Search

PurposeAlthough many scholars have acknowledged inconsistencies in the use of the retail brand term within the existing empirical literature, no one has conducted a systematic study to clarify the confusion of terms. Aiming at unifying the use of terms, this study aims to explore the terms that best express each retail brand concept, and discusses the definitions of proposed terms that can distinguish the connotation of different retail brand concepts.Design/methodology/approachThrough a systematic review, 463 articles were obtained, from which retail brand terms and their definitions were further extracted. Semantic analysis and content analysis were adopted to analyze terms and definitions, respectively.FindingsSemantically, the terms that best express four levels of retail brand concepts are own product brand, store brand, platform brand and retailer brand. Six key elements to distinguish different levels of a retail brand are identified through the content analysis of definitions, and on this basis, four proposed terms are defined.Originality/valueNoting that no study focuses on the conceptual confusion of retail brands in recent decades, the findings are expected to clarify the confusion of terms and unify the use of terms, hence facilitating the communication between scholars and the sharing of research results.

This study aims to identify the impact of psychological mechanisms, such as trust propensity and individuation, on response to eWOM by differentiating between volume of positive/negative eWOM and net eWOM valence (e.g., when positive eWOM volume exceeds negative eWOM volume and vice versa). Analysis based on 428 survey responses from Australia and China shows that positive eWOM positively influences brand image, particularly for individuals with a high trust propensity. Surprisingly, negative eWOM does not affect brand image, but negative net valence is influential, particularly for consumers with a high trust propensity and those scoring high on individuation

Although a positive relationship is expected between consumers’ awareness of green benefits in a green product and their purchase intention, several studies have demonstrated otherwise. Against this back-drop, this article investigates how three personal consumption values—namely, environmental, status, and value-for-money consciousness—moderate the relationship between consumers’ awareness of a product’s green benefits and their purchase intention. From a survey of 956 consumers across the United Kingdom and China, we find a positive and significant relationship between consumers’ awareness of green benefits and their purchase intention. However, these consumption values significantly moderate this relationship. In the United Kingdom, environmental consciousness strengthens the relationship. On the other hand, status consciousness and value-for-money consciousness strengthen the relationship in China. The findings make original contributions to the literature by highlighting how to integrate individual consumption values in differing national cultures to refine green marketing theories.

Despite luxury brands’ efforts to incorporate sustainable development into their branding and product design, studies have shown inconclusive evidence about consumers’ reaction towards such efforts. This study investigates how consumption values (i.e. the need for exclusivity, conformity, and hedonism) affect consumers’ acceptance of luxury brands’ sustainable efforts. It adopts a cross-cultural framework by analysing two countries, namely China and the UK, which differ substantially in some of Hofstede’s cultural dimensions, namely power distance, individualism, and indulgence. Using the structural equation modelling in analysing 677 survey responses from actual luxury goods’ consumers in the two countries, we suggest that hedonic needs drive consumers’ purchase intentions in China and the UK. We find that the need for exclusivity in sustainable luxury items is negatively related to consumers’ purchase intentions in China, while the need for conformity is positively related. In contrast, these effects are reversed in the UK. Our study implies the need to align the marketing of sustainable luxury with consumption values of consumers to reflect the cultural differences. In theorizing sustainable luxury research, this study provides a deeper understanding of value perceptions pertaining to luxury product consumption and sustainability. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1057/s41262-020-00228-0.

Companies expend significant financial resources on corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities to enhance their image. This study had two objectives. By drawing on three fundamental consumer values as moderators, the first aim was to discover how a company’s CSR engagement influences consumer–company identification (CCI) and consumers’ purchase intention for its products and services. The second was to uncover the type of consumer likely to identify with a company engaging in CSR activities. This study presents an exploratory analysis of social media postings by eight companies. An empirical study is conducted using partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) based on survey data from 217 questionnaires collected in Singapore. This study is one of the first to consider what type of consumer would likely identify with a company performing CSR activities. Results show that local-community-focused CSR tends to influence the CCI of egoistic consumers, while environment-focused CSR activities, such as the creation of environmentally-friendly products, drive biospheric consumers’ identification. Broader humanity-focused CSR, such as fair-trade initiatives, significantly influences the CCI of egoistic consumers, but not of altruistic consumers. These findings demonstrate to other economies the significance of local and global companies’ CSR practices and how such activities should be aligned to the CCI of their customer base unique to the region.

