|
on Central and Western Asia |
| By: | Motkuri, Venkatanarayana |
| Abstract: | The paper presents a macro view of changes in the structure of the workforce of Scheduled Tribes in Andhra Pradesh its impact in the inclusive growth perspective. The analysis indicates that although there has been progress on many development indicators in the ST community in the state, they still lagged behind the ‘other’ social groups. Slow progress in expected change in structure of employment towards non-agriculture in general and stagnation among STs for a long time is a cause of concern. Moreover, landlessness had increased among STs. These facts are cause for policy concern in the state. The human capital base of the ST community is far behind. Similarly is the case of poverty levels and rate of reduction. Given the actual situation of these communities with respect to their development status, more focused intervention is needed to enhance the pace of development among these communities. The impact of development of these communities (ST), comprised of 8% the state population, on its aggregate level of development would be considerable. Apart, the backwardness of these communities indicates a violation of norms like equity, equality and social justice that ought to be followed in the development process in a welfare state, and of the rights of these communities to development equally on par with other communities. |
| Keywords: | Scheduled Tribes, Andhra Pradesh, India, Welfare, Deprivation, Disadvantage, Inclusive Growth, Inclusion, Exclusion |
| JEL: | I31 I32 I38 |
| Date: | 2013–02 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:48558&r=cwa |
| By: | Unbreen Qayyum (Pakistan Institute of Development Economics, Islamabad) |
| Abstract: | This study attempts to explore the impact of foreign aid on the quality of governance and how conflicts, whether internal or external affect the overall situation. Conflicts affect governance directly by creating instability which adversely affects economic development as investment climate is fouled and output drops leading to fall in revenues. In this vicious cycle governance is left with no funds to improve institutional quality. Annual data from 1984 to 2010 have been used for the Asian developing economies. The results indicate a negative impact from the confluence of foreign aid in a climate of conflicts that leads to institutional deterioration. These results are robust for various alternative specifications. |
| Keywords: | Official Development Assistance, Governance, Conflict |
| JEL: | C33 F35 O11 O43 D74 |
| Date: | 2013 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pid:wpaper:2013:94&r=cwa |
| By: | Petri, Peter (Brandeis University); Thomas, Vinod (Asian Development Bank) |
| Abstract: | Evidence-based economic policies—pragmatic policies that work—played a major role in Asia’s success in raising its living standards in the last half century. However, growth prospects are now threatened by rising income inequality and environmental degradation if Asia continues on its established growth path. Evidence strongly argues for Asia to broaden its development priorities into a triple bottom line: that is, a focus on growth, social inclusion, and environmental sustainability. The paper focuses on how Asia can manage this ambitious goal. Possible resistance from vested interests is to be anticipated, but pursuing this path could bring large overall gains. The paper looks at how Asian governments and their development partners can make a difference in promoting the three policy objectives. Innovations in governance for better accountability, transparency, and feedback will be necessary for achieving these priorities. Societies in Asia and the international community will also need rigorous evidence and analysis to establish the benefits of this strategy and to make informed policy choices. International financial institutions and the donor community can provide financial lubricants for cooperation, as well as knowledge to help governments counter vested interests and champion regional perspectives on transborder issues. Reversing the negative social and environmental trends has to become a real development priority rather than a mere aspiration. Progress is possible on the three bottom-line goals, but it will require focusing Asia’s vaunted methods of learning and innovation to meet the new challenges. |
| Keywords: | videnced-based policy; governance; institutions; inclusive growth; Kuznets curve; sustainability |
| JEL: | D62 E02 O19 O44 |
| Date: | 2013–07–19 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ris:adbewp:0360&r=cwa |
| By: | Rodolphe Dos Santos Ferreira; Frédéric Dufourt (Aix-Marseille University (Aix-Marseille School of Economics), CNRS-GREQAM & EHESS) |
| Abstract: | Economies with oligopolistic markets are prone to inefficient sunspot fluctuations triggered by autonomous changes in firms equilibrium conjectures. We show that a well designed taxation-subsidization scheme can eliminate these fluctuations by coordinating firms in each sector on a single efficient equilibrium. At the macroeconomic level, implementing this stabilization policy leads to significant welfare gains, attributable to a quantitatively dominant "efficient stabilization effect". This effect, while important, is typically ignored in the traditional computations of the welfare costs of aggregate fluctuations (e.g., Lucas, 2003). |
| Keywords: | Business cycles; Stabilization policy; Indeterminacy; Sunspot equilibria; Oligopolistic competition |
| JEL: | E32 E62 D43 D61 |
| Date: | 2013–06–30 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:aim:wpaimx:1337&r=cwa |
| By: | Motkuri, Venkatanarayana |
| Abstract: | The present paper examines the changes in work participation rates, participation rate in education and the growth of employment, and explores the prospects of employment growth in the state of Andhra Pradesh (India) in the scenario of declining population growth which acts as a limiting factors for the further employment growth. |
| Keywords: | Employment, Labourforce, Workforce, Andhra Pradesh, India |
| JEL: | J21 |
| Date: | 2013–07 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:48381&r=cwa |
| By: | Tim Wegenast (GIGA German Institute of Global and Area Studies) |
