近期許多針對中國大陸的研究顯示，關聯交易除了是一個重要的盈餘管理工具外，也同樣是控制股東挹注與挪用公司資源的主要手段，此外中國與關聯方有關的資訊披露規定在近年來也有非常明顯的變化。基於前述兩項原因，本文首先整理相關法規的延革，接著引用一家上市企業的年度報告做為個案分析。此項個案分析的結果顯示上市公司很可能因控制股東的安排，而將資源輸往與控制股東有關的關聯方或形式上獨立的非關聯方。換言之，控制股東可藉隱匿關聯交易資訊或關聯交易隱形化的方式進行對上市企業的掏空行為。 / Recently, many studies have shown that related party transaction in China is an important tool of earnings management, and it also has been approved to be a primary mean for controlling shareholders propping up or tunneling the company. Therefore, because of the two reasons given above, the thesis studies and systematizes changes of related party disclosure requirements in China, and does analysis on a selected listed company’s annual report as an example of related party transaction disclousure. The analysis finds that, through related party transactions, controlling shareholder may tunnel the listed company and benefit the selected parties which are directly or indirectly controlled by controlling shareholder. That is, controlling shareholder can tunnel through invisible related party transactions or through concealment of transaction information from stakeholders.

When biological information about an individual is produced in healthcare or research settings, ethical questions may arise about whether the individual herself should be able to access it. This thesis argues that the individual’s identity-related interests warrant serious attention in framing and addressing these questions. Identity interests are largely neglected in bioethical, policy and legal debates about information access – except where information about genetic parentage is concerned. Even there, the relationship between information and identity, and the interests involved, remain unclear. This thesis seeks to fill this conceptual gap and challenge this exceptionalism. It does so by developing a normative account of the roles that a wide range of information about our health, bodies and biological relationships – ‘personal bioinformation’ – can play in the construction of our self-conceptions. This account is developed in two steps. First, building on existing philosophical theories of narrative self-constitution, this thesis proposes that personal bioinformation has a critical role to play in the construction of identity narratives that remain coherent and support us in navigating our embodied experiences. Secondly, drawing on empirical literature reporting individuals’ attitudes to receiving three categories of personal bioinformation (about donor conception, genetic disease susceptibility, and neuroimaging-based psychiatric diagnoses), the thesis seeks to illustrate, demonstrate the plausibility of, and to refine this theoretically-based proposition. From these foundations, it is argued that we can have strong identity-related interests in whether and how we are able to access bioinformation about ourselves. The practical implications of this conclusion are then explored. It is argued that identity interests are not reducible to other interests (for example, in health protection) commonly weighed in information disclosure decisions. They, therefore, warrant attention in their own right. An ethical framework is developed to guide delivery of this. This framework sets out the ethical responsibilities of those who hold bioinformation about us to respond to our identity interests in information disclosure practices and policies. The framework is informed by indications from the illustrative examples that our interests engaged as much by how bioinformation is communicated as whether it is disclosed. Moreover, these interests are not uniformly engaged by all bioinformation in all circumstances and there is potential for identity detriment as well as benefit. The ethical framework highlights the opportunities for and challenges of responding to identity interests and the scope and limits of potential disclosers’ responsibilities to do so. It also makes recommendations as to the principles and characteristics of identity-supporting disclosure practices.

