Reputation Effects Research Articles

The motivations and reputational consequences of spreading conspiracy theories.

Some people deliberately spread conspiracy theories. What are the reputational benefits and costs of doing so? The Adaptive-Conspiracism hypothesis proposes that it pays to be vigilant against possible conspiracies, especially in case of intergroup threat. Those who spread conspiracy theories may therefore be seen as valuable group members. Few studies have focused on the reputational impact of spreading a conspiracy theory. We conducted five studies (NPilot = 303; NStudy1 = 388; NStudy2 = 560; NStudy3 = 391; NStudy4 = 373) where participants rated a conspiracy spreader (vs. a neutral person) on a range of personality traits in different intergroup contexts. The results indicated that conspiracy spreaders were consistently perceived as more dominant and less warm than people making non-conspiratorial claims about certain events. Moreover, intergroup conflict attenuated the negative effects of spreading conspiracy theories on competence and warmth. These findings support the notion that besides drawbacks, spreading conspiracy theories can have benefits for the spreader's reputation, particularly during an intergroup conflict.

Why my doctor is a Kantian and my car mechanic is an Aristotelian: bringing marketplace ethics into the classroom

This article makes the case for bringing ethics more explicitly into the economics classroom. It outlines a theory of pluralist ethical institutions, explains how these may solve certain problems in markets and relates them to a model of human behaviour proposed by Adam Smith. Markets operate not only on the foundation of outcome incentives tied to contracts and property rights, but also on the basis of Kantian duty and Aristotelian virtue. These latter concepts explain the development of deeper trust, which reduces transaction costs and risks. Trust can be achieved through reputational effects in repeat trade and from sharing sentiments and principles. Smith’s moral sentiments model describes how individuals come to develop the self-control needed to obey social norms and laws relating to honesty and treating others with respect. The article provides examples of markets that are enhanced by non-consequentialist ethical institutions, as well as some of the constraints imposed by them. It thus provides a strong case for dealing with ethics in standard economics courses and it makes some suggestions for how this can be done simply and effectively.

Impact of Managerial Ability on the Quality of Accounting Information Disclosure: Empirical Evidence From China

Given the frequent occurrence of accounting fraud and the increasing importance of managerial ability, in order to promote the disclosure of high-quality accounting information by listed companies and enhance the confidence of investors and the public, taking A-share listed companies in the ShenZhen Stock Exchange of China as research samples from 2015 to 2022, we analyze the impact of managerial ability on accounting information disclosure quality (AIDQ) in terms of “governance effect” and “reputation effect,” and explore the role played by internal control effectiveness and equity structure characteristics. The research results show that the stronger the managerial ability, the higher AIDQ. Internal control effectiveness partially mediates the relationship between managerial ability and AIDQ. Further research finds that managerial ability promotes AIDQ more significantly in non-state-owned firms, firms with controlling shareholders’ equity pledges, and firms with high equity concentration. This study reveals the micro-influence path of managerial ability in promoting accounting disclosure and provides empirical evidence for improving AIDQ in listed companies.

Effect of reputation and social media on the financial performance of SMEs – a comparison between selected business sectors

Research background: The growing popularity of social media increased its significance as a tool for enhancing corporate reputation. However, SMEs are less engaged in social media than large companies. For this reason, numerous SMEs miss the benefits they could derive from using the potential of social media and fail to optimize their reputation management strategies. Furthermore, substantial diversity among SMEs in their social media engagement practices is evident. Consequently, it is crucial to investigate this problem and identify SME owners' and managers’ perceptions of reputation and social media in specific business sectors. Purpose of the article: The aim of this study is to examine and quantify the effect of the importance of corporate reputations and social media on financial performance. Methods: The questionnaire was completed by 864 SMEs engaged in business activities within one of the following sectors: manufacturing, trade, services, and construction. Subjective perceptions of owners and managers of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) were analyzed. Data collection was conducted in the four Central European countries in the years 2022-2023. The statistical hypotheses were verified using correlation analysis and linear regression modelling. Analytical software IBM SPSS Statistics no. 28 was used in the statistical evaluation of the research data set. Findings & Value added: The corporate reputation of companies is a significant factor, which has a positive effect on the acceptable profit of a company in the business sector of manufacturing, trade, construction, and services. The strongest effect is present in the sector of construction. Social media is an important factor with a positive effect on the perception of a sufficient profit of a company by each business sector except construction. The strongest effect is present in the sector of manufacturing. Corporate reputation was found to be insignificant for the perception of the ability to pay obligations (solvency) in the manufacturing sector. This effect is stronger in the construction sector in comparison to the trade and services sectors.

