Constructing a generalized model of the human development index

The human development index (HDI) has been a well-known yardstick of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) to measure human development (HD) from a multi-dimensional perspective, since its introduction in the first Human Development Report (HDR) in 1990. Although there have been several modifications in the computation of this index, we suggest a new perspective in a multi-criteria decision-making framework in this paper. The new methodology addresses some of the limitations of the existing approach without violating the guidelines of the UNDP. As a first step, we revisit the concept of the HDI and then integrate the average shortfall factor with the HDI for the construction of GHDI--a generalized model of the HDI. Then we propose GHDI^R--a relative measure of the GHDI relative to a benchmark HD. This index is year-specific, and we determine it based on the goals of the human development indicators as fixed by the UNDP as well as the individual performance of all the countries under consideration for the year concerned. For this purpose, we employ a multi-criteria decision-making model using a two-step methodology. Initially, we develop a multi-objective model to create the benchmark HD. Next, we assess the GHDI^R with a multi-index ranking model. We implement these procedures for the countries based on their empirical data on human development indicators as presented in the HDR (2014) and compare the HDI with the GHDI and GHDI^R.     

A new approach based on BWM and MULTIMOORA methods for calculating semi-human development index: An application for provinces of Iran

Human Development Index (HDI) is a useful tool for policy makers to understand the degree of development in their societies and set new policies to improve it. Traditionally, the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) releases HDI scores of countries based on the three key dimensions of healthy life, population education and standards of living annually. However, HDI scores have some deficiencies such as methodology, indexes selection and measures time lag. In this paper, a new approach is proposed to calculate semi-HDI scores. First, in each dimension of health, education and standard of living, new and extra criteria are selected. Then, policy makers' preferences are considered to assign the weights of criteria in each dimension using best worst method (BWM). Then, MULTIMOORA method is applied to rank provinces of Iran in each dimension. Finally, the semi-HDI scores of provinces are calculated based on geometric mean of healthy life, population education and living standards. According to the semi-HDI scores, Kohgiluyeh & Boyer- Ahmad and Sistan & Baluchestan provinces are the most and the least developed provinces of Iran, respectively.     

What role do HR practitioners play in developing countries: an exploratory study in an Indonesian organization undergoing major transformation

In spite of the abundance of research on HRM in developing countries, there is a dearth of knowledge of what human resource (HR) practitioners actually do in developing countries. With the aid of Conner and Ulrich's widely reported framework for HR roles, we investigated the roles played by HR practitioners in a state-owned oil and gas company with a workforce of 15,000 employees. The study was based on a survey of 140 HR and line managers in the company. The main finding of the study is that even in a developing country such as Indonesia, Conner and Ulrich's (1996) model of HR roles has some validity. Our findings indicate that all the four roles are practised by HR practitioners in the company. The finding lends support to similar studies in the USA (Wright, McMahan, Snell and Gerhart 2001; Simpkins 2005), the UK (Caldwell 2003), Denmark (Lemmergaard 2009), Finland (Antila 2006) and Lithuania (Zuzeviciute and Margarita 2010). Another significant feature of the study is the revelation that HR practitioners play more strategic roles than operational roles. This is entirely unexpected. The theoretical/research and practical implications of the findings have also been discussed.     

Exploring the linkage between human capital and economic growth: A look at 141 developing and developed countries

As a factor of production, human capital is defined both in its health and educational dimensions, incorporating qualitative and quantitative aspects. Using a panel of 141 countries (93 developing and 48 developed), we attempt to explore and compare the impact of human capital on economic growth at different development stages. For our estimation, we employ the System Generalized Methods of Moments (SGMM) for the period 1980–2008. Our findings reveal that all aspects of human capital positively influence growth in developing countries, especially life expectancy gain, which may be explained by the demographic transition these countries are going through. However, the scenario is different for developed countries, where increased life expectancy posits a drag on economic growth, probably because of the increasingly aging population and dependency ratio. Only when life expectancy is omitted does health expenditure, along with other educational measures of human capital, help sustain growth in developed countries.     

