Showing papers in "Economics, Management, and Financial Markets in 2015"

The social sustainability of the sharing economy

Abstract: 1. IntroductionThe need for participation comes to some extent from its strength to further economic undertaking among individuals with restricted earning capacity in the formal economy. The sharing economy generates novel manners of supplying products and services (Lazaroiu, 2015a, b, c), and chances for connected consumption, being dependent on peer-to-peer connections. Involvement in the sharing economy is driven by economic and ecological interests, in addition to an inclination to boost social relationships. The market tendency and administration of sharing economy platforms are pivotal features configuring them and their capacity to supply genuinely complementary economic agreements. The novel sharing economy is differentiated from former kinds of sharing by its capacity to further sharing between strangers. The social duty of sharing signifies that exchange collaborators do not associate as paradigmatic egotistical, self-governing participants. Participation among relatives and community guarantees that exchange collaborators have a foundation for confidence established on pre-existing social connections (Lazaroiu, 2013), and guarantees the kinds of informal social controls required to bring about detached trust. The capacity to further participation between strangers is a decisive characteristic of organizations and practices (Popescu, 2013) that are component of the rising sharing economy. (Schor and Fitzmaurice, 2015)2. The Platforms and Practices of the Sharing EconomyThe sharing economy requires the involvement of physical assets and services among individuals: technological systems, platforms, and marketplaces back the exchange of belongings and services in the sharing economy. Individuals are distributing assets to augment their income and employing others' goods to make economies. Sharing economy platforms enable individuals within and across communities to link with people to supply and gain from fundamental skills and services. Numerous utilizations of the sharing economy necessitate some confidence between strangers to function. People having resources with declining capacity during some period of time and being able to optimize the usefulness of the declining resources assist the sharing economy function. Participation is an ordinary method in which especially lowincome groups make economies (the sharing economy provides a chance to save resources via sharing). There is a demand for unbiased mutual exchange, concerted effectiveness and income generation for the sharing economy to function most beneficially among marginalized communities. (Dillahunt and Malone, 2015) The rising sharing economy is notably appealing in the circumstances of cities that have problems with population growth and increasing density. In a sharing framework, the private sphere has advanced business patterns to aim at a market deficiency (Nica, 2013), in the private and public mobility marketplace, emerged because of the enlarged overcrowding in cities, the absence of adequate access to quality transit choices in addition to the insufficiency of inexpensive private and clean vehicles for users (the private sphere has established an excess of various business patterns in the collective mobility marketplace). The sharing economy may be the subsequent phase in the development of essentially reconstituting how economies function, and may make a significant difference in facilitating a wide-ranging change in international and local economies toward sustainability (it has seen competitors from startups and multinational companies). (Cohen and Kietzmann, 2014)An emerging sharing economy has brought collaborative utilization as a real likelihood (Lazaroiu, 2014) to people. From an economic perspective, and in the unavailability of reputational considerations, distributing a resource is tempting when the anticipated advantages of the transaction eclipse the antic- ipated expenses. An essential obstacle to participation is a lender's worry concerning harm because of unnoticeable operations by a renter, commonly generating mora l hazard. …

Sustainable Development and Citizen-Centric E-Government Services

Abstract: . The mainstay of the paper is formed by an analysis of citizens' contentment with e-government services, essential determinants of online service enlargement in public administration, and the preconditions for enforcing citizen-oriented e-participation. The findings highlight the importance of examining pivotal features of e-government for sustainable development, the implication of civil society in establishing the social demands of regional communities and individuals, and e-government as a way of furthering citizen involvement in the government instrumentation scheme decision-making processes.JEL codes: Q01 ; Q56; P46; D11Keywords: sustainable development; citizen-centric; e-government services1. IntroductionE-government is the employment of information and communication technologies (ICTs) to enhance the undertakings of public sector entities, eparticipation is citizens' involvement in schemes and policy-making via the assistance of ICT instruments, whereas sustainable development is the organizing criterion for maintaining finite resources required to prepare for the demands of next generations of life on Earth. To attain our sustainable development objectives we require institutions at all layers that are operative, clear, responsible and democratic (all layers of government and legislative entities have a significant function in backing sustainable development). The worldwide expansion of the Internet and the implementation of ICT in gov- ernment can supply opportunities to reconstruct public administration into a mechanism of collaborative governance (Nica and Potcovaru, 2015) which unswervingly advances sustainable development outcomes. E-government carries huge capacity to augment the manner that governments supply public services and increase ample stakeholder participation in public service. (United Nations, 2014) Citizen-centric public entities designate more resources to react to new difficult tasks and have more adjustable, achievable funds. Best-practice public entities suggest alterations constantly for the purpose of raising cost-effectiveness and satisfy the dynamic demands of citizens. First-rate management is a feature of citizen-centric organizations. (A.T. Kearney, 2009)2. Pivotal Features of E-government for Sustainable DevelopmentE-government can assist governments in going green and backing successful natural resource management, and in addition impel economic growth and further social incorporation of underprivileged and assailable groups. Egovernment and modernization can furnish notable chances to transfigure public sector into a tool of sustainable development. E-government is an effective instrument available for governments (Popescu, 2015a), which, if utilized competently, can be considerably instrumental in wiping out extreme poverty, preserving the environment and fostering social incorporation and economic chance for all. The income standard of a nation is an overall evidence of economic strength and advance, impacting its e-government progress. Previous and present financing in telecommunication, human resources and supplying of online services is partly responsible for a significant degree of e-government development. (United Nations, 2014) The improvement of egovernment operation measures should develop with a rising tendency in public sector and technologies. The agenda of communication route choices for the government to involve individuals has considerably enlarged with the progress of ICTs. A citizen-centric e-government operation assessment system should incorporate three chief constituents: (a) actual utilization, (b) quality evaluation, and (c) views for development. The employment of egovernment data and service should support the rise in citizens' confidence in government. An effective e-government operation assessment pursues citizens' comments for enhancement. Protecting individuals' digital data and securing digital privacy in the diffusion of government information online can assist in gaining the confidence of citizens. …

