Return and volatility spillovers across the Western and MENA countries

We use weekly data on returns and range-based volatility over 2005–2017 to examine the degree of interconnectedness in financial markets of eleven MENA and four Western economies using the methodology proposed by Diebold and Yilmaz (2009, 2012, 2014). Our findings suggest (a) similar patterns of dynamic spillovers in both returns and in volatility. Both return and volatility spillover indices experienced significant bursts from 2008 to 2011 coinciding with the U.S. financial crisis. (b) Financial markets of Israel, Saudi Arabia and the UAE are more closely integrated with Westerns markets and may serve as primary channels for transmission of Western shocks to the region. Also, shocks to these three markets have noticeable impacts on other MENA markets. (c) Shocks to the U.S. financial markets play a critical role in return and volatility of MENA markets. (d) These findings are robust to alterations in window size and forecast horizon.     

Comparing preferences for employing males and nationals across countries: extending relational models and social dominance theory

We expand relational models theory by integrating it with social dominance theory to examine how national culture influences preferences for males and nationals in employment-related decisions. Data from the World Values Survey (N = 2331), culture scores from the GLOBE project (N = 62 countries), and Hofstede (N = 49 countries) indicate that collectivism is associated with an increased chance of preferences for males and nationals, gender egalitarianism is associated with a decreased chance of preferences for males, and masculinity is associated with more chances for preferences for nationals. Demographic variables (age, sex, and education) were also associated with our dependent variables after taking all the variance of the different cultural dimensions into account. Implications for theory and practice are discussed.     

Aggregation across countries in stochastic population forecasts

Stochastic methods of multi-state population modeling are less developed than methods for single states for two reasons. First, the structure of a multi-state population is inherently more complex than that of a single state because of state-to-state transitions. Second, estimates of cross-state correlations of the vital processes are a largely uncharted territory. Unlike multi-state lifetable theory, in forecasting applications the role of directed flows from state to state is often less important than the overall coherence of the assumptions concerning the vital processes. This is the case in the context of the European Union. Thus, a simplified approach is feasible, in which migration is represented by state-specific net numbers of migrants. This allows the use of existing single-state software, when simulations are suitably organized, in a multi-state setting. To address the second problem, we provide empirical estimates of cross-country covariances in the forecast uncertainty of fertility, mortality, and net migration. Together with point forecasts of these parameters that are coherent across countries, this produces coherent forecasts for aggregates of countries. The finding is that models for intermediate correlations are necessary for a proper accounting of forecast uncertainty at the aggregate level, in this case the European Union.     

Staffing effectiveness across countries: An institutional perspective

This study draws on institutional theory to investigate why and how staffing effectiveness varies across countries. Utilising data from multiple sources (Cranfield Network on Comparative Human Resource Management [CRANET], Global Leadership and Organisational Behaviour Effectiveness [GLOBE], World Economic Forum [WEF], Transparency International, Tightness-Looseness Index), it covers 2,918 organisations in 11 countries. Extending earlier research on comparative staffing that focuses on cultural or regulatory differences separately, our findings show that companies in different countries implement staffing practices in line with their normative (i.e., cultural), regulatory, and cognitive institutions. A second key finding shows that institutionally embedded staffing practices are associated with organisational turnover, thus challenging dominant universalist perspectives on staffing effectiveness. Finally, we shed light on a central yet understudied boundary condition of contextual perspectives on staffing by identifying the strength of institutional pressures (i.e., societal tightness-looseness) as a moderator of the relationships between national institutions, staffing, and turnover.     

Forecasting accuracy of wind power technology diffusion models across countries

Wind power technology is analyzed in terms of diffusion, with incentive effects introduced as exogenous dynamics in the Generalized Bass Model (GBM) framework. Estimates and short-term forecasts of the life-cycles of wind power are provided for the US and Europe, as they have similar geographic areas, as well as for some leading European countries. GBMs have the best performance in model selection, and are ranked first in terms of forecast accuracy over a set of different accuracy measures and forecasting horizons, relative to the Standard Bass, Logistic, and Gompertz models.     

