Issues Of Agency Research Articles

Diversity in trap color and height increases species richness of bark and woodboring beetles detected in multiple funnel traps.

Early detection of non-native, potentially invasive bark beetles and woodboring beetles (BBWB) (Coleoptera: Buprestidae, Cerambycidae, Disteniidae; Curculionidae: Scolytinae) inadvertently introduced to new habitats via global trade is a critical issue for regulatory agencies in numerous countries. We conducted trapping experiments to evaluate the effects of trap color (black vs. green vs. purple) and trap height (canopy vs. understory) on detection of BBWB in Canada, Poland, USA, and China, using Fluon-treated 12-unit multiple-funnel traps. Each trap was baited with the same pheromone and ethanol lures known to attract several species of BBWB. We predicted BBWB species composition would differ between vertical strata and among trap colors, and that the number of BBWB species detected would increase with greater diversity of trapping methods, i.e., by using more than one color of trap and by placing traps in both the canopy and understory. Our prediction was partially supported, i.e., placing one color of trap in the understory and a different colored trap in the canopy detected more species than did a single trap color placed in either the understory or canopy. However, the combinations of trap height and colors that detected the most species varied among sites. The community of BBWB species captured in traps was significantly affected by trap height and trap color at all sites, with the strongest patterns in the data from Poland and the USA. Black and purple traps caught similar communities of BBWB species in the canopy and understory, but green traps caught a different species assemblage in the canopy in Poland and the USA. Effects of trap height and color on species richness were consistent across all four sites within the subfamilies Agrilinae (more species captured in green canopy traps than any other trap height-color combination), Chrysochroinae (more species captured in purple canopy traps than any trap height-color combination) and Scolytinae (more species captured in the understory than the canopy and no effect of trap color), but varied significantly among sites within Cerambycidae subfamilies. None of the species accumulation curves reached an asymptote for any trap color-height combination at any site, indicating that 8-9 traps per site were not sufficient to detect all BBWB species present. Thus, increasing the number of traps deployed per site will increase the BBWB species richness captured and the chances of detecting non-native species that may be present.

Does Mutual Funds’ Window-Dressing Status Affect Investee Firms’ Earnings Management?

We examine the link between agency issues in the mutual fund industry and the earnings reporting behavior of investee firms. Prior research indicates that some active fund managers engage in window-dressing practices, removing securities that may reflect badly on their investing skills from the list of mandatorily-reported holdings. We identify funds that are likely to engage in such practices and document that the holdings of these window-dressers are more sensitive to investee firms’ earnings news, specifically that window-dressers sell their holdings more aggressively following negative news. We find that aggressive trading by window-dressers, along with potential front-running by other funds, results in greater price reactions of the investee firms’ stocks to earnings news. This incentivizes the managers of the investee firms to engage in earnings management to meet or beat earnings forecasts. We also find that these investee firms are more likely to report a positive earnings surprise prior to equity offerings and less likely to do so after a CEO change.

Franchisee-Franchisor Relationship in Saudi Arabia: Agency Theory Perspective

The research investigates franchisee-franchisor relationships in Saudi Arabia using agency theory to analyze agency problems and control perceptions while exploring trust and franchisee satisfaction and conflicts. A survey with 105 franchisees across different industries received analysis through IBM SPSS using frequency distribution alongside Chi-Square tests. The findings reveal significant concerns regarding operational control, trust in franchisors, and information transparency. Yet, no statistically significant relationships were found between trust and satisfaction, power and conflict, or goal alignment and satisfaction. The study findings imply that standard agency issues do not drive franchisee experiences as much as financial security combined with operational backing and legal protective measures. The authors advise franchisors to provide for their franchisees. The government needs to enhance regulatory standards for franchises together with dispute settlement systems to promote equitable contractual obligations. Further investigation using qualitative research methods and studies focusing on specific industries will comprull disclosure, adjustable financial frameworks, and independent marketing and operational capabilities fehensively comprehend Saudi Arabia’s evolving franchising market.

