For this study a self-constructed disclosure scoreboard with human capital- related items has been used to collect data from the companies’ corporate reports. Also additional information beyond the pre-determined items has been collected to extend the data collection. Empirical Results and Conclusion: The results show that human capital seems to be a subject that is relatively little reported about. The integrated reporting companies do not disclose more information compared to non-integrated reporting companies. However, the results show that integrated reporting companies seem to have a more future-oriented focus and that the disclosures are more dispersed throughout the reports. It can be concluded that company sector and size do not affect the amount or type of information.

合理性理論認為，公司實際的環境績效必須與攸關公眾的期望一致，否則便出現合理性威脅。有合理性威脅的公司，必須向握有公司存續經營准駁權的攸關公眾揭露環境資訊，以合理化其永續經營的權利。為了探究管理當局公開環境揭露的誘因，本研究即根據合理性理論，以我國上市公司中合理性出現威脅的公司為對象，針對該等公司的年報環境揭露程度進行研究，探討攸關公眾之期望與公司年報環境揭露程度間的關係。 本研究之樣本係為60家過去環境績效表現不佳的上市公司，研究期間為民國89年，同時採用數量評估和品質評估兩種評分方式，在對資料之分配進行常態性檢定後，以Spearman等級相關和Mann-Whitney U test進行檢定。 實證結果顯示：（一）在敘述性統計方面，各公司均以「公開發行公司年報應行記載事項準則」所規定的應行記載事項為揭露架構，且多以表格或分點、逐項的方式進行說明，揭露項目雖然一致但揭露內容卻有各自表述的情形。若將數量和品質評估進行比較，染整業及染顏料業之揭露係以宣揚和美化性質的陳述為多，較少論及具體的環保措施，而石化業、化工業和鋼鐵業所揭露資訊的質和量則均高。（二）在假說檢定方面，年報環境揭露程度與平面媒體報導程度、公司規模、所有權結構成顯著正相關。食品、飼料及肥料業可能因為污染問題以及環保訴求略異於其他產業，故年報環境揭露程度顯著異於他業；石化業和化工業則可能因為長年積累的污染問題，使得攸關公眾關切甚殷，故受到合理性威脅的影響較大，其年報環境揭露程度亦顯著異於其他產業。綜合本研究的實證結果，以揭露品質進行的測試多為顯著正相關，較能支持合理性理論的推論，可見國內管理當局認為，當公司實際的環境績效不符攸關公眾之預期，在年報中採取較高程度的環境揭露品質能有助化解合理性威脅，以爭取公司之永續經營權利。 / Legitimacy itself has been defined by Lindblom（1994）as a condition or status which exists when an entity，s value system is congruent with the value system of the larger social system of which the entity is a part. When a disparity, actual or optional, exists between the two value systems, there is a threat to the entity，s legitimacy. Based on the social contract concepts described above, legitimacy theory posits that environmental disclosures（EDs） are made as reactions to disparities, which threaten the sustaining rights of corporations, between relevant publics， expectations and actual performance. In other words, corporations legitimize its existence through making EDs. This study，s objective was to investigate management，s motivations of publicizing EDs voluntarily based on the legitimacy theory. We sampled 60 listed companies which had unsatisfactory past environmental performance. We studied the relationship between their annual reports， ED levels and relevant publics， expectations. After coding these companies， EDs on their 2000 annual reports by using both quantity assessment and quality assessment, we tested hypotheses with Spearman rank-order correlation and Mann-Whitney U test. The results were summarized below. First, based on descriptive statistics, we found most companies， EDs were in compliance with the required disclosure items regulated by law. However, every company had its own interpretation of what each requirement really meant. Regarding the results of two methods of enumeration, the Dyeing industry，s quantitative disclosure levels were high but its qualitative disclosure levels were lower. Petroleum and chemical industries， disclosure levels were very high in terms of both methods. Second, hypothesis testing showed that annual reports， ED levels were positively correlated with the level of print media coverage, firm size, and ownership structure. In addition to food, feed and fertilizers industries, petroleum and chemical industries， ED levels were also significantly different from other industries. Additionally, the qualitative disclosure evidence presented more persuasive results than the quantitative one in our findings. The hypothesis that corporations facing more print media coverage on their environmental performance would legitimize their sustaining rights by making better quality environmental disclosures was supported.