Does Corporate Reputation Still Affect the Cost of Equity in an Emerging Market? Evidence from Managerial Overconfidence

Purpose: This paper examines the relationship between corporate reputation, managerial overconfidence, and the cost of equity in the context of Vietnam - a fast-growing emerging market. Design/methodology/approach: The paper employs Pooled Ordinary Least Square, Fixed Effect Model and Random Effect Model to test the effects of corporate reputation and managerial overconfidence on the cost of equity on 391 non-financial Vietnamese listed firms during 2011 and 2020. In addition, Principal Component Analysis is also applied for calculating the corporate reputation score. Findings: The finding shows that firms with higher corporate reputation are associated with a lower cost of equity. The results also indicates that despite the insignificant relationship between managerial overconfidence and the cost of equity, firms operated by overconfident managers can promote the negative effect between corporate reputa-tion and the cost of equity. In addition, the more reputable corporates increase, the lower the cost of equity will be. Research limitations/implications: Firms in Vietnam can manage the cost of equity better. Furthermore, based on the managers' characteristics and the state of corporate reputation, investors can make appropriate investment decisions. Originality/value: Prior research shows that corporate reputation is negatively related to the implied cost of equity. However, in Vietnamese stock market, under managerial overconfidence, the association between corporate reputa-tion and the cost of equity is also greatly affected. Furthermore, changes in corporate reputation also have certain effects on the cost of equity, especially when corporate reputation is enhanced every year.

Faktor-Faktor Yang Mempengaruhi Audit Delay Pada Perusahaan Sektor Properties & Real Estate

This research is based on the phenomenon of many public companies experiencing long periods of time in publishing their financial reports. This research aims to test the effect of profitability, solvency, firm size, and auditor reputation on audit. In this study, profitability, solvency, firm size, and auditor reputation variables act as independent variables, besides the dependent variable used is audit delay. The sample in this study is properties & real estate companies listed on the IDX in 2021- 2022 with a total sample of 70 samples. The sample selection is based on the purposive sampling method with the criteria and requirements determined by the researcher. The analytical method used in this research is multiple linear regression analysis using SPSS 25 program aid. The results showed that partially variables profitability have a significant negative effect on audit delay and solvency have a negative effect but not significant on audit delay. Meanwhile, the firm size and auditor reputation have a positif but not significant effect on audit delay.

Meta-Dominance Analysis – A Tool for the Assessment of the Quality of Digital Behavioural Data

We propose a simple yet comprehensive conceptual framework for the identification of different sources of error in research with digital behavioural data. We use our framework to map potential sources of error in 25 years of research on reputation effects in peer-to-peer online market platforms. Using a meta-dataset comprising 346 effect sizes extracted from 109 articles, we apply meta-dominance analysis to quantify the relative importance of different error components. Our results indicate that 85% of explained effect size heterogeneity can be attributed to the measurement process, which comprises the choice of platform, data collection mode, construct operationalisation and variable transformation. Error components attributable to the sampling process or publication bias capture relatively small parts of the explained effect size heterogeneity. This approach reveals at which stages of the research process researcher decisions may affect data quality most. This approach can be used to identify potential sources of error in established strands of research beyond the literature of behavioural data from online platforms.

“If You Don’t Eat, You Can Get Drunk Faster”: A Qualitative Investigation of Food and Alcohol Disturbance (FAD) Expectancies

Background: Food and alcohol disturbance (FAD; i.e., use of any compensatory behavior within the context of a drinking episode to offset alcohol-related calories and/or enhance the effects of alcohol) is prevalent among U.S. college students and associated with negative consequences. Expectancies for anticipated outcomes of alcohol use and thinness/restriction behaviors, which comprise FAD, serve as promising targets of intervention for these behaviors individually; however, no study to date has identified or examined FAD expectancies, specifically. Objectives: The purpose of this study was to qualitatively examine the positive and negative FAD expectancies described by students experienced with FAD. Methods: Semi-structured open-ended interviews were conducted with 22 undergraduates with a lifetime history of FAD behavior (72.7% female, 77.3% white non-Hispanic, Mage=20.14). Results: Positive FAD expectancy themes included: Mood Improvement, Appearance/Weight-related Benefits, Alcohol Enhancement, and Social Approval and Connectedness. Negative FAD expectancy themes included: Reputational and Social Concerns, Negative Physical Consequences, Negative Psychological Consequences, and Cognitive and Behavioral Impairment. Conclusions: Results suggest that while there are many similarities, FAD expectancies are distinct from existing alcohol and thinness/restriction expectancies. Specifically, the Mood Improvement theme conceptualizes mood-related improvement within the context of both positive and negative reinforcement and both the Social Approval and Connectedness and Social and Reputational Consequences themes focus on the ways in which one’s peers may view and interact with others. Findings lay the groundwork for identifying expectancies that underlie FAD behaviors and provide directions for future research and intervention efforts.

