State Spending: What to Cut, Where, and Why

The growth of government has abscured the erstwhile clarity of its tasks Geoffrey Wook, of City University Business School, considers cuts in state spending that would clarify the function of government, reduce its burden on the taxpayer, and re-establish its central and limited purpose.     

What You Should Know About Megaprojects and Why: An Overview

This paper takes stock of megaproject management, an emerging and hugely costly field of study, by first answering the question of how large megaprojects are by measuring them in the units of mega, giga, and tera, and concluding with how we are presently entering a new “tera era” of trillion‐dollar projects. Second, total global megaproject spending is assessed, at US$6 to US$9 trillion annually, or 8% of the total global gross domestic product (GDP), which denotes the biggest investment boom in human history. Third, four “sublimes”—political, technological, economic, and aesthetic—are identified and used to explain the increased size and frequency of megaprojects. Fourth, the “iron law of megaprojects” is laid out and documented: Over budget, over time, over and over again. Moreover, the “break–fix model” of megaproject management is introduced as an explanation of the iron law. Fifth, Albert O. Hirschman's theory of the “Hiding Hand” is revisited and critiqued as unfounded and corrupting for megaproject thinking in both the academy and policy. Sixth, it is shown how megaprojects are systematically subject to “survival of the unfittest,” which explains why the worst projects get built rather than the best. Finally, it is argued that the conventional way of managing megaprojects has reached a “tension point,” in which tradition is being challenged and reform is emerging.     

What Every'A'Level Economics Candidate Should Know

In the first of a new series devoted to economics at Advanced Level, Viv. Anthony, Headmaster of Colfe's School and Chief Examiner of the Oxford and Cambridge Examinations Board, gives some tips on passing the exam, and improving one's grades.     

What Profit in Teaching Economics?

The role of profit in stimulating entrepreneurial discovery is often misrepresented in economics teaching in schools at worst as capitalist greed and at best is usually ignored. David Parker, Senior Lecturer in Business Economics at the Polytechnic of Newcastle upon Tyne, considers the history of profit in economic analysis and calls for a fundamental re-appraisal of its importance.     

The Law and Economics of Marriage Contracts

Growth in property ownership has raised the stakes in the distribution of financial assets on divorce. Given high risks of marital failure, this has stimulated the demand for private ordering through enforceable marriage contracts. This paper surveys the existing law and economics literature and legal practice to consider the state of knowledge on the economic theory, scope and limits of written nuptial agreements.     

The Distribution of Multifamily Mortgage Originations: What We Know and Why We Care

Three policy-relevant questions about multifamily mortgage originations (MFOs) are addressed. First, what is the annual volume of MFOs? This analysis highlights differences and problems among three publicly available multifamily lending surveys; the 1993 volume is estimated at $30 billion. Second, what is the size distribution of multifamily mortgages? Using kernel density estimation, variation in this distribution among central cities and suburbs, underserved areas, and lender type is examined. Third, what are the primary determinants of the variation in multifamily lending? A relatively simple regression model is estimated to shed light on the variables most highly correlated with multifamily lending. Tract income relative to MSA median income and minority concentrations are shown to be highly correlated with lending volume, but the largest source of variation is the number of multifamily rental units in the tract.     

The Law and Economics of Historic Preservation in St. Petersburg, Russia

St. Petersburg's architectural heritage makes it one of the most beautiful cities in Russia. However, as government subsidies continue to dwindle, the city is increasingly dependent upon private sources of financing to restore and preserve the many seriously deteriorated monuments and buildings. This article considers whether the economic and legal environment in St. Petersburg provides sufficient incentives for private investors to undertake historic rehabilitation projects. A pro forma model is used to analyze a developer's return on investment in new residential construction on the outskirts of the city versus rehabilitation of an historic residential building. The results show that the costs associated with historic preservation are significantly greater than for new construction and for a developer to make a reasonable rate of return on historic preservation the square meter price of residential space would be affordable by only a small segment of the population. Simultaneous changes to multiple legal and economic policies are recommended to encourage additional private investment in historic preservation.     

