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This paper aims to present a methodology for technological foresight and technological scanning based on S&T and knowledge indicators.

This proposal considers S&T and knowledge indicators, such as a patents indicator (technology), research and development indicator (science) and competencies indicator (human resources). International databases and a data‐and text‐mining tool are used to build up knowledge maps and reference tables to support decision making.

This study provides information about the use of technological foresight and technological scanning using the biotechnology in the health sector as a case study. In this paper, the trends observed in patents and articles worldwide clearly show the growth in biotechnology, which points to the need to prioritize this area, as well as opening up a variety of opportunities, especially when one considers the human competencies already consolidated in Brazilian universities and research institutes, which could be better harnessed by industry and could help ensure greater innovation and competitiveness.

The paper presents a methodology for the effective support of decision taking during the prioritization of strategic and/or technological areas by visualizing potential markets and partnership opportunities. Furthermore, it emphasizes the role of biotechnology as a catalyst for S&T and innovations in the world.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the effect of ownership structure on the goodwill impairment policy of Malaysian listed firms. In particular, the authors test whether the direction and magnitude of goodwill impairment are related to whether firms are government or family controlled firms. Given the highly concentrated ownership of firms in Malaysia, the authors suggest that the “entrenchment effect” will take precedence over the “alignment effect”, which will be reflected in the accounting policy on goodwill valuation and impairment.

This study utilizes logistic and Tobit regressions to test the prediction, controlling for a range of factors that might affect the goodwill impairment decision. The data were manually collected through 579 firm-year observations from the financial reports of companies listed on the Bursa Malaysia web site for the period 2003-2009.

The authors find that family controlled firms are more likely to record goodwill impairment than non-family controlled firms. The results are, however, not significant in government-controlled firms. Similar evidence in prior studies finds that Malaysian firms are more likely to recognize and record higher goodwill impairment loss in their first year of adoption than in the subsequent years. Interestingly, in contrast to prior studies, longer chief executive officer (CEO) tenure is found to be positively associated with the likelihood to recognize and record higher impairment of goodwill.

This paper is one of few studies that examine the role of ownership structure on goodwill accounting policy choice where ownership structure is highly concentrated and government owned firms play a significant role in the economy. The paper also examines goodwill policy choice before, during the transition and subsequent to the adoption of the goodwill standard in Malaysia, which has not been addressed before.

The aim of the study is to analyze the perceptions of belief-in-importance (BI), self-efficacy (SE) and preferred source of learning (SL) of information literacy (IL) competencies among psychology students in Spain and Portugal.

Unified protocol was based on the questionnaire IL-HUMASS (26 items). Quantitative diagnostic-comparative study was carried out, including factor and variance analysis. Hypothesis compliance was checked.

By country, there are no significant differences in students' perceptions, although the scores in BI are higher than in SE. By category, there are some significant differences, and the least valued is that of processing. By individual competency, seven of them show differences between countries. Learning preferences are for a mix of classroom and autonomous learning. Students barely realize the value of libraries. Within factor structures, which share the same components in each dimension, some emerging factors do appear.

Motivation (BI and SE) with respect to IL competencies is a key asset for future psychologists. Interest should focus on some emerging motivational factors. Students' appreciation of the library should enhance through the corresponding initiatives for improvement. This method could be complemented by qualitative studies.

This is probably the first diagnostic-comparative study on perceptions of IL competencies among future psychology professionals.

This study reviews research that examines economic and behavioural consequences of CSR reporting regulations. Specifically, the authors evaluate the impact of CSR reporting regulations on (1) reporting quality, (2) capital-markets and (3) firm behaviour.

The authors first describe the stated objectives and enforcement level of CSR reporting regulations around the world. Second, the authors review over 130 archival studies in accounting, finance, economics, law and management that examine consequences of the regulations.

The stated objectives and enforcement of CSR reporting regulations vary considerably across countries. Empirical research finds no significant changes in reporting quality and generally concludes that CSR reporting continues to be ceremonial rather than substantive after the regulations – consistent with corporate legitimation and “greenwashing” views. In contrast, growing evidence shows both positive and negative capital-market and real effects of the regulations. Overall, the findings from this review indicate that, on balance, there remains a significant number of questions on the net effects of CSR reporting regulations.

The authors offer a comprehensive review of the literature examining consequences of CSR reporting regulations. The authors identify apparent tensions in studies assessing different outcomes after the regulations: between symbolic reporting and positive capital-market outcomes; between profitability and CSR; and between CSR and the welfare of non-shareholder groups. Additionally, we highlight differences in the scope and stated objectives of CSR regulations across countries, with the regulations often reflecting socio-economic development and national interests of implementing countries. Collectively, our review indicates that institutional details are crucial when considering the design or consequences of CSR reporting regulations and/or standards.

System dynamics is a whole-system modelling and learning approach, useful for tackling non-linear problems, such as sustainable urban development. The purpose of this paper is to review system dynamics applications in the simulation of sustainable urban development over a period from 2005 to 2017.

The analysis reveals that the number of applications of system dynamics modelling in the area of urban sustainable development increased in the analysed period. Research has changed its focus from the modelling of environmental problems to more complex models, portraying the multidimensional socio-economic processes that have an impact on the sustainability of urban development. Analysed case studies most often use the behaviour reproduction test for model validation, but without a unified approach. In most cases, modelling has been done in China, Germany and the USA, while urban development in the Eastern European countries, Africa and Latin America has not often been investigated. This paper indicates the knowledge gaps and suggests future research directions.

