Income Taxation and the Diversity of Consumer Goods: A Political Economy Approach*

After‐tax income inequality has risen since the mid‐1990s, as increases in market income inequality have not been offset by greater fiscal redistribution. We argue that the substantial increase in the diversity of consumer goods has mitigated mounting political pressures for redistribution. Within a probabilistic voting framework, we demonstrate that if the share of diversified goods in the consumption bundle increases sufficiently with income, then an increase in goods diversity can reduce the political equilibrium tax rate. Focusing on OECD countries, we find empirical support for both the model's micro‐political foundations and the implied relation between goods diversity and fiscal policy outcomes.     

Tourism competitiveness index of the Asia-Pacific region through consistency analysis

The world’s economy shifts to a more competitive environment as globalization expands and countries have to adjust by making decisions to improve their competitiveness in all sectors. The Travel and Tourism Report, a useful tool facilitating policy-making and business decisions, allows entities to envision their ranking in the face of the travel and tourism through the creation of a competitiveness index. Focusing on Asia and the Pacific, this paper intends to investigate internal consistency of the constructs based on data analysis techniques such as correlation and reliability, essentials to broader acceptance of the index. The results indicate that high linear association between index and pillars leads ultimately to good level of consistency and highlight the lack of relationship between overall consistency and inter-class consistency. It is suggested to pay close attention to unidimensionality of constructs and inter-relation between variables while building an indicator system as it increases its reliability.     

电子商务和旅游:塞舌尔电子旅游的现状和影响

本论文主要阐述电子商务对当代经济,尤其是对于在服务业的电子旅游方面所产生的冲击和影响。在信息和通信技术的推动下,电子商务改变了全世界商务运行的方式。尽管如此,本调查主要针对于以旅游业为主要外汇来源的发展中的塞舌尔岛。主要从以下几方面论述,第一,旅游业的概况,第二,突出问题所在,第三,目前解决这些问题的方法,最后,对于改善在这个产业中的技术发展的建议。文中的数据自于游客和商业调查并将用基本的评估和回归分析法来进行分析。调查的主要目的在于首先引起公众对于当今经济中电子商务的重要性和含义,其次,为塞舌尔电子商务将来的政策发展提供参考。我希望决策者和一些生意人能以此文为借鉴,帮助他们不仅为塞舌尔的旅游业,并且为塞舌尔经济的其他方面的未来和技术进步铺平道路。     

Public sector health insurance trusts

Public sector associations have successfully developed and run employee health insurance pools for almost 30 years, providing members with savings and flexibility not available from commercial health insurance carriers. This article looks at the models, technical tools and governance philosophy that have contributed to their success in a very challenging business environment.     

National governments under the discipline of global forces

Globalisation, in particular the increasing multinationalisation of businesses, has forced government suppliers into direct (in the form of parallel governments) or indirect (in the form of free trade) competition. However, the growth of supranational organisations such as the EU threatens the power of exit which is so vital to competition: overlapping government functions create waste and encourage further the growth of centralisation.     

Do computers improve the drawing of a geometrical figure for 10?year-old children?

Nowadays, computer aided design (CAD) is widely used by designers. Would children learn to draw more easily and more efficiently if they were taught with computerised tools? To answer this question, we made an experiment designed to compare two methods for children to do the same drawing: the classical ‘pen and paper’ method and a CAD method. We asked two groups of 14 children to draw a geometrical figure: the Rey-Osterrieth Complex Figure (ROCF). The first group drew it with a pen on a sheet of paper (‘paper’ group) and the second on a computer screen with CAD software (‘computer’ group). Two drawing conditions were studied: ‘Copying’ the figure and drawing from memory. Results showed that the ‘computer’ group was better at copying the figure but that both groups performed equally well when the figure was drawn from memory. These preliminary results suggest that using a CAD tool could help children while they copy a model, but that it does not improve their ability to draw the same figure using their own, internal model.