Trade and migration flows between some CEE countries and the UK

The recent enlargement of the European Union (EU) has enhanced interest in the causes and also the consequences of migration between Central and Eastern European (CEE) and Western European countries. This paper considers the possibility that some of these consequences make themselves felt in the trade flows between migrants' countries of origin and destination. Using a panel of data covering a number of CEE countries between 1996 and 2003, we employ an augmented gravity model to examine the effects of immigration from these transition countries on their bilateral trade flows with the UK. We pay attention to a number of issues that have been raised within the literature on gravity models. We find evidence that migration positively enhances the bilateral exports of the migrants' home country; however, there is less (but some) evidence that the imports from their destination country are also enhanced.     

There goes my hero again: sport scandal frequency and social identity driven response*

Abstract

With sport scandals reported frequently in the media, it is important to understand how associated stakeholders are affected. In the current work, we investigated the impact of off-field sport scandal on key stakeholders (the sport, implicated team, sponsor brand), and the roles played by team identification and scandal frequency. A 2 (fandom) × 3 (scandal frequency) between-subjects quasi-experiment examined responses to scandal news stories. Ingroup fan attitudes became less favorable toward all stakeholders following scandal, especially when it was described as repeat behavior. This differed to outgroup fan attitudes, which became less favorable toward the sport, but were generally negative and stable for other stakeholders, irrespective of scandal frequency. Respondents were willing to attribute responsibility to particular perpetrators rather than the team, and tended to endorse sponsorship continuation simultaneously with perpetrator removal/sanction. Findings have strategic implications for those involved in sponsorship, sport marketing, and sport management.     

Fighting for the global catwalk: formalizing public life in Castlefield (Manchester) and diluting public life in el Raval (Barcelona)

Increasingly cities are using regeneration strategies to revive their economy and to give a facelift to their physical environment to compete on a global catwalk. As urban environments change, their sensuous geography is also altered. This article argues that the transformation of sensescapes has been a neglected dimension of urban politics that needs to be analysed. By focusing on two inner‐city neighbourhoods, el Raval in Barcelona and Castlefield in Manchester, I examine how power expresses itself in the sensuous reorganization of public space, thus shaping public life. I first develop a theoretical framework around the concept of ‘socially embedded aesthetics’ to uncover sensuous‐material and social spatializations of power. I then compare and contrast the key discourses in interviews held with planners and politicians driving the regeneration process. Supported by my own ethnographic observations two aspects are analysed: firstly, the physical reorganization of the neighbourhoods shaped by the strategy of accessibility and ‘designer heritage aesthetic’; secondly, the envisaged public life that the transformation of public places is expected to support. The research unveils similar sensuous ideological frameworks in the regeneration of both these areas: processes that foster the inclusion of commercially profitable experiences in public places and the exclusion of marginal ones or those that do not fit into the conceived vision of official agents.     

Understanding how legitimacy is acquired among informal home-based Pakistani small businesses

International Entrepreneurship and Management Journal - The informal business sector has been garnering attention from governments and researchers. In countries where this sector plays a...     

Microfranchise emergence and its impact on entrepreneurship

Our investigation uses structuration theory to explore the emergence of a microfranchise whose aim is to raise the income of smallholder farmers in Kenya by enabling an increase in productivity. This longitudinal real time qualitative study tracks the key actions taken in developing the venture, beginning in the conception phase of startup and continuing through to the initial stage of operations. In doing so it focuses on how agency and structure reciprocally influence the resulting social enterprise. The findings indicate that agency is not exclusive to the founders. Rather it was distributed among the micro-franchisor’s stakeholders to significantly shape the nature and scope of the enterprise. While franchising, generally, is not noted to provide autonomy and independence to franchisees, we find the opposite in this emerging market context. Implications are discussed.     

Cost-effectiveness analysis of peginterferon beta-1a compared with interferon beta-1a and glatiramer acetate in the treatment of relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis in the United States

Objective Peginterferon beta-1a 125?mcg, administered subcutaneously (SC) every 2 weeks, a new disease-modifying therapy (DMT) for relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS), was approved by the US Food and Drug Administration in 2014. This study assesses the cost-effectiveness of peginterferon beta-1a vs interferon beta-1a (44?mcg SC 3 times per week) and glatiramer acetate (20?mg SC once-daily) in the treatment of RRMS from the perspective of a US payer over 10 years.

Methods A Markov cohort economic model was developed for this analysis. The model predicts disability progression, occurrence of relapses and other adverse events and translates them into quality-adjusted life years (QALYs) and costs. Natural history data were obtained from the placebo arm of the ADVANCE trial of peginterferon beta-1a, the London Ontario (Canada) database and a large population-based MS survey. Comparative efficacy of each DMT vs placebo was obtained from a network meta-analysis. Costs (in 2014?US dollars) were sourced from public databases and literature. Clinical and economic outcomes were discounted at 3% per year.

Results Over 10 years, peginterferon beta-1a was dominant (i.e., more effective and less costly), with cost-savings of $22,070 and additional 0.06 QALYs when compared with interferon beta-1a 44?mcg and with cost-savings of $19,163 and 0.07 QALYs gained when compared with glatiramer acetate 20?mg. Results were most sensitive to variations in the treatment effect of each DMT, treatment acquisition costs of each DMT and the time horizon. Probabilistic sensitivity analyses indicated that peginterferon beta-1a remains dominant in >90% of 5,000 replications compared with either DMTs.

Conclusion This analysis suggests that long-term treatment with peginterferon beta-1a improves clinical outcomes at reduced costs compared with interferon beta-1a 44?mcg and glatiramer acetate 20?mg and should be a valuable addition to managed care formularies for treating patients with RRMS.     

Exchange Rate Uncertainty, Sociopolitical Instability and Private Investment: Empirical Evidence from Latin America

Using exchange rate uncertainty (ERU) and sociopolitical instability (SPI) as measures of macroeconomic imbalances and political disorder, respectively, we investigate the link between these two factors and private investment in Latin America. The analysis shows that while ERU and SPI negatively impact private investment jointly, the individual impact of ERU is much greater than that of SPI. Our results should prove useful both to policymakers and others interested in understanding the impact of uncertainty on private investment. Most importantly, macroeconomic policies that limit excess volatility in relative prices should lessen an economy’s general level of investment risk leading to enhanced private investment. Further, though lesser in degree, institutional reforms that reduce social tensions and strengthen property rights should also stimulate private investment. Finally, structural reforms that combine these two are likely to foster a robust market for private investment thus contributing to an economy’s growth potential.