Susan Shu
Professor of Accounting / Director of the Ph.D. Program
Ernst & Young Faculty Fellow
Susan Shu's research interests include corporate disclosure, media, social media, security litigation under U.S. securities laws, insider trading, and economics of auditor-client alignments. Her research has appeared in leading academic journals such as Journal of Accounting and Economics, Journal of Financial Economics, Journal of Accounting Research, and The Accounting Review. In 2014 Professor Shu received the prestigious Notable Contributions to Accounting Literature Award from the American Accounting Association for her (coauthored) paper "Do Managers Withhold Bad News?
EDUCATION
Ph.D. and M.S.: University of Rochester
B.S.: University of Dubuque
HONORS AND AWARDS
Winner of Notable Contribution to Accounting Literature Award for “Do managers withhold bad news?” 2014.
E. Yetton Prize of Best Paper Award for “Properties of implied cost of capital using analysts’ forecasts” Australian Journal of Management 2011.
Research Incentive Grants, Boston College, 2001, 2003, 2006, 2010
Ernst & Young Faculty Fellowship, 2015-2017
Kathleen Fruin Corbet Fellowship, 2024- 2025
Ernst & Young Faculty Fellowship, 2025-
PUBLICATIONS
Media exposure and corporate labor investment decisions (with Vishal Baloria and Alvis Lo).
The Accounting Review (2025) 100 (3): 79–105
Motivational optimism and short-term investment efficiency (with Meng Li and Stan Markov). The Accounting Review (2023) 98 (5), 429-454.
https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=4303201
Does tax enforcement deter managers' self-dealing? (with Ben Yost). Journal of Accounting and Economics 74 (2022). Issue 1, 101512.
https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3643129
Regulatory transparency and the alignment of private and public enforcement: Evidence from the public disclosure of SEC comment letters (with Amy Hutton and Xin Zheng). Journal of Financial Economics 145 (2022). Issue 1, 297-321.
https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3684840
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jfineco.2021.07.011
Can social media distort price discovery? Evidence from merger rumors (with Weishi Jia, Giulia Redigolo, and Jingran Zhao). Journal of Accounting and Economics 70 (2020), Issue 1, 101334
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jacceco.2020.101334
https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2999956
Are all perks solely perks? Evidence from corporate jets (with Lian Fen Lee and Michelle Lowry). Journal of Corporate Finance 48 (2018), 460-473.
Media mention: Wall Street Journal. November 20, 2017
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcorpfin.2017.11.014
https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2259560
The role of social media in the capital market: Evidence from consumer product recalls (with Amy Hutton and Lian Fen Lee). Journal of Accounting Research 53 (2015), No. 2, 367-404.
Top cited articles contributing to the 2020 5-year impact factor
https://doi.org/10.1111/1475-679X.12074
https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2557212
The insurance hypothesis: an examination of KPMG’s audit clients (with Billy Soo, Greg Trompeter, and Darryl Brown). Auditing: A Journal of Practice and Theory 32 (2013), No. 4, 1-24.
Do managers always know better? The relative accuracy of management and analyst forecasts (with Amy Hutton and Lian Fen Lee). Journal of Accounting Research 50 (2012), 1217–1244.
"Most Accessed Article” in 2013 in Journal of Accounting and Research
Properties of implied cost of capital using analysts’ forecasts (with Wayne Guay and S. P. Kothari). Australian Journal of Management 36 (2011), 125-149.
Winner of E. Yetton Prize of Best Paper Award
Do managers withhold bad news? (with S. P. Kothari and Peter Wysocki). Journal of Accounting Research 47 (2009), 475-679.
Winner of Notable Contribution to Accounting Literature Award 2014
Does disclosure deter or trigger litigation? (with Michelle Lowry and Laura Field). Journal of Accounting and Economics 39 (2005), 487-507.
Litigation risk and IPO underpricing (with Michelle Lowry). Journal of Financial Economics 65 (2002), 309-335.
Auditor resignations: clientele effects and legal liability. Journal of Accounting and Economics 29 (2000), 173-205.
SELECT WORKING PAPERS
Results-oriented culture and SEC investigations (with Kevin Yeung and Meiling Zhao).
Beyond disclosure: Signaling corporate ties on social media (with Sean Cao, Lijun Lei, and Enshuai Yu).
Do Consumers Bear the Cost of Environmental Regulation? Evidence from the NOx Budget Trading Program (with Xiaoqiao Wang, Cheng Yin, and Zilong Zhang).
Media attention, political risk, and stock repurchases (with Vishal Baloria, Alvis Lo, and Enshuai Yu).
The benefits and costs of transparent supervision of public banks: Evidence from the disclosure of SEC Comment Letters (with Amy Hutton, Yupeng Lin, Ira Yeung, and Xin Zheng).