The power of numbers: base-ten threshold effects in reported revenue

We provide evidence that managers have a revealed preference for reporting total revenue numbers just above base-ten thresholds (i.e., “round” numbers) of the form N × 10K. Examples are $10 million (1 × 107) and$4 billion (4 × 109). Our finding is consistent with a literature in psychology demonstrating that humans are susceptible to a cognitive bias associated with baseten reference points. However, we also document several rational explanations for this revenue management behavior on the part of managers. First, analyst revenue forecasts also exhibit this regularity, especially in early forecasts when greater uncertainty can potentially induce analysts to rely to a greater extent on heuristics, suggesting that managers may be managing reported revenue numbers to meet externally-determined base-ten-influenced benchmarks. In addition, the effect that we document is stronger for firms that face greater pressure to report high revenue growth, while firms that exceed base-ten revenue thresholds for the first time benefit from increased press coverage. Finally, we show that the revenue growth needed to stretch for a baseten threshold is not sustainable; firms that just exceed base-ten thresholds have lower subsequent revenue growth. Given that managers engage in extra, and, on average, unsustainable efforts to increase revenues to reach base-ten thresholds, our results suggest that revenue manipulation is even more pervasive than previously documented and that lenders, investors, auditors, and regulators should apply an extra degree of skepticism when a reported revenue number just exceeds a base-ten threshold

The power of numbers: base-ten threshold effects in reported revenue

We provide evidence that managers have a revealed preference for reporting total revenue numbers just above base-ten thresholds (i.e., “round” numbers) of the form N × 10K. Examples are $10 million (1 × 107) and$4 billion (4 × 109). Our finding is consistent with a literature in psychology demonstrating that humans are susceptible to a cognitive bias associated with baseten reference points. However, we also document several rational explanations for this revenue management behavior on the part of managers. First, analyst revenue forecasts also exhibit this regularity, especially in early forecasts when greater uncertainty can potentially induce analysts to rely to a greater extent on heuristics, suggesting that managers may be managing reported revenue numbers to meet externally-determined base-ten-influenced benchmarks. In addition, the effect that we document is stronger for firms that face greater pressure to report high revenue growth, while firms that exceed base-ten revenue thresholds for the first time benefit from increased press coverage. Finally, we show that the revenue growth needed to stretch for a baseten threshold is not sustainable; firms that just exceed base-ten thresholds have lower subsequent revenue growth. Given that managers engage in extra, and, on average, unsustainable efforts to increase revenues to reach base-ten thresholds, our results suggest that revenue manipulation is even more pervasive than previously documented and that lenders, investors, auditors, and regulators should apply an extra degree of skepticism when a reported revenue number just exceeds a base-ten threshold

Engaging stakeholder communities as body image intervention partners: The Body Project as a case example

© 2015 Elsevier Ltd Despite recent advances in developing evidence-based psychological interventions, substantial changes are needed in the current system of intervention delivery to impact mental health on a global scale (Kazdin & Blase, 2011). Prevention offers one avenue for reaching large populations because prevention interventions often are amenable to scaling-up strategies, such as task-shifting to lay providers, which further facilitate community stakeholder partnerships. This paper discusses the dissemination and implementation of the Body Project, an evidence-based body image prevention program, across 6 diverse stakeholder partnerships that span academic, non-profit and business sectors at national and international levels. The paper details key elements of the Body Project that facilitated partnership development, dissemination and implementation, including use of community-based participatory research methods and a blended train-the-trainer and task-shifting approach. We observed consistent themes across partnerships, including: sharing decision making with community partners, engaging of community leaders as gatekeepers, emphasizing strengths of community partners, working within the community's structure, optimizing non-traditional and/or private financial resources, placing value on cost-effectiveness and sustainability, marketing the program, and supporting flexibility and creativity in developing strategies for evolution within the community and in research. Ideally, lessons learned with the Body Project can be generalized to implementation of other body image and eating disorder prevention programs

The Body Project 4 All: A Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial of a Mixed-Gender Dissonance-Based Body Image Program