The economic value of smart city technology

Abstract: 1. IntroductionEconomy is the main determinant of smart city proposals, and a city with a significant level of economic competitiveness (Popescu, 2015a, b, c, d, e) has one of the features of a smart city. The economic consequences of the smart city proposals are business production, job generation, personnel development, and enhancement in the productivity. The enforcement of an ICT infrastructure is essential to a smart city's advancement and is contingent on several elements associated with its attainability and operation. (Chourabi et al., 2012) Smart city involvements are the end results of, and uncomfortably incorporated into, present social and spatial configurations of urban governa nce (Br a tu, 2015) a nd the built setting: the s ma rt city is put together gradually, integrated awkwardly into current arrangements of city administration and the reinforced environment. Smart cities are intrinsically distinguished, being geographically asymmetrical at a diversity of scales. Not all places of the city will be similarly smart: smart cities will favor some spaces, individuals, and undertakings over others. An essential component of the smart city is its capacity to further economic growth. (Shelton et al., 2015)2. The Assemblage of Participants, Tenets and Technologies Related to Smart City InterventionsThe "smart city" notion has arisen from long-persisting opinions regarding urban technological idealistic schemes (Lazaroiu, 2013) and the absolutely competitive city. Smart cities are where novel technologies may be produced and the receptacles for technology, i.e. the goal of its utilizations. The contest to join this movement and become a smart city has stimulated city policymakers to endogenize the performance of technology-led growth (Lazaroiu, 2014a, b, c), leading municipal budgets toward financings that present smart city standing. The boundaries of the smart city are generated both by the lack of data utilizations that can handle shared and not separate solutions and by the incapacity to aim at indefinit e features of cities that both enhance and blemish from the standard of urban existence for city inhabitants. Smart city technology fina ncings are chiefly composed of a meliorations inst ea d of genuine innovations, on the cit izen consumer side. (Glasmeier and Christopherson, 2015) The notion of smart city as a method to improve the life standard of individuals has been achieving rising relevance in the calendars of policymakers. The amount of "smart" proposals initiated by a municipality can lead to an intermediate final product that indicates the endeavors made to augment the quality of existence of the citizens. The probabilities of a city raising its degree of smartness are contingent on several country-specific variables that outweigh its economic, technological and green advancement rate. Public administrations dema nd backing to organize the notion of the smartness of a city (Nica, 2015a, b, c, d), to encapsulate its ramifications, to establish standards at the global level, and to observe enhancement chances. (Neir otti et a l., 2014) T he gr owth of smart cit ies is assisting the rise of government employment of ITCs to enhance political involvement, enforce public schemes or supply public spher e ser vices. Ther e is no one wa y to becoming smart, and diverse cities ha ve embraced distinct adva nces that indicate their specific circumstances. The administration of smart cities is dependent on elaborate arrangements of interdependent entities. (Rodriguez Bolivar, 2015)The association of smart (technology-enabled) solutions to satisfy the leading societal difficult tasks and the concentration on the city as the chief determinant of alteration bring about the notion of the "smart city." The rise of novel technologies to assess and interlink various facets of ordinary exis- tence ("the internet of things") is relevant in the progression towards a smart city. The latter is attempt ing to encourage a nd adjust innovations to the demands of their citizens (Pera, 2015a, b) by urging synergetic advancement of inventions with various stakeholders. …

The role of e-government in curbing the corruption in public administration

Abstract: . E-government adoption and implementation influence power relations in public administration. Various social mechanisms are involved when e-govemment penetrates public administration. The upshot of my discussion is that e-governance can assist in reducing corruption.JEL codes: D73; G18; OilKeywords: e-govemment; corruption; public administrationReceived 20 March 2014 * Received in revised form 25 August 2014Accepted 29 August 2014 *Available online 15 March 20151. IntroductionCurrent corruption risks can appear because of the fact that e-government enhances closeness to the private sphere. The expenditure conduct of decentralized or (partially) independent administrative entities (agencies) can be better monitored. E-government determines more corruption, centralism, and ranking, and less effectiveness in government service. Process openness and cutting down the independence of offices which involve directly citizens can diminish corruption. (Schuppan, 2009) The social technologies are mainly transformative and concerning especially openness and anti-corruption. Egovemment and other ICTs can be employed to fight corruption via the supplying of information to people and their ability to supervise the enterprises of the government. ICTs can diminish corruption by advancing first-rate governance. Taxes and government agreements are spheres where e-government is an efficient answer to corruption troubles. Openness as an anticorruption procedure has long been linked with economic stimulants. (Bertot et al., 2010)2. Building Trust in E-government and E-commerceCustomer confidence may be more significant in e-transactions than in traditional transactions. The solution to positive result in Internet business is the setting up of trusted transaction procedures. Trust tends to have a key function in online transactions. Confidence, sensed risk, and sensed advantage are powerful drivers of a buyer's e-commerce transaction judgment (they may directly affect purchase aims and judgments). Shoppers are frequently confronted with some level of risk or indecision (Stefanescu-Mihaila, 2015) in their buying judgments. Customer aims to participate in online transactions are an outstanding predictor of purchasers' engagement in e-commerce transactions. It is ordinary for a shopper who makes an online transaction to be unwilling to buy on the Web. (Kim et al., 2008) A customer's confidence has a powerful positive direct influence on the shopper's Internet transaction aim. A purchaser's sense of risk diminishes her transaction intention. A buyer's trust has a powerful indirect consequence on the purchaser's transaction aim through the customer's sense of risk. Confidence has an important function in cutting down the shopper's sensed risk and in enhancing the customer's sensed advantage. A buyer's requirements supply a standard or reference degree for shoppers to assess e-commerce transaction operation. Requirements have a negative impact on a customer's acceptance, whereas sensed operation has a powerful positive influence on the buyer's acceptance. (Kim et al., 2009)Customer data may rectify information imbalances, and allow buyers to make transactional judgments that react to their distinctive options and prerequisites. Openness and informed customers are the consequence of intricate processes in which a diversity of various participants and elements may be included. The purpose of customer data relies on the origin of data and the motives for and stimulants behind informing purchasers. Not all aims of customer scheme are similarly suitable for types of informational procedure. Customer data is not the direct result of a legal responsibility to inform. The efficiency of transparency responsibilities in affecting purchasers' conduct can rely on an active series of private components, technical aspects, institutional elements and contextual determinants. Customer data that is supplied by the providers of services to their possible shoppers is the most ordinary type of consumer information, and can be obtained from different sources, each having its own unconditioned concerns, expertise and resources. …

Environmentally sustainable transport and e-commerce logistics

Abstract: . The current study extends past research by elucidating sustainability as part of the improvement of firms' business schemes, the economic effect on environmental management decision, and logistics as a main challenge for e-commerce players. This research makes conceptual and methodological contributions to the environmental conduct of transport and logistics companies, sustainable performance in logistics, and socio-economic obstacles to sustainable transport.JEL codes: L81; Q56Keywords: sustainable transport; e-commerce logistics; environmental managementReceived 10 May 2014 * Received in revised form 14 October 2014Accepted 24 November 2014 * Available online 10 March 20151. IntroductionInternational business to consumer (B2C) e-commerce transactions have boosted lately, compelled by an increasing online community and modifications in customer conduct. The growth of physical retail capacity (StefanescuMihaila, 2015) may maintain swiftly together with a powerful growth in espending. Impressive expansion potential of e-retail will bring about substantial transformations (Popescu, 2014a) in retail logistics and physical delivery arrangements. Regarding the nature of the logistics base in numerous developing countries (Drumea, 2011), the transport base is better organized around and between the main cities, whereas outside of them the quality of the current depot constructions is rather poor (the physical merchandizing market is somewhat immature too). In developed countries, e-commerce is the newest significant determinant of change (Ionescu, 2014a) in selling logistics and physical delivery arrangements. In multi-channel merchandizing consumer interacts with retail merchant via separately handled routes, whereas in omnichannel merchandizing the routes are handled in a wholly unified manner to supply a coherent shopper experience. (JLL, 2013)2. The Environmental Behavior of Transport and Logistics CompaniesE-commerce has altered the purchasing customs and generated groundbreaking challenges for logistics suppliers, e.g. more significant quantities but smaller orders to be collected, parceled, arranged, and distributed, and more relevant volumes of returns, exchanges, and destroyed products. The conventional shop will be one of the numerous commercial routes accessible to retail firms, on an equivalent basis with stores, online shopping websites, and social and mobile websites. For less relevant retail merchants, e-commerce provides a straightforward manner to approach the international marketplace (Drumea, 2012a), and even concurrently via numerous routes. Environmental influence and traffic crowdedness, associated with the rising importance of e-commerce and home distribution, determines the necessity of having logistics strategies adjusted to the particular demands of urban zones. (DHL, 2014) The products delivered by China's logistics companies are being transported on a quickly enlarging distribution network. High fees can stimulate delivery firms to encumber their trucks and infringe security measures. The substantial financing of delivery infrastructure has left nearly every area of the country attainable by motorway and nearly all of it by rail. The less-advanced central and western areas are eventually proceeding to be connected by trustworthy delivery channels to the east border. Distribution firms undergo decreased cost-effectiveness and an incapacity to advance their significant functioning expenditures to the customer. Road delivery is extremely competitive, having been entirely open to all kinds of firm. As more businesses migrate toward the interior of the country seeking less expensive labor and land, a requirement is effective delivery connections to east and southern coastal regions. With rises to China's delivery infrastructure set up, officials are seeking to fortify the operational setting. Numerous global delivery and logistics firms concentrate on identifying and assisting shoppers choosing to pay a surcharge for quality and dependability of their services. …

