Post-Industrial Society: The myth of the service economy

There is a popular view of the current pattern of change in developed societies, a view typified by Daniel Bell's The Coming of Post-Industrial Society, that recent economic growth has been increasingly concentrated in the collective provision of services rather than in individual consumption of material goods, and that this change of economic focus from goods to services is a trend which will continue into the future. The author argues, using UK data, that the trend is in fact away from the expenditure on services and towards expenditure on goods. The growing employment in the tertiary sector, previously used as an indicator of the growth of the service economy, emerges here as a manifestation of the division of labour—a process which increases the efficiency of production of material goods—while the final production of services, using automatic machinery and “direct labour”, will increasingly take place in the home.     

Innovation, diffusion and catching up in the fifth long wave

Does the new technological paradigm based on information and communication technologies (ICTs) create new windows of opportunity or further obstacles for catching up countries? The paper discusses this question by taking neo-Schumpeterian long wave theory as the basic framework of analysis. According to this approach, the current rapid diffusion of the ICT-based paradigm marks the initial phase of a fifth long wave period. The first part of the paper focuses on the major changes that characterize the techno-economic system in the fifth long wave, and points out that the new paradigm is leading to several new opportunities for developing economies. If public policies will actively foster the development process by rapidly investing in the new technologies and in the related infrastructures and skills, these new opportunities will indeed be successfully exploited. The second part of the paper shifts the focus to the socio-institutional system, and argues that institutional changes driven by some major actors in the industrialized world are creating a new international regime where the scope and the resources available for State interventions are significantly reduced. The paper concludes by suggesting the existence of a temporary mismatch between the techno-economic and the socio-institutional system, which makes the catching up process more difficult for large parts of the developing world.     

Africa's dilemma in the transition to the new information and communication technologies

The emergence of the new information and communication technologies (ICTs) has dramatically altered theoretical and practical assumptions about the role of the communication media in socioeconomic development. Today, the role of ICTs in developed and developing societies remains a subject of debate, and Africa has been caught in the middle of this debate. Advocates of ICTs, for instance, point to how the West experienced the impact of industrial technology and found it to be an indispensable tool for development. If the new technologies are good for the West, will the same hold true for the developing world? For Africa, the question is a difficult one: will the new information and communication technologies launch Africa on the path of socioeconomic development or will they subject Africa to a new form of dependence? This article argues that the communication technology which will be adopted by Africans, irrespective of how the West moves, will be the one that is easily accessible and which poses no challenge to sociocultural practices. That communication technology of the future will be the telephone.     

Pollution and reforms of domestic and trade taxes towards uniformity

This paper builds a small open economy trade model where there is pollution from the production and consumption of goods. In the presence of production and consumption pollution, we examine a piecemeal consumer-price-neutral reform of the tariff and consumption tax and a piecemeal producer-price-neutral reform of the export and production taxes on a specific good. The paper identifies sufficient conditions under which the above tax reforms improve welfare and increase government tax revenues.     

Transition Belsize Veg Bag scheme: The role of ICTs in enabling new voices and community alliances around local food production and consumption

This paper explores an unusual community-supported agriculture pilot project in London, concentrating on the contribution of ICTs in its development and impact. The paper contextualises the project within wider waves of local food activism and reflects on the relevance of using ICTs to increase awareness and community participation in the production and consumption of locally-grown food. The results are also analysed in light of the author's parallel research on the use of ICT for agricultural development, or “e-agriculture”, in Kenya. The paper contributes to ongoing debates on ICTs and agricultural development, by highlighting community-building and the emergence of new voices and conversations as key roles played by ICTs, contributing to the development of more participatory, resilient and locally-centred food systems. The results of the pilot however also acknowledge the essential role played by activities in real life in building communal food growing practices, which can be enhanced but not substituted by online communities.     