Artificial Intelligence in Arabic-English Literary Translation: Technological Innovations, Linguistic Accuracy, and Ethical Implications

This research investigates the application of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Arabic-English literary translation, examining the complex intersection of technological capabilities, linguistic challenges, and ethical considerations. The study employs a mixed-methods approach combining computational analysis of translator-AI interactions, comparative assessment of machine and human translations, and qualitative interviews with professional translators and literary experts. Analysis of a diverse corpus of Arabic literary texts reveals that while neural machine translation (NMT) systems have made significant advances in handling basic linguistic structures, they continue to struggle with the cultural nuances, stylistic features, and contextual depth that characterize literary texts. The research identifies specific challenges in translating Arabic literary devices, metaphorical expressions, and culturally embedded concepts, while proposing targeted enhancements to existing NMT architectures. These include the development of specialized cultural knowledge modules, improved handling of Arabic morphological complexity, and hybrid human-AI workflows that leverage the strengths of both machine efficiency and human cultural interpretation. The study also addresses the ethical implications of AI integration in literary translation, examining issues of authorial voice preservation, translator agency, and cultural representation. The findings suggest that while AI can serve as a valuable assistive tool in the translation process, the translation of literary texts continues to require human oversight to ensure cultural authenticity, stylistic integrity, and ethical representation. This research contributes to the evolving understanding of AI's role in translation studies and offers practical frameworks for the responsible integration of technology in preserving the art of literary translation.

Peer Tutors’ Agency and Emotions in Tertiary English Language Education in Vietnam

Peer support has been found to have significant impacts on language learning as a supplement to formal lessons at school. This study draws on the construct of agency to explore Vietnamese students’ self-regulation, awareness of the responsibility, sociocultural factors affecting peer tutoring, and the emotional experiences shaping their commitment. The participants include one junior and two senior students in the BA in English Language Teaching program who volunteered to support their peers in the General English Program at a private university. They were invited to respond to a narrative frame to reflect on their experiences and the critical incidents they encountered in peer tutoring. Findings show the participants’ ongoing exercise of agency entailing their self-regulation, awareness of responsibility toward working with peers, and sociocultural elements that determined their resilience and levels of enthusiasm. They also found peer tutoring rewarding to their cognitive and affective development in terms of expanding personal relationships, resolving peer conflicts, gaining practical insights, and enhancing linguistic confidence. This study contributes to understandings of peer tutors’ agency, emotions, and relational issues that inform curriculum developers and language teachers in providing students with hands-on opportunities for teaching practice.

Why SMEs go to crowdfunding? The role of financial constraints and agency issues

Abstract Equity crowdfunding (ECF) is a phenomenon that offers significant opportunities for financing growth and supporting business success. However, its effectiveness in fostering firm performance remains ambiguous, particularly in the presence of financial constraints. This article explores the relationship between ECF and firm performance through the lens of financial constraints. Our findings suggest that ECF alone does not directly enhance performance; instead, financial constraints play a critical role in shaping its effects. We observe that financially constrained SMEs mainly use ECF funds for rebalancing their capital structure rather than growth-oriented investments. This misallocation of funds contradicts backers’ expectations and may result in weakened performance. Our study reveals a potential dark side of ECF, where financially constrained firms prioritize financial stability over long-term value creation. These findings have implications for investors, policymakers, and crowdfunding platforms, emphasizing the need for greater transparency and due diligence in assessing firms’ financial constraints before funding. Regulators and platforms should implement stricter oversight mechanisms to ensure that ECF fulfills its intended purpose, supporting innovation and business expansion rather than merely alleviating financial distress.

How do brick-and-mortar businesses leverage financial markets in China?

Brick-and-mortar businesses can be categorized into net financing and net investment types based on the diverse approaches they employ in financial markets, with these distinctions rooted in internal factors within the businesses themselves. Research indicates that brick-and-mortar businesses predominantly opt for a net financing approach when engaging with financial markets. Nevertheless, there is a diminishing trend in the proportion and scale of net financing-oriented companies, while those net investment-oriented companies are on the rise. Disparities exist in financial market utilization across industries, regions, and ownership structures. Companies experiencing high-performance volatility and minimal agency issues tend to favor net financing strategies, with performance volatility impacting the method of utilization by influencing free cash flow. Agency issues within businesses contribute to managerial self-interest, consequently influencing their preferred utilization method. This study introduces a novel micro perspective and quantitative approach to investigate the fundamental relationship between brick-and-mortar businesses and financial markets. It aids regulators in assessing the modes and extents of financial services provided to the real economy from a micro-enterprise standpoint. JEL Code: G1 G2 M2

