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The article presents information on various papers discussed at the conference title "The Conference on Empirical Research in Accounting." The author states that scholar Carl Nelson made an attempt to link all research to empiricism and explains that all research had to have an empirical base. He says that Nelson found that the proper order is not that all research has to be empirical but rather that research has to be tested. The article states that it has become a well-known precept in science that one can not ever prove anything by observation.

The Committee on Contributed Papers of American Sociological Society had major tasks to prepare a program for three regular sessions at each of which papers would be read their authors; and to prepare a program for two special sessions at which discussion of papers, based on mimeographed abstracts, would be facilitated. Nearly 100 papers or proposed papers were submitted to the committee, from which fifteen were selected to appear on the three regular sessions. The major criterion of selection was quality, but the committee frankly preferred papers dealing with recent empirical research by younger, lesser-known members of the Society. The fifteen papers were arranged into three patterns. Studies in social organization and change; studies in interpersonal and intergroup relations; and studies in methodology.

The article presents the author's comment on sociologist Peter M. Blau's recent article "A Formal Theory of Differentiation in Organizations," published in the April 1970 issue of the journal "American Sociological Review." According to the author, in his article Blau reviews a number of interesting empirical findings, but whether or not they justify theoretical generalizations at a high level of abstraction is a moot question. Moreover, no one can take exception to efforts to construct generalizations which in turn suggest hypotheses for research. Confirmation of such hypotheses obviously lends credence to the earlier generalizations while disconfirmation or a null finding renders them questionable. In this article the author, shows that under certain conditions and given only one of the empirical findings, almost all of the other findings necessarily follow. He does this, first, by constructing a hypothetical model of organizational structure and doing algebraic manipulations on its properties, and, second, by pointing out some difficulties that arise when one controls for organizational size.

In this article the author comments on a research paper related to accounting standards by John Cumming. According to the author, in Cumming's paper the subject matter is so narrowly construed that a more general advance in the discipline cannot be considered a major objective. In the interrelationship between academia and practice, this kind of empirical research is greatly needed. In formulating practice policy the profession needs research and data so the subject is certainly apropos. The author remarks that the researcher has not given sufficient attention to American Institute of Certified Public Accountants materials which have been available on this subject, at least to his dissertation advisor, continuously since early 1972. Use of those materials should have been instrumental in the design of the experiment. The interpretation with the nuances of practice problems has been reflected by a listing of forty-two event categories taken from annual reports. The interpretation with the nuances of practice problems has been reflected by a listing of forty-two event categories taken from annual reports.

The article presents a discussion of the research paper by Donald Nester, "The Effect of Aggregating Accounting Reports on the Quality of the Lending Decision: An Empirical Investigation." The author criticizes Nester's methodology for establishing the levels of aggregation on several points associated with Nester's model. These points include the existence of questions concerning the integrity of the conventional account classifications, that there is insufficient data to allow calculations of the 11 ratios, that all footnote and supplemental information are held constant, and that there is a 10 percent materiality rule.

The article presents a discussion of the research paper related to the effect of aggregating accounting reports on the quality of the lending decision. According to the author, the results of this research paper do not necessarily imply that disaggregated statements should be widely distributed, but rather that disaggregated statements are of little more value than aggregated statements to the experts. The research paper provides default rate preferences of a random sample of banks, and the difference among means of the five task variables are tested using different levels of aggregation. The author remarks that psychic value may well result from disaggregated statements, but economic value does not necessarily come from detailed reports.

