Savings growth and the path of utility

Abstract.  We derive an expression relating the change in instantaneous utility to the growth of net (genuine) saving in an economy with multiple stocks and externalities that maximizes welfare in the utilitarian sense. This result is then shown to hold for decentralized competitive efficient economies as well, to yield an extension of the Hartwick rule: instantaneous utility is non-declining along a development path if genuine saving is decreasing. By way of example the rule is applied as a constant genuine saving rate rule in a simple Dasgupta-Heal-Solow-Stiglitz economy. The rule yields a path with unbounded consumption and higher wealth than on the standard Hartwick constant consumption path.     

Wealth Accounting,Exhaustible Resources and Social Welfare

The empirical literature on natural resource accounting uses methods which implicitly or explicitly entail measuring changes in total resource asset value when an exhaustible resource is depleted. In contrast, the growth theoretic literature on saving, social welfare and sustainable development is built upon a central finding, that the change in real wealth (as measured by net or ‘genuine’ saving) is proportional to the change in social welfare. We show that the change in total wealth exceeds the change in real wealth in optimal and non-optimal models of resource-extracting economies. This suggests that the change in social welfare is over-estimated when the change in total resource asset value is used as the measure of depletion. A simple empirical exercise, using World Bank data on ‘adjusted net saving’, reinforces the results from theory.     

The New Southern African Customs Union Agreement

From its origins in 1910 the Southern African Customs Union (SACU) has been characterised by striking asymmetries in policies, levels of development and administrative capacity. Following the demise of apartheid in 1994, the five member countries (Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia, South Africa and Swaziland) began negotiations to reform the SACU. Eight years later, a new Agreement was signed in October 2002. In this paper, we outline the main characteristics of the 2002 Agreement and assess whether it addresses the criticisms of the preceding arrangement. Most importantly, the 2002 Agreement introduces shared decision-making and provides for a sustainable revenue-sharing arrangement. But varying levels of trade policy capacity along with policy divergences between the members present new challenges. Moreover, the exclusion of Services, Intellectual Property Rights and Singapore issues gives the 2002 Agreement a somewhat jaded appearance. Nevertheless, the reconstituted SACU could form the core of a larger regional customs union that would facilitate a realignment of the existing regional organisations. This will depend on the ongoing trade negotiations with both the EU and the United States. These negotiations will also put pressure on SACU to address excluded issues and reduce cross-border transaction costs in order to realise the benefits from economic cooperation.     

Does the midpoint of range earnings forecasts represent managers’ expectations?

The accounting literature has used the midpoint of range forecasts in various research settings, assuming that the midpoint is the best proxy for managers’ earnings expectations revealed in range forecasts. We argue that given managers’ asymmetric loss functions regarding earnings surprises, managers are unlikely to place their true earnings expectations at the midpoint of range forecasts. We predict that managers’ true expectations are close to the upper bound of range forecasts. We find evidence consistent with these predictions in 1996–2010, especially in the recent decade. Despite their role as sophisticated information intermediaries, analysts barely unravel the pessimistic bias that managers embed in range forecasts. Furthermore, we find that the upper bound rather than the midpoint better represents investors’ interpretation of managers’ expectations in recent times. Our study cautions researchers to refine their research designs that use management range forecasts and sheds light on the role of financial analysts in the earnings expectations game.     

Career capital in global Kaleidoscope Careers: the role of HRM

The results of this qualitative study of international talent show that although the acquisition of career capital through international assignments is perceived to be desirable both from an individual and organisational perspective, the global mobility needs and preferences of these two parties rarely coincide. This is due to the fact that individual mobility requirements come in cycles aligned to life cycle stages whereas organisational mobility needs ebb and flow like waves in response to perceived threats and opportunities. This presents opportunities and challenges for individuals in the acquisition and utilisation of career capital to balance work- and non-work-related demands in their global Kaleidoscope Careers. The role of human resource management (HRM) is to facilitate this process through mentoring, networking and other opportunities to engage in storying, enabling employees to accommodate their changing needs at different life cycle stages. Failure to offer such support can manifest itself in demotivation, business performance issues as well as difficulties in terms of diversity and inclusion. Thus this paper offers a contribution to academic literature in the field of career theory as well as international HRM professional practice.     

The currency of talent management—A reply to “talent management and the relevance of context: Towards a pluralistic approach”

In this paper we provide a commentary on the article in this Special Issue by Thunnissen, Boselie, and Fruytier on the relevance of context to the field of talent management. We concur that a more critical, pluralist approach to talent management scholarship is needed, that talent management should go beyond a mere economic exchange between talent and their employer, and that further research is needed to explore the link between macro, meso and micro level considerations. Thunnissen, Boselie, and Fruytier pose insightful questions about the contribution of talent management to the social and moral development of society and legitimating talent management at meso level. For us, these questions raise issues about the extent to which individual agency in ethical issues is possible in environments designed to regulate and control talent. We suggest that underexplored notions of strategic exchange and individual identity provide a richer picture of the talent employment relationship and raise a number of possible directions for future talent management research.     

Fragmented Food Habits and the Disintegration of Traditional Meal Patterns: A Challenge to Public Health Nutrition in Canada?

Abstract

This study examines the shifting patterns in meal consumption practices among Canadians and the sources of disruption of meal habits. It analyses the notion of breakfast, lunch, dinner, out-of-household consumption of food, cooking, and snacking which could be considered as disrupting eating habits. Meal skipping, primarily breakfast and lunch was common, particularly among women, as was consumption of food outside the home, particularly among lower income earners and respondents with lower education attainment. The findings of this survey suggest that contemporary Canadians are experiencing a disruption of meal times, a rise in the frequency of snacking and an erosion of the will or ability to prepare or cook meals at home. For many Canadians, the traditional notion of three-meals a day is becoming an ideal, rather than a daily reality. Fragmented food habits and the disintegration of traditional meal patterns represent a challenge to public health nutrition in Canada.     

Perceptions of the true and fair view concept: an empirical investigation

If major groups of financial reporting participants differ in their perceptions of standards for financial reporting quality, such as 'true and fair view', 'present fairly' and 'fair presentation', a financial reporting expectation gap may occur. This article reports the results of a survey designed to explore this potential gap by determining New Zealand financial directors', auditors' and shareholders' perceptions of terms associated with financial reporting quality.
The results show that a clear majority of all three groups share similar perceptions of the 'true and fair view'; but perceive 'true and fair view' to be quite different from 'fairly presents' and 'fair presentation', terms the New Zealand Institute of Chartered Accountants' (2005) describes as equivalent to 'true and fair view'. Thus there appears to be a perception gap between the respondents surveyed and the Institute. The findings also support a literal rather than a technical interpretation of 'true and fair view'; that respondents do not perceive 'true and fair view' as compliance with GAAP; and that 'true' ('truth' in accounting), the word separating 'true and fair view' from terms that include only 'fair', may be perceived as a key factor required for financial reporting quality.