ENVIRONMENTAL ETHICAL DECISION MAKING IN THE U.S. METAL-FINISHING INDUSTRY

We investigated the individual and contextual influences shaping the environmental ethical decision intentions of a sample of managers in the U.S. metal-finishing industry in this study. Ajzen\u27s (1991) theory of planned behavior and Jones\u27s (1991) moral intensity construct grounded our theoretical framework. Findings revealed that the magnitude of consequences, a dimension of moral intensity, moderated the relation- ships between each of five antecedents-attitudes, subjective norms, and three perceived behavioral control factors (self-efficacy, financial cost, and ethical climate)- and managers\u27 environmental ethical decision intentions. We then developed implications for theory and practice in environmental ethical decision making

Network Linkages to Predict Bank Distress

Building on the literature on systemic risk and financial contagion, the paper introduces estimated network linkages into an early-warning model to predict bank distress among European banks. We use multivariate extreme value theory to estimate equity-based tail-dependence networks, whose links proxy for the markets' view of bank interconnectedness in case of elevated financial stress. The paper finds that early warning models including estimated tail dependencies consistently outperform bank-specific benchmark models with- out networks. The results are robust to variation in model specification and also hold in relation to simpler benchmarks of contagion. Generally, this paper gives direct support for measures of interconnectedness in early-warning models, and moves toward a unified representation of cyclical and cross-sectional dimensions of systemic risk

ENVIRONMENTAL ETHICAL DECISION MAKING IN THE U.S. METAL-FINISHING INDUSTRY

We investigated the individual and contextual influences shaping the environmental ethical decision intentions of a sample of managers in the U.S. metal-finishing industry in this study. Ajzen\u27s (1991) theory of planned behavior and Jones\u27s (1991) moral intensity construct grounded our theoretical framework. Findings revealed that the magnitude of consequences, a dimension of moral intensity, moderated the relation- ships between each of five antecedents-attitudes, subjective norms, and three perceived behavioral control factors (self-efficacy, financial cost, and ethical climate)- and managers\u27 environmental ethical decision intentions. We then developed implications for theory and practice in environmental ethical decision making

The effects of individual, contextual, and moral intensity factors on environmental ethical decision-making

Most extant studies of organizational ethical decision making have been remiss in doing one or more of the following: (a) building theoretical foundations; (b) encompassing the individual, contextual, and issue-specific determinants impacting ethical judgments; (c) offering testable hypotheses; and/or (d) establishing methodological rigor. This study confronted those challenges aiming to understand the decision intentions of top managers in the metal finishing industry concerning the treatment of hazardous wastewater. This study employed an extended version of Ajzen\u27s (1988) theory of planned behavior. The theory accommodatingly modeled the individual (i.e., attitudes, self-efficacy, personal moral obligation), contextual (subjective norms, organizational climate, and financial cost), and issue-specific (i.e., moral intensity) factors relative to the top managers\u27 decision intentions. Hypotheses were developed and tested for each of the seven influences. The development of the decision scenarios and instrument necessitated iterations with diverse information sources. Data collected from 140 top managers was assessed using correlational and hierarchical multiple regression analyses. The findings showed that managers\u27 attitudes toward the treatment of hazardous wastewater, subjective norms influence, perceptions of the instrumentality of their respective climates, and financial cost considerations significantly influenced the managers\u27 decision intention concerning the treatment of hazardous wastewater. Contrary to previous studies, the personal moral obligation factor did not contribute to the power of Ajzen\u27s model. However, Jones\u27 (1991) moral intensity construct did moderate the relations between Ajzen\u27s other determinants and the managers\u27 decision intention. Specifically, under conditions of high moral intensity--defined as harmful consequences to either persons and/or nonpersons--the determinants of the extended theory of planned behavior contributed less to explaining top managers\u27 ethical decision intention than under the low moral intensity condition. In conclusion, this study\u27s results revealed to practitioners and researchers the complex interplay of individual, organizational, and issue-specific factors upon individual\u27s ethical decision intentions. Implications for future investigations, training, and the influence of contextual information (e.g., organizational climate) were discussed

Association of prenatal and childhood PBDE exposure with timing of puberty in boys and girls

BACKGROUND: Polybrominated diphenyl ether (PBDE) flame retardants are endocrine disrupting chemicals that exhibit estrogenic and androgenic properties and may affect pubertal timing. METHODS: Study subjects were participants between 1999 and 2013 in the Center for the Health Assessment of Mothers and Children of Salinas (CHAMACOS), a longitudinal cohort study of predominantly Mexican origin families in Northern California. We measured serum concentrations of four PBDEs (BDE-47, -99, -100, -153) in blood collected from mothers during pregnancy (N=263) and their children at age 9 years (N=522). We determined timing of pubertal onset in 309 boys and 314 girls using clinical Tanner staging every 9 months between 9 and 13 years of age and timing of menarche by self-report. We used Poisson regression for relative risk (RR) of earlier puberty and parametric survival analysis for time ratios (TR) of pubertal milestones. RESULTS: Prenatal concentrations of all 4 congeners and ΣPBDEs were associated with later menarche in girls (RR(earlier menarche) = 0.5, 95% Confidence Interval (CI): 0.3, 0.8 for ΣPBDEs) but earlier pubic hair development in boys (RR(earlier pubarche) = 2.1, 95% CI: 1.3, 3.3 for ΣPBDEs). No associations were seen between prenatal exposure and girls’ breast or pubic hair development or boys’ genital development. Childhood PBDE exposure was not associated with any measure of pubertal timing, except for an association of BDE-153 with later menarche. CONCLUSIONS: We found that prenatal PBDE exposure was associated with later menarche in girls but earlier pubarche in boys, suggesting opposite pubertal effects in girls and boys

The effects of international off-site surveillance on bank rating changes

Bank rating, CAMEL, Off-site surveillance,