Recent theoretical and empirical work in portfolio theory has exhibited a natural evolution from the two-moment EV model popularized by Markowitz through the higher moment models to selection on the basis of the entire probability function. This latter approach, referred to as the Stochastic Dominance (SD) approach to portfolio selection, has been shown to be theoretically superior to all of the "moment methods" and has been the focus of an increasing volume of empirical work. In comparison with the EV model, however, the SD approach has one potentially significant deficiency from the standpoint of empirical testing. With a given set of portfolios to evaluate, the computer processor time required for the determination of the EV efficient set is quite short. One can calculate and sort means and variances on several hundred portfolios in a matter of seconds. In contrast, the processor time required for the determination of the SD efficient set for the same number of portfolios can be prohibitive. The purpose of this paper is to examine the factors responsible for the relatively time-consuming nature of empirical tests of SD efficiency and to present the major results of our search for efficient algorithms for conducting SD tests. Section I briefly examines the time-consuming nature of the tests for SD efficiency. Section II presents and evaluates; our most efficient algorithms for obtaining true SD efficiency results. Section lit examines an approach that yields approximate SD efficiency results with further reductions in required processor time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article focuses on prediction logic and quasi-independence in empirical evaluation of formal theory. In the paper by researchers D.K. Hildebrand, J.D. Laing and H.L. Rosenthal, a paradigm for the statement and empirical evaluation of a class of propositions predicting specific relations between qualitative variables was proposed. The approach represents a substantial departure from traditional modes of analysis. Consequently, it is not surprising that one encounters resistance and misunderstanding in those who work in different traditions. The lengthy critique of the paper by researchers L.A. Goodman and W.H. Kruskal, henceforth G&K, illustrates the inappropriateness of evaluating the paradigm using traditional perspectives. G&K operate in two contexts: measures of association and multiplicative models for probabilities in cross-classifications. The primary objective in the paper discussed by G&K was to design a general model that provides a distinct and operationally interpretable measure of the prediction success attained in a population by any logically distinct proposition stated, a priori, in the prediction logic.

In an attempt to assess the current state of theory and research in the study of the family, a survey of all articles focusing on marriage and the family published in 12 behavioral science journals from 1962 through 1968 was made. The findings related to the development and utilization of theory are reported in this paper. Findings indicate a general lack of utilization of theory to guide empirical research. When theory is used, it tends to be either structural-functional or interactional, with the developmental framework being the third most popular choice. Other theoretical- conceptual frameworks fail to appear to any significant extent. Articles appearing in recent years tend to be rated more positively on seven evaluational questions, this indicating an improvement in the quality of published papers on the family. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the paper on measurement as scientific method in economies by Leland B. Yeager, Professor emeritus of economics at Auburn University. Yeager does not cite enough from the works of any individual to justify convicting that person of such a restricted understanding of scientific method as the phrase "science is measurement" seems to imply. Not only is measurement alone far from the whole or even the significant portion of scientific method, but also measurement plus mathematics must be denied the right to claim that position. In the first portion of his paper Yeager discusses various applications of scientific method in the physical sciences and points out that numerous uniformities of relationships among various quantitative measurements have been found. Yeager understands that the degree of accuracy with which those uniformities of relationships have been measured has covered a wide range. When Yeager goes on to assert that the essential function of measurement in the natural sciences is largely replaced in economics by direct empirical knowledge of the most generally applicable principles and concepts, he is describing economics as it has been and not as it may be.

This article in its first part describes the main hypotheses underlying E. Kretschmer's system of typology and of various ways in which Kretschmer and his associates and students have attempted to supply proof of its validity. It is also shown that while certain criticisms frequently made of this system rest mainly on ignorance or misunderstanding, yet the methods of proof used by Kretschmer, although ingenious and extremely interesting, are not completely convincing. In this part of the paper, an attempt is made to carry out an empirical test of Kretschmer's hypothesis, using the method of "criterion analysis" specially developed by the author for use with problems of typology and taxonomy generally. In order to use the hypothetico-deductive method in this field, it is particularly important to state the hypotheses to be tested quite clearly, and to make deductions from them which can be tested empirically. The article attempts to state Kretschmer's hypotheses in such a way that a statistical and experimental test of them becomes possible.

The article explains various aspects of Negro life and their economic conditions and poverty. The relatively large number of Negroes in poverty has been explained in a variety of ways, for example, differential levels of education, market discrimination, or other factors associated with race. In this brief paper, an attempt will be made to evaluate the relative contribution to Negro poverty of two factors, namely educational differences between Negroes and whites and a composite of all other elements correlated with race. The article presents a conceptual framework of the process of income distribution, which will be of assistance in identifying the impacts of both race and disparate education levels. Second, some empirical evidence will be presented which sheds light on the relationships suggested by the conceptual framework. Finally, the significance of the empirical evidence for the policy issues implicit in the problem of the relative incidence of poverty among Negroes will be discussed.

