The relationship between economic development and business ownership revisited

This paper revisits the two-equation model of Carree, van Stel, Thurik and Wennekers (2002) where deviations from the ‘equilibrium’ rate of business ownership play a central role in determining both the growth of business ownership and that of economic development. Two extensions of the original set-up are addressed: using longer time series of averaged data of 23 OECD countries (up to 2004) we can discriminate between different functional forms of the ‘equilibrium’ rate and we allow for different penalties for being above or under the ‘equilibrium’ rate. The additional data do not provide evidence of a superior statistical fit of a U-shaped ‘equilibrium’ relationship when compared to an L-shaped one. There appears to be a growth penalty for having too few business owners but not for having too many.     

Policies to enhance social development through the promotion of SME and social entrepreneurship: a study in the Colombian construction industry

Abstract

The intent of this research is to propose and analyse a set of policies in the construction industry to enhance social development. First, the paper shows the connections between the development of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and social entrepreneurship (SE), the reduction of the leakage, and then the generation of social value (SV) for sustainable regional development. For that, the article analyses briefly the literatures on SE and leakage, and focuses on the relevance of SME and social entrepreneurs as promoters of SV creation and development. Second, the paper proposes a framework and proposes a set of 20 policies aimed to reduce leakage, reinforce SMEs and entrepreneurship and also to promote SE behaviour by the diverse economic agents in the construction industry, in order to increase the generation of SV and sustainable development. Then, the paper analyses the acceptability, feasibility and viability of these proposed polices, which can be useful for academics and practitioners. For that, the study uses the Delphi methodology, applied to an expert-group of 23 professionals (representatives of the private and public sector) belonging to the Colombian construction industry. The results emphasize the relevance of the development of local incumbents and the social focus of firms to increase the generation of SV. Oppositely, policies interfering economic freedom and free trade receive the lowest rates in the three criteria considered.     

对罗霄山片区旅游企业社会责任的思考

罗霄山片区旅游企业对经济社会的发展具有一定的贡献,但作为旅游开发的微观主体,其在履行社会责任时也还存在一些问题。对此,笔者认为,罗霄山片区旅游企业必须重视生态环境保护、提升企业品质和建设企业文化以实现旅游企业的可持续发展,从而承担其应有的社会责任。     

西方社会影响评价的发展历程

介绍了西方社会影响评价的内容、产生背景及公共参与的关系,具体分析西方社会影响评价在不同时间段的概念发展,以及该评价方法在不同空间范围的侧重点及评价内容,并初步阐述不同时期的社会影响评价分析方法。     

Managing venture team relationships in corporate incubators: a case study of network dynamics and political rivalry in a high-tech incubator

This article addresses venture team relationships in an advanced high tech incubator through an analysis of the personal relationships of venture team members. During the study period of almost 2 years, the ventures were projected to grow and commercialise but, overall, they failed. Quantitative data collected in two rounds showed that commercial relationships remained weak while political relationships intensified. Qualitative follow-up interviews suggest that the political rivalry and low level of knowledge sharing between the ventures were further exacerbated by the individualistic-competitive structure of the incubator and weak management in some respects.     

Optimal control theory and the reelection problem: The rise of a political business cycle

Riassunto In questo lavoro gli autori si propongono di evidenziare, tramite tecniche di controllo ottimo, l'insorgere di un ciclo politico economico nell'andamento del sistema economico, cioè l'eventuale manipolazione da parte del governo della situazione economica al fine di essere rieletto per il successivo mandato.Il modello proposto prevede una funzione di costo-popolarità, che determina la rielezione, lineare-quadratica rispetto al reddito nazionale e all'inflazione. La formalizzazione quadratica sia rispetto alla variabile di stato che alla variabile di controllo è motivo di alcune complicazioni analitiche del tutto estranee alla letteratura esistente sul terna. Il modello, da un punto di vista economico, si presenta più ricco e completo rispetto a quelli riportati in letteratura: in esso infatti, oltre alla curva di Phillips, sono presenti anche le equazioni IS-LM. Questa caratteristica rende possibili alcune considerazioni riguardo al ruolo dei fattori monetari e della spesa pubblica all'interno del ciclo politico economico.Dall'analisi svolta nell'articolo risulta confermato l'insorgere, sotto alcune condizioni, di un ciclo politico economico. Per determinati valori dei parametri del modello il comportamento può comunque anche essere caratterizzato da oscillazioni smorzate o da una continua espansione economica.     