E-commerce effects on social sustainability

Abstract: . The purpose of this study is to examine the ICT capacity for sustainable economic undertaking, the environmental effects of e-commerce, and the competitive superiority provided by a marketing scheme that assimilates sustainability. The overall results provide strong evidence for the influence of ICT capital proportion on the production-oriented initiative of sustainable effectiveness, sustainability inferences of e-business resolutions, and e-commerce impacts on social sustainability.JEL codes: L81; Q56Keywords: sustainable effectiveness; e-commerce; environmental effects; ICTReceived 12 May 2014 * Received in revised form 20 October 2014Accepted 22 November 2014 * Available online 10 March 20151. IntroductionE-commerce has obtained much recognition as technologies being employed are user-friendly and consumer-based, has assisted online marketing in evolving into a strategic management instrument, can aid in distinguishing the items by providing faster distribution (Drumea, 2011), and can bring about first-time shoppers by selecting a good that tends to attract them. Numerous companies are embracing the virtual world approach via e-commerce which develops consistent with consumer's request. Grasping the character of the market's demands (Ionescu, 2014a) is crucial for generating the basic ecommerce infrastructure. A suitable e-commerce solution in association with in-depth e-marketing and advertising can provide business insurance. (Mohapatra, 2012)2. The Market-oriented Sustainability FabricInformation and communication technology (ICT) and e-business can be partly responsible for a creative and sustainable economy. There is a beneficial effect of ICT on hothouse gas releases in energy-intensive economies in Europe. The European Commission and the European Union (EU) member states should unite efforts to set up robust policy schemes and initiatives to support the manufacturing establishment in Europe. Rises in ICT utilization are thoroughly associated with more sustainable development in energyintensive fabrication spheres (Nica and Potcovaru, 2014) and in the transport business. A significant portion of ICT in a corporation's entire capital is related to relevant production sustainability in energy-intensive economies. Smart metering technologies will have an important function in backing sustainability. If a firm enhances its energy effectiveness ("sustainability"), it cuts down expenses, being thus more competitive. Financing ground-breaking green technology may boost the environmental sustainability without rewarding the corporation. (European Communities, 2010) The market-oriented sustainability fabric organizes the intrinsic determinants or mechanisms (Nica and Molnar, 2014) that accelerate sustainable operations that generate competitive superiority for the company. The Resource-Advantage Theory is the theoretical basis for connecting market tendency and sustainability. Marketing policies and undertakings are intricately associated with the offing of the natural setting that maintains all life. Marketers should be interested in uptake as connected to sustainability. The market-oriented advance to sustainability functions as a resource benefit for the company. The results of sustainability endeavors eventually influence what sustainability attempts are undertaken (market-tailored sustainability is a supply benefit and determinant of competitive advantage). A firm's deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) is crucial to sustainability. The DNA carries the profoundly embedded series of values and convictions that furnish behavioral patterns that bring about or form sustainable activities (sustainability DNA retains both the strategy and the atmosphere features of a market-oriented company). Core beliefs, active proficiencies, and societal involvement are characteristics within a firm's sustainability DNA concept: core beliefs are symptomatic of the intrinsic strategy of a market predilection, whereas active proficiencies and societal involvement concern the atmosphere of a market predilection. …

Exchange rate dynamics in south africa: a review of past and present regimes

Abstract: . In this paper, we evaluate the exchange rate episodes in South Africa during the period 1920-2012. We examine the various exchange rate reforms and exchange rate regimes that have been implemented in the country - over the years, and in a chronological order. We find that, like many other emerging economies, South Africa has experienced fundamental exchange rate fluctuations during the studied period. In particular, the period 2002-2013 witnessed persistent fluctuations, which seem to have been propelled largely by market shocks - rather than by market fundamentals. In addition, the massive foreign capital inflows that the economy attracted during the high interest rate period caused the rand to trade at a rate over and above its equilibrium level. This high interest rate policy, especially during the period 2000-2009, was necessary - in order to bring the country's inflation rate down to its 3%-6% target range - in accordance with the country's inflation-targeting framework. This, coupled with the fact that the rand is currently one of the most tradeable currencies in the world, rendered the currency more volatile than would otherwise have been expected. It is, therefore, recommended that some market-friendly foreign exchange restraints be maintained alongside the flexible exchange rate policy, in order to ensure that the stability of the rand is safeguarded, as far as possible.JEL codes: E52; E58; F31Keywords: South Africa; exchange rate regimes; exchange rate reformsReceived 25 April 2014 * Received in revised form 1 March 2015Accepted 12 March 2015 * Available online 20 June 20151. IntroductionThe South African exchange rate, like that of many other emer ging economies, has been very erratic during the past few years. For example, between 1970 and 1988, the official exchange rate between the rand and the US dollar (R/USD) increased from 0.71 to 2.27, thereby representing a significant decrease in the value of the rand (see World Development Indicators, 2014). Specifically, the official exchange rate between the rand and the US dollar (R/USD) increased from 0.71 in 1970 to 0.72 in 1971, and later to 0.77 in 1972. Although the value of the rand later increased slightly when the exchange rate decreased from 0.77 in 1972 to 0.69 and 0.68 in 1973 and 1974, respectively, this improvement in the value of the rand was short-lived - because the exchange rate later increased again to 0.87 in 1978. The rate later decreased from 0.87 in 1978 to 0.78 in 1980, but increased again to 0.88 in 1981. Between 1981 and 1986, there was a consistent increase in the exchange rate, signifying a significant drop in the value of the rand. The rate increased from 0.88 in 1981 to 2.29 in 1986. Although the rate later decreased in 1987 to 2.04, this decrease was short-lived - as the rate later increased again to 2.27 in 1988. Figures 1 and 2 show the trends of the exchange rate and the percentage change in the exchange rate in South Africa, when compared with other developing countries during the period 1975-1988.Between 1988 and 2002, the value of the rand against the US dollar decreased consistently on a year-to-year basis, with the exception of 1990. In 2002, for example, the exchange rate between the rand and the US dollar (i.e. R/USD) reached 10.54, accor ding to World Development Indicators (2014). This represented a significant increase of about 307% from 1990, indicating a severe drop in the value of the rand. Figures 3 and 4 show the trends of the exchange rate and the percentage change in the exchange rate in South Africa, when compared with other developing countries during the period 1988-2002. Since 2002, the rand has shown an erratic trend. The rate decreased from 10.54 in 2002 to 6.36 in 2005, but increased again to 8.47 in 2009 - according to World Development Indicators (2014). Although the rate decreased to 7.32 and 7.26 in 2010 and 2011, respectively; it later increased again to 8. …

Higher Education Systems Are Assuming a Larger Role in the Economic Development Efforts of Their States

