Environmental improvement with trade liberalization

Past studies predict that trade liberalization agreements (and NAFTA in particular) harm the environment. These studies have focused on adjustments in production and have assumed that environmental policy is exogenously given. We show why trade liberalization and improved environmental quality are mutually compatible — when environmental policy is recognized as politically endogenous. We also present empirical evidence to support the basic assumptions underlying the consistency of more liberal trade policy and an improved environment.     

Liberalizing the energy markets of Western Europe – a computable equilibrium model approach

Using a computable equilibrium model, the short-run effects of a radical liberalization of the West European natural gas and electricity markets are examined. In each model country, oil, gas, coal and electricity are produced, traded and consumed. There are world markets for oil and coal, and well-integrated competitive markets for gas and electricity in Western Europe. Gas and electricity are transported and traded across markets under the assumption of ideal third-party access regimes for transportation and limited capacities in the transportation networks. It is found that relative to the data year 1996, radical liberalization reduces the average end-user price of natural gas by around 20%, and the average end-user price of electricity by around 50%. The supply of electricity increases by around 20%, mainly due to increased coal power production. After such liberalization, coal power emerges with the largest market share of electricity production in Western Europe.     

Some Implications of Student Evaluation of Teachers

Professor Mirus asserts th at there is a need to explore the extent to which student evaluation of teachers is subject to manipulation by the instructor. He comments on the possible impact on teacher ratings of increasing section sizes, scheduling of classes during “odd hours,” the type of material taught, and whether or not the course is required. His statistical analysis revealed that requiring a course had no negative impact, nor did class size, scheduling classes during odd hours, or giving courses a quantitative orientation. There was a “strong indication,” however, that the expected grade was a major determinate of the professor's rating.     

HR新鲜人的风暴之旅(三)

Schwan是一个对自己拿不准的新鲜HR，被公司提名接任中国区的HR Coordinator后，他的惶惑感促使他进行了一系列的谈话，这是一场风暴式的旅行，很多各行各业的专家加入到了谈话。本文是谈话风暴的第三篇。     

Recognizing the benefits of diversity: When and how does diversity increase group performance?

Diversity does not only bring positive consequences. It has often been recognized that heterogeneity in teams can reduce intra-group cohesiveness, and that it can lead to conflicts and misunderstandings which, in turn, can lower employee satisfaction, citizenship behaviors and increase turnover. On the other hand, there is also evidence for performance-increasing effects of diversity because it can improve creativity and innovation through the team members' greater variety of perspectives. Little is known, however, about the conditions and the psychological mechanisms required for increasing group performance under diverse settings. Answers to research questions such as how and when diversity influences performance at work are still limited. The purpose of the paper is to provide theoretical answers to these questions by proposing a model of managing diversity which draws on social psychology theories. The model brings a new perspective by identifying the process of learning from one another's identity within a group. This process underlies two different levels of mechanisms (individual and group level). The model proposes that when these social psychological mechanisms are activated, diversity will lead to an increase in group performance. The model also suggests that collective identity is salient and when psychological safety climate are the psychological conditions that activate these mechanisms.     

Market Power and Technology

It is well known that market power depends on the price elasticity of demand and the intensity of competition. It is also well known that technology can influence market power through its effect on market structure. However, there is limited research on the direct link between market power and technology. In this paper, we investigate this relationship. We find that the monopoly price can be constrained to be identical to marginal cost under certain technological conditions. We also show how market power depends directly upon technology, holding constant demand conditions, market structure, and the degree of competition.     

Bilanzwirksamkeit und -unwirksamkeit von Leasingverhältnissen aus Sicht der empirischen Forschung

This paper presents the development and status of empirical research on the question of on- versus off-balance-sheet accounting for leases and examines the implications for the currently debated reform of IFRS and US-GAAP lease-accounting. Research findings show that off-balance-sheet leases (operating leases) affect the economic situation of lessees substantially, especially in lease-intensive industries. Substitution and capital structure effects, especially during the introduction of partial on-balance-sheet accounting for (finance) leases in the 1970s and 1980s, indicate that lessees prefer the off-balance-sheet treatment. Studies addressing the main users of financial statements also demonstrate a differentiated perception of operating and finance leases. However, these differences seem to vanish if users are more professional. So, markets’ perception is not distorted by operating leases per se and there seems to be no sufficiently compelling case for the current lease accounting reform.     

MEASURING THE BENEFITS FROM PUBLIC SERVICES: THE EFFECTS OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT SPENDING ON THE DISTRIBUTION OF INCOME IN NORWAY

The purpose of this paper is to provide an evaluation of how local public in-kind benefits affect the distribution of income in Norway. To this end, a method that accounts for differences between municipalities in capacity to produce the same standard of public services is used for assessing the value of sector-specific local public services in each municipality. Moreover, recipient frequencies in various demographic groups are used as basis for determining the allocation of the assessed value of services on citizens of the municipalities. The empirical results show that inequality in the (marginal) distribution of municipal in-kind benefits is rather high. The contribution of municipal in-kind benefits to inequality in the distribution of extended income (cash (after-tax) income plus municipal in-kind benefits) proves, however, to be approximately neutral.