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The paper seeks to provide a foundational understanding of the socio‐technical system that is computer network intrusion detection, including the nature of the knowledge work, situated expertise, and processes of learning as supported by information technology.

The authors conducted a field study to explore the work of computer network intrusion detection using multiple data collection methods, including semi‐structured interviews, examination of security tools and resources, analysis of information security mailing list posts, and attendance at several domain‐specific user group meetings.

The work practice of intrusion detection analysts involves both domain expertise of networking and security and a high degree of situated expertise and problem‐solving activities that are not predefined and evolve with the dynamically changing context of the analyst's environment. This paper highlights the learning process needed to acquire these two types of knowledge, contrasting this work practice with that of computer systems administrators.

The research establishes a baseline for future research into the domain and practice of intrusion detection, and, more broadly, information security.

The results presented here provide a critical examination of current security practices that will be useful to developers of intrusion detection support tools, information security training programs, information security management, and for practitioners themselves.

There has been no research examining the work or expertise development processes specific to the increasingly important information security practice of intrusion detection. The paper provides a foundation for future research into understanding this highly complex, dynamic work.

By using data on China's security market, this paper aims to examine the relationship between corporate diversification and security analyst following in terms of behavioral decision‐making process.

This is an empirical study.

The results show that the numbers of analysts covering a firm are negatively associated with the firms level of diversification. As the lines of business of firms increase, the cost of analysts' acquiring information will accordingly go up, forcing security analysts to give up following such firms. A further study finds that the firms with related diversification are more likely to be followed by analysts than those with irrelevant diversification, because the related lines that make information and analysis technique generally used could reduce the cost of security analysts.

Extant studies focus too narrowly on statistical properties of the forecasting or market reaction to the analyst reports. However, this paper examines the association between corporate diversification and analysts following by looking at the economic incentives that affect analysts' decisions. Moreover, this paper contributes to the literature on security analysts in China.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the domain of security analysts' earnings forecasts as a valid measure of firm performance.

A survey instrument was developed and sent to 1,350 security analysts to ascertain the criteria they used in evaluating firm performance.

Factor analysis indicates strong support for organizational level variables, such as top management, CEO ability, corporate culture, size as opposed to environment and industry level variables.

The domain of security analysts' earnings forecasts is broader than traditional accounting‐ and market‐based measures and more closely matches the realm of the strategic management field.

The study presents new evidence that key organizational variables influence security analysts' earnings forecasts.

The present study is the first to the best of one's knowledge that ascertains the factors that security analysts utilize in making earnings forecasts for the firms they follow.

Outlines previous research on the security analyst “superstar” phenomenon, including the stochastic model of Yule and Simon. Applies this to data on the 1986‐1997 selections for the Institutional Investor’s All‐British Research First Team (ABRT) and finds that it does not explain the distribution, i.e. that selection does appear to be based on skill rather than luck. Considers consistency with other research and expects future research to concentrate on the ABRT’s ability to forecast earnings per share and share prices.

The purpose of this paper is to examine securities analyst independence in China's capital market and the effect on analyst independence of institutional investors’ shareholding and separation between control rights and cash flow rights of ultimate controller.

Using data of China's listed companies from 2006 to 2012, the authors empirically tested the relationship between analyst following and volatility of stock return. And based on the test, the authors investigated the role played by institutional investors’ ownership and separation between control rights and cash flow rights of ultimate controller.

According to the empirical results, there is a significant negative correlation between analyst following and volatility of stock return. Also, shareholding of institutional investors and the separation between control rights and cash flow rights of ultimate controllers will have an impact on the relationship between analyst following and volatility of stock return. When institutional investors hold higher proportion or the separation between control rights and cash flow rights of ultimate controllers keeps at a high level, the negative correlation between analyst following and volatility of stock return will weaken.

First, based on the theory of market intermediation, the paper examined analyst independence by investigating and analyzing the relationship between analyst following and volatility of stock return. Second, it analyzed the factors affecting analyst independence by integrating enterprise characteristic variable and market characteristic variable on the basis of introducing two variables – shareholding of institutional investors and the separation between control rights and cash flow rights of ultimate controllers.

