Accounting Theory Essays (Examples)

In aaccounting research, the model used would be called analytical modeling, which consists of sstudies that use models with no specific underlying economic theory but use mathematical techniques. The mathematical formulas are applied to test and establish laws and accounting practices. Simulation, or the practice where the analysis is so complex that it requires a computer, is also an example of an inductive accounting practice research methodology.

Finally, pragmatic research utilizes pragmatic validity, which views research from a prescriptive-driven perspective. For example, solutions to problems that actually occur in the complex and high field of practice are developed in a way that, while valid for a specific situation, need to be adjusted according to the context in which they are to be applied. In the accounting area, general empirical research is a catchall that includes primarily descriptive empirical work. Another example of an accounting research methodology that consists of pragmatic…

Bibliography

Blaikie, N. (2007). Approaches to Social Inquiry. ISBN 0745634486.

Fleming, R., Graci, S. & Thompson, J. (2000). Dawning of the Age of Quantitative/Empirical Methods in Accounting Research. The Accounting Historians

Journal. (June 2000).

ystems of income and financial position would superimpose standards of normalization upon everyone within the firm. Accounting, thereby, had achieved Foucault's definition of knowledge as power over people per excellence. By the 1950s, however, person as decision-maker replaced this vision of person as machine, and accounting still has power in our society, but a different sort of power. Likewise, accounting still possesses its constructivism (i.e. manner of perceiving a certain stranglehold on reality by emphasizing certain construct and demoting others), although its constructivist paradigm may have differed from that of, say, a century ago. Individuals are viewed, measured, and criticized within programmatic frameworks, and Miller and O'Leary (1987) suggest that accounting today can still be viewed as part of the heritage and structure (albeit slightly changed) of the traditional mode of power that it was in the early decades of this century. In other words, the slanted domination of accounting…

Sources

Armstrong, P. 2002, "Management, Image and Management Accounting. Critical Perspectives on Accounting, 13, pp. 281-295

Bryer, R. 2006, "Accounting and control of the labour process" Critical Perspectives on Accounting, 17, pp 551-598.

Chwastiak, M. & Young, J.J. 2005, "Silences in Annual Reports, Critical Perspectives on Accounting, 14, 533- 552

Ezzamel, M., Lilley, S. & Willmott, H. 2004, "Accounting representation and the road to commercial salvation." Accounting, Organizations and Society, 29, pp. 783- 813.

This model could then be customized for the needs of the different companies.

Sankaran and AlHashim (2006) make a compelling case regarding the need for harmonized accounting standards and practices. In addition to the globalized economy, they also rightly point to the benefits of such harmonization for corporations - including a greater ability to keep track of expenses and a better way of reconciling different accounting practices in its branches worldwide. Furthermore, Sankaran and AlHashim (2006) also allay fears that harmonization is equivalent to imposing only one accounting system around the world. Instead, they highlight the need for commonality, for a web-based accounting system that lends itself to different accounting practices.

The paper makes a strong argument, and the data regarding the need for a harmonized accounting system is compelling. hile this article may present a challenge for readers unfamiliar with basic programming language, the inclusion of a generic algorithm…

Works Cited

Sankaran, Siva and Dhia D. AlHashim. 2006. "An Accounting Information System for Harmonization."

Journal of American Academy of Business, Cambridge. 9(2): September.

Accounting

Journal Entries

A/P

A/R

Cash

Liabilities

AP

AR

Cash

Liabilities

Cash

Cash

Liabilities

Reserve

Theory

Alan Moser and Stephanie Philips operate a successful software business in Brisbane. Alan and Stephanie are existing clients of your accounting firm CPT Accountants. Their business currently operates as a partnership but due to expansion plans they are considering incorporating the business (ie becoming a company). They wish to clarify the following points before making a decision and have asked CPT accountants to write a report answering the following:

What is the difference between forming a proprietary (private) company and public company?

There is substantial difference in the reporting requirements and tax basis for private and public companies. However, the biggest difference is how the legal entities deal with liability. Under a sole proprietorship and a partnership the owner can be held liable for many different problems that the business incurs while under a…

Accounting

America was not founded as a Democracy or as a Monarchy, for the educated and landed founding fathers felt assured that neither would provide the nation with rights for all and privilege for the few. America was founded as a Republic, and one might add as an ogliarchic republic at that. Those with the right gender, race, and wealth were represented through their while others were represented through the votes of their betters. Today, nearly-universal sufferage (age and past misbehavior are both barriers) assures that these factors do not determine whether a person can vote -- but an argument can still be made that the majority of the political process is determined by wealth. "The creators of America's constitution and government were among the wealthy aristocrats of their day. When they created their new government, the founders excluded democracy to the extent politically possible at the time. ..The great…

Bibliography

Bernstein, A. (1998) "Republican and Democratic -- The Identical Party? The Two Major Parties Are Becoming Dangerously Alike -- in Their Opposition to Individual Rights." Capitalism Magazine, Nov. 6. http://www.capmag.com/article.asp?ID=2020

Gitlin, T. (2000) "The Renaissance of anti-intellectualism." The Chronicle of Higher Education, Dec. 8. Archived at:  http://chronicle.com/free/v47/i15/15b00701.htm 

Grinning Planet. (2004) "INJECTING A SHOT OF REBEL YELL INTO OLD GLORY"  http://www.grinningplanet.com/2004/11-11/direct-democracy-plutocracy-article.htm 

Morgan, D. (2000) "Mercenaries For Big Business: Corporate Funding of Think Tanks Raises Question of Credibility" San Francisco Chronicle, Feb 16. Archived at:  http://www.commondreams.org/views/021600-102.htm

Education should come from non-profit international scientific, health and environmental organizations. They would be most widely respected and would have more access to both the TNCs and the host and origin country governmental bodies. They can educate the corporations on the practicality of policing their own people and actions. They can educate government bodies on how to include these considerations in political decisions. They can be resources for The United Nations and the TO to help them decide on their programs. Finally they can help the educate the global populace via global media, especially independent educational media.

The last suggestion is one way to approach using public relations. Another is to incite the press and various other media to report the good and the bad actions of TNCs. His makes for interesting news for their audiences, and good public service for the media. In essence, Fowler has said much of…

Works Cited

Fowler, Robert J. "International Environmental Standards for Transnational Corporations." Environmental Law 25.1 (1995): 1-30. Questia. 14 Dec. 2006  http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=5000274495 .

Ietto-Gillies, Grazia. Transnational Corporations: Fragmentation Amidst Integration. London: Routledge, 2002. Questia. 14 Dec. 2006  http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=108115153 .

Thomas Donaldson, The Ethics of International Business 31 (1992).

This role is in response to clients' demands for a single trustworthy individual or firm to meet all of their financial needs. However, accountants are restricted from providing these services to clients whose financial statements they also prepare." (U.S. Department of Labor, ureau of Labor Statistics, 2009)

1. Public Accounting

The work entitled: "The Reality of the CPA's Role" states that modern CPAs work "behind the scenes as trusted advisors in nearly all significant business decisions. Successful accountants display the ability to think strategically and creatively and to be problem solvers and business advisors." (Douglass, 2006) Douglass states that the views of the CPA are widely varied "...whether from the viewpoint of the investing public or from the perspective of the companies that engage CPAs to audit their financial statements or perform other functions. In fact, many people not involved in the business management or accounting profession may perceive CPAs…

Bibliography

Douglass, Kevin (2006) the Reality of the CPA's Role New Jersey CPA Magazine, April 2006. Accounting and Auditing. Online available at:  http://www.amper.com/publications/amper-cpa-role.asp 

Erard, Brian (1992) Taxation with Representation: An Analysis of the Role of Tax Practitioners in Tax Compliance. Journal of Public Economics 52 (1993) 163-107. North-Holland. Online available at:  http://aysps.gsu.edu/isp/files/ISP_SUMMER_SCHOOL_2008_ERARD_TAXATION_WITHOUT_REPRESENTATION.pdf 

Financial accounting for Local and State School Systems (2005) Chapter 4: Governmental Accounting. National Center for Education Statistics. U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences. Online available at:  http://nces.ed.gov/pubs2004/h2r2/ch_4.asp 

Garrison, Ray H. And Noreen, Eric W. (2009) What is Managerial Accounting/Cost Accounting. Accounting Management. Online available t:  http://www.accountingformanagement.com/

The reality was that a company which aspired to be "the No. 1 stock on all Street" was instead steadily bleeding money while claim growth in the billions.