Submitted by Ana Elisa Gonçalves Pereira (anaelisagpereira@gmail.com) on 2016-07-15T20:58:30Z No. of bitstreams: 1 tese_biblio.pdf: 1099623 bytes, checksum: 3fae0f61b515374855a0c7773cd4cb47 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Suzinei Teles Garcia Garcia (suzinei.garcia@fgv.br) on 2016-07-18T12:03:10Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 tese_biblio.pdf: 1099623 bytes, checksum: 3fae0f61b515374855a0c7773cd4cb47 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2016-07-18T13:39:54Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 tese_biblio.pdf: 1099623 bytes, checksum: 3fae0f61b515374855a0c7773cd4cb47 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2016-06-24 / There are several economic situations in which an agent’s willingness to take a given action is increasing in the amount of other agents who are expected to do the same. These kind of strategic complementarities often lead to multiple equilibria. Moreover, the outcome achieved by agents’ decentralized decisions may be inefficient, leaving room for policy interventions. This dissertation analyzes different environments in which coordination among individuals is a concern. The first chapter analyzes how information manipulation and disclosure affect coordination and welfare in a bank-run model. There is a financial regulator who cannot credibly commit to reveal the situation of the banking sector truthfully. The regulator observes banks’ idiosyncratic information (through a stress test, for example) and chooses whether to disclose it to the public or only to release a report on the health of the entire financial system. The aggregate report may be distorted at a cost – higher cost means higher credibility. Investors are aware of the regulator’s incentives to conceal bad news from the market, but manipulation may still be effective. If the regulator’s credibility is not too low, the disclosure policy is state-contingent and there is always a range of states in which there is information manipulation in equilibrium. If credibility is low enough, the regulator opts for full transparency, since opacity would trigger a systemic run no matter the state. In this case only the most solid banks survive. The level of credibility that maximizes welfare from an ex ante perspective is interior. The second and the third chapters study coordination problems in dynamic environments. The second chapter analyzes welfare in a setting where agents receive random opportunities to switch between two competing networks. It shows that whenever the intrinsically worst one prevails, this is efficient. In fact, a central planner would be even more inclined towards the worst option. Inefficient shifts to the intrinsically best network might occur in equilibrium. When there are two competing standards or networks of different qualities, if everyone were to opt for one of them at the same time, the efficient solution would be to choose the best one. However, when there are timing frictions and agents do not switch from one option to another all at once, the efficient solution differs from conventional wisdom. The third chapter analyzes a dynamic coordination problem with staggered decisions where agents are ex ante heterogeneous. We show there is a unique equilibrium, which is characterized by thresholds that determine the choices of each type of agent. Although payoffs are heterogeneous, the equilibrium features a lot of conformity in behavior. Equilibrium vii thresholds for different types of agents partially coincide as long as there exists a set of beliefs that would make this coincidence possible. However, the equilibrium strategies never fully coincide. Moreover, we show conformity is not inefficient. In the efficient solution, agents follow others even more often than in the decentralized equilibrium. / No estudo da economia, há diversas situações em que a propensão de um indivíduo a tomar determinada ação é crescente na quantidade de outras pessoas que este indivíduo acredita que tomarão a mesma ação. Esse tipo de complementaridade estratégica geralmente leva à existência de múltiplos equilíbrios. Além disso, o resultado atingido pelas decisões decentralizadas dos agentes pode ser ineficiente, deixando espaço para intervenções de política econômica. Esta tese estuda diferentes ambientes em que a coordenação entre indivíduos é importante. O primeiro capítulo analisa como a manipulação de informação e a divulgação de informação afetam a coordenação entre investidores e o bem-estar em um modelo de corridas bancárias. No modelo, há uma autoridade reguladora que não pode se comprometer a revelar a verdadeira situação do setor bancário. O regulador observa informações idiossincráticas dos bancos (através de um stress test, por exemplo) e escolhe se revela essa informação para o público ou se divulga somente um relatório agregado sobre a saúde do sistema financeiro como um todo. O relatório agregado pode ser distorcido a um custo – um custo mais elevado significa maior credibilidade do regulador. Os investidores estão cientes dos incentivos do regulador a esconder más notícias do mercado, mas a manipulação de informação pode, ainda assim, ser efetiva. Se a credibilidade do regulador não for muito baixa, a política de divulgação de informação é estado-contingente, e existe sempre um conjunto de estados em que há manipulação de informação em equilíbrio. Se a credibilidade for suficientemente baixa, porém, o regulador opta por transparência total dos resultados banco-específicos, caso em que somente os bancos mais sólidos sobrevivem. Uma política de opacidade levaria a uma crise bancária sistêmica, independentemente do estado. O nível de credibilidade que maximiza o bem-estar agregado do ponto de vista ex ante é interior. O segundo e o terceiro capítulos estudam problemas de coordenação dinâmicos. O segundo capítulo analisa o bem-estar em um ambiente em que agentes recebem oportunidades aleatórias para migrar entre duas redes. Os resultados mostram que sempre que a rede de pior qualidade (intrínseca) prevalece, isto é eficiente. Na verdade, um planejador central estaria ainda mais inclinado a escolher a rede de pior qualidade. Em equilíbrio, pode haver mudanças ineficientes que ampliem a rede de qualidade superior. Quando indivíduos escolhem entre dois padrões ou redes com níveis de qualidade diferentes, se todos os indivíduos fizessem escolhas simultâneas, a solução eficiente seria que todos adotassem a rede de melhor qualidade. No entanto, quando há fricções e os agentes tomam decisões escalonadas, a solução eficiente difere ix do senso comum. O terceiro capítulo analisa um problema de coordenação dinâmico com decisões escalonadas em que os agentes são heterogêneos ex ante. No modelo, existe um único equilíbrio, caracterizado por thresholds que determinam as escolhas para cada tipo de agente. Apesar da heterogeneidade nos payoffs, há bastante conformidade nas ações individuais em equilíbrio. Os thresholds de diferentes tipos de agentes coincidem parcialmente contanto que exista um conjunto de crenças arbitrário que justifique esta conformidade. No entanto, as estratégias de equilíbrio de diferentes tipos nunca coincidem totalmente. Além disso, a conformidade não é ineficiente. A solução eficiente apresentaria estratégias ainda mais similares para tipos distintos em comparação com o equilíbrio decentralizado.

Social Network Site (SNS) users’ disclosed personal information is beneficial for marketers, as targeted advertising can be provided accordingly. This study identifies the three privacy concepts of concerns, attitudes and intentions, along with culture (i.e. Hofstede’s masculinity) to be key drivers of users’ self-disclosure on SNSs. Hence, this study evaluates these antecedents and their potential effect on self-disclosure, considering Facebook as the SNS of choice. To account for potential cross-cultural differences, data has been gathered via two online questionnaires, resulting in one German and one Norwegian sample of respondents. Multiple regression analyses were carried to evaluate the antecedents of self-disclosure and one-way ANOVA to examine potential differences amongst Germans and Norwegians. Results indicate that privacy intention is the strongest predictor of self-disclosure on SNSs; whereas privacy concerns and attitudes only reveal an indirect effect on self-disclosure. In addition, significant differences have been found for all of the constructs, indicating that there exist fundamental differences between Germans and Norwegians with regards to their cognitive processing behind personal information disclosure on SNSs.

Esse estudo investigou se as notas explicativas às demonstrações financeiras, preparadas de acordo com as International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS), cumprem seu objetivo principal de fornecer informações úteis a investidores e credores no mercado brasileiro. A análise foi desenvolvida a partir de dados obtidos junto a usuários externos, investidores e credores, de informações financeiras divulgadas em notas explicativas às demonstrações financeiras de companhias abertas brasileiras, listadas na BM&FBovespa, no período de 1º de outubro de 2013 a 28 de fevereiro de 2014. Foram identificadas, também, as opiniões de preparadores de informações financeiras e contrapostas às dos usuários externos quanto às características da informação financeira útil, emanadas do The Conceptual Framework for Financial Reporting IASB (2010); foi ainda analisada a influência do processo adotado pelo IASB para definir requerimentos de divulgação incluídos em suas normas e pronunciamentos contábeis associado à confiabilidade trazida por auditores independentes (Big four) quanto ao enforcement à aderência a esses requerimentos, no âmbito da utilidade da informação financeira. De forma geral, os resultados indicaram que as notas explicativas às demonstrações financeiras atingem parcialmente seu objetivo principal de fornecer informações úteis a investidores e credores no mercado brasileiro, uma vez que preparadores da informação financeira norteiam-se pelos requerimentos de divulgação definidos nos IFRS de forma bastante literal, inclusive com auxílio de disclosure check list, propiciando a inclusão de informações imateriais em notas explicativas devido à ausência de orientação específica sobre determinação de materialidade nas normas do IASB. / In this study we have examined whether the explanatory notes to financial statements prepared in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) achieve their main objective of providing useful information to investors and creditors in the Brazilian market. The analysis was based on data obtained from external users, investors and creditors with respect to financial information disclosed in the explanatory notes of financial statements of Brazilian public companies listed on the BM&FBovespa, during the period from October 1, 2013 to February 28, 2014. It was identified the opinions of the preparers of financial information and compared them with those of external users regarding the characteristics of useful financial information described in The Conceptual Framework for Financial Reporting IASB (2010). It was also analyzed the influence of IASB´s process to define the disclosure requirements in their accounting standards and pronouncements, together with the reliability resulting from independent auditors (Big Four) regarding the enforcement of compliance with these requirements, as they relate to the usefulness of financial information. Overall, the results revealed that the explanatory notes to the financial statements partially achieve their main goal of providing useful information to investors and creditors in the Brazilian market, since preparers of financial information are guided by the disclosure requirements defined in the IFRS quite literally, sometimes with the assistance of a disclosure checklist, resulting in the inclusion of immaterial information in the notes, due to the lack of specific guidance in the IFRS regarding materiality.