This article discusses the challenges associated with managing waste in the horticultural sector by presenting the circular economy framework as a solution to the problem of food waste. The research focuses on consumers’ role and value adding as one strategy that transforms food waste for reuse in accordance with a circular economy. A structured questionnaire was collected from a sample (n = 330) of Australian households to assess consumers’ willingness buy food derived from underutilised biomass. The survey found half of the sample was willing to buy value-added food. Helping Australian farmers was the top-ranking factor driving demand. Awareness of the food waste problem is significant in distinguishing consumers who are willing to buy value-added food from those who are not. Marketing recommendations for communication design a circular economy are to stress empathy and care for farmers and highlight the consequences of food waste for both the natural environment and people.

One-third of all food produced in the world is lost or wasted, which has negative consequences for societies and the environment. Thus, curbing food waste is critical to securing human well-being and protecting the environment. This study examines the drivers of household food waste decisions by investigating the activation and deactivation of moral norms and introducing the concept of the ‘good provider’ in an augmented norm-activation model (NAM). A survey of 643 consumers in Australia and Singapore explores the ‘good provider’ norm as a driver of food waste behaviours in both cultures. For Australians, ‘good provider’ norms suppress intentions to avoid food waste, most likely to provide for the immediate family, which can be a motive that overrides moral concern about food waste in an individualistic culture. For Singaporeans, ‘good provider’ norms do not suppress food waste intentions, possibly due to the value placed on thrift by a long-term-oriented culture. The paper significantly extends the previous research on norms, culture and sustainable consumption and provides policy and practical implications for curbing food waste in different cultural contexts.

This chapter examines the impact of inward foreign direct investment (FDI) on a host country's economic recovery following the occurrence of a natural disaster. An assessment of the extant literature shows that little has been done to assess the nexus between inward FDI andnatural disasters, with most FDI-based studies examining the determinants of FDI inflows (Dunning, 1993; Resmini, 2000; Singh & Jun, 1995) and the relationships between FDI and economic growth (Chowdhury & Mavrotas, 2006; Nair-Reichert & Weinhold, 2001). Of those with a specific natural disaster focus, it remains inconclusive whether and how FDI interacts with the host country's economy following the occurrence of a natural disaster.

Remanufacturing, a key circular economy practice, is a new way of sustainable thinking without depleting additional economic resources. Because remanufactured goods come from direct reuse of returned or already used goods, the environmental impacts of production are reduced and product longevity is extended; therefore, these products can be considered "green products." Are they appealing to the green consumers, however? Our questionnaire survey of more than 1,168 consumers from eight Asian countries shows that the "real" green market for remanufactured products is not yet ready. Reactions to green attributes of remanufactured products are disproportionate from Asian consumers with different consumption values. Status- and value-conscious consumers may buy into remanufactured products if they perceive them as greener. However, the findings suggest that environmentally conscious consumers do not show a high appreciation for the green concept of remanufactured products in Asia. The results highlight important takeaways for remanufacturers in the circular economy and those selling remanufactured products: to identify and define the right selling point of "greenness" to align with Asian consumers' inherent values.

This article examines how social identity links institutional pressures and audit quality. Combining institutional theory and social identity theory, we theoretically argue that the interaction between social and institutional forces shapes audit quality. Through an analysis of Chinese audit firms from 2000 to 2007, we show that isomorphic imitation has a more significant effect on firms belonging to the same-identity group than firms across cross-identity groups; foreign-affiliated audit firms are more willing to conform to normative pressure from professional networks than local firms; and foreign-affiliated firms are coerced to adapt to the local government’s expectation, particularly when they have a geographically concentrated customer base. We further reveal that a larger customer base attenuates within-identity group imitation but strengthens cross-identity group imitation. The results shed light on the role of social identity in shaping conformity in the audit industry, thus contributing to international convergence–divergence literature and institutional theory.

