我国省域经济发展的环境成本效率评估及比较

文章以省域经济为对象研究经济增长的环境代价问题。运用数据包络分析方法(DEA)对经济增长的环境成本效率进行评价,然后在时间序列和时间截面上进行对比,分析我国省域经济发展过程中环境成本效率的变化规律,并且通过相关分析和方差分析,研究环境成本效率的地区差异及其与经济发展水平之间的关系。结论表明各省环境成本效率均呈现逐渐上升趋势,环境成本效率地区差异明显,并与经济发展水平呈现显著的中度正相关关系。     

Economic capacity estimation in fisheries: A non-parametric ray approach

Data envelopment analysis (DEA) has generally been adopted as the most appropriate methodology for the estimation of fishing capacity, particularly in multi-species fisheries. More recently, economic DEA methods have been developed that incorporate the costs and benefits of increasing capacity utilisation. One such method was applied to estimate the capacity utilisation and output of the Scottish fleet. By comparing the results of the economic and traditional DEA approaches, it can be concluded that many fleet segments are operating at or close to full capacity, and that the vessels defining the frontier are operating consistent with profit maximising behaviour.     

网络DEA模型的生产理论背景

文章利用C2W模型提供的经典DEA模型的生产函数背景,研究串联网络结构和并联网络结构DEA模型的生产理论背景,得出网络DEA模型是真正“打开黑箱”的效率评价方法,为评价纵向一体化企业的效率及研究此类企业的生产决策问题提供了非参数分析方法。本文结论为网络DEA模型在经济分析中的应用提供了重要的理论支持。     

TOWARDS A DEFINITION OF NON-MARKET ACTIVITIES*

Recent attempts to measure value of household work and other non-market activities have been based on a simplistic interpretation of Opportunity Cost of Time Theory; this paper attempts to refine this and develop practical definitions from basic Utility Theory. First a distinction is made between economic and other activities, the former being the only ones subject to dollar-measurement; we recognize economic activities can occur outside the market and focus our analysis upon these latter. In the framework of Becker-Lancaster a Household-Production Function is posited which produces jointly such non-market economic activities-called indirect utility-and welfare or satisfaction- called utility. A criterion for identifying the indirect utility activities (Third-Person Criterion) is outlined, and related to time-use survey data. Finally, four practical estimation methods are outlined: simple opportunity cost of time; gross replacement cost; individual function replacement cost; and the full production function approach. This latter, which includes evaluation of capital contributions, is deemed theoretically most valid but for present purposes least practical because of lack of data on domestic capital stock. The paper concludes that there exists both a theoretical basis for valuing non-market activities, and the necessary data to apply the formulas developed.     

基于面板数据的西江流域经济发展成本差异分析

成本最小化选择是经济决策的基本规则之一,在区域发展布局上亦然。这就需要对不同类型区域的发展成本做比较分析。横贯我国西中东部、跨越南方四省(区)的西江流域在地理环境、发展成本及发展绩效上均呈现出较大的差异性,是进行此类分析的典型样域。基于面板数据的DEA和综合评价分析表明,西江流域不同域段单位产出的内部、外部和综合成本均与其地理梯度成正向关系,亦即流域发展成本大致呈上游>中游>下游的空间差异性和梯度性。此差异可能意味着需重新审视区域协调发展与均衡发展的关系、战略及政策。     

基于DEA模型的长江流域城市生态经济发展分析

DEA模型运用于具有多投入、多产出以及评价对象多元性特征的长江流域城市生态经济发展评价中,能对比不同城市之间生态经济发展的相对有效性。本文运用DEA模型对长江流域6个主要城市的生态经济发展状况进行实证分析,力求做出科学评价并提出有益的发展思路。     

Valuing environmental factors in cost-benefit analysis using data envelopment analysis

Environmental cost-benefit analysis (ECBA) is used for the social evaluation of investment projects and policies that involve significant environmental impacts. Economic valuation of environmental impacts forms one of the critical steps of ECBA. We develop a new method for this purpose, which does not require price estimation for environmental impacts using stated or revealed preference methods. Our approach is based on data envelopment analysis (DEA), which is modified to ECBA by using absolute shadow prices instead of relative prices. We also discuss how the method can be used for sensitive analysis in ECBA. We illustrate the method by means of a hypothetical numerical example.     

Les Caisses Rurales Face à l'Union Monétaire: Une étude d'efficacité comparée

The authors analyze the economic efficiency of rural credit unions of large size compared to a group of credit unions. The methodology is based on the analysis of profitability, productivity and efficiency ratios and on the estimation of a Cobb–Douglas cost function. The evolution during the period 1989–1994 as well as the situation at the end of this period are examined. The same methodology is used to study the rural credit unions individually.     