Does a company's long‐term corporate strategy influence how security analysts rate its stock? The authors found that it does—but only when the strategy is communicated to analysts through corporate advertising, executive presentations, annual reports, and similar means.

To show how conflicts of interest and disingenuous investment research at the end of the 1990s stock market bubble occurred in Australia as well as the USA and Western Europe.

Reviews the role of research analysts in major securities firms and conflicts of interest such as analyzing and evaluating a company for investment purposes, while seeking the investment banking business of the same company. Provides a case study of how an investment banking firm dealt with a provider of internet search services in both a research and an investment banking capacity. Investigates and evaluates the regulations and guidelines developed and introduced by the Australian regulatory bodies (Australian Stock Exchange (ASX) and Australian Securities and Investment Commission (ASIC)) and the Australian Government to deal with potential conflicts of interest that could affect the objectivity and independence of analyst research.

There were examples of conflicts of interest and fraudulent stock recommendations in Australia that rivaled the worst examples in the USA and Western Europe.

A reminder of fraudulent investment research practices during the stock market bubble and the potential for conflicts of interest between research and investment banking functions within the same firm.

The National Association of Securities Dealers and the New York Stock Exchange recently have adopted and then amended new rules relating to research analyst conflicts of interest. However, open questions remain, and these two self‐regulatory organizations (SROs), in collaboration with the SEC, must provide further guidance on the application of these rules to various day‐to‐day situations such as an analyst receiving a customer inquiry concerning investment banking capabilities, a firm’s participation in an investment banking syndicate after the firm’s analyst has begun research coverage of the issuer, procedures for analysts to conduct due diligence, publishing research reports on an issuer while a firm is engaged in a distribution of the issuer’s securities, and analysts’ limitations during distribution quiet periods.

Corporate investment behavior increases the uncertainty of a company’s operation and performance. The purpose of this paper is to investigate how analyst recommendations respond to corporate uncertainty caused by investment behavior and what motivates analysts to react as they do.

The authors test two motivation hypotheses: the hypothesis that analysts are currying favor with management to obtain private information and the hypothesis that analysts have conflicts of interest due to connections. Using Chinese analyst-level data from 2007 to 2015, the authors find that overall investment levels, R&D investment and M&A events are significantly positively correlated with analyst recommendations, suggesting that analysts tend to react optimistically to corporate investment behavior.

Analysts are only optimistic about companies with low information transparency, suggesting that analysts may be trying to curry favor with management to gain access to private information. The authors find that analysts with stronger recommendations have more private information and analysts with more private information publish more accurate earnings forecasts, which supports the hypothesis that analysts curry favor with management through optimistic recommendations to obtain more private information. This is consistent with the logic that the difficulty of earnings forecasting increases under uncertain conditions, increasing the demand for private information. The authors then group the analysts according to their underwriting connections, securities company’s proprietary connections and fund connections, and find that the positive correlation between corporate investment behavior and analyst recommendations exists only in the unconnected groups. This is evidence against the hypothesis that analysts have conflicts of interest due to their connections.

First, the authors link the optimism of analysts with the uncertainty of analysts’ information inputs to partially unpack the black box of analysts’ analyses. Second, the authors test the two hypotheses mentioned. There is a lack of comparative studies on the influence of different motivations on the behavior of analysts.

In the two years following the bursting of the high‐technology and telecommunications stock “bubble”, various legal proceedings and regulatory actions have brought Wall Street to the brink of creating a “independent” stock research arm that purportedly would create a separation between the research and investment banking functions of major Wall Street firms. This new research scenario is largely a result of the confluence of the legal and regulatory proceedings and a dramatic loss in confidence by public investors in the quality and objectivity in research provided by their brokerage firms. This article examines the legal, legislative, and regulatory proceedings that have led to this dramatic change in the way Wall Street will conduct stock research in the future.