Abstract: . For many years, states across the United States have built their economic development strategies around tax breaks and other incentives designed to attract new industry. But a study launched by the Rockefeller Institute of Government found that states are increasingly looking to their higher education institutions and systems to become engines of economic growth. A literature review, site visits and interviews with people on and off the campuses found that universities are putting their research power to work in developing ideas that will strengthen the country's competitive edge in the new economy - and are then helping to deploy those innovations into commercial use. The institutions also report that they provide a wide range of knowledge-focused services to businesses and other employers, including customized jobtraining programs, hands-on counseling, technical help, and management assistance. Together, these trends suggest a new paradigm for economic development programs - one that puts higher education at the center of states' efforts to succeed in the knowledge economy.JEL codes: A22; H52; 123Keywords: economic development; higher education; research universities; community collegesReceived 5 June 2014 * Received in revised form 21 November 2014Accepted 27 November 2014 * Available online 15 March 20151. IntroductionAs long ago as the Golden Age of Athens, when Socrates and Sophocles flourished in a city that rose to become the first great commercial power of the Mediterranean world, people knew there was a connection between higher learning and prosperity. "Athens is the school of all Greece," declared Pericles. "The fruits of the whole earth flow in upon us."At two turning points in its history, the United States has ambitiously applied that insight. In the second half of the 1800s, the Morrill Act spurred the creation of a network of land-grant colleges that educated the people and developed the ideas needed to take the nation to leadership in the early 20th Century. Then, in the second half of the 1900s, the GI Bill sent over a million veterans to college, giving the nation the world's best educated and most productive workforce, and supercharging the growth of research universities that spawned the technologies with which we live today.Today, with the United States facing global economic competition on an unprecedented scale, a third wave is gathering strength. In states across America, higher education systems, universities, and community colleges are working to help their states and regions advance in the new knowledge economy. From Springfield, Massachusetts, where a technical college has converted an abandoned factory into an urban tech park, to Raleigh-Durham, North Carolina, where research universities helped turn a sleepy backwater into a global powerhouse of innovation and manufacturing, to Sidney, Nebraska, where a community college operates a training academy that helped keep the headquarters of a growing national company in its rural hometown, communities today find that their hopes for the future are tied to institutions of higher education.Many efforts like these are just beginning, and the ultimate results are not yet known. Many institutions are going through a learning experience, as they test out what seems to work best. However, some of the characteristics shared by the most active institutions in the field can be identified now. They have the leadership to make economic revitalization a priority, the culture to mesh that objective with their academic mission, the legal flexibility to mix and match assets and brainpower with the private sector, and the resources to make it all work.Their efforts fall into two broad categories.First, institutions and systems are advancing innovation - new technologies, new processes, new products - in their local and regional economies. This focus on innovation sees university faculty and leaders thinking creatively about how to leverage their strengths in knowledge creation to yield tangible economic benefits. …

Early childhood education, economic development, and the need for universal programs: with a focus on new england

Abstract: . The importance of early childhood education for the cognitive and social/behavior development of children is widely recognized, and in recent years increasing attention has been given to the economic impacts of the education of young children. This article examines the studies of model early childhood education programs that yield high economic returns and the large scale studies of Head Start and other programs that demonstrate more complex results. From these studies it is clear that high quality programs make substantial long-run contributions to the lives of children and yield high returns to society's investments in these programs. At the same time, it is important for advocates of early childhood education programs not to expect (or claim) too much for those programs. The article also establishes that, aside from the long-term gains from high quality programs, there are immediate economic gains to society from child care programs, even if those programs are only "adequate." The gains come in terms of the greater labor force participation of parents of young children (primarily mothers) and in terms of the parents' greater productivity. Also, under some circumstances, public expenditures on early child care programs can provide a significant, short-run demand stimulus. There is a strong case for greater public investment in early childhood education programs, but a question remains as to whether the emphasis should be on universal programs or means tested programs (i.e., programs targeted at children from low-income families). This article presents several arguments supporting an emphasis on universal programs. These arguments are based, for example, on evidence that the gains for children are greatest in programs that include children from diverse socio-economic backgrounds. These arguments also include the point that there is no less reason to provide universal programs for young children than there is to provide universal K-12 education. Furthermore, the article point out that while the income gains from early childhood education - to the children, to their families, and to society - are important, as with K-12 education there are other social gains from these programs that should not be obscured. Particularly important are the potential income equalizing impact of the programs and their positive contribution to the quality of life of the children and their families.JEL codes: H52; H75; 121Keywords: economics of education; economic development; public investment; education policy; distribution; inequalityReceived 26 March 2014 * Received in revised form 23 August 2014Accepted 28 August 2014 * Available online 15 March 2015"From birth to age 5, children rapidly develop foundational capabilities on which subsequent development builds. In addition to their remarkable linguistic and cognitive gains, they exhibit dramatic progress in their emotional, social, regulatory, and moral capacities. All of these critical dimensions of early development are intertwined, and each requires focused attention."Committee on Integrating the Science of Early Childhood Development, From Neurons to Neighborhoods: The Science of Early Childhood Development11. IntroductionIt is well established that the experiences of children in their early years, before they enter kindergarten, are very important in affecting their long-term cognitive and social development.2 Children's development, in turn, affects not only their personal well-being but also their capacity to contribute to the well-being of society in general.Less well recognized, however, is that society's investments in early childhood education can be an essential component in economic development - providing an important foundation for society's economic well-being over the long run and also making more immediate contributions to economic expansion.3 Like state government expenditures on the physical foundations of economic activity (roads, bridges, sewers), expenditures on the social foundations of economic activity - education in particular - shape the course of the economy long into the future. …

The economics of corruption in professional sport

Abstract: . The analysis presented in this paper contributes to research on the culture of corruption in sport, kinds of corrupt undertakings identified in worldwide sport, expenses of corruption in global sports, and important barriers in reacting to corruption in sport. The material gathered in this study provides a rich and diverse context for understanding anti-corruption actions in sport, the pernicious consequences of corruption in sports, the threat of corruption in international sport, and elements that strengthen the resilience of corruption in worldwide sport.JEL codes: D73; L83Keywords: corruption; professional sport; fair playReceived 10 May 2014 * Received in revised form 27 November 2014Accepted 1 December 2014 * Available online 10 June 20151. IntroductionParticularly with professional sports inducing substantial concern and immense quantities of money, corruption in sports may bring about an enormous societal and economic responsibility. Corruption in its different types permeates the whole sports system, perverting integrity, fair play and confidence for the game. Corruption in sports is any type of competitive damage generated by any kind of undertaking viewed as prohibited by law, unjust or dishonest (Nica and Potcovaru, 2014) established on shared global rules and restrictions. Corruption has pervaded through the whole range of sports and creates harmful consequences. The strength of antidotes to oppose corruption in sports is moderated by the corruption intrinsic in the entities that may divert organizations from their primary aim, decelerating the enforced endeavors to swimmingly and sustainably oppose corruption. (Dimant and Deutscher, 2015)2. The Threat of Corruption in International SportThe sports industr y provides a context wher e corrupt events ar e exa ctly documented, where sanctions are handled by sports controlling entities and where spectators' demand, in the configuration of gate presence at sporting events, is noticeable and consistently regist ered. Team sports contests are prone to several sources of embryonic corruption, comprising unequivocal match-rigging. Sports leagues can emphasize the supplementary detrimental effects of sanctions as a discouragement for eventual corrupt routines by club representatives who may be vulnerable to enticement. (Buraimo et al., 2015)Corruption offensives in global sports associate with the exercise of a delinquent impact over management decisions by sporting entities and sports representatives, and especially concerning host venues for outstanding contests, allowance of rights, recommendation for positions, commissioning constructions activities for sports stadiums and other settings, and in addition over contest results, in accordance with which the supplier and the beneficiary of the bribes can be sportspersons only, sporting representatives and other nonsportspersons only, and sportspersons and representatives. Regardless of the fact that a substantial degree of unidentified situations are considered, there is no evidence that corruption in sport is on the rise or is more pervasive in sport than corruption in other spheres of human enterprise. The social marginal expenses of preventing corruption in sport can be maintained somewhat low. Worldwide sport can be praised for having taken anti-corruption initiatives which were swift enough in most situations and which generally indicated basically the appropriate path. (Maennig, 2009) (Table 1)3. The Pernicious Consequences of Corruption in SportsCorruption seeks to make sport more of a pastime competition with a more significant inevitability of end result, deprives it of its crucial aspect of unpredictability of the outcome and advances its bias into the arena of fun, and affects the grounds of sporting virtue. It is vital to support the latter to secure that sport is not under any corrupt authority that might challenge the accuracy and uncertainty of the sporting outcome. …

