Tax-Rate Biases in Tax Decisions: Experimental Evidence

This paper investigates how decision biases affect individuals’ tax decisions. We conduct four laboratory experiments with 303 students and 62 experienced tax professionals and find a systematic tax-rate bias in decisions under time constraints. More specifically, decision makers overestimate the relevance of less complex tax-rate information compared to more complex tax-base information, leading to suboptimal decision-making. We also find support for the theory of rational inattention as increasing the size of the tax-base effect mitigates the decision bias. However, we find that tax decisions are unaffected by participants’ professional experience: Students and highly experienced tax professionals are similarly prone to biased decision-making. Overall, our findings suggest that time constraints impede the use of complex information which can result in suboptimal tax planning.Series: WU International Taxation Research Paper Serie

On the different "worlds" of intra-organizational knowledge management: Understanding idiosyncratic variation in MNC cross-site knowledge-sharing practices

This qualitative field study investigated cross-site knowledge sharing in a small sample of multinational corporations in three different MNC business contexts (global, multidomestic, transnational). The results disclose heterogeneous "worlds" of MNC knowledge sharing, ultimately raising the question as to whether the whole concept of MNC knowledge sharing covers a sufficiently unitary phenomenon to be meaningful. We derive a non-exhaustive typology of MNC knowledge-sharing practices: self-organizing knowledge sharing, technocratic knowledge sharing, and best practice knowledge sharing. Despite its limitations, this typology helps to elucidate a number of issues, including the latent conflict between two disparate theories of MNC knowledge sharing, namely "sender-receiver" and "social learning" theories (Noorderhaven & Harzing, 2009). More generally, we develop the term "knowledge contextualization" to highlight the way that firm-specific organizational features pre-define which knowledge is considered to be of special relevance for intra-organizational sharing. (authors' abstract

Die Studieneingangsphase als Auswahlinstrument für die Zulassung von Studierenden

Die Anwendung von betrieblichen Personalauswahlverfahren bei der Vergabe von Studienplätzen wird seit dem EuGH-Urteil vom 7. Juli 2005 als mögliche Variante der Selektion für Studierende an Österreichs Universitäten diskutiert. Der EuGH hat bekanntlich die Zugangsregelungen, wonach nicht-österreichische Studien­bewerber neben der Hochschulreife auch einen Studienplatz in ihrem Heimatland nachweisen müssen, für rechtswidrig erklärt. Die Diskussion der potenziellen Nutzung von Personalauswahlstrategien wird zudem durch die Regelung, dass in Deutschland ab dem Wintersemester 2005 / 2006 nur noch 40 % der Studienplätze nach Abiturnote und Wartezeit direkt von der Zentralstelle für die Vergabe von Studienplätzen (ZVS) vergeben werden, zusätzlich angefacht. Die im Rahmen des Artikels beantwortete Forschungsfrage: Welches (Auswahl-) Verfahren ist für die Zulassung von Studierenden an Universitäten zu empfehlen? zeigt, dass betriebliche Auswahlverfahren nicht immer eine adäquate Methode darstellen. Auf Basis dieses Faktums wird mit Hilfe des Modells "Bedingungen des Verhaltens" aufgezeigt, dass die Implementierung einer Studieneingangsphase für Studierende von "Massenuniversitäten" eine geeignete Selektionsmethode dar­stellt. Durch dieses Vorgehen können die wesentlichen Kriterien der Leistungs­erbrin­gung berücksichtigt werden. Empfehlungen von Experten wie "die Studier­fähigkeit, Begabung und Eignung der Studierenden ist festzustellen" (Mittelstraß, 2005) können somit ad acta gelegt werden. 25.02.2007 | Helmut KASPER & Gerhard FURTMÜLLER (Wien

Strongly Enhanced Thermal Stability of Crystalline Organic Thin Films Induced by Aluminum Oxide Capping Layers

We show that the thermal stability of thin films of the organic semiconductor diindenoperylene (DIP) can be strongly enhanced by aluminum oxide capping layers. By thermal desorption spectroscopy and in-situ X-ray diffraction we demonstrate that organic films do not only stay on the substrate, but even remain crystalline up to 460C, i.e. 270 deg. above their desorption point for uncapped films (190C). We argue that this strong enhancement of the thermal stability compared to uncapped and also metal-capped organic layers is related to the very weak diffusion of aluminum oxide and the structurally well-defined as-grown interfaces. We discuss possible mechanisms for the eventual breakdown at high temperatures.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figures, submitted to Adv. Mat., for further information see http://www.physchem.ox.ac.uk/~f

