Cross-border Intra-group Hybrid Finance and International Taxation

In intra-group finance hybrid instruments allow for tailor-made form of finance. Hence hybrid finance is often used for international tax planning in multinational groups. Due to a lack of international tax harmonization or tax coordination qualification conflict can arise. A specific hybrid instrument is classified as debt in one country, and as equity in the other country. This may lead to double taxation. In the reverse case, double non-taxation can arise. Against this legal background one might expect that cross-border hybrid intra-group finance is advantageous in comparison to classical debt finance in case of double-non-taxation while it can be expected to be disadvantageous in the case of double taxation of the yield. Previous studies do not include qualification conflicts. Thus the question arises how qualification conflicts are affecting an intra-group finance decision. We examine effects of such qualification conflicts, resulting from the use of cross-border, intra-group hybrid finance, on the tax-advantageousness as compared to classical debt finance. The analysis is based on a binomial simulation model including economic and legal uncertainty. We show that the results of our analysis under uncertainty vary significantly when compared to the more obvious results under economic and legal certainty. (author´s abstract)Series: Discussion Papers SFB International Tax Coordinatio

Cognitive and Emotional Processes Involved in the Experience of Objects as Holy or Transcendent

In recent years, attitudes about religion/spirituality have become more pluralistic (Pew Research Center, 2015a). At the same time, the number of individuals who identify themselves as nonreligious, atheist or agnostic are growing (Pew Research Center, 2015b), yet we are lacking words and research to describe their attributions of transcendence in language not bound to religious concepts. This study aims at examining both concepts – holiness and transcendence – in their similarities and differences through assessing cognitive and emotional processes involved in experiences of objects. The study consisted of two parts with a total of 206 Christian and 52 nonreligious/atheistic/agnostic participants. In study one, 146 students (113 Christians, 33 Nonreligious/Atheists/Agnostics, or NAA) categorized 30 objects as holy or not, as well as transcendent or not. They did so either intuitively or after writing about their understanding of holiness/transcendence beforehand (systematic thinking condition). In study two, different participants (N=114, 93 Christians, 21 NAA) evaluated the same 30 objects on the ability to elicit emotions like awe, elevation and joy, the perceived purity of the objects, as well as their importance in culture and religion. Results showed that there was no difference in perceptions of holiness and transcendence in the intuitive or systematic thinking condition. While Christians categorized about the same number of items as transcendent and holy as NAA participants, objects were generally more easily categorized as transcendent than as holy in both groups. A factor analysis and regression showed that perceived holiness of objects among Christians was predicted mostly by the factors religion (b=.906), and awe (b .261), Adj. R2=.881. Transcendence similarly was most correlated with the factor of religion (b=.720) and awe (b=.510), but the factor of happiness/connectedness also contributed (b=.207), R2=.821. Among Nonreligious/Atheist/Agnostics, perceived holiness was predicted by the relation to religion (b=.909), and additionally negatively predicted by experienced connectedness/happiness (b = -.250), Adj. R2 =.880. Transcendence, even among Nonreligious/Atheist/Agnostics, was predicted by objects’ relation to religion (b=.698) and their relation to awe (b=.344), with the factor joy/connectivity (b=.226, p=.059) approaching significance, overall Adj. R2 = .618. Results show that while there is similarity between the concepts of holiness and transcendence, transcendence is distinct in including a sense of happiness/connectedness not present in religion

Formula apportionment or separate accounting? Tax-induced distortions of multinationals' locational investment decisions

