Schools and public buildings in decay: the role of political fragmentation

It is a widespread concern that schools and other public buildings are in poor conditions. A popular explanation is that maintenance is given too little priority in the budgetary process because politicians are shortsighted. In this paper we investigate this hypothesis using two novel survey data sets on school and general building conditions in Norwegian local governments. We use political fragmentation as a proxy for myopic behavior and provide strong empirical evidence that a high degree of political fragmentation is associated with poor building conditions, both for schools and for buildings in general. The finding is robust to handling of controls, outliers, and estimation method. We also provide evidence that lack of maintenance is the channel for poor building conditions.     

Sharing risk within and across countries: the role of labor market institutions

This paper studies the effect of labor market institutions on within- and cross-country risk sharing, using a model of international trade in risky assets modified to include a subset of agents, labor-owners who do not access financial markets, and employment security provisions. Labor market, institutions, by promoting within-country risk-shifting arrangements between agents with or without, access to financial markets, reduce the fluctuations of non-tradable labor incomes and amplify the, fluctuations of capital incomes. Capital flows become more volatile across countries, and if the, configuration of labor markets differs across countries, capital-owners bear the burden of systematic, undiversifiable world aggregate uncertainty.     

The political economy of environmental and social security policies: the role of environmental lobbying

Social security provides retirement benefits to the old at the expense of the working young, while environmental investment benefits the future of the young at the expense of the old. This paper presents a model incorporating this intergenerational conflict on public spending and considers the political determination of environmental investment and social security by focusing on the Markovian political equilibria. It is shown that (1) the political equilibria are generally inefficient, and (2) the introduction of environmental lobbying into politics may improve environmental quality but degrade lifetime utility in the long run.      

Country performance during the Covid-19 pandemic: externalities,coordination, and the role of institutions

Economics of Governance - The Covid-19 pandemic is one of the most powerful examples of negative externalities in local communities, entire countries and across the globe, calling for the...     

思想政治工作在企业发展中的作用探析

思想政治工作历来是我们党的工作的生命线,无论是过去战争年代,还是现在的社会主义现代化建设时期,思想政治工作在我们党的工作中都是处于非常重要的地位。如今随着市场经济的不断发展和完善,市场竞争愈来愈激烈,在这种情况下,加强企业的思想政治就显得尤为重要。     

论思想政治教育与当代人的个性培养

思想政治教育在当代人个性培养中的作用就是最大限度地抑制消极个性品质的作用,激发积极个性品质的发挥。本文围绕当代人个性培养的内容,现时代思想政治教育着力于当代人的个性培养的必要性,思想政治教育在当代人个性培养中的作用进行了分析。     

论思想政治教育与当代人的个性培养

思想政治教育在当代人个性培养中的作用就是最大限度地抑制消极个性品质的作用,激发积极个性品质的发挥.本文围绕当代人个性培养的内容,现时代思想政治教育着力于当代人的个性培养的必要性,思想政治教育在当代人个性培养中的作用进行了分析.     

探究思想政治工作在企业人事行政管理中的作用

人事管理是以人为中心的管理,其根本目的是协调人与人之间的关系,达到人尽其才,才尽其用的目标。近些年来,随着电厂企业的不断发展,对人事管理有了更高的要求,在行政管理阶段涉及到多种影响因素,为了满足现有控制机制的最大化要求,必须对工作形式和控制结构进行分析,灵活应用管理机制。思想政治工作的内容比较多,在人事行政管理中有重要的作用。文章以思想政治工作在企业人事行政管理中的作用为研究点,结合实际情况,对如何在人事行政管理中开展思想政治工作进行分析。     

Managing transformational change: the role of human resource professionals

In the past decade human resource management issues featured prominently in debates over the competitiveness and human resource professionals were expected to ascend to positions of greater influence in corporate strategy making and implementation. Despite numerous calls for a paradigm shift towards a more ‘strategic’ focus for human resource management research, developments in both practice and research fell far short of expectations. Thus, the process of transforming human resource policy into a strategic asset for employees, individual firms or the American economy is not yet complete. The paper suggests that the ‘strategic’ human resource management models of the 1980s were too limited and reactive in character because they depended so heavily on the values, strategies and support of top executives and line managers. A model capable of achieving sustained and transformational change needs to incorporate more active roles of other stakeholders in the employment relationship, including government, employes and union representatives as well as line managers and top executives. The paper starts by reviewing the evidence on innovations in human resource management in the past decade and then outlines the implications of the change model for human resource management and industrial relations theory, policy and practice. Special emphasis is given to the role of human resource professionals as potential change agents or facilitators of the transformational process.     

