Cognitive and Motivational Parameters in Motivated Biases in Human Judgment

Motivational and cognitive factors can determine the extent and direction of information processing in judgment. When biasing motives are present, information can be distorted and judgment biased. The extent of this bias can be determined by the nature of the information, the relative magnitude of competing goals, and the individual's cognitive resources. Studies 1, 2 and 3 explored the effect of resource depletion on motivated distortions in judgment. Studies 4 and 5 examined the role of relative goal magnitude (of a biasing goal vs. a specific judgment goal) in the phenomena. I departed from the assumption that human knowledge is malleable, and that its alteration in a motivationally desirable direction may vary in difficulty across instances. It was assumed that overcoming the difficulty requires cognitive and/or motivational resources hence under certain circumstances resource-depletion should diminish individuals' ability to motivationally bias judgments. I also hypothesized when information is clear-cut (rather than ambiguous) making distortion difficult, a sufficient amount of biasing motivation could overcome the "reality constraints," holding the cognitive resources constant. In my first two studies participants' resources were depleted either via complex or simple presentational format of the information given (Study 1), or via engagement in a fatiguing prior activity (Study 2). In the third study (Study 3), I measured participants' stable cognitive capacity as a proxy for their available cognitive resources. All three studies provided supportive evidence for the hypothesis that motivated distortion is resource dependent. In Study 4 I manipulated the relative goal magnitude by experimentally increasing goal importance for either an academic success goal in line with the specific judgment task or a social wellbeing goal as the biasing goal. In Study 5 I altered relative goal magnitude through enhancing either a neutral goal or health concerns as the biasing goal. In both Study 4 and 5, orthogonal to the relative goal magnitude manipulation, stimulus ambiguity was made either high or low. Findings from Study 4 and 5 supported the hypothesis that sufficient magnitude of biasing goal could overcome distortion difficulty even in highly constraining circumstances

Communicating across cultures in english language: cross-cultural competence and workplace adaptability in China through the perspective of economic and educational globalization

[EN] This PhD delves into the nuanced realms of cross-cultural competence and workplace adaptability within an English-speaking setting. It meticulously explores the definitions and ramifications of these concepts, exploring the intricate dynamics shaped by economic and educational globalization on the utilization and evolution of the English language. This thesis takes a holistic approach, investigating cross-cultural competence and workplace adaptability within a cross-cultural framework that revolves around English language and the benefits and obstacles associated to cross-cultural communication. It adds the philosophical trends of Qui and Dao to regard Chinese cultural specificities. Rigorous data collection and analysis techniques have been used to evaluate the profound impact of economic globalization on English language usage, alongside an examination of how educational globalization influences English language proficiency in China. These revelations offer invaluable insights into the intricate relationship between English language proficiency and workplace adaptability in cross-cultural environments. The research introduces methods for assessing cross-cultural competence and language proficiency specifically in university students. It intricately explores the interconnection between cross-cultural competence, language proficiency, and workplace adaptability. This doctoral thesis significantly augments the existing body of knowledge on cross-cultural competence and workplace adaptability in contemporary China, illuminating the multifaceted dimensions of cross-cultural competence, workplace adaptability, and English language proficiency. Its discerning findings provide insights for individuals navigating cross-cultural environments, underscoring the imperative of research in this continually evolving field

An effective on-the-job training model-to facilitate strategy execution

Strategy execution has been a heated topic in the management world in recent years. However, according to a survey done by the Conference Board (2014), the chief executives are so concerned about the execution in their companies and have rated it as the No.1 or No.2 most challenging issue. Many of them choose to invest in training with a purpose to harvest the most for strategy execution. Therefore, this research is trying to find out a model to design training programs that can at most contribute to the success of strategy execution with three real-life training cases done by BTS Consulting Service. It was found that strategy execution could be greatly supported by training programs that take into consideration the four factors, namely Alignment, Mindset to Change, Capability and Organization Support. Main implications of the findings are presented and discussed. Ke

Child Health and the Income Gradient: Evidence from China

Though the positive income gradient of child health is well documented in developed countries, evidence from developing countries is rare. Few studies attempt to identify a causal link between family income and child health. Utilizing unique longitudinal data from the China Health and Nutrition Survey, we have found a positive, age-enhancing income gradient of child health, measured by height-for-age z scores. The gradient is robust to alternative specifications and a comprehensive set of controls. Using the fact that the rural tax reform implemented since 2000 created an exogenous variation in family income across regions and over time, we explore a causal explanation for the income gradient, and find that it has a very strong independent causal effect on child health.child health, income gradient, rural tax reform

EMPIRICAL RESULTS FROM VAR PREDICTION USING PEARSON?S TYPE IV DISTRIBUTION

Two most important characteristics of equity returns time series data are volatility clustering and non-normality. GARCH model has been widely used to forecast dynamic volatilities and hence has been used for value-at-risk (VaR) estimation. (Bhattacharyya et al 2008) has developed a new VaR estimation model for equity return time series using a combination of the Pearson?s Type IV distribution and the GARCH(1,1) approach which showed superior predictive abilities. This new model was tested on indices of eighteen countries [3] on daily return up to March 1st, 2005. In this project, we replicate the results in [3], and test the model for its predictive power over a more volatile period (i.e. 350 trading days prior to July 18th, 2008). We backtest the validity of the VaR estimations and compare the predictive power of this model over both of the above time periods on indices of eight countries. We discover that the Pearson?s type IV model still remains a good predictive ability during the more volatile period