The adverse effect of small bank closures in the United States from 2007 to 2009 required $7 trillion from United States taxpayers to rescue the United States economy. This comparative case study explored the reasons that led to differences in efficiency in small banks in the United States and Ghana during the 2007 to 2009 period. This research was driven by the contingency theory, which states leaders perform well if they change their styles of leadership to suit the situation at hand. Semistructured interviews were employed to gather data from 20 senior and chief executives of small banks: 10 from the United States and 10 from Ghana. Data were formatted into matrices using the van Kaam method and then coded and organized into categories, which led to the identification of the 2 themes: (a) policies and practices and (b) reasons that contributed to the differences in efficiency between small banks in the United States and Ghana. The participants expressed concerns regarding the impact of increased regulations and bank reserves, and the resulting impact on the future of small banks. Findings from this study suggest that small banks that relaxed their mortgage qualification requirements during the 2007 to 2009 financial crisis had more losses compared to the small banks that did not. Additionally, findings from the United States and Ghana revealed small banks focusing on commercial loans had less losses compared to small banks investing in residential real estate. This study may contribute to social change by providing bank leaders with additional tools to prevent future bank failures and the confidence to make new commercial and residential mortgage loans, thereby creating jobs, lowering poverty, increasing income levels, and contributing to a more stable economy in which small banks operate.

Poor decisions and conflicts of interest by members of company boards of directors have been a factor in the dramatic rise in chief executive officer (CEO) compensation, resulting in a lower return on equity (ROE) for shareholders. The purpose of this correlational study was to examine the relationship between CEO compensation, CEO duality, and ROE after controlling for CEO age, CEO tenure, and firm size, as measured by total assets. Agency theory was the theoretical framework for this study. The study examined whether a statistically significant relationship existed between CEO compensation, CEO duality, and ROE, after controlling for CEO age, CEO tenure, and firm size. Archival data were collected and analyzed from a sample of publicly traded firms in the United States listed on the 2016 Standard & Poor's 500 Index. Hierarchical multiple regression techniques were used to test the relationship between variables. The results indicated that there was not a statistically significant relationship between CEO compensation, CEO duality, and ROE after controlling for CEO age, CEO tenure, and firm size. The study may contribute to positive social change by increasing the potential for board of directors' members to implement best practices, contributing to reduced shareholder conflicts, less litigation, higher ROE, and enhanced investor confidence benefiting emerging economies and local communities.

The first chapter analyzes the impact of macroprudential policies on bank systemic risk worldwide. Using data from 63 countries over 2001-2017, I find strong evidence that macroprudential policies are effective in reducing systemic risk at the country level. The effectiveness of macroprudential policies differs across countries in the sample. Macroprudential policies are more effective in reducing systemic risk in countries with more advanced economic development, with a higher degree of concentration in the banking sector, and with less stringent micro-prudential regulations. Bank-level evidence suggests that bank size matters. The impact of macroprudential policies on constraining bank systemic risk is more pronounced for large banks. Results are robust to the use of instrumental variables to address potential concerns, and to the inclusion of additional controls to account for the impact of alternate tools that might be used to foster financial stability. These results have policy implications for effective conduct of macroprudential policies. The second chapter examines the impact of macroprudential policies on private credit growth worldwide. Using data from 43 countries over 2001-2017, I confirm previous findings that borrower-targeted macroprudential policies (Loan-to-Value ratio and Debt-to-Income ratio) significantly reduce total private credit growth. Moreover, the impact of macroprudential policies on private credit differs across countries in the sample. Macroprudential policies negatively affect credit growth only in countries with less advanced economic development, with a lower degree of creditor protection, and without the existence of information sharing institutions. Results are robust to additional controls to account for the impact of alternate bank regulations and policies that might be used to constrain unsustainable credit growth. The third chapter examines the impact of loan loss provisions regulations on bank income smoothing. Using a sample of 2,380 banks from 107 countries over the period 1995-2016, I document evidence that stricter loan classification regulation reduces bank income smoothing through loan loss provisions, especially for big banks. However, I do not find such impact of loan provisioning regulation. I also find evidence that stricter loan classification regulation is effective at reducing bank income smoothing because it encourages banks to recognize loan loss in a more timely manner.