Philosophiae Doctor - PhD / All research involving human subjects should be conducted in accordance to the general ethical principles of autonomy or respect for persons, beneficence and justice. Competent adults can exercise their autonomy and can choose to take on risk for the sake of others, therefore are able to protect their own interests while in the pediatric research the ‗best interests of the child‘ takes precedence over autonomy. In other words giving informed consent in the pediatric context, is not ‗who decides‟ but „what is the best decision for the child‟. Due to lack of consensus gold standard to guide researchers and assess the quality of parental informed consent in Botswana, the practical and ethical challenges posed in obtaining parental informed consent for child enrolment in pediatric HIV clinical trials were examined. The study aimed to determine the readability of the consent forms used in pediatric HIV clinical trials; assess communication methods, practices and perceptions of the trial staff regarding the informed consent process; assess the extent to which parents recall and understand the information disclosed to them and their satisfaction with the informed consent process as well as to identify and describe the reasons for parental approval to child enrolment into HIV clinical trial studies.

The Internet of Things (IoT) has been acknowledged as one of the most innovative forms of technology since the computer, because of the influence it can have on multiple sectors of physical and virtual environments. The growth of IoT is expected to continue, by 2020 the number of connected devices is estimated to reach 50 billion. Recent developments in IoT provide an unprecedented opportunity for personalised services and other benefits. To exploit these potential benefits as best as possible, individuals are willing to provide their personal information despite potential privacy breaches. Therefore, this paper examines factors that influence the willingness to disclose personal information in the use of IoT in South Africa (SA) with the use of the privacy calculus as the theoretical underpinnings of this research. The privacy calculus accentuates that a risk-benefit trade off occurs when an individual decides to disclose their personal information, however, it is assumed that there are more factors than perceived risks and perceived benefits that influence information disclosure. After analysing previous literature, this study identified the following factors; information sensitivity, privacy concerns, social influence, perceived benefits, (perceived) privacy risks and privacy knowledge as possible key tenants in relation to willingness to disclose personal information. This research took on an objective ontological view, with the underlying epistemological stance being positivistic. The research incorporated a deductive approach, employing the use of a conceptual model which was constructed from a combination of studies orientated around privacy, the privacy calculus and the privacy paradox. Data for this research was collected using the quantitative research approach, through the use of an anonymous online questionnaire, where the targeted population was narrowed down to the general public residing within SA that make use of IoT devices and/or services. Data was collected using Qualtrics and analysed using SmartPLS 3. SmartPLS 3 was used to test for correlations between the factors which influence information disclosure in the use of IoT by utilising the complete bootstrapping method. A key finding was that the privacy paradox is apparent within SA, where individuals pursue enjoyment and predominantly use IoT for leisure purposes, while individuals are more likely to adopt self-withdrawal tendencies when faced with heightened privacy concerns or potential risks.

