The moderating effects of outside directors on the relationship between managerial overconfidence and earnings management: evidence from Korea

    Min Geun Seo Info
    Sung Yong Yoon Info
DOI: https://doi.org/10.3846/jbem.2025.22034

Abstract

The subjective judgment and discretionary actions of a manager can influence the core strategy, investment, operations, and decision-making of a company. Managerial actions from the top, particularly the board, plays a vital role in addressing this inclination. While scholars have shown interest in examining managers’ overconfidence tendencies in recent years, few have explored the characteristics of the board members. According to the study, a high proportion of outside directors on the board of Korean companies has been observed to alleviate upward earnings management driven by managerial overconfidence. The obtained results emphasize the significance of the board of directors in enterprises and contribute to theories related to managerial characteristics. This study aims to bridge the research gap concerning managers’ tendencies of overconfidence while expanding the existing knowledge in this field. Firstly, this study aims to address the need to identify cognitive characteristics of managers. Secondly, it investigates the impact of the board of directors’ characteristics on managers’ tendencies towards overconfidence.

Keywords:

managerial overconfidence, outside directors, earnings management, board characteristics, management characteristics, corporate governance

How to Cite

Seo, M. G., & Yoon, S. Y. (2025). The moderating effects of outside directors on the relationship between managerial overconfidence and earnings management: evidence from Korea. Journal of Business Economics and Management, 26(4), 825–839. https://doi.org/10.3846/jbem.2025.22034

Share

Published in Issue
August 13, 2025
Abstract Views
121

References

Adams, R. B., & Ferreira, D. (2009). Women in the boardroom and their impact on governance and performance. Journal of Financial Economics, 94(2), 291–309. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jfineco.2008.10.007

Adams, R. B., Hermalin, B. E., & Weisbach, M. S. (2010). The role of boards of directors in corporate governance: A conceptual framework and survey. Journal of Economic Literature, 48(1), 58–107. https://doi.org/10.1257/jel.48.1.58

Ahmed, A. S., & Duellman, S. (2013). Managerial overconfidence and accounting conservatism. Journal of Accounting Research, 51(1), 1–30. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1475-679X.2012.00467.x

Alidadi, H., Abdoli, M., & Dehdar, F. (2023). CEO overconfidence and over investment: Role of exchange rate. Advances in Mathematical Finance and Applications, 8(3), 849–861. https://doi.org/10.22034/AMFA.2020.1900508.1434

Badertscher, B. A., Phillips, J. D., Pincus, M., & Rego, S. O. (2006). Tax implications of earnings management activities: Evidence from restatements. SSRN. https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.888564

Baker, M., & Wurgler, J. (2000). The equity share in new issues and aggregate stock returns. the Journal of Finance, 55(5), 2219–2257. https://doi.org/10.1111/0022-1082.00285

Ben-David, I., Graham, J. R., & Harvey, C. R. (2007). Managerial overconfidence and corporate policies (No. w13711). National Bureau of Economic Research. https://doi.org/10.3386/w13711

Ben-David, I., Graham, J. R., & Harvey, C. R. (2013). Managerial miscalibration. The Quarterly Journal of Economics, 128(4), 1547–1584. https://doi.org/10.1093/qje/qjt023

Bhojraj, S., Hribar, P., Picconi, M., & McInnis, J. (2009). Making sense of cents: An examination of firms that marginally miss or beat analyst forecasts. The Journal of Finance, 64(5), 2361–2388. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1540-6261.2009.01503.x

Brown, R., & Sarma, N. (2007). CEO overconfidence, CEO dominance and corporate acquisitions. Journal of Economics and Business, 59(5), 358–379. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jeconbus.2007.04.002

Buckmaster, D. (1997). Antecedents of modern earnings management research: Income smoothing in literature, 1954–1965. Accounting Historians Journal, 24(1), 75–91. https://doi.org/10.2308/0148-4184.24.1.75

Burkhard, B., Sirén, C., van Essen, M., Grichnik, D., & Shepherd, D. A. (2023). Nothing ventured, nothing gained: A meta-analysis of CEO overconfidence, strategic risk taking, and performance. Journal of Management, 49(8), 2629–2666. https://doi.org/10.1177/01492063221110203

