Role of Negative Emotion in Communication about CO2 Risks

This article describes how the effectiveness of risk communication is determined by the interaction between emotional and informative elements. An experiment is described that examined the role of negative emotion in communication about CO₂ risks. This experiment was based on the elaboration likelihood model and the related heuristic systematic model of attitude formation. The results indicated that inducing fear of CO₂ risks leads to systematic processing of information about energy conservation as a risk-reducing strategy. In turn, this results in more favorable attitudes toward energy conservation if strong arguments are provided. Individual differences in concern seem to have similar effects.     

Chemical and Radiation Environmental Risk Management: Differences, Commonalities, and Challenges

Driven by differing statutory mandates and programmatic separation of regulatory responsibilities between federal, state, and tribal agencies, distinct chemical and radiation risk management strategies have evolved. In the field this separation poses real challenges since many of the major environmental risk management decisions we face today require the evaluation of both types of risks. Over the last decade, federal, state, and tribal agencies have continued to discuss their different approaches and explore areas where their activities could be harmonized. The current framework for managing public exposures to chemical carcinogens has been referred to as a "bottom up approach." Risk between 10(-4) and 10(-6) is established as an upper bound goal. In contrast, a "top down" approach that sets an upper bound dose limit and couples with site specific As Low As Reasonably Achievable Principle (ALARA), is in place to manage individual exposure to radiation. While radiation risk are typically managed on a cumulative basis, exposure to chemicals is generally managed on a chemical-by-chemical, medium-by-medium basis. There are also differences in the nature and size of sites where chemical and radiation contamination is found. Such differences result in divergent management concerns. In spite of these differences, there are several common and practical concerns among radiation and chemical risk managers. They include 1) the issue of cost for site redevelopment and long-term stewardship, 2) public acceptance and involvement, and 3) the need for flexible risk management framework to address the first two issues. This article attempts to synthesize key differences, opportunities for harmonization, and challenges ahead.     

A Probabilistic Methodology for the Assessment of Safety from Dropped Loads in Offshore Engineering

Pipeline damage by dropped objects from crane activities is a significant hazard for offshore platform installations. In this paper a probabilistic methodology is utilized for the estimation of the pipeline impact and rupture frequencies; this information is obtained both for the overall pipeline section exposed to the hazard and for a number of critical locations along the pipeline route. The presented algorithm has been implemented in a computer program that allows the analysis of a large number of possible drop points and pipeline target point locations. This methodology may be used in common risk analysis studies for evaluating the risk for platform personnel from dropped objects; however, the proposed technique may also be useful for other applications where engineering judgment has so far been the main driving criterion. In particular, two sample cases have been analyzed. The first one is the problem of selecting the best approaching route to a platform. By analyzing different route alternatives, a reduction of the impact frequency and therefore of the risk for the platform personnel may be achieved. The second application deals with the selection of the location for a safety valve at the riser base. The analysis may give useful information, such as the highest impact frequency location and the rupture frequencies upstream and downstream of the valve as a function of the valve position; this information, together with the transported medium inventory upstream of the valve, may give the designer a documented and justifiable rationale for selecting the best location for the valve from a safety point of view.     

Evaluating the Simplified Conjoint Expected Risk Model: Comparing the Use of Objective and Subjective Information

The simplified Conjoint Expected Risk (CER) model by Holtgrave and Weber posits that perceived risk is a linear combination of the subjective judgments of the probabilities of harm, benefit, and status quo, and the expected harm and benefit of an activity. It modifies Luce and Weber's original CER model—that uses objective information to evaluate financial gambles—to accommodate activities such as health/technology activities where values of the model variables are subjective. If the simplified model is a valid modification of the original model, its performance should not be sensitive to the use of subjective information. However, because people may evaluate information differently when objective information is provided to them than when they generate information on their own, the performance of the simplified CER model may not be robust to the source of model-variable information. We compared the use of objective and subjective information, and results indicate that the estimates of the simplified CER model parameters and the proportion of variance in risk judgments accounted for by the model are similar under these two conditions. Thus, the simplified CER model is viable with activities for which harm and benefit information is subjective.     