För många företag är det av intresse att kommunicera med ett flertal olika intressenter och för framförallt yngre bolag, som befinner sig i en tillväxtfas, kan det vara av stor vikt att kommunicera och nå ut till omvärlden på rätt sätt för att kunna växa och utvecklas i en positiv riktning. Just ett företags kommunikation med dess finansiella intressenter brukar benämnas investerarrelationer (IR), vilket till största del inbegriper att informera företagets intressenter om dess verksamhet och marknadsföra bolaget mot kapitalmarknaden. Även om det finns ett tydligt syfte till varför ett företag bedriver ett aktivt IR-arbete, kan det vara svårt att följa upp och utvärdera om arbetet har resulterat i de effekter som eftersträvas. För många företag saknas därför ofta en tydlig strategi och målbild för IR-arbetet samtidigt som det kan vara något som inte prioriteras på grund av begränsade ekonomiska och tidsmässiga resurser. Genom att undersöka de effekter som företag upplever av IR-arbete, skapas därför en bredare förståelse för hur arbetet bör prioriteras. Med detta som bakgrund är syftet med den här studien att undersöka och analysera vilka effekter svenska tillväxtbolag kan uppleva av strategiskt IR-arbete. Därtill syftar studien till att undersöka och analysera vilka specifika IR-aktiviteter som kan härledas till de upplevda effekterna samt vilka avvikelser som råder mellan upplevda effekter och IR-arbetets avsikter. Strategiskt IR-arbete definieras som det arbete relaterat till investerarrelationer som utförs utöver det lagen kräver av noterade företag. För att besvara studiens syfte och frågeställningar genomförs individuella intervjuer med svenska noterade små och medelstora tillväxtföretag samt IR-rådgivare. Totalt intervjuades åtta noterade företag och tre rådgivare. De upplevda effekter som har identifierats som följd av ett strategiskt IR-arbete består av ökad förståelse, ökat förtroende, ökat intresse och starkare relationer. Ingen koppling mellan specifika aktiviteter och specifika effekter observerades men vissa aktiviteter nämndes som särskilt betydelsefulla, vilka inkluderar investerarträffar, uppdragsanalys samt publicerande av information och förtydligande aktiviteter. De främsta avsikterna med IR-arbetet identifierades som ökad aktiehandel, bredare ägarbas, institutionellt ägande, uppfattas som ett seriöst bolag och rättvis värdering. Resultatet visar på en relativt tydlig överensstämmelse mellan IR-arbetets avsikter och de upplevda effekterna från arbetet. Dock föreligger en viss avvikelse i hur konkret intervjuobjekten resonerar kring IR-arbetets avsikter i förhållande till dess effekter. / For many companies, it is of interest to communicate with several different stakeholders. Especially for less mature companies who are in a growth phase, it can be of great importance to communicate and reach out to as many stakeholders as possible to grow and develop in an efficient manner. A company's communication with its financial stakeholders is usually referred to as Investor Relations (IR), which mainly consists of informing stakeholders about the company's operations and marketing the company towards the capital market. Even if there is a clear purpose to practice IR, it can be difficult to follow up and evaluate whether the IR has achieved the effects that are aimed for. Therefore, many companies lack a clear strategy and target for their IR and it may not at the same time be an activity that has high priority, as a result of limited resources. By examining the effects that companies experience from IR, a broader understanding of how IR should be prioritized, compared to other issues within a company, will be obtained. With this background, the purpose of this study is to investigate and analyze which effects Swedish growth companies can experience from strategic IR. In addition, this study aims to investigate and analyze which effects that can be derived from different IR activities and which deviations that exist between the intentions of IR and the perceived effects. Strategic IR is defined as all work related to IR that exceeds what is legally mandatory for publicly listed companies. To fulfill the purpose of the study, semi-structured individual interviews will be conducted with Swedish listed small and medium-sized growth companies as well as IR advisors. A total of eight listed companies and three advisors were interviewed. The perceived effects that have been identified are increased understanding, increased trust, increased interest, and stronger relationships. No link between specific activities and specific effects has been observed, although certain activities have been mentioned as of especial importance which includes investor meetings, commissioned research, and publication of information and clarifying activities. The main intentions of IR have been identified as increased stock liquidity, broader ownership base, institutional ownership, being perceived as a serious company, and fair valuation. The result shows a relatively distinct connection between the intentions of IR and the perceived effects. However, there is a certain deviation in how explicit the interview subjects reason about the intentions of IR in relation to its effects.

