South Korea's Record Wage Rates: Labor in Late. Industrialization

Despite "unlimited labor" and political repression, real average wages in South Korea have risen rapidly, possibly faster than in any previous industrialization—including Japan's—or in any contemporary one. This study suggests that the process of industrializing late though learning, which has been especially intense in Korea, coupled with that country's special institutions, underlie the spectacular wages increases. The analysis also highlights the unique skill-set of late industrialization that high wages reward.     

An Investigation of Decision‐Making Styles of Consumers in China

This study investigates Chinese consumers' decision‐making styles. The Consumer Style Inventory (CSI) is administered to 387 adult consumers in China. Both an exploratory factor analysis and a confirmatory factor analysis are adopted to validate the CSI inventory. This results in an eighteen‐item and seven‐factor solution. Findings indicate that five decision‐making styles are valid and reliable in Chinese culture: perfectionistic, novelty‐fashion conscious, recreational, price conscious, and confused by overchoice. Cluster analysis is employed to identify prominent market segments. Based on the findings, three segments are formed: trendy and perfectionistic consumer, traditional and pragmatic consumer, as well as confused by overchoice consumer. Marketing and management implications are discussed.     

OFFSETTING NEW CO2 EMISSIONS: A RATIONAL FIRST GREENHOUSE POLICY STEP

This paper describes and assesses a policy to slow the increase of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions in the atmosphere. Policy governing new CO₂ sources would either prevent emissions, procure compensating emissions reductions, or sequester emissions in sinks. The paper uses electric power plants to demonstrate the mechanics of the policy and the control or offset choices. Offset options include scrubbing, fuel switching, investments in energy conservation and efficiency, and afforestation.
Costs per ton ofC0₂ sequestered range from $1.35 for planting shade trees to $59.41 for scrubbing. All options except scrubbing cost less than $11.00, and the median cost is around $6.00 per ton removed. Planting trees on erodible cropland in conjunction with the Conservation Reserve Program combines the goals of reduced erosion, surplus agricultural production, and greenhouse warming. This policy is a first sane step toward reducing the accumulation of greenhouse gases. Having an international framework for managing emissions is most desirable. In the interim, however, the United States can demonstrate environmental leadership, generate substantial conservation benefits, and spark ingenuity in searching for alternatives, broadening the options, and lowering the ultimate costs of reducing CO₂ emissions.     

Work Roles and Careers of R&D Scientists in Network Organizations

Despite the burgeoning literature on the network organization as a new mode of innovation, we know little about how the flow of knowledge across organizational boundaries is intertwined with careers. This study explores the implications of the network model of R&D organization for the work roles and careers of R&D scientists within the changing relationship between industry and the academia. It examines how firms seek to resolve the tension between science and business by developing closer human resource ties with universities. It argues that firms have sought to construct "extended" internal labour markets (EILMs) between themselves and the universities with which they collaborate, leading to the formation of a hybrid scientific community straddling the two sectors.