城市空间的社会与"城市文化资本"论--城市公共空间市民属性研究

城市社会空间作为城市的要素,具有典型的社会关系与社会资本属性,在不同的社会和不同的文化环境中,城市社会空间表现为不同的意义和符号价值.在当代中国城市化高速发展的今天,城市社会空间结构在发生巨变,传统的城市社会空间的意义和理念,被现代意义上的空间意涵所取代,同时,城市化的高速增长,使属于大众的城市社会空间变得越来越狭小,城市社会竞争的本质就是在竞争城市社会空间的占有形式.因此,重新认识城市社会空间的社会属性和文化价值,已经成为城市公共管理的重要内容.本文从城市社会空间属性的角度入手,研究城市社会空间的价值,以求对构建属于市民社会的新型城市社会空间有所裨益.     

The effects of internal locus of control on entrepreneurship: the mediating mechanisms of social capital and human capital

This paper proposes the research framework that locus of control enhances entrepreneurship through the mediating mechanisms of increased social capital in interpersonal networks and improved human capital in personal development. We adopted structural equation modeling to examine the research hypothesis. The research participants comprised managers from 14 enterprises in China; a total of 1002 valid questionnaires were collected. The results revealed that social and human capital mediate the effect that internal locus of control exerts on entrepreneurship. This study provides the following research contributions: first, the findings address the gaps in previous studies regarding the effect that a single dimension (i.e. personality traits) produces on entrepreneurship. Second, by employing the social exchange and human capital theories, we integrated interpersonal and individual perspectives into the research framework to explore factors affecting entrepreneurship, identifying that social and human capital are key-mediating mechanisms through which locus of control influences entrepreneurship.     

Balancing dual missions for social venture growth: a comparative case study

ABSTRACT

Balancing social and economic missions in the pursuit of growth is one of the greatest challenges faced by social ventures. Although social ventures strive for growth to scale their social impact, pursuing growth often results in mission drift and the sacrifice of social objectives, which in turn eventually undermine the ventures’ raison d’être. In this study, we investigate how and with what outcomes social ventures that pursue growth can manage the balance of social and economic missions. Through a comparative case study of six for-profit social ventures, we find significant differences in how dual missions are selected, connected, and intertwined, leading to varying degrees of mission spillover effects between social and economic missions. Our findings show that two-sided mission spillover effects are a central mechanism in dual mission management, enabling social ventures to pursue balanced growth, avoid mission drift, and achieve social impact. With these findings, this study adds to the emergent literature on social entrepreneurship, dual mission management, and social venture growth.     

Local development and business creation. The role of local development workers in project management

The participation of social inclusion workers in project management is to a large extent aimed at setting up businesses and mainly entails working with businessmen and women and entrepreneurs. Policies formulated to this end involve four lines of action: improving infrastructure; managing local businesses; supporting and managing the creation of micro-businesses and small and medium-sized enterprises; and carrying out socio-economic studies which aid the economic and social development of a particular local community. This study includes an analysis of the characteristics of the service provided by local development workers with regard to the development areas concerned, the nature of the work carried out and the groups involved, the characteristics of the service offered to entrepreneurs and groups of entrepreneurs and the characteristics of the projects managed. Field work was carried out during the 2004 which entailed the use of a questionnaire intended for all local development workers included in our own directory.     

The impact of the US on Latin American business cycles: A new approach

Business cycles in Latin America have tended to be more volatile than those in wealthier nations such as the US. Accordingly, much research has been conducted on Latin business cycles, as well as the impact of the US on such fluctuations. Some research seeks to find how “integrated” cycles are in the US and Latin America, yielding conflicting results. We apply a new method to the question of business cycle synchronization between the US and nine Latin nations. We find that in the majority of cases integration has been rising in recent years. We also find, contrary to some previous studies, that integration does not appear to be affected by either the level of trade or of capital account openness. Finally, we find that the two countries that are dollarized – Ecuador and El Salvador – appear least integrated with the US. This last finding has potentially troubling implications in terms of the ability of these nations to adjust to asymmetric shocks vis-à-vis the US.     

The Governance of Networks and Economic Power: The Nature and Impact of Subcontracting Relationships

Abstract.  Current debate on networking focuses on network structures and firm strategies. In this perspective, theoretical analysis has been concerned with allocative issues. This essay proposes a different interpretation. Starting from the existing theoretical framework, we emphasise the nature and the implications of different types of networks with respect to socio‐economic development from a distributional point of view. Within this context, we develop the analysis of subcontracting starting from the concept of economic power. We then provide an analysis of governance in production by considering the attitudes and the nature of the actors involved. The externalisation of activities by large transnationals, which characterises current corporate restructuring, is often related to the search for greater flexibility, but also for greater power over governments, labour, and subcontractors. Differently, networks based on the mutual dependence of actors, which are not necessarily built around a large firm, could – under particular conditions – reach large production scales or more complex scopes without breaking the links with territorial systems, thus including local objectives in the strategic decision‐making process. Our conclusion is that the impact of subcontracting networks varies enormously. This is crucial to an understanding of future trends and possibilities. Not least, firms and public policy agencies need to understand the implications of different forms of subcontracting network and how those forms actually differ in practice.     