| Abstract: | The impact of natural resources on intrastate violence has been increasingly analyzed in the peace and conflict literature. Surprisingly, little quantitative evidence has been gathered on the effects of the resource-ownership structure on internal violence. This paper uses a novel dataset on oil and natural gas property rights covering 40 countries during the period 1989–2010. The results of regression analyses employing logit models reveal that the curvilinear effect between hydrocarbon production and civil conflict onset – often found in previous studies – only applies to countries in which oil and gas production is mainly state controlled. The findings suggest that only state-owned hydrocarbons may entail peace - buying mechanisms such as specific clientelistic practices, patronage networks, welfare policies, and/or coercion. At the same time, it seems that greed and grievance are more pronounced whenever resources lie in the hands of the state. Exploring the within - country variation, further analyses reveal that divergent welfare spending patterns are likely to be one causal channel driving the relationship between resource ownership and internal violence. |
| Keywords: | Natural resources, intrastate conflict, minor civil war, oil, gas, ownership structure, national oil companies. |
| Date: | 2013–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:gig:wpaper:225&r=cwa |
| By: | Wim Naudé (Maastricht School of Management, UNU-MERIT, University of Maastricht and IZA- Institute for the Study of Labour); Adam Szirmai (UNU-MERIT and Maastricht Graduate School of Governance, University of Maastricht) |
| Abstract: | What is the relationship between technological innovation, entrepreneurship and development? Is it better for developing countries to coping and adapt existing technologies from richer countries rather than undertake or promote intensive research and development (R&D) of their own? We tackle these perennial issues afresh by considering the relationship between knowledge, innovation and growth in the past and by identifying whether and how the scope for catch-up growth exists. We focus on the interesting case of technological innovation in the comparative economic performance of China; we draw some lessons for development elsewhere. |
| Keywords: | innovation, entrepreneurship, development, knowledge, China, BRICS |
| JEL: | F23 L52 L53 O25 O40 O33 O34 |
| Date: | 2013–07 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:msm:wpaper:2013/17&r=cwa |
| By: | Masaaki Suzuki (The Research Center for Advanced Policy Studies, Institute of Economic Research, Kyoto University) |
| Abstract: | This paper aims to (a) calculate Devereux and Griffith’s (2003) forward-looking effective tax rates for 12 Asian countries over a span of 30 years, (b) show the impact of tax holidays on the effective tax rate in Asian countries, and (c) empirically explore the possibility of tax competition among Asian countries. Through relevant analyses, I arrive at three key conclusions. First, while small countries with little rent in domestic markets set their effective tax rates at almost zero, large countries maintain much higher effective tax rates. Second, for countries that have generous capital allowance systems, tax holidays may lead to a rise in not only the effective marginal tax rates (EMTR), but also the effective average tax rates (EATR). Third, some Asian countries may engage in tax competition, at least over the EATR, for a limited period of time. However, while some countries have raised their effective tax rates in recent years, others have continued with tax reductions. These results indicate that the recent tax interactions among Asian countries differ from the simpler interactions seen among the European countries. |
| Keywords: | Corporate income tax, Effective tax rates, Tax incentives, Tax competition |
| JEL: | H25 H87 |
| Date: | 2013–07 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:kyo:wpaper:875&r=cwa |
| By: | A. Talha Yalta |
| Date: | 2013–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:tob:wpaper:1304&r=cwa |
| By: | Bülent, Köksal; Cüneyt, Orman; Arif, Oduncu |
| Abstract: | This paper uses a new and comprehensive dataset to investigate the capital structure of non-financial firms in a major emerging market economy, Turkey. We study both statistical and economic significance of four types of leverage factors: Firm-specific, tax-related, industry-specific, and macroeconomic. Results suggest that tax-related factors and asset tangibility are the most economically significant factors for short-term and long-term debt ratios, respectively. Results also suggest that inflation is an important determinant of leverage and the most economically significant macroeconomic factor. Moreover, we provide evidence that firms adjust their leverage towards the industry median, that firms match the maturity of their assets and liabilities, and that inflows of foreign capital have a marked influence on firms’ capital structures, particularly on large and mature non-manufacturing firms. We also conduct a systematic analysis of capital structure differences between manufacturing and non-manufacturing, small and large, and young and mature firms. Overall, the trade-off theory appears to be more successful than the pecking order theory in accounting for the capital structure of Turkish non-financial firms. |
| Keywords: | Capital structure, non-financial firms, pecking order theory, trade-off theory, Turkey |
| JEL: | G30 G32 |
| Date: | 2013–07–17 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:48415&r=cwa |
| By: | Ferdinand Rauch |
| Abstract: | This paper shows that Zipf's Law for cities can emerge as a property of a clustering process. If initially uniformly distributed people chose their location based on a specific gravity equation as found in trade studies, they will form cities that follow Zipf's Law in expected value. This view of cities as spatial agglomerations is supported empirically by the observation that larger cities are surrounded by larger hinterland areas and larger countryside populations. |
| Keywords: | Zipf's Law for cities, distribution of city sizes |
| JEL: | R12 |
| Date: | 2013–05–31 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:oxf:wpaper:656&r=cwa |
| By: | Gero Erdmann (GIGA German Institute of Global and Area Studies); André Bank (GIGA German Institute of Global and Area Studies); Bert Hoffmann (GIGA German Institute of Global and Area Studies); Thomas Richter (GIGA German Institute of Global and Area Studies) |
| Abstract: | Authoritarian regimes use multiple forms of international cooperation to sustain their rule. In scholarly research, however, the study of these phenomena has been marginal and still lacks conceptual clarity. This paper takes stock of these shortcomings and embarks on a review of the existing literature from democratization, diffusion, policy transfer and Europeanization studies. In doing so, it identifies a number of conceptual approaches whose integration can provide a useful framework for the study of the international cooperation of authoritarian regimes. For this, the specific characteristics of nondemocratic rule need to be taken into account – from their preference of some forms of cooperation over others to practical difficulties for empirical fieldwork. Against this backdrop, we provide examples of different types of authoritarian cooperation and conclude by sketching a research agenda that is as politically necessary as it is academically promising. |
