Effects of Temporary Regulation of Asymmetric Access Charges in Telecommunications

In a liberalized telecommunications market, an incumbent possesses several advantages over any entrant. It has been claimed that in such a market environment, there should be regulation of asymmetric access charges between an incumbent and an entrant. In this paper, we show that asymmetric access charges should be imposed temporarily but not permanently. That is, there should be deregulation once the entrant is fully competitive with the incumbent. This is because temporary regulation accelerates corporate investment and enhances economic welfare. In addition, when the competitive market environment is most intense under temporary regulation, investment timing is at the earliest point, which maximizes consumer surplus. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Learning program for enhancing visual literacy for non-design students using a CMS to share outcomes

This study proposes a basic learning program for enhancing visual literacy using an original Web content management system (Web CMS) to share students’ outcomes in class as a blog post. It seeks to reinforce students’ understanding and awareness of the design of visual content. The learning program described in this research focuses on to address how to create meanings of visual content that is important to express information visually, and includes three exercises based on perception, visual variables, and signification. The Web CMS to publish student works and share in class helps enhance students’ reflection. We also developed a rubric as an assessment device for students’ outcomes. The content of the learning program and its implementation are described with the support of observational data.     

A note on small income effects

This note provides an alternative sufficient condition for the small income effect result that is first shown by Vives [Small income effects: a Marshallian theory of consumer surplus and downward sloping demand, Rev. Econ. Stud. 54(1) (1987) 87-103]. The condition is stated by ordinal terms only, whereas Vives assumes cardinal properties of utility representation. Second, as its application, we provide a sufficient condition for the preference being asymptotically quasi-linear, in a two good economy where the second good is a composition of a large number of goods.     

PRODUCTION RISK AND ADVANTAGES OF MIXED FARMING IN THE PAKISTAN PUNJAB

This paper proposes an empirical model of profit variability at the individual farm level and applies it to Pakistan's agriculture. Results show that the addition of idiosyncratic yield shocks and adjustment for input costs lead to a much larger variability of net profits than implied by the variability of average gross revenues–Pakistan's irrigated agriculture is associated with higher profit variability compared with semiarid India. It is also demonstrated that the correlation between green fodder profit and milk profit at the farm level is substantially negative. This negative correlation implies that it is advantageous, in terms of risk diversification, to combine fodder and milk production in one enterprise, which is commonly observed in the mixed farming systems in Pakistan's Punjab.     

法经济学视野下的转售价格维持行为之合法性

转售价格维持的反垄断分析框架经过一个多世纪的演变,正在经历着从"本身违法"向"合理原则"的转变。日本在2015年修订《流通交易习惯指南》的过程中顺应了这一国际潮流,并确立了转售价格维持应当适用"合理原则"进行分析的原则。不过该《指南》仅仅将避免搭便车作为转售价格维持的唯一合理事由,而未对其他的合理事由进行明确。本文认为转售价格维持涉及企业之间的合作,大多具有促进竞争的效果,因此应当对于其合理事由的范围进行扩张。从经济效应的角度而言,其他合理事由应当包含特许经营中的转售价格维持,以及为了降低销售风险而实施的转售价格维持。此外,限定最高转售价格的行为也应当在原则上被认定为具有促进竞争的效果。     

Effects of a short-stay vacation on the mental health of Japanese employees*

Many studies have focused on the effects of tourism on mental health. This study revealed that short-stay vacations at mental health rejuvenation facilities could reduce Japanese employees’ stress levels. We conducted two studies with two groups of participants (N?=?34 and 26, respectively), in order to obtain both objective and subjective evaluations. The results suggested that taking a short-stay vacation at a mental health rejuvenation facility was effective for helping employees to maintain good mental health, and that stress reduction was particularly evident in the highly stressed group. Practical and theoretical implications are discussed with a view to providing suggestions for addressing work-related stress in Japanese employees.     

Demand for temperature and rainfall index insurance in India

Weather index insurance has been attracting considerable attention from academics and policymakers. This study investigates the demand for two types of index insurance sold in India: temperature index insurance for dry season and rainfall index insurance for subsequent monsoon season. Using data from randomized subsidy experiments, we separate purchase and quantity decisions and investigate how demand for rainfall insurance is correlated with demand for temperature insurance sold in the previous season. We find that the price (premium) does not influence purchase decisions per se but does significantly influence quantity decisions. The quantity demanded is less price‐sensitive for subsequent rainfall insurance than it is for temperature insurance. We also find that purchasers of temperature insurance tend to buy rainfall insurance more often than nonpurchasers do. However, a one‐time subsidy does not influence on subsequent demand, suggesting no price‐anchoring effect.