生态旅游可持续发展困境:成因及治理——基于信息经济学的分析

生态旅游曾被认为是实现旅游业可持续发展的最好途径,但是由于生态旅游产品具有的经验性商品、产品标准化程度低等的特征,决定了生态旅游的交易双方关于产品质量信息的不对称。而信息不对称又是导致生态旅游市场逆向选择和道德风险的主要原因。文章运用博弈论和信息经济学的相关理论模型,从理论角度论述了我国目前生态旅游可持续发展存在的困境,并基于现实情况提出了相关的治理措施。     

城镇低保户医疗服务利用和医疗保障制度设计对就医行为的影响——基于兰州、西宁和白银城镇家庭调查数据的分析

解决低保户看病难问题事关社会底线公平。文章基于2005年三个西北城市的17 690个样本对低保户就医问题展开实证研究,分析结果表明,由于中国医疗机构扭曲的激励机制和偏重住院报销的给付结构,低保户和非低保户两个群体都倾向于自己购药处理日常病患,而减少了门诊利用,经常面临生存危机的低保户由此拖延病情直至病情严重;个人账户既不能横向分散不同人群的疾病风险,也不能纵向分散个人在生命周期不同阶段的疾病风险;职工基本医疗保险能够显著增加中青年低保户对住院服务的利用,但对老龄低保户没有效果。     

U.S. Equity Markets and Environmental Policy. The Case of Electric Utility Investor Behavior During the Passage of the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990

We examine electric utilityinvestor reaction surrounding twenty-twomilestones associated with the passage of theClean Air Act Amendments of 1990. Resultssuggest that investors did not react sharply tothe passage of the Amendments. To the extentthat statistically significant effects wereobserved, we interpret the results as moreindicative of investor concern over resolutionof uncertainty surrounding the politicalprocess and resulting provisions than ofconcern over the expected costs of compliancefollowing passage of the Amendments. Weobserved little, if any, difference betweenutilities subject to Phase I restrictions andthose not subject to Phase I. Finally, changesin monthly excess returns appear to haveresulted from changes in U.S. interest ratesand investor concern over power industryderegulation. We view our results as importantbecause any wealth effects due to environmentalregulations represent a real economic costassociated with their implementation. In thissense, we view the results as good news forU.S. environmental policy makers.     

Technological change under residual risk regulation: The case of coke ovens in the U.S. steel industry

An engineering-economic model is used within a dynamic setting to determine the least cost mix of investment and import activities as the U.S. steel industry faces successively tighter controls on coke oven emissions over the next 10 years. In response to Maximum Achievable Control Technology (MACT) standards proposed for 1995, U.S. steel producers would likely export their toxic pollution by importing 6 million tons of coke per year. About 4 million tons of coke oven capacity is retrofit and about 1 million tons of annual coke consumption is replaced by new iron technologies, such as Corex. The Lowest Achievable Emission Rate (LAER) standards proposed for 1998 roughly double the coke oven retirements estimated to occur under MACT. Coke imports also are substantial but are no higher than under MACT because the additional time allows the industry to invest in more coke-saving blast furnaces and in new less toxic coke-making technologies, such as the Jewell process. The LAER standards in conjunction with higher capital costs, however, force coke imports to more than 8 million tons per year and sharply increase imports of semi-finished steel. Such a situation could exacerbate existing disputes on international steel trade.The authors are associate professor, instructor, and graduate student, respectively. This research was performed under the sponsorship of the U.S. Department of Interior, Bureau of Mines Distinguished Young Scholar Award Administered by Oak Ridge Associated Universities for the Bureau of Mines. Naturally, the usual disclaimer applies.     

Constitutional protection of economic rights: The Swiss and U.S. experience in comparison

This paper analyzes the contribution of the Swiss and the U.S. Constitution to protect economic liberties, and compares the different strategies that both constitutions rely on to achieve this goal. Pertinent provisions in the Swiss Constitution are rather precise but relatively easy to change, whereas the U.S. Constitution is characterized by vaguely formulated constraints that are difficult to amend formally and that are interpreted by the Supreme Court. Nevertheless, the substantial constitutional changes that did occur in both countries seem to have followed strikingly similar patterns: Initially, regional integration through reciprocal market opening within both countries facilitated the constitutional protection of economic liberties. Subsequently, the constitutional protection of economic liberties eroded in both countries, especially against federal legislation, due to changes in the interpretation of the constitution through the courts, or by formal amendment. Lastly, both constitutions were not immune against sudden demands by special interest groups that were being raised during times of crisis or war. I wish to thank Beat Blankart, Ludger Schuknecht and Barry Weingast for helpful comments.     

The Onset and Persistence of Secular Stagnation in the U.S. Economy: 1910-1990

Human relations involve a balance of substitution and complementarity. In economics, substitution is stressed and complementarity ignored. An economics of substitution will lead to competitive fragmentation. An economics of complementarity supports a case for cooperation and organizational health. If complementarity outweighs substitution, what are the implications? A shift to common needs enters new realms of social design. If wellbeing is social — if our benefits are aligned — the lack of conflict invites community. Here, competitive values cause strife and harm. In this paper, I depict the culture of complementarity in economics. I offer a key to achieving community, replacing substitution with complementarity in our basic assumptions. To move beyond a myopic culture resulting from competition, we need an economics of complementarity.     

大城市新冠肺炎疫情风险评估与精准防控对策——以郑州市为例

新型冠状病毒感染的肺炎疫情是当前世界广泛关注的国际突发公共卫生事件。选取本次疫情受影响较为严重的城市--郑州市为例,综合运用GIS空间分析技术、层次分析法与综合加权法等对郑州市疫情的演变趋势、基本特征、空间分布以及风险等级评估进行研究。结果表明:①郑州市疫情防控措施卓有成效,有效遏制了疫情的传播扩散,并且在提高病人治愈率,降低病死率方面效果显著。②从疫情传播的基本特征看,病例中男性占比高于女性,年龄上以青年(18~40岁)和中年(41~65岁)为主。随着时间的推移,输入性感染病例在逐渐减少,家庭聚集性感染和密集接触性感染病例在当前疫情发展过程中占主导地位,且病例来源地主要为郑州市区。③疫情的空间分布差异显著,县域层面上,金水区、管城区、二七区、中原区以及巩义市的确诊病例较多,市区街道尺度上主要分布在中心城区三环以内的人口密集地区。④风险等级较高区域主要分布在金水区、二七区、中原区与管城区等郑州市区,风险等级较低区域主要分布在新密市、新郑市与中牟县等地区。