Noting the sparse literature on the corporate social responsibility (CSR) commitments of luxury brands, we focus on the constituents of the S&P Global Luxury Index and their non-luxury peers to examine the impact of CSR disclosure on firms’ financial performance. We find that both luxury and non-luxury firms’ accounting performance improves when their CSR disclosure is moderate but worsens if such CSR disclosure is in the extreme. On the other hand, the effect of CSR disclosure on firms’ market performance is either insignificant or negative. These patterns are more pronounced for non-luxury firms than for luxury firms. By highlighting the different impacts of CSR disclosure (reporting or not reporting) and the disclosure level (how much to report) on luxury brands’ performance, this study enriches the understanding on how luxury firms’ fundamental attributes impact their corporate decisions for CSR commitments and disclosure. The results shed new light on the interplay of CSR disclosure, responsible investing, and luxury brand management.

This study addresses why multinational enterprises (MNEs) in emerging economies establish regional headquarters outside their home countries but within their home regions – an important question that previous studies have largely ignored. We extend Rugman and Verbeke's firm-specific assets (FSAs) framework in contemporary internalization theory and differentiate two firm-specific regional strategies (i.e., foreign direct investment (FDI) and export regionalization) to examine their effects on MNEs’ establishment of regional headquarters in the context of emerging economies. Using survey data from 226 Chinese MNEs, we find that intraregional FDI and interregional exports encourage MNEs to build Asian regional headquarters (ARHQ). Furthermore, we find that home-city regional integration moderates the relationship between interregional exports and ARHQ establishment and that MNEs’ international management capability moderates the relationship between intraregional FDI and ARHQ establishment. This study contributes to the regional strategy literature by clarifying the regional strategies, structures, and management of latecomer Chinese MNEs.

Addressing the social, environmental and economic consequences of food waste has become an urgent issue for governments and industry stakeholders. This study investigates the factors influencing consumer acceptance of novel value-added surplus products (VASP) which could advance industry action to reduce food waste. Consumers’ perceptions and potential acceptance of VASP is under-explored in the academic literature. A survey with a panel of 687 consumers in Australia and the UK was conducted to examine the factors that influence consumers’ willingness to buy VASP and to identify potential consumer segments. Almost half of the participants are willing to buy VASP, such as a vegetable powder, a snack and a fermented product, with Australian respondents being more likely to buy these types of foods (47%, 51% and 44%) than respondents in the UK (43%, 49% and 39%). Consumers who are price conscious, convenience oriented, status seeking and concerned about the consequences of food waste are more willing to buy VASP than others. Cluster analysis reveals two consumer segments that show promise for the targeted marketing of VASP: the ‘status and convenience seeker’, which is a larger segment in Australia (76%) than in the UK (59%), and the ‘price and environmentally conscious’ consumer, which is larger in the UK (41%) than in Australia (24%). Respondents generally rank ‘other-oriented’ benefits, such as farmers’ welfare, as more important drivers of purchasing than ‘self-oriented’ benefits, such as healthy food. The results not only advance the theoretical understanding about consumer acceptance and segmentation of novel products, but also provide a valuable indication of the market potential of VASP, along with positioning strategies to assist marketers and policy makers in preventing pre-consumption food waste.

The online shopping craze in South Korea has been ongoing for more than a decade, but in China, online shopping is currently experiencing tremendous growth, with 64 million additional shoppers per year. Consumers in Asia are among the world's most prolific online shoppers. This study explains the evolution of the online shopping market in South Korea and China. Using fast-expanding market model as an initial analytical framework and multiple case approach, we find that Chinese online shopping corresponds to the take-off stage of a successful cluster, in which significant opportunities are still present in Chinese Tier-3 and Tier-4 cities. Conversely, the South Korean online market is nearing saturation, though major foreign players are still entering this perceived lucrative marketplace.