Constructing an index for comparing human resources management sustainability in Europe

Assuming that a company's institutional context influences its sustainability approach and its human resources management (HRM), this article compares firms' sustainable HRM systems across countries. Despite the presence of a supranational government, different social models exist in Europe according to the level of social protection in each country. The article compares the engagement of companies with sustainable HRM across Europe and develops an index with which to compare HRM sustainability in countries that present significant institutional differences: Germany, Spain, Sweden, and the United Kingdom. The index is constructed based on a formative measurement model, which reflects the implementation levels of sustainable HRM in 106 western European firms. The index reveals significant differences between companies from the four countries and between liberal and coordinated market economies, indicating the need to address the impact of the national institutional context on firms' HRM sustainability.     

Governance, Democracy and Poverty Reduction: Lessons Drawn from Household Surveys in Sub-Saharan Africa and Latin America

Public statistics face quite a challenge when it comes to measuring new dimensions of development (institutions, governance, and social and political participation). To take up this challenge, modules on Governance, Democracy and Multiple Dimensions of Poverty have been appended to household surveys by National Statistics Institutes in twelve African and Latin American developing countries. This paper presents the issues addressed and the methodological lessons learnt along with a selection of findings to illustrate this innovative approach and demonstrate its analytic potential. We investigate, for instance, the population's support for democratic principles, the respect for civil and political rights and the trust in the political class; the ‘need for the State’, particularly of the poorest; the extent of petty corruption; the reliability of expert surveys on governance; the perception of decentralization policies at local level; the level and vitality of social and political participation, etc. The conclusive appraisal made opens up prospects for the national statistical information systems in the developing countries. The measurement and tracking of this new set of objective and subjective public policy monitoring indicators would benefit from being made systematic.     

A framework to measure the relative socio-economic performance of developing countries

This research develops a framework to estimate the relative efficiency of developing countries in utilizing both their domestic and external resources to achieve the Millennium Development Goals. The analysis highlights distinct efficiency differences across lending groups and geographic regions e.g. between Sub-Saharan Africa and Latin America. The performance of regions exposed to natural disasters and political violence need to be analyzed individually and risk management ought to be an integrated part of development policy. The gap between the Millennium Development Goals and human rights approaches is then examined. Finally, we qualify a country's performance level as potentially sustainable in terms of human, social and environmental welfare, in turn searching for realistic benchmarks and intermediate targets for the relatively inefficient countries. Principal component analysis in combination with data envelopment analysis was applied to solve the problem of efficiency overestimation with multi-dimensional scaling used to present the issue graphically. In summary, the aim of this work is not to rank countries in a league table rather to provide a framework that combines economic, environmental and social issues in order to search for sustainable, pragmatic benchmarks, pushing the boundaries of the Human Development Index.     

The World Bank and Poverty: The Plight of the World's Impoverished Is Still a Major Concern of the International Agency.

Abstract . Since the early 1980s, the World Bank has taken on new tasks in addition to its regular development finance function: preventing economic collapse in borrower countries, helping heavily indebted countries cope with their international payments difficulties, and encouraging basic economic policy reform and structural adjustment in developing countries. Many critics worry that, as the World Bank has taken on these new responsibilities, it has lessened its concern about poverty. The Bank and its friends argue that poverty alleviation remains a central element of the Bank's agenda, but the world situation is different than it was during the 1970s and new kinds of action are needed today. The Bank believes that economic reform and structural adjustments are crucial elements of a modern anti-poverty program. Many critics believe that structural adjustment programs may seriously hurt the poor. Exploring the arguments and reporting the ways the World Bank has sought to respond to this controversy, the author concludes that the issue is a fundamental disagreement about whether the new modes of Bank lending and the Bank's new policy emphasis will have a positive or negative effect on the poor.     

Promoting the informal sector as a source of gainful employment in developing countries: insights from Ghana

Although the informal sector continues to be the main source of employment in developing countries, little empirical research has been conducted into the human resource management (HRM) issues surrounding this sector in sub-Saharan Africa. Against this background, this study seeks to highlight the HRM issues, such as training and employment strategy, which are assuming increasing importance in the informal sector in developing countries. After reviewing the marginalist and structuralist debates on the informal sector, the paper looks at the Ghanaian government's attempt to transform the sector into a source of national economic development, entrepreneurship and self-employment. As part of this examination, the paper explores the question of whether the government's strategies can provide jobs for all who need them.

