Unemployment and labour-force participation in Sweden

This paper investigates the relationship between Swedish unemployment and labour-force participation. Cointegration analysis supports a robust long-run relationship between the two variables. This finding puts the empirical relevance of the unemployment invariance hypothesis into question.     

Managing conflicting goals in pig farming: farmers' strategies and perspectives on sustainable pig farming in Sweden

Industrial meat production has several negative environmental effects. Governments’ agricultural policies aim for cost efficiency combined with high environmental and animal welfare, which puts farmers in a difficult situation trying to navigate between sometimes contradictory requirements. This paper studies how Swedish pig farmers resolve or cope with conflicting goals in pig farming. We have analysed the regulations governing EU and Swedish pig farming. We have also interviewed five Swedish pig farmers about their views of the different goals of pig farming and strategies for resolving conflicts between the goals of low environmental impact, high animal welfare and enough profitability to continue farming. The greatest divide was between the conventional farmers, who emphasized natural resource efficiency, and the organic farmers who stressed animal welfare, multifunctionality and ecosystem service delivery. We suggest four strategies to contribute to resolving some of the conflicting goals: improve communication about different types of pig farming; use public procurement as a driver towards more sustainable pork production; work towards improving the Common Agricultural Policy, perhaps by implementing payments for ecosystem services or multifunctionality; and finally, decrease the total production of pork to lower the emissions per land unit.     

OUTPUT–EMPLOYMENT RELATIONSHIP ACROSS SECTORS: A LONG‐ VERSUS SHORT‐RUN PERSPECTIVE

This paper investigates the nature of the output–employment relationship by using the Turkish quarterly data for the period 1988–2008. Even if we fail to find a long‐run relationship between aggregate output and total employment, there are long‐run relationships for the aggregate output with non‐agricultural employment and sectoral employment levels for seven of nine sectors that we consider. However, a further investigation for the output and employment relationship within a short‐run perspective does not reveal statistically significant relationships for either total employment or non‐agriculture employment, or eight of the nine sectors that we consider. Although there are various long‐run relationships between output and employment, the short‐run links between demand and employment are weak. The various implications of this for the economy and the labour market are discussed. As a result, maintaining high levels of output in the long‐run creating demand is essential for employment generation.     

Neoliberalization of Istanbul's Nightlife: Beer or Champagne?

This article shows how the transformation of Istanbul's entertainment industry and of Beyo?lu, Istanbul's oldest, largest and the most diverse entertainment district, represents and reproduces spatial and economic divisions in the city. We argue that these differences also become compounded and intertwined with distinctions in consumption and taste. Taking a simultaneous look at the spatial, economic and symbolic transformations of the entertainment industry enables us to understand how and why these intense divisions emerge, and what kind of contestations, rationalizations and resistance strategies are at work in this transformation. A major contribution of this article is to document and discuss the political economy of the process of urban transformation in the city through the lens of the entertainment industry, providing an interesting case of ‘neoliberalism on the ground'. Examining the neoliberalization of nightlife in a relatively understudied context, Istanbul, also reveals that its segmentation and spatial inequality are not just determined by political economy but are also constitutive of it. By adding the concept of ‘image consumption' and taste distinctions into the analysis, the article also uncovers the symbolic nature of the ongoing transformations. Finally, exploring Beyo?lu as a district in transition with persistent contestations contributes, in turn, to the right to the city debate.     

EXCHANGE RATE-BASED STABILIZATIONS: A LITERATURE REVIEW

The exchange rate-based stabilizations (ERBSs) that have been undertaken in chronic inflation countries have generated a controversial body of literature regarding the effects of disinflation programs, especially those on real consumption and output. This survey provides an extensive overview of the literature on ERBS. The paper covers various empirical studies that have attempted to document the macroeconomic regularities associated with ERBS, discussing both their strengths and their weaknesses. It analyzes diverse theoretical models that have been put forward to replicate the business cycles associated with ERBS, and sheds light on which models perform better using real data. The results suggest that durables incorporated weak credibility and sticky price model proves to be most compatible with the empirical regularities observed in the course of ERBS.     

Communication versus Information Transparency in One‐Shot Interactions: A Labor Market Experiment

This is an experimental study of communication and information transparency in one‐shot labor market relations with incomplete contracts. We find that communication in the form of non‐binding broadcast chat messages increases wages, effort levels, and overall efficiency regardless of the information regime. It serves as a negotiation platform and helps workers and firms learn how to cooperate. Communication outperforms information transparency in motivating trust and cooperative behavior in one‐shot interactions. Although transparency might be important in the long term, it does not improve any of the market outcomes in short‐term relations unless it is combined with communication. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Visualizing financial success: planning is key

Recent economic troubles in the US and abroad highlight the importance of family financial capability, including an understanding of financial markets. Financial capability is the foundation for desired financial behaviours, such as saving, budgeting, using credit wisely and planning. Study participants, a subsample of respondents to a Turkish university financial literacy survey (n = 374), who reported uninterrupted income for a 3‐year period were grouped as ‘planners’ and ‘non‐planners’. These groupings allowed examination of the relationships between planning, financial management decisions, and differential outcomes in daily household financial well‐being. The practice of preferred financial management behaviours was predictive of debt. This research makes a unique contribution to the literature, demonstrating the importance of uninterrupted income over income amount in support of the planning process. Findings of this study have implications for professionals in the family and consumer sciences field and other practitioners assisting consumers with improving financial management outcomes.