Zur Struktur des Marktes für Abschlussprüfungen

This comment refers to the paper ofStefani/Bleibtreu. In their model they combine two important topics of audit research: Auditor’s independence and audit market’s concentration tendencies. The objective of their paper is to demonstrate that abandoning non audit services might have negative impacts on auditors’ competitive behavior.

This comment addresses the following features of the model:

• The paper’s relevance, because it addresses aspects of the audit market structure, which have been so far neglected in the political discussion on the EU-level.
• The way of modeling different auditors’ offered product portfolios and auditors’ cost structures.
• The implications of the paper’s results, because only very few papers make use of analytical models for analyzing the audit market.

     

On Transition and First Hitting Time Densities and Moments of the Ornstein–Uhlenbeck Process

This paper derives transition and first hitting time densities and moments for the Ornstein–Uhlenbeck Process (OUP) between exponential thresholds. The densities are obtained by simplifying the process via Doob’s representation into Brownian motion between affine thresholds. The densities in this paper also offer easy-to-use and fast small-time approximations for the densities of OUP between constant thresholds given that exponential thresholds are virtually constant for a small time. This is of interest for estimation with high-frequency data given that extant approaches for constant thresholds impose a large demand on computing power. The moments of the transition distribution up to order n are derived within a closed-form recursive formula that offers valuable information for management. Expressions for the moments of the first hitting time distribution are also obtained in closed form by simplifying integrals via series expansions.     

Introduction: The Senses in Social Interaction

In this introduction, we provide the scholarly background that motivates the special issue and briefly discuss its content. We touch on contemporary debates in symbolic interactionism, ethnomethodology and conversation analysis, and anthropology that inform the research undertaken by the contributors. We conclude by deriving six interrelated themes—intersection, entwinement, multimodal, contextually embedded, structured, and serendipitous—from an examination of the articles.     

THE IMPACT OF MANAGERIAL CHANGE ON PERFORMANCE: THE ROLE OF TEAM HETEROGENEITY

When a key responsibility of a manager is to allocate more or less attractive tasks, subordinates have an incentive to work hard and demonstrate their talents. As a new manager is less well informed, management dismissals reinvigorate this tournament competition—but only in sufficiently homogeneous teams. We investigate this hypothesis using a large dataset on dismissals of soccer coaches, whose main task is indeed the selection of players. We find that dismissals enhance performance (only) in homogeneous teams. Moreover, we show that there is typically a negative selection bias when evaluating succession effects, which reconciles previous contradictory findings. (JEL D22, J44, J63)     

Affective reactions influence investment decisions: evidence from a laboratory experiment with taxation

We experimentally investigate the effect of taxation of gains and losses on investment behavior. Based on the insights of economic research and psychological concepts, we expect subjects to react to taxation with behavioral and affective changes. Our main results are threefold: first, we show that taxation on gains and the possibility to deduct losses bias investment behavior, but in different directions. Since net payoffs are identical across all tax scenarios and therefore the same investment behavior is to be expected, these differences are in contrast to what a standard theory would predict. Second, we observe that different tax regulations have different effects on the affective and cognitive perception of our subjects. Third, with respect to possible connections of the affective and cognitive ratings, tax regulations, and investment decisions, we are able to show that arousal and risk perception fail to influence the decision making of participants, while there is a highly significant influence of valence perception on choice patterns.     

Ignoring Leaders who Break Promises or Following God: How Depersonalization and Religious Faith Inform Employees’ Timely Work Efforts

This study investigates the relationship between employees’ perceptions of psychological contract breaches and their failure to meet work-related deadlines, with a particular focus on the mediating role of the depersonalization they assign to organizational authorities and the moderating role of their religious faith. Results based on multisource data, collected among employees and their supervisors in Pakistani organizations, show that an important factor that underpins the connection between beliefs about broken organizational promises and a diminished propensity to finish work on time is that employees depersonalize organizational leaders. This mediating effect is mitigated by employees’ religious faith. For organizations, this study thus identifies a key mechanism – exhibiting indifference to the people in charge – by which employees’ frustrations about resource-depleting contract breaches may inadvertently escalate into ineffective time management, and it identifies some workers among whom this counterproductive dynamic is less likely, namely, employees who can draw from their religious faith.     

Same difference? Exploring the differential mechanisms linking servant leadership and transformational leadership to follower outcomes

This paper aimed to provide insights into the different mediating mechanisms through which servant leadership (SL) and transformational leadership (TFL) affect followers. We also investigated environmental uncertainty as a moderator of the effects of servant leadership and transformational leadership. Based on the results of two experimental studies and one field study, we concluded that both SL and TFL were related to organizational commitment and work engagement; however, the manner in which they exerted their influence differed. SL worked primarily through follower need satisfaction, whereas TFL worked mainly through perceived leadership effectiveness. The moderating influence of uncertainty was inconsistent across the studies.     

Coaching und organisationale Ver?nderungsprozesse �C eine organisationstheoretische Betrachtung

For many organizations, the ability to change and to meet future needs has become a central challenge. This paper is concerned with the question of how the human resource development instrument coaching can be implemented in supporting change. Coaching settings usually deal with the context of role identity within a system. This paper follows up, outlines and links coaching with organizational theory respectively organizational learning. In conclusion, some points for the practice of coaching are outlined.