This study investigates how the disclosure of management compensation contracts affects executive behavior by modeling a situation in which both the principal-agent relationship and market interactions are important. We find that making the disclosure of these contracts mandatory creates...

There is significant debate about the usefulness of disclosing the relative pay of the CEO and the median employee (hereafter, pay ratio), as required under the yet-to-be implemented Section 953(b) of the Dodd-Frank Act in the United States. Using an experiment, we find that disclosing...

We examine whether the information content of the earnings report, as captured by the earnings response coefficient (ERC), increases when investors' uncertainty about the manager's reporting objectives decreases, as predicted in Fischer and Verrecchia (2000). We use the 2006 mandatory...

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of corporate governance, with particular reference to the role of independent directors on boards and audit committees and media coverage on corporate transparency and disclosure. In addition, the paper also investigates the role of the...

I investigate the relation between business press attention and the incidence and properties of managers' voluntary disclosures. Specifically, I examine managers' disclosure responses to a bad news event: material lawsuits against the firm. I posit that managers' disclosure decisions are...

In light of the concerns about inherent measurement uncertainty and subjectivity embedded in accounting estimates and the demand for new auditing standards on accounting estimates, this study provides detailed documentation of firms’ practice in making material changes in accounting estimates...

In this study, I summarize the current state of executive compensation, discuss measurement and incentive issues, document recent trends in executive pay in both U.S. and international firms, and analyze the evolution of executive pay over the past century. Most recent analyses of executive...

This research explores the use of control rhetoric in CEO letters between the pre and post Sarbanes Oxley periods and examines financial statement users' perception of internal controls and company performance from the CEO letter. We compare the amount of control rhetoric included in CEO letters...

Even though financial reporting primarily falls within the scope of the CFO responsibilities, there is considerable evidence for the CEO's influence on corporate misreporting. Regulatory initiatives such as the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 have therefore increased the CEO's responsibility in the...

We document the emergence of “social executives,” top executives who connect with investors directly, personally, and in real time through social media, and we study the consequences of this development for financial markets. We contend that the emergence of social executives enables...