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The ability of firms to retain valued knowledge and skills possessed by accounting professionals depends, in part, on creating a work environment that positively affects accountants’ job-related attitudes and behaviors. A first step in achieving this objective is to identify those variables that are related to accountants’ work attitudes and behaviors. Previous research has examined antecedent causes of, for example, accountants’ job satisfaction, performance, organizational commitment, and role stress. Two limitations of the extant research are that subjects have almost always been auditors and no consideration has been given to the fact that accountants may react differently to their work environment depending on where they are in their careers.

This study addresses these two limitations of prior research by examining whether tax accountants’ work attitudes and behaviors differ across four common career stages: exploration, establishment, maintenance, and disengagement. The association of gender with tax accountants’ work attitudes was also tested. Results indicate that career stage is significantly related to tax accountants’ performance and job-related tension, but unrelated to job satisfaction, organizational commitment, work alienation, and role stress. A significant gender effect was found. These results for tax accountants differ somewhat from results for auditors (Rebele et al., 1996), indicating that a one-size-fits-all approach to managing work environments within accounting firms may not be effective in developing and retaining professional staff.

This paper analyzes the impact of economic downturns on the revenue and expense sides of city financing for the period 2003 to 2009 using a convenience sample of the audited end of year financial reports for thirty midsized US cities. The analysis focuses on whether and how quickly and how extensively revenue and spending directions from past years are altered by recessions. A seven year series of Comprehensive Annual Financial Report (CAFR) data serves to explore whether citiesʼ revenues and spending, especially the traditional property tax and core functions such as public safety and infrastructure withstood the brief 2001 and the persistent 2007 recessions? The findings point to consumption (spending) over stability (revenue minus expense) for the recession of 2007, particularly in 2008 and 2009.

The purpose of this paper is to determine the readiness factors that are critical to the application and success of lean operating principles in healthcare organizations through a review of relevant literature.

A comprehensive review of literature focussing on lean and lean healthcare was conducted.

Leadership, organizational culture, communication, training, measurement, and reward systems are all commonly attributed readiness factors throughout general change management and lean literature. However, directly related to the successful implementation of lean in healthcare is that a setting is able to authorize a decentralized management style and undertake an end-to-end process view. These can be particularly difficult initiatives for complex organizations such as healthcare settings.

The readiness factors identified are based on a review of the published literature. The external validity of the findings could be enhanced if tested using an empirical study.

The readiness factors identified will enable healthcare practitioners to be better prepared as they begin their lean journeys. Sustainability of the lean initiative will be at stake if these readiness factors are not addressed.

To the best of the knowledge, this is the first paper that provides a consolidated list of key lean readiness factors that can guide practice, as well as future theory and empirical research.

Aim of the present monograph is the economic analysis of the role of MNEs regarding globalisation and digital economy and in parallel there is a reference and examination of some legal aspects concerning MNEs, cyberspace and e‐commerce as the means of expression of the digital economy. The whole effort of the author is focused on the examination of various aspects of MNEs and their impact upon globalisation and vice versa and how and if we are moving towards a global digital economy.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between a firm's propensity to lease and several firm characteristics: tax position, financial constraint, ownership structure, growth, and size.

Controlling for industry, total lease share, operating and capital lease share ratios, obtained using an income statement approach, are regressed on a trichotomous tax variable, a dichotomous cash flow coverage ratio variable, debt over fixed assets, ownership concentration, market to book value of shares and the natural log of sales.

Total lease share increases with leverage, tax position and growth; it decreases with cash flow coverage, ownership concentration and firm size. Results for operating lease share are similar to those for total lease share. In contrast, capital lease share decreases with tax position and increases with ownership concentration and size.

The results suggest that leasing offers added debt capacity and increases in financially constrained firms. Firms that pay high taxes seem to place more value on the constant stream of tax deductions from the rental payments than on deductions from decreasing interest costs and amortization. Finally, highly concentrated Canadian firms may use less leasing because they are more family‐controlled.