Daily, C. M., & Dalton, D. R. (1995). CEO and director turnover in failing firms: An illusion of change?. Strategic Management Journal, 16(5), 393–400. https://doi.org/10.1002/smj.4250160505

Daily, C. M., & Dalton, D. R. (1993). Board of directors leadership and structure: Control and performance implications. Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, 17(3), 65–81. https://doi.org/10.1177/104225879301700

Daily, C. M., Dalton, D. R., & Cannella Jr, A. A. (2003). Corporate governance: Decades of dialogue and data. Academy of Management Review, 28(3), 371–382. https://doi.org/10.5465/amr.2003.10196703

Dalton, D. R., Daily, C. M., Ellstrand, A. E., & Johnson, J. L. (1998). Meta‐analytic reviews of board composition, leadership structure, and financial performance. Strategic Management Journal, 19(3), 269–290. https://doi.org/10.1002/(SICI)1097-0266(199803)19:3<269::AID-SMJ950>3.0.CO;2-K

DeAngelo, L. E. (1981). Auditor size and audit quality. Journal of Accounting and Economics, 3(3), 183–199. https://doi.org/10.1016/0165-4101(81)90002-1

DeAngelo, H., DeAngelo, L., & Skinner, D. J. (1994). Accounting choice in troubled companies. Journal of Accounting and Economics, 17(1–2), 113–143. https://doi.org/10.1016/0165-4101(94)90007-8

Dechow, P. M., Sloan, R. G., & Sweeney, A. P. (1995). Detecting earnings management. Accounting Review, 70(2), 193–225. https://www.jstor.org/stable/248303

Dechow, P. M., Sloan, R. G., & Sweeney, A. P. (1996). Causes and consequences of earnings manipulation: An analysis of firms subject to enforcement actions by the SEC. Contemporary Accounting Research, 13(1), 1–36. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1911-3846.1996.tb00489.x

Dechow, P. M., Hutton, A. P., & Sloan, R. G. (2000). The relation between analysts’ forecasts of long‐term earnings growth and stock price performance following equity offerings. Contemporary Accounting Research, 17(1), 1–32. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1911-3846.2000.tb00908.x

Eisenberg, T., Sundgren, S., & Wells, M. T. (1998). Larger board size and decreasing firm value in small firms. Journal of Financial Economics, 48(1), 35–54. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0304-405X(98)00003-8

Fama, E. F., & Jensen, M. C. (1983). Separation of ownership and control. The Journal of Law and Economics, 26(2), 301–325. https://doi.org/10.1086/467037

Finkelstein, S., & D’aveni, R. A. (1994). CEO duality as a double-edged sword: How boards of directors balance entrenchment avoidance and unity of command. Academy of Management Journal, 37(5), 1079–1108. https://doi.org/10.5465/256667

Finkelstein, S., & Mooney, A. C. (2003). Not the usual suspects: How to use board process to make boards better. Academy of Management Perspectives, 17(2), 101–113. https://doi.org/10.5465/ame.2003.10025204

Galariotis, E., Louca, C., Petmezas, D., & Wang, S. (2023). Agency cost of debt and inside debt: The role of CEO overconfidence. British Journal of Management, 34(3), 1606–1631. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-8551.12661

Gerged, A. M., Albitar, K., & Al‐Haddad, L. (2023). Corporate environmental disclosure and earnings management – The moderating role of corporate governance structures. International Journal of Finance & Economics, 28(3), 2789–2810. https://doi.org/10.1002/ijfe.2564

Godfrey, J., Mather, P., & Ramsay, A. (2003). Earnings and impression management in financial reports: The case of CEO changes. Abacus, 39(1), 95–123. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-6281.00122

Gu, W. (2023). Impact of managers’ overconfidence upon listed firms’ entrepreneurial behavior in an emerging market. Journal of Business Research, 155, Article 113453. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2022.113453

Graham, J. R., Harvey, C. R., & Puri, M. (2015). Capital allocation and delegation of decision-making authority within firms. Journal of Financial Economics, 115(3), 449–470. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jfineco.2014.10.011