| Keywords: | Authoritarian regimes, international dimension, cooperation, diffusion, learning, policy transfer. |
| Date: | 2013–07 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:gig:wpaper:229&r=cwa |
| By: | Christine Greenhalgh |
| Abstract: | This paper begins by surveying recent economic studies of the relationships between technology transfer, intellectual property, innovation and diffusion in emerging countries. It applies this literature to the Indian case. India is a potentially useful case study for several reasons. India has recently been experiencing rapid growth and has several high technology sectors staffed by an absolutely large and highly educated middle class. At the same time an even larger share of its very big population is still working in low productivity agriculture and many of these people are living in extreme poverty. To reduce poverty and improve agricultural productivity India will need to create jobs in labour intensive production and distribution sectors to employ its vast army of unskillled workers. The second part of the paper outlines how industry structure and innovative performance have been progressing in India following the economic reforms of the early 90s and the changes to intellectual property law occasioned by the TRIPS agreement and membership of the World Trade Organisation. In the third section the focus turns to recent science, technology and innovation policy in India. A study of the country's potential for innovation by the World Bank in 2007 argued that India must proceed on two fronts. In addition to considering how India's growth prospects can be enhanced by world leading innovations, this volume placed great emphasis on inclusive innovation. This may involve mainly the diffusion and absorption of existing knowledge, but is designed to improve the lot of the poor. The World Bank report proposed a number of new policy directions aimed at speeding up innovation and technology diffusion in India. We attempt to record what changes have been made to innovation policy, foreign direct investment policy and diffusion policy in India in recent years and assess whether these are likely to be effective. |
| Keywords: | Innovation, intellectual property, science policy, innovation policy, TRIPS |
| JEL: | O2 O3 |
| Date: | 2013–06–26 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:oxf:wpaper:660&r=cwa |
| By: | Kudo, Toshihiro; Kumagai, Satoru; Ishido, Hikari |
| Abstract: | The development of agriculture is a main pillar of Myanmar’s growth strategies. It is natural for the Myanmar government to prioritize agriculture as a source of economic growth, since it accounted for 36% of GDP, employs a majority of labor force, and generates nearly 30% of exports as of 2010. Although the agricultural share in GDP and employment usually declines as an economy grows, it is not a sunset industry in Myanmar. Methods exist for increasing agriculture’s value added other than the growth of labor and land inputs. The key is to enhance three productivity measures: labor, land, and total productivity. We call this strategy "Agriculture Plus Plus." |
| Keywords: | Myanmar, Agriculture, Agricultural development, Development policy, Agriculture Plus Plus, Senary Sector of Agriculture, Growth Strategy, Myanmar (Burma) |
| JEL: | O13 O53 Q10 |
| Date: | 2013–06 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:jet:dpaper:dpaper421&r=cwa |
| By: | Michael Tribe (Department of Economics, University of Strathclyde) |
| Abstract: | The paper has three main sections. The first is a review of two particular propositions which appear in Dambisa Moyo’s 2009 book Dead Aid which were not subjected to rigorous analysis in the reviews which appeared following its publication. The finding is that neither proposition survives serious scrutiny – that aid is responsible for most of sub-Saharan Africa’s economic woes and that the international bond market represents a viable alternative to foreign aid for the finance of development-oriented investment. The second questions some of the characteristics and uses of the World Bank’s Country Policy and Institutional Assessment (CPIA), particularly focussing on the use of an essentially ordinal measure in cardinal applications. The third subjects the UK Department for International Development’s Needs-Effectiveness Index to critical review, concluding that further consideration of its attributes is necessary. |
| Keywords: | developing countries, foreign aid, sub-Saharan Africa, book review |
| JEL: | F35 O2 O24 O55 Y3 |
| Date: | 2013–06 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:str:wpaper:1309&r=cwa |
| By: | Nora Stel (Nora Stel is Research Fellow at Maastricht School of Management (MSM) and PhD Candidate at Utrecht University’s Centre for Conflict Studies. Contact: stel@msm.nl and/or n.m.stel1@uu.nl; 0031628530429) |
| Abstract: | Lebanon is widely renowned for its entrepreneurial acumen. This reputation is largely built on the success story of the worldwide Lebanese diaspora. There is, however, another group of transnational entrepreneurs associated with Lebanon. This is the Palestinian refugee community living in Lebanon. Whereas Lebanese entrepreneurs abroad are commonly credited for making a crucial contribution to Lebanon’s economy, post-Civil War reconstruction and national identity through seeking innovation and utilizing opportunity, Palestinian entrepreneurs in Lebanon overwhelmingly fall within the category of selfemployed necessity entrepreneurs. This, while “it is widely believed that [both] the Lebanese and the Palestinians are among the top entrepreneurs in the world” (Kawasmi 2011). This paper engages with the duality of Lebanese migrant entrepreneurship and juxtaposes the veneration of the Lebanese entrepreneurship diaspora with the marginalization of Palestinian entrepreneurial capacity. I argue that the main rationale for the paradox of Lebanon’s simultaneous championing and undermining of entrepreneurial potential should be sought in its highly sectarian and elitist political order. Whereas the ascendancy of the Lebanese diaspora(s) was boosted in sectarian struggles for political and economic power, the economic relegation of the Palestinian refugees is part of a comprehensive regime of sectarian neutralization. Accordingly, the rationale for contrasting these two