Do Not-For-Profits Make a Difference in Social Services? A Survey Study

Summary This paper provides a survey of the empirical literature on the relative performance of not-for-profit (NFP) organisations for three specific sectors. In particular, we compare the quality and accessibility of services that are provided by hospitals, child care organisations and welfare-to-work (WTW) organisations. Various mechanisms may explain the comparative advantages and disadvantages of not-for-profit organisations, as well as the origins of NFPs. We link these explanations to the actual relative performance of NFPs and discuss the implications for the government in mixed markets, where both for-profit (FP) and NFP organisations are. Our general finding is that NFPs do not make a difference on performance outcomes vis-à-vis FP organisations. It seems that the degree of competition, as well as regulatory policies are more important determinants of market performance.      

Measuring the placement effects of two wage-subsidy schemes for the long-term unemployed

A detailed evaluation is given of two dutch wage subsidy schemes. Aspects covered are: deadweight, displacement, effects an employment and continuity of labour-force participation. Both aggregate data (time-series and cross-section data) and individual survey data have been used to estimate the various effects.     

Historicizing the ‘ethnic’ in ethnic entrepreneurship: The case of the ethnic Chinese in Bangkok

This paper aims to come to a better understanding of the meaning of ‘ethnic’ in ethnic entrepreneurship for second- and third-generation ethnic Chinese entrepreneurs in Bangkok, Thailand. Research on ethnic Chinese entrepreneurship in Southeast Asia typically investigates the dominance, attributed to specific ‘Chinese’ cultural values and strong intra-ethnic networks, of the ethnic Chinese in business and entrepreneurship. Our research among second- and third-generations shows an inclination of the interviewees to emphasize the irrelevance of their ‘ethnic’ Chinese background in entrepreneurship. To understand the meanings of the expressed irrelevance, we argue that it is constructive to incorporate a historical/generational approach of the ethnic group (migration history, nationalism) and of the business (social organization) into the study of ethnic entrepreneurship. The contribution to ethnic entrepreneurship research is threefold. Firstly, we show how a generational lens provides a more nuanced understanding of the ‘ethnic’ in ethnic entrepreneurship. Secondly, we show how incorporating the historical context helps to position business conduct in the social/societal experiences of entrepreneurs. Finally, our case study of ethnic Chinese entrepreneurs in Thailand brings an Asian perspective to ethnic entrepreneurship debates that generally concern European and North American research studies and thus hopes to inspire future comparative research.     

Do we do the past differently now? An interview with David Lowenthal

The purpose of the interview was to talk to David Lowenthal about the imminent release of his updated version of The Past Is a Foreign Country, a seminal work on history, memory and nostalgia which profoundly influenced debates on heritage culture following its initial publication in 1985. David served in the US Army during World War Two and during his long and distinguished career as a cultural geographer taught at Vassar College and the University of the West Indies. He is now emeritus professor of geography at University College London. His books include West Indian Societies (1972), Landscape Meanings and Values (with Edmund Penning-Rowsell, 1986), The Politics of the Past (with Peter Gathercole, 1989) and The Heritage Crusade and the Spoils of History (1997). The interview took place in London on 24 September 2012.     

The Effect of Competition on Process and Outcome Quality of Hospital Care in the Netherlands

We examine the impact of competition on outcome and process indicators of hospital quality. While earlier literature on the relationship between competition and hospital quality mainly focused on outcome indicators, we argue that the inclusion of process indicators in the analysis can provide supplementary information about the effect of competitive pressure on hospitals’ incentives. In particular, these indicators are less noisy than outcome indicators and are important as a management tool. Our panel dataset covers all Dutch general and academic hospitals in the period 2004–2008, during which the transparency of hospital quality information increased substantially due to the disclosure of hospitals’ quality indicators. We find that competition among hospitals located within the hospital catchment area explains differences in several process indicators, but fails to explain differences in outcome indicators. The results suggest that hospitals facing more competition organize diagnostic processes more efficiently; however, they have more operation cancellations at short notice and more delays of hip fracture injury operations for elderly patients. This suggests that competition affects the allocation of hospital personnel efforts even when outcomes have not been affected.     

Experience Rating and the Inflow into Disability Insurance

This paper examines the effects of experience rating on the inflow into disability insurance (DI) in the Netherlands, using unique longitudinal administrative data from the social benefit administration. We follow a difference-in-differences approach to identify the impact of changes in DI premiums. Due to unawareness of the experience rating system, employers seem to have been triggered to increase preventative activities, once they have experienced increases in DI premium rates. We find this impact to be substantial, amounting to a 15% reduction of the DI inflow.