This paper presents an empirical analysis and conceptual extension of the work of Aiken and Hage. This work was accomplished by (1) constructing a causal model of organizational determinants of interorganizational relationships from an integration of two of their published sets of propositions; (2) testing symmetrical and asymmetrical versions of the model through analyses of data collected from 138 health and welfare organizations; (3) revising the model for theoretically inconsistent findings. The revised model of eight independent variables accounts for about 1/3 of the variance in interorganizational relations and calls into question several classical assumptions of organizational theory. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

How closely do averages of yearly high-low prices of common stocks approximate average prices of the stocks throughout the year? Numerous occasions may arise in the conduct of empirical investigations involving price relationships in which the high-low average calculation would be a convenient substitute for the "true" average of price throughout the year, provided no systematic and significant difference exists between the results of the two methods in arriving at average prices. The extent of the differences between the above two averages of price is examined in this paper for a collection of companies first as an aggregate and then individually. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this paper is to develop a theoretical framework for analyzing the nature of convertible securities, and then to test it. In the first section, a graphic model is used to describe the essential features of a convertible issue. In the second section, a conceptual scheme for estimating ex ante rates of return is developed. Next, interactions between the key variables under the control of the firm--the coupon interest rate and the conversion price--are discussed in detail. Finally, the terms and conditions under which convertible bonds were sold by a sample of large, listed firms during the period 1961-1963 are described. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Data reported in this paper indicate that staff-line conflicts may be less severe and essentially different in nature than had been previously assumed. Analysis indicates general agreement between line and staff officials concerning both the staff members' current role and participation in organizational decision making. Moderate disagreement was reported only over the amount of increased future decisional participation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper describes, analyzes, and classifies methodologies that have been employed in developing certain management and organization theories. The authors also examine the effects of methodology and value systems on the construction, evaluation, and utilization of theories for management and organization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents abstracts on financial research topics which include the use of empirical research methods, secondary distributions in capital markets, optimum dividend policy, and a behavioral approach to investment decisions in portfolio management.

The evaluation of the effectiveness of faculty teaching is a difficult process. This paper presents the results of an experimental empirical investigation into the possibility of using a psycho-linguistic measurement technique, the Semantic Differential, to measure faculty communication of terminology to students. This measurement could be used to supplement other teaching evaluation devices. The paper determines a set of "key concepts," derives a set of S.D. meanings from a Faculty to act as a standard, and measures student meanings at the beginning and end of an introductory course. These sets of meanings are then compared. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper discusses a utility function estimation procedure developed to provide curriculum planning information to elementary school principals. Both theoretical and empirical studies were performed to evaluate the procedure. The results of the use of this approach to obtain data from a national sample of principals are presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present paper outlines some rough suggestions for a possible Nordic computer-based information system for storing, processing and delivering the output of theoretical and empirical research on human communication that is being carried out within scientific and applied contexts first and foremost in the Nordic region. Such a system may contribute towards an integrated body of knowledge of human communication systems. The suggested areas covered and some gross dimensions of a possible reference frame for the organization of information are indicated, and user relations and requests are commented upon. It is advocated that both processed empirical data and theoretical propositions be handled by the proposed information system (called CRISS for short), and reasons for the need of it being partly computerized are given. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper deals with a hypothetico-deductive model regarding the "self". The model consists of 12 circular propositions, involving the variates of (1) phenomenal field, (2) situational symbol, (3) balance, and (4) conformity. The self organizes a "phenomenal field" under a "situational symbol", and his "balance ' depends on the extent he experiences a disturbance in the phenomenal field. The performance of the situational symbol is "con"fruity'. The propositions are then examined in the light of available empirical data. By and large, there are good supporting data, and this model may be useful for further empirical studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since much of the frequently cited work in the sociological study of religion has been more generally theoretical (and often only illustrative in the use of data) than empirical in character, one might expect that the task of surveying the empirical studies in this field could be relatively quickly accomplished. A careful second look at the contents of the publications in this field in the past ten years, however, suggests otherwise. What this paper proposes to do is to try to identify several of the kinds of problems on which empirical research has been done and pointing out by examples some of the directions in which there seems to have been fruitful development. The socioescientific study of religion is not religion or religious experience itself but rather the social and cultural manifestations of religion—the precipitates or the distillates of religious experience. Turning now to the central task out lined for this paper, the great bulk of empirical sociological investigations of religious phenomena seems to fall into three or four broad categories.