The Growth of Environmentally Sustainable Consumerism

Abstract: . The purpose of this article is to gain a deeper understanding of the link between consumer specialization and the predisposition of consumers to alter features of the consumption activity, mechanisms that may diminish the positive effect of environmental consumerism on the natural world, and consumer buying conduct for sustainable goods. Although researchers have discovered some important findings regarding the relationship between positions towards the environment and the purchasing of products, essential determinants of private consumers' decisions to buy environmental product varieties, and the function of green positions in addition to human values concerning food preferences when foods are labeled for sustainability, there is still a great deal that is unknown and that requires further empirical inquiry.JEL codes: Q01; Q56; P46; D11Keywords: green consumerism; sustainable development; purchasing behaviorReceived 10 May 2014 * Received in revised form 22 November 2014Accepted 29 November 2014 * Available online 10 June 20151. IntroductionApplying new conceptual and methodological approaches, this study advances to the next level research on the features of environmental consumers, the relevance of consumer conduct for sustainable development, and determinants that persuade individuals to purchase environment-friendly goods. This paper discusses the major trends in scholarship about the effect of product characteristics and values on environmental consumerism, the inner psychological processes that impact individuals' environmental consumerism, and the purchasing process of green or sustainable goods.2. The Green Effect of Environmental ConsumptionMost consumers back the notion of buying environmental goods. Consumers examine environmental product characteristics but they are frequently left aside: there is an interchange between the assessments of product characteristics that impacts buying decisions, in accordance with which consumers are inclined to concentrate on self-serving product characteristics initially, accompanied by environmental product characteristics. The magnitude to which environmental product characteristics are left aside relies especially on consumers' values. Making the environmental choice entails purchasing goods that are least damaging to the natural world and society altogether. 'Egoistic' product characteristics supply straightforward and noticeable positive consequences for a consumer, by that fulfilling self-interest demands. The degree to which brands are recognized by consumers has a rather direct link with buying plans. The chief intrinsic determinant for the impact of brand fairness on buying schemes is egoistic incentives. (Schuitema and de Groot, 2015) Sustainable or environmental consumer conducts monopolize a progressively significant function in further ing gr een cogniza nce (Nica, 2015a) and cutting down per -capita greenhouse releases. There is a primary expenditure, as in the situation of buying more costly green goods that may function as an obstacle to participating in environmental consumerism. The latter is an achievable manner to undertake pro-green, sustainable conduct, and has a neutral to positive effect on the natural world. Peer group conduct may be an adequate path to raising the strikingness of green standards. Consumers who observe their neighbors preferring to purchase environmental goods may act similarly. Environmental consumerism is impacted by social criteria (Stefanescu-Mihaila, 2015) that dema nd compliance and it can also function as a signaling instrument for achieving social standing or a prosocial stature. (Sachdeva et al., 2015)Environmental marketing includes all undertakings employed to bring about and further any interchanges destined to meet human demands (Serban, 2014), such that their fulfillment happens, with negligible harm to the natural setting. A person's ima ge of the natural wor ld ma y be arranged into a cognitive social order comprising values, positions/standards, goals and conducts. …

Labor management and dress culture in the victorian textile industry

Abstract: . The purpose of this article is to gain a deeper understanding of literacy in dress culture in Victorian women's fiction, the relationship between textile industry and dress culture in the Victorian society, and the representations of textile culture in Victorian women's literature.JEL codes: L67; F16; J16; J21Keywords: labor management; dress culture; Victorian textile industryReceived 16 August 2014 * Received in revised form 12 April 2015Accepted 18 April 2015 * Available online 15 June 20151. IntroductionWomen in late-Victorian novels involve in activities associated with their status within the household. Women may produce social change (Lazaroiu, 2013) by shaping their own statements of intervention after those of literary protagonists. Feminists came to appreciate thought greatly, whereas consciousness was a significant feature in the feminist realist aesthetic. The shift from Victorianism to modernism has commonly been ascribed to the employment of antirealist narrative schemes by late-Victorian novelists. That transition may not generate more adequately feminist images in the modernist epoch. The stress on internal view considers improvement of extremely intricate inner existences of female personages. The modernist accent on consciousness emphasizes the convolution of women's private lives. (Youngkin, 2007)2. Textile Industry and Dress Culture in the Victorian SocietyBraddon exa mines the looking-glass's twofold capacity t o design fantasy and indicate reality, manufacturing a new symbolic link between reading and clothing and metafictionally debating Isabel's twofold posture as reader and protagonist, subject and object. There is a persistent symbolic link between the type of self-awareness aroused by the looking-glass and that stimulated by reading, performing and dressing-up. Braddon debates fluctuations in understandings of womanly and literary subjectivity, and employs the looking-glass as both a physical instrument and self-aware metaphor for Isabel's metamorphosis as reader and protagonist. The looking-glass is a setting for altering literary, womanly and auctorial subjectivities and subjects. Braddon's redemptive account supports sensation literature and its female audience and reconstructs her own auctorial subjectivity. (Seys, 2014) As component of their socialization, women in the Victorian era learned to interpret textiles, both items of clothing and household embellishment: they were precisely requir ed to organize fashion and t extiles. Girls' education highlighted the skills to manufacture and adorn textile items, and to comprehend and survey the social consequences of fashion. Women's twofold proficiency in print and cloth furthered an intricate conception of female group and provided women with the jargon to handle and supervise it. Literacy in dress culture furnished women authors an effective manner to discuss with and about women. Their sway over questions of sewing and dress enabled them to support social movements in a conventional manner. Dress culture supplied late Victorian women authors an elaborately textured jargon for undertaking an envisaged group of female readers: they employed twofold proficiency to highlight women's dress culture as a refined, sound, and community-building scheme (Ionescu, 2015, 2014a, 2014b) intimately related to the craft of literary composition. (Bayles Kortsch, 2009)The hyper-feminine undertakings of gazing at fashion plates and playing with dolls persuaded women to yearn for feminine items. The customs of clothing imagery and doll narratives continued approximately the same from the 1840s via the 1870s. The moral force between women and girls identified in fashion publications turned out to organize tales about girls and their dolls. Fashion and dolls personify what women aim to be and what men seek to have, standing for prosperity and relaxation in addition to seductive femininity. Plates took the place of dolls as a way of publicizing new clothing styles. …

An examination of corporate stock buybacks: do they really create value?