近年來學者提出，企業若是要保有永續經營的能力，就必須兼顧環境與經濟。企業可透過「資訊揭露」，向社會大眾回應其對環境保護的重視。台灣目前對環境資訊揭露的規範多為消極、被動，而國內每年皆有許多企業違反環境保護法規，本論文將該等具有負面消息之公司的環境污染指標，與其年報環境資訊揭露程度，做一結合，進行環境資訊揭露趨勢及正面、負面資訊揭露情形的研究。 本研究之樣本為曾違反環保法規，遭各級政府處罰卻不服，向環保署提起訴願，經環保署決定訴願駁回的36家公開發行公司。採用內容分析法衡量各公司年報中，關於環境資訊揭露的程度（包含量與質兩種評估方式）；並以迴歸分析、成對樣本t檢定及Wilcoxon符號等級檢定，對假說進行檢定。 經過實證結果，獲致以下的結論： 1.就量的角度，各公司環境資訊揭露句數總和與年報所載受罰金額呈現顯 著正相關；但以質的角度，各公司環境資訊揭露總分數與年報所載受罰 金額之關係則不顯著。此可能為本研究權數設計的不適當所造成。 2.民國89年至民國91年，各公司年報中環境資訊揭露程度並無顯著差異。 研究期間長短、是否受特定事件影響都是造成此結論的可能因素。另從 持續性角度觀察，亦可能近年缺乏環保團體積極推動環境保護活動，及 主管機關的監督。 3.當公司面臨負面消息時，公司愈會揭露正面資訊以導正公司形象。當公 司發生影響環境的污染事件，為縮短利害關係人的期望差距並顧及公司 形象，勢必避談此負面資訊，愈是強調正面環境揭露資訊。 / There are many ways in which a company can communicate to stakeholders its responses to environmental concerns. One of the mode of communication could be in the form of annual reports. This study investigates the content of environmental disclosures in annual reports for 36 companies in Taiwan for the years 2000 through 2002. The objectives of my study are:（1）to determine whether the level of corporate environmental disclosures is associated with the level of environmental pollution.（2）to investigate if there are significant positive differences in disclosure between years.（3）to explore whether the companies tend to present information which is favorable to their corporate image. Results indicate that:（1）there is a positive correlation between the level of environmental pollution and the quantity of environmental disclosures.（2）the 2000-2002 time period didn’t produce a significant increase in environmental disclosures.（3）most of the companies elect to present only that information which is favorable to themselves.

Forskningsproblem          Under 2006 infördes en lagändring kring att ersättning till VD måste specificeras i tilläggsupplysningar i årsredovisningen. Reglerna infördes från politikernas håll för att se en mer återhållsam ersättning till VD och återupprätta de senaste årens minskade förtroende för näringslivet. Dock har åsikter riktats mot lagändringen som menar att den har motverkat sitt syfte och istället trissat upp ersättningen till VD. Syfte                                   Syftet med studien är att förklara om det finns ett samband mellan utvecklingen av ersättningen till VD och kravet på tilläggsupplysningar. Metod                                Studien har en kvantitativ utgångspunkt och en poolad ansats. Två hypoteser har härletts ifrån befintlig teori och tidigare forskning. Hypoteserna testades gentemot data inhämtad ifrån 573 årsredovisningar utspritt över tre år. Slutsats                              Ett signifikant samband har identifierats som säger att ersättningen till VD har ökat sedan 2006. Resultatet styrks av tidigare forskning och de teorier som studien bygger på. Målet med lagändringen har således misslyckats. / Problem                             In 2006, a change in the law was introduced regarding disclosure about CEO compensation. The CEO compensation now had to be specified in the disclosure. The law was introduced by politicians who wanted to restrain the CEO compensation, which had affected the business community negative. However, opinions made against the change in the law claim that it is counterproductive and instead of decreasing the compensation, the law has increased the CEO compensation. Purpose                              The purpose of the study is to explain if there is a connection between the development of the CEO compensation and the requirement of disclosures. Method                              The study is based on a quantitative method and a pooled approach. Two hypotheses were derived from existing theory and previous research. The hypotheses were tested against data collected from 573 annual reports, spread over three years. Conclusion                         A significant connection was found and it says that the CEO compensation has increased since 2006. The result is supported by previous research and theories that the study is based on. The aim of the legislative change has therefore failed.