Corporate Governance in China: Then and Now

Corporate governance has become a globally debated topic. As multinational corporations enter new global markets, complications abound due to the myriad of corporate governance rules existing among the various legal systems. One example of the new markets becoming more available to American investment is the Chinese market. In light of both the grant of permanent normal trade relations (PNTR) to China and China's anticipated membership in the World Trade Organization (WTO), the American business community is apt to find more opportunity for investment in China. American investors are likely to be increasingly interested in understanding the current Chinese corporate governance regime as they consider the Chinese market for investment of their assets. The goal of this paper is to provide an analysis of the corporate governance system in China and offer some suggestions for improvement to make the Chinese market more attractive to foreign investors. This paper is organized as follows. Part I provides general background information on the historical corporate governance structures prevalent in China. Part II then analyzes current governance issues, in particular those occurring in the context of corporatization of China's State-owned enterprises. Part III offers proposals for reform and is followed in Part IV by our concluding remarks.http://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/39791/3/wp407.pd

Corporate Governance in China: Then and Now

Corporate governance has become a globally debated topic. As multinational corporations enter new global markets, complications abound due to the myriad of corporate governance rules existing among the various legal systems. One example of the new markets becoming more available to American investment is the Chinese market. In light of both the grant of permanent normal trade relations (PNTR) to China and China's anticipated membership in the World Trade Organization (WTO), the American business community is apt to find more opportunity for investment in China. American investors are likely to be increasingly interested in understanding the current Chinese corporate governance regime as they consider the Chinese market for investment of their assets. The goal of this paper is to provide an analysis of the corporate governance system in China and offer some suggestions for improvement to make the Chinese market more attractive to foreign investors. This paper is organized as follows. Part I provides general background information on the historical corporate governance structures prevalent in China. Part II then analyzes current governance issues, in particular those occurring in the context of corporatization of China's State-owned enterprises. Part III offers proposals for reform and is followed in Part IV by our concluding remarks.corporate governance, law reform, China, corporate law

Reciprocal Recommendation System for Online Dating

Online dating sites have become popular platforms for people to look for potential romantic partners. Different from traditional user-item recommendations where the goal is to match items (e.g., books, videos, etc) with a user's interests, a recommendation system for online dating aims to match people who are mutually interested in and likely to communicate with each other. We introduce similarity measures that capture the unique features and characteristics of the online dating network, for example, the interest similarity between two users if they send messages to same users, and attractiveness similarity if they receive messages from same users. A reciprocal score that measures the compatibility between a user and each potential dating candidate is computed and the recommendation list is generated to include users with top scores. The performance of our proposed recommendation system is evaluated on a real-world dataset from a major online dating site in China. The results show that our recommendation algorithms significantly outperform previously proposed approaches, and the collaborative filtering-based algorithms achieve much better performance than content-based algorithms in both precision and recall. Our results also reveal interesting behavioral difference between male and female users when it comes to looking for potential dates. In particular, males tend to be focused on their own interest and oblivious towards their attractiveness to potential dates, while females are more conscientious to their own attractiveness to the other side of the line

Concerns and Structural Barriers Associated with WIC Participation among WIC-eligible Women

Objectives: To examine sociodemographic, psychosocial concerns, and structural barriers associated with women\u27s participation in the USDA\u27s Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) program among those eligible for the program. Design and Sample: 1,634 White, African American, Hispanic, and Asian/Pacific Islander (A/Pl) women from the New York City area completed the Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System (PRAMS) from 2004-2007, a population-based survey. Measurements: Data on WIC eligibility and participation, sociodemographic details, unintended pregnancy, social support, and structural barriers were evaluated. Results: Hispanics and Blacks were 4.1 and 2.4 times more likely to participate, respectively, in the WIC program relative to Whites. Mothers reporting unplanned pregnancies, fewer social supports, and more structural barriers (e.g., transportation) were less likely to participate in WIC. Race-stratified analyses revealed race/ethnic differences in the pattern of barriers; unintended pregnancy and structural problems were barriers associated with WIC participation particularly for A/Pl. Conclusions: WIC-eligible women with unintended pregnancies and fewer social supports tend to participate in WIC, but those who experience more structural barriers are less likely to participate. A/Pl women may face specific challenges to WIC participation. Careful attention is needed to understand the unique attitudes and behaviors in the process of participating in WIC

Florida Red Tide Exposure: Analyzing the respiratory effects experienced by the Gulf Coast population

Background: Florida red tide occurs in the Gulf of Mexico annually and has been linked to complaints of negative respiratory symptoms. Little is known about the exact association and long term effects of the exposure. Objectives: We applied the Navigation Guide to conduct a systematic review of the existing body of literature on Florida red tide exposure and respiratory effects. Methods: We applied inclusion criteria to studies found through searches of 5 scientific databases. Included studies were analyzed for risk of bias and overall strength and quality of evidence. Included studies provided self-reported symptoms and quantitative measurements of pulmonary function before and after red tide exposure. Results: We identified 6 studies that met our inclusion criteria. We found that selection bias, exposure misclassification, and confounding were common sources of bias among the majority of studies and gave the overall body of evidence a quality rating. Conclusion: In conclusion, following the protocol of the Navigation Guide, our inclusion criteria yielded a body of research that displays an inadequate evidence of correlation between red tide exposure and respiratory effects in Florida Gulf Coast sample populations