Based on the evidence of the empirical research, the paper argues that although the current Ghanaian government's informal employment strategy is a product of political expediency and, therefore, prone to pitfalls, it nevertheless constitutes a worthwhile attempt to combat unemployment in the long term. The paper also contends that in environments of perpetual economic crisis, which undermine the ability of sub-Saharan African (SSA) governments to generate adequate growth, it makes good socio-economic sense to promote the informal sector as a significant source of employment. The government's strategy should, therefore, be seen as an attempt to help the informal sector generate a level of employment above the marginal and survival. In this respect, the Ghanaian experience provides useful lessons for other SSA countries grappling with similar unemployment problems.     

No man is an island: Social and human capital in IT capacity building in the Maldives

In many developing countries, lack of IT skills and human capital impede the potential of IT investments in organizations in developing countries [Lee, J. (2001). Education for technology readiness: Prospects for developing countries. Journal of Human Development, 2(1), 115–151]. This paper draws upon theories of human and social capital, and knowledge, to explain enablers/obstacles for knowledge creation and transfer for IT capacity building in a tourism organization in a developing country – the Maldives. IT capacity building is intimately linked to knowledge and skills at the level of human resource development. Using the Nahapiet and Ghoshal (1998) [Nahapiet, J., & Ghoshal, S. (1998). Social capital, intellectual capital, and the organizational advantage. Academy of Management Review, 23, 242–267] framework for the role of social capital in knowledge creation and transfer, we examine the major issues of IT capacity building for the case organization. We conclude that the role of cognitive capital is the most important for the tourism sector of the Maldives, and may play a vital role in accumulating structural and relational capital, together with appropriate government policies on ICT.     

Investigating the importance of self‐acceptance and self‐efficacy on weight management in a developing country

The growing rates of obesity in both developed and developing countries are alarming. Most studies on obesity mainly focus on individuals in developed countries with ready access to food. Limited studies explore obesity in developing countries with limited access to healthier foods. In addition, studies show self‐acceptance and self‐efficacy are essential to healthier well‐being. The purpose of this study is (a) to explore the impact of self‐acceptance on individuals' self‐efficacy to weight management and (b) to investigate the impact of self‐efficacy on individuals' attitude and intention in regard to weight managements. Using data from Indonesia (N = 499), the respondents are divided based on their body mass index. The results show that self‐acceptance significantly influenced individuals' self‐efficacy, especially for individuals who are obese. Furthermore, self‐efficacy did not influence individual attitude toward weight management. Finally, attitude toward weight management only influenced people who are obese and not individuals who are overweight. The results of this study will have significant implications to government, social marketers, and not‐for‐profit organizations in fighting the epidemic in developing countries.     

Using Hofstede's cultural dimensions to explain sexually harassing behaviours in an international context

It is increasingly evident that sexual harassment concerns in the workplace are not limited by national boundaries. Yet, sexual harassment as a research topic has been studied mostly in the United States. Further, even in the US, very few studies have explored sexual harassment from a cross-cultural perspective. The current paper examines this major gap in the literature and focuses on how cultural dimensions are important and can significantly influence the likelihood to sexually harass in various countries. Specifically, this paper develops a model using Hofstede's cultural dimensions, and conceptualizes these dimensions as key variables in explaining differences in the social-sexual interactions between various countries. It is suggested that varying differences in these dimensions across countries may predict the likelihood of managers sexually harassing in an international and a cross-cultural context.     

The impact of cultural dimensions on Chinese expatriates' career capital

The existing expatriation literature confirms that international assignments (IAs) are an essential tool for developing international talent and global managers. However, the majority of relevant studies are conducted in Western developed contexts and neglect the effects on individuals from emerging countries such as China. In the Chinese multinational companies context, this paper explores the concept of career capital comprising knowing-how, knowing-whom and knowing-why. Using Hofstede's cultural dimensions, it investigates the impact of IAs on an individual's career capital. Twenty-eight semi-structured interviews with Chinese expatriates were conducted. Results suggest that the Chinese expatriates develop limited career capital from IAs. The research shows that the Chinese culture plays an important role in shaping organisational practices and individual behaviours and, consequently, the development of expatriates' career capital. It goes beyond the current individual and organisational focuses on IAs to include a cultural perspective on the development of career capital. Implications are rehearsed, exposing areas for further research.     

