When an initiative promises more than it delivers: a multi-actor perspective of rural entrepreneurship difficulties and failure in Thailand

National governments invest in initiatives aimed at encouraging rural entrepreneurship on the assumption that it contributes to competitiveness and employment. Empirical findings about one such initiative in Thailand reveal the nature of entrepreneurship difficulties and the diverse expressions of entrepreneurship failure, not only in the sense of termination of activities and exit but also entrepreneurs’ inability to meet the objectives and aims of the initiative. Significant attitudinal inadequacies such as risk aversion, passivity and over-reliance on the public sector complement entrepreneurship resource weaknesses in explaining rural entrepreneurship difficulties and failure. Findings demonstrate inadequacies of one-size-fits-all policies seeking to encourage rural entrepreneurship by failing to address the needs and capabilities of the involved entrepreneurs. The discussion also extends current research, first, by studying rural entrepreneurship within an institutional framework in an emerging market context; second, by conceptualizing rural entrepreneurship failure and attitudinal drivers of such failure; third, by documenting and analysing the nature, sources and consequences of the distinct constructs of ‘rural entrepreneurship difficulties’ and ‘rural entrepreneurship failure’; and finally, by presenting a revised theorization of ‘failure’ in entrepreneurship research which recognizes the diverse forms that failure may assume.     

MARKET FAILURE: A FAILED PARADIGM1

The concept of ‘market failure’ is often used to justify government intervention. Here, the author asks whether the concept is sufficiently meaningful for it to be used to make policy judgments.     

Behavioural Economics: A Virginia Political Economy Perspective

Behavioural economics offers a critique of modern neoclassical economics by providing empirical evidence that the model of rational choice does not accurately describe human decision‐making processes. The existence of cognitive biases, what we might term ‘agent failure’, becomes reason to doubt the efficacy of unhampered markets, and is seen by some as a sufficient condition for government intervention. This article offers a critique of this argument from an Austrian and public choice theory comparative institutions perspective. Agent failure arguments are analogous to market failure arguments of the mid‐twentieth century and the same kinds of responses made against the latter are applied to the former. Behavioural economics arguments for intervention ignore the cognitive biases of political actors, neglect the comparative perspective that results from such biases, and do not examine the ways in which markets are superior to politics in providing the information and incentives actors need to become aware of their errors and correct them. The existence of imperfectly rational agents, like the existence of imperfect markets, is therefore not a sufficient condition for government intervention into the market.     

New approaches to funding not‐for‐profit organisations

This paper seeks to record and to explain the enormous growth in interest over the last few years in the provision of loans and other investment to not‐for‐profit organisations. It argues that this funding development fills a gap in the market. It describes the following new approaches: social investment, the provision of ‘patient capital’, and an ‘investment’ or ‘venture philanthropy’ approach to grant making. The factors driving the growth in use of these approaches are examined and their relevance to fundraising charities considered. Finally, the paper discusses how key stakeholders including the government and charitable trusts are adapting to this new environment. Copyright © 2004 Henry Stewart Publications     

The Demand for ‘Guard Labour’: Another Explanation

We consider the argument that inequality drives society to expend more resources on supervision, which imposes an extra cost on doing business – an argument advanced notably by Samuel Bowles, who framed it as a coordination failure. We propose an alternative, though not mutually exclusive, explanation in the form of government failure. We argue that the efforts of government to prohibit drugs leads to increases in violence and policing failure, which in turn force private actors to deploy resources to supervise workers and protect themselves. Our explanation complements and moderates the argument regarding the link between inequality and ‘guard labour’.     

Liberty and the Post‐utilitarian Society

Utilitarian foundations for limited government are shaky insofar as they assume rational and consistent individuals. Recently economists’ assumption of rational actors has come under sustained attack. Behavioural economics has suggested that people are plagued by irrational biases and inconsistencies. These developments have led to a post‐utilitarianism which is held to justify paternalistic interventions by the state via ‘sin taxes’, direct bans or new obligations. Individual responsibility is seriously undermined, as is faith in markets. Supporters of individual freedom need to move away from utilitarian reasoning, reassert core values of autonomy and responsibility, and define strict limits on the scope of government intervention.     

