IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/bracre/v43y2011i3p230-246.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

The role of board independence in mitigating agency problem II in Australian family firms

Author

Listed:
  • Setia-Atmaja, Lukas
  • Haman, Janto
  • Tanewski, George

Abstract

We investigate the impact of board independence on earnings management on a sample of family controlled firms listed on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX). Using panel data over the period 2000–2004, we find evidence of earnings management among family controlled firms in Australia, an environment of high investor protection and private benefits of control. Findings show that a higher proportion of independent directors on boards is effective in reducing earnings management, thereby mitigating agency problems associated with entrenchment and expropriation in family firms. We also find that managers of family firms are less aggressive in managing earnings via discretionary long-term accruals compared to non-family firms.

Suggested Citation

  • Setia-Atmaja, Lukas & Haman, Janto & Tanewski, George, 2011. "The role of board independence in mitigating agency problem II in Australian family firms," The British Accounting Review, Elsevier, vol. 43(3), pages 230-246.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:bracre:v:43:y:2011:i:3:p:230-246
    DOI: 10.1016/j.bar.2011.06.006
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0890838911000539
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.bar.2011.06.006?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Stijn Claessens & Simeon Djankov & Joseph P. H. Fan & Larry H. P. Lang, 2002. "Disentangling the Incentive and Entrenchment Effects of Large Shareholdings," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 57(6), pages 2741-2771, December.
    2. Barclay, Michael J. & Holderness, Clifford G., 1989. "Private benefits from control of public corporations," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 25(2), pages 371-395, December.
    3. Walid Ben‐Amar & Paul André, 2006. "Separation of Ownership from Control and Acquiring Firm Performance: The Case of Family Ownership in Canada," Journal of Business Finance & Accounting, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 33(3‐4), pages 517-543, April.
    4. Lucian Arye Bebchuk, 1999. "A Rent-Protection Theory of Corporate Ownership and Control," NBER Working Papers 7203, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    5. Fama, Eugene F & Jensen, Michael C, 1983. "Separation of Ownership and Control," Journal of Law and Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 26(2), pages 301-325, June.
    6. Villalonga, Belen & Amit, Raphael, 2006. "How do family ownership, control and management affect firm value?," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 80(2), pages 385-417, May.
    7. Xie, Biao & Davidson, Wallace III & DaDalt, Peter J., 2003. "Earnings management and corporate governance: the role of the board and the audit committee," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 9(3), pages 295-316, June.
    8. Connie L. Becker & Mark L. Defond & James Jiambalvo & K.R. Subramanyam, 1998. "The Effect of Audit Quality on Earnings Management," Contemporary Accounting Research, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 15(1), pages 1-24, March.
    9. Michael C. Jensen, 2010. "The Modern Industrial Revolution, Exit, and the Failure of Internal Control Systems," Journal of Applied Corporate Finance, Morgan Stanley, vol. 22(1), pages 43-58, January.
    10. Shleifer, Andrei & Vishny, Robert W, 1997. "A Survey of Corporate Governance," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 52(2), pages 737-783, June.
    11. Velury, Uma & Jenkins, David S., 2006. "Institutional ownership and the quality of earnings," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 59(9), pages 1043-1051, September.
    12. Bartov, Eli & Gul, Ferdinand A. & Tsui, J.S.L.Judy S. L., 2000. "Discretionary-accruals models and audit qualifications," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 30(3), pages 421-452, December.
    13. Ramanna, Karthik, 2008. "The implications of unverifiable fair-value accounting: Evidence from the political economy of goodwill accounting," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 45(2-3), pages 253-281, August.
