Taxable income differences between foreign and domestic controlled corporations in Norway

Studies mainly in the United States and United Kingdom have documented that foreign controlled corporations (FCCs) report significantly lower taxable income compared to domestic controlled corporations (DCCs). This taxable income differential has been partly attributed to income shifting by multinational corporations. Using a sample of 78,879 firm-year observations from 1993 to 1996, we find similar systematic differences for firms in the manufacturing, retail and wholesale sectors in Norway. The taxable income to sales ratio is approximately 2.6 percentage points lower for FCCs compared to DCCs after controlling for start-up costs, size, industry affiliation, leverage and capital intensity. The results are statistically significant in all years and independent of whether taxable income is measured as a fraction of sales, total assets or book value of equity. Previous research has indicated that income shifting is more prevalent among large firms. This study provides evidence on small and medium-sized firms operating in Norway. With the exception of really small corporations in the manufacturing industry (e.g. with sales less than 6.7 million NOK or US$1 million), we find that the negative taxable income differential exists independent of the size of the corporations.

The psychopathological factors of refractory schizophrenia Fatores psicopatológicos da esquizofrenia refratária

OBJECTIVES: The heterogeneity of clinical manifestations in schizophrenia has lead to the study of symptom clusters through psychopathological assessment scales. The objective of this study was to elucidate clusters of symptoms in patients with refractory schizophrenia which may also help to assess the patients' therapeutical response. METHODS: Ninety-six treatment resistant patients were evaluated by the anchored version Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale (BPRS-A) as translated into Portuguese. The inter-rater reliability was 0.80. The 18 items of the BPRS-A were subjected to exploratory factor analysis with Varimax rotation. RESULTS: Four factors were obtained: Negative/Disorganization, composed by emotional withdrawal, disorientation, blunted affect, mannerisms/posturing, and conceptual disorganization; Excitement, composed of excitement, hostility, tension, grandiosity, and uncooperativeness, grouped variables that evoke brain excitement or a manic-like syndrome; Positive, composed of unusual thought content, suspiciousness, and hallucinatory behavior; and Depressive, composed of depressive mood, guilt feelings, and motor retardation, clearly related to depressive syndrome. CONCLUSIONS: The study reproduced the four factors described in the literature, either in refractory or non-refractory patients. The BPRS-A allowed the distinction of psychopathological factors, which are important in the evaluation of treatment response of patients with schizophrenia.<br>OBJETIVOS: A heterogeneidade das manifestações clínicas na esquizofrenia tem levado ao estudo de agrupamentos sintomatológicos através de escalas de avaliação psicopatológica. O objetivo do presente trabalho foi a elucidação de agrupamentos psicopatológicos em pacientes com esquizofrenia refratária que também podem auxiliar na avaliação da resposta terapêutica dos pacientes. MÉTODOS: Noventa e seis pacientes com diagnóstico de esquizofrenia refratária foram avaliados através da Escala Breve de Avaliação Psiquiátrica, versão ancorada e traduzida para o português (BPRS-A). A confiabilidade foi de 0,80. Os 18 sintomas foram submetidos à análise fatorial exploratória com rotação Varimax. RESULTADOS: Quatro fatores foram obtidos: Negativo/Desorganização, composto por retraimento afetivo, desorientação, afeto embotado, maneirismo & postura e desorganização conceitual; Excitação, formado por excitação, hostilidade, tensão, idéias de grandeza e falta de cooperação; Positivo, contendo os itens delírio, desconfiança e comportamento alucinatório; e Depressivo, que agrupou humor depressivo, sentimento de culpa e retardo motor. CONCLUSÕES: O estudo reproduziu os quatro fatores psicopatológicos encontrados na literatura, provenientes de amostras tanto de pacientes com esquizofrenia refratária como não-refratária. A BPRS-A permitiu a distinção de agrupamentos psicopatológicos específicos que têm valor na avaliação da resposta terapêutica destas formas de esquizofrenia

The antecedents and influences of airline loyalty programs: the moderating role of involvement

[[abstract]]The current research attempts to examine the antecedent factors of perceived benefits (including monetary savings, exploration, entertainment, recognition, and social benefits’ quality)of airline loyalty programs affecting flight passengers’ perceived relationship investment and brand relationship qualities (including connection and partner quality) toward the airline program which in turn affects their loyalty. This research also tests the moderating effect of involvement on the relationships between the antecedents and influences toward airline loyalty programs. The results from a survey of 740 respondents indicate that the antecedent factors of recognition and social benefits have positive influences, respectively, on perceived relationship investment toward airline loyalty programs which in turn positively affects the brand relationship quality and loyalty. In addition, involvement plays an important moderating role on the relationships within the airline loyalty programs’ framework except the relationship between perceived relationship investment and partner quality. Implications for future research are discussed and limitations are noted.[[notice]]補正完