specific groups of migrant entrepreneurs – and not, for instance, Palestinian and other foreign entrepreneurs in Lebanon or Lebanese and Palestinian entrepreneurs in Lebanon – lies in their shared deep connection to the Lebanese sectarian-political system (a characteristic non-Palestinian foreign entrepreneurs in Lebanon lack) and their shared context of migrant entrepreneurship (an experience naturally not applicable to Lebanese entrepreneurs in Lebanon). It is this common engagement with the Lebanese political system from a migrant entrepreneurship perspective that connects these two groups residing at the extreme ends of the same political economy. Palestinian entrepreneurs in Lebanon and Lebanese entrepreneurs abroad are tied to the Lebanese system in a way that shows most pungently the effects a specific political economy might have on migrant entrepreneurship, the core objective of this paper. Through this main argument the paper makes two broader contributions to the literature on migration and entrepreneurship. First, it emphasizes the significance of the political in determining not so much the extent but the nature of entrepreneurship – ranging from necessity to opportunity and innovation. This observation is particularly pertinent in light of the ‘Arab Spring’ and complements economic perspectives on entrepreneurship. Second, and related to this, the paper shows the merits of analyzing differences in entrepreneurship regimes within countries in addition to the usual comparisons between countries. This paper should be conceived of predominantly as a sensitizing exercise, its main purpose being to offer an alternative perspective on the dichotomous discussion on the main determinants of entrepreneurship in diasporic or refugee communities as being either structural or personal. It does so through an in-depth discussion of the Lebanese case. As such, I do not seek to discuss primary empirical data, even if the observations made in this paper are grounded in extensive fieldwork in among both Palestinian and Lebanese communities in Lebanon on related topics, but rather to present an additional analytical framework for existing data sets. My main methodology is therefore that of a qualitative case-study based on literature review and document analysis and complemented by contextual fieldwork. |
| JEL: | F55 H1 H7 J7 L13 L26 Z13 |
| Date: | 2013–07 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:msm:wpaper:2013/16&r=cwa |
| By: | Faisal Jamil (National University of Science and Technology, Islamabad); Eatzaz Ahmad (Quaid-i-Azam University, Islamabad) |
| Abstract: | Theft and corruption are common in electricity distribution systems worldwide. We have analysed electricity theft in the framework of an individual’s choice under uncertainty and through a three-layered principalagent- client model of corruption. The study finds that an individual steals electricity only if the subjective benefits are higher than the associated costs e.g., fine imposed in case of detection or job dismissal. The fair tariffs and efficiency wages along with higher deterrence and active consumer involvement in reporting electricity theft can help in combating corruption and pilferage in electricity sector. Moreover, deterrence through increased probability of detection and conviction are important policy measures. |
| Keywords: | Individual’s Choice, Principal-Agent Model, Electricity Theft |
| JEL: | Q4 H8 R2 K1 |
| Date: | 2013 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pid:wpaper:2013:92&r=cwa |
| By: | Simeonova-Ganeva, Ralitsa |
| Abstract: | The question raised in the present paper is: What is the human capital during the communism and which are the key political and economic determinants of its formation during this period? Firstly, a measurement of the human capital is conducted on the basis of quantitative educational indicators. The empirical analysis suggests twelve new time series on human capital, which are consistent with the modern approaches of human capital measurement. Secondly, key political and economic determinants are identified following a survey on relevant documents in the State Archives and social science research from the period. We observe a considerable improvement in human capital stocks over the period. Significant changes occur at the end of 50s and during the 60s. Later, at the end of the 70s and during the 80s of 20th century we observe decline in participation in the educational ysytem. In the beginning of the transition to market economy about 60% of the population in Bulgaria has attained basic or lower educational level. In spite of the fact that during the whole period the government has been trying to provide favorable conditions for human capital formation, its policies fail to improve the educational structure of the population in the long run. We assume that an explanation of the phenomenon is the lack of economic incentives for the individuals to pursue higher education. |
| Keywords: | human capital, communism, determinants of human capital formation |
| JEL: | I2 I28 P2 |
| Date: | 2012 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:48105&r=cwa |
| By: | Birte Pohl (GIGA German Institute of Global and Area Studies); Peter Mulder (GIGA German Institute of Global and Area Studies) |
| Abstract: | In this paper we study the diffusion of non-hydro renewable energy (NHRE) technologies for electricity generation across 108 developing countries between 1980 and 2010. We use two-stage estimation methods to identify the determinants behind the choice of whether or not to adopt NHRE as well as about the amount of electricity to produce from renewable energy sources. We find that NHRE diffusion accelerates with the implementation of economic and regulatory instruments, higher per capita income and schooling levels, and stable, democratic regimes. In contrast, increasing openness and aid, institutional and strategic policy support programs, growth of electricity consumption, and high fossil fuel production appear to delay NHRE diffusion. Furthermore, we find that a diverse energy mix increases the probability of NHRE adoption. Finally, we find weak support for a positive influence of the Kyoto Protocol on NHRE diffusion and no evidence for any influence resulting from financial sector development. |
| Keywords: | renewable energy technologies, developing countries, electricity, technology diffusion, sample selection |
| Date: | 2013–03 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:gig:wpaper:217&r=cwa |
| By: | Stephan Rosiny (GIGA German Institute of Global and Area Studies) |