Labour Investment Efficiency and Social Capital

ABSTRACTThis study explores the impact of social capital on where a firm is headquartered regarding its labour investment decisions. We show that firms located in counties with high levels of social capital avoid both overinvestment and underinvestment, and thus have more efficient labour investments. We also find that social capital, as an external factor that mitigates conflict, has a stronger effect on reducing inefficient labour investments when a firm is more likely to suffer from agency issues. Overall, our results show that social capital plays a vital role in increasing trust by reducing agency‐infused actions, therefore ensuring efficient investments in labour resources.

Stardom and the Construction of Value in the Post-Studio Era: The Branded Adversity of Sylvester Stallone

Abstract: Hollywood histories have historically presented a binary between the classical studio system and the post-studio era, suggesting that the latter ushered in a period of creative autonomy for its stars, who gained greater control over their career and image. While there is much work that complicates the narrative of control exerted in the classical period, work that offers a similarly complex view of the post-studio era is scant. Using Sylvester Stallone as a case study, this article explores the issues of agency and studio control in the post-studio period. It considers how the narrative of disadvantage and determination that was fabricated by United Artists would go on to become a central part of the star’s biography, contributing to a brand whose foregrounding of ideas of self-reliance and dedication retains cultural and economic value for the studio, who developed the biography, and for Stallone, who has lived and performed it for almost fifty years.

Uncovering the Hidden Effort Problem

ABSTRACTWe analyze minute‐by‐minute Bloomberg online status and study how the effort provision of executives in public corporations affects firm value. While executives spend most of their time doing other activities, patterns of Bloomberg usage allow us to characterize their work habits as measures of effort provision. We document a positive effect of effort on unexpected earnings and cumulative abnormal returns following earnings announcements, and a reduction in credit default swap spreads. This is robust to using exogenous weather patterns as an instrument. Long‐short, calendar‐time effort portfolios earn significant average daily returns. Finally, we revisit important agency issues from the literature.

Dynamic Panel of Ownership Structure and Dividend Policy: Evidence from Different Market Segmentation

The aim of this paper is to identify the ownership structure and dividend policies for three countries with different market developments. The sample in this study incorporates the top 100 listed firms on each country's stock exchange over a ten-year period from 2007 to 2016. The dynamic panel data set was constructed using the sample firms which enables the employment of the Generalized Method of Moment (GMM). The study discovered that the only important variables in explaining the dividend policy in these three nations are the lagged dividend payout ratio and foreign ownership structure components after utilising the GMM estimate. This could be an indication of a lagging dividend payout because the past dividend has an impact on the current dividend and there are shares held by foreign investors in the sample companies in all three countries. Foreign investors monitor a company more actively to reduce agency issues and encourage corporations to increase dividend payout levels. When deciding on a dividend policy, management, shareholders, investors, policymakers, analysts, banks, and governments can benefit from the study's important input and practical advice.

The Preference for Competent Chief Audit Executives in Family Firms: Mitigating Agency Issues with Nonfamily Executives

ABSTRACT This paper examines the demand difference in chief audit executive (CAE) competence between family and nonfamily firms and whether CAE competence plays a role in mitigating the agency problems between family owners and nonfamily executives within family firms. Using a sample of Chinese firms listed on the small and medium enterprise board, we find that CAE competence is higher in family firms than nonfamily firms. The demand is more prominent when the ownership dispersion among family members is less and when the CEO is one of the family members. Moreover, family members’ financial background reinforces the social identity of CAE competence and thus increases their demand for competent CAEs. Further analysis indicates that CAE competence can mitigate agency problems between family owners and nonfamily executives by reducing perk consumption and increasing turnover-performance sensitivity, which drives the demand for CAE competence in family firms. Data Availability: All data are available from public databases identified in the paper. JEL Classifications: D19; G34; M42.

