Participation in the National Flood Insurance Program: An Empirical Analysis for Coastal Properties

A perennial question about the National Flood Insurance Program is: how can participation be increased? An empirical analysis of individual‐level data reveals that in a sample of coastal areas the participation rate is 49 percent of eligible properties. Participation responsiveness to price is inelastic, but it has been increased by the mandatory purchase requirements for mortgage borrowers. Easing conditions for participation in the program would probably not reduce flood control measures, such as seawalls, which may degrade beach conditions and coastal ecosystems.     

Constructivist Negotiation Ethics

The success of Discourse Ethics is premised on the discovery and use of shared values. If this is true what type of negotiation style, especially when used in an intercultural setting, is best suited to make use of shared values. Research focusing on moral arguments between Germans and Americans uncovered an array of shared values. But the existence of shared values, by itself, was not an adequate predictor of a negotiation's success. What did prove to be a predictor of success was the use of a Constructivist style of negotiation by both parties.     

Information–driven trading at the Prague Stock Exchange: Evidence from Intra–Day Data

Many observers argue that informed and insider trading is widespread in the emerging financial markets of transition countries, yet rigorous treatment of this issue has been virtually non–existent. The current paper estimates the extent of informed trading on the Prague Stock Exchange (PSE) using intra–day transaction data. Our estimates confirm that the average share of informed trading is equal to 0.32, which is high relative to developed markets and varies considerably among stocks. Using the Easley et al. (1996) approach on the very best segment of the PSE we obtained a high average probability of informed trading. Since data used in this study cover the period after the major attempts to improve market regulations, our results indicate that the PSE needs further strengthening to recover credibility and to become a real source of corporate financing. JEL classification: G14, G15.     

The Workout of Banking Crises: A Macroeconomic Perspective

This paper provides a macroeconomic perspective for governmentinterventions in banking crisis. Such crisis occur when a largenumber of banks fail to meet capital requirements or are insolvent.Using a macroeconomic model with financial intermediation, ouranalyis suggests that strict enforcement of capital-adequaterules suffices in prosperous periods. Capital requirements serveas an indicator for crises interventions in critical stateswhich may require interest rate intervention and restructuringof the banking industry. These policies can be reinforced byrandom bailouts and temporary financial relief, with a largepercentage of the costs being covered by current and futureowners of banks. (JEL D41, E4, G2)     

Language ability and adjustment: Western expatriates in China

Although the standard of English proficiency is rising in China, using English in conversations with Chinese host nationals may be difficult. Therefore, proficiency in the Chinese language may promote the adjustment of foreign business expatriates in China. To test this proposition, a mail survey was directed to Western business expatriates assigned to China. Controlling for the time expatriates had spent in China, results showed that their language ability had a positive association with their sociocultural adjustment. Not surprisingly, this positive relationship was strongest for interaction adjustment and weakest for work adjustment. The straightforward implications of these clear findings are discussed in detail. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

The Dynamic Production Axioms and System Dynamics Behaviors: The Foundation for Future Integration

Realistically, organizational and/or system performance is dynamic and non-linear. However, in the efficiency literature, system performance is frequently evaluated considering linear combinations of the input/output variables and without explicitly taking into account the causes of efficiency behavior nor the dynamic behavior of systems. Policy decisions based on these results may be sub-optimized because the non-linear relationships among variables, causal relationships, and feedback mechanisms are ignored.This research takes the initial step of evaluating system performance in a dynamic environment, by relating the factors that effect system performance to the policies that govern it. To accomplish this, this paper extends the concepts of the static production axioms into a dynamic realm, where inputs are not instantaneously converted into outputs. The relationships of these new dynamic production axioms to the basic behaviors associated with system dynamics structures are explored.     

A Multilevel Multinomial Analysis of Interviewer Effects on Various Components of Unit Nonresponse

This note demonstrates an application of a multilevel multinomial model. We use that model to analyse interviewer effects on various components of unit nonresponse to a face-to-face survey: refusals and noncontacts. The model allows for an analysis of these two interviewer effects and a possible connection between both at the same time. Our results show that both the chances for refusals as for noncontacts are subject to interviewer effects. We also find some evidence for a relation between both interviewer effects: interviewers who obtain more refusals are also more likely to report noncontacts. That result is however at least partly dependent on an outlier, an interviewer with a high number of refusals and noncontacts.     

AN EXAMINATION OF THE UNDERLYING DYNAMICS OF STRATEGIC DECISIONS SUBJECT TO UPWARD INFLUENCE ACTIVITY

This study examines the underlying dynamics of strategic decisions that are subject to upward influence activity. The results suggest that the strategymaking process deviates considerably from typical rational comprehensive approaches in that strategies are affected by: initial sense-making activity, perceptions of risk and return, and power and negotiation skills. Differences due to functional area of the manager involved in the influence activity are discussed.     

The effect of interstate highway on driving times and regional shopping center drawing power

Previous studies of the driving times of shopping center patrons have not examined the effect of limited access highways. This study analyzed the impact of interstate highways on the driving times of 204 shoppers at three medium-sized regional shopping centers. Those shoppers indicating usage of interstate highways to reach their shopping destinations were significantly more likely to incur travel times greater than fifteen and twenty minutes than those not using the available interstate roads. In predicting the drawing power of these shopping centers, factors besides mass were found to be useful. These include square footage of shopping goods, stores, and number of parking places.     

Welfare effects of 1992: A general equilibrium assessment for EC and EFTA countries

In this paper production, trade and welfare effects of European integration are discussed, with particular emphasis on the effects for the EC and EFTA. Insights from previous partial and general equilibrium analyses of the internal market are reviewed, and new model simulations are presented. In addition to the standard experiments of 1992 — as reduced trade costs and as full market integration — for the EC alone, and for the European Economic Area (EEA), an intermediate case, with full integration in the EC but only lower trade costs between the EC and EFTA, is analysed. All cases show that EFTA will benefit significantly from freer trade and closer integration with the EC. With regard to non-European regions, the simulations of European integration show some degree of trade diversion, but stylized model experiments indicate that a successful outcome of the Uruguay-round may more than offset the trade-diverting effects of 1992.