| Abstract: | In the last two years, the Syrian uprising has turned from a civil protest movement against an authoritarian regime into an outright civil war in which the antagonists’ affiliations and identities are increasingly framed in sectarian speech. In summer 2012, various politicians and analysts suggested a power-sharing agreement between regime and opposition representatives as a solution to break the vicious circle of escalating violence. They called it a “Syrian Taif” after the 1989 peace accord that ended Lebanon’s long-lasting civil war (1975–1990) by dividing power among religious communities. Others rejected the idea of a consociational power-sharing deal outright because they hold it responsible for the continued sectarian pillarization of Lebanese society. Moreover, Syria’s experience is said to differ significantly from Lebanon’s, making the effective transmittal of the Lebanese model impossible. This paper takes these differing arguments into consideration and investigates whether power sharing could help to deescalate the Syrian conflict and what lessons should be taken from Lebanon’s experience. Lebanon shows that consociationalism tends to stabilize – even deepen – social cleavages. Therefore, a Syrian Taif should gradually substitute fixed guarantees of shares of power with centripetal and unitary state institutions. Furthermore, in addition to internal actors, external powers have to be convinced that power sharing may be the only viable option for ending the devastating civil war in Syria and for preventing the further spread of violence into neighboring countries. |
| Keywords: | power sharing, civil war, sectarianism, Syria, Lebanon, Taif |
| Date: | 2013–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:gig:wpaper:223&r=cwa |
| By: | Leonardo Martinez (International Monetary Fund); Juan Hatchondo (Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond); Javier Bianchi (NYU and Wisconsin) |
| Abstract: | A long-standing puzzle of international capital flows is why countries hold large amount of external debt and foreign reserves at the same time. To address this puzzle, we propose a sovereign default model where the government decides jointly over the accumulation of long-duration bonds and foreign reserves. When calibrated to the data, the model can successfully explain the simultaneous holdings of debt and foreign reserves. We also show that the relationship between reserves and default risk may be non-monotonic. |
| Date: | 2012 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:red:sed012:1125&r=cwa |
| By: | Valeria Faralla; Alessandro Innocenti; Eva Venturini |
| Abstract: | The paper examines in the laboratory how risk-taking situations are affected by the conditions of observing other’s choices (observer) and being observed by others (source). By extending Yechiam et al.’s (2008) experimental design to the domain of gains we find that observers are more probable than sources to choose risky alternatives producing rare gains than equiprobable gains. The impact of social exposure is also analyzed and interpreted in the context of personality traits to assess how heterogeneity influences risky decisions. |
| Keywords: | risky shift, social exposure, personality traits. |
| JEL: | C91 D01 D81 |
| Date: | 2013–07 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:usi:labsit:046&r=cwa |
| By: | Jacobus Cilliers |
| Abstract: | Why do armed groups sometimes coerce and sometimes not? Civilian suffering due to coercion in conflicts is larger; yet, anecdotal evidence suggests that armed groups often choose not to coerce. To explain the observed variation in coercive practices, I combine a two-sector specific-factos trade model with a model of violence. Armed tgroups operating in the resourc esector and allocate military reosurces between conflict and coercion, which captures more land and labour respectively. The model shows that coercion depends, not only on economic factors, but also the military landscape and the interactin between the two. First, coercion is higher if labour scare or extraction labour-intensive. Second, coercion is high if one group is dominant, relative to the others. Third, the impact of the prcie of the commodity depends on the distribution of military strength: coercion increases with price if one group is dominant, but this effect is reversed if military power is highly decentralised. The first result is consistent with historical accounts of the re-emergence of serfdom in 16th century Russia, and the prevalence of slavery in West Africa. The second result explains why coercion decreased in the Kivu privinces after 2002: the Rwandan Army, by far the most powerful group, evacuated. The third result explains why the rubber boom in late 19th lead to a highly coercive regime in the Congo Free State, but less so in Amazonia. The Congo Free State had a monopoly, but conflict between Spanish and Portuguese colonies escalated during the boom, reducing their coercive power. It further explains why, during the protracted Civil War in Sierra Leone, coercion was common in the rice plantations, but not the diamond mines. The number of battles were higher in the diamond-rich areas, but level of civilian victimisation less. With land the valueable factor of productions, violence was allocated to conflict, not coercion. |
| Keywords: | conflict, coercion, slavery, natural resources, Sierra Leone civil war, eastern DRC |
| JEL: | D21 D3 D24 D41 D74 N37 N47 N57 Q34 |
| Date: | 2013 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:oxf:oxcrwp:113&r=cwa |
| By: | Hamdi, Helmi; Sbia, Rashid; Shahbaz, Muhammad |
| Abstract: | This paper explores the relationship between electricity consumption, foreign direct investment, capital and economic growth in case of the Kingdom of Bahrain. The Cobb-Douglas production is used over the period of 1980Q1–2010Q4. We have the ARDL bounds testing approach and found that cointegration exists among the series. Electricity consumption, foreign direct investment and capital add in economic growth. The VECM Granger causality analysis has reported the feedback effect between electricity consumption and economic growth and same is true for foreign direct investment and electricity consumption. This suggests us to explore sources of energy to achieve sustainable economic development for long run. |
| Keywords: | Electricity Consumption, Economic Growth, Foreign Direct Investment, Bahrain |
| JEL: | C5 C51 |
| Date: | 2013–07–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:48472&r=cwa |
| By: | Commendatore, Pasquale; Michetti, Elisabetta; Purificato, Francesco |
