Positive Effekte des Mindestlohns auf Arbeitsplatzqualität und Arbeitszufriedenheit

Little is known regarding the effects of minimum wage adjustments on job quality and job satisfaction. Our investigation found that for minimum wage workers in continuing employment relationships, work satisfaction unequivocally increased relative to a control group following the introduction of the minimum wage in Germany. Possible reasons include improvements in objective jobs quality such as higher hourly and gross wages, and shorter work hours. However, changes in the organisation of work also appear to have played a role. We find indications for more motivation oriented personnel management and improved work atmosphere in existing minimum wage jobs. Combined with a better work life balance these aspects play a larger role in explaining increased job satisfaction than mere wage satisfaction.     

Influence behaviors and employees’ reactions: An empirical test among six societies based on a transactional–relational contract model

Organizational and task commitment are central drivers of firm performance as they affect employees’ willingness to exert effort for the organization. This paper argues that supervisors who consistently use socio-emotional and supportive influence strategies are likely to enhance subordinates’ immediate commitment to the tasks as well as their psychological attachment to the organization. Drawing on the transactional–relational contracts framework, we develop and empirically examine the effects of supervisors’ influence behaviors on two types of commitment. Data collected from 1150 respondents from China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Germany, United States and Brazil provided support for the positive relationship between the persuasive influence strategy and both immediate task and organizational commitment. Exploratory analyses of the cultural differences in our sample reveal differences in assertive and relationship-based individual tactics. We thus identified potentially universally endorsed as well as culturally contingent influence tactics in predicting the two types of commitment.     

Do natural resources define convergence clubs? Empirical evidence from the Kazakh regions

This paper deals with the hypothesis that natural resources are important in forming convergence clubs. We check this hypothesis by applying a dependence and an endowment measure of natural resource abundance and a regression tree analysis. The results indicate that for the Kazakh regions natural resources do indeed play an important role in forming convergence clubs. It is further shown that natural resource endowment rather than resource dependence determines initial conditions and thereby convergence clubs.     

Book reviews

New technologies and emergent risks pose special problems for risk governance and regulation. This paper outlines some of the uncertainties about the hazards of hydrogen energy and examines qualitative evidence from recent deliberative Citizens’ Panels in England and Wales about hydrogen energy technologies. It is shown that laypeople express ambivalent and contradictory views about, and critical trust in, experts’ views about hydrogen. The findings are discussed in relation to the International Risk Governance Council framework for emergent risks characterised by ambiguity, complexity and uncertainty.     

Commercial Property Price Indices and Indicators: Review and Discussion of Issues Raised in the CPPI Statistical Report of Eurostat (2017)

Commercial property price indices (CPPIs) are needed to monitor financial stability, guide investment decisions by firms, and improve national accounts. Due to a lack of suitable data, however, reliable CPPIs are often hard to construct. Here we survey the current state of the CPPI literature and assess the contribution of the recently published Eurostat CPPI report.     

Sector and importer determinants of prices for traded intermediates

While the literature on traded goods prices emphasizes final goods prices and related consumer theory to explain variation in goods prices with importer characteristics, trade in intermediates actually constitutes about two thirds of total trade. We propose a mechanism for explaining variations in the prices of intermediates as a function of importer characteristics, wherein production is vulnerable to failure and the probability of failure declines in the quality of intermediates. Higher wages mean a greater opportunity cost of failure, leading to a stronger demand for high-quality intermediates where firms face higher wages. We find empirical support for this mechanism in the case of intermediate goods using IV regressions. In addition, our findings indicate that while the cost of labour explains about one fifth of variation in imported intermediate prices, it is a non-significant determinant of imported final goods prices.     

Immigration Status and Postsecondary Opportunity: Barriers to Affordability,Access, and Success for Undocumented Students,and Policy Solutions

Immigrant and undocumented students face significant barriers in accessing and obtaining a postsecondary degree. The anti‐immigration agenda of the Trump administration and its impact on higher education made this issue of paramount concern. In this article, we review issues at the intersection of immigration and postsecondary education. First, we define the population of interest, with special attention to the differentiated rights of different groups. We argue for the policy significance of immigration for postsecondary education. Second, we provide an overview of the main identified barriers facing undocumented students in accessing postsecondary education. We then examine policies that have been adopted by states and by institutions of higher education to address some of those barriers. We conclude with policy recommendations to improve affordability, access, and success for undocumented students and argue for the inclusion of immigration status as a variable in research on equity in postsecondary education.     

Lachen als Lernstoff

Zusammenfassung  Nicht nur zu Karneval — Heiterkeit kann heilsam sein, das zeigen inzwischen sogar wissenschaftliche Studien. Die Clowns-Visite hilft kleinen Patienten. Aber auch wir Pflegekr?fte selbst sollten mehr l?cheln als l?stern.     

The impact of country-of-origin on the acceptance of foreign subsidiaries in host countries: An examination of the ‘liability-of-foreignness’

This paper examines the relationship between an organization's country-of-origin and the acceptance into a host country environment by constituents such as vendors, suppliers, and distributors. This study contributes to the literature by proposing the examination and ultimate measurement of various tangible and intangible sources of the ‘liabilities of foreignness’. Additionally we show that are these sources are internal and external moderators of perceived acceptance in the host country. Manager must recognize the country-of-origin strategic options to address the negative overshadowing of the liability-of foreignness. We conclude that not doing so can create a stigma that may be attached to the overall organization, its image, products, brands, and to its employees. Further, negative attribution may be caste upon all the identifying characteristics of the foreign entity. The management of the firm must note the potential resistance to accept the organization and its products/services and must develop a proactive set of strategies to address the negativism of the host country constituents.