Hambrick, D. C., & Fredrickson, J. W. (2001). Are you sure you have a strategy? Academy of Management Executive, 15(4), 48–59. https://doi.org/10.5465/ame.2005.19417907

Hayward, M. L., & Hambrick, D. C. (1997). Explaining the premiums paid for large acquisitions: Evidence of CEO hubris. Administrative Science Quarterly, 42(1), 103–127. https://doi.org/10.2307/2393810

Heaton, J. B. (2002). Managerial optimism and corporate finance. Financial Management, 31(2), 33–45. https://doi.org/10.2307/3666221

Healy, P. M. (1985). The effect of bonus schemes on accounting decisions. Journal of Accounting and Economics, 7(1–3), 85–107. https://doi.org/10.1016/0165-4101(85)90029-1

Healy, P. M., & Wahlen, J. M. (1999). A review of the earnings management literature and its implications for standard setting. Accounting Horizons, 13(4), 365–383. https://doi.org/10.2308/acch.1999.13.4.365

Heath, C., & Tversky, A. (1991). Preference and belief: Ambiguity and competence in choice under uncertainty. Journal of Risk and Uncertainty, 4(1), 5–28. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00057884

Heavey, C., Simsek, Z., Fox, B. C., & Hersel, M. C. (2022). Executive confidence: A multidisciplinary review, synthesis, and agenda for future research. Journal of Management, 48(6), 1430–1468. https://doi.org/10.1177/01492063211062566

Hermalin, B., & Weisbach, M. S. (2001). Boards of directors as an endogenously determined institution: A survey of the economic literature (Working paper 8161). National Bureau of Economic Research. https://doi.org/10.3386/w8161

Hermalin, B. E., & Weisbach, M. S. (2012). Information disclosure and corporate governance. Journal of Finance, 67(1), 195-233. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1540-6261.2011.01710.x

Hitt, M. A., Ireland, R. D., & Hoskisson, R. E. (2019). Strategic management: Concepts and cases. Competitiveness and globalization. Cengage Learning.

Hillman, A. J., & Dalziel, T. (2003). Boards of directors and firm performance: Integrating agency and resource dependence perspectives. Academy of Management Review, 28(3), 383–396. https://doi.org/10.5465/amr.2003.10196729

Hribar, P., & Yang, H. (2016). CEO overconfidence and management forecasting. Contemporary Accounting Research, 33(1), 204–227. https://doi.org/10.1111/1911-3846.12144

Jensen, M. C. (1986). Agency costs of free cash flow, corporate finance, and takeovers. The American Economic Review, 76(2), 323–329. https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.99580

Jones, J. J. (1991). Earnings management during import relief investigations. Journal of Accounting Research, 29(2), 193–228. https://doi.org/10.2307/2491047

Kothari, S. P., Leone, A. J., & Wasley, C. E. (2005). Performance matched discretionary accrual measures. Journal of Accounting and Economics, 39(1), 163–197. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jacceco.2004.11.002

Kumar, J., & Prince, N. (2023). Overconfidence bias in investment decisions: A systematic mapping of literature and future research topics. FIIB Business Review. https://doi.org/10.1177/23197145231174344

Lee, J. M., Park, J. C., & Chen, G. (2023). A cognitive perspective on real options investment: CEO overconfidence. Strategic Management Journal, 44(4), 1084–1110. https://doi.org/10.1002/smj.3469

Le, Q. L., & Nguyen, H. A. (2023). The impact of board characteristics and ownership structure on earnings management: Evidence from a frontier market. Cogent Business & Management, 10(1), Article 2159748. https://doi.org/10.1080/23311975.2022.2159748

Malmendier, U., & Tate, G. (2005). CEO overconfidence and corporate investment. The Journal of Finance, 60(6), 2661–2700. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1540-6261.2005.00813.x

Malmendier, U., & Tate, G. (2008). Who makes acquisitions? CEO overconfidence and the market’s reaction. Journal of Financial Economics, 89(1), 20–43. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jfineco.2007.07.002