Robust covariance matrix estimation and identification of unusual data points: New tools

Most consistent estimators are prone to total breakdown in the presence of a handful of unusual data points (UDPs). This compromises inference. Robust estimation is a (seldom-used) solution; but methods commonly-used in applied research have severe drawbacks. In this paper, building upon methods that are relatively unknown outside of the robust statistics literature, we provide an enhanced tool for robust estimates of mean and covariance, useful both for robust estimation and for detection of unusual data points. It is relatively fast and useful for large data sets. We also provide a new robust cluster method, an input to our broader method, but also useful for standalone UDP detection or cluster analysis. We provide a comparative study of numerous methods that is not available in the current literature. Testing indicates that our method performs at par with, and often better than, two of the currently best available methods. We also demonstrate that the issues we discuss are not merely hypothetical, by applying our tools to real world data, and to re-examine two prominent economic studies. Our methods reveal that their central results are driven by a set of unusual points.     

And if the ball does not cross the line? A comprehensive analysis of football clubs’ performance

The football club market is changing fast in the social media era. In this global market, clubs must maintain or improve fans’ attendance at the stadium; simultaneously, they need, more than ever, to take care of social media. The aim of this article is to test and discuss a comprehensive approach to analysing the performance of football clubs regarding their multiplicity of objectives. We analyse the efficiency of English Premier League (EPL) clubs during three seasons (2012/13–2014/15). The methodologies employed are data envelopment analysis (DEA) and a bootstrapped DEA model. The input is the market value of the squad, and the outputs are sports results, total revenue, the ratio of stadium utilization during the season and an index of social media impact. The results are robust to alternative estimation methods and indicate that EPL clubs still have a margin for improving their overall efficiency, mainly the medium clubs. The analysis of football clubs’ performance with the proposed comprehensive approach provides a useful tool to help managers with evaluation and feedback considering the actual context of the market. The approach brings closer the opportunity to design appropriate strategies to improve clubs’ efficiency as well as competition policies.     

The efficiency of immunization of infants by local government

The paper makes use of data envelopment analysis (DEA) to measure the cost and production efficiency of local government programmemes for childhood immunization in urban and rural settings in Australia. Model specification is tested for validity, methods are used for ranking efficient units and advanced statistical methods are used to establish confidence intervals around the efficiency estimates. Given the small data set, the cost and production models are valid, and it is concluded that while neither urban nor rural programmes are particularly efficient, there is more room for improvement in rural programmes. Ways of changing methods of delivery are suggested which may increase efficiency.     

Concepts of learning and experience in developing solar thermal technologies

This study presents a plausible picture of development of solar thermal technology, using the learning and experience curve concepts. The cost estimates for solar thermal energy technologies are typically made assuming a fixed production process, characterized by standard capacity factors, overhead, and labor costs. The learning curve is suggested as a generalization of the costs of potential solar energy system. The concept of experience is too ambiguous to be useful for cost estimation. There is no logical reason to believe that cost will decline purely as a function of cumulative production, and experience curves do not allow the identification of logical sources of cost reduction directly. The procedures for using learning and aggregated cost curves to estimate the costs of solar technologies are outlined. Because adequate production data often do not exist, production histories of analogous products/processes are analyzed, and learning and aggregated cost curves for these surrogates estimated. If the surrogate learning curves apply, they can be used to estimate solar thermal technology costs. The steps involved in generating these cost estimates are given. Second-generation glass-steel heliostat design concept developed by MDAC is described; a costing scenario for 25,000 units/year is detailed; surrogates for cost analysis are chosen; learning and aggregated cost curves are estimated; and the aggregate cost curve for the MDAC designs is estimated. The surrogate concept of cost estimation combines qualitative steps, which are highly subjective, with quantitative techniques, which require thorough knowledge and understanding to justify their use. As such, the results, interpretations, and inferences must be qualified by an understanding of the process by which they were developed. The method of surrogate learning curves had limitations in both the data acquisition and data analysis phases of activity. Improvements in the validity of cost data and in the task used for this type of study are necessary to enhance the reliability of unit cost predictions resulting from this technique.     