The pressure placed upon accountants at ordCom was reflective of the pressure facing accountants throughout the economy during this period of widely absence securities oversight. Indeed, the relationship between regulation and accounting is essential, and this diminished link would have catastrophic implications for the profession as a whole. Such is shown by the Scott text, which tells that "efficient securities market theory has major implications for financial accounting. One of these is that supplementary information in financial statement notes or elsewhere is just as useful as information in the financial statements proper. Another is that efficiency is defined relative to a stock of publicly known information. Financial reporting has a role to play in improving the amount, timing, and accuracy of this…

Works Cited:

Kaplan, R.S. & Kiron, D. (2007). Accounting Fraud at WorldCom. Harvard Business School.

Scott, W.R. (2006). Financial Accounting Theory, 4th Ed. Pearson-Prentice Hall.

Skeel, D. (2005). Icarus in the Boardroom: The Fundamental Flaws in Corporate America and Where They Came From. Oxford University Press.

Finance/Management Accounting

The topic of finance and managerial accounting inclusively, are broad and incorporate a critical skill set in the modern day business student. Finance involves corporate and investment finance and managerial accounting is complimentary as it involves cost accounting and essentially stresses cost management. Together, these topics provide a comprehensive financial analysis skill set yielding capability in solving the day's most critical business financial quandaries. The literature review will seek to narrow down the literature and funnel the topic into the main financial analysis area.

According to Musvoto, (2011), "Studies in accounting measurement indicate the absence of empirical relational structures that should form the basis for accounting measurement. This suggests the lack of objectivity of accounting information. Landmarks in the development of finance theory indicate the use of accounting measurement information as a basis for their development. This indicates that subjective accounting information is incorporated in finance theory. Landmarks…

References

Allen, D. (1992). Financial management: The leading edge of management accountancy. Strategic Finance, 73(12), 53. Retrieved from  http://search.proquest.com/docview/229748882?accountid=13044 

Black, T., & Gallagher, L. (1999). Are physical capacity constraints relevant?: Applying finance-economics theory to a management accounting misconception. Australian Journal of Management, 24(2), 143. Retrieved from  http://search.proquest.com/docview/200627217?accountid=13044 

Brewer, P.C. (2008). Redefining management accounting. Strategic Finance, 89(9), 26. Retrieved from  http://search.proquest.com/docview/229763529?accountid=13044 

Coakley, J.R., & Brown, C.E. (2000). Artificial neural networks in accounting and finance: Modeling issues. Intelligent Systems in Accounting, Finance and Management, 9(2), 119. Retrieved from  http://search.proquest.com/docview/214368060?accountid=13044

They then proceed to detail their selected sample (76 NYSE firms that reported at least three annual losses in period's 1980-1985 and that reduced cash dividends. They then implemented various conditions to test their hypothesis that it is the troubled firm's aim to retain preservation of their company, rather than to make a bonus, that causes them to select a certain accountancy plan.

In section 2, the authors describe their methods used in selecting a sampled population and their bias controls. There is a great deal of numerical data, and the material is dense particularly when they elaborate on the earnings and cash flow performance of the various firms. Each unit is broken up into subunits. Scholarly tables condensed with data that for instance report accrual levels and changes for the 76 firms support their written text and the Tables are alluded to in the text. Statistical analysis of these…

References

DeAngelo, H. DeAngelo, L. & Skinner, DJ (1992) Accountign choice in troubled companies. Jour. Of Account. & Econ. 17, 113-143

Elliot, Barry & Elliot, Jamie: Financial accounting and reporting, Prentice Hall, London 2004

Gray SJ (1988) Towards a Theory of Cultural Influence on the Development of Accounting Systems Internationally Abacus, pp.1-15

http://folders.nottingham.edu.cn/staff/zalzae1/ATP/articles/Gray.pdf

ccounting CP. Ideas 1- My story: I a young, my father gave responsibility manage budget house. School I control budget Volunteer

Personal statement: Why I want to obtain an MSc in ccounting

Ever since I was young, I have had the responsibility of balancing a budget. My father encouraged me to manage some of the household finances, and by the time I was selected in school to oversee the treasury of the volunteer club, I felt very comfortable and confident with bookkeeping. Majoring in accounting when I went to college seemed like a natural extension of my interests and aptitudes. I graduated with a B.. In accounting from King Saud University in 2009. However, even then I knew that obtaining a B.. was only the first step in gaining mastery of the profession. I already knew I wanted to go on to get my MSc in ccounting but decided to…

After graduating, I obtained a job at the Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency, where I am currently employed. I am charged with supervising the Agency's financial statements and the accounting details of insurance companies. My work has enabled me to put my academic knowledge into practice, and has been a constant, daily education in the need for rigor, efficiency, and wide and deep knowledge of international accounting standards and ethics. But like all positive experiences, my work life has also showed me what I do not know about the accounting field. I wish to gain a broader and more flexible skill set to be better able to cope with the demands of the profession. The profession is changing at a rapid rate. I have been amazed how quickly my nation and the world have evolved in terms of accounting standards and ethics since 2009.

My work experience whetted my appetite for more knowledge about the field of accounting. I have come to better understand the different ways in which modern global business demands new forms of accounting and monitoring business processes. Government regulations are constantly changing regarding how financial statements must be prepared, as are the needs of businesses in the new global economy. Accountants must meet these challenges head-on, and obtaining my MSc would better equip me to do so. Becoming a part of a formal MSc program would also connect me with a network of fellow professions, whose diverse work experiences would instruct me.

I have chosen to purse an MSc in Accounting at University which emphasizes team-based learning and will offer a flexible curriculum so I can tailor my education to my needs. I believe that I have enough experience to know how to guide my education, while supported by the outstanding faculty of the school. Because of my experiences I am confident I would be an asset to any classroom. I would be able to offer my knowledge to support what was being taught in class with real-life experiences. After obtaining my MSc, I intend to become a CPA and open my own business. Obtaining an MSc would give me the knowledge and platform to act independently as an accountant and to serve in my profession to the maximum extent of my abilities. Much as I have enjoyed working for a government agency, I believe it is in private practice where my full ambitions can be realized. My MSc would thus also give me a needed grounding in managerial theory that I would require to manage my own office of fellow accounting professionals.

Accounting includes recording, summarizing, and reporting of the economic activities and events of an organization. It is pertinent in business decision-making and the management and control of operations. The financial statements reported by a company include the income statement, balance sheet, statement of retained earnings and statement of cash flows. Globally, there are two sets of accounting standards, the Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) and International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). In particular, the GAAP are more often than not employed in the United States whereas IFRS are more often than not employed in Europe and international expanses. IFRS are regarded as being more principles-based and U.S. GAAP as being more rules-based. The establishments responsible for setting the IFRS and GAAP are the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) and Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) respectively (Gaspar et al., 2016). The purpose of this paper is to discuss the difference between GAAP…

financial crisis was abusive off-balance sheet accounting. Abusive off-balance sheet accounting led to a daisy chain of ineffective and dysfunctional decision-making because it removed transparency from regulators, investors, and markets. Spread of derivative transactions, bad loans, and securitizations brought a once stable financial system to the edge of ruin. While improvements have been made, the FASB's guidelines suffer from two main flaws. The first is lack of congressional mandate. With no clear congressional mandate, FASB and SEC guidelines remain subject to the same type of interpretation that led to the growth of 'regulatory arbitrage' or what others may pen as financial engineering, meaning shifting debts off-balance sheets. This means a company must consolidate a VIE only when it possesses 'control' and has the right to receive benefits and access to VIE's 'most pertinent activities' making the design of the guidelines qualitative in nature (Stickney, 2010).

