The Informativeness of Quarterly Financial Reporting: The Portuguese Case

With the Directive 2004/109/EC, of December 15, 2004 – Transparency Directive –, the European Union decided not to require listed companies to disclose financial information in the first and third quarters of each year. Each EU country now has to decide whether to oblige its companies to disclose this information. Using a sample of 1751 firm-earnings announcements between 1994 and 2004, this paper ascertains the informativeness of quarterly financial reporting in Portugal, one of the seven European countries where the disclosure of such information is currently compulsory in all quarters. Evidence suggests that the information of the first and third quarters, both in terms of price volatility and trading volume, is significant and not inferior to that of the remaining earnings announcements.Capital markets-based research; interim accounting disclosure; market reaction; market regulation

The diffusion of innovations under normative induction in Brazil

Purpose Hierarchically superior bodies develop normative instructions to induce the diffusion of innovations, stimulating the adoption of management practices in supervised public bodies and seeking public administration efficiency increase. Despite this, the effectiveness of these normative instructions is unknown, as well as its inducing and lasting effects in the diffusion of these innovations, especially in Brazil. This study aims to understand the effects of normative induction. Design/methodology/approach The adoption of risk management, integrity & ethics and information security practices was evaluated over a decade (2009 to 2019), including the adoption behavior of more than 200 Brazilian federal agencies. Public open data were collected and analyzed with multinomial logistic regression. Findings The normative instructions’ effectiveness in propagating the evaluated practices is remarkable; however, its mere development by the superior bodies cannot be considered enough since the general adoption index can be considered good but not excellent. No evaluated practice reached a saturation level above 75%. Research limitations/implications This paper contributes to bringing the international literature’s generic knowledge on the adoption of innovation to the specific Brazilian public administration context, providing insightful implications for policymakers, public managers and researchers. Practical implications This work is unique, as it systematically analyzes multiple innovation adoption and presents excellent opportunities for future researchers by reproducing all scripts and automation developed. Furthermore, all data are available and hosted on public platforms with detailed steps and documentation. Social implications The use of open data from governmental sources allows enhanced transparency and the discovery of affecting variables while observing innovation adoption in the public administration. Originality/value The presence of normative instructions and their adoption rate is rarely measured in the Brazilian public administratio

The Day after Adoption: Managerial Innovation Abandonment and Recycling

Managerial innovations have the peculiarity of being abandoned after adoption, a possibility that makes them interesting from a theoretical viewpoint. Traditional theories of diffusion and adoption of innovations have described these processes without considering the cycles of updates these innovations go through with relevant increments. They neglect, this way, the empirical reality that organizations abandon obsolete practices in exchange for incremental improvements on the adopted innovation. Several management practices, such as COBIT, are part of this managerial innovation set. A model was developed to understand and explain the diffusion, adoption and abandonment of managerial innovations by using an improved version of the innovation adoption curves proposed by Rogers (2003), accounting for the diffusion process phenomena here highlighted

A (re) qualificação sócio-urbanística do Bairro Alto da Cova da Moura: os diferentes olhares institucionais.

