Direct Displacement Effects of Labour Market Programmes*

Using a panel of 250 Swedish municipalities over the period 1987–1996, we examine the direct displacement effects of active labour market programmes (ALMPs). Compared to earlier studies on this topic, we have more and better data. Based on our GMM estimations, we find that there are direct displacement effects from subsidised employment (in the order of approximately 65%), but that there seem to be no (significant) displacement effects from training. This result seems to be robust to several alternative specifications.     

Evaluation Methods for Non‐Experimental Data

This paper presents a review of non‐experimental methods for the evaluation of social programmes. We consider matching and selection methods and analyse each for cross‐section, repeated cross‐section and longitudinal data. The methods are assessed drawing on evidence from labour market programmes in the UK and in the US.     

Short‐term impact of a voluntary health intervention on overall vs. preventive healthcare consumption

Healthtrac Rewards is a US‐based, workplace wellness intervention promoting healthy behaviour through voluntary self‐reporting of participants' dietary habits, physical activity and medical concerns. Monthly financial incentives encourage either primary participation or secondary participation requiring additional interaction with Healthtrac personnel. Using data from 17 533 eligible employees, the purpose of the study was to determine whether Healthtrac participants consumed fewer healthcare services, as measured by 2004 medical claim costs or numbers of procedures, relative to non‐participants. High‐cost individuals tended to self‐select into the programme. Costs were 22–27% greater among participants after controlling for other factors. Participants consumed more preventive care, however, which was correlated with reduced future procedures. The secondary intervention was more effective than the primary intervention, suggesting a priority on increasing intensity of involvement vs. basic enrolment.     

A meta‐analytic investigation of the relationship between HRM bundles and firm performance

Human resource management bundles consisting of multiple complementary practices are typically considered superior to individual best practices in influencing firm performance. This study investigates the relationship between three such bundles (empowerment, motivation, and skill‐enhancing) and business outcomes (retention, operating performance, financial performance, and overall performance ratings). A meta‐analysis of 239 effect sizes derived from 65 studies reveals that HRM bundles have significantly larger magnitudes of effects than their constituent individual practices, are positively related to business outcomes, and display effect sizes that are comparable to or larger than those of high‐performance work systems. These findings reaffirm the case for firm‐level investments in synergistic HRM combinations and highlight the importance of investing in complementary practices. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

地质调查项目预算定额管理现状及发展前景

该文介绍了国外地质调查项目预算定额管理的现状 ,结合我国地勘行业的实际分析了地调项目预算管理中存在的主要问题 ,并就其未来的发展方向从人才培训、定额管理两个方面进行了探讨。     

Commentary. 'Work first': workfare and the regulation of contingent labour markets

The paper presents a critical review of UK and US welfare-to-workstrategies, stressing their implications for changing formsof labour regulation. The favoured policy orientation - 'workfirst' - forcefully redistributes the risks and burdens of job-marketinstability from the state to unemployed individuals, the solutionto whose 'welfare dependency' is presented in terms of a one-waytransition into (low) waged work. At a systemic level, the analysissuggests that a regressive regulatory accommodation may be emergingbetween mandatory welfare-to-work programming on the one handand the lowest reaches of deregulated, 'flexible' labour marketson the other, as the destabilisation of welfare via work-activationmeasures creates a forced labour supply for contingent jobs.     

What Drives Marginal Abatement Costs of Greenhouse Gases on Dairy Farms? A Meta‐modelling Approach

This paper examines the relationships between the marginal abatement costs (MAC) of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions on dairy farms and factors such as herd size, milk yield and available farm labour, on the one hand, and prices, GHG indicators and GHG reduction levels, on the other. A two‐stage Heckman procedure is used to estimate these relationships from a systematically designed set of simulations with a highly detailed mixed integer bio‐economic farm‐level model. The resulting meta‐models are then used to analyse how MAC vary across farm‐level conditions and GHG measures. We find that simpler GHG indicators lead to significantly higher MAC, and that MAC strongly increase beyond a 1–5% emission reduction, depending on farm attributes and the chosen indicator. MAC decrease rapidly with increasing farm size, but the effect levels off beyond a herd size of 40 cows. As expected, the main factors driving gross margins per dairy cow also significantly influence mitigation costs. Our results indicate high variability of MAC on real life farms. In contrast to time consuming simulations with the complex mixed integer bio‐economic programming model, the meta‐models allow the distribution of MAC in a farm population to be efficiently derived and thus could be used to upscale to regional or sector level.     

