Conflicting perceptions on participation between citizens and members of local government

There is a growing consensus among citizens and members of local government that citizen participation is desirable for local government. However in practice, there are differing perceptions between them regarding the level and extent of citizen participation. As citizen participation is a multi faceted concept, its meaning is construed differently by both the members of local government and the citizen groups. This paper attempts to describe the conflicts that arise from participation. The paper is based on the study of the process of citizen participation in local government carried out in Torbat-Heydarieh city, Iran. A qualitative research method is seen as the most suitable approach of collecting and analyzing the data. The method employed for data collection in this research is in-depth interviews. In-depth interviews were conducted to gauge the existence of conflicts regarding participation. The findings reveal four areas that give rise to conflicts. This study also attempts to highlight two different views regarding citizen participation; the people-centered view and authority-centered view.     

Specific factors,unemployment and trade theory

Conclusions In this paper we have argued that the specific-factor model of trade is more suitable to the analysis of trade problems in the presence of unemployment than the traditional Heckscher-Ohlin, non-specific factor model used by Brecher and others. Among other things we have shown that protection granted to a land-using industry is unlikely to reduce unemployment, benefiting landlords at the expense of capitalists, while protection conferred to a non-land-using industry is likely to stimulate employment.

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Zusammenfassung Spezifische Faktoren, Arbeitslosigkeit und Theorie des internationalen Handels. - In diesem Aufsatz wird ein Zwei-Sektoren-Modell bei allgemeiner Arbeitslosigkeit konstruiert und in das Hauptgeb?ude der Au\enhandelstheorie integriert. Ein Vorzug des Modells ist, da\ es den Produktionsfaktor Boden nicht ignoriert, den die moderne Au\enhandelstheorie als praktisch nicht existent behandelt. Unter anderem zeigt das Modell, da\ eine Protektion von Industrien, die Land und Boden nutzen, der Protektion anderer Industrien unterlegen ist und da\ deshalb der Schutz bodennutzender Industrien vor ausl?ndischer Konkurrenz wahrscheinlich die Arbeitslosigkeit vergr?\ert.

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Résumé Facteurs spécifiques, ch?mage et théorie de commerce extérieur. - Dans cet article les auteurs construisent un modèle à deux secteurs en présence du ch?mage général et ils l’intègrent avec le cadre principal de la théorie du commerce international. Une qualité de ce modèle est qu’il n’ignore pas le facteur de production ?terre? qui est traité par la théorie moderne du commerce extérieur comme presque non-existant. Entre autres choses, le modèle démontre que la protection en faveur des industries qui utilisent le facteur terre est inférieure à la protection en faveur des autres industries, et c’est pourquoi la protection des industries qui utilisent le facteur terre probablement mène à un accroissement du ch?mage.

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Resumen Factores específicos, desempleo y teoría del comercio. - En este trabajo se construye un modelo bisectorial en presencia de desempleo generalizado compatible con el cuerpo central de la teoría del comercio internacional. Una virtud de este modelo es que no ignora el factor ?tierra?, que es tratado como si no existiera por la teoría moderna del comercio. Entre otras cosas, este modelo muestra que la protección dada a sectores industriales que insumen tierra es inferior a la dada a otras industrias y que por lo tanto la protección de industrias que insumen tierra trente a la competencia extranjera podrfa contribuír a aumentar el desempleo.

     

Predicting capacity utilization: Federal Reserve vs time-series models

This study evaluates the Federal Reserve forecasts of manufacturing capacity utilization employing, as benchmarks, the forecasts from a univariate model which utilizes past information in capacity utilization, and from a bivariate model which utilizes past information in both capacity utilization and the federal funds rate. In addition to accurately predicting the directional change in capacity utilization, the Federal Reserve forecasts are “weakly” rational and generally superior to the bivariate forecasts. In light of another finding that monetary policy is non-neutral, we argue the Federal Reserve forecasts of capacity utilization have positively contributed to the Fed’s success in maintaining a low inflationary environment.

The promise of granularity theory in simplifying challenges of entrepreneurial internationalization

This article proposes the use of the theory of granularity as an overall theme for this issue, in order to relate various issues discussed by the articles, and also to bridge across differences within and across articles in this issue.     

Devaluation and The Balance of Trade: A Synthesis of Monetary and Elasticity Approaches

The elasticities and monetary approaches to balance of trade and balance of payments give different predictions about the effects of changes in exchange rates on the trade balance and balance of payments. This paper, using a theoretical model, supports the arguments that elasticities and monetary approaches to balance of payments are complementary theories since each is merely a fragment of a larger system. It was shown that the short run effects of devaluation are those produced by the elasticities approach and the long run effects are those implies by the monetary approach. [431]     

Urban unemployment, informal sector and development policies

We analyze the effects of wage subsidy policies on unemployment and welfare in the model that is characterized by the existence of both open unemployment and the informal sector that producesfinal goods. Our main findings are as follows. Wage subsidies to the agricultural and informal sectors increase welfare and decrease urban unemployment. The effects of a wage subsidy to manufacturing sector on welfare and unemployment are conditional. We identify some sufficient conditions for the definite results and interpret them.     

Financial Innovation,Deposit Deregulation,and the US M1-GNP Link

This paper considers the effect of financial liberalization on aggregate consumption, with a special focus on Taiwan, which has sustained a high savings rate and a rapid rate of economic growth under financial dualism, but has undertaken financial liberalization since the 1980s, leading to an expansion of the formal financial sector. The paper finds that, because of an active informal financial sector, consumers in Taiwan are less credit constrained than in other developing countries. However, the expansion of the formal financial sector has contributed to some relaxation of consumer credit constraints and thereby changes in the income and interest elasticities of consumption. It also has brought about a higher consumption growth rate, offsetting at least partially the positive growth effect of financial liberalization, which helps improve the efficiency in finanacial intermediation.     

Emigration,Finite Changes and Wage Inequality

This article shows that large outmigration of labor leads to finite changes in the structure of production at source. We argue that sectors may vanish as they cannot pay higher wages consequent to emigration. We also inquire whether emigration of one type of labor hurts the other non‐emigrating type in this setup. Various situations when real incomes of the emigrating and the non‐emigrating types do not move together are demonstrated. This generalizes some of the existing results in the literature. In particular, emigration can lead to a drastic change in the degree of inequality depending on which of the sectors survive in the postemigration regime.