Malmendier, U., Tate, G., & Yan, J. (2011). Overconfidence and early‐life experiences: The effect of managerial traits on corporate financial policies. The Journal of Finance, 66(5), 1687–1733. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1540-6261.2011.01685.x

Moore, D. A., & Cain, D. M. (2007). Overconfidence and underconfidence: When and why people underestimate (and overestimate) the competition. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 103(2), 197–213. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.obhdp.2006.09.002

Payne, J. L., & Robb, S. W. (2000). Earnings management: The effect of ex ante earnings expectations. Journal of Accounting, Auditing & Finance, 15(4), 371–392. https://doi.org/10.1177/0148558X0001500401

Pavićević, S., & Keil, T. (2021). The role of procedural rationality in debiasing acquisition decisions of overconfident CEOs. Strategic Management Journal, 42(9), 1696–1715. https://doi.org/10.1002/smj.3319

Pourciau, S. (1993). Earnings management and nonroutine executive changes. Journal of Accounting and Economics, 16(1–3), 317–336. https://doi.org/10.1016/0165-4101(93)90015-8

Roll, R. (1986). The hubris hypothesis of corporate takeovers. Journal of Business, 59(2), 197–216. http://dx.doi.org/10.1086/296325

Rosenstein, S., & Wyatt, J. G. (1990). Outside directors, board independence, and shareholder wealth. Journal of Financial Economics, 26(2), 175–191. https://doi.org/10.1016/0304-405X(90)90002-H

Schipper, K. (1989). Earnings management. Accounting Horizons, 3(4), 91. http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/9781118266298.ch24

Schrand, C. M., & Zechman, S. L. (2012). Executive overconfidence and the slippery slope to financial misreporting. Journal of Accounting and Economics, 53(1–2), 311–329. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jacceco.2011.09.001

Seo, M. G. (2022). Association between CEO overconfidence and income-increasing earnings management: Moderating effect of external audit quality and CEO power. Pusan National University. http://uci.or.kr/I804:21016-000000154194

Seo, M, G. & Lee, C, H. (2021). The effect of managerial overconfidence on cost stickiness: The manufacturing and non-manufacturing industries in the securities market. Tax Accounting Research, 68, 57–83. https://doi.org.10.35349/tar.2021..68.003

Strong, J. S., & Meyer, J. R. (1987). Asset writedowns: Managerial incentives and security returns. The Journal of Finance, 42(3), 643–661. https://doi.org/10.2307/2328376

Sutrisno, P., Utama, S., Hermawan, A. A., & Fatima, E. (2023). Do founder CEOs and overconfidence affect firm risk?. Accounting Research Journal, 36(4/5), 434–452. https://doi.org/10.1108/ARJ-09-2022-0234

Tversky, A., & Kahneman, D. (1974). Judgment under uncertainty: Heuristics and biases. Biases in judgments reveal some heuristics of thinking under uncertainty. Science, 185(4157), 1124–1131. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.185.4157.1124

Usman, M., & Yahaya, O. A. (2023). Do corporate governance mechanisms improve earnings. China Journal of Accounting Research, 16, 1–13.

Vafeas, N., Vlittis, A., Katranis, P., & Ockree, K. (2003). Earnings management around share repurchases: A note. Abacus, 39(2), 262–272. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-6281.00130

Yermack, D. (1996). Higher market valuation of companies with a small board of directors. Journal of Financial Economics, 40(2), 185–211. https://doi.org/10.1016/0304-405X(95)00844-5

Zalata, A. M., Ntim, C. G., Alsohagy, M. H., & Malagila, J. (2022). Gender diversity and earnings management: The case of female directors with financial background. Review of Quantitative Finance and Accounting, 58(1), 101–136. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11156-021-00991-4

View article in other formats

CrossMark check

CrossMark logo

Published

2025-08-13

Issue

Section

Articles

How to Cite

Seo, M. G., & Yoon, S. Y. (2025). The moderating effects of outside directors on the relationship between managerial overconfidence and earnings management: evidence from Korea. Journal of Business Economics and Management, 26(4), 825–839. https://doi.org/10.3846/jbem.2025.22034

Share