On Sraffa's Standard commodity: is its price invariant with respect to changes in income distribution?

In his 1960 book, Sraffa suggested using a composite commodity,which he called the ‘Standard commodity’, to solveRicardo's search for an invariable measure of value, i.e., astandard capable of isolating the price movements of any othercommodity induced by changes in income distribution. The absencein Sraffa's book of an explicit proof of the invariance propertyof this standard gave rise to many misunderstandings about itsmeaning and its role as an invariable measure of value. In orderto clear up these questions, Bellino (On Sraffa's Standard commodity,Cambridge Journal of Economics, vol. 28, 121–32, 2004)has proposed a ‘proper’ definition of an ‘invariablemeasure of value’, showing that Sraffa's Standard commoditydoes fulfil the requirements of this definition. He claims thatthe fulfilment of this property (but not the constancy of its‘nominal’ price) qualifies the Standard commodityas an invariable measure of value. In this paper, a proof ofthe invariance of the price of the Standard commodity with respectto changes in income distribution is given, and the equivalenceof this property with Bellino's definition of invariance isshown.     

The teaching of ethics in management accounting: progress and prospects

Recent research has shown that, although still on a limited scale, the teaching of business ethics in UK higher education has been increasing in recent years. This paper reports on a postal questionnaire survey conducted to investigate the extent to which ethical issues are covered in the teaching of management accounting in higher education. The principal findings are that the majority of management accounting lecturers in the British Isles do not incorporate ethics. About a third of the respondents to the survey do address ethical issues, although about half of those say they do so only implicitly. Various factors underlying the findings and prospects for the future are discussed.     

The Soviet Union after the failure of five years of economic reforms: Towards a new stage of transition?

Conclusion The measures taken by the Pavlov government, at the beginning of 1991, seem to initiate a new economic strategy where administrative power has regained its leading role.Regarding the whole approach of the government, there seem to be signals with very controversial meanings. First, there is the new stress on heavy industry, that could dangerously increase the already deep structural imbalance; the military industrial sector, in particular, could play a greater role since the better performing high technology industries (and services) belong to them. The loosening control over industrial management and discipline throughout the country, could justify the need for strong central control of the government: the heavy industry complex represents a powerful economic and political aggregation that could better defend the unified economic system.Secondly, the resistance to private ownership of enterprises is justified by the unrest engendered by the emergence of a sort of uncontrolled submerged privatisation. The fear of the State's capital assets being sold off cheaply, played an important part in the tightening of control over the process of destatalisation.Thirdly, the rejection of private ownership of land is also linked with the necessary alliance with the old economic structures of kolkhoz and sovkhoz, which represent the consolidated interests in the rural areas.From these different positions emerges the search for a very difficult compromise between the necessary political alliances around the Party, for the defence of central power, and the implementation of some economic reforms which, to become effective, need a substantial liberalisation of economic and political conditions. However, the fundamental limits to the implementation of this moderate programme has to be attributed to the disintegration of the economy by the republican claims. The confrontation on alternative economic programmes and the creation of different regional aggregations could become a very serious tendency towards the progressive disruption of the present Federation.     

A note on comparative downside risk aversion

We provide comparative global conditions for downside risk aversion, which are similar to the ones studied by Ross for risk aversion. We define a coefficient of downside risk aversion, and study its local properties.     

What drives organic food consumption in Lebanon?

To increase the sparse knowledge about what drives organic food consumers in developing markets, Lebanese consumers' reasons and motives for buying organic food are studied in the framework of means‐end chain theory. A sample of N = 180 Lebanese consumers was interviewed in several retail outlets using a hard laddering questionnaire. The data were subjected to frequency analysis, cluster analysis, and structural equation modelling. Hierarchal value maps constructed from the laddering interviews revealed that “quality of life,” “pleasure,” and “peace of mind” are the main values driving organic food consumption in Lebanon. Frequent organic consumers displayed higher concern for their family's health and for the environment, whereas occasional organic consumers cared more about their own pleasure and were more likely to perceive organic food as a traditional and nostalgic product. Structural equation modelling revealed that “care for nature” and “care for children's health” significantly affect consumers' (self‐reported) purchasing behaviour. The found means‐end chains are a useful basis for marketing campaigns for organic food products in the Lebanese market. One focus of marketing campaigns should be raising consumers' awareness on the environmental benefits of organic production and the fact that it does not allow the use of harmful chemical products.     

Food waste,catering practices and public procurement: A case study of hospital food systems in Wales

This article aims to address the need for more comprehensive studies on sustainable food systems through a case study of hospital food waste in Wales, UK. Based on a mixed-method research approach that focused on the links between hospital food waste, catering practices and public procurement strategies, the article shows that the hospital meal system, in the case studied, is responsible for overall levels of food waste that greatly exceed the official percentages provided by the Health Board. In addition to showing the theoretical benefits of research that accounts for the complex interrelations between different stages of the food chain, the study raises the need for a more integrated political approach that mobilizes all actors in the food system around a shared vision for sustainable development.     

The dynamics of regional learning paradigms and trajectories

While the literature is rich with studies on the identification of alternative types of learning processes that might exist in the real world, the identification of the determinants of the structural changes in regional learning processes is still an underexplored research field in regional innovation theories. This paper proposes the concept of regional learning paradigms and trajectories to study how alternative and more advanced learning processes arise in a region, and highlights the evolutionary path-creation strategies enabling a paradigmatic jump. By taking into consideration also learning modes typical of peripheral or declining industrial areas, generally left aside in previous theories, this new conceptual approach allows us to understand how more complex learning and innovation processes can emerge in all types of regions. From these reflections, spontaneous processes or policy recommendations to catch-up in the innovation ladder are highlighted for each type of region.     

Are Liberated Companies a Concrete Application of Sen’s Capability Approach?

Journal of Business Ethics - The capability approach (CA) developed by Amartya Sen focuses on the enhancement of people’s capabilities, i.e. their real freedom to choose a life course they...     

Limits to creative destruction and technologies in practice: the case of ham radio

Drawing on the structurationist notion of ‘technologies-in-practice’, this article analyses the different types of technological actions that users perform, after technological change, in order to keep a declining technology alive over time. The research question of the article is: How do technologies-in-practice based on the application of new technology hamper the creative destruction of old technology? The case study of ham radio technology and amateur radio operators is explored. The results of the investigation support the development of a technology-in-practice ‘experimentation’ and four inductive research propositions.