Auditor industry specialisation, service bundling and partner effects in a mining-dominated city

This study examines auditor industry specialisation effects in Perth, a remote mining town in Australia characterised by a large number of small, homogeneous firms. We consider the impact of leadership by the non-Big 4 auditor BDO Kendalls (BDO) for a sample of 371 mining development stage entities (MDSE's). After controlling for factors known to determine audit fees, we find no evidence of auditor industry leadership fee premiums accruing to (BDO), a result robust to a range of sensitivity tests including the broadening of tests Australia-wide. However, when the dependent variable is redefined to the total 'bundle' of services provided by the audit firm (including audit and non-audit fees), the industry leader is shown to earn a fee premium suggesting BDO uses audits as a conduit to supply higher margin non-audit services. Our findings suggest that strategic pricing by industry leaders may not be confined to Big 4 firms.

Prediction of paediatric asthma hospitalisation using data mining techniques

Research into the prevalence of hospitalisation among childhood asthma cases is undertaken, using a data set local to the Barwon region of Victoria. Participants were the parents/guardians on behalf of children aged between 5-11 years. Various data mining techniques are used, including segmentation, association and classification to assist in predicting and exploring the instances of childhood hospitalisation due to asthma. Results from this study indicate that children in inner city and metropolitan areas may overutilise emergency department services. In addition, this study found that the prediction of hospitalisaion for asthma in children was greater for those with a written asthma management plan.