Papers that report the use of system dynamics modelling reveal a wide range of applications in urban sustainability. The analysis shows significant emphasis on environmental problems, while the interest for modelling social problems has been increasing during the last several years. Most of the modelled problems examine the sustainability of resources (land, water) and waste management, which are used for insights into the reasons for the system behaviour, forecasting future behaviour and policy testing.

The presented models were developed in most cases for the purpose of understanding the phenomena examined, as well as the future use of the models in policy planning. This brings us back to the need for greater stakeholder involvement, not only in the initial phase, but also during the whole modelling process, which could increase understanding, use and ownership of the models in the future, and thus increase their practical application.

This chapter discusses the contributions and challenges involving regulatory technology (regtech) in financial services. It explores the salient areas where regtech can and should focus, observing existing and forthcoming industry, technology, and legal developments. This chapter outlines regtech use cases to clarify the shaping of that industry sector. It draws on developments in industry and academia, where significant research sets the tone and direction of technological solutions and regulatory drivers. A brief critical account of the benefits and challenges in regtech is offered. This chapter presents potential future directions, focusing on the salient areas of environmental, social, and governance (ESG), cryptocurrency, and decentralized compliance.

Drawing on the “Giffoni Experience” case study, the purpose of this paper is to establish a conceptual link between requisite variety and organizational life cycle. The law of requisite variety states that – to be viable – a system should be able to achieve the minimum number of states which are required to deal with environmental uncertainty.

A descriptive case study approach was taken, which allowed a holistic analysis of the subject being investigated. Multiple sources and different techniques were used to collect relevant data, including: document analysis, unstructured interviews with key informants, and participant observation.

The development of requisite variety is intended to fill the gap between organizational adaptability and increased environmental complexity. The process of requisite variety generation is influenced by the organizational life cycle stages, turning out to be reactive in the early phases of life and proactive in the maturity ones. Ultimately, the development of requisite variety makes the organization able to establish a co-evolving relationship with the environment, which paves the way for greater organizational adaptability and effectiveness.

The research findings are not generalizable; besides, the exploratory nature of this study did not allow to point out a consistent relationship between requisite variety and the organizational life cycle.

To the authors’ knowledge, this is one of the first attempts to examine requisite variety adopting the conceptual lenses of organizational life cycle. Empirical research works dealing with requisite variety are uncommon and generally overlooked by management scholars and practitioners.

The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the impact of the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) and eXtensible Business Reporting Language (XBRL) on audit fees based on evidence from listed companies operating in an emerging economy. Whilst IFRS constitute high-quality accounting standards, XBRL represents a technology standard that can enhance the usability of IFRS and overall financial reporting transparency.

Multivariate analyses are used on a sample of 1,798 firm-year observations between 2000 and 2011 from companies listed in the Shanghai Stock Exchange that were subject to XBRL and IFRS adoption mandates.

The main results suggest that XBRL has a main negative effect on audit fees which is weaker for larger firms. Additionally, the authors find that IFRS increases audit fees for all companies. Whilst this effect is positive for firms of different sizes, it is weaker for larger firms.

Whilst the findings are applicable to the selected sample and may or may not be generaliseable to other economies, they can provide important implications for both regulators and companies that are undertaking IFRS convergence and XBRL implementation projects in developing economies around the world.

This study offers a timely assessment of the economic consequences of IFRS and XBRL on listed companies operating in an emerging economy, in addition to providing an important basis upon which further research can be designed in order to extend the analysis.

This investigation aims to reframe the sizeable literature on barriers and drivers for energy efficiency measures (EEMs) and the phenomenon of the energy efficiency gap. The authors identify a gap between academic methods and industrial needs, as well as a neglect of the cultural dimension, despite its considerable impact. On the basis of this insight, the purpose of this paper is to integrate all of the various influences on industrial energy behavior previously identified in the literature in a refined energy cultures framework.

This paper includes a systematic literature review of research in the field of energy management, energy efficiency and cultural aspects within barriers and drivers of energy behavior. The authors select and refine an existing energy cultures framework for the industrial context. To meet industrial needs, the authors applied an ontology mapping of its core elements onto an international standard common for industrial energy management practice.

First, the authors present a refined framework for industrial energy cultures incorporating past barriers and drivers as factors. The framework enables an evaluation of attitude and behavioral aspects, underlying technologies, organizational culture and actions related to energy as a system of interdependencies. Second, the factors are ranked on the basis of the number of appearances and empirical metadata. Economic aspects such as “purchase, installment and hidden costs”, “general investment and risk behavior” and “regulatory conditions” are the highest ranked factors, but “existing knowledge about EEM”, “hierarchy approach: top down” and “environmental concerns” follow closely and represent cultural aspects, which are still underrated. Third, while illustrating a successful mapping onto a standardized process of continuous improvement, the authors also argue for heightened academia–practice efforts.

Reframing the energy efficiency gap as a problem of what aspirations play a role, what technology is chosen and how technologies are used should increase the level of implementation of EEMs in the real business world. Introducing the refined energy cultures framework serves as a starting point for future transdisciplinary collaboration between academia and practice.

Targeting the energy efficiency gap is an essential part of the sustainable development goals. The refined energy cultures framework allows for a better understanding of the industrial energy behaviors that are responsible for a significant share of a company’s success. The introduction of energy cultures serves as a starting point for future scholarly research within sustainability management accounting.

The investigation combines existing research streams, their concepts and their results about cultural aspects related to energy efficiency for both academics and practitioners. This review is the first to capture all of the various factors analyzed in academic literature using the energy cultures framework as a basis. The authors add to the theoretical development of that framework with its application to the industrial context. This is identified as a gap. Its refinement helps to holistically understand barriers and drivers of industrial EEMs to support its practical implementation.