Using the introduction of high-speed rail (HSR) as an exogenous shock to costs of information acquisition, we show that reductions in information-acquisition costs lead to (i) a significant increase in information production, evidenced by a higher frequency of analysts visiting portfolio firms,...

Using the introduction of high-speed rail as exogenous shocks to costs of information acquisition, we show that reductions in information-acquisition costs lead to a significant increase in information production and improvement in output quality, evidenced by higher frequency of analysts...

Investors, regulators, academics, and researchers all emphasize the importance of financial statement comparability. However, an empirical construct of comparability is typically not specified. In addition, little evidence exists on the benefits of comparability to users. This study attempts to...

This paper investigates the effect of vivid language on investor judgments. Recent research finds that investor judgments are significantly influenced by disclosure tone (positive versus negative). Holding tone constant, we investigate investors' reactions to vivid versus pallid information....

This article analyzes the role of information in building reputation in an investment/trust game. The model allows for information asymmetry in a finitely repeated sender-receiver game and solves for sequential equilibrium to show that if there are some trustworthy managers who always disclose...

This short essay is based on a presentation at the panel discussion on “The Most Incorrect Beliefs in Accounting” at the American Accounting Association Meetings in 2012. It addresses the inordinate amount of attention given in the literature to accounting's role in providing new information...

Fair value estimates reported in the financial statements differ in the subjectivity with which the estimates are measured. Mandated supplemental disclosures are intended to enable users to assess the nature of the inputs used to develop the fair value measurements, including their relative...

This paper investigates the effect of vivid language on investor judgments. Recent research finds that investor judgments are significantly influenced by disclosure tone (positive versus negative). Holding tone constant, we investigate investors' reactions to vivid versus pallid information....

In this paper, the interaction between the investor's knowledge about a manager's information endowment interacts and their ability to gauge the manager's exact information content upon voluntary disclosure is studied. If investors are unable to discern anything beyond the manager's information...

Prior studies use fundamental earnings forecasts to proxy for the market's expectations of earnings because analyst forecasts are biased and are available for only a subset of firms. We find that as a proxy for market expectations, fundamental forecasts contain systematic measurement errors...