bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Corporate governance: an international state of the art
Authors: Vinten Gerald
Published: July 2002

Corporate governance has as ancient a pedigree as the formation of companies. However, six contemporary developments have provided a focus which makes this the era par excellence of corporate governance. Under review are a representative set of the economies of the world. A start is made with the UK and the Cadbury Report, which in similar fashion to the development of British Quality Standard 5750 into ISO 9000, has now itself taken on world currency. The end piece of Cadbury‐related developments was the final Report of the Hampel Committee of January 1998. The USA spawned several reports which fed into the Cadbury initiative, notably the Treadway and COSO Reports, as well as the influence of the Securities and Exchange Commission. A consideration of Canada is followed by the European dimension and the study carried out by Ernst and Young. Finally South Africa, Australia and Japan are treated and conclusions drawn, including the collaborative partnership that may be formed between management accountants and internal auditors.
Financial accountability: a missing link in university financial reporting systems
Authors: Doost Roger K.
Published: July 2002

There has been a public outcry in recent years for better accountability of resources consumed for higher education. Legislators in various states have responded with performance criteria and mandates for accountability. It is hoped that through such measures, universities will become better custodians of public funds leading to better and more efficient utilization of limited resources. The criteria developed is diverse and touches upon a variety of issues. However, their effectiveness in providing change is not yet tested. Through an in‐depth review of the university accounting system, we propose here that the missing link is financial accountability in the traditional responsibility accounting/managerial accounting approach for assessing performance and seeking improvement.
On ethical theory in auditing
Authors: Preuss Lutz
Published: July 2002

This article discusses ways of giving support to auditors in addressing moral dilemmas. Codes of Ethics are very important in this context but are in the final analysis insufficient devices, because their necessarily generalised form has to be translated into the specific situation and thus requires acceptance rather than merely adherence. Codes have to be complemented with developed ethical reasoning of accountants. Hence, individual ethical principles are discussed which have been applied to accounting in the recent literature, i.e. utilitarianism, deontology, virtue ethics and ethics of care. Unsurprisingly, none emerges as giving completely satisfactory solutions. Yet eclecticism can be avoided by using compound models, which combine individual principles to provide reasonably comprehensive cover of decision‐making in a business context.
ISO 9000 standards and TQM strategy ‐ business improvement tools for Polish companies
Authors: Lisiecka Krystyna
Published: July 2002

In a modern, i.e. flexible and dynamic, company, the process of quality creation should be subordinated to global management. This means that the process of quality creation should be managed at an operational level, and the company as a whole should be managed by quality (management by quality) involving strategic levels, i.e. the Board of Directors. The aim of the paper is to show that ISO 9000 is a good platform from which to develop company growth. ISO gives support to the structural dimension of company management. Quality systems according to ISO 9000 have an impact on the behaviour of personnel, and simultaneously, changing behaviour helps towards the realisation of TQM.
The moderators of patient satisfaction
Authors: Tucker Jessie L.
Published: July 2002

The purpose of this study was to determine which Department of Defense (DOD) active duty patient sociodemogpraphic, health status, geographic location, and utilization factors, predict overall patient satisfaction with health care in military facilities. A theoretical framework developed from patient satisfaction and social identity theories and from previous empirical findings was used to develop a model to predict patient satisfaction and delineate moderating variables. The major finding indicated in this study was the significance of patients’ characteristics in moderating their satisfaction. Principal components factor analysis and hierarchical linear regression revealed that patient specific factors predicted patients’ satisfaction after controlling for factors depicting patients’ evaluations of health system characteristics. Patient specific factors provided added, although very minimal, explanatory value to the determination of patients’ satisfaction. The study findings can aid in the development of targeted, objectively prioritized programs of improvement and marketing by ranking variables using patients’ passively derived importance schema.
The Clinical Director in the NHS: Utilizing a Role‐theory Perspective
Authors: Willcocks Stephen
Published: July 2002