The article presents an empirical test of interregional input-output models. It estimates Japanese production in the year 1963. According to the author, substitution of 1963 technology for the 1960 base-year technology decreases errors of estimation for most industries, but substantial errors still occur for some industries as a result of shifts in interregional shipments. Therefore, only the point estimate gravity trade model results are presented in this article. The author states that all tests made so far indicate that the row coefficient model estimates Japanese regional production less accurately than column coefficient or gravity trade models. The method of handling foreign trade in the model may contribute to the instability of row coefficients for Japan. For any of the three models, a separate estimation of interregional shipments of foreign exports and imports may be desirable because of the importance of foreign trade in Japan. Finally, tests reveal no discernible difference in the overall predictive ability of the column coefficient and the point estimate gravity trade models. Both models give reasonable estimates of Japanese regional production.

This paper examines some theoretical and empirical problems in local-cosmopolitan analysis. Although this distinction has been popularized through exploratory studies conducted by Merton (1957), Gouldner 1957-58), and others, the theoretical status of this distinction and empirical knowledge acquired through its use remain obscure. Judged by the frequency with which this distinction gets used in ad hoc interpretation of research findings (e.g., Glock and Stark, 1965:280), it would appear that localism-cosmopolitanism constitutes a well-established explanatory principle in sociology. In fact, frequent use of the local-cosmopolitan distinction is a poor indicator of either explanatory power or empirical knowledge about the social relations or processes these terms may be taken to represent. Usage is often vague, e.g., regarding the nature of the theory or what, if anything, is to be explained by it (cf. Blau and Scott, 1962:64-71). This paper makes problematic what is sometimes assumed about localism-cosmopolitanism, and attempts, through analysis of empirical findings and propositions, to assess the prospects for a theory of localism-cosmopolitanism. Of concern here are: (i) whether writings on localism-cosmopolitanism consist only of an elaboration of an insightful distinction, or whether these writings contain empirical discoveries that through refinement can be worked into a theory of explanatory power; (ii) whether various interpretations of social events in terms of localism-cosmopolitanism focus on some common empirical referents about which a single theory is appropriate; and (iii) what the content and nature of local-cosmopolitan theory should be. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper examines the bearings on international relations theory of opposed‐systems designs: systems analyses Hone to aid decision‐makers in national and international organizations in choosing policies on arms and arms control. Such studies concern the choice of complex ends — and means to accomplish ends — that stand a good chance of being at least partially opposed by some governments. Like systems engineering, opposed‐systems design has a large and important technological component. While operational research deals with specified equipments and organizations in the face of opposition similarly constrained, opposed‐systems design considers alternative objectives, longer time perspectives, a wider variety of technical and organizational means, more varied environments, and more uncertainties. The paper describes the relation of the theoretical models used in opposed‐systems design to various traditional and behavioral or quantitative theories of international relations: theories of foreign policy decision, theories of the balance of power, etc. Connections and contrasts are displayed in particular by reference to an extended example of the effects of distance on “power.” Journal Abstract [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present paper forms another part of a long-term project, inspired by authors' aim to contribute to a more precise delimitation of a conceptual framework which would rationally reproduce the main dimensions of the global system and help in elaborating the program of empirical research into the dynamic structure of this system. The authors believe that the theory of dependence has a significant place within the framework of reference of both Marxian sociology and methodology. The aim of this paper is not to call attention to the model of the global system, but only to suggest the basic taxonomy, the minimum set of conceptual tools, to formulate some propositions and to present some methodical impulses for working out possible cybernetic expressions conveying some of these concepts and relations. First of all, the article briefly recapitulates some ideas which have already been discussed elsewhere. The general theory of dependence proceeds from the hypothesis that dependence represents a basic property of all relations existing among both living and non-living systems. The physicists in their inquiries into mechanical systems, for example, into the solar system, were troubled by the question of how to explain inertia.

