Relative price and inflation variability in a simple consumer search model

There is a large empirical literature on the effect of aggregate inflation on both price-level dispersion (relative price variability, RPV) and inflation rate dispersion (relative inflation variability, RIV) across goods or locations. Early empirical work of RIV has an explicit theoretical foundation in signal-extraction models. However, recent empirical work on RPV has produced results inconsistent with signal-extraction models. In particular, while RIV is increasing in the absolute value of inflation shocks, RPV is a negative monotonic function of inflation shocks. We show that consumer search theory offers a potential explanation for these apparently contradictory observations.     

Productivity growth in natural resource industries and the environment: an application to the Korean tuna purse-seine fleet in the Pacific Ocean

Measures of multifactor productivity growth in natural resource industries are misleading without accounting for the effects on the environment. This paper introduces environmental effects into an output-oriented Malmquist index of multifactor productivity growth in order to evaluate growth in productivity and technical efficiency for Korean purse seine vessels fishing for tuna in the Western and Central Pacific Ocean.     

Misjudging the character of the welfare state: Hayek,generality, and the knowledge problem

What are the limits of collective action? As James Buchanan famously worried, is it possible to empower the productive state without lapsing into the predatory state? This paper uses insights from F.A. Hayek to address problems of public goods and the role of the state. Hayek convincingly argued that no central planner has sufficient knowledge to run an economy. Yet Hayek also allowed for state provision of some goods beyond the prevention of coercion. The question, then, is whether Hayek’s safeguards offer a satisfactory response to Buchanan’s worry. This paper contends that Hayek violated his own conditions for permissible government activity. Nevertheless, he offers a serious research agenda for limiting state abuses.     

Other financial institutions' portfolio behaviour and policy implications: A study of India

Abstract

Applied literature has largely neglected the asset decision of other financial institutions (OFIs), though it may possess important policy implications. In this paper, portfolio behaviour of OFIs in India is modelled by using the annual flow of funds data for 1951/52 to 1993/94. The long-run model of the Almost Ideal Demand System and the allied concepts of cointegration generated economically and statistically plausible results. We find a strong influence of interest rates on portfolio behavior, thereby the role of interest rates on resource allocation. The paper concludes that the macroeconomic management through monetary policy actions may not be unnecessarily limited through the channel of OFIs in the post-financial reform regime in India.     

Four scenarios for nanotechnologies in the UK, 2011–2020

The future social value of nanoscale science and technology (NST) has been repeatedly represented as revolutionary. However, government and industry support for the commercialisation of NST has to confront four key areas of uncertainty: concerning potential hazards associated with applications, commercial viability, public acceptance and evolving regulation. Academic and policy responses have to date largely emphasised the need for adaptive and anticipatory regulation, yet research which evaluates the prospects of success in implementing such measures has so far been lacking. This paper contributes to remedying this lack by examining difficulties and opportunities which may arise around this regulatory agenda in the UK, with the aid of a ‘policy Delphi’ exercise undertaken with a multi-stakeholder panel. It summarises four scenarios to aid policy-makers and technology strategists in the UK and internationally in thinking through how the future of NST innovation may be affected by factors associated with the aforementioned areas of uncertainty.     

Examining the relative influence of upper echelons ties on IPO underpricing

Integrating signaling theory with insights derived from the attention based view, this study addresses the question of which types of upper echelons ties initial public offering (IPO) markets value more. Specifically, we argue that the signals conveyed by upper echelons ties with publicly traded firms are perceived by IPO equity markets as more valuable than upper echelons ties with privately held firms. Additionally, we contend that the signals sent by external directorates with publicly traded firms are perceived more favorably by IPO equity markets than managerial ties with publicly traded firms. The theory in this study is tested on a sample of 366 firms than underwent their IPOs during 1997. The results of hypothesis tests provide partial support for our arguments.     

It is not just about paying your dues: Impact of generational cohort on active and passive union participation

The lack of a validated measure of active–passive union participation and a dearth of research into the relationship between generational cohort and union participation challenge union leaders to develop policies and practices to facilitate union renewal. We address these issues by (a) developing a multidimensional measure of union participation that captures both active and passive components, (b) using structural equation modelling to validate the measure within a nomological framework, and (c) investigating the impact of generational cohort on all paths in our framework. Data from members of a large American union confirm that generational cohort influences how union members participate in their union. The two‐factor measure developed in this study facilitates research into antecedents and outcomes of passive and active union participation. Our findings should also prove useful to unions seeking to increase participation within their membership, academics researching unions and generational cohort, and human resource practitioners operating in unionised environments.     

If You’re Going Through Hell,Keep Going: Nonlinear Effects of Financial Liberalization in Transition Economies

Did increasing the level and pace of financial liberalization during transition expose countries to crises? And if a crisis did strike, did liberalization do more harm or good? Using a database of 28 transition economies over 22 years, this article examines these questions across a host of economic outcomes, including savings and the size of the private sector. The results provide evidence that, while liberalization may initially increase the probability of a crisis, the prospect of a crisis drops dramatically at higher levels of financial openness. Moreover, the benefits of liberalization across several metrics outweigh the risks of these intermediate stages.     

R. J. Chambers on Securities and Obscurities: Making a Case for the Reform of the Law of Company Accounts in the 1970s

This study examines the contribution of Raymond J. Chambers to the British inflation accounting debate in the early‐to‐mid 1970s, from the perspective of the reception of his book, Securities and Obscurities: A Case for Reform of the Law of Company Accounts, published in 1973. To structure the empirical narrative, drawing on previously unpublished documents from the R. J. Chambers Archives, we employ Czarniawska and Joerges’ ( 1996 ) notion of the ‘travel of ideas’, and Mumford’s ( 1979 ) observation of the existence of ‘inflation accounting debate cycles’. The result is a narrative that traces the environmental and material circumstances that led to Chambers’ book having a lesser impact on the British inflation debate than one would expect based on the international exposure of his ideas, his influence at the time, and the empirical rigour of his proposal. The purpose of this exercise is to assess how contextual factors, such as the choice of publisher, use of promotional material, and distribution methods, can be as (or more) important than the substance of the proposed ideas, arguments, and solutions.