The Performance of Service Industries in Canada: A Real Value Analysis

The performance of service industries in Canada has been lower than that of good industries over the last four decades, with noticeable exceptions such as for railways and telecommunication carriers. Service industries were less economically (and technically) efficient in that they generated less output value (quantity) per hour worked (level and growth) or per combined unit of labour and capital (multifactor productivity growth) than good industries. The relative output price of services declined slightly over time compared with goods. At the disaggregated level, changing relative output prices were substantial and proved to be an important factor explaining the relative satisfactory economic performance of many service industries despite their low technical performance. Nevertheless, the output share of service industries increased over that period, sustained, mainly, by the growing recourse of all firms to outsourcing of services.     

民间投资与产业转型——以浙江省为例

本文以浙江省为例,利用浙江改革开放后30多年的数据资料,对民间投资比重和三次产业的比重进行协整建模分析,分析结果表明,民间投资对浙江三次产业结构的变化起到重要的作用。民间投资比重上升是拉动浙江第三产业比重上升的原因,从而也说明了浙江第三产业的发展主要是依靠民间资本的投入;但对第二产业而言,民间投资对其的作用是反向的,这说明浙江第二产业的发展主要不是依靠民间资本的投入,而是依靠政府的投资。     

Addressing plastic pollution through green consumption: Predicting intentions to use menstrual cups in the Philippines

Plastic pollution is a global environmental crisis that poses a huge threat to the health of people and marine ecosystems worldwide. A significant source of plastic pollution is menstrual hygiene management, and an approach that can help address this crisis is the usage of washable and reusable menstrual cups. Using an extended theory of planned behavior model that includes self-identity and perceived quality, the study predicted intentions to use menstrual cups in the Philippines. Structural equation modeling results showed that perceived quality predicted attitudes towards menstrual cup usage. Moreover, attitudes, perceived behavioral control, and self-identity predicted intentions to use menstrual cups. There were also some differences in the factors and predictors of intentions between non-users and regular users of menstrual cups. Among regular users, perceived behavioral control did not predict intentions. These findings provide empirical support for the extended model, and provides insights for governments, non-government organizations, and corporations in promoting the usage of menstrual cups to address the global plastic pollution crisis.     

Asymmetric risk perception and firm financing in the institutional envelope

This study investigates how asymmetric risk preferences and national institutions co-determine how firms are financed across countries. We include prospect theory into the discussion of uncertainty avoidance and the institutional envelope in IB, and argue that country-specific bias in the evaluation of downside risks and upside potentials explain variation in how otherwise similar firms raise funds. Exploiting a unique dataset on risk preferences, we show that risk perception in general, and asymmetric risk preferences as predicted by prospect theory in particular, affect corporate capital structure. We also show that the national institutional envelope constrains these effects and discuss implications for international business research beyond capital structure. We test our predictions on a panel of 10,355 firm-year observations.     

The medical expense deduction and income levels: Progressive or regressive?

The medical expense deduction (MED) allows taxpayers to deduct from taxable income a proportion of their out-of-pocket medical insurance and health care expenses. Because the rate of subsidy is equal to the marginal tax rate previous studies have found MED to be a regressive tax mechanism biased toward benefiting higher-income taxpayers. The authors demonstrate, using GINI coefficients, that MED makes the tax structure more progressive than it would otherwise be and increases equality of after-tax incomes.     

经济学视域下的公共政策分析:批判与反思

当前主流经济理论对公共政策的分析主要是基于其广泛适用的规则和假设,在进行演绎式分析推理过程中,其所使用的抽象效率标准将公平分析几乎完全排除在外,从而使公共政策在很大程度上失去了其应有的价值判断。现实中,社会性个体基于契约理性追求角色意义上的目标及其协调,因此,公共政策首先应考虑的是目标定位与一致认可,这必然要兼顾公平与效率,并全面考虑人类行为的伦理、经济和法律方面,这是人作为一切社会关系的总和的必然产物和要求。政府公共政策及其引导下的集体行动是对个体角色目标的协调一致的表现和结果,因此公共政策只有能够满足诸多个体实现不同的个人目标,才有被认可并得到执行的可能。由此可见,公共政策首先应当有其价值判断,该价值判断建立在共识判断的基础之上。     

逆向物流的功能分析

随着社会对环境资源的日益关注,人们越来越重视对废旧产品和原材料的再利用。本文从逆向物流的内涵入手,对逆向物流的功能进行了较为详细的分析。认为我国逆向物流的开发利用存在着巨大的空间。     

实施抗菌药物专项整治活动前后抗菌药物使用情况分析

目的分析抗菌药物临床应用专项整治活动前后抗菌药物的使用情况。方法调取医院抗菌药物相关数据并对病例汇总分析、评价。结果抗菌药物年使用率下降至43.1%,抗菌药物送检率上升至59.3%。结论专项整治活动开展后,抗菌药物管理得到优化,抗菌药物使用更加规范提高了抗菌药物合理使用水平。     

Using dead reckoning in economic projections

Economics is an inexact science, measurement of basic data is at best approximate, and most interesting relationships change relatively rapidly in developing countries. Key variables determining economic prospects are often impossible to include into models. Models and their mathematical algorithms however are deceptively precise, which often complicates the process of constructing and using economic projection models in developing countries.This paper will examine those macro models intended for operational policy purposes and how they are used. These models try to be analytically good and have sufficient plausibility to influence policy. Thus, a great deal of judgment is required in constructing, using, and interpreting projection models in developing countries: the “dead reckoning” element.     

CAS理论视角:财务核心能力系统演化过程探析

财务核心能力在企业发展过程中呈现动态性。本文运用CAS理论对财务核心能力系统的演化过程进行分析,确定了财务核心能力系统是一个复杂适应系统,根据CAS理论原理建立财务核心能力系统演化过程模型,并将该过程分为确定主体、主体个体演化以及系统整体演化三个阶段。