Does governance affect compliance with IFRS 7?

Although there has been considerable research on the impact of corporate governance on corporate voluntary disclosure, empirical evidence on how governance affects compliance with mandatory disclosure requirements is limited. We contribute to governance and disclosure literature by examining the impact of corporate governance on compliance with IFRS 7 for the banking sector in Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). We use a self-constructed disclosure index to measure compliance with IFRS 7. We use regression analyses to examine the impact of board characteristics, audit committee characteristics and ownership structure on compliance with IFRS 7. Using a sample of 335 bank-year observations for GCC listed banks over the period 2011–2017, we report evidence that corporate governance variables affect compliance with IFRS 7. However, the significance of these variables depends on the type of the regression model used. Our findings suggest that governance matters for mandatory disclosure requirements. So to improve the level of compliance, regulators, official authorities, and policymakers should intensify their efforts toward improving corporate governance codes, following up their implementation and enhancing the enforcement mechanisms

The impact of urban housing prices on labour mobility: evidence from cities in China

Urban development relies heavily on labour, while the change in urban housing prices, in turn, has a crucial impact on labour. Therefore, the regulatory policies of housing prices have become a critical content of urban management worldwide for a long time. Based on the theoretical analysis of urban housing prices and labour mobility, we use fixed-effect panel model with the panel data of 281 cities in China from 2002 to 2018. We study the impact of rising urban housing prices on labour and identify the housing price jump as an instrumental variable in solving the endogenous problem. The results are as follows. First, the increase in urban housing prices has a crowding-out effect on labour mobility. Second, there is a moderating effect on different levels of education, urban construction, and income under the impact of urban housing prices on labour mobility. Third, the heterogeneity of the impact is reflected in the housing price-to-income ratios and industrial structures. These conclusions are supposed to have significant enlightenment for controlling the urban housing prices during high-quality economic growth and guiding labour flow more rationally

Mechanical, Durability and Structural Evaluation of Geopolymer Concretes

Alkali–activated aluminosilicates, known as geopolymers, have the potential to be used for sustainable concrete. Geopolymers encompass any binder systems derived from the reaction of an alkalis reagent with aluminosilicate rich materials that can harden at room (ambient) or elevated temperatures. The use of industrial waste materials in the manufacture of concrete not only introduces economic and structural performance benefits, but it also provides environmental benefits associated with reducing large volumes of disposed waste materials, such as ashes from coal–fired power stations and slags from metal production operations. Despite the commercial promise of geopolymer concrete technology, its widespread use is hindered by the lack of fundamental understanding of its potential long–term behaviour. Moreover, an understanding of the behaviour of reinforced geopolymer concrete, including the interaction between the reinforcement and surrounding concrete and its resistance to corrosion is sparse. This lack of information is significant, as it delays compliance with regulatory design standards and hence limits practical structural applications. This thesis explores the mechanical and structural characteristics of geopolymer concretes that are derived from class–F fly ash and granulated lead smelter slag. Significant aspects of these geopolymer concretes are investigated and the results are presented by compiling a series of journal papers. Firstly, mix designs utilising fly ash and lead smelter slags are developed and appropriate mix design guidelines are prescribed. For these mix designs, the material and mechanical properties of the concretes at both fresh and hardened states are then investigated. Having developed mix designs and quantified basic material behaviour, the long–term durability characteristics of both fly ash and lead smelter slag–based geopolymer concretes are extensively investigated. Particular attention is paid to the long–term durability of geopolymer concrete through consideration of the bond strengths of corroded and non–corroded steel reinforcement. The structural mechanisms related to the bond strength are investigated to quantify the formation of cracks, tension–stiffening and crack widening. Finally, the structural behaviour of granulated lead smelter slag–based geopolymer concrete short and slender columns was investigated through axial compression subjected to different eccentricities. From the investigation conducted in this thesis, it is shown that fly ash geopolymer concrete has comparable mechanical and structural behaviour to that of Ordinary Portland Cement (OPC) concrete. For a given compressive strength of concrete, the mechanical properties, durability, bond strength, tension–stiffening, and structural performance exhibited in geopolymer concrete are slightly higher than the corresponding measures of these properties in OPC concrete. Similarly, granulated lead smelter slag–based geopolymer concrete is shown to have potential as a cementitious material if the slag particles are crushed to a size similar to that of fly ash and OPC. Alternatively, granulated lead smelter slag is shown to be of use as a partial replacement for fly ash, which results in a blended binder. Significantly, based on the results obtained from this research, it can be stated that the current design provisions contained in the standards for Ordinary Portland Cement concrete can easily be modified and adopted for the applications of geopolymer concrete.Thesis (Ph.D.) -- University of Adelaide, School of Civil, Environmental and Mining Engineering,201

