Optimal price‐level drift under commitment in the canonical New Keynesian model

Abstract In both the canonical and many extended versions of the New Keynesian model, optimal monetary policy under commitment implies price‐level stationarity as long as expectations are rational. We show that this is no longer the case if the central bank and private agents make decisions before observing current shocks. The optimal amount of price‐level drift in response to unexpected innovations to inflation is quantitatively important. This result has important implications for monetary policy, including the design of the optimal loss function for the central bank if it cannot commit to its future policies.     

The Differential Effects of Output Shocks on Unemployment Rates by Race and Gender

This article employs a recently developed time-series econometric technique to examine the magnitude and persistence of unanticipated changes in real output on unemployment rates by race and gender. Through the use of generalized impulse response analysis, we measure the extent to which the behavior of unemployment rates of white males, black males, black females, and white females differ in response to real output shocks. The results suggest that, while real output growth reduces the unemployment rate of all demographic groups, the effect is larger and more persistent for blacks than whites and for males than for females. The findings are particularly important for understanding the demographic impacts of policy initiatives aimed at inducing changes in real output growth.     

Role of line managers in human resource management: empirical evidence from India

Of late, the line management role has been reorganized in business organizations and they are now increasingly taking up responsibility for core HRM functions. Line managers' role in HRM has been recognized in academic research but it is likely impact on the effectiveness of HRM that has remained relatively under researched, especially in India. The focus of the study was, thus, to empirically examine the relationship between dimensions of line managers' role in HRM and effectiveness of HRM in the Indian context. Primary data were obtained from HR managers of top-ranking companies through a single cross-sectional survey based on a research instrument designed by the researcher. The instrument was tested for unidimensionality, reliability and validity. SEM capabilities of LISREL 8.50 were utilized to test the conceptual research model based on the hypothesized relationships. The findings provided mixed support for the conceptual model. The present research has implications for both academicians and practitioners. The study is expected to serve as a guide in understanding the role of line managers vis-a-vis HRM, a largely unexplored area in the Indian context.     

Disparate association between alliance social capital and the global pharmaceutical firm's performance

Some literature suggests that three dimensions of social capital—such as information volume, diversity and richness—have positive association with the firm's performance. However, these constructs and their implications cannot be taken for granted because they may not produce similar results in all contextual settings. The article develops and tests associations between dimensions of social capital and organizational performance in a multidimensional network system. This study provides an analysis on 252 pharmaceutical firms. The analysis shows disparate but insightful results. First, there is a positive association between information volume and the firm's performance. Second, there is a negative association between information diversity and the firm's performance. Third, there is no significant association between information richness and the firm's performance. Therefore, different dimensions of social capital had different links with the firm's performance. The paper provides some explanation and implications of these findings.     

Reconceptualizing Informal Work Practices: Some Observations from an Ethnic Minority Community in Urban UK

Whilst paid informal work has been conceptualized as a form of paid employment imbued with solely economic motivations, this article critically argues that such a market‐­oriented reading fails to take into account alternative explanations for the existence of informal work practices. Using evidence from 50 interviews conducted within a Pakistani urban community in a northern UK city, this article, uses a mixed‐embeddedness perspective to highlight the importance of predominantly socially and culturally driven motives in the decision to engage in informal work. The findings highlight that participation in informal work, whilst a product of marginalization due to certain institutional and structural factors, is also driven by a range of non‐monetary motives—a result of certain socially embedded work relations between ethnic minority workers and their employers. It is this social embeddedness of the employer–employee relationship in the Pakistani ethnic minority community that explains the continuation of informal work practices in the face of prevailing laws and regulations. The findings add weight to the understanding of informal work as being about more than just economics and constraints, offering these ethnic minority workers opportunities, even status, and giving them agency in an otherwise disempowered situation.     

Education stock and its implication for income inequality: The case of Asian economies

This study develops a quadratic relationship between education and income inequality among Asian developing economies for the period from 1960 to 2015. Panel cointegration and fully modified OLS is applied for the estimation of long‐run coefficients. The results show that initial, primary, secondary, and tertiary enrollment increases inequality. However, the effect of education on income inequality becomes negative after a certain threshold level (i.e., 97.5% for primary, 43.5% for secondary, and 11% for tertiary). Thus, this result proves the Kuznets phenomenon of an inverted U‐shape relationship for primary, secondary, and tertiary enrollments.     

Modeling tourists' visiting intentions toward ecofriendly destinations: Implications for sustainable tourism operators

The previous literature has overlooked the examination of tourists' visiting intentions for ecofriendly destinations. Hence, anchored in Schwartz (1992) personal values and the theory of planned behavior (TPB), the present study aims to develop a research model for application in Chinese settings. Survey findings from 467 tourists reveal significant positive relationships between tourists' values of resultant self‐transcendence and conservation and TPB factors (i.e., attitude, subjective norms, and perceived behavioral control), with the exception of the relationship between conservation and perceived behavioral control. Moreover, TPB factors and perceived green image were found to have positive effects on tourists' intentions to visit ecofriendly destinations. In addition, environmental consciousness positively moderates the relationships between the two Schwartz values and attitude. Theoretical implications are provided, and the study's findings have strategic practical implications for business managers. We acknowledge the study's limitations and offer research directions for future ecofriendly tourism scholars.