Consumption,Resistance and Everyday Life: Ruptures and Continuities

This paper makes the case for regarding political consumption and more generally individual collective action as an instance of “everyday resistance.” In doing so it seeks to make connection with the political case against representative politics, one that stretches back to the origins of “official” politics at the start of the 19th century. Three moments in the history of the idea of everyday resistance are presented: Max Stirner’s egoistic individualism, Leo Tolstoy’s critique of violence, and Agnes Heller’s evocation of the everyday as a site of civic courage. The examples show the longevity and persistence in political thought of the idea of the individual as the locus of social power, one that puts it at odds with the normative assumptions of theories of representation. They also show the dangers of assuming that individual collective action can unproblematically be considered a form of participation in democratic processes as opposed to a resistance against incorporation into mainstream or “official” politics. Rights which are often at the core of efforts of activists become remodelled as a weapon of contingent “everyday” struggles as opposed to a universal or transcendentally posited phenomenon.

On the distribution of tax effects on headquarters location

This paper sheds light on the distribution of profit and personal income tax elasticities of headquarters location across 13,074 firms in 68 countries over 1999–2012. Results suggest high variability in elasticities, which is overlooked in virtually all earlier work on the matter.     

THE IMPLICATIONS OF TRADER COGNITIVE ABILITIES ON STOCK MARKET PROPERTIES

Market structure and individual rationality remain at the centre of a debate as to which is the main driving force in market performance. We examine the role of individual rationality, comparing zero‐intelligence traders with traders with different levels of intelligence using a special adaptive form of strongly typed genetic programming‐based learning algorithm. We use this approach with real data: historical quotes of the S&P 500 and Coca‐Cola stock prices. We find a mixture of positive and negative impacts from intelligence on market performance. Because the concept of market structure as a driving force has been significantly challenged in the literature, we suggest that the inclusion of both intelligence and market structures is important when examining the driving forces of market performance. This inclusion is consistent with the research of Todd and Gigerenzer (Journal of Economic Psychology, 24 (2003) 143–165), which asserts that both environment (market structure) and agents’ cognition play important roles. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Options pricing under the one-dimensional jump-diffusion model using the radial basis function interpolation scheme

This paper will demonstrate how European and American option prices can be computed under the jump-diffusion model using the radial basis function (RBF) interpolation scheme. The RBF interpolation scheme is demonstrated by solving an option pricing formula, a one-dimensional partial integro-differential equation (PIDE). We select the cubic spline radial basis function and adopt a simple numerical algorithm (Briani et al. in Calcolo 44:33–57, 2007) to establish a finite computational range for the improper integral of the PIDE. This algorithm reduces the truncation error of approximating the improper integral. As a result, we are able to achieve a higher approximation accuracy of the integral with the application of any quadrature. Moreover, we a numerical technique termed cubic spline factorisation (Bos and Salkauskas in J Approx Theory 51:81–88, 1987) to solve the inversion of an ill-conditioned RBF interpolant, which is a well-known research problem in the RBF field. Finally, our numerical experiments show that in the European case, our RBF-interpolation solution is second-order accurate for spatial variables, while in the American case, it is second-order accurate for spatial variables and first-order accurate for time variables.     

Interest Rate Feedback Rules in an Open Economy with Forward Looking Inflation

With the adoption of an explicit inflation target in the UK, there has been renewed interest in the properties of alternative interest rate feedback rules. Following Svensson (1999) a literature examining the relative merits of inflation and price level targeting has also developed. In this paper we compare the stabilization properties of the two forms of feedback rule that have been used most frequently in the literature and which give rise to price level and inflation targeting, respectively. The model in which we embed our rules is significantly richer than those considered in the price level targeting literature and this allows us to explain why the relative performance of the rules is dependent upon the nature of the shock considered and whether or not excess inflation is defined in terms of consumer or output price inflation.     

The determinants of the location of foreign direct investment in UK regions†

This article employs a database of over 2000 observations of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) projects in UK regions. We analyse this data by means of various multinomial and conditional logit models in order to identify the major determinants of the location choices of these inward investments. Having controlled for the various characteristics of inward investing firms, the projects and the regions, our results suggest that existing regional specialization is the single most important determining feature of where inward FDI locates. In addition, London is seen to benefit primarily by the immigration of new investments, the majority of which are related to service sector activities.     

Modeling the dynamics of inflation compensation

This paper investigates the relationship between short-term and long-term inflation expectations using daily data on inflation compensation derived from the term structure of real and nominal interest rates. We use a flexible econometric model which allows us to uncover this relationship in a data-based manner. We relate our findings to the issue of whether inflation expectations are anchored, unmoored or contained. Our empirical results indicate no support for either unmoored or firmly anchored inflation expectations. Most evidence indicates that inflation expectations are contained.     

Creativity in marketing management—a unified approach

This paper sets out to identify how marketing management can provide the lead in adopting a more creative approach to innovation at the idea generation stage.

Both the proactive and reactive approaches to innovation strategy are discussed in the context of change factors and the sourcing of new ideas for innovation. Four loci of idea initiation are identified, which appear to vary in importance according to industry sector.

Although evidence is presented to suggest that heuristic techniques are being used increasingly to enhance creativity, their use is limited both by the perception of their function and the strategic mode adopted by the organisation. The concept of the marketing‐centred creative circle is introduced to counter these limiting factors. It is argued that the creative circle offers a bridging function in the generation of new ideas for innovation and in extending the existing stock. As well as performing this function, a more creative and entrepreneurial atmosphere will emerge as lateral relationships develop. With the development of successive marketing‐centred creative circles within the organisation, a unified approach to creative innovation will evolve as the traditional proactive and reactive strategies merge.     

Scaling‐up Foreign Aid: Will the ‘Big Push’ Work?

International donors are substantially scaling‐up aid programmes. At the same time, there are widespread reservations over how much aid recipient countries can use effectively. Such concerns are supported by the aid effectiveness literature which finds that there are limits to the amounts of aid recipients can efficiently absorb. This article demonstrates that a ‘big push’ in foreign aid will not lead to diminishing returns as long as donors get the inter‐country allocation of aid right. This is true even if donors provide aid at levels equal to the well‐known target of 0.7 per cent of their gross national income.