浅析现代资本市场体系下的保险资金

本文对现代资本市场体系下的保险资金进行了分析,首先分析了保险资金的构成,接着对保险资金和资本市场的相互关系进行了考察,并分析了当前保险资金运用的现状,最后提出了对当前保险资金运用的思考。     

Linking young individuals' capital to investment intentions: Comparing two cultural backgrounds

By integrating the Entrepreneurial Intentionality Model and the Theory of Planned Behaviour, we explored the effects of human, social and financial capital on young individuals' investment intentions in two groups (97 English and 97 Greeks). Results indicated that human capital is directly and indirectly related to investment intentions via, first, subjective norms and, consequently, personal attitudes and perceived behavioural control, while social capital is only indirectly related to investment intentions via perceived behavioural control. In the individualistic group (English), human capital related directly and positively with investment intentions while social capital related indirectly to investment intentions via its positive relationship to subjective norms. With regard to participants from a collectivistic background (Greeks), human capital related indirectly to investment intentions via, first, subjective norms and, consequently, personal attitudes and perceived behavioural control, while social capital related directly and indirectly to investment intentions via perceived behavioural control. Financial capital was only negatively related to investment intentions in the total and Greek sample.     

产品市场竞争、融资约束与公司现金持有:基于中国制造业上市公司的实证分析

本文采用我国制造业上市公司2001年-2007年共2401个公司年的平衡面板数据,利用行业间竞争、行业内竞争两个维度的产品市场竞争变量,实证分析了我国制造业上市公司产品市场竞争对现金持有水平的综合影响。实证结果显示,对于所有制造业上市公司来说,产品市场竞争对公司现金持有存在显著的掠夺风险效应。在考虑公司融资约束的情况下,产品市场竞争对公司现金持有的掠夺风险和代理成本两种竞争效应被有效区分开来。融资约束公司表现为显著的掠夺风险效应,非融资约束公司则表现为显著的代理成本效应。这些研究结论不仅丰富和补充了产品市场竞争与公司现金持有之间的相关研究,也为公司实施积极的现金流风险管理和持有现金的高效利用提供了实践支持。     

股价信息含量与资本投资效率——基于投资现金流敏感度的视角

本文以2001-2008年在沪深证券交易所上市的制造业公司为研究样本,基于投资现金流敏感度的视角研究了股价信息含量与资本投资效率之间的关系,得到以下研究结论 :富含信息的股价有效降低了资本投资对现金流的敏感程度。进一步研究后发现,富含信息的股价不仅能够有效降低融资约束导致的投资现金流敏感度,而且也能够有效降低代理冲突导致的投资现金流敏感度问题,以上结论在添加了诸多影响资本投资的控制变量及稳健性检验后仍然成立。本文的研究从一个全新的视角证明,富含信息的股价通过缓和融资约束和代理冲突问题,有效地改善了企业的资本投资效率。     

进入权与组织控制

本文深入讨论了R-Z理论的两个核心概念:进入权和人力资本专用性投资,指出进入权的配置过程伴随着代理人进行专用性投资和委托人持续控制的过程,而组织控制构成了委托人对进入权配置过程进行持续控制的基础。委托人必须借助组织控制限制代理人的讨价还价能力,一个关键途径就是减弱代理人拥有的不对称信息优势。     

消费者品牌信任机制建立及影响因素的实证研究

诚信危机是现代企业面临的严峻问题,而营销领域关于消费者对品牌信任建立的理论与实证研究还很匮乏。笔者在访谈和文献基础上,将相关领域的机制性研究与前因性研究两种方法相结合,提出了消费者品牌信任建立的三种机制(经验机制、计算机制和转移机制),并探查出能够反映每种机制的五个变量(感知质量、顾客满意、感知风险、经济价值和品牌声誉)。通过在化妆品行业收集的数据,使用结构方程模型分析,结果表明,经验机制和计算机制对建立品牌信任起作用,其中经验机制的作用最大。