My dissertation contains three essays on short-selling, margin trading, and market efficiency. The first essay uses a unique exogenous event, the introduction of short selling in the Chinese stock market, to examine the direct link between idiosyncratic risk and short selling. Based on Shleifer and Vishny (1997), I hypothesize that idiosyncratic risk deters arbitrageurs with negative information from taking short positions in overvalued stocks. Consequently, the stocks with high idiosyncratic risk are more overvalued at the onset of the introduction of short sale and perform worse in the subsequent period. The second essay examines the impact of the introduction of margin trading and short selling in the Chinese stock market on market quality. The third essay examines the relationship between short selling and SEO discount under the SEC’s amendment to Rule 105. If the amendment is binding, the short-selling prior to seasoned equity offering (SEO) should correctly reflect negative information and promote price efficiency. Thus the winner’s curse problem during SEO process is reduced and the value discount of a SEO should be less

This dissertation is a comprehensive study of convertible-preferred-stock pricing and performance following issuance. It is the first major academic study that identifies significant abnormal performance of corporate contingent claims following issuance. The research utilizes both option-based contingent claims valuation models and econometric techniques to investigate the sources of superior investment performance of convertible securities as an asset class that has persisted for the past thirty years. Two main issues are examined: potential underpricing of convertible preferred stocks at issuance and their subsequent investment performance. Underpricing is examined based on a robust contingent-claims valuation model. Using two samples of convertible preferred stock offerings (24 issues, 12,051 observations and 69 issues, 28,831 observations respectively), the study provides evidence of statistically and economically significant underpricing at issuance that ranges from 2.9% to 1.4% and persists from the first day of convertible trading up to six months following issuance. Underpricing is invariant to convertible ratings and the exchange where the issues are traded. It is found, however, that, large and mid cap issues are more likely to be underpriced than small cap convertibles. Also, the offerings that are underwritten by non-reputable investment bankers are more likely to be underpriced than those underwritten by reputable investment bankers.

Chapter 1 examines the effect of property-type diversification in equity real estate investment trusts (REITs) from 1995 to 2006. A strong positive relationship is documented between property-type diversification and return on assets, return on equity, and Tobin’s Q. The diversification benefit comes from both the ability to select better performing property types in “hot” markets and the limited exposure to poorly performing property types in “cold” markets. Diversified REITs produce higher cash flows relative to equity as a result of a broader opportunity set; moreover, return on assets increases with the degree of diversification, which suggests significant shielding to property-type specific risk. Additionally, results indicate that diversified REITs operate and trade above their contemporaneous predicted values, which are calculated using imputed multipliers from specialized REITs. The evidence shows that the market is operating efficiently and has incorporated this information; diversified REITs Q ratios are significantly greater than specialized REITs. Chapter 2 uses a large sample of municipal bond closed-end funds to examine how tax liability affects seasonal trading. Optimal tax trading dictates that net tax liability be calculated after all trades. Investors’ net tax liability is held in a holding account of his or her choosing. This study investigates what happens when there is tax liability in excess of Safe Harbor, and tax holding accounts are liquidated to cover the payments. We find that there exists a pattern of negative returns and increased volume in the month of March that is unexplained by changes in yield. iii Chapter 3 examines the ex-dividend day effect for municipal bond closed-end. The proposed explanations for this phenomenon are tax effects, short-term trading and/or market microstructure effects. In this study I use a unique set of dividend distributions to provide additional evidence that ex-dividend behavior is related to taxation as well as short-term trading. The sample I use is comprised of dividends in nontaxable closed-end funds, which ordinarily are not subject to Federal Income Tax. However, there is an occasional distribution that is subject to capital gains or ordinary income tax. This provides a unique environment in which to study the ex-dividend price behavior of a fund while eliminating the need for comparisons across funds.