We examine which tax allocation system leads to more severe distortions with respect to locational investment decisions. We consider separate accounting (SA) and formula apportionment (FA). The effects of both systems have been hotly debated in Europe in the past years. The reason is that the EU Member States are striving to implement a common European tax system that would lead to a switch from SA to FA. While existing studies focus primarily on the impact of taxes on locational decisions under either SA or FA, the main innovation of this paper is that it compares both systems with regard to the level of distortions they induce. We compare the optimal pre-tax investment decision with the optimal after-tax investment decision and infer from the difference in the allocation of investment funds which tax allocation system causes more severe distortions. We assume that the multinational group (MNG) has comprehensive book income shifting opportunities under SA. We find that the investment incentives under SA are opposed to those under FA for a profitable investment project. Whereas under SA as much as possible should be invested in a high-tax country, under FA as much as possible should be invested in a low-tax country. The distortions of locational investment decisions tend to be more severe under SA than under FA if a greater share of investment funds is to be invested in a low-tax country from a pre-tax perspective and the investment is profitable. Vice versa, locational decisions may be more distorted under FA if the optimal pre-tax investment decision requires investing a major share of funds in the high-tax country. In contrast to the often stated insensitivity of FA towards income shifting, we find the introduction of a tax allocation system based on FA in Europe could lead to a severe shift of economic substance to low-tax countries. The results of this paper are of particular interest for European policy makers and MNGs as our findings may induce European MNGs to reassess their recent locational investment decisions in the face of a potential future change in the applied tax allocation system

Formula Apportionment or Separate Accounting? Tax-Induced Distortions of Multinationals' Location Investment Decisions

We examine which tax allocation system leads to more severe distortions with respect to locational investment decisions. We consider separate accounting (SA) and formula apportionment (FA). The effects of both systems have been hotly debated in Europe in the past years. The reason is that the EU Member States are striving to implement a common European tax system that would lead to a switch from SA to FA. While existing studies focus primarily on the impact of taxes on locational decisions under either SA or FA, the main innovation of this paper is that it compares both systems with regard to the level of distortions they induce. We compare the optimal pre-tax investment decision with the optimal after-tax investment decision and infer from the difference in the allocation of investment funds which tax allocation system causes more severe distortions. We assume that the multinational group (MNG) has comprehensive book income shifting opportunities under SA. We find that the investment incentives under SA are opposed to those under FA for a profitable investment project. Whereas under SA as much as possible should be invested in a high-tax country, under FA as much as possible should be invested in a low-tax country. The distortions of locational investment decisions tend to be more severe under SA than under FA if a greater share of investment funds is to be invested in a low-tax country from a pre-tax perspective and the investment is profitable. Vice versa, locational decisions may be more distorted under FA if the optimal pre-tax investment decision requires investing a major share of funds in the high-tax country. In contrast to the often stated insensitivity of FA towards income shifting, we find the introduction of a tax allocation system based on FA in Europe could lead to a severe shift of economic substance to low-tax countries. The results of this paper are of particular interest for European policy makers and MNGs as our findings may induce European MNGs to reassess their recent locational investment decisions in the face of a potential future change in the applied tax allocation system. (authors' abstract)Series: WU International Taxation Research Paper Serie