The Solar photovoltaics (PV) industry is a policy-driven business, where political decisions considerably influence potential market take-off or decline. This is particularly true for China. From 2006 to 2010, the annual growth rate of the solar panel output approaches or exceeds 100%, with financial aid from the government to the suppliers. Despite the prevalence of supply-side aid, its actual impact on this fast expanding market development is debatable. We focus on 75 Solar PV companies from year 2005 to 2012 to obtain 249 observations, and investigate how government aid received in the form of bank loans and direct subsidies influences their performance. Our empirical results suggest that supply-side government aid does help improve scale efficiency to a limited extent, but can barely help with the technology efficiency. In the long run, we find supply-side aid leads to diseconomies of scale and hence, low efficiency and profitability.

Tissue engineering techniques provide a great potential to de novo construct a histological bladder. Smooth muscle regeneration is extremely important for the functional recovery of engineered neobladder. However, many challenges remain for the use of bladder smooth muscle cells (SMCs) as the cell sources. Recent evidences showed that smooth muscle progenitor cells (SPCs) in the peripheral blood have the capacity of differentiating into SMCs, while their use for bladder regeneration has not yet been reported. The aim of our study was to investigate the effect and mechanism of autologous SPCs on bladder regeneration in a rabbit model. In this study, autologous SPCs were isolated and cultured from the peripheral blood, labeled with CM-DiI, and then seeded into a porcine bladder acellular matrix (BAM) to construct a SPC-BAM complex, which was finally implanted to substitute the partial bladder with an equivalent size. In the results, SPCs demonstrated the phenotype of stem/progenitor cells, expressed SMs markers (alpha-smooth muscle actin [α-SMA], desmin, calponin, SM22α, and smooth muscle myosin heavy chain [SMMHC]), and displayed carbachol-induced contraction. Compared with cell-free BAM, the SPC-BAM was able to improve histological regeneration (smooth muscle regeneration, vascularization, and nerve formation) and functional recovery (urodynamic function and smooth muscle contraction) of the engineered neobladder. Cell tracing indicated that seeded SPCs could survive and directly integrated into the regenerated neobladder. In addition, SPCs could also promote proliferation and migration of rabbit bladder SMCs through the paracrine platelet-derived growth factor-BB (PDGF-BB). In conclusion, our study first demonstrated that SPCs from the peripheral blood could enhance histological regeneration and functional recovery of the tissue-engineered neobladder through both the direct integration and indirect paracrine effect, supporting the use of SPCs as the cell sources for tissue engineering of the bladder.

Guidance, navigation and control (GNC) demonstration subsystem is one of the three GNC subsystems of CRRS (Circumlunar Return and Reentry Spacecraft). It includes three new products, which are central control unit, micro star sensor and dustproof equipment for star sensor. And GNC demonstration subsystem is the partial products of GNC subsystem for land-ascent assembly spacecraft in the following task. To meet the demands of weight and functions in the third phase of China Lunar Exploration Program, central control unit was integrated designed based on SoPC technology to reduce the weight, and multi-layers protection was designed to fit the space radiation environment. Micro star sensor utilized aspherical Optical System and high speed processing circuit to obtain less weight. Based on micro step Motor, dustproof equipment for star sensor realized better architecture and damper design, not only satisfied the function requirement but also achieved the optimization of weight. In order to make on-orbit validity more forcefully and credibly using the CRRS, an on-orbit validity method based on Virtual-satellite control system was designed. This method presented an on-orbit and closed-loop test system for the above mentioned new products, without using actuator and real spacecraft. This paper mainly introduces the key technology of new products and the on-orbit validity method for GNC demonstration subsystem. Moreover, this paper makes the positive conclusion for new products according to the on-orbit validity results.