Reviews the role of the clinical director in the NHS, based on data
collected in a qualitative research study. Utilizes role theory to
invite insight into a relatively new but important managerial role.
Suggests that effectiveness in the role may be measured by the extent to
which managers are able to meet the expectations of their role set, and
also that the overall effectiveness of the clinical direction may be the
extent to which he or she is able to influence, adapt, modify or change
these role expectations.
Management Training for Doctors: An In‐house Approach
Authors: Balderson Sue , MacFadyen Una
Published: July 2002

Having recognized the importance and inevitability of doctors becoming
involved in the management of National Health Service (NHS) Trusts, the
Leicester Royal Infirmary NHS Trust initiated its own in‐house
management development programme for senior medical staff. Describes the
programme and identifies some of the benefits already realized and its
role in facilitating a shift in the management agenda from managers to
doctors.
Communications between professional groups in an NHS trust hospital
Authors: Smith A.J. , Preston D.
Published: July 2002

Discusses an audit of communications between doctors and other professional groups in a National Health Services trust hospital. The project was undertaken as a result of senior management’s perception that there were problems regarding the interface between professionals and junior doctors particularly, and that these have a potentially detrimental impact on patient care. The aim of the study was to improve the work environment of medical practitioners and professional staff by researching the factors affecting communication and the sources of conflict which exist between the groups. Describes the methodology and provides an overview of the main findings grouped into themes. A large number of recommendations for change have been made to the hospital concerning systems, procedures, structures, training and inter‐professional boundaries. Implementation of some of these recommendations has taken place already. Full evaluation of their impact is yet to be determined.
Understanding the roles of NHS trust board members
Authors: Deffenbaugh John
Published: July 2002

The establishment of NHS trust boards on a business format was a recent innovation resulting from the NHS reforms. In order to realize benefits for patients, it is essential that boards operate effectively. Explores within the framework of corporate governance, the practical implications of board member roles. Drawing on experience of strategy formulation at board level, analyses and clarifies the roles, and presents recommendations to increase board effectiveness.
Acting on complaints about mental health services
Authors: Wood Daphne
Published: July 2002

Complaint procedures are meant to provide an effective safeguard for users of services, but they do not always work well. Applies an analysis of three views of power to complaint procedures in mental health services. Identifies three factors which might affect the effectiveness of complaint procedures: the lack of credibility often accorded users of mental health services; the fear service users may have about complaining; and the difficulties they might experience in knowing what they can expect from a service. Uses this analysis to identify what managers need to do to ensure that complaint procedures are effective.
The managerial and clinical implications of patient‐focused care
Authors: Hurst Keith
Published: July 2002

Discusses five elements of patient‐focused care (PFC). Clarifies issues surrounding the first element ‐ aggregating patients ‐ and debates the strengths and weaknesses of the second element ‐ centralizing services in PFC units. Explores arguments for and against the third element ‐ multiskilling and cross‐training ‐ including staff activity in conventional hospitals and PFC units, in depth. Discusses the structure of PFC teams and their management. Describes the main components of the fourth PFC element ‐ integrated carepaths ‐ and explores their role in clinical audit, computerization and seamless care. Examines the costs of PFC by comparing actual with expected costs. Makes managerial, clinical, educational and research implications throughout for staff working in or with PFC units.
Why are GP exercise schemes so successful (for those who attend)?
Authors: Singh Surinder
Published: July 2002

Aims to explore and examine the meanings attached to two general practitioner prescribed exercise schemes in London. A total of 13 interviewees were recruited in two leisure centres in the borough of Lewisham and asked about their perceptions of the exercise scheme in which they were participating. The ages of the participants ranged from 30 years to 61, and all but two of the group were women. Finds that the perceptions and beliefs of people who have been referred play an important part in determining how the exercise is beneficial. One illustration of this is that, often, a functional component of their respective bodies is tangibly improved by the exercise, for example breathing. Thus, for groups who attend and exercise under supervised conditions there is clearly a “health‐gain” however this is defined. Nevertheless, more comprehensive studies, perhaps using similar and complementary methodologies, are required in order to examine and clarify this further. General practitioners, the primary care team and commissioners of care need to be aware of the “qualitative” nature of the benefit which some scheme‐participants report.
Rethinking public health: new training for new times
Authors: Connelly Jim , Knight T. , Cunningham Catherine , Duggan Maria , McClenahan J.
Published: July 2002