Auditing in the time of social distancing: The effect of COVID-19 on auditing quality

The file attached to this record is the author's final peer reviewed version.Purpose: Our paper aims to discuss the theoretical impact of Covid-19 social distancing outbreak on audit quality. Design/methodology/approach: Our paper uses a desk study method to explore the possible impact of COVID-19 crisis on five key considerations for audit quality during the pandemic. These include audit fees, going concern assessment, auditor human capital, audit procedures and audit personnel salaries. Findings: As many believe that the COVID-19 outbreak is as yet not a financial crisis, we, on the contrary, believe that the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic would be the toughest challenge for auditors and their clients since the 2007-2008 global financial crisis. Specifically, we believe that the COVID-19 social distancing can largely affect audit fees, going concern assessment, audit human capital, audit procedures, audit personnel salaries, and audit effort, which ultimately can pose a severe impact on audit quality. Practical implications: Due to the implementations of work-from-home strategy, audit firms are highly recommended to invest more in digital programs, including artificial intelligence, blockchain, network security, and data function development. This can help them to be more adaptable to working from home experience, which is ultimately expected to enhance the effectiveness and the flexibility of communication between auditors and their clients. Also, we recommend stock markets and other governmental bodies to provide temporary relaxations in compliance requirements to corporations. This procedure is expected to help firms that apply work-from-home strategy to report better earnings figures, which is appeared to be positively associated with audit quality. Originality/value: To date, to the best of our knowledge, there is no academic study that explores the potential impact of the COVID-19 outbreak on audit quality. This paper, therefore, fills an important research gap in the auditing literature. In addition, our paper can be used as a base to construct a research instrument (e.g., questionnaire or interviews) to provide empirical evidence on the potential impact of COVID-19 on audit quality

Pharmacokinetics And Pharmacodynamics Modeling Of Clozapine In Healthy Volunteers And Patients With Schizophrenia Spectrum Disorders Using Pharmacometrics Approach

Clozapine is the first-line medication for treatment-resistant schizophrenia. However, it has complex metabolism, an unclear exposure-response relationship, and potential adverse drug reactions (ADRs). The present study aimed to develop an analytical method and pharmacometrics-based models for clozapine and norclozapine pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics in healthy volunteers and schizophrenia spectrum disorder (SSD) patients. A surfactant-assisted dispersive liquid-liquid microextraction coupled with HPLC-UV was used for clozapine and norclozapine determination after optimizing experimental factors. 270 data points obtained from 33 healthy volunteers after receiving a single dose of 12.5 mg clozapine were utilized in the semi-physiological pharmacokinetic model development incorporating the pre-systemic clozapine metabolism. To assess clozapine interaction with pantoprazole, a randomized, crossover, open-label study design was implemented. 12 volunteers were given clozapine alone; then clozapine after five days of 40 mg pantoprazole or vice versa, separated by a washout period. Meanwhile, clinical data were extracted from 116 SSD patients’ medical records in Penang General Hospital, with a mean retrospective follow-up of 306 weeks

Pengembangan Media Pembelajaran Teks Hikayat Berbasis Ispring untuk Siswa Kelas X SMA

Perkembangan zaman, ilmu pengetahuan, dan teknologi semakin mempengaruhi perilaku manusia, mulai dari cara bersosialisasi, berkreasi, sampai dengan cara mengedukasi atau mengajar peserta didiknya di dalam kelas. Sementara itu, hal tersebut kontradiksi dengan realita bahwa masih banyak tenaga pendidik yang kesulitan beradaptasi dengan teknologi, sehingga menjadikan pembelajaran kurang dapat mengkonkretkan materi dan memberikan pengalaman bermakna bagi perserta didik. Adapun tujuan dalam penelitian ini, yaitu menghasilkan aplikasi “CERMAD” untuk media pembelajaran teks hikayat sebagai salah satu bentuk cerita rakyat dengan kearifan lokal Madura berbasis aplikasi Ispring untuk siswa kelas X SMA agar dapat memaksimalkan proses pembelajaran dan kebermaknaan pengalaman belajar peserta didik. Metode penelitian yang digunakan dalam penelitian ini ialah metode 4D (penetapan, perancangan, pengembangan, dan penyebarluasan). Hasil dari penelitian ini meliputi tiga hal, yaitu penyajian isi, kebahasaan, dan desain media pembelajaran. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa media interaktif tersebut layak untuk digunakan. Penilaian dari ahli pembelajaran bahasa dan sastra mendapatkan persentase 94% dan penilaian oleh ahli media mendapatkan persentase 88%. Berdasarkan paparan hasil penilaian tersebut, media CERMAD ini “valid” atau “layak diimplementasikan” sebagai media pembelajaran teks hikayat di kelas X SMA