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on Confederation of Independent States |
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Issue of 2019‒01‒21
eighteen papers chosen by |
| By: | Roman Yu. Pochekaev (National Research University Higher School of Economics) |
| Abstract: | This paper is devoted to the characteristics of the city of New Bukhara, the “capital” of the Russian settlements in the Bukharan Emirate. It was originally established as a station on the Trans-Caspian railway but soon transformed into the Russian business and cultural center in the Emirate. It had specific status being a Russian enclave in the Bukharan Emirate which was de jure an independent state. However, the information on this city is contradictory. Some visitors stated in their notes and memoirs that it was a large city with well-developed infrastructure, others characterized it as a little settlement, “a poky hole” without any common features with towns of Russia and Europe. According to other materials New Bukhara was the real administrative center of Russian settlements in the Bukharan Emirate, while others state that it was only the residence of the Russian diplomatic representative in the Emirate. The author analyzes legal documents, other official information, notes from travelers and another contemporaries to establish a view on the real New Bukhara, to answer the question on status of New Bukhara in the Bukharan Emirate and in the Russian Empire |
| Keywords: | Russian Empire, Khivan Khanate, Russian Central Asia, Bukharan Emirate, New Bukhara, Russian Political Agency, Russian and Western travelers in the Central Asia |
| Date: | 2018 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hig:wpaper:86/law/2018&r=all |
| By: | Vugar Ahmadov (Central Bank of Azerbaijan Republic); Ulvi Sarkarli (Central Bank of Azerbaijan Republic); Ramiz Rahmanov (Central Bank of Azerbaijan Republic) |
| Abstract: | This study aims to analyze discretionary fiscal policy in Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, and Russia for the period of 2003-2015 using structural fiscal balance (SBB). SBB takes into the consideration the permanent component of oil revenue and therefore clearly defines the discretionary fiscal position and the aggregate demand effect of fiscal policy. The structural balances in Azerbaijan and Russia experience deficit for the most of the analyzed period. The moderate level of SBB surplus is observed in Kazakhstan. The estimated SBBs also demonstrate that fiscal policies tend to be mainly pro-cyclical in Kazakhstan and Russia. Azerbaijan conducted counter-cyclical fiscal policy for the half of the investigated period. Moreover, governments gave more importance to economic stabilization in 2009 due to the global financial crises. |
| Keywords: | fiscal policy, structural budget balance, oil-rich countries, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Russia |
| JEL: | E62 H60 |
| Date: | 2017–12–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:aze:wpaper:1704&r=all |
| By: | Csaba Weiner (Institute of World Economics, Centre for Economic and Regional Studies, Hungarian Academy of Sciences) |
| Abstract: | Investigating the Russian economic footprint through outward foreign direct investment (OFDI) and the activities of Russian multinationals has not become either outdated or less interesting, even though, understandably, most of the current attention on Russian influence in Europe has been focused on direct interference in political affairs. This paper is the second of a four-part series that outlines the international expansion of Russian multinationals in five EU-member Central and East European (CEE) states, i.e., the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Slovakia and Slovenia. Here, the focus is on the pull factors responsible for Russian FDI inflows into these countries, as well as on the sectors in which investments are made. In doing so, the research relies on company data analysed using Dunning’s eclectic paradigm of international production and his typology of four motives behind FDI. We find that most Russian FDI has been done in hydrocarbons, iron, steel and machinery, but banking, software solutions, electronic production, real estate and even the light industry have also been targeted. Investment is dominated by market-seeking and, to a lesser extent, efficiency-seeking projects carried out by state-owned or state-related private firms. There are a limited number of innovative private Russian companies on the market that show features similar to those of multinationals from developed countries. |
| Keywords: | outward foreign direct investment, multinational enterprises, pull factors, Russia, Europe, Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Slovakia, Slovenia |
| JEL: | D22 F23 M16 |
| Date: | 2018–11 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iwe:workpr:250&r=all |
| By: | Aleksandra V. Chirkova (National Research University Higher School of Economics); Daria A. Ageeva (National Research University Higher School of Economics); Evgeny A. Khvalkov (National Research University Higher School of Economics) |