A presente pesquisa, realizada na Área Metropolitana de Lisboa, analisa o projecto “Iniciativa Operações de Qualificação e Inserção Urbana em Bairros Críticos”, que está a ser implementado no Bairro Alto da Cova da Moura, no Concelho da Amadora. Esta investigação procura perceber se a intervenção de (re)qualificação sócio-urbanística da Cova da Moura respeita as dinâmicas do desenvolvimento local, conciliando as questões materiais com os valores imateriais do Bairro. Pretende-se ainda analisar o posicionamento dos diferentes actores sociais envolvidos neste processo e avançar algumas sugestões que possam contribuir para o sucesso desta iniciativa. Para a concretização dos objectivos foi adoptada a abordagem construtivista com recurso às fontes escritas e ao trabalho de campo durante 21 meses. Este último foi suportado pela observação participante e participação observante, entrevistas formais aos coordenadores da iniciativa, representantes e presidentes, chefes das instituições que estiveram presentes nas reuniões de concertação do Grupo de Parceiros Locais. Foram ainda realizadas entrevistas informais aos moradores residentes e não residentes de todas as faixas etárias, tendo em consideração o género e a situação deles face ao emprego. Após uma análise exaustiva percebe-se que se trata de uma iniciativa que procura uma lógica de intervenção territorial, muito inovadora na forma de construir cidades. É um modelo de intervenção experimental que integra o modelo formal das instituições Governamentais e do Poder Local de ver e intervir no processo de reabilitação urbana com o modelo informal das Associações Locais de interceder e compreender as realidades locais, propondo soluções para o seu território, tendo sempre em vista os pressuposto do desenvolvimento local.This research work examines the “Iniciativa Operações de Qualificação e Inserção Urbana em Bairros Críticos” [Qualification and urban insertion programme in marginal/deprived neighbourhoods], which is currently being implemented in Alto da Cova da Moura, a neighbourhood in the Amadora suburb of Lisbon. This investigation seeks to understand whether the Cova da Moura social and urbant (re)qualification programme takes into account local development dynamics and whether material concerns are aligned with the neighbourhood’s immaterial values. This work also examines the positioning of different social actors involved in the process and offer some suggestions that could contribute towards its success. A constructivist approach based on written sources and fieldwork during 21 months was adopted in order to achieve these aims. The fieldwork was conducted by participant observation and observant participation, formal interviews with the programme’s coordinators, representatives and chairs of boards presidents/community leaders, head of institutions who were present at the harmonisation meetings held by the local partnership groups. Informal interviews were also carried out with the resident and non-resident neighbourhood population of all age groups taking in consideration gender and their work situation. After a thorough analysis, we understand that this programme is seeking a very innovative approach in territorial intervention and the way to build towns. It is an experimental process that brings together the formal model of government institutions and local power of observing and intervening in urban rehabilitation with the informal model of local community associations of interceding and understanding local realities and offering solutions for the neighbourhood while always bearing in mind local development plans

The Two-Faced Mirror: The Aristotelian-Hegelian Structure of The Importance of Being Earnest by Oscar Wilde

For centuries, classical Greek drama was considered, by playwrights and theorists alike, the greatest influence on the structure of the dramatic text. One of its main features, for example, was the law of three units. Elaborated by Aristotle, the prescriptions oriented the plays to take place in a single place, within twenty-four hours, and exhibit a continuous plot, with a beginning, middle, and end. However, for thinkers such as Hegel, modern drama needed new approaches. In his writings, the German philosopher postulated that modern drama should exhibit narrative speed, and a certain dynamic quality, aligned with the internal and external conflicts of the characters. This article aims at analyzing the way in which Oscar Wilde’s The Importance of Being Earnest (1895), balanced both Aristotle and Hegel’s views by engendering a modern text with classical roots, while simultaneously embedding a comedy satirizing the customs of English society

Evaluation of the bioequivalence of two formulations containing the combination of 400 mg of acetaminophen (paracetamol), 4 mg of phenylephrine and 4 mg of chlorpheniramine in capsules: open-label, three-way crossover study, partially replicated in health

This study was carried out in order to compare the relative bioavailability of two different formulations containing 400 mg of acetaminophen + 4 mg of phenylephrine hydrochloride + 4 mg of chlorpheniramine maleate, Test formulation (Cimegripe®) and Reference formulation (Resfenol®) in 84 healthy volunteers of both sexes under fasting conditions. The study was conducted in a single dose, randomized, open-label, crossover 3-way and partially replicated. The tolerability was evaluated by the monitoring of adverse events and vital signs, results of clinical and laboratory tests. Plasma concentrations were quantified by validated bioanalytical methods using the ultra-performance liquid chromatography coupled to tandem mass spectrometry. The Cmax, Tmax, AUC0-t, AUC0-inf, T1/2 and Kel pharmacokinetic parameters were calculated from these obtained concentrations. The 90% confidence intervals were constructed for the ratio reference/test from the geometric average of the Cmax and AUC parameters which were comprised between 80% and 125%. Only the Cmax parameter of the phenylephrine was applied the scaled average bioequivalence due to the intraindividual coefficient of variation > 30% obtained, thus extending the acceptance limits of the interval. It can be concluded that the two formulations were bioequivalent in terms of rate and absorption extent and thus interchangeable