Abstract: 1. IntroductionAlthough popular for over 25 years, corporate stock buybacks have accelerated in recent years, with billions of dollars in repurchases following the financial crisis of t he late 2000s (Schwartz, 2011; Thomasson & Xydias, 2010). The proportion of cash flow used for repurchases has almost doubled over the last decade while it has slipped for capital investments and companies are predicted to spend an incr easing amount on share buybacks and dividends this year, about 95 percent of earnings (Wang & Bost, 2014). Often touted and viewed as a value creating strategy, historical reports suggest that the longer term results of stock repurchases are fairly unpredictable. Empirical evidence has shown that positive abnormal returns often do accrue to companies announcing stock repurchase programs in the short term, but longer ter m va lue cr eat ion r emains speculative and highly questionable. Given the extraordinary proliferation of this activity, the considerable amount of financial investment in stock repurchases, and the implications for stockholders, the market, and the economy, we are interested in examining stock buybacks specifically in terms of longer-ter m value creation. Is this really the best use of companies' cash? Do shareholders really benefit or do they receive the r ight to own part of a company with less cash? Severa l ma y benefit in the short term, including executives holding stock options, selling or non-selling shareholders, and activist investors, but is value really created for investors over the longer term?Repurchasing outstanding stock from shareholders presents an alternative to capital expenditures, acquisitions, and dividends. This activity has always been debatable on a number of dimensions (e.g., why and how it is done, market manipulation, anomalies about pricing, role of corporate governance and boards of directors, fairness to all shareholders, etc.). Clearly, opportunity costs include investment in corporate growth, development, or renewal initiatives, and even the ability to retain existing employees. Robert Reich, former Secretary of Labor, and who now teaches public policy at the University of California, Berkeley, says, "It's an extraordinarily unimaginative way to use money." Further, while corporate boards justify stock buybacks for a number of reasons, questions remain as to their genuine efficacy (Yamate, 2013).Investment (or capital expenditure) strategies must be rationalized as a mea ns of incr easing shar eholder value over the longer ter m, yet ma ny consider stock repurchases as a purely accounting driven strategy to increase share value without any change in the intrinsic value of the company. When corporate boards repurchase st ock, investors likely consider this to be a signal that profitable investment projects are not available. Yet, corporate use of cash for stock repurchases has the potential, if not the reality, of reducing growth in a firm's operations over longer time horizons. Nothing about a stock buyback is related to increasing cash flows available to shareholders in the future. Grullon and Ikenberry (2000) note that the stock repurchase, if done with cash, can attenuate a firm's size and capitalization. Ultimately, on a larger scale, the cumulative effect of so many companies repurchasing stock as an alternative to increasing capital budgets can have a deleterious influence on the business investment component of aggregate demand in the economy, in addition to the labor force. Further, as a governance issue, a very important purpose of the corporate board is to provide advice relating to the future operations of the company and to protect shareholder value. If the intended results of stock buybacks vary unpredictably or do not lead to longer term value creation, perhaps boards should be held to a higher standard in approving these programs (Yamate, 2013).Studies of the benefit to shareholder wealth as a result of the announcement of a pending stock buyback program are extant. …

Unutilized Productive Capacity, Binary Economics and the Case for Broadening Capital Ownership

Abstract: . Binary economics holds that a broader distribution of capital acquisition with the earnings of capital promises more consumer demand in future years and therefore greater incentive to employ labor and capital in earlier years. Therefore broadening individual participation in capital acquisition with the earnings of capital has a potent (but presently untapped) positive distributive relationship to growth that is not caused by productivity gains and governmental strategies to redistribute or regulate demand. Compared to classical, neoclassical, Keynesian, Austrian, institutional, socialist, and other schools of economics, binary economics specifically offers (1) a distinct explanation for the persistence of long-run unutilized productive capacity (2) a unique paradigm for understanding economic production, prices, efficiency, growth, and justice, and (3) a market-based policy alternative that promises a wholly voluntary means to employ productive capacity more fully, profitably and sustainably to produce much greater and broadly shared abundance by way of a more inclusive, competitive, and democratic private property system that universalizes the competitive market right to acquire capital with the earnings of capital. To achieve these goals, no transactions are mandated and no government taxation, redistribution, or borrowing is required. Rather, with a binary understanding of market economics, and with modest reform of the existing system of corporate finance, these goals could be achieved entirely by way of voluntary transactions that yield widespread, and eventually universal, individual, capital acquisition with the earnings of capital. When judged by the criteria of (1) reasonable assumptions, (2) internal consistency, and (3) plausible descriptive, predictive, and prescriptive utility, compared to the other economic approaches that are routinely taught and employed, the binary approach is more consistent with scientific principles. Based on widely accepted principles underlying the philosophy of science, professional ethics, secular morality, and spiritual values, educational institutions and foundations have a responsibility to teach binary economics in most contexts in which issues of economic growth, efficiency, sustainability, and justice are taught or considered. Professional ethics governing fiduciaries, advisors, and government officials also call for the inclusion of binary econ omic principles in their positive and normative analysis of those subjects and in the discharge of their professional duties.JEL codes: E23; G14; D63Keywords: austerity-stimulus debates; broadening capital acquisition; effective demand; growth theory; Keynesian economics; neoclassical economicsReceived 26 March 2011 * Received in revised form 16 March 2015Accepted 27 March 2015 * Available online 20 June 20151. IntroductionBinary economics1 simultaneously offers a little-understood paradigm for foundationally distinct from classical, neoclassical, Keynesian, socialist and Austrian economics. Except for analysis that can be traced to the work of Louis Kelso, it is also distinct from all formulations commonly categorized as "heterodox economics."Binary economics also offers a prescription for establishing a more inclusive, competitive and democratic private property system, one that universalizes the competitive market right to acquire capital with the earnings of capital. 2 Focusing on the persistence of unutilized productive capacity in a context in which markets are supposedly becoming more efficient, binary economics specifically offers both (1) a distinct understanding of the persistence of unutilized productive capacity and (2) a wholly voluntary, market-based, ownership-broadening approach that promises to employ labor and capital more fully, profitably, and sustainably to produce much greater and more broadly shared prosperity.To many people concerned about the economic prospects of poor and middle class people, especially in light of their declining share of national income,3 the persistence of unutilized productive capacity is puzzling and deeply troublesome. …

Can Investors Profit by Following Analysts' Recommendations? an Investigation of Chinese Analysts' Trading Recommendations on Industry