| Abstract: | The New Economic Geography (NEG) literature has paid little attention to the role of the banking industry in affecting where firms decide to locate their business. Within the framework of the NEG, this paper aims to fill this gap by studying the impact of the degree of regional financial development on the spatial distribution of economic activity. In order to explore this issue, we modify the standard Footloose Entrepreneur (FE) model by introducing a banking sector, while preserving all the other usual assumptions. We show that the existence of a banking sector enhances the agglomeration forces; so that, when regions are symmetric, a Core-Periphery outcome is more likely. When regions are characterised by different levels of financial development this result is reinforced and entrepreneurs are more likely to migrate towards the region where the banking sector is characterized by a higher degree of competition / lower degree of concentration and the interest rate is lower. |
| Keywords: | Local financial development, Banks, Agglomeration, Firm location |
| JEL: | G10 G21 R12 |
| Date: | 2013–07–18 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:48425&r=cwa |
| By: | Martin Falk |
| Abstract: | This study empirically analyses the determinants of greenfield investment in intangible assets in emerging and industrialized countries. Data consists of host parent country pairs of greenfield FDI projects in (i) software (except video games), (ii) advertising, public relations and related activities, (iii) headquarters, (iv) research & development and (v) design, development & testing. With a world market share of 33 per cent in 2011 in terms of the number of projects, descriptive statistics show that the EU 27 is one of the most important locations for international greenfield investment in intangible assets. However, there was a decline in the EU 27s share of such projects after the recent financial and economic crisis, which is mainly due to the decrease in intra-EU greenfield FDI activities. In contrast, FDI inflows in intangible assets increased in the United States, in other non EU OECD countries and in emerging countries. Among the EU countries of Ireland, Luxembourg, the United Kingdom, Denmark, Belgium, Netherlands and Sweden are the most attractive locations for Non-EU investors, whereas the southern and East EU countries are least successful in attracting FDI projects in intangible assets. The results using fixed and random effects negative binomial regression models for 40 host and 26 parent countries during the period 2003–2010 show that FDI in intangible assets depends significantly positively on quantity of human capital, quality of human capital measured as the PISA score in maths and reading, costs of starting a business, broadband penetration, strength of investor protection, R&D endowment and direct R&D subsidies. Wage costs (or unit labour costs) have a significant negative impact on FDI inflows in intangible assets. Other policy factors, such as labour market regulations, product, or FDI regulations, do not have a significant impact. Separate estimates for the EU-27 countries show that corporate taxes matter for the international location decision for intangible assets. The empirical results presented may help to develop a proactive action plan to attract international investments in intangible assets in Europe. |
| Keywords: | Innovation, innovation policy, intangible assets |
| JEL: | O3 |
| Date: | 2013–07 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:feu:wfewop:y:2013:m:7:d:0:i:30&r=cwa |
| By: | Höffler, Felix (Energiewirtschaftliches Institut an der Universitaet zu Koeln); Wambach, Achim (Department of Economics, University of Cologne) |
| Abstract: | Liberalization of network industries frequently separates the network from the other parts of the industry. This is important in particular for the electricity industry where private firms invest into generation facilities, while net- work investments usually are controlled by regulators. We discuss two regulatory regimes. First, the regulator can only decide on the network extension. Second, she can additionally use a "capacity market" with payments contingent on private generation investment. For the first case, we find that even absent asymmetric information, a lack of regulatory commitment can cause inefficiently high or inefficiently low investments. For the second case, we develop a standard handicap auction which implements the first best under asymmetric information, if there are no shadow costs of public funds. With shadow costs, no simple mechanism can implement the second best outcome. |
| Keywords: | Regulation; commitment; capacity markets; transmission system investment |
| JEL: | D44 K23 L51 L94 |
| Date: | 2013–06–24 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ris:ewikln:2013_012&r=cwa |
| By: | Konstanin Yanovsky (Gaidar Institute for Economic Policy); Sergey Zhavoronkov (Gaidar Institute for Economic Policy); Vladimir Mau (Gaidar Institute for Economic Policy) |
| Abstract: | In this chapter we are addressing the numerous cases of government failures in countries with transit economies and weak democratic traditions when the state is called upon to provide “pure public goods” (defense, security, and justice). In other words, the subject matter of this chapter involves those institutions which create the very possibility of the existence of real, rather than merely nominal, private property. The modern understanding of genuine private property includes the assumption of the inviolability of the person of the property owner. Without this, the difference between private property and medieval “conditional tenure” becomes negligible. The inviolability of the person of the property owner is assured by the state’s supplying three classic “pure public goods”: defense (protection of the property owner from aggression from abroad); security, and justice (protection of the property owner against arbitrary action and coercion within the country). The creation and maintenance of a combat ready military, uncorrupted law enforcement government agencies, and an independent court system subject only to the law, are duties of primary importance when reforms are under way. These “pure public goods” are extremely important for long term economic growth. An independent court presumes the independence of judges, their irremovability, and high costs of their dismissal. Court independence is provided and ensured by laws and traditions, and finds its expression in the fact that the state, as represented by high ranking officials and agencies of the government, can lose in court to a private individual in the course of a litigation of some significance to society as a whole. The availability or absence of independent courts is treated as a logical variable. In Russia, the quality of the court system and the law enforcing agencies of the government continues to remain low, despite an entire series of attempts at reform and disparate achievements here and there. In the early 1990s, reformers’ attention was principally focused on economic transformations: their objective was achieving financial stability and privatization. The absence of financial stability posed the imminent threat of social explosion and economic collapse. Privatization was already outfitted with ready-to-use options for implementation, which had been tested by other post-socialist countries. An understanding of the importance of reforming the court system and law enforcing and judicial government agencies came in the late 1990s. Significant and lasting achievements in the area of creating an atmosphere favorable to the growth of business and the economy turned out to be impossible without such reforms.. |