The guidelines then require assumptions…

References

Larkin, R. & Ditommaso, M. (2016). Wiley Not-for-Profit GAAP 2016. Wiley.

Ramanna, K. (2016). Why "Fair Value" Is the Rule. Harvard Business Review. Retrieved 24 October 2016, from  https://hbr.org/2013/03/why-fair-value-is-the-rule 

Shaik, K. (2014). Managing Derivatives Contracts. Berkeley, CA: Apress.

Stickney, C. (2010). Financial accounting. Mason, OH, USA: South-Western Cengage Learning.

.....ethical for an employer to use social media information as a factor when considering whether to hire an employee? What about monitoring social networking activities of employees while on the job? Use ethical reasoning in answering these questions.

The wide-ranging use of social media in the workplace gives rise to serious moral and ethical concerns. Kantian ethics lays emphasis on the form of an action in ascertaining its morality. Kant insists on the Categorical Imperative. Kant implies that this ethical principle is the superlative and outright and proper test to morality, whereas imperative implies that from time to time one must command oneself to be moral and undertake the right thing, even and particularly when one's self-centeredness may be infringed by acting ethically (Mintz, 2015). As an overall moral rule, for an employer to impose into an employee's private life on social media devoid of consent or in a clandestine…

accounting systems, their tradeoffs, and discusses the differences between countries in their approaches.

Each of the cost accounting systems discussed in the articles accomplishes some management goals better than other systems, but there are tradeoffs involved with each. Different nations approach their cost accounting systems differently due at least in part to differences within cultures. For instance, GP is more suited to countries where the culture is one of uncertainty avoidance, one of the five dimensions of Hofstede's taxonomy. GP offers the most uncertainty avoidance because there is relatively little ambiguity in the assignment of costs; GP is characterized by narrowly defined cost centers and strict cost center criteria. Cultures such as Germany's are characterized by a management environment that includes highly skilled workers and technical expertise among managers. This is in contrast to the U.S. where workers tend to have more generalist skill sets and managers have been educated…

Krumwiede, Kip & Suessmair, Augustin, (2008). A closer look at German cost accounting methods: a survey of the cost management systems used by companies in Germany, Switzerland, and Austria. Management Accounting Quarterly. Retrieved July 26, 2010, from  http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0OOL/is_1_10/ai_n31370936/?tag=r  bxcra.2.a.55

Lockhart, Julie & Taylor, Audrey, (2007). Environmental considerations in product mix decisions using ABC and TOC. Management Accounting Quarterly.  http://proquest.umi.com/pqdweb?index=0&did=1411673321&SrchMode=1&sid=9&Fmt=3&VInst=PROD&VType=PQD&RQT=309&VName=PQD&TS=1301590287&clientId=29440 

Portz, K. & Lere, J.C. 2010. Cost Center Practices in Germany and the United States: Impact of Country Differences on Managerial Accounting Practices. American Journal of Business. Muncie: Spring, 2010. Vol. 25, Iss. 1; pg. 45.  http://proquest.umi.com/pqdweb?index=25&did=1992507361&SrchMode=1&sid=6&Fmt=2&VInst=PROD&VType=PQD&RQT=309&VName=PQD&TS=1315214891&clientId=29440

Management Theories

Behavior Management Theories and Applications

The Theory of Planned Behavior & Theory of easoned Action

The theory of planned behavior (TPB) is one of the most commonly mentioned and used behavior management theories. It is one of a carefully interrelated family of concepts, which follows a cognitive strategy to describing behavior, which centers on individuals' behavior and values. The TPB progressed from the Theory of easoned Action, which posited intention to act as the best forecaster of behavior. The intention is itself a result of the mixture of attitudes towards behavior (Dunlap, 2012). That is a good or bad assessment of the behavior and its predicted results, and very subjective standards, which are the social pressures used on a person as a result of their views of what others think they should do and their tendency to adhere to these. The TPB included a third set of aspects…

References

Dunlap, L.L. (2012). What all children need: Theory and application. Lanham, Md: University Press of America.

Ellis, S. & Tod, J. (2013). Behaviour for Learning: Proactive Approaches to Behaviour Management. New York: Routledge.

Florian, L., & Hegarty, J. (2007). ICT and Special Educational Needs. Maidenhead: McGraw-Hill International (UK) Ltd.

Henley, M. (2010). Classroom management: A proactive approach. Boston: Pearson.

difficult for organization to be effective?

Effectiveness within an organization is a measure of how effective the organization is in achieving the outcomes or goals it has for itself. An organization's effectiveness is also interdependent upon its set of morals, ethics, and ability to community appropriately. Effectiveness is important in different ways for different organizations because of the criteria used to judge (e.g. A non-profit aid group might have a different benchmark than a new accounting firm). It is sometimes difficult for an organization to be effective due to external factors, lack of clear definition and focus, and internal dynamics.

What is the example most outstanding in your mind that accurately illustrates the reality of a learning organization?

A learning organization that almost continually transforms itself and encourages the intellectual growth of its members is probably Apple, Inc. In two eras, 1976-1980 and 2005+. In both of these eras, innovation…

Constraints

What is the Theory of Constraints?

There has been a continuous development of management from the time it was realized that it can be studied carefully to form a branch of knowledge and the individuals who had studied it generally performed better as managers than others who never spent time on the matter. The Theory of Constraints or TOC is basically a philosophy of management and improvement. The first person to draw the attention of the world to this was Eliyahu M. Goldratt and he brought it to the notice of others through his famous book, The Goal. The guiding principle behind this theory is that in any organization there exists a weak link, and this acts somewhat like a chain with a weak link. This tops the organization from performing even better than it is performing at any period of time. In short, it is important to remove…

References

Chaleff, Ira. (October, 1995) "Process Improvement for Knowledge Workers" AFSM International. Vol: 20; No: 3. Retrieved from http://www.ibt-pep.com/default.asp?ObjectID=257 Accessed on 29 May, 2005

'Constraint Management & Supplier Relations" Retrieved from  http://www.focusedperformance.com/supp1.html  Accessed on 30 May, 2005

"Constraint Management & the Market" Retrieved from  http://www.focusedperformance.com/mktg1.html  Accessed on 30 May, 2005

'Critical Chain & Project Management the TOC Way" Retrieved from  http://www.focusedperformance.com/projects.html  Accessed on 30 May, 2005

Constraints

The theory of constraints is a management concept that emphasizes that an organization is only as strong as its weakest link. Weaknesses, therefore, are constraints on organizational capability. In order to improve organizational performance, the weaknesses need to either be removed or strengthened (MindTools.com, 2016). While this theory has most commonly been applied to production, such as in overcoming bottlenecks or improving defect rates, it can also be applied to other practices.

Fiscal accountability can operate under this theory. In the typical organization, most people normally behave ethically, and with a high level of accountability. It only takes one or two people, however, to behave unethically, and the entire organization is undermined. Many cases of accounting fraud, for example, were perpetrated by only a few well-placed people. Thousands of good people worked at Enron, for example, but they were entirely undermined because the people running the company were criminals.…

References

Lean Production (2016). Theory of constraints. Lean Production.com. Retrieved April 10, 2016 from  http://www.leanproduction.com/theory-of-constraints.html 

MindTools.com (2016). The theory of constraints. MindTools.com. Retrieved April 10, 2016 from  https://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/toc.htm

Organizational Change

There are many organizations that use strategic planning to implement change in their services so that the facility runs in a more effective manner. Thus, the overall responsibility of healthcare providers is to offer the best level of care to their patients. For those organizations that follow the plan process, they have had solid outcomes with staff and patient feedback. During my period of research, I generally noticed that many healthcare providers shared the same mission, which was to serve patients with the highest quality care through performance measurements and improvement processes. The ways in which the effectiveness of organizational change will be determined once implemented is through a strong and thorough understanding of roles and positions. This can be achieved through deadlines and guidelines being set so that the protocol is followed in all aspects through measurement. Measurement offer the ability to gather quantitative values to subjective…

References

Battilana, J., & Casciaro, T. (2014). Change Agents, Networks, and Institutions: A Contingency Theory. Academy of Management Journal , 1-21.