Abstract: . This study empirically examines the investment value of security analysts' industry-specific trading recommendations on China's stock market. Two questions are raised: whether investors can profit from the Chinese stock market by following those analyst recommendations; and whether buying (or selling) those recommended stocks could yield a higher return than the market during the same period of time. We conduct this research based on the database from EASTMONEY, which is the most frequently visited website providing professional information regarding market performance and share trading issues in China. We examined the trading history of the market from 2011 to 2013, and identified a total of 32440 recommendations issued by professional Chinese brokerage houses regarding 44 industries. Calendarbased portfolios are set up to evaluate the performance of those industries one day, one week, one month, half a year, and a year after the trading recommendations were released. It is found that industries with favorable recommendations in general outperform those with unfavorable recommendations and this performance discrepancy tends to magnify over time. If following the analysts' recommendations to buy and sell, shareholders are likely to profit in the mid- to long-run, and those stocks pertain to an industry with favorable (unfavorable) recommendations tend to outperform (underperform) the benchmark indices in the mid- to long-run as well. This study provides a novel attempt to assess the characteristics, and to an extent, the institutional efficiency of the share market in the world's largest developing country from an industry-specific perspective.JEL codes: G11; G17; L10Keywords: share market; industry; analysts' recommendations; investment; profit; China(ProQuest: ... denotes non-USASCII text omitted.)(ProQuest: ... denotes formulae omitted.)1. IntroductionSecurity analysts provide market research for either their clients or investors to make investment decisions. In making those recommendations, analysts explicitly demonstrate their opinions about the performance of an individual firm or industry in the share market. Those trading recommendations are generally categorized into buying, holding and selling to enable investors form their trading strategies based on these recommendations. In this regard, it is vital to assess whether investors can profit by following those publicly available information, especially for retail investors who tend to have very limited access to all sorts of resources available for professionals. Previous studies have found that security analysts' recommendations are in general valuable in providing positive investment returns (see, for example, Baks and Busse, 2007; Barber et ah, 2001; Boni and Womack, 2006; Drake, Rees and Swanson, 2011; Jegadeesh et al., 2004; Shekel, 1995; Womack, 1996). However, those studies generally evaluate the value of analyst recommendations from an individual stock perspective, and very little research has been conducted from an industry perspective (e.g., Boni and Womack, 2006). With few exceptions, stock analysts tend to specialize on certain industries and issue recommendations concerning those industries predominantly, and it is not surprising to find industry-specific brokerage research departments (He, Grant and Fabre, 2013). In this regard, an industry-based analysis could provide a more accurate measure of the value of analysts' recommendations to investors; it is also a more realistic approach which resembles the actual practices.The review of existing research shows that those studies have predominantly, if not exclusively, emphasized the market in developed economies such as that of the U.S. Other economies including China, the largest developing country in the world and currently generates an annual Gross Domestic Production (GDP) value second only to the U.S., has been largely neglected in this regard. …

The Economic Rationale for Renewable Energy

Abstract: . The purpose of this paper is to gain a deeper understanding of the economic relevance of the most ordinary sources of renewable energy (RE), the positive consequences of RE on growth and hiring, and the shift from fossil energy to RE to diminish CO2 releases. My paper contributes to the literature by providing evidence on the economic and financial stimulants supplied by RE backing strategies, elements determining investment in renewables, the declining expense of numerous RE technologies, and the eventual share of RE to moderating worldwide climate change.JEL codes: N7; O13; P28; Q4Keywords: renewable energy; climate change; economic growthReceived 18 August 2014 * Received in revised form 24 October 2014Accepted 25 November 2014 * Available online 10 June 20151. IntroductionRenewable energy (RE) is frequently site-reliant and situated at great distance from population hubs wher e power is in significa nt dema nd. A lot of the hurdles tackling RE can be surpassed via ground-breaking grid administration or enhanced organization. RE sources regularly have output examinations that rise and fall daily and yearly. RE technologies are commonly standard and have brief lead times. For almost all renewable sources of energy, fuel expenses are not important. RE gets financial aids which moderate the adequate levelized expenditure. The least-expense renewable technologies, e.g. onshore wind and geothermal, necessitate the most insignificant of carbon taxes to be competitive with coal-fired or natural gas-fired factories. (Carson, 2013) The economic grounds for RE are situated at the center of operative stimulus mechanism arrangement. Stimulants can be effective in facilitating considerable private sphere financing of RE. The elimination of formal obstacles frequently releases much mor e RE than endeavors to establish price stimulants. Modifications can be especially expensive if a shift with respect to a low-carbon solution is enforced via an enlarging share of RE. The external expenditures of electricity generation from fossil fuels that are evaded by employing RE sources are exceptionally significant from a macroeconomic standpoint. RE is usually more capital intensive than fossil energy: a mor e significant portion of the expenditure (of fuel) is positioned in the future. (Meier et al., 2015)2. The Eventual Share of RE to Moderating Worldwide Climate ChangeThe share RE will supply within the set of the low-carbon technologies considerably is determined by the economic contest between them, a similarity of the relative environmental responsibilities (beyond climate change) related to them, in addition to guaranteeing energy reserve and societal features. The enhancing request for energy services will impel RE to degrees eclipsing current energy utilization. Several RE technologies can be set up at the moment of utilization in rural and urban contexts, wher eas others are chiefly used within considerable ener gy arrangements. The tota l wor ldwide technica l capacity of RE sources will not r estrict persistent mar ket gr owth, a nd is noticeably higher than both fashionable and projected future international energy request. (Edenhofer et al., 2012) For technologies such as renewables, with substantial upfront capital expenditures, a relevant discount rate will diminish the current value of productivity more than it will decrease the earlyyear capital expenses: a relevant discount rate, unless securely established in fact, may influence levelized expense differentiations against capital-intensive RE. Nearly all RE is irr egular: a system operator ca nnot depend on it to satisfy an unexpected rise in demand. To secure enough electricity for peak request periods, fluctuating RE sources such as wind or solar (without storage) should be supported by more dispatchable technologies, e.g. hydropower or natural gas combustion turbines. RE can make difficult the undertaking of system operators, because irregularity tends to raise the inconsistency in electricity provision, bringing about a more significant reserve demand. …

Electoral Accountability and Political Corruption

Abstract: . My paper contributes to the literature by providing evidence on the electoral consequences of corruption data, periodic elections as mechanisms of democratic accountability, and the potentially adverse effect of corruption on voters' conduct. This paper aims to analyze and discuss the impact of disclosure of corruption on turnout, the contextual circumstances that are associated with dissimilarities in corruption voting, and the separate variables that moderate the effect of political corruption on the vote choice. The results of the current study converge with prior research on the vote-sanction connection between public opinion and electoral outcomes, the consequences of corruption perceptions on the vote, and the degree to which individuals deliberately vote for a corrupt politician. The overall results provide strong evidence for the process of electoral accountability, the significance of corruption assessments in voter calculations, and the decrease in corruption practices generated by electoral accountability.JEL codes: D72; D73Keywords: electoral accountability; vote choice; political corruption1. IntroductionThe strength of democracy in maintaining politicians in check (Lazaroiu, 2013) is significant in the case of corruption. Characteristics of the party system associated with straightforwardness of responsibility with regard to policy outputs (Popescu, 2015), the electoral regulations and the magnitude of the party system affect the voting weights used by separate citizens when they cast their votes. Distinct voter features have a function in corruption voting. The senses of corruption appear more relevant to distinct voting groups and expect that cognitive supplies and voter cues and crosscuts mitigate the link between corruption perceptions and incumbent voting. (Xezonakis et al., 2015) Data on incumbent corruption may assist challengers, by either shifting votes to them or involving citizens who would otherwise refrain, but data about corruption could generate less voting. If the uncovering of corruption influences voters to think that voting will not advantage them (Kuzio, 2015), then they tend to abstain. In a corrupt setting, a political challenger who is not seriously entangled in and jeopardized by constant corrupt transactions provides a reasonable likelihood for better governance. Once corruption attains a particular level, voters may explain it as a stability from which separate politicians cannot plausibly retreat. (Chong et al., 2015)2. The Potentially Adverse Effect of Corruption on Voters' ConductCorruption observations are set up as an impact on the vote in plurality electoral systems, throughout elections with a long ran principal executive official and in legislatures with a less significant amount of parties. In a situation of corruption the capacity of voters to hold politicians responsible for wrongdoing is of decisive relevance. Various institutional agreements supply dissimilar stimulants and chances to elite groups to undertake corrupt conduct (Nica, 2015) and extract rents. Voters take their assessments about corruption in the polling booth and vote correspondingly. An ephemeral government could not prepare voter observations of political corruption: cabinet duration is a noticeable manner via which voters can permeate data and hold the system responsible for corruption. (Xezonakis et al, 2015) Separate features of the individuals may have a relevant altering effect of their voting conduct. When an event of corruption occurs, a particular mix of limitations, stimulants and data should exist (Orole et al., 2014) with the purpose of compelling citizens to modify their political options and vote in opposition to the incumbent. Electoral corruption has varied electoral effects. The electoral penalizing of incumbents accused of corruption, assessed as the loss in assistance in the election ensuing the formulation of accusations, is neither uniform at the aggregate level nor at the separate level. …