Objective: The Body Project is a cognitive dissonance-based body image improvement program with ample research support among female samples. More recently, researchers have highlighted the extent of male body dissatisfaction and disordered eating behaviors; however, boys/men have not been included in the majority of body image improvement programs. This study aims to explore the efficacy of a mixed-gender Body Project compared with the historically female-only body image intervention program. Method: Participants included male and female college students (N = 185) across two sites. We randomly assigned women to a mixed-gender modification of the two-session, peer-led Body Project (MG), the two-session, peer-led, female-only (FO) Body Project, or a waitlist control (WL), and men to either MG or WL. Participants completed self-report measures assessing negative affect, appearance-ideal internalization, body satisfaction, and eating disorder pathology at baseline, post-test, and at 2- and 6-month follow-up. Results: Linear mixed effects modeling to estimate the change from baseline over time for each dependent variable across conditions were used. For women, results were mixed regarding post-intervention improvement compared with WL, and were largely non-significant compared with WL at 6-month follow-up. Alternatively, results indicated that men in MG consistently improved compared with WL through 6-month follow-up on all measures except negative affect and appearance-ideal internalization. Discussion: Results differed markedly between female and male samples, and were more promising for men than for women. Various explanations are provided, and further research is warranted prior to drawing firm conclusions regarding mixed-gender programming of the Body Project

Mirror in the Dark: Poems

Sentiment in verse has a long and complicated history throughout which it has fluctuated in and out of vogue depending upon the tastes of the time. A poem that is too “sentimental” is one in which the author relies too heavily on emotion to incite a stereotypical response in the reader. In this type of writing emotion is emphasized at the expense of craft. Conversely, when sentiment is consciously used as a tool it can help to infuse writing with active and genuine emotion which help to broaden a reader’s understanding of a poem. The emotion is an active and important part of the poem, aiding the effect of the whole rather than dominating it. The use of sentiment is a problem that faces many contemporary poets. What this refers to is the choice contemporary poets often make concerning whether or not to include sentiment, and the degree to which they want their work and their identities associated with it. Contemporary female poets find themselves in a difficult position wherein they often write about topics that would logically benefit by being approached from the perspective of sentiment, but sometimes these poets actively choose to write without using sentiment because they have come of age in a poetry culture that devalues the use of sentiment and distrusts a poet who employs it. Some poets bridge this divide by embracing sentiment as tool. Sentiment provides poets with an outlet for truth in self-expression, and if used carefully and artfully, poets who incorporate it into their work can find a place for their poems in the wider world of poetry

Can We Reduce Eating Disorder Risk Factors in Female College Athletes? A Randomized Exploratory Investigation of Two Peer-Led Interventions

Female athletes are at least as at risk as other women for eating disorders (EDs) and at risk for the female athlete triad (i.e., inadequate energy availability, menstrual disorders, and osteoporosis). This study investigated whether two evidence-based programs appear promising for future study if modified to address the unique needs of female athletes. Athletes were randomly assigned to athlete-modified dissonance prevention or healthy weight intervention (AM-HWI). ED risk factors were assessed pre/post-treatment, and 6-week and 1-year follow-up. Results (analyzed sample, N = 157) indicated that both interventions reduced thin-ideal internalization, dietary restraint, bulimic pathology, shape and weight concern, and negative affect at 6 weeks, and bulimic pathology, shape concern, and negative affect at 1 year. Unexpectedly we observed an increase in students spontaneously seeking medical consultation for the triad. Qualitative results suggested that AM-HWI may be more preferred by athletes

Mindfulness-based prevention for eating disorders: A school-based cluster randomized controlled study

© 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Objective Successful prevention of eating disorders represents an important goal due to damaging long-term impacts on health and well-being, modest treatment outcomes, and low treatment seeking among individuals at risk. Mindfulness-based approaches have received early support in the treatment of eating disorders, but have not been evaluated as a prevention strategy. This study aimed to assess the feasibility, acceptability, and efficacy of a novel mindfulness-based intervention for reducing the risk of eating disorders among adolescent females, under both optimal (trained facilitator) and task-shifted (non-expert facilitator) conditions. Method A school-based cluster randomized controlled trial was conducted in which 19 classes of adolescent girls (N-=-347) were allocated to a three-session mindfulness-based intervention, dissonance-based intervention, or classes as usual control. A subset of classes (N = 156) receiving expert facilitation were analyzed separately as a proxy for delivery under optimal conditions. Results Task-shifted facilitation showed no significant intervention effects across outcomes. Under optimal facilitation, students receiving mindfulness demonstrated significant reductions in weight and shape concern, dietary restraint, thin-ideal internalization, eating disorder symptoms, and psychosocial impairment relative to control by 6-month follow-up. Students receiving dissonance showed significant reductions in socio-cultural pressures. There were no statistically significant differences between the two interventions. Moderate intervention acceptability was reported by both students and teaching staff. Discussion Findings show promise for the application of mindfulness in the prevention of eating disorders; however, further work is required to increase both impact and acceptability, and to enable successful outcomes when delivered by less expert providers