The literature offers mixed reasons for firms' decisions to lease or purchase assets. This study provides further evidence in a rich setting. In 2001, the Canadian tax authorities changed the tax treatment of leases, thus providing an opportunity to validate prior results on the impact of taxes on leasing. By including two different measures of financial constraint, this study disentangles the substitution and the added debt capacity hypotheses.

Briefly introduces the concept of forensic psychology, looking at areas such as stalking behaviour, self‐mutilation, and execution competency. Suggests that the forensic psychiatrist needs to remain up to date with recent sexual harassment legislation, the use of neuropsychological testing and the assessment of child abuse. Covers other subjects including hate crime on the Internet, and psychological autopsy. Concludes that to uphold the high principles required by law and to withstand scrutiny by defence lawyers, forensic psychology has defined standards by which to judge a persion and studies continue to develop these measures.

The aim of the chapter is to examine whether the challenges to administering the EU outlined by Les Metcalfe in his famous article, ‘After 1992, can the Commission manage Europe?’ have now been met. Metcalfe not only identified a ‘management deficit’ in the implementation of the single market programme arising from an oversight among policy makers, but highlighted a neglect of the administrative dimension of European integration among scholars.

The chapter draws on primary and secondary literature to track developments in respect of the three elements identified by Metcalfe: the small size of the European Commission, its poor internal coordination and weak leadership; the responsiveness of administrative bodies in the member states to the need for inter-organizational coordination; and the network-building and management capacity of the Commission.

Despite changes, such as further enlargement, agencification at national and EU levels, and the expansion of EU competencies that have exacerbated the management challenge confronting the EU, there have been significant developments that have closed the deficit. First, the Commission has become far better integrated, coordination upgraded, and leadership strengthened. Second, through networking, cooptation and other strategies the Commission has sought to assure the effective implementation and enforcement of the single market rules. Third, member state governments, ministries and agencies have sought to cultivate networked relations that have increased the manageability of EU administration.

To the knowledge of this author, this is the first attempt to revisit Metcalfe’s diagnosis and to review the extent to which the management deficit he identified has been addressed subsequently.

The chapter has implications for how inter-organizational coordination within the EU administrative system could be improved.

The chapter bears on the administrative capacity of the EU to deliver the policies decided by EU policy makers.

As well as offering an assessment of the extent to which progress has been made in addressing the management deficit identified by Les Metcalfe in his classic article, this chapter conceptualizes the EU administration as an entity that encompasses both EU institutions and administrative bodies in the member states. It advances the concept of the EU as a multi-level administration.

Children must rely on adults to provide the economic and human resources essential to assure their well-being and development, because it is the adults in their families, communities, and the halls of government who determine the nature and magnitude of resources that reach children (e.g., Bronfenbrenner, 1979; Haveman & Wolfe, 1994). In view of this dependence of children on adults, this chapter has three main goals. The first is to portray the extent to which children in the United States and other selected rich countries experience limited access to economic resources, compared to the adults in each country. The second is to focus on key family circumstances of children which reflect human resources available in the home and which influence the level of economic resources that parents have available to provide for their children. The third is to draw attention to differences among the race, ethnic, and immigrant groups that are leading the demographic transformation of rich countries around the world.

The purpose of this paper is to explore the extent to which inpatient mental health services attend to the religious needs of service-users. Literature is presented to argue that whilst the importance of religion is highlighted in consumer accounts, research and policy; inpatient services continue to neglect religion and service-users consistently report insufficient attention to religious needs during hospitalisation.

This review adopts a narrative approach to the literature, drawing upon published journal articles, book chapters and policy documentation.

Literature into the topic area is reviewed and discussed within three themes. First, the extent to which religious needs are currently met is explored. Second, potential reasons for neglect of religion are considered. Finally, examples of religiously informed group programmes, individual psychotherapy and the use of traditional healers are detailed.

Findings of the review point towards the requirement for inpatient services to more adequately meet religious needs in terms of available facilities. The need for spiritual assessment and collaboration with hospital chaplains is also highlighted, along with the call for increased staff training.

It is expected that this review will be of interest to a range of stakeholders including professionals, policy makers and service users. It highlights the void in clinical attention to religious needs and offers practical suggestions for meeting this need.