VSB Welcomes New Faculty

welcome

Five New Faculty

Villanova school of business faculty are leaders in global business education who develop and refine their ideas through meaningful interactions with their students and colleagues. it is this collegiality that helps make Vsb one of the best business schools in the nation.

Lan Nguyen Chaplin, PhD

AssistANt Professor, MArketiNg

Growing Up in a Material World

As materialism and brandobsession in young people continue to rise, what can be done to minimize this trend? Vsb professor of marketing lan nguyen Chaplin has spent years studying materialism and branding to determine when kids begin to care about having cell phones, iPods, or the newest video game. according to her research, age and stage of development play a big role in a child’s desire for brands and other materialistic things. Chaplin has found that self-esteem is linked to materialism in children and adolescents. While conventional wisdom holds that parents and peers increase kids’ materialism, Chaplin’s research shows that the same individuals can decrease materialism by having a positive effect on children’s self-esteem.

Chaplin’s research has been published in the Journal of Consumer Research, the Journal of Consumer Psychology, and the Journal of Positive Psychology. Prior to coming to Vsb, Chaplin served as an assistant professor at the eller College of management at the University of arizona and previously was assistant professor at the University of illinois at Urbana-Champaign. she received her Phd in marketing and a minor in psychology from the Carlson school of management at the University of minnesota and a ba in the biological basis of behavior with a concentration in behavioral medicine at the University of Pennsylvania.

>> To learn more about VSB’s Marketing and Business Law Department, go to: www.villanova.edu/business/ facultyareas/marketing

erasmus kersting, PhD

AssistANt Professor, eCoNoMiCs

Productivity Doesn’t Just Happen

InnoVation is CrUCial for organizational performance because it is thought to increase productivity. but do firm-specific innovative actions really affect productivity? and what is the role of the financial sector in facilitating increased productivity? according to research by Vsb professor erasmus Kersting, productivity effects are linked to the financial sector. firms that have invented a new product or introduced a new production process are rewarded with measurably higher productivity. this effect is particularly strong in countries with a well-developed financial sector, suggesting that financial sector development spurs growth by encouraging innovation.

Professor Kersting’s research has been published in the Review of Economic Dynamics and the Staff Papers series of the federal reserve bank of dallas. His research interests include finance and productivity and policy spillover effects in open economies. Kersting won the s. Charles maurice Graduate fellowship in economics and the bradley dissertation fellowship of the Private enterprise research Center from texas a&m University.

Professor Kersting comes to Vsb from the department of economics at southern methodist University. He received a Phd in economics from texas a&m University and an ma in economics from the Christian-albrechts-Universität (University of Kiel) in Germany.

>> To learn more about VSB’s Economics and Statistics Department, go to: www.villanova.edu/business/ facultyareas/economics

welcome

Patricia Dorris-Crenny, CPA

iNstruCtor, ACCouNtiNg

Ensuring Your Future

THe retirement aGe ContinUes to increase in our post-crash economy. With new retirement rules in effect, planning for this time can be a challenge. Vsb instructor of accounting Patricia dorris-Crenny predicts that individuals will have to work longer than ever before to recover from economic losses and to increase retirement resources. an expert in the public side of accounting in both tax and audit and on the private side in insurance and financial service, Crenny brings more than 15 years of industry experience to the classroom. she has worked for deloitte, nationwide Provident, and PricewaterhouseCoopers. she has taught at West Chester University, Ursinus College, and drexel University. thanks to her extensive career in public accounting and the insurance industry, Crenny brings a wealth of business experience and knowledge directly into the classroom. she authored an article titled “the new retirement,” published in the Pennsylvania CPA Journal. she also has served as an adjunct professor for Vsb since 2004. Crenny earned an ms in taxation from drexel University and a bs in accounting from the Villanova school of business.

>> To learn more about VSB’s Accountancy and Information Systems Department, go to: www.villanova.edu/business/ facultyareas/accounting

Lucy Chen, PhD

AssistANt Professor, ACCouNtiNg

The Rules of Reconciliation

THe U.s. seCUrities and exCHanGe Commission (seC) voted in november 2007 to let foreign companies file financial statements under international financial reporting standards (ifrs) without reconciling to U.s. Generally accepted accounting Principles (GaaP).

“this rule change is fundamental to accounting professionals. ifrs is discussed worldwide in almost every accounting conference,” says Vsb professor lucy Chen. Chen’s research examines the causes and consequences of crosslisted firms preparing financial statements under ifrs without reconciliation to U.s. GaaP. Her work has been published in premier accounting journals, including Contemporary Accounting Research. Professor Chen also has been cited by the american accounting association in its report about the seC’s ifrs decision.

Chen served as an assistant professor at the W.P. Carey school of business at arizona state

University. she received her Phd in accounting from the fox school of business at temple

University and a bs in accounting from xiamen University in China.

>> To learn more about VSB’s Accountancy and Information Systems Department, go to: www.villanova.edu/business/ facultyareas/accounting

kirsten fanning, PhD

AssistANt Professor, ACCouNtiNg

Counting More Than Numbers

ACCoUntinG is a nUmbers-based industry. but the way accountants present their data impacts the way it is received, according to a study by new Vsb professor Kirsten fanning. Her findings indicate that managers are more likely to accept auditors’ arguments when they maintain a professional demeanor and present information in a logical manner. auditors with poor interpersonal skills or who presented financial information in a less-organized way were less persuasive. illustrating a valuable lesson, fanning’s research shows that comportment matters just as much as the data itself.

Professor fanning has presented her work at american accounting association conferences and won the annual outstanding emerging scholar award given by the association’s accounting, behavior & organizations research Conference two years in a row. Her research interests include judgment and decision making in financial reporting and managerial contexts.

Professor fanning received her Phd in accounting and a minor in psychology from the isenberg school of management at the University of massachusetts-amherst. she earned a bsba in accounting from drexel University.

>> To learn more about VSB’s Accountancy and Information Systems Department, go to: www.villanova.edu/business/ facultyareas/accounting