Environmental accounting as workplace activism

Drawing on a case study of a Canadian City Council, the paper argues for the utility of a ‘social movements in organizations’ perspective [Zald MN, Berger MA. Social movements in organizations: coup d’etat, insurgency, and mass movements. American Journal of Sociology 1978;83(4):823–61; Zald MN, Morrill C, Roa H. The impact of social movements on organizations: environment and responses. In: Davis GF, McAdam D, Scott WR, Zald MN, editors. Social movements and organization theory. Cambridge University Press; 2005. p. 253–79] in environmental accounting research. It demonstrates how environmental accounting is used by employees to build an organizational response to environmental issues, and argues that beyond conventional legitimacy or organizational change perspectives, there is a further analytical possibility: environmental accounting as ‘workplace activism’ [Creed D, Scully M. Songs of ourselves: employees’ deployment of social identity in workplace encounters. Journal of Management Inquiry 2000;9(4):391–412]. The findings raise questions about how we evaluate environmental accounting interventions, and about a role for research in helping environmental movement adherents on the inside of organizations to stay engaged and avoid premature capture.     

Endogenous free riding and the decentralized user-fee financing of spillover goods in a n-region economy

The paper analyzes the strategic effects of decentralized user-fee and enforcement policies for the financing of interregional spillover goods. We derive the equilibrium pricing and enforcement rules for a n-region economy. We show that under mild conditions on the pattern of substitution between spillover goods and contrary to the 2-region case, the decentralized equilibrium cannot be Pareto improved by coordinated policy changes. However, decentralized equilibria are suboptimal from the point of view of utilitarian welfare. We characterize the direction of the distortion for this case. The regions’ incentives for user-fee enforcement are ambiguous in general. With only two regions and if regions only charge non-residents, however, there is overinvestment in user-fee enforcement in the decentralized equilibrium. For the case of a Tullock enforcement function and linear demand for the spillover goods we show that welfare is u-shaped in a parameter that measures the technological advantage of user-fee enforcement.     

Consumption and Equilibrium Interest Rates in Stochastic Production Economies

In this paper, we analyze the behavior of equilibrium real interest rates in an identical consumer economy in which the preferences are represented by time additive logarithmic utility functions and production technologies are Cobb-Douglas with stochastic constant returns to scale. The following main results are established.

• (i) When there is no relative price uncertainty, it is shown that the equilibrium interest rate exhibits a mean reverting tendency. A nontrivial steady state distribution is found to exist for the equilibrium interest rate. The properties of the equilibrium interest rate are also derived and discussed.
• (ii) In a multigood economy, even with additive preferences across goods, the equilibrium interest rates depend explicitly on relative prices. The substitution possibilities in production technologies induce this result. This is in contrast to the findings of Richard and Sundaresan 11 who show that the analytical general equilibrium term structure of interest rates formula of Cox, Ingersoll, and Ross 5 is unaffected by the introduction of relative price uncertainty when the technologies are linear and hence involve no substitution.

Furthermore, we relate our results to those of Cox, Ingersoll, and Ross 5 , Breeden 3 , and Richard and Sundaresan 11 with special emphasis on stochastic production and realtive price uncertainty.     

Retirement,home production and labor supply elasticities

A standard life cycle model with home production implies a tight relationship between key preference parameters and the changes in time allocated to home production and leisure at retirement. We derive this relationship and use data from the ATUS to explore its quantitative implications. The key finding is that the intertemporal elasticity of substitution for leisure and the elasticity of substitution between time and goods in home production are approximately equal, in contrast to what is commonly assumed.     

The association between cognitive style and accounting students' preference for cooperative learning: an empirical investigation

This paper investigates the use of cooperative learning in accounting education, in particular, the issue of whether an individual's cognitive style impacts upon their preference for cooperative learning techniques. The study extends the existing literature by using the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator to examine the association between all four dimensions of cognitive style and accounting students' preference for cooperative learning. Results show that preference for cooperative learning is significantly associated with the extroversion/introversion dimension [a result which extends the findings of Hutchinson, M., & Gul, F. (1997). The interactive effects of extroversion/introversion traits and collectivism/individualism cultural beliefs on student group learning preferences, Journal of Accounting Education, 15, 95–107.], and with the thinking/feeling dimension, which is a new result in the literature.     