The circular economy presents a practical solution to the earth’s resource limitations. To succeed, it is imperative for consumers to engage in circular economy practices. Are consumers buying in to these practices, however? This study examines consumer acceptance of three CE practices in East and Southeast Asia: using shared platforms, buying recycled goods, and purchasing remanufactured products. Focusing on electronic gadgets, the exploratory study of 584 Asian consumers yielded four findings: (1) Asia generates a large amount of e-waste, but the level of awareness of CE facilities and programs is limited; (2) although consumers are willing to try sharing platforms, they are concerned about being exploited or cheated; (3) consumer acceptance of recycled and remanufactured products in Asia is low because of their concern of reliability and quality; and (4) consumers are still willing to buy these products in the future because of their environmental- and cost-consciousness. We recommend that policy makers and companies work on various ways to promote circular economy practices, such as targeting certain demographic groups, managing consumers’ trust, allaying their concerns, improving offerings, and appealing to innovation-minded consumers.

Although corporate governance researchers have devoted considerable attention to the role of boards of directors in monitoring management and providing resources, less attention has been paid to whether and how they affect the strategic actions of firms in response to changing environments. Taking a process-based perspective, we examine how several prevalent board processes (i.e., board meetings, outside-board-meeting reviews and information utilization) affect the involvement of boards in strategic decision-making and how such involvement shapes organizational performance. Moreover, we offer an initial attempt to compare the strategic role of boards in for-profit and non-profit organizations. An investigation of 217 for-profit and 156 non-profit organizations in Canada indicates that different processes lead boards to different levels of strategic involvement, and that such effects are contingent on the types of organizations concerned. Moreover, boards that are active in strategic decision-making enhance the performance of their organizations. Our findings have implications for board research and practice.

Manuscript Type Conceptual Research Questions/Issues We explore why and how the different combinations of governance practices at national level, such as the legal system, conduct codes, and capital markets, and at firm level, such as various types of controlling shareholders, enable or constrain outside directors to engage in their monitoring and resource provision roles. Building upon such analysis, we develop a new taxonomy of corporate governance systems according to the different configurations of a set of interdependent governance characteristics, including national governance mechanisms, identity of block shareholders, and functions of outside directors. Research Insights This study enriches the growing body of research on governance complementarity and substitution by highlighting the role of bundles of governance practices in influencing directors' engagement in governance behavior, and consequently advancing our understanding of variation in corporate governance systems across and within countries. Theoretical/Academic Implications This paper demonstrates that the roles of outside directors depend on the interaction between a bundle of governance mechanisms rather than any individual mechanisms. The paper also goes beyond the traditional governance models based on the national context and highlights that interdependencies of corporate governance practices play an important role in explaining the diversity and variation of corporate governance arrangements across firms in both industrialized economies and emerging markets. Practitioner/Policy Implications This paper provides insights to policymakers by suggesting that not all the governance bundles are conducive to managerial monitoring and resource provision by outside directors.

Using multisource data from 37 countries encompassing a sample of 9,039 managers and their subordinates, we find that managers who provide more career mentoring receive higher performance ratings. ...

The fixed thrust optimal-fuzzy combined formation control method is mainly studied for spacecraft formation flying in circular orbits based on two-body relative dynamics. The linear Hill’s equation is used in relative dynamics, and the circular formation in three dimensions is designed. In fuzzy control, relative position, velocity and acceleration errors are selected as fuzzy variables and the multiplication and weighted average principle are introduced into fuzzy inference so as to maximize the reduction of the coupling effect. And since J2 perturbation is known, it will be taken into account effectively in fuzzy control method. In time-fuel optimal control, the simplified relative error model is used and an optimal controller is provided through the minimum principle. Thus, this paper combines both controls above to form the optimal-fuzzy formation control. Optimal control is adopted when relative position errors reach a certain threshold, while fuzzy control works for the small errors lower than that threshold. Finally, to take circular formation as an example, the simulation results demonstrate that not only does the optimal-fuzzy combined control system have a good response performance, but also excels in fuel consumption.

