Profit maximization mitigates competition

Summary We consider oligopolistic markets in which the notion of shareholders' utility is well-defined and compare the Bertrand-Nash equilibria in case of utility maximization with those under the usual profit maximization hypothesis. Our main result states that profit maximization leads to less price competition than utility maximization. Since profit maximization tends to raise prices, it may be regarded as beneficial for the owners as a whole. Moreover, if profit maximization is a good proxy for utility maximization, then there is no need for a general equilibrium analysis that takes the distribution of profits among consumers fully into account and partial equilibrium analysis suffices.We wish to thank Hildegard Dierker and Nina Maderner for many helpful comments. This research was partially supported by the Danish Social Science Research Council. E. Dierker is grateful to the Department of Economics, University of Copenhagen, for its outstanding hospitality. B. Grodal appreciates the support from the Department of Economics, University of Vienna.     

Innovation networks in eastern germany — a still under-utilised potential for human capital formation in the region

Conclusion In regard to easing the shortage of skilled labour the networking of protagonists in the InnoRegios is not, as yet, sufficient on the whole. In particular, companies are not sufficiently involved. The potential for networking to close the human capital gap is apparently still not being fully utilised in the innovation networks. One explanation could be the low implementation rate of the planned basic and advanced training projects so far. It must also be borne in mind that companies could assess the risks of cooperation as greater than the possible advantages, as they are competing on the labour market. Another explanation is that the participants in the networks expect technological projects to offer greater success.     

Carry-overs or leftovers? Tackling year-end spend-downs at the central government level

ABSTRACT

Year-end spend-downs have received a lot of attention in public policy and public administration, and a number of budgeting and accounting reforms have been made to tackle this issue. While carry-overs have been thought to be a remedy, their effect remains empirically under-investigated. This paper applies a mixed-method approach to provide empirical evidence for year-end spending surges, and to analyse the effect of changing carry-over rules in Austria. The authors uncover the reasons behind spend-downs: uncertainty about carry-overs and their use, and the risk of losing unspent appropriations and efficiency savings seem to explain year-end spend-downs. The findings offer support for prior calls in the academic literature to take time and volume limitations into account when designing and implementing carry-over rules. The evidence presented here has important implications for policy-makers and managers.     

The Divergent “Loyalty” Behaviors of a Captive Consumer

This research investigates situations where consumers display divergent loyalty behaviors. Study I qualitatively identifies and classifies word-of-mouth spreading behaviors of captive loyalists. The results reveal that, despite repurchase behaviors, captive loyalists spread mostly negative word-of-mouth. Study II quantitatively investigates four separate loyalty behaviors of captive loyalists. The results confirm that these consumers are likely to stay when dissatisfied, and allocate a significant share of their wallet to the provider whilst spreading negative word-of-mouth. The simultaneous existence of opposing loyalty behaviors has significant implications for erecting switching barriers and for applying customer loyalty metrics.     

Justice obtained? How disabled claimants fare at Employment Tribunals

This article explores disability discrimination cases at British Employment Tribunals. Analysing over 750 judgments, it examines the characteristics of claimants and the factors associated with the failure of cases: restrictive judicial decisions, complex legal tests, inequality of arms between claimant and employer and the stigma attached to claimants with mental impairments, providing some evidence for a hierarchy of impairments.     

Representative voice in different organizational contexts: a study of 40 departments of a Dutch childcare organization

‘Representative voice’ can be defined as actions in which one or more speakers represent others when speaking up about a problem at the workplace or making a suggestion. The purpose of this paper is to introduce the concept of representative voice, assess the frequency of its occurrence and examine department characteristics associated with its frequency. We present a theoretical framework and develop and test hypotheses about the effects of characteristics of the departmental context on the frequency of representative voice. Our focus is on organizational design features, i.e. characteristics that can be directly implemented by management. Data on 40 departments of a large Dutch childcare organization suggested that representative voice occurred in most of the organization's departments, although not frequently. Multilevel analyses showed that representative voice was best predicted by the presence of shared problems. Further, representative voice was more frequent in departments in which employees worked directly with clients (i.e. children), and in larger departments. Frequent contact with the department's manager and among the department's employees had no effect.     

Creating consumer satisfaction in maternity care: the neglected needs of migrants,asylum seekers and refugees

An estimated 190 million people are now living outside their countries of birth or citizenship, and the rate of this migration is expected to remain high. The resulting growing cultural and ethnic diversity in societies adds specific challenges to the requirement of delivering public services such as health care to consumers. Globally, about half of the migrant population are women. Migrants’ outcomes of pregnancy are known to be poor, showing significant disparities when compared with those of native populations. Although these disparities have been noted, knowledge is limited regarding the availability and accessibility of healthcare services, as well as the acceptability of maternity care for women with experiences of free and forced migration. Healthcare research in general, and maternity care research specifically, have often neglected this population. This paper examines the existing international guidelines intended to address inequities in health outcomes, policies which have been introduced at national levels, and the widely used concepts of ‘patient‐centred’ and ‘woman‐centred’ health services. The ideals implicit in those guidelines and concepts are contrasted with the available evidence of many overseas nationals’ experiences with healthcare provisions in general, and maternity care in particular. This is followed by reflections on deficiencies in current studies and on those methodological problems which make research on maternity care for migrant women particularly challenging. The conclusion considers the appropriateness and relevance of guidelines currently promoting equity in maternity care and suggests a future agenda for priority research.     

The 'Skill-oriented' Strategies of German Trade Unions: Their Impact on Efficiency and Equality Objectives

In the present debate about options for the modernization of trade unions, the predominant argument being propounded is that trade unions and workers' representatives at plant level should take more 'responsibility' for the competitiveness of the firms. Among other things, they are advised to enter into 'alliances' with management at the level of qualification politics. This paper considers some important collective bargaining arrangements which the German trade unions have negotiated over the last few years in order to improve mutually beneficial further training decisions within German firms. The emphasis is on the potential of different agreements for achieving efficiency and equality objectives in the context of contemporary changes in production and restructuring processes.