| Keywords: | Rule of Law, Rule of Force, Personal Rights, Private Property Protection; Pure public goods |
| JEL: | D73 D78 K40 N44 O43 P26 |
| Date: | 2013 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:gai:ppaper:139&r=cwa |
| By: | Caroline Bayart (ISFA - Institut des Science Financière et d'Assurances - Université de Lyon); Sandra Bertezene (ISFA - Institut des Science Financière et d'Assurances - Université de Lyon); David Vallat (TRIANGLE - Triangle : action, discours, pensée politique et économique - CNRS : UMR5206 - Université Lumière - Lyon II - Institut d'Études Politiques [IEP] - Lyon - École Normale Supérieure - Lyon - Université Jean Monnet - Saint-Etienne) |
| Abstract: | The role of education and more particularly of universities consists in helping students in their apprenticeship so that they become knowledge workers. What teaching methods can be used to achieve this goal? In order to give some answers to this question, we have chosen to evaluate the nature of the impacts of a serious game on the acquisition of knowledge by students. If serious have attracted attention in previous research, essentially qualitative, this research does not allows to identify and understand the mechanisms according to which they influence the process of acquisition of knowledge. This article presents a stage in the research to test the different techniques by professional publics. To carry out our demonstration, we will first analyze the works of Nonaka in the field of knowledge management to understand the implementation of knowledge thanks to the use of serious games. This approach seems to be particularly relevant in the context studied as knowledge management is a resource for the firm, but also for the present or future employee since it is a means of assuring his/her employability and negotiating power in the firm. We will then explain the field research methodology, in our case a survey composed of two questionnaires administered to nearly 200 students before and after their participation in a serious game related to project management. The second part presents and analyzes the main results; the demonstration of the progress in knowledge on the one hand, and the factors of acquisition of academic knowledge on the other. |
| Keywords: | knowledge management, serious games, enquête par questionnaires |
| Date: | 2013–07–20 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hal:wpaper:hal-00846779&r=cwa |
| By: | Raquel Almeida Ramos (IPC-IG); Rafael Ranieri (IPC-IG) |
| Abstract: | Analyzing inclusive growth involves facing the need to establish an operational definition of a concept that has been widely yet loosely used in discourse and practice. It requires addressing the meaning of inclusive growth before confronting the issue of determining sensible measures. Many times, however, in spite of lively considerations of the concept of inclusive growth preceding their presentation, operational definitions have not objectified the evolving conceptual richness on the term. (?) |
| Keywords: | Operationally Defining Inclusive Growth: One Challenge, Two Approaches |
| Date: | 2013–06 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ipc:opager:206&r=cwa |
| By: | Rogge, Karoline S.; Reichardt, Kristin |
| Abstract: | Reaching a better understanding of the politics and policies of transitions presents a main agenda item in the emerging field of sustainability transitions. One important requirement for these transitions, such as the move towards a decarbonized energy system, is the redirection and acceleration of technological change, for which policies play a key role. Several studies of policies supporting environmental technological change have argued for the need to combine different policy instruments in so-called policy mixes. However, existing policy mix studies often fall short of reflecting the complexity and dynamics of actual policy mixes, and they lack a common terminology. In this paper we take a first step towards a more comprehensive policy mix concept for environmental technological change based on a review of the bodies of literature on innovation studies, environmental economics and policy analysis. The concept we develop consists of the three building blocks elements, processes and dimensions and introduces a clear terminology, which is particularly important for the characteristics of such a policy mix, including the consistency of its elements and the coherence of its processes. Throughout the paper, we illustrate the concept using the example of the policy mix for fostering the transition of the German energy system to renewable power generation technologies. We argue that the proposed concept provides an interdisciplinary analytical framework for empirical studies analyzing the impact of the policy mix on environmental technological change and may thereby contribute to reaching a better understanding of the politics and policies of sustainability transitions. Finally, we derive policy implications and suggest avenues for future research. -- |
| Keywords: | policy mix,policy strategy,instrument mix,policy making and implementation,consistency,coherence |
| Date: | 2013 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:fisisi:s32013&r=cwa |
| By: | André Bank (GIGA German Institute of Global and Area Studies); Thomas Richter (GIGA German Institute of Global and Area Studies); Anna Sunik (GIGA German Institute of Global and Area Studies) |