The Marketization of Local Services and the Fragmentation of Labour Markets

This paper is a product of the ESRC's Local Governance research programme which considers the employment implications of the introduction of market forces into the provision of local government services in the United Kingdom. It discusses the fragmentation of labour markets as both a process and outcome of the commercialization of local service provision. In contrast to privatization scenarios, marketization suggests the blurring of the distinction between public and private employment deriving from the commercialization of municipal services and the transmission of local authority work organization and culture into the private sector. An assessment of employment change, workforce recomposition and bargaining capacity is offered which leads to the development of new models for institutional restructuring. ‘Sectoral de-differentiation’ is a concept developed to address the evolution of new labour market patterns and a ‘public capsule’ model is offered to explain the locality and service variations in marketization outcomes.     

The True Meaning of ‘Social Justice’: A Catholic View of Hayek

Hayek's well‐known dismissal of the concept of ‘social justice’ is examined and questioned. While basically agreeing with Hayek's critique, the author argues that we should not entirely reject this concept, although it is often used in a vague and emotional way – ‘social justice talk’. Drawing on the tradition of classical liberalism and Catholic social teaching, he makes the case for the true meaning of social justice, which applies to the basic legal and institutional framework of a society rather than the distributional outcomes of market processes.     

Can ‘market transformation’ lead to ‘sustainable business’? A critical appraisal of the UK's strategy for sustainable business

This paper traces the origins and development of the concept of ‘market transformation’, from its beginnings as a part of energy policy in the USA, to its subsequent development in the UK. It discusses whether it could become a strategic option for British business in pursuit of sustainable growth. Drawing together themes from the academic literature on marketing, consumer behaviour, business, and energy policy, together with data from national programmes, and British government sources, the paper argues that such an approach would be based on a twin false premise – that selling energy efficiency to consumers is in accordance with modern marketing thinking, and that it has much to do with achieving sustainable development. It concludes that while achieving sustainable development will certainly encompass the transformation of markets for many products, ‘market transformation’ itself cannot be seen as a key driver for change. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment.     

市场失灵与企业创新

新古典理论认为市场失灵会使得资源配置的效率偏离帕累托最优状态,文章认为,市场失灵还会影响到企业的创新方向和创新数量,导致全社会该产生的创新可能创新不够,不该产生的创新却层出不穷,从而降低资源配置的长期效率,针对市场失灵的不同类型,政府只要采取不同的措施,就能够正确引导企业的创新行为。     

A Micro‐Decomposition Analysis of Aggregate Human Development Outcomes*

We show how differences in aggregate human development outcomes over time and space can be additively decomposed into a pure mean income (growth) component, a component attributed to differences in the distribution of income, and components attributed to ‘non‐income’ factors and differences in the model linking outcomes to income and non‐income characteristics. The income effect at the micro level is modelled non‐parametrically, so as to flexibly reflect potentially complex distributional changes. Our proposed method is illustrated using data for Morocco and Vietnam, and the results offer some surprising insights into the observed aggregate gains in schooling attainments.     

Mutually related firms and the rationality of producing nothing

This paper considers the pricing and output decisions of firms which are related by the complementary nature of their products. The paper focuses on the problems which may result from non-co-operative behaviour of such firms. At the extreme, it is shown that non-cooperative complementary firms may ‘rationally’ choose to produce nothing. The paper considers the conditions which lead to this market failure result, and whether encouragement by government for the firms to co-operate or merge is required to make the market operate more efficiently.     