The negative effect of economic policy uncertainty on presidential rhetorical optimism about the economy in the united states

Abstract: . Recent research by Baker et al. (2013) has created a historical indicator of economic policy uncertainty in the United States, based on an index score derived from content analyses of major U.S. newspapers. Empirical work using this measure has primarily focused on the economic consequences of shifts in economic policy uncertainty. The purpose of this project is to make the first empirical attempt at assessing whether changes in economic policy uncertainty have any role on the tone the President of the United States adopts when speaking about general economic conditions. Using the economic policy uncertainty information devised by Baker et al. (2013), and contrasting this with information about presidential rhetorical tone about the economy developed by Wood (2007), the vector autoregression analysis indicates prior levels of economic policy uncertainty Granger-causes current presidential rhetorical optimism about the economy. The moving average representation analysis suggests that an increase in the economic policy uncertainty index results in a decrease in presidential rhetorical optimism about the general economy.JEL codes: E02; E60; C22Keywords: economic policy uncertainty; macroeconomics; presidential economic rhetoric; presidential economic optimism; political communication; presidential communicationReceived 12 June 2014 * Received in revised form 2 June 2015Accepted 3 June 2015 * Available online 20 June 20151. IntroductionBaker et al. (2013) have created and made publicly available a historical measure of economic policy uncertainty dating back several decades using a content analysis evaluation of major newspapers in the United States. The original intention of the research agenda of Baker et al. (2013) was to see if economic policy uncertainty hinders recovery from economic downturns by compelling companies and individuals to limit acts that can stimulate growth, such as investment, hiring, and consumption. Their analyses suggest that an incr ease in economic policy uncertainty does have potentially da ma ging results to the economy, as higher economic policy uncertainty can result in decreases in employment levels, as well as real industrial production. Their findings suggest economic policy uncertainty does have profound implications on the economy.One area the research agenda of Baker et al. (2013) has yet to explore in much depth is whether economic policy uncertainty has implications for the behavior of prominent political actors in relation to the economy. More specifically, whether changes in economic policy uncertainty result in changes in the rhetorical tone of the president about the economy has yet to be explored. This is important, since save for those periods where there is a major international crisis, no other issue is discussed more by the president than the health of the economy (Wood, 2007: 4).Presidents are perceived as authoritative sources as to what is transpiring in the economy. The public and firms, reflecting on the prominent institutional position of the president, see the extent of resources available to the president regarding information about the economy. As a result, they are given appropriate reason to believe the president has information on the economy they do not directly or immediately possess (Wood, 2007: 167). This is reinforced by the fact that the mass media will cover the economic concerns expressed by the president (Eshbaugh-Soha and Peake, 2005), suggesting the president's remarks about the economy have enough credibility to be covered and examined by the mass media. The mass media can cover an issue in such a way that the public gives it heightened attention when evaluating the president (Krosnick and Kinder, 1990). All of these considerations factor into why changes in economic policy uncertainty, and the response of the president to these changes, are worthy of empirical examination.If the economy is often a major focus of the president, it is worthwhile to assess whether higher economic policy uncertainty compels the president to increase or decrease the level of optimism expressed when speaking about conditions pertaining to the economy. …

The Economics of Drive-In Theatres: From Mainstream Entertainment to Nostalgia on the Margins

Abstract: . At their peak in the 1950s, there were around 4,500 drive-in movie theaters accounting for 25% of box office revenues. Today, fewer than 350 drive-ins remain in the United States. This research examines the economic, social and technological forces that have contributed to the decline of this once popular form of entertainment. The decline of drive-ins can be attributed to changing cost structures within the industry, demographic patterns, changes in viewing preferences, and to changes in Americans relationship to their automobiles.JEL codes: L10; L25; L82Keywords: industry analysis; entertainment; drive-in theaters1. IntroductionResearch on drive-in theatres is relatively sparse. During recent decades, that research has largely focused on the history of drive-ins in different regions within the United States, including Colorado (Wolfe, 2007), Wisconsin (Marchant, 2001), and Virginia (Sopko, 2008). The drive-in theater industry is worthy of further research in light of the historical are of drive-in theater exhibition. At their peak in the 1950s, there were around 4,500 drive-in theatres in the United States, comprising around one-third of all cinemas and accounting for 25% of box office revenues (Kozak, 2007; Lobban, 1996c). This was an impressive feat as drive-ins theatres typically only operate for a limited number of months per year (particularly in cooler climates) and usually only show films after dusk.Historically, drive-ins were an integral part of their local communities. For example, Durant (1950) observed what he called de lux drive-in theatres, which were akin to community recreation centers:Flere, for instance, are some of the things you can do at various ozoners [drive-ins] without taking your eyes off the screen or missing a word of dialogue: You can eat a complete meal, get your car washed and serviced, including a change of tires, have the week's laundry done, your shopping list filled and the baby's bottle warmed. All this while the show is on. (p. 24)During the 1950s additional entertainment was common at drive-ins (Lobban, 1996a). These drive-ins often had a "circus-like atmosphere that you just didn't get at an indoor theater" (qtd. in Wright, 2013). One of the largest drive-ins of its day was The Johnny All-Weather Drive-in. This drive-in opened in 1957 in Copiague, Long Island, with a capacity of 2,500 vehicles (drive-ins.com, 2015a). The All-Weather Drive-in also had an indoor theatre for inclement weather, as well as a playground, restaurant, cafeteria, and a shuttle train to transport customers around the 28-acre facility (Capo, 2004).Given the early and widespread appeal of drive-ins, a 1950 article by Rodney Luther predicted that they would have a bright future - even though television was emerging as a competing form of entertainment at that time:Most discussions of television indicate that TV competition may alter the present structure of theatre exhibition to a considerable degree. However, the drive-in theatre is capable of offering a greater number of varied attractions than is possible in the case of conventional theatres, even though the precise drawing power of pony rides, laundry service, etc. has not been determined. Moreover, since drive-ins have achieved their present status with largely subsequent-run product offerings, it seems apparent that they can progress considerably further if given first- and second-run product. In the few cases where drive-in theatres have enjoyed first-run product, outstanding grosses have been recorded. (1950: 46^17)If we fast-forward to the present day, most drive-in theatres do indeed offer first-run movies, but they tend not to offer the wide range of entertainment options that were common in the 1950s. Moreover, today, television is only one of the substitute forms of entertainment competing with drive-ins. Technological and social developments have made drive-in theatres largely extinct and they are now a marginal form of film exhibition. …