    14. Barber, Brad M. & Lyon, John D., 1996. "Detecting abnormal operating performance: The empirical power and specification of test statistics," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 41(3), pages 359-399, July.
    15. Suchard, Jo-Ann & Singh, Manohar & Barr, Robert, 2001. "The market effects of CEO turnover in Australian firms," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 9(1), pages 1-27, January.
    16. Teoh, Siew Hong & Welch, Ivo & Wong, T. J., 1998. "Earnings management and the underperformance of seasoned equity offerings," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 50(1), pages 63-99, October.
    17. Geof Stapledon, 2006. "The Development of Corporate Governance in Australia," Chapters, in: Christine A. Mallin (ed.), Handbook on International Corporate Governance, chapter 10, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    18. Rafael La Porta & Florencio Lopez‐De‐Silanes & Andrei Shleifer, 1999. "Corporate Ownership Around the World," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 54(2), pages 471-517, April.
    19. repec:bla:jfinan:v:59:y:2004:i:2:p:537-600 is not listed on IDEAS
    20. Rafael La Porta & Florencio Lopez‐de‐Silanes & Andrei Shleifer & Robert W. Vishny, 2000. "Agency Problems and Dividend Policies around the World," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 55(1), pages 1-33, February.
    21. Hutton, Amy P., 2007. "A discussion of `corporate disclosure by family firms'," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 44(1-2), pages 287-297, September.
    22. Jaggi, Bikki & Leung, Sidney & Gul, Ferdinand, 2009. "Family control, board independence and earnings management: Evidence based on Hong Kong firms," Journal of Accounting and Public Policy, Elsevier, vol. 28(4), pages 281-300, July.
    23. James S. Ang & Rebel A. Cole & James Wuh Lin, 2000. "Agency Costs and Ownership Structure," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 55(1), pages 81-106, February.
    24. Warfield, Terry D. & Wild, John J. & Wild, Kenneth L., 1995. "Managerial ownership, accounting choices, and informativeness of earnings," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 20(1), pages 61-91, July.
    25. Masako Darrough & Srinivasan Rangan, 2005. "Do Insiders Manipulate Earnings When They Sell Their Shares in an Initial Public Offering?," Journal of Accounting Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 43(1), pages 1-33, March.
    26. Ball, Ray & Robin, Ashok & Wu, Joanna Shuang, 2003. "Incentives versus standards: properties of accounting income in four East Asian countries," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 36(1-3), pages 235-270, December.
    27. Leuz, Christian & Nanda, Dhananjay & Wysocki, Peter D., 2003. "Earnings management and investor protection: an international comparison," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 69(3), pages 505-527, September.
    28. Nikos Vafeas & Adamos Vlittis & Philippos Katranis & Kanalis Ockree, 2003. "Earnings Management Around Share Repurchases: A Note," Abacus, Accounting Foundation, University of Sydney, vol. 39(2), pages 262-272, June.
    29. Lukas Setia‐Atmaja & George A. Tanewski & Michael Skully, 2009. "The Role of Dividends, Debt and Board Structure in the Governance of Family Controlled Firms," Journal of Business Finance & Accounting, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 36(7‐8), pages 863-898, September.
    30. Balasingham Balachandran & Keryn Chalmers & Janto Haman, 2008. "On‐market share buybacks, exercisable share options and earnings management," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 48(1), pages 25-49, March.
    31. repec:bla:jfinan:v:58:y:2003:i:3:p:1301-1327 is not listed on IDEAS
    32. William S. Schulze & Michael H. Lubatkin & Richard N. Dino & Ann K. Buchholtz, 2001. "Agency Relationships in Family Firms: Theory and Evidence," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 12(2), pages 99-116, April.
    33. Ball, Ray & Shivakumar, Lakshmanan, 2008. "Earnings quality at initial public offerings," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 45(2-3), pages 324-349, August.
