Technology roadmapping (TRM) and strategic alignment for an applied research centre: a case study with methodological contributions

Technology roadmapping provides a strategic tool to help companies develop an outside‐in view and challenge their current competitive perspectives. In this paper, the authors describe the roadmapping process, which is aligned, with the research and development (R&D) strategy of an applied research centre. This process is based in an adapted combination of state‐of‐the‐art methodologies, and as a result, the case study shows interesting findings in terms of R&D strategy, technology strategy and roadmapping processes and methodology.     

Neural network volatility forecasts

We analyse whether the use of neural networks can improve ‘traditional’ volatility forecasts from time-series models, as well as implied volatilities obtained from options on futures on the Spanish stock market index, the IBEX-35. One of our main contributions is to explore the predictive ability of neural networks that incorporate both implied volatility information and historical time-series information. Our results show that the general regression neural network forecasts improve the information content of implied volatilities and enhance the predictive ability of the models. Our analysis is also consistent with the results from prior research studies showing that implied volatility is an unbiased forecast of future volatility and that time-series models have lower explanatory power than implied volatility. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Competitive environments and protective behavior

The class of two-person competition games is introduced and analyzed. For any game in this class the set of Nash equilibria is convex and all Nash equilibria lead to the same payoff vector. Competition games are compared to other competitive environments such as unilaterally competitive games and rivalry games. Moreover, protective behavior within competitive environments is analyzed. For matrix games it is known that protective strategies profiles exactly correspond to proper equilibria. It is shown that this result can be extended to the class of unilaterally competitive games.     

Regulation in education

This paper analyses inefficiencies in community composition resulting from peer group effects in education. We depart from the existing literature in two essential ways. Firstly, we introduce heterogeneity between communities (one community is more productive than another if its school produces the same educational quality at lower cost), and secondly, we introduce informational asymmetries by assuming that education, in each community, is financed by local public funds and produced by a school which has private information about its cost when it is privatized.     

Spatial Integration in the Spanish Mackerel Market

This article analyses the potential links between regional first‐sale markets for mackerel in Spain using fractional cointegration techniques. The results indicate that this is not an integrated market, and we demonstrate that there are no links, at least in the long term, between any of Spain's five regional markets. This result has significant implications in policy terms, as local, regional and European authorities must take into account the need to apply distinct local policies.     

Second-best tax policy and natural resource management in growing economies

This paper investigates the exploitation of natural resources in a growing economy within a second-best fiscal policy framework. Agents derive utility from two types of consumption goods—one which relies on a natural resource input and one which does not—as well as from leisure and from natural resource amenity values. We connect second best policy to essential components of utility by considering the elasticity of substitution among each of the four utility arguments. The results illustrate potentially important relationships between amenity values and leisure. When amenity values are complementary with leisure, for instance when natural resources are used for recreation, optimal taxes on goods produced with natural resources generally increase over time. On the other hand, optimal taxes on goods produced from natural resources generally decrease over time when leisure and amenity values are substitutes. Under some parameterizations, complex dynamics leading to non-monotonic time paths can emerge.     

DURATION OF UNEMPLOYMENT IN SPAIN: RELATIVE EFFECTS OF UNEMPLOYMENT BENEFIT AND FAMILY CHARACTERISTICS

ABSTRACT We estimate the effects of unemployment benefit and family situation on the unemployment duration in Spain. Empirical results indicate that the distinctions between the exits into employment and the exits from the labour force and between men and women are important. Although unemployment benefit reduces significantly the job-finding probabilities, its effects are much larger on exits from the labour force. Many people who decide to go out of the labour force delay their exits until they exhaust their unemployment benefits. Family situation also has strong effects on the duration of unemployment in Spain. Household heads have about twice larger job-finding probability than non-heads, and having a working household head or other working household members improves employment probability. This suggests that family connections in the labour market are important determinants of unemployment duration in Spain.     

Optimal taxation in the Uzawa–Lucas model with externality in human capital

In this paper we study the optimal policy in the Uzawa–Lucas model with externality in human capital when agents value both consumption and leisure. We find that the government pursuing the first best can achieve its goal by a subsidy which depends on foregone earnings while studying and which is financed through a lump sum tax. Anyway, the optimal policy, that should be designed to provide incentives for agents to devote more time to schooling and cut both on leisure and working, is not unique. There exists an infinite number of combinations of consumption, capital income, labor income and lump sum taxes that can decentralize the first best.