Effects of ESG on the relationship between ownership concentration and cash holdings

This paper examined the impact of ownership concentration on cash-holding levels, including 4832 Chinese-listed companies. This study employed the Fixed Effects Model and the Generalized Method of Moments for quantitative analysis. This study shows a positive relationship between ownership concentration and cash holdings. Furthermore, ESG can mitigate the direct correlation between ownership concentration and corporate cash holdings. Finally, the impact described above is particularly noticeable for non-state-owned enterprises. In summary, the empirical findings offer a new analytical perspective on the cash-holding decisions of corporations in the Chinese capital market. Furthermore, this study illustrates the importance of ESG in corporate development to mitigate ownership concentration and excess cash holdings. As a result, the findings show that non-financial reporting, such as ESG disclosure, can reduce agency issues, making more accurate assessments of enterprise performance.

The Governance Effect of Financial Reporting Inquiry Letters on Major Shareholder Expropriation: Evidence From Chinese Listed Companies

ABSTRACTUtilizing Chinese A‐share listed companies from 2015 to 2023 as samples, this article empirically tests the influence of financial reporting inquiry letters on major shareholder expropriation and its function mechanism and obtains the following four conclusions. First, financial reporting inquiry letters exert a temporary restraining effect on major shareholder expropriation, necessitating continuous issuance of letters by stock exchanges to reinforce this governance role. Second, the internal and external environment influences the governance effectiveness of financial reporting inquiry letters. The inhibitory effect of financial reporting inquiry letters on major shareholder expropriation is more pronounced for companies without relaxing short‐selling controls, with higher marketization degrees, and with weaker exit threats from non‐controlling large shareholders. Third, financial reporting inquiry letters can attract investor attention and increase litigation risk, thereby curbing major shareholder expropriation. Fourth, financial reporting inquiry letters have a deterrent effect on major shareholder expropriation in peer companies that have not gotten letters, but they cannot effectively impact companies in the same region that have not received letters. This article confirms the inhibitive influence of non‐punitive supervision on major shareholder expropriation, providing empirical evidence regarding the governance of Type II agency issues in Chinese listed companies.

Challenging Colonial Constructs: Gendered Agency in Benson and Dawson’s Short Travel Narratives

This study examines the issues of rescue, oppression, and agency in reclaiming Moroccan gendered identities through a comparative reading of S. Benson’s Thamar: The Jewess of Fez (1874), Alec Dawson’s Out Past the City Gates (1900), and A Moorish Hero and Juanita (1900). My aim is to investigate how these colonial tropes intertwine to frame women, during colonial Morocco, within the structure of oppression while offering insights into resistance and agency. This article also highlights the thematic resonance and divergence of the short stories under scrutiny, exposing how the interplay of gender, power, and identity is constructed, contested, and re-imagined. These out-of-print travel narratives elucidate the multilayered socio-historical realities of colonial Morocco, revealing the ways in which local patriarchal practices intersect with colonial ideologies to marginalize women. Benson and Dawson’s portrayals of female characters mirror Orientalist tendencies, though they also offer moments of resistance and agency, in which women reclaim their voices. By exerting their agency and recasting themselves from the pressurized roles of victim and savior, these female characters challenge and subvert oversimplified readings of domination through acts of resistance. Through its combination of feminist and postcolonial theories, this paper places these narratives within the discourse of identity, power dynamics, and representation. Furthermore, this article adds to the body of literature that foregrounds the complex roles of women as active agents and shows how these out-of-print short narratives remain vital to reshaping historical and literary understandings of gendered identities.

An analysis of policy reliance on entrepreneurship

Entrepreneurship has become a grand term in government policy as a method to curb unemployment and joblessness amongst youth. Developing countries battling slow economic growth, graduate unemployment and lack of jobs have since devised entrepreneurship policies with hopes to address these challenges. However, these efforts have fallen short in recognising the issues of structure and agency in deciding such policy. This paper asks the question: What are the policy inferences on youth entrepreneurship based on its policy contents and statements? And the objective of this study is to analyse the key policy views on entrepreneurship. The literature review on structure and agency is explored in this paper where the political and individual agency are engaged. The methodological approach is a qualitative documentary analysis of two policies namely the National Youth Policy and National Development Plan. A mini-case study of a South African University is also presented in the paper. The findings show that students remain with little agency to none when it comes to the promotion of entrepreneurship on campuses. This is because the structure of policy enactment takes a top-down approach that suppresses other views that are not directly promoting entrepreneurship to deal with unemployment and joblessness amongst youth, in particular students and graduates. The key discussions of the paper show that the South African university is used by the state to drive policy promotions of entrepreneurship. The discussion exposes both structural and agency issues condoning the use of entrepreneurship to responsibilise youths through policy that they should create jobs via entrepreneurship. Whilst this view is common and popular, this paper challenges researchers and scholarship on entrepreneurship to further investigate the potential role of policy in enabling entrepreneurship amongst students other than to simply coerce them to the practice. The original contribution of this study is that it provides a different approach to entrepreneurship research showing the downside of entrepreneurship policy as opposed to research that generally promotes it.

