The trend of strikes in coal mining 1949–1979

Explanations for the pattern of strike activity in British coal mining have focused upon the industry's changing economic fortunes or developments in its collective bargaining structure. The author examines these explanations and suggests four additional factors that account for the trend of coal mining strikes.     

The legislative reform of union government 1979–94

This article outlines Conservative legislation on union government, documenting extensive regulation in place by 1994. It looks at the major objectives of government policy, including the twin themes of encouraging individualism and reducing union power. The degree of success achieved is examined and a framework in terms of competing rationalities outlined.     

Racial gaps in the transition to first-time homeownership: The role of residential location

Evidence suggests that African Americans wait longer to transition into first-time homeownership than white households with similar endowments. This paper relies on data from the Panel Study of Income Dynamics (PSID) to examine the contribution of residential location toward the black–white gap in first-time homeownership transitions. For a sample of young renters who first left their parents' home during the period 1978 through 1987, I estimate continuous time duration models that explain racial gaps in rental tenure durations prior to first-time homeownership as a function of individual, household, and location-specific covariates. I find that while several residential location characteristics, particularly those associated with the supply of affordable owner-occupied housing, impinge upon racial gaps in first-time homeownership transitions, most of the racial gap in homeownership transitions would be eliminated if blacks and whites had similar individual and household characteristics.     

Understanding Japanese Direct Investment in China (1985–1993):

Abstract Japanese private investors have recently established a remarkable presence in the Chinese economy. While the comparative performance of Japanese direct investment can be attributed to managerial, economic, social and political factors, the present article shows that elements of Japanese culture have also played a role. An intercultural comparative analytical framework is developed. Aggregate data and survey reports suggest that Japanese cultural factors have contributed to the performance of Japanese direct investment (1985–1993), relating to level, pattern and managerial behavior. This study points to 1) the importance of having a comprehensive understanding of Japanese direct investment including its cultural element, and 2) the necessity for the Western investors to pay close attention to the cultural aspect of a successful investment in China.     

The transition from school to work in 1979–1987 in the Netherlands*

We analyze the early labour market experiences of the cohort born in the Netherlands around 1965. Some of them, who left school early, entered the labour market just before the economic crisis of the eighties; the others entered the labour market during the period of high unemployment. We concentrate on the time-period between school-leaving and entering the first job. The individual differences in these initial durations of non-employment are analyzed by estimating hazard functions.     

The intensity of land use in urban employment sectors: Chicago 1956–1970

Net employment density and net floor space density (floor area ratio) in four employment sectors are examined for metropolitan Chicago in 1956 and 1970. The study also includes the formation and preliminary evaluation of a model of land-use intensity.     

The Contribution and Intellectual Legacy of Ronald Coase (1910–2013)

Ronald Coase's work presents a continuing challenge to the established neoclassical paradigm. His incorporation of transactions cost into economic theory enables many questions of organisational structure to be addressed but also implies a world of continuing evolutionary change rather than static equilibrium. This article reviews some of Coase's most influential papers and considers their implications for the future of public policy and economic theory.     

Rewriting China’s Recent History: Fluctuations in State Economic Control, 1949–1984

China's political and economic systems are often discussed in combination. It is generally believed that under the political system of centralization, the economic system had to be a state monopoly. This article challenges that view by providing an economic perspective. The period 1949–1984 is selected to explore the causes of successive periods of strengthening and weakening of the state's monopoly power over the economy. Scholars have generally assumed that the period of state monopoly originated from socialist ideology or the personal will of the leaders. But economic conditions severely limited the options available. After the new China was established, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) did not try to create a fully socialist economy in the short run. Instead, the CCP formulated a New Democracy platform that pragmatically allowed many types of enterprise to function side by side, including private industry, household ventures, and state‐owned enterprises. The original plan of the CCP was to allow private enterprise to develop in order to build up capital to rebuild the war‐damaged economy so that a strong foundation could be established for creating a socialist economy. But the Korean War from 1950 to 1953 and an influx of Soviet capital caused a shift from a mixed economy to state capitalism by 1956. From that point on, Mao Zedong and other Chinese leaders had to change course again and again as fiscal crises limited available options. A reversal occurred in 1958 when the Soviets withdrew both their advisors and their capital subsidies, leaving the state capitalist system weakened. The crisis in the Chinese economy from 1959 to 1961 required decentralization of economic authority and efforts to promote rural capital formation. The next shift occurred after 1963 as the economy was organized to prepare for a possible military invasion. The required mobilization of industrial resources in remote regions of China inevitably reinforced state management of the economy. The final reversal occurred in the late 1970s, when imports of Western technology and equipment created another fiscal crisis for the central government, which then had to shift the burden of capital formation from the state to private entities. The reform of the rural household contract system, the adjustment of economic structures, and an increase in exports to gain foreign exchange all took place as part of “de‐monopolization” reforms. The reforms that occurred after 1979 were not an aberration or a radical break from the past. They were part of a pattern that evolved from 1949 to 1984, with fluctuations dependent on the weakening and strengthening status of state finances. The shifts that occurred during this period have either been ignored by observers, or they have been misinterpreted as being motivated by ideology. In fact, new policies were created to enable the government to adjust to changes in the internal and external environment.     

