Research question- This thesis investigates the determinants of capital structure of the Swedish companies. In order to do so, the two dominant theories of the corporate structure are studied and their assumptions are tested. Thus, the study researches which one of the two theories is more appealing for the Swedish market. Methodology-The study follows a purely quantitative study, by conducting an econometric analysis. The data are collected from a secondary source and more particularly the "Retriever" database, which contains financial data of the Swedish companies. Findings- The findings indicate that the determinants of the corporate structure for the Swedish market do not differ from other studies which have been conducted in other countries. However, there is a difference when it comes to tax and non-tax shields. The results suggest that in most cases the Pecking Order Theory appears to be more representative for the Swedish market, since most of the coefficient appear to be in favour of it. Moreover, the significance of the effect of the industry for the financial leverage is confirmed.

台灣為外貿型及淺碟型經濟體，對外貿易依存度高，故國際匯率之變動對台灣企業之獲利能力影響深遠，而台灣上市櫃公司為台灣企業之縮影，外資持有國內上市櫃公司之市值平均已超過20%以上，國外資金之匯進匯出對股市之報酬亦形成重大之影響，而其匯進/出之誘因就是匯率之變動或預期變動率。本文擬就國內344家上市櫃公司獲利之代理變數個股股價報酬率之匯率暴露及其解釋或決定因子進行迴歸分析研究，發現有61%家數之公司有匯率暴露，且在新台幣實質有效匯率指數與台幣/美元不同匯率變動計算下產生不同結果，前者新台幣之升貶與企業獲利(成反比，而後者新台幣之升貶與企業獲利(或個股報酬率)成正比，前者應為企業外幣報價競爭力增加所致，而後者係國外資金流入/流出之誘因所產生之資金行情(效果)或負效果(無行情)所致。 在解釋或決定此匯率暴露之因子方面，本文嘗試以六個因子股利發放率、長期負債比率、外銷比率、速動比率、淨值市價比與公司規模來對匯率變動率之係數進行迴歸，結果各產業有不同程度之顯著性，某些因子甚至有很大之顯著性。而本文另亦進行共線性與時間落後效果測試與分析，證實前述六因子確實有一半存在彼此之共線性，而在時間落後效果上六因子亦顯示似有落後二期之效果存在。

This thesis is a subset of a larger “parent” project under the direction of my supervisor, Dr. Cecilia Benoit. The purpose of the larger project is to seize an unique research opportunity that has emerged with the development and implementation of the HerWay Home (HWH) program, a community-based initiative for pregnant and early parenting women who face substance use and other challenges in the Greater Victoria Area. My research has capitalized on the pre-implementation phase of the HWH program between 2010-2011. Thirteen in-person semi-structured interviews were conducted with women who would likely be clients for the HWH program, based on their pregnancy experiences, substance use concerns and other life challenges. The goal of this research has been to explore these women’s pregnancy and postpartum narratives and investigate what, in their view, should be crucial components of the HWH intervention in the short and longterm. My findings indicate that, consistent with the literature on pregnant and early parenting women facing substance use and other life challenges, a range of complex, intertwined disadvantages exist in their lives that translate into multiple barriers to accessing continuous health and social care during their pregnancy and after the birth of their child. An adapted model of the Health Lifestyle Theory is used to frame the analysis of the data collected from this research. The results from this research support the argument that the life choices of the participants are constrained by structural life chances and socially determined inequities that systematically disadvantage and disempower them. The findings also reveal an implicit sense of agency in the women’s narratives, as well as key specifics about what they view as the main gaps in care and their desired program services. The findings will be relayed to HWH organizers, and used to inform the development and implementation of the program’s services. / Graduate