Conspiracy Belief and Norm Adherence

Verschwörungstheorien gab es bereits vor der Covid-19-Pandemie. Dennoch hat die öffentliche Aufmerksamkeit für dieses Thema in letzter Zeit zugenommen (Eysenbach, 2020; Grodzicka & Harambam, 2021), möglicherweise auch aufgrund der Tatsache, dass sich Menschen, die an Verschwörungstheorien glauben, weniger an die Sicherheitsmaßnahmen zur Einschränkung der Pandemie gehalten haben (Pummerer, Böhm, et al., 2022). Verschwörungstheorien sind Erklärungen für gesellschaftliche und politische Ereignisse, die einer mächtigen Person oder Gruppe geheime und böse Absichten unterstellen (Douglas et al., 2017; Goertzel, 1994). Neben einer geringeren Einhaltung von Sicherheitsmaßnahmen in Bezug auf Covid-19 wurde der Glaube an Verschwörungstheorien auch mit anderen Verhaltensweisen in Verbindung gebracht, die der sozialen Norm widersprechen. Zum Beispiel gibt es einen Zusammenhang zwischen dem Glauben an Verschwörungstheorien und der Bereitschaft zu “Kavaliersdelikten” und gewaltvollem politischem Protest, sowie einer geringeren Bereitschaft zu sozialem Engagement und der Beteiligung an politischen Wahlen (Imhoff et al., 2021; Jolley et al., 2019; Jolley & Douglas, 2014b; van der Linden, 2015). Trotz zahlreicher Beispiele, die den Glauben an Verschwörungstheorien mit einzelnen Verhaltensweisen in Verbindung bringen, die den gängigen sozialen Normen widersprechen, fehlt bislang eine umfassende Untersuchung des Zusammenhangs und der Kausalität vom Glauben an Verschwörungstheorien und sozialen Normen. In der vorliegenden Dissertation wird der Zusammenhang zwischen dem Glauben an Verschwörungstheorien und der Einhaltung sozialer Normen untersucht. Es wird gezeigt, dass ein höherer Glaube an Verschwörungstheorien mit einer geringeren Einhaltung verschiedener Arten sozialer Normen zusammenhängt, und dass ein höherer Glaube an Verschwörungstheorien nachfolgend zu einer geringeren Befolgung der Normen führt, die von der Verschwörungstheorie in Frage gestellt werden. In einem zweiten Schritt werden verschiedene Möglichkeiten untersucht, wie man die Einhaltung von Normen unter Menschen, die an Verschwörungstheorien glauben erhöhen kann. Die in dieser Dissertation vorgestellten Studien deuten darauf hin, dass die Einhaltung von Normen erhöht werden kann, indem Verschwörungstheorien frühzeitig addressiert werden; durch soziale Interventionen, die auf Erwartungen von Personen aufbauen, die dem Individuum nahe stehen; und durch die Reflektion darüber, warum ein Verhalten allgemein als normativ angesehen wird. Die Ergebnisse dieser Dissertation legen nahe, dass die geringere Einhaltung von Normen das Ergebnis ist einer anderen sozialen Realität, die mit dem Glauben an Verschwörungstheorien einhergeht und durch diesen verursacht wird. Durch die Beschreibung und Untersuchung dieser sozialen Realität in einem theoretischen und vier empirischen Manuskripten leistet diese Dissertation einen wichtigen Beitrag zum Verständnis des Glaubens an Verschwörungstheorien. Darüber hinaus eröffnet sie neue Wege für Interventionen, die den Glauben an Verschwörungstheorien reduzieren und die Einhaltung von Normen von Menschen, die an Verschwörungstheorien glauben, steigern können.Conspiracy theories were already around before the Covid-19 pandemic, but public attention to this topic increased during that time (Eysenbach, 2020; Grodzicka & Harambam, 2021), potentially also due to the lower adherence to norms ensuring public safety among people believing in conspiracy theories (Pummerer, Böhm, et al., 2022). Conspiracy theories are explanations for societal and political events that allege secret, yet harmful, arrangements by a powerful individual or group (Douglas et al., 2017; Goertzel, 1994). In addition to lower adherence to safety-measures regarding Covid-19, believing in conspiracy theories has also been related to other behaviors that go against the accepted social norm, for example a greater willingness to engage in everyday crimes and violent political action, and lower prosocial engagement and intentions to vote in public elections (Imhoff et al., 2021; Jolley et al., 2019; Jolley & Douglas, 2014b; van der Linden, 2015). Despite many examples linking the belief in conspiracy theories to single non-normative behaviors, a broader examination of the relationship between and causality of a conspiracy belief and norm adherence so far is missing. This dissertation examines the relationship between conspiracy belief and adherence to social norms. It reports that higher conspiracy belief is related to lower norm adherence across different kinds of social norms, and that a higher conspiracy belief subsequently leads to lower adherence to norms questioned by the conspiracy theory. In a second step, it also examines different ways of how norm adherence among people believing in conspiracy theories might be increased. Studies reported in this dissertation suggest that norm adherence can be increased by addressing conspiracy theories early on, through social interventions based on the expectations of people close to the individual, and by prompting reasoning why a behavior is considered normative. Overall, this dissertation suggests that the lower norm adherence among people believing in conspiracy theories is a result of a different social reality that is accompanied and caused by the belief in conspiracy theories. By describing and examining this social reality through one theoretical and four empirical manuscripts, this dissertation makes an important contribution in understanding conspiracy belief. It further opens up new routes for interventions aimed at reducing conspiracy belief as well as increasing norm adherence among people higher in conspiracy belief

