bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The Competitive Mezzogiorno (Southern Italy): Some Evidence from the Clothing and Textile Industry in San Giuseppe Vesuviano
Authors: Aniello Valeria
Published: March 2003

The distinction between ‘the three Italies’– the northern industrial triangle, the underdeveloped Mezzogiorno and the industrial districts of the north east – was first made ten years ago. This distinction aimed to legitimize the existence of regional situations that had previously been ignored. After some years of investigating the southern economy, we need to revisit the analysis of ‘the second Italy’, since it has complex features requiring detailed study. Recent research has revealed the existence of partially underground local systems in the Italian Mezzogiorno, which are not captured by traditional statistical data and display different kinds of linkages. The clothing and textile industry in San Giuseppe Vesuviano is one example of a competitive local production system. Commercial and production enterprises, homeworkers and workshops make up this local fabric. This article focuses on certain aspects of this situation, which have developed spontaneously: regulation mechanisms of informal work, competition and cooperation within the system, the attraction of an immigrant labour force (the Chinese community), evolutionary trends, the low level of criminality and the role of institutions.

La distinction établie entre ‘les trois Italie’ le triangle industriel du nord, le Mezzogiorno sous développé et les districts industriels du nord‐est – date d'une décennie. Elle visait à légitimer l'existence de situations régionales jusqu' alors ignorées. Après quelques années d'enquètes sur l'économie méridionale, il convient de revisiter l'analyse de ‘la deuxième Italie’, ses caractéristiques complexes nécessitant des précisions. De récentes recherches ont révélé l'existence, dans le Mezzogiorno italien, de systèmes locaux en partie souterrains, échappant aux statistiques traditionnelles et présentant différentes sortes de liens. Par exemple, l'industrie du textile et de l'habillement de San Giuseppe Vesuviano est l'un des systèmes de production locale compétitifs, où entreprises de fabrication et de commercialisation, travailleurs à domicile et ateliers constituent le tissu local. Cet article se consacre à certains aspects propres à ce cas qui s'est spontanément développé: mécanismes régulateurs du travail irrégulier, concurrence et coopération au sein du système, attraction d'une main‐d'œuvre d'immigrants (communauté chinoise), tendances prévisionnelles, faible niveau de criminalité et rôle des institutions.
Situating the city and September 11th: military urban doctrine, ‘pop–up’ armies and spatial chess
Authors: Warren Robert
Published: March 2003

An evolving body of doctrine, Military Operations in Urbanized Terrain (MOUT), has developed over the last several decades on the assumption that extensive military presence in cities in both warfare and less than war conditions will be necessary in the twenty–first century to deal with the aggression of ‘rouge’ nations, terrorism and civilian disorders. The examination of MOUT doctrine undertaken here, most basically, contributes to a recognition that urban warfare and military operations are relevant, if not normal, urban phenomena. MOUT doctrine also facilitates identifying trends in the prevention, repression and control of mass citizen political mobilizations within and among cities. Finally, this perspective situates the ‘War on Terrorism’ as a factor that is broadening and deepening, rather than causing, the increasing militarization of urban space.

Au cours des dernières décennies, une partie évolutive de la doctrine, les opérations militaires en milieu urbain (MOUT), s’est développée à partir de l’idée qu’au vingt–et–unième siècle, il faudra une large présence militaire dans les villes, à la fois en temps de guerre et dans des situations non conflictuelles, afin de gérer l’agression des nations ‘rouges’, le terrorisme et les désordres civils. L’étude de la doctrine des MOUT, entreprise ici de manière très élémentaire, permet de reconnaître que les opérations urbaines militaires et combattantes sont des phénomènes urbains significatifs, voire normaux. Cette doctrine facilite également l’identification de tendances en matière de prévention, répression et contrôle des mobilisations politiques de masse des citoyens dans les villes. En conclusion, cette perspective établit la ‘guerre contre le terrorisme’ en tant que facteur qui élargit et accentue, sans en être la cause, la militarisation croissante de l’espace urbain.
Limits to Harmonization: The “Temporary Protection” of Refugees in the European Union
Authors: Koser Khalid , Black Richard
Published: March 2003

This article examines the limits to harmonization at the level of the European Union through a case study of policy towards people who fled the war inBosnia and Herzegovina in the early 1990s.

Specific attention is paid to the development of the policy of granting“temporary protection” instead of full refugee status to Bosnian asylum‐seekers, which stretched across all fifteen member states.

It is argued that “temporary protection” emerged as a set of specific responses to the outbreak of war in the former Yugoslavia, involvingcompromises between states’ desires to restrict asylum on the one hand, but meet demand from public opinion and international organizations to offerprotection to refugees on the other.