Entertainment, being such a lucrative market, receives fewer academic endeavors than most other types of tourism provision. The purpose of this dissertation is to investigate the entertainment destination experience via conceptualization, scale development, and empirical testing. Entertainment has been acknowledged as one of the driving forces of the global economy and received increasing scholarly interest in hospitality and tourism research. A mixed-methods approach was adopted to achieve the study purpose, consisting of three studies. Study 1 examined the concept manifestation of the entertainment destination experience. Visual and textual analytical techniques were employed to analyze 318 online reviews from TripAdvisor. Following the well-established scale development procedures, Study 2 included three phases to develop a scale for the entertainment destination experience by conducting 21 in-depth interviews and collecting 602 usable surveys. With a total of 373 valid responses, Study 3 examined the impact of the entertainment destination experience on emotions, memorability, destination satisfaction, and behavioral intention by employing the partial least squares structural equation modeling. This dissertation identified the core attributes of the entertainment destination experience. The multi-dimensional and formative nature of the entertainment destination experience was revealed. The current research identified six dimensions of the entertainment destination experience, consisting of hospitality, affective, cognitive, sensory, intellectual, and social entertainment. The study results uncovered the positive impacts of entertainment destination experience on emotions, memorability, destination satisfaction, and behavioral intention. Emotions and memorability were found to mediate the relationship between entertainment destination experience, destination satisfaction, and behavioral intention. This dissertation makes pioneering efforts to investigate the entertainment destination experience. The current study is one of the first attempts to manifest the conceptual attributes of the entertainment destination experience. Also, it is one of the first to go beyond a unidimensional perspective by exploring the multi-faceted nature of the entertainment destination experience. The findings shed light on the entertainment research in hospitality and tourism and advance the understanding of tourist experience by establishing a scale for entertainment destination experience. In addition, this dissertation adds new knowledge to entertainment literature and tourism and hospitality research by uncovering the impact of the entertainment destination experience on emotions, memorability, destination satisfaction, and behavioral intention. From a managerial perspective, the present study offers important practical implications for industry practitioners who aim to tap into the entertainment market. The findings highlight the core attributes and dimensions of the entertainment destination experience for destination policies and regulations. Employing the entertainment destination experience scale as a toolkit, destination managers are recommended to evaluate entertainment products and services to shape the tourist experience and improve the destination image.

Tourism consumption is a systematic aesthetic appreciation experience that combines human lives with extraordinary nature and culture. While the bridge linking aesthetics and tourism has significant potential of helping to explore how tourism contributes to human life, the study of aesthetics in tourism remains unclear and fragmented. To fill this research void, this study aims to cultivate a comprehensive understanding of the nature of aesthetics in tourism by exploring and defining a Chinese classical aesthetic concept – Yijing. Specifically, the objectives are to (1) explore the manifestation of aesthetics in tourism, (2) unveil the formation of Yijing through tourist gaze, (3) uncover the connotation of Yijing, (4) comprehend how Yijing contributes to human life, (5) delve into the formation of Yijing through social media gaze, and (6) examine the impacts of Yijing on intention to transformational changes. Guided by the realism paradigm and employing an exploratory sequential mixed-method approach, this dissertation initially undertook a two-phase qualitative study, performing netnography to explore both tourists' and online audiences' activities on a travel platform. The sample for the narrative analysis consisted of 35 content-rich travel blog posts (total word count: 776,993; total number of pictures: 11,924), along with corresponding comments (total word count: 9,541) and interactive responses from online observers. A quantitative study was then conducted to test the conceptual model developed based on the qualitative findings with a generalized population. The main study (n=395) was analyzed with PLS-SEM. Findings from the qualitative study suggested a Yin-Yang philosophical approach to understanding aesthetics in tourism, proposing a new way to define "Beauty" and "Ugliness." A two-stage framework of Yijing's formation (i.e., preparation and realization) and a three-level pyramid of Yijing's connotation (i.e., perceptual appreciation, transcendence, and Epiphany) were revealed. The three levels of Yijing ideally correspond to the three realms of people's outlook on life and trigger individuals' behavioral, psychological, and transformational changes. Findings from the quantitative study further validated the three levels of Yijing and its significant influence on self-transformation in a global setting. This dissertation bears valuable theoretical contributions to studying aesthetics in various disciplines and fields such as tourism, hospitality, education, psychology, and marketing from a unique Eastern philosophical perspective. It also yields insightful practical implications for organizations and practitioners to practice aesthetic placemaking.