Interactive strategies in supply chains–a double-edged portfolio approach to small-and medium-sized subcontractors’ position analyses

China is concerned to improve the technical capability of its industry. It has chosen Science and Technology Industry Parks (STIPs) as the model for incubating its R&D capability and driving its hi-tech policy. Against this background, the authors examine two main issues. First, we review assessments of university science parks in the UK and a wider context extracted from the literature before examining specifically China's R&D intensity and hi-tech policy. Second, we examine the performance of hi-tech companies situated on STIPs and those located outside STIPs, comparing their success in commercializing technology. We pay particular attention to the role of entrepreneurship in this activity by those engaged in it. Our findings are based on secondary quantitative data and qualitative data collected by means of interviews and focus groups in the Beijing and Shanghai areas in March 2004. From our research it is clear that China lags behind OECD countries in its R&D capability and the technology transfer rate is low, hampering China's hi-tech potential, although China is achieving some success in hi-tech exports, notably of ICT goods. Furthermore, innovation capability, locational factors such as being located in a regional industry cluster (in or outside STIPs), guanxi and networking opportunities, entrepreneurial skills, including international business experience and access to more financial sources and capital for developing the business, are essential for commercializing technology effectively in China. The role of entrepreneurship is evident. However, it remains still underdeveloped in China's STIPs.     

Exports and International Logistics*

Better international logistics raise a developing country's exports, but the magnitude of the effect depends on the country's size. We apply a gravity model that accounts for firm heterogeneity and multilateral resistance to an international logistics index. A one standard deviation improvement in logistics is equivalent to a 14% reduction in distance. An average‐sized developing country would raise exports by approximately 36%. Most of the countries are much smaller than average, so the typical effect is 8%. This difference is chiefly due to the dampening effect of multilateral resistance, which is more important for small countries.     

The Role of Social Scientific Inquiry in Technology Transfer

Technology, the application of science to achieve practical results in the area of production (as economists use the term), can be understood only in a limited way from a strict disciplinary framework such as those prevailing in the social sciences. Perhaps the most restrictive is the limitation from the viewpoint of economics. The author (an economist) illustrates this contention with some interdisciplinary dimensions of technology encountered in developing countries, such as those pertaining to indigenous technological generation and technology transfer. A development framework incorporating such interdisciplinary dimensions, it is argued, is a prerequisite for formulating meaningful technology policies which help to promote an improved quality of life in developing countries.     

Global human development: accounting for its regional disparities

This study’s multilevel statistical models quantify the effects of civilization zones and instrumental factors on the capacities for human agency that a country provides its citizens. These capacities are measured by the UN’s human development index, which synthesizes measures of literacy, longevity, and income. Indicators of political democracy, slavery, national debt, corruption, and internal conflict gauge the instrumental factors. Political freedom and emancipative employment coupled with civil order account for the regional differences in human development scores; civilization zones, heavily indebted poor countries, and corruption influence the variability among countries within the regions.     

Fearlessly Swimming Upstream to Risky Waters: The Role of Geographic Entry in Innovation

We examine the puzzling geographic pattern that shows firms entering countries with weak intellectual property rights (IPR) protection with their research and development (R&D) activities. Geographic entry into weak IPR protection countries is at odds with conventional wisdom as such an environment erodes a firm's ability to appropriate from its innovations. We offer that while the well‐established practice of spreading out a firm's value chain activities across a region has important implications for value creation, what remains unaddressed is the value appropriation aspect of such activities. We introduce a multilevel theory and maintain that operating regionally through commercialization activities (downstream activities) provides complementary assets to the upstream activities – specifically R&D activities in a country within that region – with which focal firms can appropriate more from their innovations. We find that regional downstream commercialization activities can substitute for weak IPR regimes, thereby providing firms with an alternative mechanism for protecting their intellectual property in weak IPR countries.