Global stability and the “turnpike” in optimal unbounded growth models

This study proves various global stability results for unbounded optimal growth models. The main theorem states that any optimal path will eventually be in the neighborhood of a balanced growth path if future utility is sufficiently weakly discounted. The assumptions allow for non-smooth technologies, joint production, and production in independent sectors. Hence, the results form the integration of new growth and turnpike theory sought by McKenzie (1998) [31] in his Ely lecture. The applicability of the results is exemplified by means of a number of cases from growth theory and other areas of economics.     

Arbeitsmarkt: Rückenwind auch für Ältere

Durch den aktuellen Aufschwung ist es zu einem deutlichen Rückgang der Arbeitslosigkeit gekommen. Profitieren davon auch die ?lteren Arbeitnehmer? Wie lang sind ?ltere im Durchschnitt arbeitslos? Welche Probleme hat diese Gruppe bei der Wiedereingliederung in den Arbeitsmarkt? Wie sollte die Arbeitsmarktpolitik auf diese Probleme reagieren? Dr. Martin Dietz, 37, ist wissenschaftlicher Referent am Institut für Arbeitsmarkt- und Berufsforschung in Nürnberg.     

The interdependencies of intra- and inter-organisational controls and work practices—The case of domestic care of the elderly

The paper gives a grounded account of inter-organisational controls and work practices in the public sector to complement previous literature's strong focus on inter-organisational customer–supplier relationships in the private sector. We draw theoretically on Hopwood's (1974) administrative, social and self controls, which enable us to analyse the influence of non-managerial controls on behaviour. Empirically, a case study of inter-organisational cooperation between home help units and health centres is used as the basis of analysis. Most inter-organisational controls were developed locally and involved a mix of administrative, social and self controls. Intra- and inter-organisational social and self controls were important forms of control which impacted on intra- and inter-organisational work practices and we see the need for a broad conceptualisation of control (Van der Meer-Kooistra and Scapens, 2008). Inter-organisational social controls created an informal hierarchy that by-passed the formal hierarchies of the two organisations. Self controls reinforced the importance of being flexible to accommodate pensioner's wishes and needs in specific care situations. We also show the importance of the internal financial situation of home help units for the analysis of the interdependencies of intra- and inter-organisational controls and work practices.     

A meta-analysis of humor in advertising

This meta-analysis combines 369 correlations on the effects of humor in advertising and thus quantifies, updates, and expands previous literature reviews on the effects of humor in advertising. In line with previous reviews, the meta-analytic correlations demonstrate that humor in advertising significantly enhances A_AD, attention, and positive affect. Contrary to the assumptions of previous reviews, there is no evidence that humor impacts positive or negative cognitions, and liking of the advertiser. The meta-analytic findings clarify some ambiguous prior conclusions: humor significantly reduces source credibility, enhances positive affect, A_BR and purchase intention. The decline from lower order to higher order communication effects is particularly strong, with the effect size of the impact of humor on A_AD being twice as large as the effect size for A_BR. This impact of humor in advertising has been rather stable over the past decades. A moderator analysis reveals, however, that the findings of academic humor research are somewhat biased. As for the underlying theory, the positive and linear relationship between the funniness of the ad and brand attitudes supports an affective mechanism underlying the impact of humor in advertising.     

Engineered nanomaterials: risk perception,regulation and insurance

Concerns surrounding the health risk of engineered nanomaterials, effective regulation and the lack of specifically tailored insurance products for the nanotechnology sector are putting the industry’s long-term economic viability at risk. From the perspective of the underwriter, this article speculates on the relationship between risk perception, regulation and insurability. In the nanotechnology sector, regulators are currently failing to keep pace with innovation, and insurers generally lack guiding principles for underwriting occupational risk from nanomaterial exposure. Such vulnerabilities when combined with misguided risk perceptions can lead to the overpricing of risk transfer and ill-conceived regulatory initiatives, thus potentially exhausting resources and stifling innovation in the sector. In the absence of well-developed regulatory protocols, the insurance industry has, and will continue, to occupy a key role as an effective lobby in terms of improved risk management practice. We suggest that the insurance industry will increasingly rely on control banding frameworks and ‘risk mitigation at source’ methods developed in conjunction with their clients to manage severe acute diversifiable risks. Long tail risk will continue to represent a serious challenge to insurers and regulators. In the meantime, insurers will have to bridge their current needs with improvised solutions. As an example of one possible solution, we outline a framework that utilizes financial instruments to hedge an insurer’s exposure to uncertain estimates of these long-term risks.     

Formulation of public debt management strategies: An empirical study of possible drivers

A well-designed public debt management strategy can help countries reduce their borrowing cost, contain financial risks and develop their domestic markets. Using survey data on debt management strategies, this paper studies whether the probability that a country has a formal debt management strategy, publishes the strategy document, and uses quantitative benchmarks to formulate its debt management strategy is affected by democratic accountability, institutional quality, past debt crises/defaults, official development assistance, and participation in debt management programs. We find that countries located in Latin America and the Caribbean are less likely to have developed a debt management strategy and, if they have, are less likely to publish it. In contrast, countries located in the Middle East and North Africa are less likely to use quantitative benchmarks in the formulation of their debt management strategies. A country is more likely to have developed a debt management strategy if it has the experience of a past debt crisis, but not of repeated debt crises. Institutional quality and democratic accountability could significantly contribute to the emergence of more transparent and accountable debt management strategies in developing countries. IFIs’ technical assistance on public debt management could be enhanced by IFIs conducting their own, prior diagnostic reviews.     

The Dynamic Behavior of Wages and Prices: Cointegration Tests within a Large Macroeconomic System

The dynamic relationship between wages and prices has long held a central place within the economic literature. Most macroeconomic models make assumptions as to the causal relationship between the two variables. Unfortunately, empirical investigations have produced widely divergent results. In particular, the present paper examines the results of time-series studies and argues that the lack of a consensus is due to improperly specified models. Once the wage-price relationship is embedded within a multiple vector system, identification of a wage-price cointegrating relationship is significantly improved. In addition, the increased efficiency yields evidence in favor of the dual feedback between wages and prices.     

Foreign entry and domestic welfare

Foreign Entry and Domestic Welfare. — This paper discusses the consequences for domestic welfare of entry by foreign firms into a domestic market. A simple Bertrand model with differentiated products and a Cournot model with homogeneous goods are investigated and it is shown that welfare is non-monotonic in foreign entry in both cases. A “little” entry is harmful but a “lot” is beneficial. It is shown that this depends on the number of domestic firms in the industry.     

The use of International Accounting Standards terminology, a survey of IAS compliance disclosure

This study examined where and how companies that purport to be using International Accounting Standards (IAS) are referring to IAS in their financial statements. Virtually all firms surveyed referred to IAS in the footnotes but referred to IAS in the audit report just under 50 percent of the time. The largest group of companies uses a combination of home-country and IAS standards. A significant number of firms report the use of IAS standards with exceptions. The majority of these firms do not discuss the dollar impact of those exceptions. Referencing IAS with home country standards or exceptions reduces comparability and transparency of financial statements. The International Accounting Standards Committee (IASC) is referenced as the source of IAS in about half of the cases. Failure to reference the IASC as the source of IAS may result in ambiguity concerning what IAS means