| Abstract: | The present study is devoted to the research into a set of the Venetian lettere ducali to the Marquises d’Este of the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries collected by N.P. Likhachev (1862-1936), Member of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR, stored in the Western European section of the Saint Petersburg Institute of History of the Russian Academy of Sciences and the preparation of their full-text critical publication. The lettere ducali are an excellent source to study the Serenissima and its continental and overseas domains. The source material of the Venetian lettere ducali have long and not without reason been considered and actively investigated by researchers as one of the most important sources on the economic, social, political, legal, environmental, cultural, and ethnic history of Venice. In addition, Venetian sources often provide researchers with important material on the history of other states of the Italian Peninsula, including, in our case, the domains of d’Este. This explains the exceptional importance of studying lettere ducali as the most important source on the history of the Western European Middle Ages and early modern times. This study revealed historical material on the specific cities and regions of Italy (Venice, Treviso, Ferrara, Verona, Padua, the Po Delta), as well as the Venetian colonies in the Mediterranean (Crete, Cyprus) and the Adriatic (Shkodra, Dalmatian Coast), history of international relations, history of economic relations, history of everyday life, history of state institutions and international law, history of a medieval document, history of Latin writing |
| Keywords: | History of Italy, 14th – 16th centuries, Venetian Republic, Terraferma, Mediterranean Sea, Treviso, Ferrara, Doges of Venice, chancery, diplomatic, Latin paleography, international relations, trade, diplomacy. |
| JEL: | Z |
| Date: | 2018 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hig:wpaper:174/hum/2018&r=all |
| By: | Kseniia Semykina (National Research University Higher School of Economics) |
| Abstract: | The article analyses representation of LGBT-movement activity, namely Saint Petersburg LGBT prides, in Russia. Framing theory, which views the media as an arena in which groups of interest promote their frames, or interpretations of the discussed issue, is used. Frames juxtapose elements of the text in such a way as to provide the audience with a scheme to perceive the message. Social movements are viewed as a group of interest that introduces new frames in the public deliberation. Two types of frames can be distinguished, namely collective action frames and status quo frames. In this study, usage of two collective action frames were examined (equality frame and victim frame), and two status quo frames (morality frame and propaganda of homosexuality). Additionally, the sources of quotes used in news stories were analyzed. The study focuses on articles dedicated to Saint Petersburg LGBT prides in years 2010-2017 in the most popular local Internet websites. The analysis shows that the coverage of LGBT prides can be divided into two distinct periods: 2010–2013 and 2014–2017. In the first period, LGBT activists dominated the coverage, quoted about twice more actively than government officials. Equality and victim frames were prevalent. In the second period, activists were cited significantly less often, with the propaganda of homosexuality frame dominating in the discourse. However, contrary to findings of previous studies on social movement representation, across the whole period under consideration LGBT activists were quoted more actively than government representatives. This finding calls for further exploration of the conditions which allowed for such coverage in the context of political heterosexism and homophobia. |
| Keywords: | framing, media, LGBT prides, Russia, Saint-Petersburg |
| JEL: | L |
| Date: | 2018 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hig:wpaper:81/soc/2018&r=all |
| By: | Aleksandra V. Chirkova (National Research University Higher School of Economics); Evgeny A. Khvalkov (National Research University Higher School of Economics) |
| Abstract: | The present study is aimed at the research of the set of the Venetian lettere ducali of the fourteenth to mid-sixteenth centuries and the preparation of their full-text publication. Due to their diplomatic and paleographic characteristics, the lettere ducali stored in St. Petersburg are an example of a fairly well-developed chancery production, despite the chancery still being in the process of institutionalization at that point. At the same time, the lettere ducali are among the most widespread varieties of the documents issued by the Venetian Doges at that time. In this regard, the clarification of the criteria of authenticity and attributive features of these letters is the most urgent purpose of the project, given that the systematic publication and sequential study of the lettere ducali of the fourteenth to sixteenth centuries are yet to be done in the future. As regards the medieval and early modern chancery activity in the Venetian Republic, only the period up to the thirteenth century has been studied well enough; as for the later times, only minor sets of the authentic lettere ducali have been published. The documents in question from the manuscript collection of N.P. Likhachev (1862-1936), Member of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR, have never been published, and went almost unnoticed in the scholarly discourse. The publication of these documents will allow the medievalists the study of the previously unknown sources. The extensive study of the diplomatic and paleographic peculiarities of the letters, their description and visualization, their attribution and the transcription of the notes of the scribes will provide the researchers of the given period with the tools of the historical criticism of this variety of documents. The preliminary outcomes of the research and the deep analysis of certain case studies found in the manuscripts are to be presented as scholarly articles in double-blind peer-reviewed journals, as well as in conference proceedings |
