Public Policy Toward Entrepreneurship

There is widespread support for tax policies providing special treatment for small businesses. This paper reviews standard efficiency and equity criteria for such tax-subsidies, and finds they provide little support for such policies. The review highlights a central empirical void requiring further research: the "optimal" business failure rate. Entrepreneurs do struggle, and small businesses frequently merge and nearly as frequently fail. But we do not know enough to determine which firms to target for success or failure.     

促进消费需求的公共财政政策探讨

本文从理论上分析了公共财政与消费的关系,就当前我国公共财政政策在促进消费增长中存在的问题进行了探讨,从健全公共财政政策角度提出了促进消费需求的对策建议。     

Household Economic Security and Public Policy

There are three challenges to household economic security: Slow income growth at the lower and middle parts of the income distribution, swings in households’ use of debt and leverage, and large numbers of households with low savings. Appropriate policy responses to these include increasing worker skills through greater opportunities for education and training, removing barriers to labor force participation, strengthening the safety net, improving access to credit while reducing exposure to harmful aspects of debt use, and making retirement savings easier and more automatic.     

Nanotechnology Policy and Education

Nanotechnology has been a focal area of United States (US) Science and Technology policy since President Clinton’s administration. The Unites States is investing more funds in nanotechnology research and development than any other nation. The US National Laboratory community and Sandia National Laboratories in particular is responding to their country’s interest by generating exceptional Nano-based science and technology and focusing these efforts on national security and safety concerns. The United States and others are finding that the technological, safety, ethical, economic, and policy considerations centered on nanotechnology are complex and interconnected. Further, that tomorrow’s decision makers need an expanded educational background for them to make optimal choices concerning nanotechnology. Sandia National Laboratories responded to this need by initiating the National Institute for Nanotechnology Engineering (NINE). NINE is prototype educational effort designed to provide an exceptional foundation for the next generation of US nanotechnology decision makers.     

中国公共教育支出绩效评价研究

公共教育支出是政府的责任，政府在不同类型的教育中承担的责任又是不同的。其中，政府要对基础教育或义务制教育承担全部责任，对高等教育承担部分责任。我国教育体系由7个部分构成，本文对其中的小学、中学、高中和高教组成的简化体系进行了绩效评价。评价按国际、国家和理论3种标准，对公共教育简化体系进行经济性评价、效率性评价、有效性评价和综合评价。评价结果表明，我国公共教育绩效在过去几年取得不断进步的同时，也有不足之处，有必要通过调整教育政策和教育支出政策予以不断完善。     

Diffusing the Cloud: Cloud Computing and Implications for Public Policy

Cloud Computing is rapidly emerging as the new information technology platform. It is, however, much more than simply a new set of technologies and business models. Cloud Computing is transforming how consumers, companies, and governments store information, how they process that information, and how they utilize computing power. It can be an engine of innovation, a platform for entrepreneurship, and driver of corporate efficiency. While an increasingly commonly term, confusion remains over what exactly constitutes Cloud Computing, how the markets are unfolding, and what forces will drive their evolution and diffusion. This paper provides an overview and conceptual tools for business leaders, policymakers, and non-specialist scholars to identify, distill, and easily understand the core aspects of how Cloud Computing service markets are developing, and how an array of policy issues will influence how this new computing platform unfolds across the world.     

Entrepreneurship, Economic Growth and Public Policy

This paper is an introduction to the second Global Entrepreneurship Research Conference. The conference focused on developing a better understanding of the relationships among entrepreneurship, economic growth and public policy, and variations according to the stage of economic development. The papers in this special issue conduct analysis with GEM micro-and-macro data, and offer several important policy recommendations. First, middle-income countries should focus on increasing human capital, upgrading technology availability and promoting enterprise development. It is important to start enterprise development policies early because the main drivers are perceptual variables that are difficult to change in the short run. Second, for developed economies, reducing entry regulations, in most cases, will not result in more high-potential startups. Both labor market reform and deregulation of financial markets may be needed to support growth of high-performance ventures.      

关于我国高等教育成本及定价政策的思考

高等教育关乎数百万的学生及家庭,由此引发的成本与收费问题成为学者热议的话题.通过介绍我国高等教育收费政策的发展历程及现状,分析现阶段高等教育收费存在的问题,在高等教育成本与定价的理论基础上,提出对高等教育定价的思考.     