会计研究方法体系的中西方比较研究

本文在对方法论体系等基本概念的论述基础上,回顾了西方关于会计研究方法体系的理论研究历程,并总结了我国较有代表性的会计研究方法体系,对比了这些研究方法体系。在此基础上,提出了改进会计研究方法体系的一些思考。     

Servitization across countries and sectors: Evidence from world input-output data

This paper uses the supply tables underlying WIOT data to explore the provision of services by manufacturing. The service shares differ substantially across countries and sectors, while they remain largely stable over time. A latent class analysis assigns broadly defined manufacturing sectors to economy-wide growth models, differentiating between service- and manufacturing-driven models in catching-up and developed economies. Servitization increases with labor productivity. The service intensities in the sectoral production mix are lower in countries with higher manufacturing shares. This holds for both catching-up and developed economies. However, servitization is largely unrelated to productivity and employment growth. We therefore argue that the degree of servitization is contingent on and an attribute of the respective economic model in which a sector operates.     

Women in cabinet and public health spending: evidence across countries

This article studies the effect of women’s cabinet representation on public health policy outcomes. Based on a large sample of countries in the year 2000, the analysis shows that an increase in the share of women in cabinet is associated with an increase in public health spending. There is also an indication of a decrease in the gender gap in life expectancies in places with higher cabinet representation of women. The endogeneity of women’s cabinet representation is accounted for by using the share of daughters that a national leader parents as an instrument.     

Evaluating the effectiveness of private education across countries: a comparison of methods

This paper aims at estimating the effect of private vs. public education on pupils' achievement using the 2000 Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) survey and taking into account the potential bias due to the existence of unobserved confounding factors. To deal with these selection biases, three methods are implemented in a comparative perspective: (1) instrumental variable (IV) regression; (2) Heckman's two-stage approach and (3) propensity score matching. This exercise underlines important divergences between the results of parametric and non-parametric estimators. All results, however, show that private education does not generate systematic benefits.     

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.     

Career success across 11 countries: implications for international human resource management

This qualitative study examines perceived meanings of career success across 11 countries. The results show that people define career success in ways that enrich and illuminate the basic dichotomy of objective and subjective career success and establish their relative strengths across countries. Juxtaposing our data with human resource management (HRM) practices, we contribute to the universalist versus contextualist debate in HRM by adding the career management angle. We shed light on the relative importance of cultural and institutional factors for HRM in the area of careers and add a global perspective to the discussion about agentic careers. In our discussion we offer practical suggestions for multinational companies including how to individualize HRM to address diverse views of career success.     

The distinctive effects of earnings determinants across different job levels

This study proposes a structural model of earnings by integrating the arguments of gender discrimination, human capital, and segmented labour markets, three of the most popular perspectives for explaining variations in income. Our analysis makes use of an effective sample of 5,005 employees in Taiwan. The results show that in low-level jobs, gender plays an important role in earnings determination; but that in higher-level jobs, human capital replaces gender as a good predictor of earnings. We therefore argue that job level is a critical determinant of earnings disparity, especially in interaction with differences in gender and human capital investment.     

Exploring the differences in early-stage start-up valuation across countries: an institutional perspective

International Entrepreneurship and Management Journal - Countries increasingly compete to host innovative start-ups to secure and promote economic growth. However, because start-ups seem to be...     

Gender analysis of entrepreneurial intentions as a function of economic development across three groups of countries

The aim of this paper is to analyze the gender differences in entrepreneurial intentions by studying a range of socioeconomic and psychosocial factors. Furthermore, we aim at analyzing these differences in three groups of countries depending on the stage of economic development of each country according to the Global Competitiveness Report. Using a logistic regression analysis and data from the 2008 APS (Adult Population Survey) database which is part of the Project GEM (Global Entrepreneurship Monitor), results show the existence of gender differences in entrepreneurial intentions. The model proposed in the study has decreasing explanatory power as the degree of economic development increases, and is also more conclusive for men than women. An important methodological innovation we implemented in the current study is the use of the variable gender as a dependent variable rather than a variable of a socio demographic nature.     

The power of support in high-risk countries: compensation and social support as antecedents of expatriate work attitudes

This study analyzes the antecedents of expatriate work attitudes in terrorism-endangered countries. Applying a social exchange perspective, the study empirically analyzes which measures are qualified to achieve and maintain positive work attitudes among expatriates. Hierarchical regression analysis is applied to investigate this relationship, using data from 143 expatriates in high-risk countries. Data show that social support from co-workers as well as from the organization itself is essential. Moreover, the study investigates the expatriate's sensitivity to terrorism as a moderator and finds that companies should incorporate the sensitivity in their considerations for corporate measures.     