Buchanon, D. (2013). Illusions and Delusions in the Organizational Change Process. Journal of Critical Postmodern Organizational Science, 7-15.

Oreg, S. (2011). Change Recipients' Reactions to Organizational Change. Journal of Applied Behavioral Science, 461-524.

Thomas, R., & Hardy, C. (2011). Reframing resistance to organizational change. Scandinavian Journal of Management, 322-331.

Accounting: Ethical Issues in Budgeting

What should an employee do when he or she discovers that there is an error in a projection?

Accounting professionals have a duty to observe high standards of conduct and integrity in order to uphold the reputation of the accounting profession. For instance, if an error occurs in sales projections, the accountant has a duty to correct the error immediately and inform the head of the department or manager of the company. Sales projections are crucial to a company's budget because they give an idea of the amount of revenue the company intends to generate in future. Since they help determine the health of the company, majority of the decisions the company makes will based on the projected figures. If an accountant chooses to conceal errors in the projections, therefore, wrong decisions will be made and the overall performance of the company will be affected…

Accounting and Ethics

The stakeholder model should be implemented in combination with Friedman's shareholder model

In his article, "The Social esponsibility of Business is to Increase its Profits" published in 1970's reputed "The New York Times" Magazine, Friedman debates in favor of precisely what the article's title states. He alleged that corporate social responsibility (CS) was a diversion from the economic rudiments of business that helps in capitalization of profits and yields to shareholders. In his article, when he raised the description of advocates of CS he stated, "The businessmen believe that they are defending free enterprise when they declaim that business is not concerned 'merely' with profit but also with promoting desirable 'social' ends; that business has a 'social conscience' and takes seriously its responsibilities for providing employment, eliminating discrimination, avoiding pollution and whatever else may be the catchwords of the contemporary crop of reformers (Kristin, 2009; pg 7)."…

References

Kristin, T. (2009). Corporate social responsibility. Baylor Business Review 27.2: 20-23. Accessed from:  http://search.proquest.com.vlib.excelsior.edu/docview/201178507/fulltext/C6BB33CFBD5D4C0EPQ/9?accountid=134966 

Coelho, P.R.P., McClure, J.E.; Spry, J.A. (2003). The social responsibility of corporate management: A classical critique. Mid - American Journal of Business 18.1: 15-24. Accessed from:  http://search.proquest.com.vlib.excelsior.edu/docview/214180754/fulltext/C6BB33CFBD5D4C0EPQ/7?accountid=134966 

Henry, M (2006). Wall Street Journal, Eastern edition, New York, N.Y: A.12.  http://search.proquest.com.vlib.excelsior.edu/docview/308654354/fulltext/C6BB33CFBD5D4C0EPQ/14?accountid=134966 

Lantos, G.P. (2001). The boundaries of strategic corporate social responsibility. The Journal of Consumer Marketing 18.7: 595-630. Accessed from:  http://search.proquest.com.vlib.excelsior.edu/docview/220124077/fulltext/C6BB33CFBD5D4C0EPQ/10?accountid=134966

Theory on Juvenile Delinquency

Interventions that involve life-course unrelenting offenders should place emphasis on remedial social abilities, for them to have a chance to decrease their frequency of offending in future, and to tackle conduct disorder problems. Interventions involving teenage-onset offenders should, wherever applicable, tackle issues relating to parenting, alcohol/drug misuse, and anti-social cronies. Keane, Krull and Phythian (2008) define self-control as the extent to which a person is susceptible to temptation. According to them, lack of self-restraint or self-control is a fairly universal and stable characteristic, accounting for individual discrepancies in deviant, reckless, and criminal conduct. Youngsters' parents are usually blamed for their kids' delinquent behavior. Some courts go as far as penalizing parents for their kids' antisocial actions. It is believed that weak self-control develops during early childhood, when one's family is the most central socializing agent. Hence, lack of self-restraint and the resultant deviant behavior result from…

References

Bandura, A. (1977). Social learning theory.

Burfeind, J. W., & Bartusch, D. J. (2006). Juvenile delinquency: An integrated approach. Jones & Bartlett Learning.

Demuth, Stephen and Susan L. Brown. 2004. "Family Structure, Family Processes, and Adolescent Delinquency: The Significance of Parental Absence vs. Parental Gender." Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency 41(1):58-81.

Farrington, D. P. (2010). Family influences on delinquency. Juvenile justice and delinquency, 203-222.

Theory and Philosophical Orientations
Part 1
An area of interest for a possible research topic that I consider is organizational performance. My topic of research interest is the effect of employee participation on organizational performance. The philosophical orientation that mirrors my worldview is the interpretivist research paradigm. In-depth inquiry is enabled by interpretivist research, which sees knowledge as subjective (Bryman, 2008). In other words, knowledge is not generalizable – it is contextual, situational, or circumstantial. This means that different individuals interpret their world differently. To ensure in-depth inquiry, interpretivist research focuses on a small sample and employs qualitative techniques such as in-depth interviews, focus groups, and observations. Such techniques enable the researcher to cultivate a closer relationship with the subjects (Saunders, Lewis and Thornhill, 2015). A close relationship gives the researcher an opportunity to understand the perspectives, experiences, and worldviews of the subjects with respect to the research phenomenon (Creswell,…

International Accounting Undergraduate degree Accounting & Finance 1. The Assignment "Several organisations involved efforts harmonise accounting practices rregionally internationally. The important players effort European Union (regionally) International Accounting Standards Committee (IASC) ( IASB) (internationally).

There have been a series of efforts during recent years with the aim of developing a common agenda of accounting standards. The fact that there are several alternatives of accounting practices, for example, contributes to making it difficult for influential bodies to reach common ground concerning the matter. Institutions such as the European Union and the International Accounting Standards Committee (IASC) (currently called the International Accounting Standards Boards -- IASB) have played significant roles with the purpose of emphasizing the importance of international accounting standards.

ith society being composed out of distinct national economies, there has been little need for common accounting practices in the past. However, as the global economy has come to dominate international…

Works cited:

1. Alexander, D., & EBERHARTINGER, E. 2009. 'The True and Fair View in the European Union'. European Accounting Review Vol. 18, No. 3, 571 -- 594

2. Alexander, D. & Nobes, C. 2007. Financial Accounting: An International Introduction. Pearson Education.

3. Cool, K., & Goddard, G.J. 2006. International Business: Theory and Practice. M.E. Sharpe.

4. Fischer, P., Tayler, W., & Cheng, R. 2011. Advanced Accounting. Cengage Learning.

International accounting - Evaluate research theories and methodologies to classify accounting systems internationally

The necessity of accounting standards is given by the fact that financial statements should describe financial performance in a fair and consistent manner. Lacking standards, users of financial statements would be required to master the accounting rules of each company, and any comparison between companies' performances would be almost impossible.