Subsequent analyses have suggested that these compromises might providean effective way forward for harmonization of policy at a European level,and even a reformulated international system of refugee protection.

However, the authors question this view: they analyse the extent to which“temporary protection” for Bosnians was coordinated, and whether it actually provided the states and individuals with the benefits that have been suggested.
Some Structural Effects of Migration on Receiving and Sending Countries
Authors: Joly Danièle
Published: March 2003

Traditionally, the question of migration has been compartmentalized analytically between, on the one hand, the causes of international migration which in the main have been studied by economists and geographers and, on the other hand, the consequences of migration primarily on the receiving countries, which has mostly been an area of concern for sociologists, demographers and geographers who have looked into theories and processes of settlement/integration. The twain rarely met. As a consequence, for heuristic purposes a separation based on discipline, geographical areas and objects of study has taken place, an approach challenged recently by some scholars. This article brings together the threads of international migration in its causes and consequences affecting both sending and receiving countries as well as the migrants. The close interaction between causes and consequences is enhanced by the role of migrants themselves. Indeed, migrants are not only objects whose moves are deterministically conditioned by structural factors, they are social actors who formulate their own strategies and life projects within given settings and conflicts in their society of origin and society of reception, which they in turn contribute to modify.
Replacement Migration: the wave of the future?
Authors: Keely Charles
Published: March 2003

The Population Division of the United Nations issued a report in 1999 on using migration to counteract the effects of low fertility on population size and ageing. The report looked at eight industrial countries and two regions, Europe and the European Union. Using population projections, the analysts estimated the amount of migration necessary to maintain both labour forces and the ratios of workers to retirees at a constant level.

This article agrees with the report that substituting migration for low fertility requires politically insupportable levels of migration. The article also concludes that the labour force and retirement financing outlook is not as dire as the UN report insinuates.
Aid, Relief, and Containment: The First Asylum Country and Beyond
Authors: Chimni B.S.
Published: March 2003

A fundamental problem that confronts the European Union today is how it can maintain its commitment to the institution of asylum while checking irregular migration and the abuse of its asylum system. In order to explore a response to this dilemma the paper addresses the following questions: what role can relief and aid policies play in influencing migration patterns? What should be the appropriate approach to the granting of relief and aid to developing countries of first asylum? Should it be viewed as a part of the larger problem of development or be treated as a distinct issue? What kind of a relief/aid model will help refugees return to post–conflict societies and stop the conflict from reproducing itself? The paper examines two different approaches to address these questions: the alliance–containment approach and the distributive–developmental approach. It also looks at some empirical evidence, which reveals that at present it is a conservative alliance–containment approach that informs EU relief and aid practices. This approach, however, does not help achieve the stated objective of checking abuse of asylum and migration procedures while sustaining a commitment to a liberal asylum regime. The paper goes on to identify the gaps in EU policy and the lessons that can be drawn. It concludes by looking at different policy alternatives and suggesting the adoption of a reformist distributive–developmental model. The implementation of this model holds out the hope of reverting to a more liberal asylum regime while controlling irregular migration and “bogus” asylum seekers, for the reformist distributive developmental model takes a more long–term view of migration trends and also seeks to address the growing North–South divide.
Issues and Recent Trends in International Migration in Sub‐Saharan Africa
Authors: Adepoju Aderanti
Published: March 2003

Migration in Sub‐Saharan Africa features a variety of movements, mostly intraregional: migrant workers, undocumented migrants, nomads, frontier workers, refugees, and highly skilled professionals. Changing patterns and especially the increase in irregular migration, diversification of migratory routes and trafficking in migrants result from worsening socio‐economic and political conditions in the region. Sponsored, selective male migration and increasing female autonomous migration are manifestations of migration as survival strategies. Brain circulation within the region, especially to core areas of rapid economic growth, has intensified; increasingly, labour migration is being replaced by commercial migration. Migrants are also exploring alternative destinations within the region in response to the tightened immigration laws in the North. Rapid population growth, economic depression, conflicts, political instability, widespread poverty and deepening unemployment signal the possibility of increased migration, including refugee flows, in the coming years. Sub‐regional economic unions could help promote intra‐regional labour mobility if concerted efforts are made to harmonise national laws with regionaland sub‐regional treaties.
Mechanisms for intergovernmental relations in federations
Authors: Opeskin Brian R.
Published: March 2003