    34. Claessens, Stijn & Djankov, Simeon & Lang, Larry H. P., 2000. "The separation of ownership and control in East Asian Corporations," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 58(1-2), pages 81-112.
    35. Holderness, Clifford G. & Sheehan, Dennis P., 1988. "The role of majority shareholders in publicly held corporations : An exploratory analysis," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 20(1-2), pages 317-346, January.
    36. Dechun Wang, 2006. "Founding Family Ownership and Earnings Quality," Journal of Accounting Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 44(3), pages 619-656, June.
    37. Larry H. P. Lang & Mara Faccio & Leslie Young, 2001. "Dividends and Expropriation," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 91(1), pages 54-78, March.
    38. Jones, Jj, 1991. "Earnings Management During Import Relief Investigations," Journal of Accounting Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 29(2), pages 193-228.
    39. Maria C. A. Balatbat & Stephen L. Taylor & Terry S. Walter, 2004. "Corporate governance, insider ownership and operating performance of Australian initial public offerings," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 44(3), pages 299-328, November.
    40. Ali, Ashiq & Chen, Tai-Yuan & Radhakrishnan, Suresh, 2007. "Corporate disclosures by family firms," Journal of Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 44(1-2), pages 238-286, September.
    41. Ronald C. Anderson & David M. Reeb, 2003. "Founding‐Family Ownership and Firm Performance: Evidence from the S&P 500," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 58(3), pages 1301-1328, June.
    42. Lukas Setia‐Atmaja & George A. Tanewski & Michael Skully, 2009. "The Role of Dividends, Debt and Board Structure in the Governance of Family Controlled Firms," Journal of Business Finance & Accounting, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 36(7‐8), pages 863-898, September.
    43. Darren Henry, 2005. "Directors’ Recommendations in Takeovers: An Agency and Governance Analysis," Journal of Business Finance & Accounting, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 32(1‐2), pages 129-159, January.
    44. Graeme Wines & Ron Dagwell & Carolyn Windsor, 2007. "Implications of the IFRS goodwill accounting treatment," Managerial Auditing Journal, Emerald Group Publishing, vol. 22(9), pages 862-880, October.
    45. Tan, Hwee-Cheng & Jamal, Karim, 2006. "Effect of accounting discretion on ability of managers to smooth earnings," Journal of Accounting and Public Policy, Elsevier, vol. 25(5), pages 554-573.
    46. Koh, Ping-Sheng, 2003. "On the association between institutional ownership and aggressive corporate earnings management in Australia," The British Accounting Review, Elsevier, vol. 35(2), pages 105-128.
    47. Ahn, Sungyoon & Choi, Wooseok, 2009. "The role of bank monitoring in corporate governance: Evidence from borrowers' earnings management behavior," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 33(2), pages 425-434, February.
    48. Erik Lie, 2001. "Detecting Abnormal Operating Performance: Revisited," Financial Management, Financial Management Association, vol. 30(2), Summer.
    49. Ryan Davidson & Jenny Goodwin‐Stewart & Pamela Kent, 2005. "Internal governance structures and earnings management," Accounting and Finance, Accounting and Finance Association of Australia and New Zealand, vol. 45(2), pages 241-267, July.
    50. Chou, De-Wai & Gombola, Michael & Liu, Feng-Ying, 2006. "Earnings Management and Stock Performance of Reverse Leveraged Buyouts," Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, Cambridge University Press, vol. 41(2), pages 407-438, June.
    51. Anderson, Ronald C & Reeb, David M, 2003. "Founding-Family Ownership, Corporate Diversification, and Firm Leverage," Journal of Law and Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 46(2), pages 653-684, October.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Khan, Arifur & Muttakin, Mohammad Badrul & Siddiqui, Javed, 2015. "Audit fees, auditor choice and stakeholder influence: Evidence from a family-firm dominated economy," The British Accounting Review, Elsevier, vol. 47(3), pages 304-320.
    2. Goh, Lisa & Gupta, Aditi, 2016. "Remuneration of non-executive directors: Evidence from the UK," The British Accounting Review, Elsevier, vol. 48(3), pages 379-399.
