Analyzing the Multiple Dimensions of Negotiation Processes

Negotiation processes involve a substantive, a communication, and an emotional dimension. These dimensions have been analyzed mainly in isolation of each other. We introduce an approach to consider all three dimensions and present an empirical study on the relations between these dimensions. Results indicate a strong linkage between communication behavior and emotions, while connections to the substantive dimension of the negotiation process are weaker.     

Über einige Ansätze der Wachstumstheorie

Ohne ZusammenfassungMit 3 TextabbildungenProfessor Dr. Dr. Dr. h. c. Dr. h. c. Walter Georg Waffenschmidt zum 75. Geburtstag gewidmet.     

A flow mechanism for layering in a heterogeneous porous medium

The flow of a particle fluid mixture through a heterogeneous permeable material is studied with a view to obtaining characteristic fingerprints for the structures that such flows may exhibit. This flow has a variable density and behaves as a compressible fluid, with the compressibility derived from the variations of the local field variables. Both pressure-sensitive or speed-fluctuation-dependent rheologies are studied in the steady state and a speed-fluctuation-dependent material is studied in a time-dependent analysis. The salient findings are that for a pressure-sensitive material structures normal to the mean flow direction are obtained. For the speed-fluctuation-dependent rheology, the pressure structures are normal to the mean flow, whereas the density structures are aligned with the flow (fingering).     

Liberalising Services Trade in the EU

The internal market for services, which are estimated to account for 60 to 70 per cent of economic activity in the European Union, is still rife with legal and administrative barriers to cross-border trade. The problems involved in integrating national services markets into one large internal market are highlighted by the ongoing fierce controversy over the Commission’s proposed services directive. The following contributions discuss some pertinent issues.

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*The article is based in part on a paper prepared for the World Trade Forum 2004 in Berne (“The Single Undertaking After Cancun: Diversity and Variable Geometry in the World Trading System”). All references in the following are to the European Communities, reflecting its membership status in the WTO, rather than to the European Union. The views expressed are those of the author and cannot be attributed to the WTO Secretariat.     

Liberalizing trade in services: from Marrakech to Seattle

WTO Members are currently preparing the ground for a new services round to be launched in Seattle, in December 1999. This article reviews recent developments in services trade, the underlying economic factors and the political response given hitherto by WTO Members. Critical issues in the preparation of the new round, including the choice of the basic negotiating approach, are discussed. All views expressed are those of the author.     

SMEs in services trade — A GATS perspective

Unlike traditional (goods-only) trade agreements, the scope of the General Agreement on Trade in Services extends beyond the treatment of products (services) to cover that of suppliers as well. The trade interests of particular groups of suppliers, including SMEs, can thus be addressed directly under the Agreement. This paper provides an overview of potentially relevant policies and policy disciplines. It also seeks to identify the scope for further initiatives, from fostering compliance with existing transparency obligations to advancing the Agreement’s liberalisation and rule-making mandates from an SME perspective.     

Ageing in Europe

For many people all over Europe, there is an understanding and an expectation that in old age they will be taken care of by the state. High social security contributions throughout the three or four decades of a working life are rationalised by the prospect of a straightforward transition out of the labour force when the time comes. While this was a reasonable expectation in decades past, a number of factors have combined to cause people all across the continent to feel very anxious about what awaits them once it is time to exit the labour force into retirement. The well-documented demographic transition of many rich European countries is a big factor, as greying populations start to weigh on the sparser younger generations, leading to increasing dependency ratios that would cause any social security system to buckle. The Great Recession has not helped matters, and the austerity measures still crippling many vulnerable European nations will not make anyone in these countries feel optimistic about their post-working lives. The following papers look at different threads of the new reality of ageing in Europe, from pension reform and prolonging the working life to more qualitative aspects such as an analysis of the quality of life of the elderly across Europe. They serve to inform and advise on an important issue that will affect everyone in Europe at some point in their lives.