How Do Single Mothers Evaluate and Cope with Living in Rural Peripheries? Insights into the Interplay of Social and Spatial Disadvantage*

AbstractWhen social and spatial disadvantages meet, are they doubled? Empirical studies have convincingly demonstrated that disadvantages tend to accumulate. Our paper advances this scholarship by focusing on the under‐researched issue of social positions, subjective perspectives, and agency among single mothers in rural peripheries characterized by weak labor markets and accessibility issues. Drawing from problem‐centered interviews conducted in eastern Germany and Czechia, we investigate how single mothers perceive and evaluate the local and regional opportunities available to them. Additionally, we employ the concept of coping to analyze how they navigate spatial constraints. Our findings reveal that while our respondents encounter various spatial limitations and some feel ensnared in cycles of accumulating disadvantages, they often view these constraints as balanced or outweighed by the advantages of their living environment. Our in‐depth analysis identifies room to maneuver in coping with spatial disadvantages and sheds light on the costs and risks associated with different coping strategies. In conclusion, we argue that incorporating a perspective on agency and subjectivity into research on inequalities allows for a nuanced understanding of the interrelation of social and spatial disadvantages.

Groupthink in the Board of Family Firms: The Case of Institutional Investment

This study explores groupthink on the boards of family firms. We conjecture that institutional investors, in the face of principal–principal agency issues, are discouraged by groupthink and consequently invest less in family firms. Appropriate corporate governance in the form of greater board diversity, lower director tenure, busier boards, more financial disclosure, and bigger shareholder voice should help in alleviating these institutional investor concerns. We examine a sample of firms from the S&P 500 and find evidence consistent with these propositions. Also, we provide evidence that board generational heterogeneity in family firms exacerbates groupthink.

A Road across the Jewish Cemetery at Weißensee: Transnational Connections and Citizens’ Protest in 1980s East Berlin

ABSTRACT This paper proposes a new history of Jewish community life and relations between Jews and non-Jews in the GDR, Western Germany, Israel and the United States through exploring the foiled plans for an expressway through the Jewish Cemetery at Berlin-Weißensee between 1976 and 1986. Drawing on existing historiography on the GDR’s Jewish communities and previously unconsidered archival documents, personal narratives and visual documents, the piece sheds new light on issues of agency, assent and dissident among the GDR’s Jews and beyond. The protests, I argue, pre-empted the GDR citizens’ rights movement that led into the falling of the Berlin Wall.

Comparative study of some species of the genus Acer L. in the Hirkan flora using dendrochronological methods

Recently, due to global climate change and unregulated human economic activities, biodiversity has significantly degraded, which has led to changes and reductions in the ranges of species. Observations show that there is no comprehensive conservation strategy to protect certain regions where rare and endangered species of woody plants of the flora of Azerbaijan live. With the increase in the number of rare species and the decrease in the number of endangered plants, identifying the causes of these problems and preventing their further degradation is an urgent issue for both government agencies and scientific institutions. The main objective of this scientific study is to conduct a biometric and dendrochronological analysis of the processes occurring in the populations of rare species of the Hirkan flora. The study also includes monitoring the areas where rare and endangered species are found and developing action plans to assess and protect these ecosystems. The article presents studies conducted on samples of old species Acer hyrcanum and Acer mono, selected from the flora of Hyrcanus. Comparative analysis of the species was carried out using dendrochronological methods. Modern equipment was used to determine the age of species, study the dynamics of their development and assess the impact of environmental factors on them. As is known, woody plants experience radial and vertical growth, forming annual rings, although there are exceptions due to a number of complex factors. Among them, climatic conditions, habitat features, as well as genetic and age characteristics of plants play a particularly important role.