“永恒真理”为何没落——自然法学派在19世纪走向衰败的原因浅析

马克思主义哲学认为,事物的发展变化,是由其内因和外因引起的,其中内因起决定性作用。自然法学说在19世纪走向衰落,也是由内外因共同作用的结果,其中内因可能是导致其走向衰落的根本原因。     

Quantum Theory and Social Economics:

A bstract . The holistic approach of quantum theory is investigated as a tool for social economists to analyze and to interpret socioeconomic reality and paradigms. The link between quantum theory and the social economist's approach to socioeconomic reality, i.e. , the "what is," rests on the premise that each element of the socioeconomic universe relates to the whole system and vice versa. In other words, the meaning of each part is to be found in its implicit reflection of the whole of reality; it has no meaning exclusive of the whole. In terms of quantum theory, investigations of microeconomic processes are interwoven with the macroeconomic frame of reference of the observer. The very act of observation is to be considered as an integral part of the observed system.     

Keynesian Comparative Economics:

A BSTRACT . The authors of this article review the late E. Lynn Turgeon's contributions to economics, including his studies of the Soviet economy, use of qualitative and demographic analyses, his Keynesian critique of U.S. economic performance, and his critique of international financial markets. Turgeon's comparative approach led to unique insights about the challenges that confronted planned economies, including the differential impact of military spending on the demand-constrained economy of the United States and the supply-constrained economy of the Soviet Union. His study of the Soviet and planned economies also informed his analysis of the U.S. economy and international adjustment mechanisms. Turgeon argued for expansionary fiscal and neutral monetary policies, prudential restrictions on portfolio capital flows, and increased foreign direct investment and foreign assistance to shift the burdens of adjustment from deficit to surplus countries. Throughout his career, Turgeon measured economic policies by their effects on real people, including impacts on employment, the environment, living standards, and distributions of income and wealth.     

What Price Drug Use? The Contribution of Economics to an Evidence‐Based Drugs Policy

Abstract.  This paper presents a review of the recent economics literature in the area of illicit drug use. Particular attention is paid to the economics of addiction and the rational addiction model, the welfare economics framework for analysing the social costs of drug use, and the attempts that have been made by economists to evaluate recent or proposed policy interventions. A dominant theme in this review is the problem of poor data availability. This is particularly true when it comes to implementing the Rational Addiction model, but it is also apparent in the literature on estimating the costs of illicit drug use to society as a whole. One of the main conclusions of this review is that until recently public policy has not been particularly influenced by research carried out by economists. It is not clear whether this is because economists have had to grapple with inadequate data, and hence their conclusions are couched in uncertainty, or whether it is because drugs researchers have assumed a very limited role for economists in their analysis.     

心理契约在高校经管类专业经济法课程教学中的应用

将心理契约方法引入高校经管类专业经济法课程教学,将会产生良好的教学效果.教师在用心理契约方浇法教学时,要树立双主体意识,善于运用情感激励法,引导学生订立适宜的学习目标心理契约,重视学生个体差异和专业差异,建立科学合理的成绩考核机制,不断完善知识结构.     

Chaos and Economics

Is the economy chaotic? Dr Mike Ball of the University of Liverpool, applies the new mathematics of chaos to the economy. He concludes that the connection between cause and effect in the economy is far from certain.     

Economics and Restaurant Gratuities: Determining Tip Rates

Abstract IS tipping in restaurants simply a social norm where people tip on the basis of some rule of thumb (15% of bill size for example)? Using evidence gathered from surveys of nearly 700 diners in 7 Minnesota restaurants, it is argued that tipping is both a social norm and a means of rewarding good service. Survey evidence suggests that diners use rules of thumb as starting points and then vary gratuities on the basis of service just received, expected future service, whether they dine alone or with a group, alcohol consumption and location of the restaurant. Tipping may be viewed as a game played indirectly between diners in which each diner contemplates tipping, or not tipping, based on expectations of future service and the tipping behavior of other diners. Tipping is commonplace as long as people expect better service when they tip more and the expected payoff to tipping rises when more people tip, but rare otherwise. Neo-classical economics is quite successful in predicting tip size as long as diners view tipping as a pecuniary cost of buying service.     

Spreading the Word: Transaction Cost Economics in the Conversation of Economics

Transaction cost economics is a key topic in many conversations in business and economics related disciplines, much as a result of Oliver Williamson's intellectual crusade. By claiming a “distinct worldview,” he develops arguments of association and differentiation to established worldviews, like traditional microeconomics, earlier institutionalism, Austrian and radical economics, and also within the new institutional economics itself, in order to advance his theory. His resourcefulness defies straight argumentative decisions, catering to different audiences whilst trying to break new ground. Surely Williamson has not pleased everyone, but his discourse is greatly responsible for placing TCE in the everyday parlance of economics.