| Keywords: | History of Italy, 14th – 16th centuries, Venetian Republic, Terraferma, Mediterranean Sea, Treviso, Ferrara, Doges of Venice, chancery, diplomatic, Latin paleography, international relations, trade, diplomacy. |
| JEL: | Z |
| Date: | 2018 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hig:wpaper:173/hum/2018&r=all |
| By: | Yulia V. Kuzmina (National Research University Higher School of Economics); Diana N. Kaiky (National Research University Higher School of Economics); Alina E. Ivanova (National Research University Higher School of Economics) |
| Abstract: | Math achievement is affected by social factors such as socioeconomic status (SES) and domain-general cognitive factors such as phonological ability. Little is known how the effects of cognitive factors change depending on social factors during development. This study focuses on the estimation of the effect of phonological ability on math achievement during the first year of schooling and testing the hypothesis that this effect varied depending on students SES. To achieve our aims we used two-wave longitudinal study which was conducted on large sample of first-graders (N= 2,948) in the Tatar Republic (Russia). Participants were assessed twice, at the beginning and at the end of the first grade (mean age was 7.3 years at Time 1). The item response theory (IRT) scaling procedure was used to estimate individual scores in math, number identification, phonology and reading. In order to estimate the effect of phonological ability and SES on math performance, mixed-effect longitudinal models were applied. The results revealed that phonological ability had a significant positive effect on math achievement even when reading achievement, number identification and SES were controlled for. Among SES dimensions only maternal education had an effect on math achievement and its improvement. The effect of phonological ability was higher for students with a larger number of books at home and who used more than one language at home |
| Keywords: | iPIPS; math achievement; phonological ability; socioeconomic status; moderators |
| JEL: | Z |
| Date: | 2018 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hig:wpaper:104psy2018&r=all |
| By: | George Moroz (National Research University Higher School of Economics); Antonina Plaskovitskaya (National Research University Higher School of Economics); Pavel Rudnev (National Research University Higher School of Economics) |
| Abstract: | The present paper applies Multiple Correspondence Analysis to test the validity of an existing theoretical model of the phonological system of Russian Sign Language (RSL). We show that comparing the importance of phonological features using ratio plots and MCA is a promising way of revealing non-binary oppositions in phonological systems of human languages irrespective of modality. |
| Keywords: | phonology, phonological features, sign languages, Multiple Correspondence Analysis, Russian Sign Language |
| JEL: | Z |
| Date: | 2018 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hig:wpaper:74/lng/2018&r=all |
| By: | Alexander Piperski (National Research University Higher School of Economics); Ekaterina Aplonova (National Research University Higher School of Economics); Maria Grabovskaya (National Research University Higher School of Economics); Ekaterina Gridneva (National Research University Higher School of Economics); Elizaveta Ivtushok (National Research University Higher School of Economics); Viktoria Naumova (National Research University Higher School of Economics); Anastasia Orlenko (National Research University Higher School of Economics); Diana Senkina (National Research University Higher School of Economics) |
| Abstract: | This paper discusses terms of address that are used in Russian child-parent communication focusing on the gender of the speakers. The data for the study come from a large-scale online survey completed by 1103 subjects. We identify 10 basic patterns of addressing parents and six basic patterns of addressing children. The results show that females tend to use more suffixed forms when addressing their parents, whereas males are inclined to use harsher-sounding forms of address like batja ‘father (informal)’. When addressing their children, females use suffixed diminutive forms and animal names more frequently than males |
| Keywords: | Russian, politeness, sociolinguistics, terms of address, gender, child-parent communication |
| JEL: | Z |
| Date: | 2018 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hig:wpaper:69/lng/2018&r=all |
| By: | Anna G. Klezovich (National Research University Higher School of Economics); Kirill A. Aksenov (National Research University Higher School of Economics) |
