Evaluating the performance of higher education institutions in Europe: a nonparametric efficiency analysis of 944 institutions

Although a long tradition exists of studying the economics of education, performance comparisons of different kinds have traditionally been difficult to undertake. An important impediment has been the lack of comparable data. To a large extent, this study remedies the shortcomings of earlier studies. Our contribution is twofold. First, the current higher education policy of contraction and economizing, common to most European countries, make knowledge of potential efficiency gains crucial. Second, a unique database allows us to study a broad diversity of organizations as well as organizations located in a number of different European countries. The study suggests evaluating higher education institution (HEI) performance in a production theory context, applying the well-known data envelopment analysis (DEA) method to a cross section of 944 HEIs in 17 European countries. The DEA approach is particularly suitable in this context where little is known about production technologies and economic behaviour of the HEIs. On average, provision of education is found to be most efficient in the Slovak Republic followed by Belgium and Latvia, while Denmark and Norway display the lowest efficiency. The study also indicates a positive relation between efficiency and HEI size and efficiency and research intensity. Furthermore, the study points to the importance of continued data collection.     

The relevance of political affinity for the initial acquisition premium in cross‐border acquisitions

Research summary : In the context of economic nationalism, we investigate the relevance of political affinity between countries to the initial acquisition premium offered in cross‐border acquisitions. Political affinity is defined as the similarity of national interests in global affairs. We argue that political affinity affects how foreign acquirers anticipate their bargaining position in their negotiations with domestic target firms. With decreasing political affinity, the host government becomes increasingly likely to intervene against foreign firms in an acquisition deal. Consequently, foreign acquirers need to provide a more lucrative initial offer to dissuade target firms from leveraging government intervention to oppose the acquisition. Our prediction is supported by strong evidence that political affinity, as revealed by UN general assembly voting patterns, leads to lower initial acquisition premiums. Managerial summary : Media reports suggest that politics plays an important role in international business transactions. However, we still know very little about how bilateral political relations affect corporate decision‐making. In this article, we analyze the influence of the quality of bilateral political relations on the bidding behavior of foreign acquirers in cross‐border acquisitions. We argue that the host government is more likely to intervene against the foreign acquirer during deal negotiations if the quality of bilateral political relations is poor. A lower political affinity between countries therefore decreases the bargaining power of the acquirer and pushes up the initial bid premium the acquirer has to offer to the local target. Our empirical results confirm our argument. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Truth claims and explanatory claims—An ontological typology of futures studies

Classifications of futures research are usually based on epistemological differences, but we complete these with ontological considerations. The article presents a typology of forecasts, i.e. statements on future events or states. It has two dimensions, truth claim and explanatory claim; each dimension has two values, making the claim or not making the claim. The four outcomes are: forecasts which make both truth claims and explanatory claims (predictions); forecasts which make truth claims, but not explanatory claims (prognoses); forecasts which make explanatory claims, but not truth claims (science fiction); and forecasts which make neither truth claims nor explanatory claims (utopias or dystopias). We regard each outcome as an ideal type, against which forecasts can be measured. We illustrate the use of the typology by presenting an example of each outcome.     

The impact of accounting information quality on the mispricing of accruals: The case of FRS3 in the UK

We exploit a unique setting of accounting regulation change to examine how accounting information quality affects the well-documented accrual anomaly. We show a significant reduction in the negative return predictability of accruals among UK companies with poorer accounting information quality following the introduction of Financial Reporting Standard No. 3: Reporting Financial Performance (FRS3). While the functional fixation hypothesis attributes the mispricing of accruals to the judgemental error of end-users of information, our findings suggest that the supply side of information also plays a crucial role. Our results provide evidence that regulatory interventions seeking to improve accounting information quality can reduce the mispricing of securities in the capital market.     

Implementing Lean Sigma in pharmaceutical research and development: a review by practitioners

The authors recount their experience of the implementation of lean thinking and Six Sigma in pharmaceutical development research and development (R&D). Use of Lean Sigma in pharmaceutical manufacturing is widespread and generally noncontentious. Lean Sigma is used successfully to improve the development of new pharmaceutical manufacturing processes. However, the value of the application of lean and Six Sigma ideas to research & development is controversial. Published material is reviewed, and then the methods, tools, barriers and benefits are discussed, with recommendations for implementation of Lean Sigma into an R&D organisation.     

Opaque Web practices among low-cost carriers

The low-cost airlines' adoption of Web technologies to facilitate direct sales has accelerated their market penetration. However, some low-cost carriers are increasingly using Websites to create distance between themselves and their consumers in specific areas of their operations, while simultaneously developing excellence in sales transaction completion via self-service. The ‘opaque’ practices many low-cost carriers employ appear to be intentional design features and are contrary to the ethos of designing a ‘good system’ to facilitate the full spectrum of customer service. As a result, the low-cost sector has come under increased scrutiny for engaging in unfair practices and violating consumer protection law.     

Creating a Space where Gender Matters: Elinor Ostrom (1933-2012) talks with Ann Mari May and Gale Summerfield

Abstract

In 2009, Elinor Ostrom received the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences for her work, especially on governance of the commons. Trained as a political scientist, Ostrom embraced interdisciplinary research and transdisciplinary collaboration. Ann Mari May and Gale Summerfield's interview with Ostrom, conducted in fall 2011, illustrates the relevance of her work to feminist economics as well as her impressive accomplishments as the first woman recipient of the Nobel prize in economics and as a pioneering woman in academia. Ostrom died on June 12, 2012.     

The Political Economy of Addressing the Climate Crisis in the Earth System: Undermining Perverse Resilience

The Earth system is a complex adaptive system, characterised by non-linear change and with significant capacity for surprise. In times of systemic crisis, such as dangerous anthropogenic climate change, perverse resilience (for example the structural power of fossil fuel interests in the global economy) can threaten overall Earth system stability. Critical political economic analysis recognises climate change as a threat with significant political economic characteristics and implications. However, key dimensions of climate change as a globally coherent phenomenon, including the important implications of Earth system dynamism and non-linear change, can remain unrecognised, mischaracterised or underestimated. In contrast, resilience approaches describe social-ecological systems but neglect the significance of norms and power relations in human societies. This article builds theory by linking key concepts – hegemony and resilience – from neo-Gramscian political economic analysis and resilience approaches to social-ecological systems. Our objective is to generate a new conceptual framework to improve understanding of the role of politics in social-ecological systems. We use climate change and its mitigation to demonstrate the new framework's potential.