    3. Elisabete F. Simões Vieira, 2016. "Earnings Management in Public Family Firms under Economic Adversity," Australian Accounting Review, CPA Australia, vol. 26(2), pages 190-207, June.
    4. Chih-Yang Tseng, 2020. "Family firms and long-term orientation of SG&A expenditures," Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting, Springer, vol. 55(4), pages 1181-1206, November.
    5. Nguyen, Linh Thi My & Nguyen, Phong Thanh, 2023. "The board profiles that promote environmental, social, and governance disclosure–Evidence from S&P 500 firms," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 55(PA).
    6. Muttakin, Mohammad Badrul & Monem, Reza M. & Khan, Arifur & Subramaniam, Nava, 2015. "Family firms, firm performance and political connections: Evidence from Bangladesh," Journal of Contemporary Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 11(3), pages 215-230.
    7. Emad Noureldeen & Mohamed Elsayed & Ahmed A. Elamer & Jianming Ye, 2024. "Two-tier board characteristics and expanded audit reporting: Evidence from China," Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting, Springer, vol. 63(1), pages 195-235, July.
    8. Ernest Gyapong & Ammad Ahmed & Collins G Ntim & Muhammad Nadeem, 2021. "Board gender diversity and dividend policy in Australian listed firms: the effect of ownership concentration," Asia Pacific Journal of Management, Springer, vol. 38(2), pages 603-643, June.
    9. Vafeas, Nikos & Vlittis, Adamos, 2015. "Board influence on the selection of external accounting executives," The British Accounting Review, Elsevier, vol. 47(1), pages 46-65.
    10. Mehtap A. Eklund, 2024. "CEO compensation and market risk: moderating effect of board size and CEO duality in the Swiss context," International Journal of Disclosure and Governance, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 21(2), pages 227-240, June.
    11. Hsu, Hwa-Hsien & Wu, Chloe Yu-Hsuan, 2014. "Board composition, grey directors and corporate failure in the UK," The British Accounting Review, Elsevier, vol. 46(3), pages 215-227.
    12. Phillip C. James, 2020. "Understanding the Impact of Board Structure on Firm Performance: AComprehensive Literature Review," International Journal of Business and Social Research, LAR Center Press, vol. 10(1), pages 1-12, January.
    13. Mohammad Rajon Meah & Kanon Kumar Sen & Md. Hossain Ali, 2021. "Audit Characteristics, Gender Diversity and Firm Performance: Evidence from a Developing Economy," Indian Journal of Corporate Governance, , vol. 14(1), pages 48-70, June.
    14. Liu, Lihua & Shu, Haicheng, 2022. "Mandatory dividend policy and perk consumption: Evidence from state-owned business groups in China," Journal of International Financial Markets, Institutions and Money, Elsevier, vol. 77(C).
    15. Ali M. Gerged & Babikir Bechir Mahamat & Ibrahim K. Elmghaamez, 2020. "Did corporate governance compliance have an impact on auditor selection and quality? Evidence from FTSE 350," International Journal of Disclosure and Governance, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 17(2), pages 51-60, September.
    16. Xueman Xiang & Carl R. Chen & Yue Liu & Azhar Mughal & Qizhi Tao, 2024. "Are directors with foreign experience better monitors? Evidence from investment efficiency," Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting, Springer, vol. 62(2), pages 799-840, February.
    17. Hanna Górska-Warsewicz & Maciej Dębski & Krystyna Rejman & Wacław Laskowski, 2020. "The Specificity of Family Firms Providing Accommodation Services—The Experience of a Post-Socialist Country 30 Years after the Economic Transformation," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(24), pages 1-21, December.
    18. Phillip C. James, 2020. "Understanding the Impact of Board Structure on Firm Performance: AComprehensive Literature Review," International Journal of Business and Social Research, MIR Center for Socio-Economic Research, vol. 10(1), pages 1-12, January.
    19. Astami, Emita & Pramono, Agus Joko & Rusmin, Rusmin & Cahaya, Fitra Roman & Soobaroyen, Teerooven, 2024. "Do family ownership and supervisory board characteristics influence audit report lag? A view from a two-tier board context," Journal of International Accounting, Auditing and Taxation, Elsevier, vol. 56(C).