Multi-stage incentive contract design of aviation complex product multi-task delivery strategy

The increasing demand for aviation complex products makes complex product manufacturers pay more attention to delivery efficiency, and the efficiency and effect of delivery problems are the key factors that restrict delivery efficiency. A series of delivery strategy combinations of delivery subjects will affect delivery output and delivery efficiency. This study aims to design a long-term effective incentive contract, which stimulates the subjective initiative of the subject and then investigates the effect of the incentive contract on delivery efficiency under different combinations of delivery strategies. We consider the behavioral characteristics of each technical business department to expand the benchmark incentive model, such as the degree of perceived revenue fairness, the variation of the three relationships (neutrality, competition, and cooperation), and the level of technological transformation capability. The multi-stage incentive mechanism which combines explicit incentives and implicit incentives is developed to explore the optimal delivery strategies based on a benchmark model. The results show that incentive contracts can improve delivery efficiency and benefit delivery centers and technical business departments. The delivery decisions of the department are influenced by the closeness of department relationships and the fairness of assignment, and the departments tend to pay more effort in tasks with high relative importance and low effort cost. When the relative importance of tasks is equal to the ratio of marginal cost, a weak incentive zone in the delivery incentive contract exists. The incentive effect of reputation effect is obvious except for the last stage. Based on the designed incentive contracts, the subjective initiative of the participants can be effectively stimulated to empower complex product delivery.

INCENTIVE MECHANISMS OF AN EXPERIMENTAL RESOURCE-SHARING PLATFORM CONSIDERING REPUTATION EFFECTS FOR MEGAPROJECTS

Participating in megaproject experimental tasks would significantly improve the laboratories’ industry influence and future competitiveness. Thus, this paper introduces the long-term reputation effects of the incentive model of an experimental resource-sharing platform for megaprojects, which could motivate them to consider future benefits and improve their current efforts. The aim is to incentivize laboratories’ resource-sharing behavior more effectively and to increase the amount of resources shared by these laboratories on the platform, thus guaranteeing the long-term sustainability of the platform. It constructs the incentive model by combining dual implicit and explicit incentive mechanisms. It analyses the incentive mechanism of a reputation effect on laboratories compared with the pure explicit mechanism so that the primary conditions for reputation incentives can be obtained to achieve Pareto improvement. Finally, the proposed method is validated in combination with data simulation. The results show that although dual implicit and explicit incentive mechanisms could reduce the information asymmetry between the two sides and increase the efforts of laboratories and the benefits of the platform, the platform should not blindly increase the intensity of these incentives and need to consider the influence of the subsidies of these laboratories’ upfront inputs, the degree of sharing and their informatization capabilities.

The Moral Licensing Effects of Corporate Reputation on Tax Planning

In this paper, we investigate how a firm’s reputation affects its tax planning. Drawing on the moral licensing view, we utilize a substantial dataset to test the relationship between a firm’s overall reputation standing and its propensity for tax avoidance, employing a variety of tax-related measures capturing different tax avoidance tactics. We hypothesize and find that firms with higher reputations are more inclined to engage in tax avoidance, often through tax strategies that involve a certain degree of ambiguity in transgression. Furthermore, our study indicates that highly reputable firms are less likely to participate in tax strategies that are blatant transgressions. This study adds to the body of knowledge on the correlation between reputation and tax avoidance. We enhance this field by proposing and examining the moral licensing view as a complementary perspective to comprehend this dynamic. The results of our study indicate that the deterrent power of reputation in tax avoidance may be overestimated, yielding significant insights for policymakers and practitioners.

Stopping Hamburglars: Applying Effective Internal Control

ABSTRACT Understanding effective internal control is vital for accounting and business students. Examples of fraud and loss through poor internal control are widespread in practice. The learning objectives of this teaching case focus on improving students’ ability to comprehensively evaluate internal control practices and suggest and justify new practices where applicable. The McDonald’s Monopoly fraud is a real-life example of a situation where multiple internal control failures had substantial financial and reputational consequences for McDonald’s, particularly its outsourcing partners involved in operationalizing the monopoly game. We use this factual case to illustrate control system shortcomings, allowing students to evaluate internal control and suggest internal control techniques with reference to all five components of the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO) Internal Control—Integrated Framework. JEL Classifications: A22.