The new public health agenda will require major changes in the way health authorities, local authorities, Trusts and Primary Care Groups organise and manage their activities. The requirement is for inter‐agency co‐ordination and inter‐professional and inter‐sectoral working to a shared agenda, yet the human and resources development planning to achieve these goals has not been done. This paper summarises the key training issues and argues for a collaborative, decentralised and quality assured approach to multidisciplinary public health management education and training. Only with such a joined up human resources plan can Our Healthier Nation succeed where The Health of the Nation signally failed.
Outsourcing to increase service capacity in a New Zealand hospital
Authors: Renner Christine , Palmer Elaine
Published: July 2002

Service firms manage variability using both demand‐side tactics (levelling customer demand), and supply‐side tactics (increasing available capacity). One popular way of increasing available capacity is the outsourcing of non‐core services. This article uses a case study to examine the impact of an outsourced non‐core service on a hospital’s overall service system. Findings show that the outsourced service provides access to more sophisticated technology, increases in‐house capacity and saves capital expenditure. However, the outsourcing also increases the scheduling problems that the hospital faces. These problems are largely due to communication delays from the involvement of more than one organisation. These delays decrease the response time available to match changes in demand for the outsourced service. Given the obvious benefits of such outsourcing, the article concludes that management should pay close attention to the communication pathways between organisations, in order to minimise the end effects identified in this study.
Community values according to the I‐Ching
Authors: Sun Li‐teh , Jiang Qi
Published: July 2002

In contemporary American society, conflicts between the community and the individual seem to have been intensified. This is believed to be a direct result of the lack of community values, which go beyond individual values. One of the ancient Chinese classics, the I‐Ching or Book of Changes, explains clearly the need for the consideration of community in the determination of the appropriateness of individual actions. This paper addresses those hexagrams in the Book that relate to the issue of community values.
Full‐fledged and forthright social economists under‐acclaimed
Authors: Nitsch Thomas O.
Published: July 2002

In a seeming attempt to legitimate or otherwise dignify social economics (Économie sociale, etc.), “named” economists (Adam Smith, Karl Marx et al.) have been dubbed social economists and/or regarded as having made significant but unrecognised contributions thereto. Conspicuously absent from that roster of celebrities are Léon Walras, économiste social par excellence, et al., who have distinguished themselves in the mainstream but also have done social economy(ics) explicitly, i.e. by that designation. Included in that illustrious et al. list are François Quesnay, J.B. Say, Friedrich von Wieser and Knut Wicksell (inter alios). Their due recognition, as per the present essay, cannot help but measurably further legitimise/dignify social economics.
Problems to agricultural sustainability in developing countries and a potential solution: diversity
Authors: Regmi Punya P. , Weber Karl E.
Published: July 2002

Problems addressed, in reporting from relevant sources, include population pressure, subsistence agriculture, rural poverty, natural resource depletion with emphasis on deforestation, land degradation, decline in productivity, resource rich/urban biased policies, and gender disparities. Compounded, these problems, which if isolated already pose tough challenges, seem to form an insurmountable barrier in the development path toward sustainable agriculture. Efforts made so far have had impacts below expectations. Recognizing biodiversity as the key stepping stone, the proposition is outlined that prospects will be improved significantly through the recognition of the great potential of diversity in human and technical resources as well. Needed are in‐depth research and thorough multidimensional analyses, to formulate an alternative strategy geared to mobilize the synergy yet hidden in the potential of the three‐pronged resource diversity.
The “Asian economic miracle” unmasked
Authors: Ryan Liam
Published: July 2002