Accounting standards are essential to the healthy development of an international financial reporting structure. Around the world several accounting traditions have been developed as a response to the needs of users who are in need of the financial information. Some countries, for instance, chose to build the structure of accounting standards around the needs of private creditors, while other countries were more concerned with the needs of tax authorities or central planners. As a characteristic of the United States, the needs of participants in the capital markets…

Bibliography

1. SEC Concept Release: International Accounting Standards

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

17 CFR PARTS 230 and 240

RELEASE NOS. 33-7801, 34-42430; INTERNATIONAL SERIES NO. 1215]

" (2004)

Ricol states in relation to the audit area that "...actions were recommended in two primary areas:

1) Reducing threats to auditor independence; and 2) Strengthening audit quality control processes. (Ricol, 2004)

In regards to corporate management and governance, it is related in Ricol's speech that the task force called for corporate boards to "demonstrate greater accountability for the information, financial management and internal controls necessary to produce trustworthy information. Sound corporate governance policies are especially important in emerging economies, directly impacting investor confidence and economic growth." (Ricol, 2004)

V. ACCOUNTING'S CENTRAL ROLE in the ECONOMY

Accounting clearly plays a central role in the economy through "building confidence in financial information and financial infrastructure." (Ricol, 2004) According to Ricol the accounting profession "cannot afford to look the other way and focus on capital markets in developed countries." (Ricol, 2004) Additionally stated by Ricol is that the accountancy profession needs…

Bibliography

Hoggett, J.R., Edwards, L. And Medlin, J. (nd) Decision Making and the Role of Accounting. Accounting in Australia, Fifth Edition. Chapter 1. Online available at  http://www.johnwiley.com.au/highered/accounting/aia5e/student-res/study_guide_sampler.pdf 

The Role of Accountancy in Economic Development (2004) presented to the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD)

Rene Ricol, President International Federation of Accountants June 16, 2004.

Yinglang, Edward L. (2008) Improve Accounting Standards, Improve the Economy. Mark to Market Watch. The American Spectator. 11 Dec 2008. Online available at  http://spectator.org/archives/2008/12/11/improve-accounting

IAS 17 Leases

Explain the key features of the current accounting standard. You should use at least one illustrative example for lessee accounting from a published set of financial statements to illustrate the effect of the standard

IAS 17 accounting standard establishes and elucidates the pertinent accounting procedures and also disclosures that are supposed to be employed in accounting by lessors and also lessees. The lessor is the owner of the underlying asset while the lessee is the party that opts to make use of the asset at that point in time. One of the key features of the accounting standard is the classification between an operating lease and a finance lease. A financial lease is a contract or agreement whereby all of the risks and the rewards that are characteristic to the ownership of the asset are transferred to the lessee. On the other hand, an operating lease is…

References

IFRS, May 2013, Exposure Draft Leases, IFRS Foundation.

IFRS, May 2013, Exposure Draft Leases: Illustrative Examples, IFRS Foundation.

International Accounting Standard 17: Leases. IFRS Foundation.

Epstein, B.J., Jermakowicz, E. K, 2008, Wiley IFRS 2008: Interpretation and Application of International Accounting Financial Reporting Standards. Hoboken: John Wiley and Sons, Inc.

disclosure principle in accounting is the standard adopted by the accounting profession, which "calls for financial reporting of any financial facts significant enough to influence the judgment of an informed reader" (Kieso, Weygandt, & Warfield, 2007). Obviously, this definition is a very subjective one, because the reporting entity makes the determination of what facts are significant enough to influence an informed reader. "To reduce the amount of disclosure, it is customary to only disclose information about events that are likely to have a material impact on the entity's financial position or financial results" (Accounting Tools, 2011). However, the principle is not meant to be narrowly interpreted, and may require a company to report things that cannot be reduced to numbers on a balance sheet. For example, "this disclosure may include items that cannot yet be precisely quantified, such as the presence of a dispute with a government entity over a…

References

Accounting Principles. (2011). The full disclosure principle. Retrieved from http://www.accountingtools.com/full-disclosure-principle

Kieso, D.E., Weygandt, J.J., & Warfield, T.D. (2007). Intermediate accounting (12th ed.).

Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons.

In theory, of course, this means that values would end up fluctuating more in response to market fluctuations, which would lead to further market fluctuations and thus more value changes, etc., etc. etc. In reality it is doubtful that this state of affairs would lest into perpetuity, as eventually investors would become used to the new schema and reactions would grow more measured. And even the initial volatility that has been observed might not indicate a problem.

Moyer (2008) claims that in discounting existing capital and management, fair value accounting practices replace objectivity in financial analysis with fear. What this claim in essence boils down to us that fair value accounting practices demand values to be assessed solely on the current state of affairs rather than on potentials. Clearly, management and capital are only as valuable as what they are able to produce; an assessment of value based on their…

References

AICPA. (2009). "FAQs about fair value accounting." The American institute of certified public accountants. Accessed 2 October 2009.  http://www.aicpa.org/MediaCenter/fva_faq.htm 

Moyer, L. (2008). "How fair is fair value accounting?" Forbes. Accessed online 2 October 2009.  http://www.forbes.com/2008/06/24/accounting-banking-sec-biz-cx_lm_0625sec.html

Another challenge facing the industry today is the important legal issues that surround the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (Koehn & Del Vecchio, 2004). One of these is the fact that the process of due diligence practiced by many companies is now taking much longer (Koehn & Del Vecchio, 2004). There is a higher degree of caution than was previously utilized and because of this many companies are discovering information that would have gone unnoticed before the Act was passed. This is, however, not the only legal issue that the Sarbanes-Oxley Act has caused (Koehn & Del Vecchio, 2004). Another concern is that accountants and attorneys could now be required to report the known wrongdoings of corporations that they have business with to authorities.

Since lawyers are now required to disclose these types of issues, the attorney-client privilege has been compromised by this Act (Koehn & Del Vecchio, 2004). However, the Act was…

Bibliography

Bradley, C.F. (1994). An empirical investigation of factors affecting corporate tax compliance behavior. Ph.D. dissertation, the University of Alabama.

Koehn, J.L. & Del Vecchio, S.C. (2004). Ripple effects of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. The CPA Journal: 36-40.

Roper, J.C. (2006). Expert backs Enron's accounting practices. Houston Chronicle. Retrieved from  http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/front/3839212.html .

University has offered its professor $200,000 in order to relinquish tenure and resign. In particular, the aspect to consider is the tax consequence of such compensation. The professor's standpoint is that tenure should be treated as an intangible capital asset, and relinquishing tenure ought to be a long-term capital gain. The main tax issue in this case is whether the relinquishment of tenure encompasses a sale or interchange of a capital asset, which qualifies to be treated as long-term capital gains or should it be treated as ordinary income. The paper will look at cases that have addressed this issue and come up with different ways in which this issue should be treated.

This particular issue was directly addressed in the Foote vs. Commissioner case. The ruling made by the taxation court implied that the tenure does not classify as a capital asset and therefore the relinquishment of tenure by…

References

Everett, J. O., Raabe, W. A., & Gentile, J. (2005). Tenure Buyouts: The Case for Capital Gains Treatment. The ATA Journal of Legal Tax Research,3(1), 78-9.

Leagle. (2016). Merrill J. Foote v. Commissioner, 81 T.C. 930 (1983). Retrieved 10 July 2016 from:  http://www.leagle.com/decision/1983101181betc930_1955/FOOTE%20v.%20COMMISSIONER#

Accounting Theory

Lyotardian Post Modernism

Jean-Francois Lyotard's "What is Post Modernism?" begins like a Homeric, epic poem -- in medias res. The piece commences with descriptions of the times in which Lyotard lives, works, and the times on which he reflects and bases his assertions. Lyotard projects the reader into his critical, philosophical, and artistic context with descriptions of the practices and attitudes within the thinking and creative communities. He expresses exasperation and a rejuvenation to critical perspective. Enter post modernism and Habermas.

Lyotard's aim is to locate and interpret changes in perception and experience as described by Habermas regarding aesthetics, experience, quantifiable reality, and the value of reality. Specifically, what concerns Lyotard is Habermas' contention that the unity of the sociocultural experience of life wherein various elements of thought and life integrate organically as a whole. This unity would bridge gaps among cognitive, ethical, and political discourses and this…

Values and Morals in the Accounting Industry

The important questions to be addressed are taken from the "…business ethics/corporate social responsibility literature, oriented towards business enterprises but also of relevance to professional bodies: whether being ethical 'pays' in financial terms; and whether formal codes are useful in promoting ethical behavior…" (Cowton, 2009, p. 177).