从节日休假制度看我国公共政策的制定

自从执行黄金周以来十几年,老百姓在享受美好的节日休假时,也发现了越来越多的问题。黄金周大多是用周末拼凑起来的,有时导致上几天休几天或休长假再补长工,这样的错乱工作安排、生活形式让大家极为不适。加上假日里旅游景区和高速公路上出现的混乱拥堵场景,让本已饱受争议的假日安排更添反对之音。公共政策从目标制定、方案设计再到优选的整个过程,都需要注意科学合理且应顺从民意方能长久推行。     

Public Policy Issues in the Marketing of Seals of Approval for Food

Seals of approval have been part of the competitive environment for decades and, properly used, aid consumers by substituting unbiased professional expertise for consumers' lack of knowledge regarding product claims. This paper analyzes use of seals of approval as fund-raising and competitive devices to determine if seals of approval for food offer the same public good as product endorsements. The authors conclude that seals of approval for food, as exemplified by the American Heart Association's HeartGuide Seal, may not be in the best interests of consumers.     

Lessons for Consumer Education Policy: The Case of the Office of Consumers' Education

The Office of Consumers' Education existed for almost seven years, disbursing in excess of $18 million for grants and contracts in support of consumer education activities. Stimulated by this funding consumer education evolved and expanded, and many excellent products were produced. At the same time, however, the program experienced substantial difficulties. Poor program design, initial failure to articulate goals and objectives, and inadequate administrative support all served to reduce the potential effect of this program. The OCE experience can provide guidance for future consumer education programs, at any governmental level. There is no need to repeat costly lessons about the form and substance of such programs where the case of OCE provides useful instruction. ¹ 1 This article is based on the author's doctoral dissertation, “The Implementation of a Discretionary Project Program: A Case Study of the Office of Consumer's Education,” Ann Arbor, Mich.: University Microfilms International, 1983. Space limitations severely diminish communication of the richness of detail collected in the case study. Interested readers are encouraged to consult the original document.
     

Examining the Covert Nature of Product Placement: Implications for Public Policy

As consumers become better educated and more skeptical of traditional advertising, alternate forms of marketing communication have emerged that aim to influence audiences unobtrusively. One such example is product placement. Product placement has attracted ongoing debate as to whether it is covert, unethical, and influences consumption. The current article examines the nature and practice of product placement in this light. This taxonomy of product placement attributes is based on current marketing practice and examines whether this is, indeed, a covert marketing strategy. Further, it presents a conceptualization of the influence of product placement on consumer welfare. We highlight that the many forms of product placement necessitate independent evaluation to determine ethical and regulatory standards. Operational solutions for developing public policy are offered.     

农村公共医疗卫生资源供给效能研究设计

农村医疗卫生发展重点是推进医疗保障、医疗服务、监管体制综合改革,为群众提供安全有效的公共卫生和基本医疗服务。当前,我国农村工作的重心是统筹城乡经济和社会发展,全面建设小康社会,而农村基本医疗服务体系的构建则是城乡一体化建设的核心议题,是建设社会主义新农村的重要内容,在这个过程中,政府应肩负起主导责任。医疗卫生资源供给效能提升路径依靠的不再是单方政府的权威,而是政府、市场、社会组织等多元主体通过制度安排,对医疗卫生资源供给效能实施"共同治理",通过合作网络的互动和协调,在多方主体之间建立一种"多向交叉的网络合作关系",从而保证人民获得期望的医疗卫生资源供给,实现政府对医疗卫生资源供给的治理与善治。     

Psychology, Behavioral Economics, and Public Policy

Economics has typically been the social science of choice to inform public policy and policymakers. In the current paper we contemplate the role behavioral science can play in enlightening policymakers. In particular, we provide some examples of research that has and can be used to inform policy, reflect on the kind of behavioral science that is important for policy, and approaches for convincing policy-makers to listen to behavioral scientists. We suggest that policymakers are unlikely to invest the time translating behavioral research into its policy implications, and researchers interested in influencing public policy must therefore invest substantial effort, and direct that effort differently than in standard research practices.     

论我国公共政策制定中的公民参与

公民参与公共政策过程是公民政治参与的重要方面,也是公共政策研究的新话题。在我国,公众参与政策制定的水平有了一定的发展,公民可以通过各种形式参与到政策制定中。目前,我国公众参与政策制定过程中还存在制度、组织缺陷和参与水平不高等问题。我国应大力推进公民参与的制度化,大力发展公民组织,拓展参与渠道,采取有效措施提升公民参与的整体水平。     

日本的知识产权公共政策及对中国的启示

日本知识产权公共政策的发展历史揭示了日本知识产权公共政策的特点。日本在不同时期根据本国的经济技术发展水平采取了不同的但最符合本国利益需要的知识产权公共政策;日本重视对引进技术的消化吸收再创新;日本限制专利的权利范围的专利政策有利于技术扩散和维护社会公共利益;日本政府在知识产权发展中起到主导作用,日本政府和本国企业之间建立紧密的合作关系。日本的知识产权公共政策对于构建中国的知识产权公共政策体系具有重要的借鉴意义。