Memory for implied versus directly stated advertising claims

An experiment tested young adults' memory for advertising slogans that either stated a strong claim directly or only implied the same claim by stating it in a much weaker form. Several advertising slogans were inserted into a story. There were two versions of each slogan, asserted and implied. The asserted version made a claim very directly and strongly (e.g.Alka-Seltzer stops common aches). The implied version only suggested the stronger claim (e.g. Alka-Seltzer helps lessen common aches ). Subjects read the story, which contained one of the two versions of each ad. After subjects finished reading the story, they were asked to recall all the brands and products. Then they performed a multiple choice task testing memory for the content of the advertising claims. While results showed no difference on the recall task, subjects on the multiple choice task frequently falsely recognized implied claims as asserted but seldom the reverse. Although they correctly recognized more asserted than implied claims, they were more confident in their correct memory for the implied claims. Results were applied to the problem of deceptive advertising.     

Verdoorn's law and increasing returns to scale in the UK regions, 1968-91: some new estimates based on the cointegration approach

The Johansen approach to estimating long-run cointegration vectorsis used with 1968–91 UK region by industry data to estimatereturns to scale. Thus, this approach has the advantages ofincluding a measure of capital, it overcomes the simultaneityproblems associated with the single-equation Verdoom law, andit involves estimating a correctly specified dynamic model inwhich is embedded the long-run solution(s). The results indicatethat there is substantial evidence that increasing returns arethe norm for the majority of manufacturing industries in Britishregions.     

Rate Level Indexed Mortgages: An Evaluation

In this paper, a new and superior alternative mortgage design is presented and evaluated. The mortgage design is motivated by a desire to reduce the exposure of both borrowers and lenders to risks that result from high and variable interest rates, while at the same time providing a mechanism by which changes in the real value of payments and rates of amortization can be controlled. In addition to a theoretical discussion of the merits of this design a simulation of the mortgage's performance is provided that uses market data from the period 1965 to 1983.     

COLONIALISM AND LONG‐RUN GROWTH IN AUSTRALIA: AN EXAMINATION OF INSTITUTIONAL CHANGE IN VICTORIA'S WATER SECTOR DURING THE NINETEENTH CENTURY

Institutional change in water rights in the nineteenth century Australian colony of Victoria raised institutional efficiency, which contributed to long‐run economic growth. High‐quality human capital and the extension of voting rights (franchise) were crucial for efficient institutional change in the water sector. Quality human capital (literacy) appeared to increase the rural population's awareness of the economic impact of the existing structure of water rights that may have constrained growth in the agricultural sector and reduced investment incentives. Extension of the franchise allowed the rural population to exert political pressure for enactment of change in water rights, which resulted in efficiency‐enhancing policies and efficient institutions. The findings show these two factors were more important than Victoria's British colonial heritage in determining whether growth‐enhancing institutional change took place.     

Evaluating the Contribution of Exporting to UK Productivity Growth: Some Microeconomic Evidence

This study assesses the contribution of exporting activities to aggregate productivity growth in the UK for all market‐based sectors for the period 1996–2004, using a weighted FAME dataset. Based on decompositions of productivity growth, our findings suggest that, overall, exporting firms experience faster productivity growth than non‐exporting firms and therefore contribute more to national productivity growth. In addition, aggregate productivity for exporters benefits from a large contribution from ‘continuing’ firms improving their productivity, as well as exporters that have been taken‐over/merged or started‐up as new firms. In contrast, most of the TFP improvement for non‐exporters is attributable to lower productivity firms exiting, rather than from internal improvements or the productivity‐enhancing impact of new firms.     

Natural resource accounting in theory and practice: A critical assessment

In this paper an extensive review of the theoretical and applied literature on natural resource accounting (NRA) is provided. The review begins by explaining the economic theory that underpins NRA, contrasting welfare and sustainability as policy goals, and presenting various distinct conceptions of national income. The state of play regarding official revisions to the system of national accounts (SNA) with respect to natural resources and the environment is presented and controversial areas are highlighted. Finally, the economic literature on proposed revisions, and applied studies that have proceeded using these methods, is summarised and critiqued. We argue that much of the literature proceeds with weak conceptual foundations, and that typical case studies produce results that are ambiguous in interpretation. Moreover, we highlight fundamental tensions between economic theory and national accounting methodology, and conclude that one outcome of this has been the insufficient attention paid by economists to the revisions to the SNA; instead devoting time and effort to 'freelance' NRA case studies utilising sometimes ad hoc methods from the economic literature.     

GOVERNMENT VERSUS PRIVATE QUALITY ASSURANCE FOR AUSTRALIAN FOOD EXPORTS

Most foodstuffs have quality attributes that are difficult to determine prior to purchase. Thus quality assurance is an inherent problem in food exporting. Private quality assurance can succeed if exporters can credibly signal that they have much to lose from cessation of purchases. If exporters do not provide credible quality signals, and foreign importers judge food quality according to country of origin, honest exporters can suffer negative spillovers from others' cheating under either government or private quality assurance. For both economic and political reasons, the best choice between government and private quality assurance will differ between foods and importing countries.