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Elisabete F. Simões Vieira, 2016. "Earnings Management in Public Family Firms under Economic Adversity," Australian Accounting Review, CPA Australia, vol. 26(2), pages 190-207, June.
    2. Lukas Setia‐Atmaja & George A. Tanewski & Michael Skully, 2009. "The Role of Dividends, Debt and Board Structure in the Governance of Family Controlled Firms," Journal of Business Finance & Accounting, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 36(7‐8), pages 863-898, September.
    3. Sumon Kumar Bhaumik & Andros Gregoriou, 2010. "‘Family’ Ownership, Tunnelling And Earnings Management: A Review Of The Literature," Journal of Economic Surveys, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 24(4), pages 705-730, September.
    4. Jesus Sáenz González & Emma García-Meca, 2014. "Does Corporate Governance Influence Earnings Management in Latin American Markets?," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 121(3), pages 419-440, May.
    5. Khosa,Amrinder & Ahmed,Kamran & Henry,Darren, 2019. "Ownership Structure, Related Party Transactions, and Firm Valuation," Cambridge Books, Cambridge University Press, number 9781108492195, November.
    6. San Martin-Reyna, J.M. & Duran-Encalada, Jorge A., 2012. "The relationship among family business, corporate governance and firm performance: Evidence from the Mexican stock exchange," Journal of Family Business Strategy, Elsevier, vol. 3(2), pages 106-117.
    7. Yves Mard & Sylvain Marsat, 2011. "Gestion des résultats comptables et structure de l'actionnariat : le cas français," Post-Print hal-00650550, HAL.
    8. Yves Mard & Sylvain Marsat, 2012. "Earnings management and ownership structure: Evidence from France [Gestion des résultats comptables et structure de l'actionnariat : le cas français]," Post-Print hal-02156592, HAL.
    9. Lee, Cheng-Hsun & Bose, Sudipta, 2021. "Do family firms engage in less tax avoidance than non-family firms? The corporate opacity perspective," Journal of Contemporary Accounting and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 17(2).
    10. Yuting Huang & Anlin Chen & Lanfeng Kao, 2012. "Corporate governance in Taiwan: The nonmonotonic relationship between family ownership and dividend policy," Asia Pacific Journal of Management, Springer, vol. 29(1), pages 39-58, March.
    11. Mulyani, Evy & Singh, Harminder & Mishra, Sagarika, 2016. "Dividends, leverage, and family ownership in the emerging Indonesian market," Journal of International Financial Markets, Institutions and Money, Elsevier, vol. 43(C), pages 16-29.
    12. Jara-Bertin, Mauricio & López-Iturriaga, Félix J., 2008. "Earnings Management and Contest to the Control: An Analysis of European Family Firms," MPRA Paper 9660, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    13. Stockmans, Annelies & Lybaert, Nadine & Voordeckers, Wim, 2013. "The conditional nature of board characteristics in constraining earnings management in private family firms," Journal of Family Business Strategy, Elsevier, vol. 4(2), pages 84-92.
    14. Chen, Chao-Jung & Hsu, Chung-Yuan & Chen, Yu-Lin, 2014. "The impact of family control on the top management compensation mix and incentive orientation," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 32(C), pages 29-46.
    15. Mauricio Jara-Bertin & Jean P. Sepulveda, 2014. "Earnings Management and Performance in Family-Controlled Firms:Evidence from an Emerging Economy," Serie Working Papers 01, Universidad del Desarrollo, School of Business and Economics, revised Nov 2014.
    16. Adhikari, Hari P. & Sutton, Ninon K., 2016. "All in the family: The effect of family ownership on acquisition performance," Journal of Economics and Business, Elsevier, vol. 88(C), pages 65-78.
    17. Aziz Jaafar & Lynn Hodgkinson & Mao-Feng Kao, 2019. "Ownership Structure, Board of Directors and Firm Performance: Evidence from Taiwan," Working Papers 19011, Bangor Business School, Prifysgol Bangor University (Cymru / Wales).
    18. Zhang, Yuyang & Uchida, Konari & Bu, Hua, 2013. "How do accounting standards and insiders' incentives affect earnings management? Evidence from China," Emerging Markets Review, Elsevier, vol. 16(C), pages 78-99.
    19. Xiaoxiang Zhang & Jo-Ting Wei & Hsin-Hung Wu, 2013. "Forced financial information restatements and management turnover: Market discipline and large family shareholders’ intervention in an emerging economy," Asia Pacific Journal of Management, Springer, vol. 30(4), pages 1005-1029, December.
    20. Wu, Manhwa & Ni, Yensen & Huang, Paoyu, 2020. "Dividend payouts and family-controlled firms—The effect of culture on business," The Quarterly Review of Economics and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 75(C), pages 221-228.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Earnings management; Family ownership; Agency theory; Board independence;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • M41 - Business Administration and Business Economics; Marketing; Accounting; Personnel Economics - - Accounting - - - Accounting
    • M49 - Business Administration and Business Economics; Marketing; Accounting; Personnel Economics - - Accounting - - - Other
    • G34 - Financial Economics - - Corporate Finance and Governance - - - Mergers; Acquisitions; Restructuring; Corporate Governance

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:bracre:v:43:y:2011:i:3:p:230-246. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.journals.elsevier.com/the-british-accounting-review .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.