The article presents a paper which considers the theoretical and empirical problems involved in the analysis of hominid dental evolution during the Pleistocene epoch. It discusses two trends in the evolution of hominid teeth and relates them to environmental factors. It also cites the complicating nature of human culture behavior and explains the reasons behind the reductions in the size of teeth and complexity of molar patterns. The author asserts that the illustrated teeth in the study demonstrates the adaptation of man on his cultural environment during the Pleistocene.

The article presents the author's response to comments on sociologist Gerhard Lenski's theory on the methodology of the status inconsistency by Martin D. Hyman. The paper of Hyman represents an important contribution to the status inconsistency literature because it raises the question as to whether the relative contributions of the various components of the theory can be sorted out empirically. The paper deals with a special case of the more general problem of identification of coefficients in simultaneous equations. The implications of Hyman's objections are much more disturbing than he apparently realizes, since there can be no purely empirical means of identifying the coefficients. There are simply too many unknowns, and unless a priori assumptions are made concerning some of the coefficients, no valid inferences can be made about the magnitudes of either the main effects of the status variables or those of the inconsistency variable. To be sure, the magnitude of the interaction term can be determined empirically. But, as Hyman points out, one cannot directly infer how much of this is due to the inconsistency component, nor can one split up this component according to the contributions of the high-low and low-high patterns.

In this article the author comments on a research paper by John Cumming related to the accounting standard of the Accounting Principles Board (APB) Opinion No. 9 which requires the inclusion and separate identification of extraordinary items in the income statement. Cumming's research attempts to explain apparent vagaries of accounting practice with respect to extraordinary items. The author raises the question of whether the data necessary for explaining differences in accounting method are actually available. Companies listing an event as extraordinary have already disclosed this fact. On the other hand, a company which elected to treat a similar event as ordinary probably did not disclose this. The author comments that Cumming took shortcuts in conducting his research which may cast doubt on his conclusions such as when he prepared a list of categories of extraordinary items that might be segregated.

The article discusses the predictive content of economic indicators for future stock prices. Time series as inputs to stock price forecasting models have lacked systematic empirical research. The time series researched in this paper are those published by the National Bureau of Economic Research as the "1966 Short List" of indicators of business activity. The indicators are examined for their predictive quality in relation to stock prices.

This paper is concerned with the efficiency of the branch-and-bound technique for solving the production scheduling problem. Since the efficiency of this technique depends on a powerful lower bound, five promising bounding procedures are studied and investigated empirically. This investigation is based on the number of nodes explored and the computational time involved. Several computational experiments are conducted and results reported. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses a model that could predict purchase-pooling choice and presents empirical research showing that the model is valid. The model works by considering the preferences of business professionals for one financial reporting method over others during a corporate merger. When stocks are used for the merger as payment, there is a choice of purchasing or pooling the stock. The article concludes that income smoothing can likely not be used to explain what impact accounting choices are likely to have in the long-term.

The concern is with the communicative process of negotiation as a form of conflict resolution. Contemporary literature expresses the view that the role of communication in negotiation cannot be ignored. Communication researchers, however, have not identified, analyzed, and integrated into a single model the specific communication patterns that exist during bargaining. The paper presents a paradigm to (1) facilitate empirical research, and (2) report the results of two empirical studies derived from that paradigm. A communication-centered theory of negotiation derives from a recognition that negotiation models often ignore the interaction of the negotiators and instead focus on a determination of outcome.