会计信息市场缺陷的政府管制研究

会计信息作为一种社会资源对市场十分重要。由于市场机制自身存在缺陷,如果缺乏政府管制,会计信息缺陷将对市场经济和社会产生不利影响。本文从引发会计信息市场缺陷的主要因素入手,分析会计信息政府管制的必要性,并提出相应的政府管制内容。     

基于经济发展方式转变视角的国家审计战略转型——兼述市场失灵与政府失灵下的审计规制

经济发展方式的转变不可能在市场机制的作用下自动生成和瞬间完成,市场配置资源的机制经常出现失灵。治理市场失灵的方式是政府规制,而防治政府失灵的重要手段则是审计规制。审计规制在促进经济又好又快发展的过程中具有广阔的活动领域和独特的作用方式。要充分释放国家审计内聚能量,推进经济可持续发展,就必须加速国家审计从传统审计向现代审计的战略转型,完成盘整现有资源、深化精品与发展特色、调整工作布局、优化审计内容、突出审计重点、改进技术方法、提高人员素质、提升管理水平、创新审计理论与教育等多重变革。     

Strategy in the Public Sector: Management in the Wilderness

ABSTRACT The central question addressed in this paper is ‘Why have organizational strategies emerged in the public sector?’ Two broad answers are suggested. First, ‘strategies’ profile the organization through identifying aims, outputs and outcomes. Public services must, now, provide such transparency in order to secure on‐going funding from government bodies. Once ‘strategies’ are being produced, they also offer an organizational vision that potential additional funding agencies can buy into (with both commitment and money). And public services are short of resources. Second, ‘strategies’ signal greater devolved responsibility in the public sector for both acquiring resources and achieving results. They enable the inclusion of managerial priorities and values in setting the direction of public services. And politicians desire more control over the professionals that dominate public services whilst, simultaneously, wanting to make them more responsible for outcomes. This article explores the growth of strategic planning in a particular area of the public sector – the national parks. Strategies as ‘dormant documents’ and strategies as ‘funding pitches’ are discussed. It is suggested that, in the public sector, strategies should be the object of strategy.     

农民工工资市场决定失灵的原因及解决途径

我国农民工的工资市场决定存在失灵,主要是农民工劳动力供求的变动对其工资水平的影响微弱,农民工劳动力短缺与其工资水平偏低并存。这种失灵直接源于农民工劳动力的供需矛盾性、需求垄断性和信息非对称性所决定的农民工劳动力市场的发育缺陷,根源于农民工劳动力市场所面临的包括以户籍制度为主的制度壁垒、重城轻乡的制度安排和信息传导的制度缺失在内的制度困境。而培育农民工劳动力市场、完善相关制度是解决其工资市场决定失灵的现实出路,其中转变政府职能是关键。     

会计信息失灵与政府管制

会计信息是市场经济中流动着的重要经济信息。由于市场机制自身存在的缺陷,如果没有政府管制,会计信息的失灵将对社会和经济产生巨大的负面影响。本文从会计信息的垄断生产、外部性、公共物品和信息不对称等会计信息失灵的主要因素入手,说明了会计信息政府管制的必要性和可能性,以及政府管制的一般内容。     

城中村改造中的"市场失灵"和"政府失灵"及防止途径

城中村是中国快速城市化进程中出现的特有现象。城中村改造问题的本质是利益问题,实质上是与城中村改造相关的利益各方利益调整的过程。由于市场失灵的存在,城中村改造基本都在政府主导下进行,但由于政府的失灵,往往也会产生很多弊端。但大多数学者仍认为政府应该在改造的过程中发挥主导作用,问题是政府应该在城中村改造中发挥怎样的作用,或者说市场的边界又在哪里。本文初步明确了城中村改造中政府干预的重点和市场的边界,阐明了城中村改造的总体思路,最后提出了防止城中村改造失败的对策。     

Internal Markets,Management by Targets,and Quasi‐Markets: An Analysis of Health Care Reforms in the English NHS

There have been two major attempts to introduce market mechanisms into England's National Health Service: the ‘internal market’ reform project of the 1990s, and the ‘quasi‐market’ of the 2000s. Despite their similarities, the former attempt was on balance unsuccessful while the latter succeeded. This article examines and compares the outcomes of the two periods, analysing the reasons for their relative successes and failures. It goes on to highlight options for future reforms that would build on those achievements.