Spacecraft formation flying is a key technology for future astronautics. The relative dynamics of formation flying in eccentric orbits is studied, and the relative motion between spacecrafts is analyzed in this paper. Based on the two‐body problem, the extension of Hill equations is achieved and used in relative dynamics of eccentric orbits. Moreover, the transformation of differential variables is applied, and the algebraic solution of the relative motion is obtained, which can be generally used for spacecraft formation flying in eccentric orbits. In addition, the analysis and numerical simulations are given for the relative motion of spacecraft formation flying. The results demonstrate that each spacecraft in eccentric orbits can run in a periodic motion surrounding the master spacecraft under some conditions. And multiple spacecraft can also set up some special formations according to missions.

Autologous endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) might be alternative angiogenic cell sources for vascularization of tissue-engineered bladder, while isolation and culture of EPCs from peripheral blood in adult are usually time-consuming and highly inefficient. Recent evidence has shown that EPCs also exist in the adipose tissue. As adipose tissue is plentiful in the human body and can be easily harvested through a minimally invasive method, the aim of this study was to culture and characterize EPCs from adipose tissue (ADEPCs) and investigate their potential for the neovascularization of tissue-engineered bladder. Adipose stromal vascular fraction (SVF) was isolated and used for the culture of ADEPCs and adipose derived stem cells (ADSCs). After SVF was cultured for one week, ADEPCs with typical cobblestone morphology emerged and could be isolated from ADSCs according to their different responses to trypsinization. Rat bladder smooth muscle cells (RBSMCs) were isolated and cultured from rat bladder. RBSMCs exhibited typical spindle-shaped morphology. ADEPCs had higher proliferative potential than ADSCs and RBSMCs. ADEPCs stained positive for CD34, Stro-1, VEGFR-2, eNOS and CD31 but negative for α-SMA, CD14 and CD45. ADSCs stained positive for CD34, Stro-1 and α-SMA but negative for VEGFR-2, eNOS, CD31, CD14 and CD45. RBSMCs stained only positive for α-SMA. ADEPCs could be expanded from a single cell at an early passage to a cell cluster containing more than 10,000 cells. ADEPCs were able to uptake DiI-Ac-LDL, bind UEA-1 and form capillary-like structures in three-dimensional scaffolds (Matrigel and bladder acellular matrix). ADEPCs were also able to enhance the human umbilical vein endothelial cells' capability of capillary-like tube formation on Matrigel. Additionally, significantly higher levels of mRNA and protein of vascular endothelial growth factor were found in ADEPCs than in RBSMCs. These results suggest the potential use of ADEPCs as angiogenic cell sources for engineering bladder tissue.