The onset of the 1997 Asian financial crisis took the world by surprise. Its severity and the alarming speed at which it spread sent shock waves around the world. There is still no consensus as to the real causes of this catastrophe although a steep fall in export demand with exchange rates pegged to an appreciating US dollar clearly caused current account deficit problems, which were exacerbated by imprudent bank lending and debt management practices. The economies of Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia, South Korea and the Philippines were vulnerable to speculative runs on their currencies and rapid foreign investment repatriation with a collapse of investor confidence. It soon became evident that globalisation has its downside for economies unable to withstand the massive capital surges caused by hedge fund manipulation.
The competitive advantage of the transnational corporation as an institutional form
Authors: Jones Marc T.
Published: July 2002

Addresses the nature of the competitive advantage of the transnational corporation as an institutional form versus alternative forms of economic organization. It is argued that an important – and undertheorized – source of the TNC’s institutional superiority arises from its ability to extract rents from other significant stakeholders such as states and workers through structurally increasing bargaining power (driven by globalization) over these groups. A related issue which is considered is that of the changing sources of competitive advantage for TNCs operating in host countries and their associated distributional effects on key stakeholder groups, presented as ranging from positive‐sum to zero‐sum based on certain specific contingencies. To the extent that the particular sources of TNC competitive advantage matter in terms of their social significance, TNCs can, under certain circumstances, be understood as institutional mechanisms which exploit and extend market failures in the name of shareholder wealth rather than as agents of global allocative efficiency, thus making the question of their overall social utility contentious. Substantial public policy implications are therefore raised and briefly outlined. Some final comments are directed at the need for orthodox theories of the TNC to revisit comparative institutional and distributional considerations.
Tourism demand and the nuisance of crime
Authors: Levantis Theodore , Gani Azmat
Published: July 2002

The international tourism industry is booming, giving many developing nations unprecedented opportunity in trade. But for some developing nations, law and order problems appear to have obstructed growth in tourism. With little attention in the literature given to the influences of safety considerations for tourist demand, this paper investigates the deterrent effect of crime on tourism in developing island economies of the South Pacific and Caribbean. Using annual time‐series data, a simple country‐specific model is estimated. The empirical results confirm the importance of crime levels as a hindrance to the demand for tourism, the inference being that news of a deteriorating law and order situation in destination countries is being successfully disseminated to potential tourists in source countries despite the general inaccessibility of up‐to‐date crime statistics.
A social contractarian theory of markets: Neoclassicism, Rawls, Gauthier and the alternative
Authors: Alam Choudhury Masudul
Published: July 2002

The study of resource allocation in market venues is taken up in a comparative framework of neoclassical and various social contractarian theories. It is shown that economic theory does not have an explanation of substantive interactions among agents and variables as it does among society, economy and institutions, all of which social contractarian theory necessitates. Thus Rawls’s and Gauthier’s social contractarian theories are examined against neoclassicism and the classical theory of markets and resource allocation. Shortcomings with these theories are pointed out and a purely interactive theory of social contractarianism is propounded. Markets and resource allocation are once again studied in this framework.
Re‐evaluating IMF involvement in low‐income countries: the case of Haiti
Authors: Mobekk Eirin , Spyrou Spyros I.
Published: July 2002

During the last two decades, the focus of IMF involvement in the developing world, and especially in the low‐income countries, has shifted. For example, IMF involvement became not only more long term, but also oriented toward policy reform, rather than only assisting with a macroeconomic crisis. In this paper, we examine the importance of a qualitative factor, namely the perception of the local population towards structural adjustment programmes, and argue that it will have a significant impact on the success or failure of IMF‐supported programmes. In addition, we suggest that liberalisation and deregulation in low‐income countries, like Haiti, may actually reduce the rate of economic growth.
How social is European social policy?
Authors: Feldmann Horst
Published: July 2002

During the course of European integration social policy has become an increasingly important policy area of the European Union. The paper analyses whether the EU’s social‐policy measures improve the living conditions of the socially weaker groups. All three areas of European social policy are analysed: the co‐ordination of the member states’ social security systems, the harmonisation of the working conditions and the promotion of equal opportunities, social integration and vocational training. This paper shows that the EU’s social‐policy measures have numerous disadvantages. In particular, they often are detrimental to the very people who the EU intends to protect and promote.
Farewell to Welfare Statism! More Happiness in Welfare Market?
Authors: Lai On‐Kwok
Published: July 2002

