Bulletin Number Three 1985

Research Projects on Business Administration Research e f f o r ts o f the MB A Division The following are selected topics on which research projects are currently undertaken by members of the MBA Division of the Faculty of Business Administration: By Professor Y.T. Chung 1. Hong Kong Tax System In the past few years, the Hong Kong tax system has undergone gradual if not drastic changes. Some of the general characteristics and underlying basic principles of the system are being challenged. While the Financial Secretary has denied that several new budget proposals have underminded the existing tax structure, others disagree. The scope of the tax in Hong Kong which is based on the concept of Income arising in or derived from the Colony' ， as well as other issues such as the effects of the abolition of the interest tax and the tax on cosmetics and soft drinks are examined. 2. Inflation Accounting Although the Hong Kong Companies Ordinance does not require a public company in Hong Kon g to prepare financial statements adjusted for price-level change, the usefulness of such accounting information has been discussed extensively in current cost accounting literature. In the United Kingdom and the United States, large companies are required to give information on the effect of inflation on the company's affairs. In Hong Kong the rate of inflation must also affect the operations and financia l position of a company. The financial statements of a public utility company in Hong Kong are used as a basis for adjustment t o take inflation into account and the revised data are used in the analysis of the company's cash (liquidity) requirements, capital structure and profits or loss. 3. Joint Venture Accounting in the People's Republic of China In the pursuit of her open-door policy, China has attempted to update her laws on trade and commerce. One of the areas of rapid development is joint ventures. When join t venture agreements are entered into by contracting parties, the operations of the joint venture are recorded and accounts are prepared in accordance with the terms of the agreement. To what extent the laws and practices of the joint venture are promulgated and developed are th e subjects of investigation. In particular, the accounting treatments o f specific items and issues which are not covered by the terms of the agreement are focused upon in the study. By Dr. Robert Graham 1. Perceived Male/Female Managerial Personality Attributes in Hong Kong Middle Level Managers There is ample evidence in the literature that an employment interview is neither reliable nor valid as a selection devise. Researchers have found, for example, that: (1) Favourable information concerning job candidates is given insufficient weight; (2) Decisions concerning the interviewee are made very early - one and a-half to four minutes into a fifteen-minute interview; (3) Superficial characteristics unrelated to job performance influence interviewer; and (4) Interviewers form stereotypes of job characteristics and compare the interviewee to the stereotype. This research concerns (4) the stereotyping of male and female middle managers in Hong Kong Businesses, and is an attempt to replicate Schein's study done in 1975. In this study 167 female middle managers rated women in general, men in general, and successful middle managers on the same ninety-two RECENT DEVELOPMENTS 17