The growth in the Japanese stock market, 1949–90 and prospects for the future

This paper surveys the growth in size and value of the Japanese stock market from its post-Second World War reopening until the end of 1990. The rise has been spectacular, but there have been many declines along the way. These are discussed along with the close relationship between land and stock prices. The paper concludes with an assessment of the current situation and prospects for the short and long term.     

The Urban Geography of Low‐income Housing: Cairo (1947–96) Exemplifies a Model

No one has documented the changing geography of low‐income settlements in any city in the developing world over the entire postwar period. The most plausible model of this changing geography, first outlined by John F.C. Turner, indicates the existence of a dual concentration of the poor: in central slums and in informal settlements at the periphery. This dual pattern is associated, respectively, with the filtering‐down of older housing and with owner‐construction of new dwellings, sometimes on illegally‐occupied land. Some writers have suggested that central slums deteriorate, while fringe settlements may be improved over time, thereby distinguishing slums of despair from those of hope. Analysis of the Egyptian census from 1947 to 1996 shows that this suggestion is borne out by the postwar experience of Cairo. Evidence on literacy indicates that central and fringe areas have both contained a high proportion of low‐income households, but that over half a century the relative status of the central areas has slowly declined. Although it has helped to shape the experience of millions, this long‐term trend has not been obvious to close observers of the local scene. Similar historical surveys should be undertaken of low‐income settlements in other cities in the developing world. Personne n’a étudié la géographie évolutive des logements à faibles revenus dans quelque ville que ce soit du monde en développement durant tout l’après‐guerre. Le modèle le plus plausible de ce changement, esquisséà l’origine par John F.C. Turner, définit l’existence de deux concentrations de pauvres: dans les taudis du centre et dans des implantations informelles à la périphérie. Ce modèle dual est lié respectivement à un déclassement de l’habitat ancien et à la construction de nouvelles habitations par les propriétaires, parfois sur un terrain occupé illégalement. D’après certains auteurs, les quartiers centraux des pauvres se détériorent tandis que les installations périphériques sont susceptibles de s’améliorer avec le temps, établissant ainsi une distinction entre les taudis du désespoir et ceux de l’espoir. Une analyse du recensement égyptien de 1947 à 1996 confirme cette idée au vu de l’expérience du Caire depuis la guerre. Des données sur l’alphabétisation montrent que les zones centrales et périphériques ont abrité une forte proportion de ménages à faible revenu mais que, en un demi‐siècle, la condition sociale des quartiers du centre a connu un relatif déclin. Même si elle a influé sur l’expérience de millions de gens, cette tendance à long terme a échappéà des observateurs directs de la scène locale. Il conviendrait donc d’entreprendre des études historiques similaires dans les quartiers à bas revenus d’autres grandes villes du monde en développement.     

台湾地区都市计划体制的发展变迁与展望(续)

四、都市规划思潮与专业教育改进的刍议　　空间计划理念与程序演变历程的了解 ,除解析各阶段转变的原因外 ,更重要的是 ,希冀从中获知一些问题与趋势 ,并藉以展望可预期的未来。以下兹就都市计划的发展以及都市计划教育改进之策略 ,提出可采行的方向如下 :1 .土地利用与管理的问题 (辛晚教 ,1 999)(1 )都市住商用地有些县市计划发展都市用地面积过大 ,远超过实际或预期之需要。计划人口密度过低 ,而发展地区实际管制密度过松 ,造成发展地区密度过高 ,环境品质低 ,都市零散发展 ,低度使用或空地多 ,土地及公共设施无法有效配合需要。另各类…     

After, before and during: returns to education in Hungary (1986–1998)

How valuable are the skills acquired under socialism in a market economy? This paper throws light on this question using unique data covering the years before and during transition (1986–1998) for about 3 million Hungarian wage earners. We find that returns to a year of schooling increased by 75% from 6.4% in 1986 to 11.2% in 1998. We also find that the private sector rewards formal education more than the public and, in terms of gender, although in 1986 women had greater returns to schooling than men, by 1998 this difference had been eliminated.