当前货币政策的目标定位和政策选择

目前,我国正处于金融业对外开放、金融机构健全性改革,以及汇率、利率和资本市场等市场化改革齐头并进的特殊历史时期,金融经济运行的总体态势是好的,但有一些不良因素和倾向也值得警惕,包括国际热钱大量流入、人民币升值预期强烈、流动性过剩、贷款增长偏快,以及房地产价格居高不下等.货币政策面临着巨大挑战和严峻考验.     

Network capitalism: the role of human resources in penetrating the China market

In the West, there is growing awareness that connections can be pivotal to a firm's success in gaining competitive advantage in the global arena. This paper compares Western networking with guanxi (connections) prevalent in Confucian societies. Guanxi are built between and among people. Hence the effective deployment of human resources is critical to the success of building such relationships. Data from forty West European multinationals with operations in China were collected. Where relevant, these were compared with the findings of Hong Kong firms in China. Specifically, the paper examined (1) how large European multinationals perceive the characteristics of guanxi ; (2) the importance of guanxi for market entry and long-term success in China; and (3) how guanxi is built and maintained by European companies in China. While the European companies have been able to establish a presence in China, their moderate level of satisfaction with performance there may be attributable to their inability to build very strong and appropriate guanxi with the relevant authorities. This may stem from their use of expatriates to staff senior management positions and insistence upon sole or majority-equity ownership to allow for maximum control. The implications for international human resource management are discussed.     

Training provision and workplace institutions: an investigation

The training debate has suffered from a preoccupation with macro institutions and regulatory frameworks. This has resulted in a neglect of workplace industrial relations issues. Using case study data from three private sector engineering companies, this article highlights the importance of workplace institutions in explaining training outcomes.     

Laissez-faire and the institutions of the free market

The absence of an adequate institutional structure explains why entrepreneurial capitalism did not automatically follow the collapse of central planning in the 1990s. It is a necessary function of a liberal state to provide a framework for the enforcement of private contractual terms. Beyond that basic need, other regulatory structures tend to emerge spontaneously through the force of mutual advantage and the test of social competence. In particular, institutions such as banking, the law, accountancy, insurance etc. exist to minimise the transactions costs which are inherent in a market economy.     

中国财政政策: 面临的形势与选择

一、2002年财政形势及运行中的主要特点 2002年我国继续实行积极的财政政策和稳健的货币政策,财政预算执行情况基本正常.1-10月份,全国财政收入近1.5万亿元,同比增长12.1%,完成年度预算的83.2%;全国财政支出1.5万亿元,同比增长18.2%,完成年度预算的71.1%;收支相抵,支出大于收入18亿元.财政运行表现出以下几个特点:     

Interpretations of stress in institutions: the cultural production of ambiguity and burnout

This ethnographic study of interpretations of stress among hospital social workers reveals concrete ways in which institutional systems take form in the mundane actions and interpretations of individuals embedded in these systems. It also reveals how organizational cultures reflect and reinforce institutional conditions that have been negotiated in the interactions of individuals. Here, the institutional systems of medicine and social work come together in the everyday work of the social workers and result in two patterns of cultural dominance. Within these distinct types of culture emerge two forms of stress experience, including a dominant form, consistent with medical ideology, and a marginalized form, consistent with social work ideology. Some surprising patterns of interpretation emerge, including interpretations of ambiguity and burnout as normal, social, and desirable when the social work ideology is dominant. This institutional analysis of stress has theoretical, practical, and epistemological implications.