Accountants are charged with carrying out ethical and moral decisions in their everyday work, but judging from some of the scandals in recent years (Enron, orldCom, the Anderson Accountancy, etc.) not all accountants are up to speed with those ethical and moral decisions. This paper reviews the judgments that accountants should be making based on morality and ethical values, whether the accountant is working for a multinational corporation or for a small business with only half a dozen employees.

Accounting Students and Moral Decision-Making

Deborah Leitsch writes in the Journal of Business Ethics that auditors are…

Works Cited

Brown-Liburd, Helen L., and Porco, Barbara M. (2011). It's What's Outside that Counts:

Do Extracurricular Experiences Affect the Cognitive Moral Development of Undergraduate Accounting Students? Issues in Accounting Education, 26(2), 439-454.

Cooper, Barry J., Leung, Philomena, Dellaportas, Steven, Jackling, Beverley, and Wong,

Grace. (2008). Ethics Education for Accounting Students -- a Toolkit Approach.

Non-Profit CAFR

Nonprofit accounting is based on the fund accounting, making it very complicated and different from for profit accounting. Fund accounting financial statements are divided into government wide, proprietary, and fiduciary statements. Nonprofit actually has three sets of financial statements compared to one set of financial statements for a for profit entity. Government wide statements basically cover the operations of the government in general. The government wide statements are the ones that are basically the same as for profit financial statements, except they are done differently. Proprietary statements cover funds that are restricted for certain items, such as capital infractures. Fiduciary statements are funds the government is responsible for that are for held other entities, such as the hospital district.

Differences in Missions

There are key differences between non-profit and for profit accounting. (Nonprofit (Not-for-Profit) Accounting) The primary mission of nonprofit is to provide needed services to the community,…

Bibliography

Comprehensive Annual Financial Report. (2010, Nov 30). Retrieved from Cook County, Illinois:  http://www.cookcountygov.com/taxonomy2/Finance,%20Bureau%20of/Downloads/2010_CAFR,pdf 

Kieso, e. a. (2008). ACC 303/304/305 Intermediate Accounting I, II, & III. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Nonprofit (Not-for-Profit) Accounting. (n.d.). Retrieved from Accounting Coach:  http://www.accountingcoach.com/nonprofit-accounting/

International Social Science eview, 85(1-2), 62-63.

Halachmi, a. & Bouckaert, G. (1996). Organizational performance and measurement in the public sector. Westport, CT: Quorum Books.

3.

How has congressional agenda setting changed over time?

The agenda of the U.S. Congress has been closely aligned with its role as the legislative branch of the U.S. government. According to Black's Law Dictionary (1991), "The first Congress under the Constitution met on March 4, 1789 in the Federal Hall in New York City" (p. 301). Indeed, the creation of the U.S. Congress coincided with the adoption of the U.S. Constitution. In this regard, Black's (1991) adds that, the U.S. Congress was created pursuant to Article I, Section 1, of the Constitution, adopted by the Constitutional Convention on September 17, 1787 providing that "all legislative Powers herein granted shall be vested in a Congress of the United States, which shall consist of a Senate and…

References

Black's law dictionary. (1991). St. Paul, MN: West Publishing Co.

Colker, R. (2007). The mythic 43 million Americans with disabilities. William and Mary Law

Review, 49(1), 1-3.

Vile, J.R. (1994). Constitutional change in the United States: A comparative study of the role of constitutional amendments, judicial interpretations, and legislative and executive actions. Westport, CT: Praeger Publishers.

Strategic Perspectives in Management Accounting and Finance

The main reason for differentiation in the accounting studies seemed to occur due to the functionalist perceptions in the expertise of social studies. According to Dellaportas and Davenport (2008) professions are being separated by occupation on the basis of the level of distinctiveness one occupation has from another; a model first designed by Greenwood in 1975.

Abercrombie et al. (1994, p. 335) in their study explained that such distinctiveness is surrounded by the concept which results in more beneficiary outcomes for the public than for an individual's professional interest in providing services. This simply means that it was an original human demand that gave birth to all professions. There's an equality on profession's social compulsion i.e. there is a balance between a professional's job and his obligation to serve the public. In this regard Carey (1965, p. 376) asserted that it was in…

References

Abbott, A. The system of professions: an essay on the division of expert labor. Chicago: University of Chicago Press (1988).

Abercrombie, N., Hill, S., Turner, B.S. The penguin dictionary of sociology. 3rd ed. Ringwood: Penguin Books (1994).

Bedard, J. The disciplinary process of the accounting profession: protecting the public or the profession? The Quebec experience. Journal of Accounting and Public Policy; 20 (2001) (4/5): 399 -- 437.

Bivins, T.H. Public relations, professionalism, and the public interest. Journal of Business Ethics; 12 (1993) (2): 117 -- 26.

The mistake occurred when enthusiasts tried to use those data for other purposes such as 'strategic product decisions.' The average cost of production never could, and never will, be relevant for those classes of decisions where only the change in total costs and revenues are relevant. That is, the rough, average post calculations provided a guide for pricing unique one-off products or services, but were of no use for the other purposes (emphasis added) (Garner & Tsuji, 1995, p. 52).

The strategic product decision function of management accounting described above is based on the strategic management accounting method; this approach serves to cause change in the management framework through various accounting devices designed to adapt effectively to the constantly changing external business environment (Garner & Tsuji, 1995). Strategic management accounting, though, should be managed by production people (including sales and engineering), rather than by accounting staff (Garner & Tsuji, 1995).…

References

Anthony, R.N. (2003, January 1). Management accounting: a personal history. Journal of Management Accounting Research, 15, 249.

Black, T., & Gallagher, L. (1999). Are physical capacity constraints relevant?: Applying finance-economics theory to a management accounting misconception. Australian Journal of Management, 24(2), 143.

Cooper R., & Kaplan, R.S. (1990, February). Measure costs right: Make the right decision. CPA Journal, 25.

Cortada, J.W. (2004). The digital hand: How computers changed the work of American manufacturing, transportation, and retail industries. New York: Oxford University Press.

NOZICK'S ENTITLEMENT THEOY

obert Nozick's Entitlement theory is mainly connected with the issue of property and transfer of property but it is essentially based on the issue of Justice and how it comes into question when property is being transferred or owned. Nozick believes that property rights need to be studied in the social context to understand how transfer and owning of property can give rise to the issue of justice within the society. He believes that when a property that was previously not owned by anyone is transferred to someone and an individual becomes the owner of that piece of land, it is the duty of the government to ensure that no one is left worse off due to this transaction. This is the Libertarian view of property rights and was previously raised by some important thinkers including Aristotle and Thomas Aquinas. ousseau and Bentham also touched upon the…

References

Funnell, Warwick, Accounting for justice: Entitlement, want and the Irish Famine of 1845-7. Accounting Historians Journal; 12/1/2001;

G.A. Cohen, 'Nozick on Appropriation', New Left Review, no. 150, 1985

Levy, Neil, Self-ownership: defending Marx against Cohen.(Karl Marx and G.A. Cohen) Social Theory and Practice; 1/1/2002;

Paul Russell, 'Nozick, Need and Charity', Journal of Applied Philosophy, vol. 4 number 2, 1987, pp. 205-216.

Economic Value Added (EVA) Accounting Practice

Although Economic Value Added (EVA) is not a new concept in economics and financial theory and is based on the 19th century concept of "economic profit," it has only been widely adopted recently by business firms as an accounting practice. In this paper we shall describe what EVA is, and look at its pros and cons from the point-of-view of the company adopting the practice and the investors. We shall also discuss how EVA differs from some other emerging accounting practices and the major issues relating to EVA as compared to other commonly used accounting principles. Finally, the possible problems and opportunities that a company adopting EVA principles can face shall be examined.

What is Economic Value Added (EVA)?