As a result of new information technology and globalization, there has never before been a time when people have had better access to information, than nowadays. The potential overload of information builds the basis for the research questions of this cumulative dissertation, which relates to the extensively discussed 'disclosure overload problem'. Special focus is put on decision-useful information in voluntary reporting of capital market-oriented companies. In this context the first manuscript investigates the quality of information in voluntary strategy reporting and formulates qualitative principles. Based thereon, the second manuscript examines determinants influencing the quality of strategy reporting. The third manuscript is focusing on Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) reporting and investigates the relation of transparency in CSR reports and external assurance. The prior discussed topics as well as financial reporting and new reporting concepts, like integrated reporting, are put into context in the fourth manuscript. In this educational case study special emphasis is placed on the determination of material information, which is of high importance for future decision leaders.

在現今知識經濟的世紀中，智慧資本已成為企業獲取競爭優勢的關鍵要素。 隨著智慧資本愈來愈重要，許多企業也逐漸在年報或其他公開資訊的管道中，揭 露更多有關智慧資本的資訊。透過更多智慧資本資訊的揭露，為企業本身及投資 人、債權人間建立起彼此溝通的橋樑。 綜上所述，智慧資本的報導和揭露顯得日趨重要。相關智慧資本資訊的揭露 能使投資人及相關利害關係人更了解公司發展的潛力及價值。而過去的文獻指出 公司資訊揭露的程度會降低資金成本、提高公司股價、降低分析師盈餘預測誤差 等效益。資訊的揭露可以使投資人修正對公司價值的評價，有提高股票流動率等 效益。因此智慧資本揭露及報導能提昇財務報導的價值攸關性，適當地反應公司 真正的價值。因此，對公司而言應多揭露相關智慧資本資訊，以期為公司帶來相 關的效益。但是，哪些公司特性因素會影響智慧資本揭露程度及其是否會影響智 慧資本揭露程度和其效益間的關聯性亦是值得我們進一步探討。 若能透過一系列的分析，找出公司智慧資本揭露政策不足之處，相信能給公 司適當的建議，以符合市場上的需求，適當地揭露智慧資本，以期反應公司真正 的價值並提高公司價值。 本研究係以我國資訊電子業之上市公司為研究對象，蒐集相關資料以統計分 析方法進行，發現之結果如下： 一、公司智慧資本揭露程度和公司價值呈顯著正相關。 二、「公司規模」、「舉債程度」、「公司年齡」會顯著影響公司智慧資本揭露程度。 三、「公司規模」、「獲利能力」、「公司年齡」、「智慧資本降加價值係數(VAICTM )」 會顯著影響智慧資本揭露程度及公司價值間的關聯性。 / In this knowledge-based economy, intellectual capital is the key factor to help firms get its competitive advantage. As intellectual capital is more and more important, many enterprises gradually disclose IC-related information in annual reports or other ways. With more IC-related information disclosures, it could build a bridge to communicate between enterprises, investors, and creditors. To sum up the above-mentioned, intellectual capital disclosure and report is more and more significant with time. IC-related information discourses can make investors and stakeholders understand the value and potential of the company much more. Prior research indicates disclosing information could reduce the average cost of capital and increase company’s stock value and reduce analyst forecast errors. Information disclosure can make investors revise upward valuations of the company’s stocks and increase stock liquidity. Therefore, for companies, they should disclose IC-related information in order to bring effects. But, which kind of company would affect IC-related information and affect the relation between IC-related information and its effects is also worth to investigate further. If we can find out deficiency of company’s IC-related information with above analysis, it will be believed to give some appropriate suggestions in order to match market’s needs. Disclosing IC-related information is aimed to react the company’s real value. In this study, collecting data and statistics analysis are used. The public firms in the electronic industry are the objects of the thesis. We fund that: 1. There is a positive and significant correlation between IC disclosure and market capitalization. 2. Company size, leverage, and age will affect IC-related information disclosure significantly. 3. Company size, profitability, age, and VAIC TM will affect the relation between IC-related information disclosure and its effects (market capitalization) significantly.