Federations employ a large variety of mechanisms for conducting relations between central, regional, and local levels of government. These mechanisms span the executive, legislative, and judicial branches of government within each level. Executive involvement ranges widely in degree of formality, from the making of formal intergovernmental agreements to informal liaison between governmental officers. Executive mechanisms have also evolved for correcting vertical and horizontal fiscal imbalances in federal systems. Legislatures play an important role in giving the force of law to cooperative policies initiated by the executive. These legislative mechanisms include reciprocal schemes, complementary schemes, mirror legislation, and the reference or delegation of powers from one level of government to another. The judiciary, though often undervalued, is significant for its role in establishing the legal framework within which other branches of government conduct their intergovernmental relations, through articulation of powers and competencies. The article concludes that policy makers should exercise care in selecting mechanisms that are appropriate to their task. In particular, regard should be had to the efficiency of each mechanism, and its conformity with federal values and the rule of law.
Social Security for the Informal Sector: A New Challenge for the Developing Countries
Authors: Van Ginneken Wouter
Published: March 2003

Informal sector workers constitute a large and increasing part of the labour force in most developing countries. Many of them are not able or willing to contribute a significant percentage of their incomes to finance formal sector social insurance benefits that do not meet their priority needs. Therefore, informal sector workers themselves need to (and have) set up health and other social insurance schemes that better meet their needs and contributory capacity. In addition, special social assistance schemes are necessary to protect the most vulnerable groups outside the labour force. This article also assesses some key implications of these developments for formal social insurance schemes.
The development and Reform of Social Security Pensions:The Approach of the International Labour Office
Authors: Gillion Colin
Published: March 2003

The reform and the development of pension schemes are affected by the values society places on the provision of income security in old age and the resources it is prepared to allocate for the purpose. This paper examines those values and the issues arising from them. The objective is to propose reforms which will simultaneously provide full coverage with good governance, prevent poverty in old age, and result in indexed, guaranteed and reliable pensions for those onaverage incomes, all with minimum economic distortion or adverse economic effects. The question of the most appropriate design has to be weighed against these other factors, which will determine not only what is feasible and what is not, but also where the most desirable balance lies. The optimum structure would seem to involve a mix of defined benefit and defined contribution schemes.
Rehabilitation Initiatives by Disability Self‐help Groups: A Comparative Study
Authors: Steinke Bernd
Published: March 2003

As part of its programme of activities for the triennium 1996‐98, the ISSA proposed that a comparative country study be conducted on the social relevance of self‐help groups and their integration into the rehabilitation process.A pilot study was conducted to assess the situation in five European countries at comparable stages of social development. Increasingly, since the Second World War, people with a chronic illness or a disability in these countries have joined together in self‐help groups and organizations in order to overcome their condition together and work for better integration into society. The situation at present is that the self‐help movement is no longer seen as an alternative to the regular social security system, as it used to be: instead, both the self‐help groups and organizations and the institutions and facilities responsible for rehabilitation are seeking an increase in cooperation.
Old age protection in India: Problems and prognosis
Authors: Goswami Ranadev
Published: March 2003

This paper reviews the current state of the Indian pension system. The Indian experience could potentially influence policy decisions in other developing countries, especially those with similar reliance on the national provident fund system. Institutional features of various retirement benefit schemes are highlighted and their deficiencies are discussed. It is argued that low coverage level, underperformance of provident fund schemes due to investment restrictions, and financial difficulties in administering unfunded public pension programmes have rendered the current system ineffective and unsustainable. The failed experiments with ad hoc reform initiatives in the recent past further emphasize the need for a structural and lasting change. The paper concludes with some policy directions for reforming the Indian pension system.
,,Money for Nothing“? Die Preisbildung von Originalkunstwerken und Kopien
Authors: Tietzel Manfred
Published: March 2003

Quite a few economists hold the opinion that exorbitant prices paid for original works of art reflect an irrational cult made of unique pieces created by renowned artists; (close to) perfect copies would yield comparable benefits at a substantially lower price. The article gives reasons for the rationality of this seemingly irrational behavior and, among other things, explains the price difference between originals and their copies on a microeconomic basis.
Responsibility attribution and support provision in an intergroup context: An examination in a simulated society game1
Authors: Karasawa Kaori
Published: March 2003

Abstract: Two studies were conducted to examine the relationship between ingroup identification, responsibility attribution, and attitude toward support provision. The data were collected from the participants of a simulated society game named SIMINSOC (Simulated International Society; Hirose, 1997). The global society in the game includes two rich regions and two poor regions, and the poor regions need to obtain support from rich regions for survival. In the two studies, participants were randomly assigned to either rich or poor regions, were engaged in various activities in the game, and answered questions concerning the identification, responsibility attribution, and attitude toward support provision. The results indicated that responsibility attributions were biased to favor the ingroups. Furthermore, poor regions believed that they should be supported more than the rich regions intended to provide support. Structural equation analyses suggested that the intergroup bias in attribution was increased when identification toward the ingroup was strong. The discussion considers the implications of the findings for interactions between groups.
Acquisition and Transmission of Tool Making and Use for Drinking Juice in a Group of Captive Chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes)
Authors: Tonooka Rikako , Tomonaga Masaki , Matsuzawa Tetsuro
Published: March 2003

The present study examined the acquisition and transmission of tool making and use in a group of chimpanzees. We set up a piece of apparatus that provided orange juice in an outdoor compound for a group of nine chimpanzees. Although they could reach the juice with their hands, eight of the nine subjects used tools. Fifteen kinds of tools in total were used, such as straw, twigs, and some kinds of leaves. The chimpanzees showed high selectivity with regard to tool type. They preferred to use Thuja occidentalis as a tool although there were 28 species of tree and several kinds of grass available in the compound. Two females initiated the use of the Thuja tool. Since then, five other individuals have begun to use it selectively. Before making the tools by themselves, these five chimpanzees first watched others using the Thuja tool for drinking juice, and then used the Thuja tool which had been used and left by another chimpanzee.
Detection and discrimination of optical flow components
Authors: Blake Randolph , Aiba Thomas Satoru
Published: March 2003

Observers viewed animation sequences consisting of random dots, some of which moved coherently in a given direction (signal dots) and the rest of which moved randomly (noise dots). Using forced‐choice procedures, detectability of weak signals within noise was measured for translation, rotation, and expansion/contraction. Sensitivity to all motion types was approximately equal, with practiced observers reliably detecting coherent motion at signal levels as low as 4%. Observers were able to identify the motion structure presented on a given trial at signal levels corresponding to the detection threshold, implying that the neural signals supporting detection are labeled for motion type. Results are discussed in the context of hierarchical analysis of optic flow in which all motion types are registered as patterns of activity among neurons comprising a single mechanism.
Temporal restriction in apparent motion of two objects by presenting multipartite subframes
Authors: Yamazaki Reiko
Published: March 2003

Two experiments tested whether proper perception of motion can be realized with a multipartite subframe stimulus. In order to elucidate the constructive processes of visual motion, two motion stimuli were used which differed according to their hierarchical levels of reference. It was found that: (a) stable motion was perceived so long as the temporal interval between the neighboring frames comprising several subframes was held between 30 and 120 ms; (b) visual unification of subframes was properly achieved independently of the number of subframes insofar as the temporal constraint mentioned above was satisfied; (c) when stimuli consisted of two motions of different hierarchical level of reference, perception of the higher‐level motion required the prior perception of the lower‐level motion.
Disruption of kinematic coordination in throwing under stress
Authors: Higuchi Takahiro
Published: March 2003

The present study tested the conscious‐control theory of the relationship between stress and performance. Performers under stress conditions consciously attempted to control their movements, disrupting the automaticity of control. Twenty‐two male subjects (11 in Experiment 1 and 11 in Experiment 2) performed an underhand ball‐throwing task using the non‐dominant hand. The inter‐trial variability of two kinematic measures was analyzed, namely arm‐joint coordination during the throw and hand position at release (release point). Experiment 1 confirmed the validity of regarding these variability measures as indices of automaticity, as they did not vary in spite of resource shortage induced by a dual‐task paradigm. In Experiment 2, in which stress led to a detriment in performance, the variability of joint coordination increased, whereas the release point became more fixed. These findings imply that throwing performance is impaired when the coordination is disrupted as a result of inflexible movement executed by conscious control.
The Relationship Between Psychological Well‐Being and Christian Faith and Practice in an Australian Population Sample
Authors: Francis Leslie J. , Kaldor Peter
Published: March 2003

A random sample of 989 adults in an Australian community survey completed the Bradburn Balanced Affect Scale together with three measures of Christian faith and practice: belief in God, personal prayer, and church attendance. The data demonstrated a positive association between all three religious measures and psychological well‐being. The analysis helps to account for discrepant findings in previous research.
The Multidimensionality of Motivation for Jewish Religious Behavior: Content, Structure, and Relationship to Religious Identity
Authors: Lazar Aryeh , Kravetz Shlomo , Frederich–Kedem Peri
Published: March 2003

The present study examined the content and structure of self–reported motivation for Jewish religious behavior. Initial items were generated from comprehensive and detailed responses to a semi–structured interview and an open–ended questionnaire. Principal component factor analysis with orthogonal rotation was carried out on the responses of a sample of 323 research participants to two parallel sets of the 111 items produced by the above process. The factor structures for each of these sets of items were highly similar to each other and consisted of the following five reliable factors: belief in a divine order, ethnic identity, social activity, family activity, and upbringing. These factors appear to reflect the way religious behavior can contribute to the satisfaction of a number of general human motives. Persons with different religious identities were found to attribute their performance of religious ritual to different motives, providing a partial explanation for the apparent anomaly of the performance of religious ritual by persons who identify themselves as secular.
Forgiveness by God, Forgiveness of Others, and Psychological Well–Being in Late Life
Authors: Krause Neal , Ellison Christopher G.
Published: March 2003

The purpose of this study is to examine the relationships among forgiveness by God, forgiveness of others, and psychological well–being with data provided by a nationwide survey of older adults. Three main findings emerge from the analyses. First, the data suggest that forgiving others tends to enhance psychological well–being, and these salubrious effects are greater than those associated with forgiveness by God. Second, the findings indicate that how older people go about forgiving others is important: older adults who require transgressors to perform acts of contrition experience more psychological distress than those who forgive unconditionally. Third, the results reveal that forgiveness by God may be involved in this process because older people who feel they are forgiven by God are less likely to expect transgressors to perform acts of contrition.
Identity Dynamics, Action and Context
Authors: Costalat‐Founeau Anne Marie
Published: March 2003

The aim of this article is to present an investigation of the action‐representation relationship, via the processes which arise from the effects of one’s action and the effects of one’s capacity (normative and subjective). These effects are, in our view, of major importance, for they link social legitimation and the personal skill necessary for the preparation and carrying out of action. We look at this complex relationship, and propose a model, the capacity model, which situates action as an executory regulator of representation, which allows us to take some steps towards an explanation of the processes which link action and representation within the identity dynamic.
Justifying Deception in Social Science Research
Authors: Clarke Steve
Published: March 2003

The use of deceptive techniques is common in social science research. It is argued that the use of such techniques is incompatible with the standard of informed consent, which is widely employed in the ethical evaluation of research involving human subjects. A number of proposals to justify the use of deceptions in social science research are examined, in the face of its apparent incompatibility with the standard of informed consent, and found to be inadequate. An alternative method of justification is outlined, which enables some deceived participants in social science research to rationally and autonomously choose to participate in that research. The alternative method of justification appeals to the idea of indirect consent, which is introduced. It is argued that research subjects who receive reliable testimony regarding research procedures can sometimes be placed in a position to rationally and autonomously consent indirectly to participation in experiments and studies, even if these involve significant deceptions.
The Unbearable Lightness of Bringing into Being
Authors: Benatar David
Published: March 2003

In this paper it is argued that the overwhelming majority of gamete donors are amongst those who treat decisions about bringing children into existence too lightly. The argument proceeds through the following stages.

1) People have a presumptive responsibility for rearing children who result from their gametes. 2) The responsibility people have to rear their offspring is a responsibility not merely to provide a minimum of care, but also to attend to the details of nurturing children and fostering their flourishing. 3) Gamete donors transfer their responsibilities for raising their genetic offspring to those who will raise it. 4) Responsibilities for rearing children are weighty ones. 5) Treating weighty responsibilities too lightly is morally wrong. 6) Gamete donors' decisions to transfer their responsibilities for rearing their offspring to others, almost always involves treating parental responsibilities too lightly. 7) Therefore, gamete donation is almost always morally wrong.
Crime, Prohibition, and Punishment
Authors: Duff R. A.
Published: March 2003

Nigel Walker’s first principle of criminalization declares that ‘Prohibitions should not be included in the criminal law for the sole purpose of ensuring that breaches of them are visited with retributive punishment’. I argue that we should reject this principle, for ‘mala prohibita’ as well as for ‘mala in se’: conduct should be criminalized in order to ensure (as far as we reasonably can) that those who engage in it receive retributive punishment. In the course of the argument, I show why we should not see the criminal law as consisting in ‘prohibitions’; I explain different species of mala prohibita, and show how their commission does involve genuine wrongdoing; and I show the importance of distinguishing the question of regulation from that of sanction.
It's a Nice Idea, but it's not actually Real: Assessing the Objects and Activities of Design
Authors: Oak Arlene
Published: March 2003

This paper begins with an overview of the debate between the ideas of ‘art’ and ‘industry’ in design education, and the relationship of this debate to liberal and vocational pedagogic approaches in the education of designers. These debates are investigated with supporting examples drawn from tertiary level design education assessment conversations (known as critiques, or ‘crits’) using techniques drawn from Conversation Analysis. The analysis reveals how expectations and perceptions of design activity are articulated and reproduced within design and design education. In addition, the role of interaction in design education is briefly considered in relationship to ethical issues in design and design education.
SAIL: A School Where the Arts Connect with Real Learning
Authors: Riccio Lawrence
Published: March 2003

Increasing numbers of educators and parents are recognizing that traditional educational models can be unsupportive and, at times, alienating to children, particularly those with special needs. SAIL, a public charter* school in Washington, DC, for children 5–12 years old (often labelled as having special needs), has used an innovative education model that infuses the arts in learning experiences. Providing a unique physical and social environment, an arts‐based curriculum, and authentic assessment methods, SAIL is steadily achieving or exceeding its goals after two years of operation. This paper describes the work of SAIL. * A charter school is an autonomously governed public school designed to educate students in non‐traditional ways and obligated by its charter to monitor and record its performance.
Sketching Now
Authors: Jonson Ben
Published: March 2003

This paper discusses the role of the sketch in design when freehand drawing is under pressure from digital image manipulation both in higher education and professional practice. Placed in a broad design context embracing experience, skill and knowledge, the meaning of ‘sketch’ is being explored against a background of past and current practices in analogue and digital media. Locating the sketch in the design process various analogue and digital relationships are presented, including speed and fidelity. It concludes that sketching can be seen as a form of visual improvisation independent of any particular drawing system that allows designers to explore the sketch both as a means of self–expression and a means of communication.
Accounting Losses and Earnings Response Coefficients: The Impact of Leverage and Growth Opportunities
Authors: Martikainen Minna
Published: March 2003

This paper investigates how accounting losses affect the relationship between accounting earnings and stock returns, i.e. earnings response coefficients (ERCs), in different leverage and growth categories. In a sample of NYSE firms between 1975 and 1990, the exclusion of losses improves the ERCs considerably. While the impact of losses on ERCs is highest in the subgroup including high growth opportunity firms, the exclusion of losses does not improve ERCs as significantly among firms with low growth opportunities. The results further support the hypothesis that the impact of losses on ERCs is different in different financial leverage subgroups. The measured increase in ERCs is most significant among the least levered firms. The observation that the impact of losses on ERCs is related to growth opportunities and financial leverage is clearly observable also in different size categories. The effects of growth opportunities and financial leverage are also incrementally important with respect to each other. In general, the results indicate that the impact of growth opportunities and financial leverage on ERCs is clearly observable especially when losses and profits are analyzed separately.
Bid‐ask Spreads, Trading Volume and Volatility: Intra‐day Evidence from the London Stock Exchange
Authors: Abhyankar A. , Ghosh D. , Levin E. , Limmack R.J.
Published: March 2003

This paper examines intra‐day variations in the bid‐ask spread, volatility and volume for stocks traded on the London Stock Exchange. The data set used consists of quote and transactions data for a large sample of 835 stocks traded during the first quarter of 1991. The focus of the study is twofold; first, is to document a number of stylized facts regarding the intra‐day behaviour of spread, trading volume, volatility etc. Second, the paper tests some predictions of two theoretical models of intra‐day behaviour: the Admati and Pfleiderer and the Brock and Kleidon models. In addition, the paper also studies qualitatively the intra‐day behaviour of several variables of interest including volume per transaction, transactions per fifteen‐minute interval and spreads/trading volume for stocks of differing liquidity. The results suggest that the bid‐ask spread is wide at the open, constant through the day and rises slightly at the close. Trading volume, in contrast is not highest at the open and the close. Volatility, based on the mid‐point of the inside spread, shows a U‐shaped pattern. Volume per transaction, in contrast, is fairly constant throughout the day. Further, the intra‐day trading volume pattern differs for liquid and illiquid stocks. The results provide mixed support for current theoretical models of intra‐day behaviour of spread, volume and volatility on the London Stock Exchange
The Effect of Golden Parachutes on Shareholder Wealth and Takeover Probabilities
Authors: Hall Pamela L. , Anderson Dwight C.
Published: March 2003

This study seeks to determine whether stockholders experience increases in wealth due to a company's adoption of a golden parachute and resulting increased takeover bid probability. Market reaction to golden parachute adoption is examined by employing event analysis, logit analysis and metric regression. Our findings indicate that the adoption of a golden parachute does not signify an increased probability of a takeover bid, and stockholders experience a decrease in wealth.
The Accuracy, Bias and Efficiency of Analysts’ Long Run Earnings Growth Forecasts
Authors: Harris Richard D. F.
Published: March 2003

This paper evaluates the accuracy, bias and efficiency of analysts’ long run earnings growth forecasts for US companies. It is shown that forecast accuracy is extremely low. Analysts’ long run earnings growth forecasts are less accurate than the forecasts of a naive model in which earnings growth is forecast to be zero. Consistent with their short run and interim forecasts, analysts’ long run forecasts are shown to be both biased and inefficient. Furthermore, there is evidence that analysts do not fully incorporate information about future earnings that is contained in current share prices. However, the bias and inefficiency of analysts’ forecasts contributes very little to their inaccuracy, which is shown to be primarily the result of random error. It is also shown that the performance of analysts’ long run earnings growth forecasts varies substantially both with the characteristics of the company whose earnings are being forecast and of the forecast itself. The most reliable earnings growth forecasts are low forecasts issued for large companies with low price‐earnings ratios and high market‐to‐book ratios.
Derivatives Usage and Financial Risk Management in Large and Small Economies: A Comparative Analysis
Authors: Prevost Andrew K. , Rose Lawrence C. , Miller Gary
Published: March 2003

The objective of this paper is to expand and update previous New Zealand — based surveys in order to compare and contrast risk management practices of firms in the small, foreign trade‐dependent economy of New Zealand to those of firms in the considerably larger, more developed US, UK, and German markets. This survey examines patterns of usage, reasons and objectives for derivatives use, and reporting and control procedures and finds that the practice of hedging with derivative instruments among New Zealand firms appears to be evolving as global markets become more integrated. We find that the percentage of firms involved in hedging, both large and small, has grown since the last New Zealand surveys, and that New Zealand firms have many of the same reasons and objectives for using derivatives as firms in the much larger American and European economies. We also find that the focus on control and reporting derivatives transactions in New Zealand is similar to that of firms in the other countries and appears to have strengthened since previous surveys.
Corporate Restructurings: A Comparison of Equity Carve‐outs and Spin‐offs
Authors: Frank Kimberley E. , Harden J. William
Published: March 2003

In this paper we examine divisive corporate restructurings in which a firm takes a subsidiary public. Using a sample of 64 spin‐off and 76 carve‐out firms during 1991–1997, we find firms carve‐out subsidiaries with higher market demand. These subsidiaries are more frequently in related industries than spin‐offs. The carve‐out firms are also more likely to be cash constrained and have lower marginal tax rates, but are not likely to be considering financial reporting synergies when structuring the divestiture. These results provide evidence that factors impacting the divestiture choice related to Master Limited partnerships, as studied previously, differ when divesting a corporate subsidiary.
Strategic Auditing: An Incomplete Information Model
Authors: Cheng Peter , Childs Bradley D. , Sheng William W.
Published: March 2003

This paper presents a stylized model of the strategy game between the auditor and the client. The client is assumed to have either good or bad inherent risk in her reporting system. She chooses a reporting effort level to maintain the accounting records and data management depending on her type of inherent risk. The auditor chooses a high or low level of audit procedures. A high level of auditing procedures will reveal the client's type and effort from which the auditor can decide either to qualify the financial statements or to issue a clean report. The client and the auditor are assumed to move simultaneously. Pure strategy equilibria are derived for all the undominated strategies between the auditor and the client in the region of the model that is more similar to the Fellingham and Newman (1985) model. Unlike their model in which a high auditing level is never a pure strategy in equilibrium, we obtain pure strategy equilibria for high auditing levels.
The Effect of Futures Market Volume on Spot Market Volatility
Authors: Board John , Sandmann Gleb , Sutcliffe Charles
Published: March 2003

There has been considerable interest, both academic and regulatory, in the hypothesis that the higher is the volume in the futures market, the greater is the destabilizing effect on the stock market. We show that conventional approaches, such as adding exogenous variables to GARCH models, may lead to false inferences in tests of this question. Using a stochastic volatility model, we show that, contrary to regulatory concern and the results of other papers, contemporaneous informationless futures market trading has no significant effect on spot market volatility.
The Market for External Audit Services in the Public Sector: An Empirical Analysis of NHS Trusts
Authors: Clatworthy Mark A. , Mellett Howard J. , Peel Michael J.
Published: March 2003

This study investigates the market for audit services in the UK National Health Service (NHS). The market has a number of interesting features, including the presence of the Audit Commission as a regulator, appointer and provider of audit services. Following a theoretical overview of audit pricing in the NHS, evidence is provided on the behaviour of private sector auditors in an environment where audit risk characteristics differ from the private sector. The research also investigates, for the first time in the public sector, the relationship between audit fees and non–audit (consultancy) fees. Comparisons are also drawn between audit fees in the public and private sectors in an analysis of audit fees by industry. Despite some key similarities, the study shows that a number of differences exist between private and public sector audit fee models. In particular, we find no evidence of Big 6 (or mid–tier) auditor premiums, but we do find a significant negative relationship between audit and consultancy fees providing support for the ‘knowledge spill–over’ hypothesis. In addition, the fees charged to trusts appear significantly lower than their private sector counterparts, despite trust auditors having additional duties to perform. Possible explanations for this finding are offered in the paper.
The Life and Times of the European Union’s Co‐operation Procedure
Authors: Earnshaw David , Judge David
Published: March 2003

Using the analytical headings provided by John Fitzmaurice in his initial analysis of the co‐operation procedure in 1988, this article examines the perceptions of leading actors within the European Parliament (EP), and some of the officials most closely involved in the detailed discussion of legislative proposals within the Commission, about the co‐operation procedure in the 1989–94 parliament. It explores not only the assessment of ‘insiders’ of the EP’s legislative ‘effectiveness’ in this period, but also maps out how key participants viewed the changing interinstitutional patterns attendant upon the co‐operation procedure. The interviews in this study provide a unique perspective on what Fitzmaurice terms the ‘ratchet principle’ of institutional reform, and contribute to the historical record of institutional innovation within the EU.
Autonomy by the Rules: The European Commission and the Development of State Aid Policy
Authors: Smith Mitchell P.
Published: March 2003

The European Commission has enhanced its autonomy to implement state aid policy with a superstructure of frameworks and guidelines constructed on the base of its Treaty‐derived competence. The Commission’s activism has also mobilized private sector actors whose interest in state aid monitoring reinforces the Commission’s claim to being a neutral enforcement agent. However, these constituencies have also made new demands on Commission resources that may constrain the Commission. This finding has important implications for the scope of historical institutionalist analysis, which typically focuses on how Member State governments are constrained by past decisions. Ultimately the autonomy of supranational institutions may be self‐limiting, with emerging constraints deriving not from the preferences of Member State governments, but from the very structuring of the European polity fostered by the autonomous actions of supranational institutions themselves.
Begging the Constitutional Question
Authors: Eleftheriadis Pavlos
Published: March 2003

The doctrine of the supremacy of Community law, as has been put forward by the European Court of Justice, is not a technical legal question but touches on the most fundamental theoretical presuppositions of the legal order. As a result, the architecture of the Community legal system invites the broadest reconsideration of the concept of a positive legal order. Both the European Court of Justice and the German Constitutional Court have refused to acknowledge the nature of this problem and, by simply asserting what had to be established, have just begged the constitutional question.
European Community Water Policy Standards: Locked in or Watered Down?
Authors: Jordan Andrew
Published: March 2003

By any measure, European Community (EC) water policy has been very poorly implemented by the Member States, and lacks self‐consistency in some key respects and a sound scientific foundation. The conventional wisdom is that policies decided collectively tend towards the lowest common denominator of state preferences. But recent experience in the water sector suggests that directives decided by unanimity are nonetheless extremely difficult to reform once they become embedded in national political systems, even when they create enormous political problems for Member States and are outdated scientifically. Taking as an example the United Kingdom (UK) government’s handling of the directives on bathing and drinking water, this article shows how institutions have gradually hemmed in decision‐makers, locking states into a policy trajectory that most now regard as sub‐optimal in key respects.
The End of Creeping Competence? EU Policy‐Making Since Maastricht
Authors: Pollack Mark A.
Published: March 2003

From its origins in the Treaty of Rome to the Maastricht Treaty on European Union, the EU has expanded the range of its activities dramatically, adopting both budgetary and regulatory policies across a broad range of issue‐areas. The 1990s, however, witnessed a political and economic backlash against the creeping centralization of policy‐making in Brussels, threatening a major retrenchment, or even devolution, of EU policy‐making. This article examines budgetary and regulatory data from the late 1990s and early 2000s, to determine whether the centralization of policy‐making has slowed, or even reversed, during the post‐Maastricht era. The data reveal selective evidence of retrenchment in EU budgetary expenditures, which have been limited by the fiscal restrictions of EMU, German resistance to any increase in its net contribution, and the new budgetary demands of enlargement. By contrast, data on EU regulation suggest that the EU has been, and remains, an active regulator across a wide range of issue‐areas after Maastricht, and will continue to play the role of a regulatory state in the future.
The Anatomy of Autonomy: An Institutional Account of Variation in Supranational Influence
Authors: Tallberg Jonas
Published: March 2003

This article presents a rational institutionalist account of why the Commission and the ECJ vary in their capacity to pursue successfully a supranational agenda. In the empirical part, the explanatory power of this approach is illustrated through a comparison of the Commission's and the ECJ's autonomy in the pursuit of a joint agenda in EU enforcement. The article suggests that the EU as a strategic context is comparatively more open to autonomous actions and supranational influence by the ECJ, which is subject to less intrusive control mechanisms and enjoys more accessible means of rule creation than the Commission.