Incentives and Economic Consequences of Reporting Frequency-Induced Earnings Management

財務報導頻率、盈餘管理動機與經濟後果

10.6538/TAR.202312_19(2).0002

Shou-Min Tsao(曹壽民)；Hsueh-Tien Lu(呂學典)

reporting frequency ； accrual-based earnings management ； real earnings management ； firm performance ； 財務報導頻率 ； 應計盈餘管理 ； 真實盈餘管理 ； 公司績效

中華會計學刊

19卷2期（2023 / 12 / 01）

181 - 230

英文;繁體中文

This study investigates the impact of increased reporting frequency on earnings management and the choices between accrual-based earnings management (AM) and real earnings management (RM). We focus on the change in the financial reporting frequency of Taiwanese firms from 1983 to 1992 and categorize the sample period into three reporting regimes: semi-annual, quarterly, and monthly. We find a positive relationship between reporting frequency and earnings management. We further find that frequency-induced earnings management tends to favor RM over AM. In addition, we provide evidence that firms experiencing higher capital market pressure, relying more on implicit claims with stakeholders, and operating within less robust information environments are more inclined to frequency-induced RM. Furthermore, we observe that reporting frequency-induced RM leads to a decline in subsequent profitability for firms facing higher capital market pressure, whereas it contributes to an improvement in subsequent profitability for firms with a greater reliance on implicit claims with stakeholders and those operating within less robust information environments.

本文主要探討增加財報頻率對於盈餘管理、應計及真實盈餘管理的影響。以1983至1992年間，財報頻率自半年報演變為季報與月報的歷史情境為研究背景。我們發現財報頻率與盈餘管理活動呈正向關係。進一步證據顯示財報頻率的增加，使得公司更傾向運用真實盈餘管理，而非應計盈餘管理。真實盈餘管理的運用，可能與公司特徵，以及其所傳達的未來公司盈利能力資訊有關。本文證實當公司面臨較強資本市場壓力、試圖符合利害關係人內隱要求（implicit claims），以及位處較差資訊環境，更有可能因較高的財報頻率，運用更多的真實盈餘管理。資本市場壓力下的真實盈餘管理，隱含不利未來績效；迎合利害關係人需求，以及較差資訊環境下的真實盈餘管理，則傳達較佳未來績效。