Neurosurgical education in Europe and the United States of America

Training in neurological surgery is one of the most competitive and demanding specializations in medicine. It therefore demands careful planning in both the scientific and clinical neurosurgery arena to finally turn out physicians that can be clinically sound and scientifically competitive. National and international training and career options are pointed out, based on the available relevant literature, with the objective of comparing the neurosurgical training in Europe and the USA. Despite clear European Association of Neurosurgical Societies guidelines, every country in Europe maintains its own board requirements, which is reflected in an institutional curriculum that is specific to the professional society of that particular country. In contrast, the residency program in the USA is required to comply with the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education guidelines. Rather similar guidelines exist for the education of neurosurgical residents in the USA and Europe; their translation into the practical hospital setting and the resulting clinical lifestyle of a resident diverges enormously. Since neurosurgical education remains heterogeneous worldwide, we argue that a more standardized curriculum across different nations would greatly facilitate the interaction of different centers, allow a direct comparison of available services, and support the exchange of vital information for quality control and future improvements. Furthermore, the exchange of residents between different training centers may improve education by increasing their knowledge base, both technically as well as intellectuall

ERIS: revitalising an adaptive optics instrument for the VLT

ERIS is an instrument that will both extend and enhance the fundamental diffraction limited imaging and spectroscopy capability for the VLT. It will replace two instruments that are now being maintained beyond their operational lifetimes, combine their functionality on a single focus, provide a new wavefront sensing module that makes use of the facility Adaptive Optics System, and considerably improve their performance. The instrument will be competitive with respect to JWST in several regimes, and has outstanding potential for studies of the Galactic Center, exoplanets, and high redshift galaxies. ERIS had its final design review in 2017, and is expected to be on sky in 2020. This contribution describes the instrument concept, outlines its expected performance, and highlights where it will most excel.Comment: 12 pages, Proc SPIE 10702 "Ground-Based and Airborne Instrumentation for Astronomy VII

Knowledge management and organizational learning in multinational companies (MNC´s)

Knowledge sharing and learning in MNC's (Multinational Companies) is a cross-border process in two ways: not only organizational but also national borders have to be overcome which is a highly difficult and complex undertaking. However, for MNC's the highly diversified knowledge in the different geographically dispersed units is a key asset and the transfer and usage of this knowledge throughout the whole organization is the key for competitive advantage. This paper presents a theoretical concept of knowledge sharing in MNC's and focuses on the influence of the multinational or multicultural context on the process of knowledge sharing. The model is subject to broad empirical testing in the course of our It, therefore, provides an analysis of the most important international / inter-organizational context factors and suggestions how to handle the problems arising from cultural differences with respect to successful knowledge sharing. (author's abstract)Series: WU-Jahrestagung 200

Thinning Knowledge: An Interpretive Field Study of Knowledge-Sharing Practices of Firms in Three Multinational Contexts

Knowledge is often tacit and "sticky", i.e. highly context-specific and therefore costly to transfer to a different setting. This paper examines the methods used by firms to facilitate cross-site knowledge sharing by "thinning" knowledge, that is, by stripping knowledge of its contextual richness. An interview-based study of cross-site knowledge sharing in three industries (consulting, industrial materials, and high-tech products) indicated that highly developed knowledge-sharing systems do not necessarily involve extensive codification and recombination of personalized knowledge. Many multinational firms evidently conceive their knowledge-sharing systems with more modest objectives in mind than any large-scale "learning spirals" featuring iterative conversion of personalized knowledge into codified knowledge and vice-versa. A typology of knowledge-thinning systems was derived by interpreting the field study results from the perspective of knowledge-thinning methods used in earlier eras of history. The typology encompasses topographical, statistical and diagrammatic knowledge-thinning systems. (authors' abstract

The Long March to an Innovative Culture: Development of Corporate Cultures in China from the 1990s Until Today

While companies in China are becoming increasingly innovative, they still havenot reached their full potential. Organizational culture is widely regarded as a keyto innovation success. Therefore, this chapter provides a literature review basedon several empirical studies on organizational culture conducted between 1996and 2013 in Chinese companies. This approach helps to develop a better understandingof development tendencies in Chinese companies and to identify organizationalcultural traits which boost innovation or hinder creativity. The resultsindicate that Chinese companies have started to embrace a rational strategic- andgoal-orientated market approach which positively enhanced their innovation capability by learning from competitors and conducting external informationresearch. However, creating change, organizational learning, and a strong customerfocus are considered to be of less importance by many companies, whichmay reduce the innovation capability significantly. Furthermore, Chinese nationalculture traits such as social harmony and face may lead to the avoidance ofproductive task conflicts and hence reduce the creativity of employees. AdditionallyChinese cultural traits such as hierarchy and bureaucracy can be majorbarriers for divergent thinking and experiment