A framework for the analysis of firm risk communication

In this paper, we propose a framework for the analysis of risk communication and an index to measure the quality of risk disclosure. Mainstream literature on voluntary disclosure has emphasized that quantity can be used as a sound proxy for quality. We contend that, in the analysis of the disclosure of risks made by public companies, attention has to be paid not only to how much is disclosed but also to what is disclosed and how.We apply the framework to a sample of nonfinancial companies listed in the ordinary market on the Italian Stock Exchange. To verify that the framework and synthetic index are not influenced by the two factors recognized in the literature as the most powerful drivers of disclosure behavior for listed companies, we use an OLS model. The regression shows that the index of disclosure quantity is not influenced either by size or industry. Thus, the synthetic measure can be used to rank the quality of the disclosure of risks.     

The ecological transparency of the information society

A de-linking of pollution from economic growth and de-materialisation can probably be seen as the most important single characteristic of sustainable development. With regard to this, ecological transparency means understanding all human activities, processes and patterns that have an impact on the potential for sustainable development. Closely linked with this is the idea that the ecological footprint of the information society should be concerned with the environmental implications of its generations, applications and the disposability of information and communication technologies (ICTs). This paper aims at developing scenarios, and a set of criteria, plus indicators as tools for identifying various environmental impacts inherent in the information society. Furthermore, it aims for the successful unification of the positive factors of the information society with ecologically sustainable development. It is concluded that policy plans for the information society would benefit from the enhanced level of ecological transparency the information society can provide, as presented via the indicators mentioned later in the text. Further, it is suggested that prerequisites should be created for evaluating the implications of the information society and for the application of related information society technologies. Such an approach could be labelled an Information Society Assessment.     

Environmental taxes on intermediate and final goods when both can be imported

One of the most difficult administrative problems in implementing broad-based environmental taxes concerns the tax treatment of imports, particularly imports of final goods that are producedusing intermediate goods that are taxed domestically. Provided there is no joint production, taxing imported final goods based on the amount of intermediate goods consumed in their domestic production will raise marginal costs by the same amount for domestic and foreign producers. This rule is impossible to implement when final goods are produced as joint products, however, as in the petroleum refining and petrochemical industries. In such cases arbitrary assignments of intermediate good inputs to final goods-for example, on the basis of relative output weight or value-are likely to change the relative marginal costs of domestic and foreign producers.     

Back to basics: What do we mean by environmental (and social) accounting and what is it for?—A reaction to Thornton

This paper seeks to explore whether mainstream financial accounting when it appears to genuflect to the ‘environment’ actually has anything substantive do with – or to say about – the natural world. It seems important to remember that conventional financial accounting is a predominantly economic – and not very internally logical – practice which has no substantive conceptual space for environmental or social matters per se. It has no space for what Thielemann calls ‘market alien values’ – values such as environmental concern. The paper re-examines why we might account at all and revisits why accounts which explicitly recognise environmental (and social) issues can be potentially very important indeed. What seems clear is that whilst any account that sought to reflect environmental and social exigencies might choose to use the technologies of accounting – notably debits and credits – there is no essential reason why they must do so. If we wish to account for an environment, we almost certainly would not start with the somewhat bizarre and tortured foundations of conventional financial accounting.     

Stocks,flows, and some exchange rate dynamics for the currency substitution model

The paper argues that the treatment of stocks and flows in portfolio balance models of exchange rate determination is inadequate, and that this hampers the analysis of exchange rate dynamics. A proposed resolution is reworked into the currency substitution model. In addition to providing explicit solutions for the spot rate of exchange depreciation under different expectational hypotheses, an attempt is made to clarify the dynamic properties of the model. Inter alia, it is shown how exchange rate overshooting is possible without having to assume market frictions; how a deteriorating current account deficit can coexist with an appreciating exchange rate; and, more generally, how portfolio induced jumps in the exchange rate are linked to balance of payments flow influences on the evolution of the exchange rate.     

