A holonic framework to understand and apply information processes in evolutionary economics: survey and proposal

Economists unsatisfied with the basic neoclassical assumptions of rational economic actors and economic evolution towards equilibrium states founded the evolutionary economic approach. Their goal was to provide more realistic assumptions regarding economic agents and their institutional environments. The Modern Synthesis (MS), the current conceptual paradigm for biological evolution, was used as a source of inspiration for conceptual development. Along the biologically inspired line of thought, the Generalized Darwinism (GD) initiative relies on the abstraction of the MS to provide a unifying conceptual framework for evolutionary economics. Despite its merits, GD has been subject to criticism, particularly regarding its level of abstractness and lack of an explicit account of the social and cognitive processes that drive economic evolution. The goal of this article is to introduce and explore an alternative conceptual framework for evolutionary economics: the Holonic Framework (HF). Contrary to GD, the HF is not biologically inspired, but builds upon the body of literature on the value of digital information networks. We discuss the analytical strengths and limitations of the HF relative to GD in light of several aspects pertinent to evolutionary economics (e.g. self-organization, culture, cognition, cooperation). Finally, by referring to an operationalization of the HF using Eurostat data, we show its practical strengths in comparison to GD.     

The case of market and system failures in services innovation

This paper reviews and analyses the rationale for an innovation policy in services. It focuses on the relevance of the various categories of market and system failures, on the basis of economic arguments and some empirical evidence at EU level. Results show that market and system failures affect service innovation, so that there are no economic reasons supporting any discrimination of policy actions against service activities. Moreover, some of the market and system failures may be even more relevant in the field of services than of goods, although differences between categories of services should be also taken into consideration.     

The relationship between perceptions of HR practices and employee outcomes: examining the role of person–organisation and person–job fit

Human resource management (HRM) practices can play an important role in matching people with the organisations and the jobs they work in. However, little is known about how employees perceive and interpret HR practices and whether or how these perceptions relate to perceptions of person–organisation (P–O) and person–job (P–J) fit. This study aims to bridge strategic HRM and person–environment fit literature by examining possible mediating and moderating roles of P–O and P–J fit in the relationship between employee perceptions of a broad set of HR practices and employee attitudes and behaviours. Results from a sample of 412 employees support direct relationships as well as a mediating and moderating role of P–O and P–J fit in the relationship between perceived HR practices and employee outcomes.     

Bank loan portfolios and the Canadian monetary transmission mechanism

Abstract .  Following a monetary tightening, bank loans to consumers decrease. This is true for both mortgage and non-mortgage loans, and it is true for a tightening by the Bank of Canada that is, and is not, a response to a tightening by the Federal Reserve System. In contrast, business loans increase following a monetary tightening. The 'perverse' response of business loans cannot be explained by an increase in the demand for funds due to a reduction in real activity. These results are consistent with a change in bank portfolio behaviour in favour of business loans in response to a monetary tightening.     

Inequality reduction by income taxes: Just how much? An investigation for the Netherlands, 1914–1973

Data on the income distribution in the Netherlands since the introduction of the income tax in 1914 are used to calculate the extent of income redistribution through the progressive rate structure. Seven indexes of income equality are used, and their values after-tax are divided by the value before-tax. The extent of inequality reduction differs substantially between inequality indexes. Pearson and Kendall correlation coefficients of the time series are presented and again, the information diverges so widely that one may doubt the usefulness of the conventional summary statistics of income inequality.     

Globalisation and the European disease

Summary This paper analyses the impact of globalisation of economic relationships on the European labour market. The main finding is that Europe's unemployment problem is rooted in rigidities in the labour market itself, while the increasing importance of international trade should provide an opportunity to reduce long-term labour market slack. To reap the potential benefits in this respect, European governments would need to re-orient structural policies towards a better functioning of labour and product markets.Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), Economics Department, Paris. The author is indebted to several of his colleagues in the Economics Department — in particular Bob Ford, Katie Gordon, Wim Suyker, Thorsteinn Thorgeirsson, and Nick Vanston — and two anonymous referees for their useful comments on an earlier draft. The views expressed in this paper are those of the author and should not be attributed to the Organisation or the governments of its member countries.