Qualidade da informação em Pequenas e Médias Empresas num contexto de crise financeira

: estudo para o caso português

Abstract

The purpose of this Dissertation was to explore the relationship between earnings management in small and medium-sized Portuguese companies and financial crisis periods. The main form of funding for companies in the Portuguese business environment is usually obtaining credit from financial institutions, thus putting pressure on company managers to present an image of high economic performance. In fact, the better the company’s image, the bigger probability it will have to access banking credit. For that reason, company managers in financial difficulties tend to adopt discretionary accounting solutions in order to improve the company’s image and consequently facilitate the access to financing. The empirical study was reasoned through literature revision, comparing works from different authors on the performance of managers in periods of financial crisis and periods of economic and financial stability. This study allowed concluding that managers tend to manipulate more their results in a context of economic and financial crisis, in order to be able to obtain banking credit. However, through the analysis of variables and ratios plus the construction of a logit model, it is possible to conclude that the current financial crisis does not have a significant impact in the decision making process of managing earnings, in the Portuguese business environment. This way, this Dissertation subordinated to the question ‘Do managers tend to further manipulate their companies’ results in a context of financial crisis then in its absence?’, allowed us to conclude that, in the period of study (2005 to 2012) the ‘year’ variable does not have any impact in the managers’ decision making process and therefore it was not possible to prove that in Portugal managers tend to manipulate their companies’ results more intensively in a context of crisis than in a context of financial stability.

Date of Award	2014
Original language	Portuguese
Awarding Institution	Universidade Católica Portuguesa
Supervisor	Paulo Alves (Supervisor)