我国沿海城市海洋经济效率的测度及其影响因素分析——基于两阶段双重自助抽样DEA方法

由于传统 DEA方法在对决策单元的效率评价及效率影响因素的分析上存在缺陷,本文运用基于自助抽样的 DEA方法,利用我国 12个主要沿海城市的相关数据,对它们的海洋经济效率值进行了测算,同时分析了影响沿海城市海洋经济效率的因素。研究发现,经济愈发达的沿海城市其海洋经济效率未必更高,但海洋经济发展水平对沿海城市海洋经济效率具有正向影响。同时,外贸依存度高的沿海城市海洋经济效率实际更低,表明其海洋资源可能存在过度开发的问题。此外,加强沿海城市的环境保护力度尧改善环境治理有助于海洋经济效率的提升。     

Performance of Dairy Plants in the Cooperative and Private Sectors in India

During the 1990s the cooperative dairy processing sector in India was exposed to greater competition from private sector plants. In this paper we measure cost efficiency (decomposed into technical and allocative efficiency) at the dairy plant level in the cooperative and private sectors in India. Two efficiency measurement methods are used: stochastic frontier analysis (SFA) and data envelopment analysis (DEA). The study utilizes an (incomplete) panel data sample of 23 plants, comprising 13 cooperative plants and 10 private plants, observed between 1992/93 and 1996/97. Our results indicate that cooperative plants are more cost efficient than private plants, although this difference is insignificant at the 5 per cent level. Furthermore, we observe that the cost efficiency of cooperative plants has not improved since market liberalization in 1991. These results suggest that the liberalization policy has not yet realized its expected benefits, and also cause us to question the general expectation that private operators will have efficiency advantages relative to cooperatives.     

Impact of input substitution and output transformation on data envelopment analysis decisions

Data envelopment analysis (DEA) can aid managerial decision-making because it offers an opportunity to measure organizational performance in a holistic manner, aggregating data from partial indicators into a single comprehensive measure. However, there are some methodological hazards associated with the use of DEA that are especially relevant to managerial decisions, but which have been largely ignored in the literature. Herein, we identify and show the impact of a ubiquitous methodological hazard in DEA modelling – the economic assumptions regarding input substitutions and output transformations.     

A ‘technically level playing-field’ profit efficiency analysis of enforced competition between publicly funded institutions

The study demonstrates how recent advances in the data envelopment analysis (DEA) of profit efficiency, and in combining DEA and stochastic frontier analysis (SFA) to measure producer performance, can be used to obtain a ‘technically level playing-field’ profit efficiency performance measure. A three-stage analysis is used to provide an empirical investigation of public-sector universities facing regulatory pressures to attain both profit efficiency and output quality. Stage one employs directional distance function analysis to decompose DEA profit efficiency measures into technical and allocative components. As these performance measures incorporate the impacts of managerial inefficiency, the operating environment and luck (statistical noise), stage two applies SFA to total (radial and non-radial) slacks to obtain a degree of disentanglement from the latter two impacts. The stage-two results are used to define a common environment and common luck scenario, thus permitting university producers’ inputs to be adjusted so as to reflect operation within this more level playing-field scenario. Stage three recomputes the first-stage DEA for this scenario, to yield an (input-focused) ‘technically level playing-field’ measure of profit efficiency that unifies the regulatory financial audit and output-quality indicators in a single, best-practice-benchmarked, performance measure.     

基于DEA方法的中关村科技园区创新能力评价分析

概括了中关村科技园区高新技术企业发展及创新现状。在此基础上,运用时间序列法选取中关村科技园区2001—2007年度在创新能力上有代表性的各项经济指标,运用DEA数据包络法对中关村科技园区的创新能力进行评价。     

How to measure competition in an economy in transition

This paper attempts to find a robust method of measuring competition when firms' operational activities are subject to frictions. The first part theoretically tests the indicative quality of two competition measures, the price‐cost margin (PCM) and the profit elasticity, in a model of monopolistic competition. The second part studies the empirical performance of the indices for a panel of Ukrainian manufacturing firms. This study offers a new approach to measuring profit elasticity that relies on structural estimation of a production function. The estimation methodology retrieves a productivity index that is adjusted to imperfect competition. The proposed method of measuring profit elasticity is found to be robust to frictions, but the PCM and traditional profit elasticity are biased, especially when the intensity of competition is low. Empirical findings show that competition exhibits a significantly positive correlation with aggregate productivity performance, while its impact on firm productivity is nonlinear.     

基于DEA的河南地市经济发展分析

数据包络分析方法（DEA）是一种评价具有相同类型投入和产出的若干个生产或非生产部门（决策单元）相对效率的有效方法,可用于评价区域经济综合发展。运用数据包络分析方法,通过建立具体的指标体系、模型运算,对河南省18个地市的经济效益进行了实证研究。根据技术效率相对有效性和规模效率相对有效性分析结果,提出发展河南省地市经济的建议。