Exploring the Optimal Design of an Employer-Sponsored Sickness-Disability Compensation Insurance Plan When Sickness Presenteeism Is Penalized

We explore the impact of presenteeism, absenteeism, and shirking on the optimal design of an employer-sponsored sickness-disability compensation insurance plan when the employer penalizes sickness presenteeism. We assume an employee's health follows a simple multistate model with a “severely ill” sickness state. To combat absenteeism, the employer randomly verifies an employee's claim of sickness. However, to combat presenteeism, we also introduce the new concept of a presenteeism penalty whereby employees who are found to be at work in the “severely ill” sickness state are sent home and receive a penalized sick pay that is lower than the normal sick pay. Thus sick employees must decide whether to stay at home and receive a sick pay or go to work sick and run the risk of being sent home and penalized. We further assume (1) employees are risk-averse utility maximizers, (2) each employee has a strategy for staying home or working while sick that maximizes his or her lifetime expected discounted utility, and (3) an employee's strategy is unknown to the employer. The primary plan design factors that affect an employee's lifetime expected discounted utility and the employer's discounted expected accounting profits over an employee's working lifetime are the sick pay, the presenteeism penalty, and two health check probabilities. Volterra integral equations are used to derive expressions for an employee's lifetime expected discounted utility and the employer's expected discounted accounting profits over an employee's lifetime under various employee strategies. Laplace transforms are used to derive asymptotic expressions for the solutions to these integral equations. These asymptotic solutions are used to explore the impact of these factors on the optimal sickness compensation insurance plan design.     

Exchange Rates and Long‐Term Bonds*

There is tentative evidence to suggest that the well‐documented empirical failure of uncovered interest parity (UIP) is confined to short‐term interest rates. However, tests of UIP for long‐term bonds are thwarted by various data problems. These data problems can be avoided by focusing on short investments in long‐term bonds. This paper concerns the relationship between changes in the US dollar–Deutsche Mark exchange rate and returns to short investments in US and German long‐term government bonds. The hypothesis that expected returns to investments in bonds denominated in the two currencies are equal is not rejected, and the estimated slope coefficients are positive. For corresponding short‐term interest rates, the typical finding of negative and large Fama coefficients is confirmed. We conclude that it is the maturity of the asset, rather than the investment horizon, that matters for the results.     

Using the functional analysis to understand the emergence of biomaterials within an existing biotechnology system: observations from a case study in Turkey

ABSTRACT

The paper applies a functional approach to the analysis of an emerging technology within an innovation system (IS) in a developing country. By doing so, the paper identifies the advantages and drawbacks of the approach through a dynamic analysis and highlights the life cycle of an IS within which a new technology is emerging. This is done empirically by analysing the emergence of biosimilars within the infant Turkish biotechnology system mainly from the perspective of firms. Our analysis of the Turkish case illustrates how the tool of functional approach could be valuable in understanding the dynamics of a technology in a developing country context. Policy suggestions and implications of the study are presented as concluding remarks.     

Adult Mortality,AIDS, and Fertility in Rural Malawi

The future course of fertility is a major determinant of economic development in many sub‐Saharan countries, so understanding how HIV/AIDS affects childbearing is of great interest. We show that fertility responds negatively to female mortality and positively to male mortality and that the overall fertility response is small. The negative effect of female mortality is in line with earlier studies that only focus on women and their infection and mortality risks, while the finding of a positive effect of adult‐male mortality is novel. One interpretation of this finding is that women who perceive a high risk of their husbands' or grown‐up sons' deaths are likely to want to have more children to ensure future support.     

Connectivity and Performance of Science-based Firms

This paper addresses whether or not there is a relationship between a young science-based firm’s patterns of connections and the associated resource flows, and its performance. Hypotheses derived from the literature are tested in relation to three performance indicators: inventiveness, innovativeness and employment. Analyzing a set of firms in Sweden, Ohio and Massachusetts, working with biocompatible materials and related products, the results indicate that firm performance is significantly influenced by the firms’ pattern of connectivity. In particular, technology-related connections proved important, where a high diversity in types of sources for technological input, a large number of technological relations and a high amount of technology transfer from the parent organization were related to better performance for this specific group of firms.     

Within-family inequalities in human capital accumulation in India

We investigate within-family inequalities in human capital accumulation in India. Indicators of the children's current stock of human capital and of investment into their continued human capital accumulation are analyzed, distinguishing between time investments and pecuniary investment into school quality. We employ a within-family model using sibship fixed effects, and find mostly negative birth order effects; that is, earlier-born children are better off. However, for time investments there is a tendency toward more positive birth order effects, especially in poor and large families. This suggests that that opportunity cost of child time matters; in poor and large families the older, more productive, siblings often need to work. The most plausible explanation for negative birth order effects in general is resource dilution at an early age. Older siblings were only children at an early age, and therefore benefited from more parental resources.     

The antecedents of charity trust and its influence on charity supportive behavior

This study develops and tests a model that evaluates eight antecedents of charity trust and its influence on volunteering and donating. Secondary data from a national Australian survey (N = 1,377) was collected and data was analyzed using partial least square path analysis. Key findings include identifying individual and organizational antecedents of charity trust and its influence on charity supportive behavior. Results show that organizational transparency is a very strong antecedent, followed by the individual awareness level of an individual towards the organization. We also examined the effect of gender as a moderating influence but did not find a significant effect. We conclude with managerial implications and areas for future research.     

Voluntary Adopters of Integrated Reporting – Evidence on Forecast Accuracy and Firm Value

This study investigates how integrated reporting (IR) creates value for investors. It examines how providers of financial capital benefit from an improved firm information environment provided by IR. Specifically, this study investigates the effect of voluntary IR disclosure on analyst earnings forecast accuracy as well as on firm value. To do so, we use an international sample of 167 listed companies that voluntarily publish an integrated report. Our analysis shows no significant effect of a voluntary IR publication on analyst earnings forecast accuracy and no significant effect on firm value. We thus do not find evidence for the fulfillment of IR's promises regarding improved information environment and value creation of voluntary adopters. We conclude that such companies might already have a relatively high level of transparency leading to an absent additional effect of IR disclosure. Positive effects of IR appear to be more relevant in environments where IR is mandatory.     

Diffusion of organisational innovations: an empirical test of an analytical framework

Alänge, Jacobsson, and Jarnehammar (1998) presented an analytical framework for studying the diffusion of organisational innovations, based on the developments in literature on technical innovations and their diffusion. The aim of this paper is to examine the validity of the framework. Two exploratory case studies were carried out on the diffusion of the organisational innovation TQM. The case studies showed that the framework is a useful tool for studying the diffusion of organisational innovations. However, factors such as learning processes on a national and international level and the role of fads need further consideration. In addition, factors needed for a long-term commitment such as boards and owners and internal political and cultural systems need to be further investigated. The paper also presents a model for analysing the different phases in a diffusion process.