Cryptocurrency is virtual money that is secured by digital information and cryptographic techniques, enabling fast and secure hospitality and travel transactions without risks of fraud, conversion costs, or certain transaction fees. Despite its potential benefits, customers are hesitant to adopt cryptocurrency for purchases. Prior literature mostly utilized technology acceptance models to conceptualize individual cryptocurrency adoption in hospitality and tourism, preventing an interdisciplinary comprehension of this phenomenon that integrates technology, finance, and e-commerce aspects. This dissertation aims to explore factors explaining individuals' intentions to use cryptocurrency for hospitality and tourism purchases and to develop a conceptual framework that generalizes adoption intention towards cryptocurrency. To achieve these objectives, a mixed-method approach was employed, involving 29 semi-structured interviews and 401 online surveys with cryptocurrency holders. The interviews were analyzed using thematic analysis to validate the proposed model's constructs and scales, while the online surveys were analyzed using structural equation modeling to test inter-construct relationships. Multigroup structural equation modeling estimations were also conducted to examine the moderation of personal innovativeness, risk propensity, and familiarity with cryptocurrency. The study revealed that performance expectancy, social influence, facilitating condition, price value, and perceived trust had positive impacts on usage intention while effort expectancy and stickiness to traditional payment were identified as barriers to customers' willingness to use cryptocurrency. The findings also showed that perceived ubiquity was determinant of perceived trust and performance expectancy, while perceived structural assurance predicted perceived trust and perceived risk. The study also confirmed the invariance in the relationships between adoption intention and its antecedents regardless of individuals' personal innovativeness, risk propensity, and familiarity with cryptocurrency. This dissertation provided valuable theoretical contributions to individuals' cryptocurrency adoption in hospitality and tourism from an interdisciplinary perspective, and practical implications for practitioners in these sectors and payment service providers to optimize their implementation of digital currency.

This dissertation consists of two essays on the topic of bidding in multi-unit common value auction. Essay one examines the role of capacity constraint on the auction results and bidding behavior. We consider a general case where bidders are unconstrained, and a second setting where bidders are capacity constrained. We document downward sloping demand curves for individual bidders. Bidders shade their bids by submitting quantity-price pairs and spreading their bids. The winner's curse is strong in the unconstrained treatment, but we find no evidence of the winner's curse when bidding constraints are imposed. Unconstrained bidders shade bids significantly more and their quantity-weighted prices are much lower than those in the constrained treatment. Interacting with the information structure, the capacity constraint has a significant impact on the auction results including the market clearing price, market efficiency, and the degree of market concentration. We provide evidence that efficient price discovery in multi-unit auctions with diverse information is possible, but careful attention to auction design will make this outcome more likely. Essay two examines how the introduction of a noncompetitive bidding option affects outcomes in a multi-unit uniform-price auction. The experimental design incorporates many of the characteristics of the markets that pertain to the issuance of new equity securities. Important features of the bidding environment include endogenous bidder entry, costly information acquisition, bidders that differ by capacity constraint, and substantial uncertainty with respect to the intrinsic value. We use a standard uniform-price auction as our baseline setting where only competitive bids are accepted. Our results show that introducing the noncompetitive bidding option improves auction performance by increasing revenue and reducing price error. Underpricing is found in both treatments, but is less severe in the presence of the noncompetitive bidding option. The incorporation of this option significantly increases both the small bidder participation rate and allocation, and reduces the incentive for small bidders to free ride by submitting extremely high bids. Under both treatments, information acquisition increases large bidders' profits but proves unprofitable for small bidders, and pricing accuracy is increasing in the rate of information acquisition.