Economic Value Added (EVA) is the after-tax cash flow generated by a business minus the cost of the capital it has invested to generate that…

References

Keen, Peter. (1999). "Economic Value Added.(EVA)" Every Manager's Guide to Business Processes. Retrieved on April 20, 2003 at  http://www.peterkeen.com/emgbp007.htm  kel inen, Esa. (1998). "Economic Value Added as a Management Tool." Retrieved on April 20, 2003 at  http://www.evanomics.com/ 

Shand, Dawne. (October 30, 2000). "Economic Value Added." COMPUTERWORLD. Retrieved on April 20, 2003 at  http://www.computerworld.com/managementtopics/management/itspending/story/0,10801,53001,00.html 

Stewart, Bennet (1999) "What is EVA?" Stern Stewart & Co. Web site. Retrieved on April 20, 2003 at  http://www.sternstewart.com/evaabout/whatis.php 

This cost reflects both the time value of money and compensation for risk -- the more risk associated with a firm, the greater the firm's cost of capital.

In fact, Brierly and Costello bring into the argument the three variables commonly associated with industry growth -- labor, Capital, and Technology. Brierly and Costello used time series regression to test each of these variables in order to determine which made the largest impact on state economic growth, while holding the caveat that states should be careful when considering these variables as they do not have much control over them. Brierly and Costello's results suggested that increasing labor had larger impacts on state economic development than increases in the other two variables. This conclusion is correct only for the short-term, however. In fact, Brierly and Costello's reasoning for their findings that neither increases in labor or technology result in economic growth for states because their investments are typically more "long-term" (Brierly and Costello).

Instead of simply relying on capital, however, ichard C. Feiock argues that non-traditional methods can be beneficial…

References

1. Trogen, Paul. Which Economic Development Policies Work? Determinants of State Per Capita Income.

2. Feiock, Richard. Development Policy Competition and Positive Sum Growth: Incentive Competition and it's Alternatives.

3. Bronson, Allen and Robert Costelb. Accounting for State Economic Performance: A Time Series Cross-Sectional Analysis of the Limits of State Economic Policy.

4. Wilson, James: An Institutionalist Take on State Activism in Economic Development: A Theoretical System.

Pro-Regulation

Regulation in Accounting

Regulator Battle (The Economist, 2009)

The importance of regulation is often overlook or even mocked in society. Regulations and the regulators that administer them are often portrayed as something that slows progress and makes it difficult to navigate the complexities that adherence to the regulatory requirements require. It is easy for people to view regulations from this perspective because when regulations are effective and properly designed they may seem unduly burdensome. However, when regulations break down or are ineffective it is far easier to see the value of regulation. People commonly do not actually appreciate the value of regulation until they have an example in mind that stands in recent memory. This is summarized in a statement by Tim Geithner after the global recession emerged in 2009 which said, "You want to move at the point where people still have the memory of the trauma" (The…

Works Cited

Gerardi, K., Rosen, H. & Willen, P., 2007. Do Households Benefit from Financial Deregulation and Innovation? The Case of the Mortgage Market. [Online]

Available at:  http://www.princeton.edu/~ceps/workingpapers/141rosen.pdf 

[Accessed 17 September 2012].

Lowy, M., 2012. Seeking Alpha. [Online]

" Bhattacharya (1988). It is used to calculate the value of a company based on its total cash flow. (oss, 1988).

Bhattacharya (1998) states that this theory assumed that lower dividends will lead to reduced levels of new equity and this will bring about a balance between the debt and equity of a company. This is not ture for utilities companies and other monopolistic firms where new equities are rare.

For the "Current Examples" in our table, do we need to find specific company examples that exist today or have happened in the last 2-3 years? Or will it suffice to give a theoretical example of a measurement in a firm that fits the model.

For example, would this be OK.

Efficiency Theory Example

- Production returns based on shared, variable, and per unit costs divided by the total output of a factory in a given period of time.

Instructor…

References

Chew, DH (Ed.). (2001). The new corporate finance: Where theory meets practice (3rd ed.). New York, McGraw-Hill Irwin.

Copeland, T. & Weston, J.F., (1988). Financial theory and corporate policy (3rd ed.). Reading, MA. Addison-Wesley Publishing Company.

Fabozzi, R., & Modigliani, F. (1996). Capital markets institutions and instruments (2nd ed.). New Jersey, Prentice Hall.

Fama, E. And K. French. (2001). Disappearing dividends: Changing firm characteristics or lower propensity to pay," Journal of Financial Economics, 60, 3-43

Pension Terminology Definitions & Discussion

The author is asked to define a number of terms relative to pension accounting and its associated terminology and definitions. The terms the author asked to define, in order, are service cost, interest cost, actual return on planned assets, amortization of unrecognized gains/losses and amortization of the transition amount.

Service cost is the present value, from an actuarial standpoint, of the projected benefits that can be associated with an employees' tenure at a pension-using employer during the current year. This is very similar to normal cost. Interest cost is the increase in projected benefit obligation (PBO) associated with the lapse of time as the year goes on. Generally speaking, the interest cost is gained by multiplying the discount rate by the PBO applicable at the beginning of the year.

Actual return on plan assets is what it sounds like. It is the "actual" results that…

Since, this one lacks structure means that many employees can become confused about their responsibilities. Once this occurs, it can often lead to employee issues, where this confusion can become an issue of contention between the staff and management. As management is telling them to engage in particular activity, yet they don't understand why they are doing such tasks. Over time, this can cause moral to drop as those employees who do not thrive under such a system, begin to lower the overall positive attitude in the work environment. ("Contingency Theory," 2010)

Despite some of the obvious weaknesses, the contingency theory is effective for those organizations that are small. This is because the in formalized structure allows managers / owners the opportunity to adapt to changes that are occurring in real time. Where, they can use their experience and common sense to adjust to various business conditions. As a result,…

Bibliography

Building Emotional Capital. (2004, June 24). Retrieved April 10, 2010, from Executive Education website:  http://executive.education.insead.edu/programme/documents/Nissan_004.pdf 

Contingency Theory. (2010). Retrieved April 9, 2010, from Values-Based Management website:  http://www.valuebasedmanagement.net/methods_contingency_theory.html 

Babineck, M. (2006, March 13). The Enron Trial. Retrieved April 10, 2010 from Chron website:  http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/special/enron/3718892.html 

Bissonette, Z. (2008, August 1). How Does General Motors CEO Rick Wagoner Still Have a Job. Retrieved April 10, 2010 from Blogging Stocks website:  http://www.bloggingstocks.com/2008/08/01/how-does-general-motors-ceo-richard-wagoner-still-have-a-job/

In addition, the views presented by sociologists concerning idealistic tradition is based on the significance of the concerned group that is sort to motivate, influence to belief and the subject of interest. In this regard, sociologists will not disassociate from the scientific data but will involve the subject of interest to attempt to understand the environment in its own context, showing how sociologists have subjective explanations and not objective ones (Adams et al. 267).

ith regard to the above, there exists queries on whether the sociological theory is a micro or a macro understood occurrence. Apart from the philosophical aspects of knowledge, the micro and macro aspects of sociological theory are highly debated in there associations. It inquires on how these sociological theories on character, reactions, and interpersonal procedures can associate with other social influences. Just like in sciences where there exists micro-macro differences which even with the advanced technology…

Works cited

Adams, Bert, et al. Sociological theory. Thousand Oaks, CA: Pine Forge Press. 2001. Print.

Calhoun, Craig, et al. Contemporary sociological theory. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley-Blackwell, 2007.

Print.

Dunaway, Wilma. Emerging Issues in the 21st Century World-system: New theoretical directions for the 21st century world-system. Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood

For example, Tocqueville was able to explain 18th century European aristocrat behavior by looking at social consequences. Like Tocqueville, Marx believed that they could explain individual actions by looking at subconscious class interests. Frey has demonstrated that people will accept individually negative outcomes, if they have positive group benefits.

Nietzsche believed that, while conscious of class interests, individual actions and beliefs should be viewed from an individual perspective, since they are motivated by the positive consequences to the individual actor. In discussing his theory of bounded rationality, Simon seemed to combine elements from the different theorist, by showing how social actions include cognitive dimensions.

