The Returns to Academic and Vocational Qualifications in Britain

This paper uses data from the 1991 sweep of the National Child Development Study (NCDS) and the 1998 Labour Force Survey (LFS) to provide a comprehensive analysis of the labour market returns to academic and vocational qualifications. The results show that the wage premia from academic qualifications are typically higher than from vocational qualifications. However, this gap is reduced somewhat, when we control for the amount of time taken to acquire different qualifications. This is particularly important for vocational courses, which generally take shorter time periods to complete. In the paper we also investigate how returns vary by gender, subsequent qualifications, and the natural ability of individuals. Finally, by comparing the NCDS results with those from the LFS, we estimate the bias that can result from not controlling for factors such as ability, family background and measurement error. The results reveal that the estimated returns in the NCDS equations controlling for ability, family background and measurement error are similar to the simple OLS estimates obtained with the LFS, which do not control for these factors. This suggests that the biases generally offset one another.     

A multi-level analysis of sustainable mobility transitions: Niche development in the UK and Sweden

A wide range of intractable problems such as polluting emissions, noise, accidents, resource depletion, and inaccessibility of amenities are associated with the current transport regime. Given the slow movement towards a more sustainable mobility system, more radical, systemic innovation - a ‘transition’ - is required. Broadly speaking, this may be achieved via three routes: technological change, modal shift, and reduced travel demand. Drawing on concepts from the transitions literature (e.g., [Geels, F.W.: Technological Transitions and System Innovations: A Co-evolutionary and Socio-Technical Analysis, Edward Elgar, Cheltenham, 2005.]), we conceptualise each of these routes as a bundle of niche activities within an Area of Innovation, deviating to differing degrees from the current mobility ‘regime’. We present empirical evidence and indications of ongoing development of niches in these three areas within the UK and Sweden, and explore processes of co-evolution, divergence and tension within and between niches. Findings indicate recent market penetration of novel transport technologies, more advanced than modal shift or demand management activities; however, different transport technologies are more successful in each country. We also identify examples of a close relationship between development of radical vehicle/fuel technologies and provision of mobility services; and information technology as a driver in all three areas of innovation. We conclude that future innovation in transport depends on diversity, hybridisation, and co-evolution of niches. Finally, policy implications are discussed.     

Migrant networks, language learning and tourism employment

This paper examines the relationship between migrants’ social networks, the processes of language acquisition and tourism employment. Data collected using netnography and interviews are used to identify the strategies that Polish workers in the UK use to develop their language skills. The paper highlights the roles played by co-workers, co-nationals and customers in migrants’ language learning, both in the physical spaces of work and the virtual spaces of internet forums. It also shows how migrant workers exchange knowledge about the use of English during different stages of their migration careers: prior to leaving their country of origin and getting a job, during their employment and after leaving their job. Implications for academic inquiry and human resource management practice are outlined.     

Expatriate adjustment from the inside out: an autoethnographic account

This paper identifies some of the dynamics of expatriate adjustment using an autoethnographic account of situations experienced by the first author during her first year of work at a financial services company in Hong Kong. Success in this cross-cultural assignment is dependent on the expatriate's ability to adjust to and master the new culture. Our theoretical analysis of the autoethnographic account suggests that culture shock may be a discontinuous process. Further, the analysis suggests that cultural acceptance can play a critical role in expatriate adjustment.     

Corporate social responsibility,vertical product differentiation and international competition

Would a foreign firm’s consumer‐oriented corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities be rewarded by an importing country’s voluntary tariff reduction? The current paper addresses this question in an import‐competing duopoly model with vertical product differentiation. It is shown that the tariff will decrease if the foreign firm switches from a purely profit‐driven firm to a CSR firm. A consumer‐oriented CSR strategy will always hurt the domestic firm’s profit, whereas the relationship between the foreign firm’s profit and CSR sensitivity (the degree to which a firm cares about consumer welfare) is invertedly U‐shaped. When firms’ decisions to switch to CSR are endogeneized, only the foreign firm will become a CSR firm.     

Import quotas, tied aid, capital accumulation, and welfare

Aid conditional on the purchase of an imported capital good increases the supply of, and demand for, the good. Examining the effects of tied aid on capital accumulation, the current account, and welfare, we find that two resultant conflicting forces render the price of the capital good indeterminate. If the demand pressure is larger than the supply response, the capital stock increases at the expense of the current account and welfare improves. Alternatively, if the demand pressure is less than the supply response, capital is reduced. This may be detrimental to welfare. JEL Classification: F35, F11
Contingentement à l'importation, aide liée, accumulation et bien-être. Une aide conditionnelle accordée pour l'achat d'un bien importé accroît l'offre et la demande de ce bien. En examinant les effets d'une aide liée de ce type sur l'accumulation du capital, le compte courant et le niveau de bien-être, les auteurs montrent que deux forces contradictoires rendent le prix du bien capital indéterminé. Si la pression sur la demande est plus grande que la réponse du côté de l'offfre, le stock de capital s'accroît au détriment du compte courant, et le niveau de bien-être s'accroît. D'autre part, si la pression en provenance de la demande est moindre que la réponse du côté de l'offre, le stock de capital est réduit. Cela peut entraîner une réduction du niveau de bien-être.     

No man's land: ‘gender and the geopolitics of mobility in west Belfast,northern Ireland

It is the intent of this article to deconstruct the practices of border crossers, whereby the political identities of women have been relegated to the domestic/private sphere rendering them political innocents. However in West Belfast, women's designation to the home is what facilitated their ability to not only to transcend the borders of West Belfast but also to transgress women's confinement to the home. By contrast, taxi drivers are perceived as unrespectable wild men, cowboys and societal misfits who have been tainted by their border crossings. Interestingly, these groups would never be considered political subjects, as would an IRA volunteer, or resistance protester. However by way of their everyday practices of shopping and driving a taxi, these individuals are not only destabilising the boundary lines of West Belfast but also those of the nation. To this end, the sociospatial practices of these border crossers, which constitutes the expansion and restriction of public and private space, raises the possibilities of a new form of geopolitics determined between gender, politics and mobility.     

From innovation to market entry: a strategic management model for new technologies

In this paper, we introduce a new framework that generates a list of strategic actions to support successful management of the innovation process as new technologies are taken to market. The framework links different stakeholders inside and outside the organisation to obtain an holistic view of the requirements necessary to develop the new technology. It integrates and synthesises existing frameworks into an inclusive set of guidelines. The framework is then tested in a case study located in a mid-size semiconductor organisation currently seeking new business opportunities in the emerging photovoltaic market. We conclude by reflecting on the usefulness of the model. Theoretically, the paper contributes to the literature on the management of the introduction of new technologies; practically, the framework provides a normative tool for practising managers.