Extended O-doped polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons

The synthesis of O-doped benzorylenes, in which peripheral carbon atoms have been replaced by oxygen atoms, has been achieved for the first time. This includes key high-yielding ring-closure steps which, through intramolecular C−O bond formation, allow stepwise planarization of oligonaphthalenes. Single-crystal X-ray diffraction showed that the tetraoxa derivative forms remarkable face-to-face π–π stacks in the solid state, a favorable solid-state arrangement for organic electronics

Versatile C(sp2)−C(sp3) ligand couplings of sulfoxides for the enantioselective synthesis of diarylalkanes

The reaction of chiral (hetero)aryl benzyl sulfoxides with Grignard reagents affords enantiomerically pure diarylalkanes in up to 98% yield and greater than 99.5% enantiomeric excess. This ligand coupling reaction is tolerant to multiple substitution patterns and provides access to diverse areas of chemical space in three operationally simple steps from commercially available reagents. This strategy provides orthogonal access to electron-deficient heteroaromatic compounds, traditionally synthesised via transition metal-catalysed cross-couplings, which circumvents common issues associated with proto-demetalation and β-hydride elimination

Oxygen-doped zig-zag molecular ribbons

The synthesis of a zig‐zag oxygen‐doped molecular rhombic ribbon has been achieved. This includes oxidative C−C and C−O bond formations that allowed the stepwise elongation and planarization of an oxa‐congener of 2,7‐periacenoacene. X‐ray diffraction analysis corroborated the flat structure and the zig‐zag topology of the O‐doped edges. Photophysical and electrochemical investigations showed that the extension of the peri‐xanthenoxanthene (PXX) into the molecular ribbon induces a noticeable shrinking of the molecular band gap devised by a rising of the HOMO energy level, a desirable property for p‐type organic semiconductors

COVIDiSTRESS Global Survey dataset on psychological and behavioural consequences of the COVID-19 outbreak

This N = 173,426 social science dataset was collected through the collaborative COVIDiSTRESS Global Survey - an open science effort to improve understanding of the human experiences of the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic between 30th March and 30th May, 2020. The dataset allows a cross-cultural study of psychological and behavioural responses to the Coronavirus pandemic and associated government measures like cancellation of public functions and stay at home orders implemented in many countries. The dataset contains demographic background variables as well as measures of Asian Disease Problem, perceived stress (PSS-10), availability of social provisions (SPS-10), trust in various authorities, trust in governmental measures to contain the virus (OECD trust), personality traits (BFF-15), information behaviours, agreement with the level of government intervention, and compliance with preventive measures, along with a rich pool of exploratory variables and written experiences. A global consortium from 39 countries and regions worked together to build and translate a survey with variables of shared interests, and recruited participants in 47 languages and dialects. Raw plus cleaned data and dynamic visualizations are available.Measurement(s) psychological measurement center dot anxiety-related behavior trait center dot Stress center dot response to center dot Isolation center dot loneliness measurement center dot Emotional Distress Technology Type(s) Survey Factor Type(s) geographic location center dot language center dot age of participant center dot responses to the Coronavirus pandemic Sample Characteristic - Organism Homo sapiens Sample Characteristic - Location global Machine-accessible metadata file describing the reported data:Peer reviewe

COVIDiSTRESS Global Survey dataset on psychological and behavioural consequences of the COVID-19 outbreak

This N = 173,426 social science dataset was collected through the collaborative COVIDiSTRESS Global Survey – an open science effort to improve understanding of the human experiences of the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic between 30th March and 30th May, 2020. The dataset allows a cross-cultural study of psychological and behavioural responses to the Coronavirus pandemic and associated government measures like cancellation of public functions and stay at home orders implemented in many countries. The dataset contains demographic background variables as well as measures of Asian Disease Problem, perceived stress (PSS-10), availability of social provisions (SPS-10), trust in various authorities, trust in governmental measures to contain the virus (OECD trust), personality traits (BFF-15), information behaviours, agreement with the level of government intervention, and compliance with preventive measures, along with a rich pool of exploratory variables and written experiences. A global consortium from 39 countries and regions worked together to build and translate a survey with variables of shared interests, and recruited participants in 47 languages and dialects. Raw plus cleaned data and dynamic visualizations are available