Extent of managerial IT use,learning routines,and firm performance: A structural equation modeling of their relationship

Organizations increasingly rely on information technology (IT) to improve performance. Yet, there is debate about the pay-off of the IT revolution, and empirical evidence suggests that investments in IT do not guarantee enhanced performance. Drawing from accounting, marketing, management and information technology literature, this study uses structural equation modeling to assess the extent to which managerial use of IT is intertwined with control issues including learning routines (internal and external), product quality, cost improvement, customer satisfaction and firm profitability. The conceptual framework builds on knowledge- and resource-based views and return on quality perspectives. The results indicate support for the theoretical framework. Extent of managerial IT use influences internal and external learning routines that influence quality and cost improvement. Quality improvement significantly impacts customer satisfaction and cost improvement that significantly impact firm profitability. The non-hypothesized paths are not significant, indicating that learning routines, quality improvement, cost improvement and customer satisfaction are intervening variables between extent of managerial IT use and firm profitability. Further, the sample is split into two industry subgroups, durable and nondurable goods subgroups, and the two-group analysis reveals that industry moderates the relationship among the variables under study. The effects are in general more pronounced for durable goods firms.     

Inventory Investment and the Empirical Phillips Curve

In this paper, we study the Calvo pricing models with finished goods inventory investment to demonstrate that the current inflation can be expressed as a function of the marginal cost of sales, not the marginal production cost, and expected future inflation. Under the assumption that the true aggregate marginal costs are not observable in actual data, we make use of equilibrium conditions for aggregate finished goods inventories to measure the time series of marginal costs, thereby leading to the construction of inflation series on the basis of the Phillips curve. Our results indicate the possibility of a successful fit of the empirical New Keynesian Phillips curve without relying on unit labor cost—a conventional measure of marginal production cost in the literature.     

The implications of fossil fuel supply constraints on climate change projections: A supply-side analysis

Climate projections are based on emission scenarios. The emission scenarios used by the IPCC and by mainstream climate scientists are largely derived from the predicted demand for fossil fuels, and in our view take insufficient consideration of the constrained emissions that are likely due to the depletion of these fuels. This paper, by contrast, takes a supply-side view of CO₂ emission, and generates two supply-driven emission scenarios based on a comprehensive investigation of likely long-term pathways of fossil fuel production drawn from peer-reviewed literature published since 2000. The potential rapid increases in the supply of the non-conventional fossil fuels are also investigated. Climate projections calculated in this paper indicate that the future atmospheric CO₂ concentration will not exceed 610 ppm in this century; and that the increase in global surface temperature will be lower than 2.6 °C compared to pre-industrial level even if there is a significant increase in the production of non-conventional fossil fuels. Our results indicate therefore that the IPCC’s climate projections overestimate the upper-bound of climate change. Furthermore, this paper shows that different production pathways of fossil fuels use, and different climate models, are the two main reasons for the significant differences in current literature on the topic.     

The environment for development

This overview of the World Bank 1992 World Development Report reveals some of the means to close the gap between policy and practice in linking environmental and development policy. The nature of the problem is defined and win-win policies which show mutual support for environment and development concerns are differentiated from negative links. Sound environmental management can be achieved with improved information, enhancing institutional arrangements, and involving local people. The rapid implementation of policies and programs will involve both political and financial costs and a shift in policies and priorities. The challenges ahead are tremendous and include overcoming poverty and turning population growth and environmental pollution around. World consumption of energy and manufactured goods is expected to triple; without curbs on emissions, mortality increases, water shortages, and forest and natural habitat loss will ensue. It is not entirely true that economic activity hurts the environment when positive forces of substitution, technological innovation, and structural change outweigh the negative consequences. Environmental consequences change with income levels. Some problems decline with income increases. Some problems deteriorate temporarily and then improve as incomes rise, i.e., air and water pollution and some types of deforestation and habitat dislocation. Some problems continue to grow with income increases, such as carbon and nitrogen oxide emissions. Win-win policies are ones that foster and end to excessive resource use, clarify property rights and stop open access to land, accelerate education and family planning programs, accelerate agricultural extension and research, and invest in sanitation and water supply. These policies will not sacrifice economic growth. Tradeoffs must be identified and costs and benefits of alternative policies assessed; priorities and standards must be established in consort with costs and benefits. Behavior change can be achieved with properly designed practical and cost-effective policies.