Resisting algorithmic control: Understanding the rise and variety of platform worker mobilisations

Algorithms are seen as effective  for managing workers. Literature focuses mainly on the functioning and impact of algorithmic control on workers' experiences and conditions. The ways in which platform workers have organised collectively to regain control have received far less scholarly attention. This paper addresses this gap by making sense of the mobilisation dynamics of two platform-work categories: crowdwork (Amazon Mechanical Turk) and work on-demand (food-delivery couriers). These are salient mobilisation cases, as these workers have resisted algorithmic control by adopting specific organising modes, action repertoires and collective solidarities. By analysing a combination of extant literature and policy reports concerning each category of mobilisation forms at a global level over 5 years, the study elucidates why and how these workers were able to act without the involvement of traditional trade unions by showing that specific supportive communities and political activism traditions were crucial in the rise and variety of mobilisation.     

“Relative Importance of Risk Sources in Insurance Systems”, Edward W. Frees,April 1998

Abstract

This paper considers a Sparre Andersen collective risk model in which the distribution of the interclaim time is that of a sum of n independent exponential random variables; thus, the Erlang(n) model is a special case. The analysis is focused on the function φ(u), the expected discounted penalty at ruin, with u being the initial surplus. The penalty may depend on the deficit at ruin and possibly also on the surplus immediately before ruin. It is shown that the function φ(u) satisfies a certain integro-differential equation and that this equation can be solved in terms of Laplace transforms, extending a result found in Lin (2003). As a consequence, a closed-form expression is obtained for the discounted joint probability density of the deficit at ruin and the surplus just before ruin, if the initial surplus is zero. For this formula and other results, the roots of Lundberg’s fundamental equation in the right half of the complex plane play a central role. Also, it is shown that φ(u) satisfies Li’s (2003) renewal equation. Under the assumption that the penalty depends only on the deficit at ruin and that the individual claim amount density is a combination of exponential densities, a closed-form expression for φ(u) is derived. In this context, known results of the Cauchy matrix are useful. Surprisingly, certain results are best expressed in terms of divided differences, a topic deleted from the actuarial examinations at the end of last century.     

Fiscal policy effects, convergence, and growth

The objective of this paper is to create an economic growth model with public capital that determines when exogenous or endogenous growth appears, showing the optimal public sector dimension, and determines the convergence equation condition. An empirical analysis is also developed for several countries.     

Kriging methodology for regional economic analysis: Estimating the housing price in Albacete

Because of the socioeconomic importance of the housing subsector in the local, regional, and national economy and its implications for housing policy, this paper attempts to analyze the spatial behavior of the free housing price in the city of Albacete. To achieve this aim, the authors have used the models and estimators imported from geology called kriging. To do this, it is necessary to know the spatial dependence structure of the process, which is shown in the variogram.     

An evolutionary Cournot oligopoly model with imitators and perfect foresight best responders

We consider the competition among quantity setting players in a linear evolutionary environment. To set their outputs, players adopt, alternatively, the best response rule having perfect foresight or an imitative rule. Players are allowed to change their behavior through an evolutionary mechanism according to which the rule with better performance will attract more followers. The relevant stationary state of the model describes a scenario where players produce at the Cournot‐Nash level. Due to the presence of imitative behavior, we find that the number of players and implementation costs, needed to the best response exploitation, have an ambiguous role in determining the stability properties of the equilibrium and double stability thresholds can be observed. Differently, the role of the intensity of choice, representing the evolutionary propensity to switch to the most profitable rule, has a destabilizing role, in line with the common occurrence in evolutionary models. The global analysis of the model reveals that increasing values of the intensity of choice parameter determine increasing dynamic complexities for the internal attractor representing a population where both decision mechanisms coexist.     

Business Ethics: Law As A Determinant of Business Conduct

The Principles of Corporate Governance require that business conduct conform to the law. In recent years, news reports of business misconduct have cast doubt on a conclusion that conformity is the prevalent practice. This article explores the influence of law on business conduct by comparing the law’s requirements and purposes with actual business conduct in the market. Specifically, it explores whether certain legal regimes are more effective than others in inducing greater commitment to legal compliance by corporate actors. The conclusion drawn is that the prevalent legal regime – a vague common law or legislative mandate – is typically associated with corporate conduct that evades or ignores the law’s mandate or its underlying purpose. Vincent Di Lorenzo is Professor of Law; Senior Fellow, Vincentian Center for Church and Society, St. John's University; J.D. Columbia University (Harlan Fiske Stone Scholar); Associate Articles Editor, Columbia Journal of Law and Social Problems. Before joining the faculty at St. John's University School of Law, Professor Di Lorenzo was a member of the faculty at The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania, and was associated with a major Wall Street firm practicing in the real estate-banking department. He is a member of the American Bar Association and the New York State Bar Association. Professor Di Lorenzo has authored many articles and books in the banking, legislation and real estate areas.     

Managerial Sharing,Mutual Fund Connections,and Performance

In this study, we examine the effect of mutual fund connections, through managerial sharing, on performance and stock holding commonalities. Our analysis of return correlations and portfolio holdings indicates that more interconnected funds tend to buy and sell similar stocks, hence increasing the similarity of portfolio holdings and undermining the distinctiveness of their investment strategy. Our results also indicate that highly connected funds significantly underperform weakly connected funds by about 1.4% on a yearly risk‐adjusted basis. We show that fund family performance is unaffected by the intensity of fund connections, and that greater fund connections could significantly enhance family‐level profit margins.     

Institutional and economic drivers of entrepreneurship: An international perspective

Entrepreneurial activity varies significantly across countries and over time. The economic and institutional context is a determining factor that can drive and lend shape to entrepreneurial activity. The search for a deeper understanding of the role of this factor constitutes a promising and important research stream. A thorough review of the specialist literature identifies groups of countries with similar economic and institutional environments. Subsequent analysis highlights differences in entrepreneurial activity and innovation outcomes between these homogeneous groups. Results indicate significant differences, not only in entrepreneurial activity, but also in the type of entrepreneurship and innovation results. These findings mark a relevant step forward in the identification of different environment types, and the effects of environment on entrepreneurial activity and innovation results.