General equilibrium models of monopolistic competition: A new approach

We analyze a class of ‘large group’ Chamberlinian monopolistic competition models by applying different concepts of functional separability to the same set of first-order conditions for utility maximization. We show that multiplicatively quasi-separable (MQS) functions yield ‘constant relative risk aversion’ (CRRA), and, therefore ‘constant elasticity of substitution’ (CES), functions, whereas additively quasi-separable (AQS) functions yield ‘constant absolute risk aversion’ (CARA) functions. We then show that the CARA specification sheds new light on: (i) pro-competitive effects, i.e., profit-maximizing prices are decreasing in the mass of competing firms; and (ii) a competitive limit, i.e., profit-maximizing prices converge to marginal costs when the mass of competing firms becomes arbitrarily large.     

Making green discourses matter in policy-making: Learning from discursive power struggles within the policy area of car taxation

This paper is about stability and change in the policy-making discourse of a traditional neoclassical policy area, the area of car taxation. Stability is here related to the unquestioned continuation of a traditional neoclassical economics perspective in policy-making, whereas change is related to the introduction and impact of environmental concerns. The aim of the paper is to investigate, what makes green discourses matter in traditional policy-making. It is based on an in-depth study of policy-making processes related to car taxation in two environmental front-runner countries, Sweden and Denmark.Making green discourses matter in policy-making is an important contemporary environmental challenge. Therefore, as Tian Shi argues, we need more research into the institutional setting of the policy-making process. Ecological economics as a policy science has to have a broad understanding of the political economic nature of the policy process. Taking this standpoint as the point of departure, the paper seeks to uncover questions such as, what is the policy-making reality in which Swedish and Danish green discourses have to make a difference? How do existing neoclassical regimes react, when green actors attempt to influence policy-making from an environmental point of view? And to what extent can green discourses actually have an impact on the policy world within the area of car taxation?The paper concludes that the traditional neoclassical economic discourse is particularly robust and resistant against alternative green discourses. Stability rather than change is the dominating picture. This does not imply that environmental concerns will not be taken into account in the future. Rather it implies that only the changes, which keep up the existing order, or enhance the narrow power-related interests of the dominating actors, will materialise more or less easily. The rest is a power struggle in which timing, coalition-building, persistence and thorough knowledge about the field in question is of importance. In this struggle change agents will also benefit from the ability to rethink dominating ways of thinking and doing in an environmentally benign way. A rethinking that is based on environmental values while at the same time holding positive visions that are ‘compatible’ with the existing dominating discourse.     

The impact of E‐Verify mandates on labor market outcomes

A number of states have adopted laws that require employers to use the federal government's E‐Verify program to check workers' eligibility to work legally in the United States. Using data from the Current Population Survey, this study examines whether such laws affect labor market outcomes among Mexican immigrants who are likely to be unauthorized. We find evidence that E‐Verify mandates reduce average hourly earnings among likely unauthorized male Mexican immigrants while increasing labor force participation among likely unauthorized female Mexican immigrants. Furthermore, the mandates appear to lead to better labor market outcomes among workers likely to compete with unauthorized immigrants. Employment rises among male Mexican immigrants who are naturalized citizens in states that adopt E‐Verify mandates, and earnings rise among U.S.‐born Hispanic men. There is no evidence of significant effects among U.S.‐born non‐Hispanic whites.     

On the peer effects of star students

We estimate the effect that star students have on their siblings’ learning outcomes, measured by their high school grade point average (GPA) and their math grades. To this end, we couple administrative school data on grades with an unusual natural experiment in Peru that generates exogenous variation in the presence of star students at home. We find that star students increase their siblings’ GPA by 0.33 SDs and their math grades by 0.22 SDs. The effect size is inversely related to number of siblings, suggesting that the remaining siblings act as substitutes for the star student.     

Agglomeration and clusters: Tools and insights from coagglomeration patterns

Geographic clusters have received first‐order policy attention despite our limited academic knowledge about them. I explain how coagglomeration patterns of industries can inform the analysis of clusters by allowing us to better delineate them; to explore the causal mechanisms underlying them; and to more finely assess their impact on various economic outcomes.     

Age of first hunting experience: Results from a nationwide recreation survey

Abstract

Hunting participation, as indicated in the 1983 Nationwide Recreation Survey, is examined to determine the relationship between age of first hunting experience and adult level of participation. A statistically significant association between these two variables is found. In addition, more than 83 percent of those who hunt began their involvement by 18 years of age. The findings have implications for future hunting participation and the provision of programs for hunters.     

Product development with multiple partners: Strategies and conflicts in networks

This paper provides an insight into and discusses the variety of sources of conflict in linking multiple partners in a network to the product development process. Conflict issues are discussed in relation to focal company strategies for product development within networks. On the basis of three case studies representing three different strategic intentions and network situations, our findings suggest that the sources of conflict are related to the actors' definition and negotiation of the development task at hand. The study suggests that the ability to combine and find complementarities in the strategic intentions of the multiple participating actors is essential to accomplish innovation. The paper concludes that influential actors initiating or acceding to changes are crucial for reaching a positive outcome in joint product development.     

Managing International Distribution Channel Partners: A Cross-Cultural Approach

Although the topic of conflict has been extensively studied in the distribution channels literature from a domestic perspective, there is relatively little published research examining the construct within the international distribution channels context. This is of particular concern because cross-national channel partnerships are on the rise, and divergent cultures may engender heightened conflict, which has a deleterious effect on channel performance. This article explores the extent to which different channel leadership styles, predicated on Hofstede's dimensions of national culture, can be effective strategies to manage conflict in international distribution channels. Specifically, the article examines whether the relationship between leadership style and conflict in international distribution channels is moderated by national culture. Additionally, the impact of manifest conflict on international channel partner performance is investigated. A conceptual model and research propositions are developed. The use of leadership styles to manage disagreements among international channel partners is argued to be culturally specific. International channel management implications and directions for future research are suggested.     

What Drives Micro-Angel Investments?

Despite of the significant role of informal venture capital in the financing of new entrepreneurial ventures, there is little research explaining the factors determining the propensity of individuals to make microangel investments. Building on two theoretical frameworks, a social psychological theory of planned behavior and an economic theory on the determinants of demand for risky assets in household portfolios, we develop a set of hypotheses predicting the propensity of individuals to make informal investments in new businesses owned by others. In our analysis we test whether the determinants of micro-angel investments are similar when investing in a business owned by a close family member versus more distant business. The hypotheses are tested using data from 6007 interviews of Finnish adults carried out in the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor program in 2000–2002. The findings show that the theoretical frameworks have more power in explaining investments in firms not owned by close family members. The study provides new understanding of the differences in the drivers of different types of micro-angel investments.