The impact of eco-friendly marketing by sportswear brands in response to climate change awareness on the intention to continue use: The mediating effects of social value and corporate reputation

This study investigates the structural relationships between eco-friendly marketing, social value, corporate reputation and the intention to continue using sportswear brands grounded in climate change awareness. Moreover, it aims to explore the mediating effects of social value and corporate reputation within the relationship between eco-friendly marketing and intention to continue use. It explores the mediating effects of social value and corporate reputation on sportswear brands’ eco-friendly marketing and intention to continue use. 240 sports enthusiasts relevant to eco-friendly marketing by sportswear brands were selected for a survey using convenience sampling. Data were analyzed using SPSS and AMOS for descriptive statistics, confirmatory factor analysis, reliability analysis, correlation analysis, structural equation modeling and bootstrapping. It was found that awareness of climate change positively influenced eco-friendly marketing. Eco-friendly marketing positively influenced intention to continue use, social value and corporate reputation, social value positively influenced intention to continue use, corporate reputation positively influenced intention to continue use, social value showed a significant mediating effect in the relationship between eco-friendly marketing and intention to continue use and corporate reputation showed a significant mediating effect between eco-friendly marketing and intention to continue use. These results provide foundational data for sportswear brands to establish eco-friendly marketing strategies in response to climate change and offer practical insights for enhancing consumers’ intentions to continue using.

Pengaruh Profitabilitas, Debt Default, dan Reputasi KAP terhadap Opini Audit Going Concern: Studi Empiris pada Perusahaan Properti dan Real Estate yang Terdaftar di BEI Tahun 2019-2022

This study aims to provide empirical evidence regarding the effect of pprofitability, debt default, and audit reputation on going concern audit opinion. This research uses a quantitative approach with the type of causal research. The population in this study are companies in the property and real estate sectors that have been listed on the Indonesia Stock Exchange (IDX) in 2019-2022. By using purposive sampling method obtained 192 samples. Profitability is measured by Return on Asset. Debt default is measured by dummy variables. Audit reputation is measured by dummy variables, and going concern audit opinion is measured using dummy variables. This study uses logistic regression analysis to test the proposed hypothesis. The research results show that profitability has a negative effect on going concern audit opinion, debt default and audit reputation have a significant effect on going concern audit opinion.

The Joint Effect of Competitive Strategies, Competitive Advantage, Ethical Values, and Corporate Reputation on Performance of Accredited Universities in Kenya

The broad objective of the study was to determine the joint effect of competitive strategies, competitive advantage, ethical values and corporate reputation on performance of accredited universities in Kenya. The corresponding null hypothesis stated that the joint effect of competitive strategies, competitive advantage, ethical values and corporate reputation on performance of accredited universities in Kenya is not significantly different from the independent effects of predictor variables. This study was anchored on Industrial organization theory, Stakeholders’ theory, Resource-based theory and Virtue’s ethics theory. Descriptive cross-sectional survey was used. The population of the study comprised 53 accredited universities. To collect data, semi structured questionnaires were administered online while a few were dropped and picked later. Data was analyzed using regression models. Findings from the test of hypotheses showed that the joint effect of competitive strategies, competitive advantage, ethical values and corporate reputation on performance was significantly different from the independent effects of predictor variables and thus the null hypothesis was rejected. The study outcomes contributed to theory, policy, and management practice where policy makers in higher education and university managers were recommended to establish a policy framework that observes ethical practices; quality programs, reliable training, research and adoption of competitive strategies such as market penetration, strategic alliances, product development focus, differentiation and cost leadership. A single respondent was deemed to introduce bias in choosing responses and was a limitation to the study. However, use of questionnaires reduced subjectivism in responses. For generalizability of results Longitudinal design was suggested for future studies.

Reducing risk of sexual harassment: a positive duty of care

The oil and gas sector has made progress towards becoming safer and more respectful for all employees. However, recent public reports, including the Western Australian Parliament’s ‘Enough is Enough’, and increasing engagement from National Offshore Petroleum Safety and Environmental Management Authority (NOPSEMA), continue to demonstrate that sexual harassment remains pervasive across the industry – 32% of people still experience sexual harassment in their workplace. The social, physical, psychological, and financial costs of sexual harassment are devastating, both to individuals and employers. The damage can carry long-term business and reputational consequences. All Australian employers are under a new, legally enforceable positive duty to take ‘reasonable and proportionate measures’ to prevent sexual harassment. It requires proactive steps to ensure sexual harassment is prevented from happening in the first place. Vicarious liability provisions have been expanded so that employers can now be held accountable – even if no complaints are lodged. Employers require a clear framework to ensure they are meeting their positive duty obligations. There are three key areas that can enable the oil and gas sector to strategically leverage their compliance activities, maximising benefits for their business and for their people. These key areas include: (1) capability and engagement of leaders and management; (2) understanding the risk factors and drivers of sexual harassment for the industry, and for individual organisations; and (3) understanding employee experiences of psychological safety, culture, and behaviours.