Examines the relationship between public welfare and the pursuit of happiness via a discussion on the conception on public welfare provision and the way in which it is received as consumption. Introduces concepts on organized welfare and positions individual happiness in the realm of consumption, and argues that state‐organized welfare polity has unintentionally expanded the scope of and expectation of citizens on consumption. Outlines the critics on welfare state provision. Argues for a conceptualization of happiness with reference to the mode of welfare consumption. In spite of problems relating to the welfare state, collective consumption has provided both symbolic and material goods through which a new set of consumption relations is developed. Ends with remarks on the implication of welfare consumerism in creating the social identity of citizen‐consumers and happiness in the coming modernity.
Buchanan on Cost and Health
Authors: Reisman David A.
Published: July 2002

Discusses James Buchanan′s contribution to the important topic of cost‐containment in the area of health care. Historical and ideational in its thrust, it seeks also to make a more general contribution by showing how the methodology of public choice can be applied to a specific issue in economic and social policy. Examines the precise body of theory which Buchanan brings to bear when attempting a politico‐economic calculus of consent. Considers the causes of the rise in the cost of health and assesses Buchanan′s anxieties in respect of the burden. Discusses Buchanan′s solutions and explores alternatives to the options he endorses. Concludes that Buchanan′s answers may not appeal to all readers, but they are a fruitful area of research and speculation.
Social justice and environmental policy
Authors: Spillmann Andreas
Published: July 2002

Are the distributional effects of environmental measures just?
Answers this question, to do which we normally use the segregation
argument: poor people live in highly polluted areas, therefore
environmental measures which reduce the pollution must be socially just.
Argues that the environment is neither a public good nor a local public
good, as is often assumed. The crucial point for distribution analysis
is the reaction of the markets and by no means the geographical
segregation of income classes. Environmental prices skim off the benefit
of environmental measures and can lead to an unjust redistribution.
Universal banking and US banking in the 1990s
Authors: Cameron Colleen W.
Published: July 2002

Results of a test for differential performance applied to data for universal and non‐universal banks revealed that the performance of universal banks was not superior to that of the non‐universal banks. The study, therefore, does not support the performance theory as a basis for the global trend towards universal banking. Rather, there is implied support for the theory that loss of comparative advantage by commercial banks in the credit market and an increasingly competitive global market for financial services are both pushing major countries to adopt the universal model. Specific attention was given to the NAFTA countries bordering the USA. A test for convergence revealed that relatively new universal banks in those countries were converging towards the performance levels of other established universal systems; the project impact on the non‐universal US banking system in the 1990s is of serious concern.
John Maynard Keynes and Alvin Hansen
Authors: Hill Lewis E.
Published: July 2002

Contrasts the methodologies and policy implications of the
respective theories of John Maynard Keynes and Alvin Hansen. Keynes used
a rationalistic epistemology and deductive logic to deduce a pure theory
of employment which implied that monetary policy would be an appropriate
remedy for unemployment. Hansen used an empirical epistemology and
inductive logic to formulate an applied theory of employment which
explained the causes of the Great Depression in the USA. Hansen′s theory
of secular stagnation implied that a compensatory fiscal policy would be
an effective remedy for unemployment. The respective theories of Keynes
and Hansen are complementary, rather than contradictory; therefore,
social economists should utilize both of these theories under
appropriate circumstances.
Protecting the infant industry
Authors: Giacomo Preparata Guido , Elliott John E.
Published: July 2002

The passionate debate, among policy makers and theorists, over the appropriateness of protecting infant industries in developing countries was one of greatest interest in the economic literature of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. On one side of the argument are the British advocates of free trade, concocting subtle arguments to neutralize the boisterous aspirations of insubordinate colonies (and former colonies) yearning for independence; on the other, the standard‐bearers of Economic Nationalism, responding fiercely to the incessant firing of classical contentions. