Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Women's Candidacy and the Power of Incumbency in the 2019 Solomon Islands Election

The 2019 Solomon Islands election marked the first time in the country’s history that two women were elected to parliament in a general election. Lanelle Tanangada, who had been elected in the 2018 by-election for the Gizo/Kolombangara seat formerly held by her husband, fended off another strong challenge from former prime minister Gordon Darcy Lilo to keep the seat. Freda Tuki Soriacomua, who won the Temotu Vatud seat in 2014 but was removed from office in 2018 following a court challenge, regained her seat in 2019. While this is a milestone, the under-representation of women in Solomon Islands politics is a continued tradition. As of October 2019, women make up just 4% of members of the national parliament, and around 2% of provincial assembly members. This In Brief examines trends and patterns from the 2019 Solomon Islands election and their effect on women’s representation.
Mobilizing capacity to achieve the mainstreaming of disability sport

ABSTRACT Rationale: Mainstreaming is the policy of integrating the responsibility for disability sport provision into nondisabled sports organizations. While a contemporary organizational practice, we know little about how this process works. Purpose: We explore how sports organizations mobilized organizational capacity to implement mainstreaming. Method: Multiple case analyses was constructed on the experiences of three non-profit, provincial Northern Irish sporting organizations through documents and interviews. Findings: In order to mainstream disability sport financial, human, and network resources were combined and leveraged. Specifically, funds underpinned a commitment from staff, who drew upon their networks to attract and retain volunteers, educate the workforce, and develop more networks essential for programme creation. In each case however, insufficient planning limited the type and diversity of inclusive provision, and threatened sustainability. Practical Implications: Strategies need to be led by a community of practice drawn from the mixed economy of providers that support the development of disabled people through sport, not just sport organisations themselves. Research Contribution: This study provides new insights into how capacity is mobilized to mainstream disability sport. It highlights that appropriate policy support and planning mechanisms need to be in place before provision is enacted to ensure more inclusive provision from the outset.
The influence of moderate exercise on lipoprotein metabolism in fasted and postprandial states.

This thesis examines the influence of moderate exercise, attainable by a large percentage of the population, on lipoprotein metabolism in the fasted and postprandial states in normolipidaemic subjects. A cross-sectional study in middle-aged men and women (endurance athletes, recreational exercisers and sedentary controls) revealed that the more favourable fasted blood lipid profiles found in athletes were also apparent in recreational exercisers, with higher high density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol concentrations in female (1.94 v 1.57 mmol.l-1, p<0.05), but not male (1.50 v 1.34 mmol.l-1 NS), recreational exercisers than sedentary controls. HDLz cholesterol concentrations were higher in both male (26%, p<0.05) and female (42%, p<0.01) recreational exercisers than controls. [Continues. ]
Online Engagement Among Restaurant Customers: The Importance of Enhancing Flow for Social Media Users

The increased usage of digital communication technologies has transformed online engagement into a key aspect of the modern customer experience in the hospitality industry. The flow theory is especially important for understanding customer engagement in the online environment. The purpose of this study is to examine the antecedents of flow and to investigate its influence on the positive attitudes and continuance intentions among the users of social media. The study’s results show that challenge, information quality, and system quality all play significant roles in flow; and flow leads to positive attitudes and continuance intentions, which indicates the importance of creating flow to increase customer engagement. Academically, this study contributes to the limited body of literature on the flow experience and customer engagement in the hospitality context. Additionally, it provides practical insights how to gain competitive advantages by strategically managing customer engagement with social media marketing through flow.
Do Women Make Better in Tourism and Hospitality? A Conceptual Review from A Customer Satisfaction and Service Quality Perspective

ABSTRACT Women are disadvantaged at work in a wide variety of industries, including tourism and hospitality. This review paper aims to explore and discuss the role of gender from the perspective of women’s suitability for tourism and hospitality jobs. The study adopts a customer satisfaction and SERVQUAL perspective, and it analyzes research findings from various disciplines, including anthropology, biology, psychology, sociology, services marketing and management, and tourism and hospitality marketing and management. The analysis of multidisciplinary research findings shows that, in general terms, women may be better equipped than men in performing and overseeing a wide variety of tourism and hospitality jobs. The study has implications for women employment and entrepreneurship in tourism and hospitality.
Product Life‐Cycle, Knowledge Capital, and Comparative Advantage

This paper empirically investigates the effect of product life‐cycle on trade patterns. We measure the product life‐cycle length with patent citation data at the industry level. Using bilateral trade data from 2002 to 2006, we find that countries with more knowledge capital endowment export more in industries with shorter product life‐cycles. We show that this pattern is largely driven by the risk of imitation. The pattern is reversed when imitation is limited by stronger intellectual property rights.
A Typological Characterization of Organic Livestock Farms in the Natural Park Sierra de Grazalema Based on Technical and Economic Variables

This paper describes the typological characterization of the Natural Park Sierra de Grazalema (NPSG) livestock farms using its communal pastures (N = 23, 100% of population) in order to study their sustainability from 160 technical, economic and social variables (from direct on-farm data collection). A principal components analysis (PCA) produced four principal components related to size, livestock species, main productions and intensification level, explaining 73.6% of the variance. The subsequent cluster analysis classified the farms into four groups: C1 (medium size farms without sheep), C2 (large size and very extensive farms), C3 (farms with multipurpose sheep) and C4 (farms with dairy goat and without cattle). Forty-eight-point-seven percent of the surface was registered as organic but none of the farms’ commercialized products were organic. C2 and C3 (both having three ruminant species) are those farms that have more economic differences, the former generating the lowest profit, and the latter generating the highest; however, there is a risk to grasslands conservation from the current tendency that leads dairy farms to rapid intensification. Nevertheless, the very extensive farms are the most interesting for NPSG conservation and the administration should help to maintain the profitability of this sustainable traditional activity, which is necessary to conserve communal pastures.
Thou shalt not bear false witness against your customers: Cultural norms and the Volkswagen scandal

This paper investigates whether cultural norms shaped by religion drive consumer decisions after a corporate scandal. We exploit the unexpected notice of violation by the US Environmental Protection Agency in September 2015, accusing the car producer Volkswagen (VW) to have used software to manipulate car emission values during test phases. Using a difference-in-difference model, we show that new registrations of VW (diesel) cars decline significantly in German counties with a high share of Protestants following the VW scandal. Our results suggest that the enforcement culture rooted in Protestantism affects consumer decisions and penalises corporate fraud.
Family Entrepreneurship and Personal Career Preferences as the Factors of Differences in the Development of Entrepreneurial Potential of Students

The purpose of this study is to examine the differences in family entrepreneurship background and personal attitudes of students regarding their future career preferences and its effects on the development of specific dimensions of entrepreneurship potential of a student population. The sample consisted of a student population from Serbia, Bosnia, and Herzegovina as EU candidate countries and Belgium as an EU member country. A sample of 1008 university students from these three countries participated in this research. Instruments used in this research were the Questionnaire of Entrepreneurial Traits (QET) and the Scale of Entrepreneurial Potential (SEP). Canonical discriminant analysis confirmed significant differences in scores on both QET and SEP scales of entrepreneurial potential between students that have family entrepreneurship background and those who do not. Differences were also shown among students who strive for self-employment, and consider establishing their own business, and students who would like to find employment in the state or private sector. Young people whose family members are engaged in entrepreneurship are influenced by their parents who started companies, parents’ personal characteristics, and parent’s model of behavior, which significantly shapes the behavior and characteristics of these young people, compared to those young people whose parents do not start companies. Young people who prefer to build a career within their own enterprise have basic characteristics that predispose them for engagement in entrepreneurship within their own company, whereby this provides them with the only way they can achieve the full capacity of their individual potential. Both these groups display a more developed initiative, independence in decision making, they are more open minded and prone to take on risks, have more developed organizational skills, and more positive attitudes towards entrepreneurship. Results of this study can help identify and foster factors that significantly develop specific characteristics of entrepreneurship potential of student populations, such as family entrepreneurship background and career preferences.
Three Essays on the Economics of Decision Making under Risk

The objective of this study is to determine the interrelationship between the reported risk and time preferences of economic agents. We conduct a lab experiment where the participants match two different rewards available at different points in time. Then they match the same rewards but this time one reward is certain and the other is offered under risk. We test for the stability of the results by adopting as treatments varying time horizons of two and four months. We find a consistently negative relationship between risk and time parameters signalling a rising risk tolerant behavior but slight evidence of more patience. However, this relationship appears to be stabilized after four months. To test further the stability of risk preferences, we also use the Eckel-Grossman (2002, 2008) risk elicitation technique, and we vary the time horizon as previously. The main result is that there is a considerable increase in risk loving behavior for half of the participants (49.4%) after four months.
Do Personality Traits and Shopping Motivations Affect Social Commerce Adoption Intentions? Evidence from an Emerging Market

Abstract Social commerce has become a hot topic since the beginning of Web 2.0 era; however, relevant research is scarce in emerging economies. This study aims to fill this research gap and answer the main research question of “what type of relevant personality traits and shopping motivations affect social commerce adoption intentions”. The research model was developed upon personality traits (openness to experience, need for uniqueness and buying impulsiveness) that are deemed to be relevant to online shopping and social media use. An online questionnaire was conducted on social media users. A total of 269 valid questionnaires were analyzed via structural equation modeling to test for the proposed relationships, majority of which emerged as non-linear. The findings highlight the significance of socialization motives in addition to utilitarian and hedonic shopping motives on social commerce adoption intentions. Openness to experience emerged as a significant trait that has an indirect effect on social commerce adoption intentions. Age and education materialized as significant demographics influencing shopping motivations in a social commerce setting.
Did Timing Matter? Life Cycle Differences in Effects of Exposure to the Great Recession

I estimate the effects of exposure to the Great Recession on employment and earnings for groups defined by year of birth over the 10 years following the beginning of the recession. Younger workers experience the largest earnings losses in percentage terms (up to 13%), in part because they remain less likely to work for high-paying employers even as their overall employment recovers more quickly than that of older workers.
Working time developments in the 21st century: work duration and its regulation in the EU

This report examines the main trends and milestones characterising the evolution of the most important aspects of collectively agreed working time in the European Union [EU] during the first decade of the 21st century. Drawing primarily on information collected by Eurofound across all EU Member States and Norway, it focuses in particular on five sectors: chemicals, metalworking, banking, retail and public administration. The report describes the institutional regimes of regulation and assesses the evolution of agreed working hours (hours expected to be spent on work according to collective agreements or agreed between employers and employees) and usual working hours (hours usually spent in practice in work activities) between 1999 and 2014. The report points to the tension that exists between the pressure for decreased working hours in favour of a better work-life balance and fewer health problems for workers and the need for working time flexibility to meet the demands of a modern world economy.
Performance Peer Groups in CEO Compensation Contracts

We take advantage of comprehensive panel data available as a result of the 2006 SEC disclosure rules on relative performance evaluation (RPE) to (i) better understand how firms choose performance peer groups used in CEO RPE contracts and (ii) to investigate the causal impact of mandatory disclosure on the peer selection process. We find that while firms for the most part choose performance peers to better identify their CEOs’ impact on firms’ performance, they also tend to select underperforming peers. Dynamically, we find that peers that are added and retained every year are weaker than ones that were not chosen. These findings suggest managers may have some influence on the choice of performance peers. Lastly, using a quasi-natural experiment we find that the enhanced disclosure did not affect the tendency of firms to select underperforming peers.
Environmental Policy and Innovation: A Decade of Research

Encouraging innovation is an important part of environmental policy. A large literature in environmental economics examines the links between environmental policy and innovation. This paper reviews recent literature on green innovation. I highlight major trends in the literature, including an increased number of cross-country studies and a focus on the effect of different policy instruments on innovation. I include a discussion of the justifications and evidence for technology-specific policy incentives and present evidence on the effectiveness of government R&D spending. My review concludes with a discussion of three promising areas for new research on environmental innovation.
Campaign Contributions and Donors’ Policy Agreement with Presidential Candidates

Presidential campaign contributions primarily come from individuals, yet we know little about what motivates these donors to give. Using a recent donor survey, we analyze how policy positions affect these decisions, holding constant factors including partisan strength and presidential approval. Three main findings emerge. First, donor agreement with candidates’ positions significantly affects the likelihood of giving to the candidates’ campaigns. Second, while there is suggestive evidence that the effects are stronger for Independents, the results hold even for fellow partisans. Third, conditional on donating, however, issue positions do not increase the amount contributed; for both partisans and Independents, the amount depends on factors such as wealth and income.
The Prevalence of Childhood and Adolescent Obesity in Jeju and Clinical Characteristics according to the Degree of Obesity

Purpose:Recently, childhood obesity has increased and became a major health concern in Korea. The aim of this study is to examine the prevalence of childhood and adolescent obesity in Jeju and to analyze clinical characteristics according to the degree of obesity. Methods:A total of 3,643 students from April 2002 to August 2002 were studied. To examine the prevalence of childhood and adolescent obesity, obesity index, body mass index and Rholer index were used. To analyze clinical characteristics according to the degree of obesity, blood pressure and laboratory data from student health examination were used. Results:Prevalence of childhood and adolescent obesity in Jeju was 9.9%(mild:5.1%, moderate:4.3 %, severe:0.5%) by obesity index, 5.6% by body mass index, and 6.3% by Rholer index. Prevalence of obesity in males was significantly higher than in females, but prevalence of obesity according to age made no significant difference. Prevalence of hypertension, liver function test abnormality and hypercholesterolemia according to the degree of obesity were significantly increased, but that of anemia, hyperglucosemia showed no significant difference. Conclusion:By student health examination data, the prevalence of childhood and adolescent obesity in Jeju was identified. Because the prevalence of hypertension, liver function test abnormality and hypercholesterolemia according to the degree of obesity were significantly increased, we must pay more attention to childhood and adolescent obesity as an important student health issue. (Korean J Pediatr 2004;47:362-367)
Impact of Public Investment on Private Investment in Sub‐Saharan Africa: Crowding In or Crowding Out?

This paper investigates the possible crowding‐in or crowding‐out effect of public investment on private investment in sub‐Saharan Africa. While this relationship has been theoretically and empirically studied in the literature, most studies used traditional panel fixed effects or Generalized Method of Moments estimators which can potentially lead to biased and inconsistent estimates. We employ heterogeneous parameter models, including the Mean Group, the Common Correlated Effects Mean Group Model, and the Augmented Mean Group estimators, to incorporate the possibility of slope heterogeneity and the presence of cross‐sectional dependence. Using a large sample of 44 sub‐Saharan African countries over the period 1960–2015, we find that on average public investment crowds in private investment in sub‐Saharan Africa. We also find that the impact differs between countries and is higher in countries with a strong private sector.
Observations on the Therapeutic Effect of Acupuncture on Fibromyalgia Syndrome

Objective To investigate the clinical efficacy of acupuncture at and mind concentration on point lower Dantian in treating fibromyalgia syndrome(FS). Methods Sixty patients with fibromyalgia syndrome were randomly allocated to treatment and control groups.The treatment group received acupuncture at and mind concentration on point lower Dantian and the control group,medication.The therapeutic effects were evaluated using a scale.Results Pain,sleep and depression all improved more in the group of FS patients than in the control group after 3 and 6 months of treatment(P0.05). Conclusions Acupuncture at and mind concentration on lower Dantian is an effective way to treat the neuropsychic symptoms of fibromyalgia syndrome.
The Effect of Collateral Shocks in the Context of Labor Market Frictions

The recent financial crisis was associated with a large and prolonged deterioration to the collateral value and to the collateral-based credit supply. I calibrate a model to explore the impact of collateral shocks on real firm behavior. I discover that: (i) a negative shock to the collateral value depresses the business activities by tightening the borrowing capacity. Such adverse impact is alleviated (worsened) by a lower (higher) productivity-driven credit demand; (ii) following a negative collateral shock, the reduction of labor adjustment costs causes the firms to decrease their activities to a less extent, and such positive effects of labor adjustment flexibility are more pronounced for firms facing a high level of productivity (demand). Empirically, I find that a lower labor unionization rate can mitigate the negative impact of supply shocks on the high-demand firms during the crisis.
Empirical examination of investment under uncertainty

This thesis presents two essays investigating the empirical relationship between investment and uncertainty. The common denominator in the two essays is that I investigate the dynamic relationship between investment and uncertainty using state-of-the-art mathematical and statistical techniques. Introductory chapter is offered at the start of the thesis to motivate the research on investment under uncertainty. The second chapter of the thesis is concerned with the impact of uncertainty on the economy. It first reviews the recent developments in the literature and then presents two empirical analyses. First, I investigate claims in the recent literature about the countercyclicality of uncertainty proxies to the business cycle and hence to investment. Second, I use the vector autoregression (VAR) model to analyze the dynamic impact of uncertainty shocks on investment. Remarkably, both empirical analyses point to the same following conclusions that: i) uncertainty proxies in general are negatively related to investment; and ii) some notable changes to their relationship occurred during and since the financial crisis in 2008. The third chapter, coauthored with Leandro M. Magnusson, uses a VAR model with drifting parameters to study the time variations in US investment dynamics under uncertainty. We show that when the VAR is constructed in accordance with the investment Euler condition, our modeling strategy enables the reconciliation of the theoretical debate about the ‘sign’ of the relation between investment and uncertainty. Furthermore, we find that the effects of uncertainty shocks on the economy becomes more permanent since the Great Recession, reflecting on the slow recovery in investment growth since then. We argue that the effects of uncertainty shocks are amplified when the economy is at the zero lower bound. Concluding remarks are made in the final chapter, with discussions of potential future research on uncertainty. Word count: approx. 30,000 words “Even if the constants which economists wish to determine were less numerous, and the method of experiment more accessible, we should still be faced with the fact that the constants themselves are different at different times. The gravitation constant is the same always. But the economic constants—these elasticities of demand and supply—depending, as they do, upon human consciousness, are liable to vary. The constitution of the atom, as it were, and not merely its position, changes under the influence of environment. ” Arthur Cecil Pigou, 1877 – 1959