Lord Acton and Employment Doctrines: Absolute Power and the Spread of At-Will Employment

This study analyzes the at-will employment doctrine using a tool that encompasses the complementarity of results-based utilitarian ethics, rule-based duty ethics, and virtue-based character ethics. The paper begins with a discussion of the importance of the problem followed by its evolution and current status. After describing the method of analysis, the central section evaluates the employment at-will doctrine, and is informed by Lord Acton’s dictum, “power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.” The conclusion explores the implications of the findings. This is a revised version of a paper presented at the World Ethics Forum, Oxford University, Oxford, UK April 9–12, 2006.     

Another look at the relationship between socioeconomic factors and the black-white health benefit inequality

This paper illustrates the black-white disparity in health benefit coverage and the socioeconomic variables-unemployment, income, and education. The health benefit disparity is strongly related to the disparity in underlying socioeconomic variables. Moreover, the time-series examination reveals that the change in white workers' health insurance coverage is largely determined by its year-to-year persistence and the labor market tightness (or the business cycle), while that of black workers is largely determined by the change in their earnings with a slight persistence. The effect of the change in annual earnings seems to dominate the effect of the labor market condition (unemployment rate) and other variables. Finally, although marginally significant, an increase in the attainment of higher education (college) has a positive effect on the black-white health benefit disparity.     

Industry changes in technology and complementary assets and the creation of high-growth firms

This study uses employment data to examine why some industries host more new high-growth firms than others. Using a unique data base of 201 industries over a 15-year period, we find that increases in the proportion of employment of scientists and engineers in industries are positively associated with counts of fast-growing new firms; however, we do not detect a relationship between fluctuations in the proportion of employment in sales and production occupations and counts of fast-growing new firms. The findings suggest that technological innovation is an important determinant of entrepreneurial opportunity. Further, they suggest that private new firms are an important means of organizing commercial innovation and that new firms may be less constrained by complementary assets than has been previously understood.     

An Academic Publisher’s Response to Plagiarism

Plagiarism strikes at the heart of academe, eroding the fundamental value of academic research. Recent evidence suggests that acts of plagiarism and awareness of these acts are on the rise in academia. To address this issue, a vein of research has emerged in recent years exploring plagiarism as an area of academic inquiry. In this new academic subject, case studies and analysis have been one of the most influential methodologies employed. Case studies provide a venue where acts of plagiarism can be discussed and analyzed in a constructive manner, and that is the primary purpose of this article. Unlike previous studies, however, we focus on the role of the publisher, a key player in dealing with acts of plagiarism, but one who has received little attention in the academic literature. Specifically, we examine how an academic publisher addressed allegations of plagiarism and how the publisher’s decision-making affected the outcome. We analyze the case by applying the guidelines from different frameworks and ethical theory and develop recommendations from the lessons evidenced, the second main objective of our article. This analysis advances the dialog on academic plagiarism by exploring the role of the publisher from a deontological perspective of ethical absolutism.     

美国：危险的消费者借贷

次贷危机又被称为次级房贷危机,是一场发生在美国,因次级抵押贷款机构破产、投资基金被迫关闭以及股市剧烈震荡引起的金融风暴。它致使全球主要金融市场出现流动性不足危机。美国次贷危机从2006春季逐步显现，在2006年之前的5年里，由于美国住房市场持续繁荣，加上前几年利率水平较低，美国的次级抵押贷款市场迅速发展。由于短期利率的提高，     

An error corrected almost ideal demand system for major cereals in Kenya

Despite significant progress in theory and empirical methods, the analysis of food consumption patterns in developing countries, particularly those in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), has received very limited attention. An attempt is made in this article to estimate an Error Corrected Almost Ideal Demand System for four major cereals consumed in Kenya employing annual data from 1963 to 2005. This demand system performs well on both theoretical and empirical grounds. The symmetry and homogeneity conditions are supported by the data and the  Le Chatelier  principle holds. Empirically, all own-price elasticities are negative and significant at 5% level and irrespective of the time horizon, maize, wheat, rice, and sorghum may be considered as necessities in Kenya. While the expenditure elasticities of all four cereals are positive, they are inelastic both in the short run and in the long run. Finally, wheat and rice complement maize consumption in Kenya while sorghum acts as a substitute. Since cereal consumers have price and income inelastic responses, a combination of income and price-oriented policies could improve cereal consumption in Kenya.     

Signalling,Disclosure And The Implications Of Financial Structure For Uk Corporate R&D ∗

This paper investigates the impact of R&D disclosure and finance variables on the level of R&D expenditures. The question addressed is: what is the impact of changes in disclosure requirements on the relationship between R&D expenditure and the financing of firms? The question is motivated by the possible signalling role that elective disclosure may have had prior to changes in accounting practices to ensure R&D disclosure.     

The determinants of firm diversification in UK quoted companies

This paper examines the role of resource-based and governance factors in determining the boundaries of UK quoted companies, measured by both the probability and intensity of market diversification. Using a panel of over 2000 firms for the period 1988 to 2001 it is found that firm-level heterogeneity and industry characteristics account for the variability in diversification behaviour and that resource-based and governance factors interact in a complex manner not necessarily fully explained by the theoretical literature. The results also indicate that the degree of data aggregation has significant implications for the empirical modelling of market diversification.