Dans un contexte économique mondialisé, hyperconcurrentiel, en situation de crise, les entreprises initient des stratégies collectives (Astley et Fombrun, 1983). Les stratégies collectives (Le Roy, 2006) caractérisent des relations horizontales de grand nombre, au sein desquelles des concurrents créent une structure fédérative de coordination. Elles s’observent particulièrement sur des secteurs où évoluent de nombreuses PME, ces entreprises restant plus vulnérables aux forces de l’environnement et devant lier leur destin pour survivre. L’étude de cas du syndicat de vignerons du Pic Saint-Loup, qui a conduit à réaliser quarante-cinq entretiens semi-directifs, combinés à de l’observation directe confortée par une position de professionnel du secteur, a mis en lumière un certain nombre de résultats. D’une part, des déterminants psychologiques influent sur la capacité des dirigeants à s’impliquer dans des stratégies collectives. D’autre part, des groupes d’acteurs, dont les instigateurs de la stratégie, occupent une place centrale au sein du réseau de dirigeants et en retirent une performance économique supérieure. Enfin, concernant les modalités, principalement la gestion du paradoxe par le dirigeant impliqué dans la stratégie collective, l’analyse des phases de concurrence et de collaboration met en évidence une discontinuité des flux qui engendre un processus d’alternance de fonctions. / In a globalized economy and crisis context, companies initiate collective strategies (Astley and Fombrun, 1983). Collective strategies (Le Roy, 2006) characterize horizontal relationships of large numbers, in which competitors create a federal structure of coordination. They occur particularly on sectors where many SMEs operate, these companies remain vulnerable to environmental forces and need linking their destiny to survive. The case study of Pic Saint-Loup winegrowers Union, which led to realize forty-five semi-structured interviews, combined with direct observation supported by a professional position in the industry, highlighted some number of results. On the one hand, psychological determinants affect the ability of managers to engage in collective strategies. On the other hand, stakeholder groups, including the instigators of the strategy, make superior economic performance out of this central position within the manager network. Finally, the management paradox by the manager involved in collective strategy analyzes, show analysis phases of competition and collaboration and highlights a discontinuity of flow which generates an alternating functions process.

This dissertation consists of two empirical papers that explore recent phenomena in Banking and Microfinance Performance. Chapter 1, “Market Power and Bank Performance in MENA Countries,” examines the determinants of market power in 12 Middle Eastern and North African (MENA) countries in the aftermath of the Global Financial Crisis (GFC), specifically within six Gulf Cooperation Countries and six non-Gulf countries. We examine the dynamics of bank competition in MENA countries, provide an up-to-date assessment of market power, investigate the factors impacting bank competition, and explore the evolution of market power during the financial crisis. Our results show an overall increase in market power following the GFC for both regions. We find that bank size, capitalization, and diversification affect market power differently in the pre-crisis and post-crisis years. Larger banks enjoy cost advantages and the diversification impact on market power has decreased in the post-crisis years and the impact of capitalization on market power increased during the GFC. Overall, banks with higher capitalization can better weather the crisis. Chapter 2, “The impact of firm-level characteristic and county-specific attributes on the performance and efficiency of the Microfinance institutions,” estimates the impact of country-specific macro-variables and firm-specific attributes on the financial performance and the efficiency of microfinance institutions (MFIs). We use a large international up-to-date database consisting of over 10,000 firm-years for MFIs over 89 countries during the period 2008-2015. Several interesting findings emerge: a) regulation and outreach are negatively correlated. b) There is a negative and highly statistically significant correlation between the percentage of female borrowers and loan size, which is evidence of “mission drift”. c) An increase in the percentage of female board member has positive and statistically significant effect on MFIs profitability and ROA; which emphasizes the importance of female participation in leading position in MFIs.