The article discusses the research of John F. Klein, Gene P. Calvert, T. Neal Garland, and Margaret M. Paloma (1969) concerning the use of marriage and family theory in U.S. journal articles during the years 1962-1968. This paper continues the Klein and colleagues' assessment with a second analysis of the data, including the number and type of articles for several countries. The study found that a major part of British literature was empirical. Japanese literature was mostly theoretical-empirical and used an institutional framework. The appendix contains a list of publications from Great Britain, France, Germany, Japan, and the Soviet Socialist Republic.

The assumption underlying most philosophical theories of science, that one can apply to any scientific theory the concept of 'truth', is, with its implication of absolute finality, a hangover from the period when Newtonian physics was regarded as an absolute end state. The hidden mourning about the passing of this ideal science gives present philosophical approaches to science and scientific method their common stamp. The alternative seems to be the retreat into a sociological relativism. The paper shows that it is possible to work out a science-theoretical paradigm which avoids the pitfalls of both philosophical absolutism and sociological relativism. It suggests that instead of discussing criteria of a fictitious absolute end-state of knowledge, one might try to discover criteria and conditions for the advance of knowledge, non-scientific and scientific. A theory of this kind has the added advantage that it can be tested by, and can serve as a guide for, empirical studies of sciences and of knowledge generally. The paper also suggests that discussions about 'value-freedom' should be abandoned in favour of enquiries into the use of scientific and non-scientific values in scientific work. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The need for empirical testing of theory is particularly great in the social sciences, but relatively little has been done. This paper attempts to set forth the general model for the empirical testing of theory and discusses some of the problems in the application of this model. In the discussion of problems, particular attention is focused on three steps in the model—the reformulation of theory, the design phase, and the confirmation phase. The writer's study of the relation of infant training to later personality adjustment is used illustratively in discussing the problems of these phases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper addresses the neglect of work on feminine psychology as a symptom of the far broader impoverishment of contemporary work in personality. Bakan's concepts of agency and communion are invoked toward understanding the constraints imposed by current research paradigms. Agentic (masculine) modes of inquiry involving manipulation, quantification, and control need to be complemented by the communal (feminine) research styles (naturalistic, qualitative, open) developed in other disciplines. Three issues are proposed for research in personality: duality in human nature, typology and qualitative patterning and biological bases of personality. These issues are consonant with the nature of feminity, engage the talents of female investigators, and could foster development of the new research paradigms required for serious inquiry in personality. Suggestions for conceptual elaboration and empirical research are proposed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article discusses two methods for making a sociological theory untestable. The term theory stands for the symbolic dimension of experience, as opposed to the apprehension of brute fact. However, not only do theories go beyond fact but they do so by virtue of their use of universal categories. Scientific theories are a special type of theory defined in terms of a set of normative criteria to which scientists seek to conform and in terms of which their theories are evaluated. Central among these is the principle that scientific theories should be empirical. That is, they should have an empirical referent and be capable of being tested by experience. Because scientific statements are universal and empirical observations are of particular events, if a theory is to be refutable there must be some agreement whereby theoretical statements can be linked to ordinary propositions about empirical particulars. The first method for making sociological theory untestable, that is for making it unscientific, make certain that no empirically refutable statements can be deduced from the theory. A second method for making theory untestable is to ensure that the theory is internally inconsistent. That is, to take steps to ensure that one's theory does not take form a deductive system where all the propositions of the theory can be deduced from a set of axioms.

In this article the author comments on the work of Abraham J. Briloff. "Dirty Pooling." He states that in the paper two major points are made. First that a proforma restatement of the earnings histories of two or more companies contemplating a business combination to be recorded as a pooling of interests might be misleading to stockholders, and second, that academicians should actively engage in empirical research and seek wide circulation of their findings. The major objective of the paper was to present two illustrations and to use them as a basis for discrediting and disowning the pooling device in the interest of fair and relevant reporting of corporate economic data. But in the author's opinion this objective was not achieved. The central role played by the concept of the accounting entity in pooling-of-interests accounting is ignored. It is generally accepted that the concept of the accounting entity embraces an economic entity as well as a legal entity and that all of the parameters of the conventional accounting model apply to the given accounting entity.