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In this chapter the author highlighted the most prominent theories surrounding the cultural framework people operate in when they are involved in the risk management process, which is an important function in the governance structure of a firm. The focus was on how culture, gender differences and values affect the way people take decisions when faced with risk. The author critically examined literature carried out in the realm of sociology and psychology in organisations and discussed the effect these have on the risk management process. She discussed the effect of sociological factors on the governance of an organisation and linked this to one of the internal control processes, that is, the risk management process. It was concluded that although it is fundamental to study the human element involved in this internal control process, it is also important to be selective of the people who are made responsible for these processes, taking into account risk perception, culture, values and gender and how these factors influence the choices people make. The selection process needed to be carried out carefully, so with foresight, putting the right people in the right places would improve the risk management, an internal control process, and thus lead to better business practices.

Purpose: Risk is a multifaceted concept, and its identification requires complex approaches that are often misunderstood. The consequence is that decisions are based on limited perception rather than the full value and meaning of what risk is, as a result, the way it is being tackled is incorrect. The individuals are often limited in their perceptions and ideas and do not embrace the full multifaceted nature of risk. Regulators and individuals want to follow norms and checklists or overuse models, simulations, and templates, thereby reducing responsibility for decision-making. At the same time, the wider use of technology and rules reduces the critical thinking of individuals. We advance the automation process by building robots that follow protocols and forget about the part of risk assessment that cannot be programed. Therefore, with this study, the objective of this study was to discover how people define risk, the influencing factors of risk perception and how they behave toward this perception. The authors also determine how the perception differed with age, gender, marital status, education level and region. The novelty of the research is related to individual risk perception during COVID-19, as this is a new and unknown phenomenon. Methodology: The research is based on the analysis of the self-administered purposely designed questionnaires we distributed across different social media platforms between February and June 2020 in Europe and in some cases was carried out as a interview over communication platforms such as “Skype,” “Zoom” and “Microsoft Teams.” The questionnaire was divided into four parts: Section 1 was designed to collect demographic information from the participants; Section 2 included risk definition statements obtained from literature and a preliminary discussion with peers; Section 3 included risk behavior statements; and Section 4 included statements on risk perception experiences. A five-point Likert Scale was provided, and participants were required to answer along a scale of “1” for “Strongly Agree” to “5” for “Strongly Disagree.” Participants also had the option to elaborate further and provide additional comments in an open-ended box provided at the end of the section. 466 valid responses were received. Thematic analysis was carried out to analyze the interviews and the open-ended questions, while the questionnaire responses were analyzed using various quantitative methods on IBM SPSS (version 23). Findings: The results of the analysis indicate that individuals evaluate the risk before making a decision and view risk as both a loss and opportunity. The study identifies nine factors influencing risk perception. Nevertheless, it must be emphasized that we can continue to develop models and rules, but as long as the risk is not understood, we will never achieve anything.

Although most of the traditional economic theories used to explain investor behaviour assume full investor rationality, experience proves otherwise. In this study, we examine a number of important determinants of risk appetite and tolerance, including gender, education and knowledge of financial services and loss aversion. We do this by designing a questionnaire to measure the level of risk appetite and tolerance, together with various demographic characteristics and loss aversion. The survey is administered among a random sample of 1,648 respondents from Turkey. We find that on average men exhibit a higher level of risk appetite and tolerance than women, thus suggesting a clear gender divide in terms of investment behaviour. Furthermore, knowledge of financial services is associated with higher levels of both risk appetite and tolerance, with younger respondents also exhibiting similar patterns of behaviour. By contrast, loss-averse respondents are less open and tolerant of risk, which indicates that behavioural biases such as loss aversion can have a meaningful impact on investment decisions, at odds with traditional models based on rational choice theory. The findings have a number of important implications for investment behaviour and education, including the importance of gender balance within investment committees in order to ensure a more even distribution of risk behaviour, as well as the need to incorporate considerations related to loss aversion in all aspects of policymaking and regulation.

Purpose: This research study addresses the key issues of the fiscal policies and tax system in Kosovo to align with the contemporary tax principles and requirements of the European Standards.

Design/methodology/approach: In order to explain the fiscal policies and tax system in Kosovo, the authors provide an overview of the fiscal policies and tax system in the country. The authors focused on the building and development of the tax system, the role of the tax policy in economic development and the macro-fiscal stability. The methodology approach is based on primary and other secondary sources, such as academic literature, the reports provided by the Ministry of Finance and international institutions, tax law and other available important statistical data.

Findings: The chapter substantiates and confirms the need for tax reforms in order to have an adequate tax system oriented to indirect tax, changing the structure of tax collection for border tax into domestic tax, simplification of the legal procedures, improvement of management and audit systems, reducing the informal gray economy and to have a gradual growth-friendly fiscal policy. Positive fiscal performance continued, although there is still room to improve the execution of revenues.

Practical Implications: This chapter highlights the fact that Kosovo needs to intensify their fiscal reforms to build a sustainable tax system in order to meet the criteria of the EU tax system and policies.

Originality/value: The authors define the needs for strengthening the budget revenues, taking strong and coordinated steps to improve the management and collection of the revenues from indirect and direct taxes. Moreover, the authors show that the Kosovo tax system is broadly in line with the EU acquis and needs reform in order to have a sustainable tax regime.