To evaluate tissue regeneration, body reaction, and biological safety of xenogeneous bladder acellular matrix (BAM) that can be used to repair rabbit bladder.Porcine BAM was prepared through physical, chemical, and enzymatic methods, and the effects of acellularization and the structure were observed with HE staining and scanning electron microscope (SEM). Eighteen New Zealand white rabbits (weighing, 2.5-3.0 kg) undergoing partial cystectomy were randomly divided into 2 groups. After partial (about 30%) cystectomy, the porcine BAM was used to replace partial rabbit bladder in the experimental group (n=12), and the incision was directly sutured as control group (n = 6). The survival condition of animals was observed after operation. At 15 days, 1, 2, 3, and 6 months after operation, the blood routine, renal function, and electrolyte were tested by collecting the blood samples. At 1, 2, 3, and 6 months after operation, maximum bladder capacity, bladder leak point pressure, and bladder compliance were measured through urodynamic studies. Then gross observation was performed for regeneration of bladder, and the specimens of the bladder were harvested for HE staining and immunohistochemical staining. The surrounding organs and local lymphoid tissues were harvested for gross observation and HE staining.Cell components were completely removed in the porcine BAM, showing three-dimensional porous structure under SEM. All the animals survived during the experiment. At 15 days after operation, white blood cell count increased, and then returned to normal level in 2 groups, showing no significant difference between 2 groups (P0.05). The tests of renal function and electrolyte suggested no significant difference between 2 groups (P0.05). The level of serum creatinine showed a tendency of increase, but it remained within normal range at 6 months after operation. The maximum bladder capacity and compliance in experimental group were significantly higher than those in control group at 3 and 6 months after operation (P0.05), but no significant difference in bladder leak point pressure at each time point between 2 groups (P0.05). The urothelial regeneration, smooth muscle regeneration, and blood vessel regeneration were seen by histological observation in 2 groups. In the 2 groups, chronic inflammatory cells infiltration could be observed at 1 month postoperatively, and then chronic inflammatory cells decreased significantly (P0.05), until complete disappearance. There was no significant difference in score of chronic inflammatory cell infiltration between 2 groups at 3 and 6 months after operation (P0.05). The alpha-smooth muscle actin expression was significantly increased with time passing in 2 groups (P0.05), and it was significantly higher in control group than in experimental group at each time point (P0.05). In addition, gross and HE staining observations showed no abnormalities in surrounding organs and local lymphoid tissues.No immune rejection response occurs when porcine BAM is used for xenotransplantation. It is indicated that porcine BAM is relative safety for xenotransplantation.

Do firms’ external networks matter for their entrepreneurial orientation? This study advances research on external networks and entrepreneurial orientation by examining how a portfolio of network r...

Despite a large number of studies examining the MNCs' horizontal spillover effect in host country, the empirical results are mixed. We argued the mixed results come from the ignorance of the fact that different categories of organizations may react to MNCs using different strategic choices. To reconcile the conflicts and give a proper evaluation of MNCs' spillover effect in establishing new practice, we draw on the concept of organization identity to differentiate two identity groups among Chinese auditing firms. We then examine how the foreign auditing firms' horizontal spillovers on establishing new audit practice are contingent on domestic auditing firms’ group identity. We find that the presence of foreign auditing firms in China has positive horizontal spillovers on upgrading-status domestic auditors' audit quality, while negative horizontal spillovers on low-status domestic auditors' audit quality. The findings contribute to literature on spillover effect and institutional theory in two ways. First, we show that prior studies overestimate the spillover effect of foreign firms on domestic firms due to lack of subpopulation-based approach. Second, we note the identity as a valid contingent factor in reconciling the inconsistency in institutional spillover effect on domestic firms.

Manuscript Type: Empirical Research Question/Issue: This study examines the effectiveness of restructuring in repairing legitimacy after a firm is punished for financial fraud. Research Findings/Insights: We use the antecedents of fraud to distinguish between three types of financial fraud and argue that different types of such fraud affect different dimensions of legitimacy. We also identify four types of restructuring and adopt a contingency perspective to argue that the type of restructuring adopted should match the dimensions of legitimacy affected for a successful legitimacy repair, which is proxied by a positive market response when the restructuring is announced. Using a sample of Chinese listed firms, we find that disassociation from illegitimate business operations and creation of valuable business operations are more effective in repairing legitimacy after fraudulent financial reporting. Disassociation from illegitimate organizational structures and creation of monitors are more effective following embezzlement or stock market manipulation. However, no type of restructuring is effective following improper accounting practice. Market investors value creation of monitors more than they do disassociation from an illegitimate organizational structure, and attach the same value to disassociation from illegitimate business operations and creation of valuable business operations. Theoretical/Academic Implications: This study makes three contributions to the organizational legitimacy and corporate crisis management literature. First, it links corporate crises arising from financial fraud to social legitimacy. Second, it extends the number of restructuring types identified in the legitimacy literature to four, taking content and form as two dimensions. Third, it links corporate crises arising from financial fraud to the effectiveness of responsive restructurings via social legitimacy. Practitioner/Policy Implications: Firms punished for financial fraud should signal restructuring according to the nature of the fraud and address the pertinent dimensions of legitimacy.