| Abstract: | This work aims at investigating the word order within the nominal domain in Russian Sign Language (RSL) with respect to Universal 20 and a hierarchy of adjectives. Universal 20 proposed by Greenberg (1963) postulates that there are three possibilities of the word order in the noun phrase, namely Demonstrative > Numeral > Adjective > Noun, Noun > Demonstrative > Numeral > Adjective, and Noun > Adjective > Numeral > Demonstrative. Later Cinque (2005) extended the definition of Universal 20 by proposing that actually 14 word orders can be derived from the base-generated word order Demonstrative > Numeral > Adjective > Noun, and, therefore, 14 word orders are acceptable. In addition to that, Scott (2002) proposed that adjectives of different semantic types also have a universal order. In this work we compare RSL data with these hierarchies and conclude that the underlying word order in RSL conforms to Scott's (2002) hierarchy and to Cinque's (2005) definition of Universal 20. In order to derive the underlying word order for RSL we explore which word orders are acceptable, which are unacceptable, and which of the attested word orders are the most neutral. Moreover, we explain the variability of the attested in RSL word orders with the number of modifiers by noun (single modifiers occur in preposition more often than multiple modifiers). |
| Keywords: | linguistic universals, Universal 20, adjectives hierarchy, noun phrase, word order, Russian Sign Language, sign languages. |
| JEL: | Z |
| Date: | 2018 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hig:wpaper:72/lng/2018&r=all |
| By: | Anastasiya B. Khazova (National Research University Higher School of Economics) |
| Abstract: | The article deals with the method of automatic detection of authors ' gender identity on the material of fiction prose of 1980-2000. During this period, there is a special construct, called "women's prose", which is characterized by a special genre and stylistic originality. We set ourselves the task to find out whether the concept of “women's prose” refers only to the non-text reality or is clearly reflected at the level of language. We have collected corpus of texts 1980-2000 and conducted that identified the most effective machine learning algorithms for the classification of male and female prose |
| Keywords: | women’s prose, fiction, classification, gender, identity. |
| JEL: | Z |
| Date: | 2018 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hig:wpaper:71/lng/2018&r=all |
| By: | Amat Adarov (The Vienna Institute for International Economic Studies, wiiw); Mahdi Ghodsi (The Vienna Institute for International Economic Studies, wiiw); Domenico M. Nuti; Oliver Reiter (The Vienna Institute for International Economic Studies, wiiw) |
| Abstract: | Graph of the month Russia’s trade reorientation EU versus China, 2014 and 2017 (p. 1) Opinion corner Italy three cheers for democracy! (by Domenico M. Nuti, pp. 2-6) The New Silk Road companion or competitor to the EU and the EAEU? (by Amat Adarov; pp. 7‑13) Is Austria’s economy still locked-in in the CESEE region? Austria’s competitiveness at the micro level (by Mahdi Ghodsi; pp. 14-19) Effects of non-tariff measures on gross exports and value added exports (by Oliver Reiter; pp. 20‑23) Statistical Annex Monthly and quarterly statistics for Central, East and Southeast Europe (pp. 24‑45) Index of subjects (pp. 46-47) |
| Keywords: | trade reorientation, populism, migration, euro area imbalances, Belt and Road Initiative, ‘integration of integrations’, ‘lock-in-effect’, total factor productivity, firm-level competitiveness, non-tariff measures, exports, gravity model |
| Date: | 2018–08 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:wii:mpaper:mr:2018-07-08&r=all |
| By: | Vugar Rahimov (Central Bank of Azerbaijan Republic); Nigar Jafarova (Central Bank of Azerbaijan Republic) |
| Abstract: | In this study, we explore the pass-through of exchange rate fluctuations to domestic CPI inflation and its components in Azerbaijan. Using the data of 2003:Q1-2016:Q2, we estimate a VAR model and find significant but incomplete pass-through. The accumulated pass-through to aggregate CPI inflation is 28 percent within one year. According to our empirical findings, the largest pass-through (ERPT) is observed in the non-food component of CPI inflation which is 41 percent after twelve months period. Since the ERPT is an essential ingredient of price developments in Azerbaijan, it should be assessed precisely and taken into account in monetary policy decisions and inflation forecasting. |
| Keywords: | Exchange rate pass-through, VAR model, disaggregated CPI, oil exporting countries |
| JEL: | F31 E31 E52 C51 C52 |
| Date: | 2017–02–09 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:aze:wpaper:1701&r=all |
| By: | Iluta Arbidane (Rezekne Academy of Technologies); Iveta Mietule (Rezekne Academy of Technologies) |
| Abstract: | Activities in the field of agriculture deal with plants and animals constituting biological assets of the sector. From the point of view of accounting and valuation, biological assets is a scarcely investigated topic in Latvia, as well the object of the research only in general terms is reflected in Latvian legislation. That leads to confusion and uncertainty in evaluation and accounting of biological assets in the practical accounting. The subject of the study: evaluation and accounting of biological assets. The aim of the study is to explore and analyse problems of accounting and evaluation of biological assets in Latvia and to propose solutions. One of the research tasks is to explore the current legal base for evaluation and accounting of biological assets provided in the national legislation, to evaluate how it complies with the international accounting standards and to analyse the experience of other countries. The challenging issues of evaluation and accounting of biological assets in Latvia are defined in the research, possible solutions for improving the quality of accounting of biological assets are developed proposing the necessary amendments to the legislation and revisions to the methodological documents. Methods of the research: monographic/descriptive method, document analysis, and graphical analysis. |