Integrating intercultural communication and cross-cultural psychology: Theoretical and pedagogical implications

While psychology and communication have borrowed theories and methodologies from each other, much scholarly discussion tends to focus on the flow from psychology to communication. Relatively less attention has been paid to the work in communication that adds to psychology, particularly in examining the processes of developing relationships with culturally different others. It is timely for us to look at how communication theory and methodology have contributed to psychology in understanding differences between groups, as well as in improving intergroup relations. This paper focuses on intercultural communication, particularly acculturation of immigrants and sojourners as a clear intersection between cross-cultural psychology and communication. We aim to identify points of departure and points of integration between the two fields, drawing implications for theory in both fields and suggesting specific pedagogical tools to develop intercultural communication awareness and competence among psychology students

EFL test preparation in China: The multidimensionality of the reading-writing relationship

Recent research on the relationship between reading and writing in foreign language (FL) context is limited. However, an examination of the issue is critical for FL literacy curriculum design. The present study, contextualized in an English as a foreign language (EFL) test preparation program in China, explores the reading-writing relationship by examining two factors important for FL literacy acquisition: genre and level of language instruction. Findings revealed that level of instruction significantly moderated the relationship between reading and persuasive writing, but not descriptive writing. Regardless of level of language instruction, reading comprehension was a significant predictor of descriptive writing performance. A discussion of a curriculum that views reading and writing as complementary dimensions of language learning is offered

Drying effects on decomposition of salt marsh sediment and on lysine sorption

Sorption of organic compounds by coastal marine sediments is strongly affected by dry–wet cycling. In this study, we determined how drying (and rewetting) sediment affected the decomposition rate of organic matter under both oxic and anoxic conditions, and how sorption changed with decomposition. Organic matter decomposition showed distinct patterns in dried, rewetted sediments compared to those that had never been dried, based on a comparison of ammonium production rates, OC/N ratios and total hydrolyzable amino acid (THAA) loss rates. Net ammonium production rates were 29 (oxic) and 44 μM/d (anoxic) in dried, rewetted sediment and 4 (oxic) and 13 μM/d (anoxic) in wet, never-dried sediment, indicating that a fraction of labile organic compounds like protein, was preferentially decomposed after a dry–wet cycle. The input of fresh organic matter from benthic fauna and microbes killed by the drying process may partially explain the faster remineralization rates in rewetted sediment. The decomposed organic matter in dried sediment might also come from resynthesized microbial biomass or its related byproducts, with low C/N ratios. Based on comparisons between wet and dried sediments, we hypothesize that sedimentary organic matter (SOM) can assemble into 3D structures that play a significant role in the remineralization pathways of SOM. Drying not only changes the lability of salt marsh SOM, either through exposed proteinaceous matter or resynthesized matter by microbes, but also its sorption capacity. Lysine sorption was used as a probe to test the structural changes of sediment during the incubation. Lysine sorption in both wet and dried sediment remained relatively constant when sediments were incubated under anoxic conditions, although there was much stronger sorption in continuously wet sediment than in dried–rewetted sediment. Under oxic conditions, lysine sorption in both dried and wet sediment decreased dramatically after a one-month incubation, and the pH in these samples also decreased accordingly, suggesting that sulfide or ammonium might be oxidized to strong acids (H2SO4 and HNO3) that decrease lysine sorption. Overall, the structure of dried sediment did not appear to be reconstituted after 3-months of laboratory incubation

The Relationship between Information Systems (IS) Assets, Organizational Capabilities, and IS-enabled Absorptive Capacity in U.S. State Information Technology Departments

Despite the recognition that information is a strategic asset for any state government, we lack research on the deployment and use of information systems in the U.S. state government context. Information systems are central for state agencies’ efforts to develop optimal responses to demands from their internal and external constituents. We examine how a specific IS asset combines with prior knowledge to influence organizational capabilities. We also examine the connection between organizational capabilities and the IS-enabled absorptive capacity of U.S. state IT departments from the perspective of IS employees. This study may help researchers and practitioners understand the role of IS assets in forming IS-enabled absorptive capacity in government organizations. We collected survey data from 417 government IS employees that represented 21 different states. The findings indicate that the role of an IS asset depends on the type of asset. Inside-out IS assets (ERP) moderate the relationship between prior knowledge and organizational capabilities, while outside-in IS assets (CRM) directly affect organizational capabilities. In addition, organizational capabilities can directly affect IS-enabled absorptive capacity in IT departments. This research increases our understanding of the influence of different IS assets on IS-enabled absorptive capacity in state government IT departments. We discuss limitations and directions for future research