Comparing cross‐country estimates of Lorenz curves using a Dirichlet distribution across estimators and datasets

Chotikapanich and Griffiths (Journal of Business and Economic Statistics, 2002, 20(2), 290–295) introduced the Dirichlet distribution to the estimation of Lorenz curves. This distribution naturally accommodates the proportional nature of income share data and the dependence structure between the shares. Chotikapanich and Griffiths fit a family of five Lorenz curves to one year of Swedish and Brazilian income share data using unconstrained maximum likelihood and unconstrained nonlinear least squares. We attempt to replicate the authors' results and extend their analyses using both constrained estimation techniques and five additional years of data. We successfully replicate a majority of the authors' results and find that some of their main qualitative conclusions also hold using our constrained estimators and additional data.     

Trade union membership trends in seven Western European countries 1950—1968

Post-War trade union membership developments have received relatively little academic attention, in view of the importance attributed to trades union organization in the collective bargaining system, in the social, political and economic fields, in the relationships between organized labour and governments and, in particular, in the efforts to devise institutional arrangements suitable for dealing with wage-price inflation. Union membership levels, the effective power of central federations and some of their individual affiliates, shifts in membership and the often concomitant changes in the political status of a union or unions and the degree of organization of a nation's labour force—are all important aspects of the potential role of trade union movements within the socio-economic and political life of a nation. The objects of this paper are to examine membership levels and changes, density of organization, membership concentration and the membership experiences of the six largest unions within the trades union movements of Austria, Denmark, Germany (Federal Republic), Norway, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom over the postwar period.     

Niche firms,mass markets,and income across countries: Accounting for the impact of entry costs

I develop a model of monopolistic competition in which I distinguish between niche markets and mass markets, in the spirit of Holmes and Stevens, 2014. Firms choose between entering a small niche market with high markups or a large mass market with low markups. Entry costs and other distortions have a much greater impact on output in the niche market as the gains to specialization are high, relative to the mass market where varieties are highly substitutable. Calibrated to match data from U.S. manufacturing, the model generates an elasticity of total factor productivity with respect to entry costs almost twice that in a model that abstracts from heterogeneous markets. I use data on entry costs across countries to show entry costs alone can account for 23 percent of the cross-country variation in income per worker.     

Working time flexibility components and working time regimes in Europe: using company-level data across 21 countries

Working time flexibility comprises a wide variety of arrangements, from part-time, overtime, to long-term leaves. Theoretical approaches to grouping these arrangements have been developed, but empirical underpinnings are rare. This article investigates the bundles that can be found for various flexible working time arrangements, using the Establishment Survey on Working Time and Work–Life Balance, 2004/2005, covering 21 EU member states and 13 industries. The results from the factor analyses confirmed that working time arrangements can be grouped into two bundles, one for the employee-centred arrangements and second for the employer-centred arrangements, and that these two bundles are separate dimensions. We also tested the stability of the factor analysis outcome, showing that although we find some deviations from the pan-Europe and pan-industry outcome, the naming of the components as flexibility for employees and flexibility for employers can be considered rather stable. Lastly, we find three country clusters for the 21 European countries using the bundle approach. The first group includes the Northern European countries along side Poland and Czech Republic, the second group the continental European countries with UK and Ireland, and lastly, the southern European countries with Hungary and Slovenia.     

跨越东西方的桥梁——香港龙跃中国顾问有限公司简介

总部设在香港的咨询服务公司——龙跃中国顾问有限公司(以下简称龙跃)。其创始人陈超凡跟马时俊先生于20世纪90年代已致力于引进外国企业到中国来,并从开始时的数名员工发展到现在的40多名;从一间香港本地公司,到现在拥有美国、法国、上海及广州等众多分部的跨国企业;于去年更与总部设在英国的国际会计师组织DFK及美国Royal Roots(贯中咨询有限公司)联盟合作。在短短的十年间,龙跃突破地域界限成功地构建一条架通东西方的桥梁,本文将深入探讨他们成功的因素。