| Keywords: | biological assets,evaluation,accounting,agricultural |
| Date: | 2018–09–30 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hal:journl:hal-01947873&r=all |
| By: | Cheng, John W.; Mitomo, Hitoshi |
| Abstract: | This study quantitatively examines how the term 'fake news' is being portrayed by the Japanese news media using semantic network analysis. It uses newspapers as the representative as they are still one of the most influential news media in Japan. The data set consists of 624 newspaper articles that contain the word 'fake news' in Japanese and its equivalents extracted from the five national Japanese newspapers between 2015 and 2017. The analysis results have revealed six main themes within the articles. They show that fake news is mainly portrayed as an American problem that it is mainly associated with 'news about the US President,' 'the Trump-Russian inquiry,' and the 'media reportage of the US President.' On top of that, fake news is also portrayed an 'informational problem' that affects society through 'human-Internet interaction' and it has some 'implications for Japan' as well. |
| Keywords: | fake news,media portrayal,news media,content analysis,semantic network analysis |
| Date: | 2018 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:itsb18:190384&r=all |
| By: | Inna I. Koblianska (Sumy National Agrarian University, Sumy, Ukraine); Larysa I. Kalachevska (Sumy National Agrarian University, Sumy, Ukraine) |
| Abstract: | In the light of the Sustainable Development (SD) concept, the eco-innovation promotion becomes the central issue of innovation regulation. Given the strategic significance of SD goals for Ukraine and ongoing powers decentralization reform, it is desirable to study the capacity of regional and local authorities to form a proper incentive environment for the sustainable community’s development on innovation (eco-innovation) basis. The conducted analysis shows a limited capacity of regional and local bodies to set drivers of the eco-innovation development in motion. The need to extend the authorities’ powers in the field of resource prices and local tax rates setting and to strengthen the environmental orientation of existing innovation regulation tools is emphasized, in order to improve the regional innovation policy in Ukraine. |
| Keywords: | innovation policy, sustainable development, regional policy, eco-innovation, eco-innovation drivers |
| JEL: | O38 O31 Q01 Q58 R5 |
| Date: | 2019–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:sko:wpaper:bep-2019-01&r=all |
| By: | Rybacki, Jakub; Kowalski, Arkadiusz Michał |
| Abstract: | Based on β and σ convergence analysis, we find high persistence of technological gap for international innovation indices reported by the European Commission. Our research confirms the diverging scientific potential across the analyzed economies. On the other hand, estimation provides the evidence of convergence in case of R&D expenses and relative position on global technological frontier. We propose a simple fixed effect panel regression measuring relative innovativeness potential. Our model suggests that current ranking leaders i.e. Nordic countries (Sweden, Denmark and Finland) and Germany are likely to further outpace the United States. Central and Eastern Europe countries are achieving greatest relative gains, but are unlikely to exceed 70% of US potential. Peripheral Europe countries, South Africa, Turkey and Russia are projected to further lose innovativeness position, despite weaker initial position. |
| Keywords: | β convergence, σ convergence, European Innovation Scoreboard, moderate innovators. |
| JEL: | O3 O30 O33 |
| Date: | 2018–12–19 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:90671&r=all |
| By: | Andrey Tkachenko (National Research University Higher School of Economics); Daniil Esaulov (National Research University Higher School of Economics) |
| Abstract: | This paper analyses the role of autocratic governors in public procurement performance on the sub-national level. In particular, we estimate the impact of autocratic governors’ tenure and their local ties on competition over public procurement and contract execution. To this purpose, we use the data on public contracts on road construction and repair in Russian regions from 2011-2014 and match it with the biographical information of governors, who administrate the auctions. We find the evidence that governors who are appointed by the president and do not have pre-governing local ties in the region (governors-outsiders) demonstrate predatory behaviour, compared with governors with local ties (governors-insiders). In particular, governors-outsiders restrict the competition at public procurement auctions significantly more than governors-insiders. Moreover, this restriction becomes worse with tenure in office by governors-outsiders, while governors-insiders do not exert this tenure effect. We argue that this restriction of competition cannot be explained by the intention of better contracts execution. Namely, the delays in execution and the probability of contract termination both increase with tenure for governors-outsiders and are quite stable for governors-insiders |
| Keywords: | public procurement, tenure in office, governor, competition, efficiency, contract execution |
| JEL: | Z |
| Date: | 2018 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hig:wpaper:19/psp/2018&r=all |