Caution with Journal Selection: Spam, Copycat Journals, and Predatory Publishing

The modern scholarly journal is currently faced with the challenge of upholding its principles in order to attract a continuous stream of authors to maintain its publishing status. Further, it also needs to be weary of unscrupulous players (including competitors) lurking in the global knowledge stream that pose an existential threat by diverting academics away from legitimate journals using underhanded or unfair practices, such as the use of spam or journals that employ copycat names. It is not always easy to distinguish predatory from exploitative journals, or underhanded from unfair practices, and even the use of or reliance on publishing blacklists does not offer potential authors a safe selection of journals to publish in. Authors and journals thus live in a volatile publishing environment in which they are confronted with constant threats. In biomedicine, these can translate into reputational damage to the journal and publisher if fake science or pseudoscience is published, since it puts at stake the journal’s reliability for biomedical information. For authors, particularly younger or less experienced ones whose careers depend on publishing advances, a mistake such as making a submission to a hijacked or copycat journal that impersonates the original journal may carry long-term negative reputational consequences. So, such a decision can be career altering.

An examination of corporate citizenship on customer loyalty in the banking industry: a PLS-SEM analysis

PurposeThis research aims to address the need for a more in-depth empirical investigation of exploring the link between the adoption of corporate citizenship (CC) practices and different aspects of customer behavior in a developing country. Also, it develops a research framework and assesses the mediating role of brand image, brand love, brand reputation and brand trust between customer perceptions of CC and customer loyalty.Design/methodology/approachWorking with a sample of 290 private bank customers in Iran, partial least square-based structural equation modeling is used to test the conceptual model.FindingsThe findings reveal significant and positive relationships between CC, brand image, love and reputation. Indirectly and in the relationship between CC and customer loyalty, there are significant relationships through the serial roles of image-reputation, image-love and image-trust. Most importantly, the findings add value to the current knowledge by exploring the mediating effect of brand image, love, reputation and trust between CC and customer loyalty. Finally, this study has resulted in an updated prediction model of private banking customer loyalty.Originality/valueThis study makes a unique theoretical contribution to the literature by evaluating and comparing the mediating role of image, love, reputation and brand trust between CC and customer loyalty using the hierarchy of effects model.

The Role of Trust on the Continuance Usage Intention of Indonesian Mobile Payment Application

Mobile payment is a fascinating innovation, developed by the banking and fintech industries. It is growing very fast, shadowing the popularity of smartphones in Indonesia. However, the continuance usage intention of mobile payment still needs to be determined. Based on prior studies, this study investigates trust as an important factor in promoting the m-payment continuance usage intention.Furthermore, drawing upon the innovation diffusion theory, the study uses the model by Shao et al. (2019) to investigate the antecedents of trust: mobility, customization, security, and reputation, and analyzes the moderating effect of gender on the relationship between trust and its antecedents. It also examines the impact of trust on the perceived risk and continuance intention; and the perceived risk on the continuance intention. The postulated links between the variables were tested using a survey design. With 225 respondents who are e-wallet users in Indonesia, the study finds a positive effect of reputation, security, and customization on trust. Trust positively influences continuance intention, while the link between trust and perceived risk is negative. Compared to the previous study by Shao et al. (2019), the current study finds insignificant relationships between mobility and trust, as well as between the perceived risk and continuance intention. Furthermore, there was no moderating effect of gender on the relationship between trust and its antecedents.

When and how to engage with employee environmental activism: Lessons learned from a global service firm

Employee activism, in which employees collectively press an organisation on societal issues, is a growing phenomenon. Many employees have been motivated by the climate crisis to demand more sustainable business practices and insist that employers tackle the issue. Ignoring such activism can have negative reputational effects. This paper examines two employee initiatives that tackled climate change in a global professional service firm and sheds light on how organisations can influence employee-driven undertakings and integrate them with more sustainable business models. Reflecting on best practices, but also on lessons learned from the cases, the article also suggests how organisations can help employee activists stay motivated and pursue their passion sustainably.