The thesis investigates the nature of the relationship between the banking sector depth and long-term economic growth in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) States, assesses the banking sector development status in each of the States, and underlines the policy implications in the light of the banking-growth nexus and the banking development benchmarking models’ findings for the region by undertaking three projects. The thesis examines the nature of the relationship between banking sector depth and long-term economic growth in the NRBC—as a proxy for the GCC States— vis-à-vis the rest of the world countries. For the empirical investigation, a dynamic panel data approach, i.e. Generalised Method of Moments (GMM), is adopted over the period 1961 to 2013. By utilising mixed effects and System GMM frameworks, the research identifies the countries with the strongest banking-growth relationships and establishes the banking sector development determinants in those countries. Employing a novel benchmarking process, the thesis assesses the status of the banking sector development in each of the GCC member countries and simulates the change in the banking sector depth across the Gulf region over a period of ten years to highlight the potential policy implications for the sector development. The findings of the thesis suggest that the relationship between banking sector depth and long-term economic growth in the NRBC is non-linear, where the relationship between the banking sector depth and economic growth turns from positive to negative beyond certain levels of sector depth. In comparison to other countries, the results indicate that the banking-growth nexus in the NRBC exhibits a smaller total effect magnitude as well as a shorter time between the change in the sector depth and its effect on economic growth. The benchmarking of the banking sectors in the GCC region suggests that in five of the six member countries the banking sectors are underdeveloped. The simulation results predict that the banking sectors will develop further in half of the countries in the region, given their current levels of banking sector development determinants, while two countries require reforms in terms of undertaking regulations and policies to avoid seeing their sector development levels deteriorate. The thesis contributes to theory by confirming findings in the literature and expanding the body of knowledge through novel findings. This research also contributes to policy by demonstrating the significance of the banking sector development for long-term economic growth in the NRBC, providing policymakers in the Gulf States with the status of their banking sectors, and underlining the banking sector depth determinants that ought to be considered when setting regulations and policies that are aimed at developing the banking sector further.

This thesis explores employment among people who inject drugs (IDU). It seeks identify what differentiates IDU who work from those who do not, barriers to labour market participation, and how employment is perceived and experienced by IDU. Using longitudinal data from the Vancouver Injection Drug User Study (VIDUS), it conducts this research through a detailed examination of the implications of missing data, quantitative analyses of transitions into employment and qualitative, in-depth interviews. Missing data analyses identified differences between those that those that do and do not have missing data, as well as predictors of observation gaps and how individuals end their study participation (either right-hand censorship, attrition, or death). Differences were observed along individual, behavioural and contextual dimensions. Analytical approaches to the relationship between data structure and content gleaned useful information for longitudinal studies with marginalized populations. Discrete time event history analyses of work transitions revealed complex relationships between drug use, drug-related activities, situational risk factors, and transitions into employment. While most IDU did not make transitions into employment, some did, and while some statistical relationships were expected, others were surprising. Novel findings included mode-specific addiction treatment impacts on employment (methadone vs. non-methadone) and the importance of the broader risk environment over and above even high-intensity substance use. Finally, qualitative interviews identified heterogeneity in individual motivations toward and experiences of work. Those who maintained concurrent drug use and formal labour market involvement utilized strategies to spatially and temporally separate the two activities. Individual capacities to employ these strategies were facilitated by material, vocational and temporal motivations, and interfered with by health conditions, catastrophic events and institutional relationships that operated as barriers to employment. This study provides insight into what is a known social determinant of health in the general population among injection drug users.

This paper uses Bayesian Model Averaging (BMA) to find robust determinants of economic growth in a new dataset of 255 European regions between 1995 and 2005. The paper finds that income convergence between countries is dominated by the catching-up of regions in new member states in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE), whereas convergence within countries is driven by regions in old EU member states. Regions containing capital cities are growing faster, particularly in CEE countries, as do regions with a large share of workers with higher education. The results are robust to allowing for spatial spillovers among European regions.

Extant literature has documented well that people seek health information via the internet as patients and consumers. Much less, however, is known about interaction and creation behaviors in the development of new online health information and knowledge. More specifically, generalizable sociodemographic data on who engages in this online health behavior via social media is lacking in the sociological literature. The term “social e-health” is introduced to emphasize the difference between seeking behaviors and interaction and creation behaviors. A 2010 dataset of a large nationally representative and randomly sampled telephone survey made freely available from the Pew Research Center is used to examine social e-health behavior according to respondents’ sociodemographics. The dependent variable of social e-health behavior is measured by 13 survey questions from the survey. Gender, race, ethnicity, age, education, and income are used as independent variables. Logistic regression analysis was used to determine the odds of engagement in social e-health behavior based on the sociodemographic predictors. The social determinants of health and digital divide frameworks are used to help explain why socioeconomic variances exist in social e-health behavior. The findings of the current study suggest that predictable sociodemographic patterns along the dimensions of gender, race, age, education, and income exist for those who report engaging in social e-health behavior. This study is important because it underscores the fact that engagement in social e-health behavior is differentially distributed in the general U.S. population according to patterned sociodemographics.

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