The Effects of Kenya's ‘Smarter’ Input Subsidy Programme on Smallholder Behaviour and Incomes: Do Different Quasi‐experimental Approaches Lead to the Same Conclusions?

Kenya joined the ranks of sub‐Saharan African (SSA) countries implementing targeted input subsidy programmes (ISPs) for inorganic fertiliser and improved seed in 2007 with the establishment of the National Accelerated Agricultural Inputs Access Programme (NAAIAP). Although several features of NAAIAP were ‘smarter’ than other ISPs in the region, some aspects were less ‘smart’. However, the efficacy of the programme, and the relationship between its design and effectiveness, have been little studied. This article uses nationwide survey data to estimate the effects of NAAIAP participation on Kenyan smallholders’ cropping patterns, incomes, and poverty status. Unlike most previous studies of ISPs, a range of panel data‐ and propensity score‐based methods are used to estimate the effects of NAAIAP. The article then compares these estimated effects across estimators and to the effects of other ISPs in SSA, and discusses the likely links between differences in programme designs and impacts. The results are robust to the choice of estimator and suggest that, despite substantial crowding out of commercial fertiliser demand, NAAIAP had sizeable impacts on maize production and poverty severity. NAAIAP's success in targeting resource‐poor farmers and implementation through vouchers redeemable at private agro‐dealer shops likely contributed to its more favorable impacts than those of ISPs in Malawi and Zambia.     

The challenges of policy coordination at a programme level: Why joining-up is hard to do

This article examines obstacles to policy coordination to promote development at a programme level. Contemporary efforts to promote coordination or ‘joined-up’ working across government entities highlight attempts to promote policy synergy and resource maximisation for achieving objectives that straddle the sector-specific boundaries of multiple departments. This paper assessed efforts to coordinate the actions of multiple departments towards achieving a single cross-cutting policy objective. Programme-level analysis of the Expanded Public Works Programme in South Africa revealed various reasons why joining-up is difficult to negotiate in practice. This consisted of policy goal and operational incompatibility between specialised entities, which appears sensitive to the specificity and stringency of policy goals and implementation regimens; as well as a host of difficulties related to how coordination is formally defined and designated. This included role definition and confusion, as well as the nature and locus of coordination mandates across and within individual departments.     

Exploring the efficacy of youth sport camps to build customer relationships

Professional sport teams strive to cultivate a large, loyal fan base. Relationship marketing is well suited for developing loyal customers. Professional sport teams provide youth sport camps mostly for added revenue streams and marketing extensions. However, research neglects to investigate which relationship factors may help build or reignite long-term fan development. This exploratory study examined the efficacy of these camps on factors theorised for developing long-term customer loyalty. Parents of camp participants were evaluated because they may appeal to teams interested in short- and long-term results. Using repeated measures MANOVA, matched pre- and post-camp data were collected from 70 parents of participants from four different NBA teams’ youth sport camps around the United States. Data analysis revealed the camps were effective in enhancing team identification, attitudes toward the team, and team satisfaction. Results suggest that youth sport camps assist in building customer relationships with parents. Further, the benefits of relationship marketing efforts may extend beyond primary participants via the familial socialisation process. The three aforementioned precursors to fan loyalty showed significant increases after parents’ experience with the teams’ youth sport camp. These findings highlight a possible marketing platform that can serve both short- and long-term objectives for professional basketball teams.