Information asymmetry and conflicts of interest between managers and shareholders lead to the phenomenon of moral hazard. Moral hazard means the managers may make some decisions (e.g. investment decisions) that do not meet the interests of shareholders. Inefficient investment decisions include over or under-investment in firms’ labour. One way to avoid inefficient investment decisions is to improve the financial reporting quality; because the higher reporting quality increases the stakeholders’ ability to monitor the managers’ decisions such as decisions to determine the number of Labor in firms. This study investigates the impact of two measures of financial reporting quality (accruals and disclosure quality) on Labor investment inefficiencies (over and under-investment) in a sample of 107 firms listed in the Tehran Stock Exchange during 2003 - 2014. The research result show the increase in accruals quality and disclosure quality decreases the Labor over and under-investments inefficiencies and eventually, companies employ more optimal levels of human resource.

The necessity of taking human capital and investment into account for economic analyses is clear to a large extent according to the relevant literature. Majority of the studies in this area have exclusively concentrated on the role of education with positive effect on increasing the productivity of Labor. However, Labor’s experience and health constitute the main part of human capital in addition to education. This research aims at the analysis of the role of the quality of Labor in connection with the effect of variables of Labor’s education, experience and health on economic growth. In this research, total production function has been used on the basis of Mincer Wage Equation to study 75 countries classified on the basis of income between 1960-2000 in panel data method. In high income countries, the results show a significant and positive effect of the variables of Labor’s education, experience and health (proxied by life expectancy) on economic growth. The result is the same in the middle income countries. In low income countries, only the variables of Labor’s education and experience have been efficient on economic growth.

Objective Drawing upon motivation theory and human resource theory, this study suggests that a high-quality workforce not only fulfills its responsibilities effectively but is also incentivized by the benefits provided by companies to such employees. The distinctive characteristics of a high-quality workforce contribute to the enhancement of corporate reporting by improving internal controls, strengthening corporate governance, and ensuring more transparent and accurate financial disclosures. Recent studies validate these assertions, establishing a relationship between workforce quality and the quality of financial reporting. Moreover, board members can play an indirect role in enhancing workforce quality by selecting and recruiting employees with desirable traits. Within this context, the present research aims to investigate the mediating effect of workforce quality on the relationship between board characteristics and financial reporting quality.   Methods This applied research adopts a descriptive-correlational approach to examine the relationships between the variables. The statistical sample, filtered based on specific criteria and constraints, consists of 105 companies listed on the Tehran Stock Exchange from 2013 to 2022. The hypotheses were tested using multivariate regression models. Results The analysis of the first three hypotheses reveals that board characteristics, specifically independence and gender diversity, have a significant positive effect on financial reporting quality. In contrast, board size exhibits a significant negative impact on financial reporting quality. The findings from the fourth to sixth hypotheses confirm that board characteristics such as independence, size, and gender diversity positively influence workforce quality. Furthermore, the results from the seventh to ninth hypotheses establish that workforce quality mediates the relationship between board independence, size, and gender diversity, and financial reporting quality. In particular, workforce quality fully mediates the relationship between board size and financial reporting quality, while it partially mediates the relationships involving board independence and gender diversity. Robustness testing further validated these results. Conclusion The research findings underscore the significant role of board characteristics, i.e., independence, size, and gender diversity, in enhancing workforce quality and improving financial reporting quality. A high-quality workforce mitigates the adverse effects of board size on financial reporting quality and positively influences corporate reporting. Consequently, the study emphasizes the importance of fostering a high-quality workforce, encouraging companies to prioritize workforce development and employee well-being. These findings highlight that workforce quality not only improves financial reporting but also promotes corporate growth and generates broader societal benefits by enhancing organizational focus on employee quality.

The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of using portulaca oleracea as a source of plant antioxidants for feeding fattening male lambs, on carcass traits, meat quality, and oxidative stability. Twenty-one male lambs with an average weight of 24±1.5 kg and 150±15 days old were fed with one of the experimental rations included a diet without portulaca oleracea as control, a diet containing 7.5%, and a diet containing 15% portulaca oleracea, for 84 days. The muscle (Longissimus dorsi) samplewas used to determine pH, chemical composition, colorimetric properties, and oxidative stability of meat. Meat lipid oxidation was determined after 1, 7, and 30 days of refrigerated storage using thiobarbituric acid (TBARS). The use of portulaca oleracea in diets improved meat color characteristics such as L, chroma, and Hue. The highest ash concentration and the lowest meat moisture were observed in the treatment of 15% portulaca oleracea (P<0.05). Meat pH was the lowest in the first hour after slaughter but did not differ at 24 h. Compared to the control, in both treatment groups feeding the lambs with portulaca significantly reduced the concentration of Malondialdehyde in the meat of the lambs and increased the meat oxidative stability (P<0.05). The results of this experiment showed that feeding portulaca oleracea by improving properties such as color and increasing the meat oxidative stability improves meat quality, which may have lead to an increase in its nutritional value in terms of human health.

Introduction: The aim of this study is to determine some of the maternal risk factors that lead to preterm delivery. Recognizing these risk factors makes it possible to prevent preterm Labors as the most frequent cause of neonatal morbidity and mortality. Materials and Methods: This is a descriptive-analytical research study. The data were collected from the recorded information in the files of mothers and preterm neonates that had been born in Bahman 22nd and Shahrivar 17th Hospitals in Mashhad during 2007-2009. The case group consists of 360 preterm deliveries (before week 37th of gestation). The control group consists of 360 term deliveries (after week 37th of gestation). In this study, some of the maternal risk factors leading to preterm Labor were taken into consideration. The criteria selected were: maternity age, previous abortions, number of previous pregnancies, preeclampsia, the number and gender of fetuses, diabetes and bacterial vaginitis. Also, UTI, the premature rupture of membrane (PROM) was extracted from the registration records. Using SPSS, the two groups were compared and the data were analyzed with the method of chi- square test.Results: In this study, the prevalence rate of preterm Labor was estimated as 6.1%. The findings suggest that maternal risk factors, such as diabetes, UTI, maternity age, the number of previous pregnancies and the gender of fetus did not cause any significant difference between the groups of the study, but we found significant p-value for the risk factors, such as bacterial vaginitis, PROM, preeclampsia, previous abortions, and the number of fetuses. Conclusion: We can reduce the incidence of preterm Labor as a result of which the rate of morbidity and mortality of preterm neonates would decrease. This can be materialize  through early diagnosis and treatment of maternal genitourinary infections, prevention of premature rupture (PROM) and preeclampsia as well as preventing repeated abortions and iatrogenic multiple gestation with induction of ovulation.