| Abstract: | The rationale is straightforward and persuasive: intrastate conflicts are by definition subnational phenomena. If we want to understand them fully, it may be wise to refocus our attention from the country level to the subnational level. Where violence is located might inform us as to why it erupts and how it is linked to various political, economic or social factors. The number of statistical geospatial analyses undertaken at the subnational level has been increasing constantly in recent years. Even though such studies have contributed greatly to peace and conflict research, they have come with their own challenges. Most importantly, they often do not adequately consider the theoretical and conceptual implications of switching from conventional cross-country to subnational analysis; this has led to dubious theoretical arguments and conclusions. Moreover, operationalization and measurement issues often limit these analyses’ explanatory power. The paper reviews several geospatial analyses of violent conflict, points out the limitations of the previous research and proposes some potential avenues for improvement. |
| Keywords: | civil war, political violence, geospatial analysis, subnational analysis, causality |
| Date: | 2013–02 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:gig:wpaper:215&r=cwa |
| By: | Bethencourt, Carlos; Kunze, Lars |
| Abstract: | This paper proposes a theoretical model to account for the most relevant micro- and macroeconomic empirical facts in the tax evasion literature. To do so, we integrate tax morale into a dynamic overlapping generations model of capital income tax evasion. Tax morale is modeled as a social norm for tax compliance. It is shown that accounting for such nonpecuniary costs of evasion may not only explain (i) why some taxpayers never evade even if the gamble is profitable, and (ii) how a higher tax rate can increase evasion, but also that (iii) the share of evaded taxes over GDP decreases with the stage of economic development and (iv) that tax morale is positively correlated with the level of GDP per capita as suggested by recent empirical evidence. Finally, a higher tax rate increases aggregate evasion as well as the number of evaders in the economy when taxpayers decisions are interdependent. |
| Keywords: | tax evasion, social norms, overlapping generations, economic growth |
| JEL: | D91 H26 Z13 |
| Date: | 2013–07–18 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:48427&r=cwa |
| By: | doğru, bülent |
| Abstract: | In this paper, the dynamic determinants of money demand function and the long-run and short-run relationships between money demand, income and nominal interest rates are examined in Turkey for the time period 1980-2012. In particular we estimate a dynamic specification of a log money demand function based on Keynesian liquidity preference theory to ascertain the relevant elasticity of money demand. The empirical results of the study show that in Turkey inflation, exchange rate and money demand are co-integrated, i.e., they converge to a long run equilibrium point, and money demand function in Turkey. |
| Keywords: | Dynamic Ordinary Least Squares, Vector Error Correction, Money Demand Function |
| JEL: | C51 E52 |
| Date: | 2013–01–15 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:48402&r=cwa |
| By: | Hall, Stephen G. (University of Leicester); Tavlas, George (Bank of Greece) |
| Abstract: | This paper surveys the literature dealing with the thesis put forward by Dooley, Folkerts-Landau and Garber (DFG) that the present constellation of global exchange-rate arrangements constitutes a revived Bretton-Woods regime. DFG also argue that the revived regime will be sustainable, despite its large global imbalances. While much of the literature generated by DFG’s thesis points to specific differences between the earlier regime and revived regime that render the latter unstable, we argue that an underlying similarity between the two regimes renders the revived regime unstable. Specifically, to the extent that the present system constitutes a revived Bretton-Woods system, it is vulnerable to the same set of destabilizing forces -- including asset price bubbles and global financial crises -- that marked the latter years of the earlier regime, leading to its breakdown. We extend the Markov switching model to examine the relation between global liquidity and commodity prices. We find evidence of commodity-price bubbles in both the latter stages of the earlier Bretton-Woods regime and the revived regime. |
| Keywords: | Bretton-Woods regime; international liquidity; price bubbles; Markov switching model |
| JEL: | C22 F33 N10 |
| Date: | 2012–06–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ris:drxlwp:2012_001&r=cwa |
| By: | Michael Luca (Harvard Business School, Negotiation, Organizations & Markets Unit); Jonathan Smith (The College Board -Advocacy & Policy Center) |
| Abstract: | Using a novel data set, we present three findings about the rankings that business schools choose to display on their websites. First, the data strongly rejects patterns predicted by classic models of voluntary disclosure. In contrast with the traditional unraveling hypothesis, top schools are least likely to display their rankings. Second, schools that do poorly in the U.S. News rankings are more likely to disclose their Princeton Review certification, suggesting that schools treat different certifications as substitutes. Third, conditional on displaying a ranking, the majority of schools coarsen information to make it seem more favorable. |
| Keywords: | Voluntary Disclosure, Shrouded Attributes, Information Unraveling, Rankings |
| Date: | 2013–07 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hbs:wpaper:14-010&r=cwa |
| By: | Barnett, Richard (Department of Economics & International Business LeBow College of Business Drexel University); Bhattacharya, Joydeep (Department of Economics Iowa State University); Puhakka, Mikko (Department of Economics University of Oulu) |
| Abstract: | We compare two institutions head on, a family compact – a parent makes a transfer to her parent in anticipation of a possible future gift from her children – with a pay-as-you-go, social security system in a lifecycle model with endogenous fertility wherein children are valued both as consumption and investment goods. Our focus is strictly on the pension dimension of these competing institutions. We show that an optimally-chosen family compact and a social security system cannot co-exist; indeed, the former may be preferred. A strong-enough negative shock to middle-age incomes destroys family compacts. While such a setting might appear ideal for the introduction of a social security system – as the experience of Europe, circa 1880s, would suggest – this turns out not to be the case: if incomes are too depressed to allow family compacts to flourish, they are also too low to permit introduction of an optimal social security system. |
| Keywords: | fertility; family compacts; social security; intergenerational cooperation; pensions; self-enforcing constitutions |
| JEL: | E21 E32 |
| Date: | 2012–09–02 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ris:drxlwp:2012_014&r=cwa |