3. How does the author distinguish human actions from other forms of human behavior?

Again, the author does not make it clear how he feels human actions and other forms of human behavior are different. Instead, he explains how various theorists have attempted to differentiate human…

This same concept presents a major challenge to Piaget's theories as well.

One of the key criticisms of Piaget's work can be found in his research methods. He used Qualitative research methods, which often do not stand up to the rigors of science. Many factors can influence the outcome of qualitative studies. For instance, sample bias may have been present in Piaget's original study. All of the children were from well-educated families. The sample size was small; therefore, the results may not apply to sample with different demographic profiles. It is difficult to generalize his findings to a larger population.

In addition to sample bias, qualitative studies are prone to bias by the researcher. They may wish to "prove" their theories to the extent that they see patterns where none exist, or they may tend to leave out important information that does not coincide with their theory. There is no…

Firms with what organisational patterns are more likely to acquire existing firms? In what stage of internationalisation is acquisition more likely? Such research should not assume that such decisions are always rational. It may be that irrational factors are important at times. For example, it might be that the rush to acquire businesses in Europe prior to 1992 and to acquire companies in Asia in the mid-1990s reflected a bandwagon effect with firms developing strategies to legitimise their investments after the decision has been made (McDougall, et al., 2004). Research might also give attention to a broader range of entry modes beyond exporting, licensing and FDI. Strategic alliances with local or other foreign firms may involve no transfer of funds. Alliances are another entry mode option which deliver similar strategic advantages to joint ventures but have received little attention in the literature beyond those firms whose home country is either…

Bibliography

Aspelund, a., and O. Moen 2001. "A Generation Perspective on Small Firms Internationalization -- From Traditional Exporters and Flexible Specialists to Born Globals," in Advances in International Marketing: Reassessing the Internationalization of the Firm, Vol. 11. Eds C.N. Axinn and P. Matthyssens. Amsterdam: Elsevier Science, JAI Press, 197-226.

Bell, J., Crick, D. And Young, S. 2004. Small Firm Internationalization and Business Strategy: An Exploratory Study of Knowledge-Intensive and Traditional Manufacturing Firms in the UK. International Small Business Journal. 22(1):23-56.

Cavusgil, S. Tamer, Knight, Gary and Riesenberger, John R. 2008. International Business: Strategy, Management, and the New Realities, New Jersey: Pearson Prentice Hall. ISBN: 0137128339. Chapter 3.

Christensen, P.R. 1997. "The Small and Medium Sized Exporters' Squeeze: Empirical Evidence and Model Reflections," Entrepreneurship and Regional Development 3, 49-65.

Leadership Theories

Different Ways of Organizing in Supervision and Management

Organizing constitutes a crucial management function. It is essentially concerned with task allocation, division of labor, chain of command, lines of authority and communication, delegation, span of control, as well as supervision and coordination (Shafiee, Razminia & Zeymaran, 2016). The manner in which these processes are organized significantly influences organizational effectiveness and efficiency. It determines how quick or slow decisions are made and implemented. This is particularly important in a constantly evolving environment, in which agility is a crucial parameter of competitive advantage (Felin & Powell, 2016). Organizational structure also shapes relationships between superiors and subordinates (Shafiee, Razminia & Zeymaran, 2016).

There are different ways through which the organizing function may be executed. For instance, organizational structure may adopt either the centralized or decentralized form. The former entails concentrating decision-making authority in top organizational positions, while that latter involves distributing…

Children also gain an insight into the conservation of numbers, mass, and weight; which allows them to understand that just because the image of object changes that does not mean the nature of the object has to change with it. For example, children in this stage can tell that a cup of water is the same amount despite being poured into two different cups. Children also learn to classify objects by several features based on increased schemes from more external stimuli. Finally, the formal operational stage represents the state of the mind from eleven years onward. In this, there is logical abstract thinking, which goes beyond the child's immediate environment and incorporates abstract concepts. Children learn to test hypothesis using reason and the human mind looks forward into the future and the abstract hypothetical. According to Piaget, these stages are universal and occur within every individual.

There is another side…

Daniels, Harry. (2005). An Introduction to Vygotsky. Routledge Press.

Minick, Norris. (2005). The development of Vygotsky's thought: an introduction to Thinking and Speech. An Introduction to Vygotsky. Routledge Press.

Piaget, Jean & Inhelder, Barbel. (1999). The Psychology of the Child. Basic Books.

Organizational culture theory and the role and impact of both formal and informal groups on the functioning of modern day organizations.

Organizational culture is the way organizations conducts its business transactions. It also refers to the different perspectives that a company sees things. An organization builds its own organizational culture through structure, history and the traditions of the company (Shafritz 2005). Theories of organizational culture suggest that culture gives an organization a sense of identity and defines what the company stands for. It also tells us what the company is. Culture also gives details to the principles of the company. Organizational culture in broader terms is the collective behavior of humans and the meaning of the actions that people do.

It involves the vision, norms, systems, beliefs and the organization values. Organizational culture contains values accepted by the employees of an organization. There are four main categories of organizational culture.…

Men and women perform different tasks in the society. There are tasks that women cannot do whereas the men are competent. Other tasks are hard for men to perform while the same tasks are easy for the women. The changing world enables women to work in the fields that many people regarded as belonging to the men. Women are now working in construction companies as a form of employment. The tasks affect positively in a bureaucratic performance since women incorporate their skills with that of men to work towards the achievement of an organization's goal. Strong and good working relationships between the employees in a bureau are beneficial (Gormley 2008). The strong relationships ensure that there is competence and effectiveness in performance of the employees.

Political support is crucial for any bureaucracy to thrive. Political stability and support are the main determinant factor that will enable a bureaucracy to thrive in its activities. Political support enables the bureaucracy to work without any hurdles. This ensures that the bureaucracy works with ease. Political support enables the bureaucracy to receive help and assistance from politicians (Gormley 2008). Political interference is the main factor that leads to the collapse of bureaucracy. Negative working relations between a bureau and politicians are a negative factor that will make the bureau not to function accordingly.

Good leadership helps bureaus to work effectively. Good leadership ensures that there are no corruption cases in many bureaus (Gormley 2008). Bad leadership results in the misappropriation of funds and corruption in the bureaus. Good leadership is a motivator to the junior staffs who look up to the leaders and follow the examples set up by the leaders. This enables the employees in the bureau to perform excellently in all sectors. Good governance and leadership by the officials enable the organization to get funding from the government that helps it in carrying outs its tasks.

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The two hypothetical systems working on an individual's brain during the experience of addiction are complementary within and between system changes. The first counteradaptation results in a decrease in the transmission of dopamine and serotonin release during withdrawal phases of the cycle (obinson & Berridge 2001). Effectively, dopamine and serotonin transmission is artificially increased beyond the normative range during drug use, then virtually stopped once the drug has left the body. This intensifies not only the "come down" feeling but also the preoccupation anxieties associated with substance abuse as well as the existing emotional, environmental, or social vulnerability which lead to the initial lapse. Sensitization is the component of addiction which compels an individual to continually seek greater quantities of the substance (obinson & Berridge 2001). Effectively once the brain has been exposed to a chemical which alters neural transmission, the body attempts to return to a homeostatic state.…

References

1. Nesse, R. (1994). An evolutionary perspective on substance abuse. Ethology and Sociobiology, 15, 339- 348.

2. Robinson, T, & Berridge, K. (2001). Mechanisms of action of addictive stimuli incentive- sensitization and addiction. Addiction, 96, 103- 114.

3. Koob, G., & Le Moal, M. (1997). Drug abuse: Hedonic homeostatic dysregulation. Science, 278, 52- 58.

4. Brown, J.M., & Miller, W.R. (1993). Impact of motivational interviewing on participation and outcome in residential alcoholism treatment. Psychology of Addictive Behaviors,7, 211-218.