This study extends previous work which attempted to describe why different managers use different accounting techniques (for financial reporting purposes only). The focus is accounting changes, specifically depreciation changes, both to and from accelerated methods. Seven hypotheses are proposed. Three of them predict a negative relationship between a manager's use of accelerated depreciation and (1) the firm's debt/equity ratio, (2) the existence of a bonus plan based on accounting income and (3) the potential impact of a depreciation change on earnings. These three hypotheses are referred to as H(D/E), H(BONUS) and H(IMPACT), respectively. The other four hypotheses predict a positive relationship between a manager's use of accelerated depreciation and (1) firm size, (2) the degree of voting control exercised by insiders, (3) the strength of current earnings relative to the preceding year's, and (4) industry-wide barriers to entry. These are referred to as H(SIZE), H(CTRL), H(EPS) and H(BTE), respectively. Designating accelerated as A and straight-line as S, the (tax/book) depreciation changes studied are the switch from S/S to A/A in 1954 and the switches from A/A to A/S in 1968 and 1969. All seven hypotheses were jointly tested with respect to the A/A to A/S changes in 1968 and 1969. The 1968 multivariate results indicate varying degrees of support for all the hypotheses except H(BTE), while the 1969 multivariate results support only H(D/E), H(BONUS) and H(SIZE). Only five hypotheses were jointly tested with respect to the change from S/S in 1954 (not H BONUS or H BTE ). Support is offered for H(SIZE), H(D/E) and H(CTRL), but not for H(EPS) or H(IMPACT). Further, the 1954 support is strongest when the 1968/1969 "switchback" firms are excluded from the analysis; that is, when the sample includes only firms which consistently used S as opposed to A for book purposes both before and after 1968-1969. Additional analyses used 1968 data for firms which switched from A/A to A/S in 1969. These "prior year" analyses reveal little new information except to suggest that the D/E ratio of the 1969 "switchers" rose significantly in 1969 from its 1968 level.

This study examines whether financial reporting, in its present state, complies with the modern farmer's need for efficient financial management. Although decision making is the ultimate outcome, the emphasis in this study is on the way the presentation and interpretation of financial reporting assist that outcome. The following issues are addressed to establish the usefulness of agricultural financial statements: (1) the nature and quality of current financial statements in agriculture (2) the stakeholders in need of financial management information (3) the methods used to acquire financial information for management purposes (4) new trends in the presentation of financial statements The following are some interesting facts emanating from the study: (1) Farmers must realise that they are principal users of their financial reports. (2) Financial decision making can only be done if financial statements are presented timeously, and are accurate and comprehensible. (3) Farm managers need to keep up with the changing financial and technological environment in which they operate. / Auditing / M.Comm (Accounting))

This study investigates whether mandatory adoption of International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) in Africa has a significant impact on earnings' quality, despite the prevalence of weak country governance. The International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) has identified the use of a common set of high-quality standards- the International financial reporting standards ( IFRS)- to enhance global accounting information quality, and promotes global adoption. However, research opinion on the impact of IFRS compliance, on earnings quality improvement is mixed and unresolved. Furthermore, little is known about the possible impact on earnings in firms located in Africa, where country governance quality is relatively low. Thus, this study targets African countries, and uses data from a general sample of 680 firms covering the period 2000 to 2012, to enrich the impact-of-global-IFRS-adoption debate, with African evidence. The study hypothesises that earnings quality differs between mandatory IFRS and domestic accounting standards(DAS) reporting periods in Africa. The research design involves a range of earnings quality proxies and the use of robust regression models. The study finds that relative to DAS, IFRS based earnings are: more persistent and closely associated with future period cash flows; less managed towards small profits and less smoothed. Also, the study finds more timely loss recognition and an increasing frequency of large losses recognition during periods of mandatory IFRS reporting. The results are robust to various additional tests and offer convincing evidence consistent with the hypotheses. These findings provide some direct evidence that mandatory adoption of IFRS is likely to improve earnings quality in some countries with weak governance. Thus, the study extends the literature on factors that influence earnings quality, and the impact of IFRS in countries with relatively weak governance. The research also informs firms, investors, country-level policy makers; and provides a lead for future investigation.

M.Comm. / Vision and mission are often incorrectly seen as synonyms. In this study the vision and mission are defined separately. A vision is defined as a dream of an ultimate goal of the organisation in the future. This must be a clear and specific image or word picture that requires imagination. The vision must become ideology and summarise the core values of the organisation. A mission is defined as the type of business that the organisation is carrying out. It says why the organisation has a right to exist and the immediate goal of the organisation. A vision and a mission have definite advantages for the organisation. Some of the advantages are an ultimate and an immediate goal to strive for. A vision helps employees to decide if its actions are correct or incorrect. A mission gives employees responsibility and the employees' performance can be measured against it. There are certain requirements a vision and a mission have to meet. The joined requirements are it must inspire, motivate and energise the employees. Secondly, management with the input of the employees must formulate it. Thirdly, the vision and the mission must be shared with all the employees to ensure goal concurrency. Fourthly, the vision and mission must be positive. Lastly, it must encourage employees to think long term. Vision specific requirements are it must be a leap in the future, specific and understandable to all the employees, unique and original, timeless, something worth the organisation's while, make sense in the market and create a environment of risk taking and experimentation. Mission specific requirements are it must describe the type of business clearly, must be in line with the external environment, state the right to exist, help with the allocation of resources, lead by the vision of the organisation and persuade employees emotionally to achieve the mission. The mission should include a ten to thirty year goal against which employees performance can be measured...

I explore the impact financial statement transparency has on the probability of restatement and the effect a restatement announcement has on the levels of future financial statement transparency. Information theory suggests that a strong information environment increases accounting quality. Using financial statement transparency as a proxy for the information environment, I find that transparency is associated with a lower probability of financial statement restatement. There are competing theories to predict how restatement announcements affect future levels of transparency. Skinner’s (1953) theory of operant conditioning, which states that behavior is modified based on positive or negative conditioning suggests that the level of transparency increases after a restatement announcement. However, expectancy theory suggests that firms engage in certain behaviors in order to derive expected rewards or incentives. Motivation is eliminated if the rewards are deemed unobtainable thereby eliminating managers’ incentive to improve their reporting strategy suggesting that the level of transparency decreases after a restatement announcement. I find that restatement announcement has a negative association with the transparency measure and the magnitude of this effect decreases over time compared to non-restatement firms. These results are magnified if the restatement is due to fraud. However, the changes are not significant. Further, the transparency associations are mitigated if there is a change in CEO after the restatement announcement. In addition, using a sample of firms that made a restatement announcement matched with a sample of firms that did not make a restatement announcement, the difference in the transparency measure before and after the restatement announcement is statistically insignificant. / Includes bibliography. / Dissertation (Ph.D.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2018. / FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection

Typescript, etc. / Digitized by Kansas Correctional Industries

No description available.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Texas at Austin, 2006. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references.

This article explores the use of presidential signing statements during the George W. Bush administration. Given the existence of united government for much of Bush's term in office, why could the Bush administration and Congress not reach agreements on issues where much common ground should have existed? Its principal argument contends that the administration's use of presidential signing statements constitutes a new and important tool in the executive's efforts to influence legislation and expand the powers of the presidency. The paper employs case study and interview-based research to explore why the Bush administration has chosen to pursue this unprecedented path.

Inaug.-diss.--Erlangen. / Lebenslauf. "Literaturverzeichnis": p. 93-98.