城市生活垃圾处理项目社会评价研究

从我国城市生活垃圾处理的现状出发,分析了对城市生活垃圾处理项目进行社会评价的必要性,继而分析了城市生活垃圾处理项目社会评价的特点,最后提出了城市生活垃圾处理项目社会评价的框架.     

国内外社会责任会计信息披露研究

文章主要介绍了国内外社会责任会计信息披露概况、社会责任会计信息披露的主要内容和常见形式,并在此基础上对社会责任会计信息披露的发展作简单评述。     

The conceptualisation and measurement of occupational hierarchies: a review, a proposal and some illustrative analyses

Occupational data are central to much research in the field of social stratification. Yet there is little consensus on how such data are most appropriately classified and scaled. We evaluate occupational scales currently in use on the basis of a fourfold typology. This cross-classifies scales, on the one hand, according to whether they are intended to be ??synthetic?? or ??analytic?? and, on the other, according to whether they are based on ??subjective?? or ??objective?? data. Focusing chiefly on issues of validity, we argue that scales of the analytic-objective type are those which, for most purposes, can be used to best advantage in stratification research. We illustrate our argument by applying scales of occupational earnings and occupational status in analyses of the worklife occupational mobility of men in Britain, using the data-set of the National Child Development Study.     

Multinationals,national business systems and HRM: the enduring influence of national identity or a process of 'Anglo-Saxonization'

This paper discusses the 'nationality effect' in the management of HRM by multinational companies (MNCs). After reviewing relevant literature in the institutionalist tradition and on 'national business systems', it assesses the elements of national environments that are most likely to influence MNC behaviour. It explores the tensions arising between the requirements of 'globalized' operations and the characteristics MNCs have adopted from their home environment. It is suggested that MNCs respond to such tensions by adopting various adaptation strategies, the most important of which may be termed 'Anglo-Saxonization': a convergence of MNC behaviour around a model typical of highly internationalized British or US MNCs. The argument is illustrated by findings from two German case studies, one of a large manufacturer, the other of a major bank; evidence is found of the Anglo-Saxonization of international HRM in these companies, but it appears to be taking place in a distinctively German manner.     

The Neighbourhood in Pieces: The Fragmentation of Local Public Space in a Swedish Housing Area

In this article, we investigate the transformation of local public spaces in the ethnically and socially diverse housing area Norra Fäladen during 1970–2015. After being built, the area soon faced stigmatization and became known as a problem area. This was followed by a series of investments in local public spaces aiming for a stronger appropriation of the neighbourhood by its inhabitants. The production of a ‘neighbourhood spirit’ has, however, slowly deteriorated over the last two decades. Through the introduction of new areas, with large single‐family houses on the one hand, and a densification of the existing housing stock on the other, the inhabitants’ dependence on the existing (but now decreasing) public spaces within the area has been polarized. Local public spaces are also being increasingly relocated from central parts of the neighbourhood to the peripheries or outside the area. In this article, we investigate how this quite slow, yet steady, transformation has affected the local public spaces and the everyday life of the area.     

The take-up of business support by minority ethnic enterprises: The experience of South Asian businesses in England

This research contributes to a greater understanding of minority ethnic business (MEB) needs and practices and helps identify the support needs of minority ethnic firms in relation to existing support provision. The aims are, therefore, to examine the take-up of support by minority ethnic enterprises focusing mainly on the South Asian community with some representation from the African-Caribbean and Korean communities. Fifty minority ethnic businesses across South West London were contacted and semi-structured interviews took place with the owner/owner managers. The findings suggest that policy makers need to appreciate the diversity of MEBs and policies aimed at these businesses should reflect that diversity.     

Epigenetic Economic Dynamics: The evolution of big internet business ecosystems,evidence for patents

The aim of this article is to contribute to literature with new findings from biogenetics that are becoming increasingly important. In particular, we will discuss the new analytic frameworks that may open as a result of the incorporation of epigenetics in evolutionary economic thinking. This new approach is illustrated by studying the evolution of big Internet industry groups such as Apple, Google, Microsoft, Facebook, Amazon and Samsung. With it we shed light on the dynamics of business groups, which we approach as ‘business ecosystems’.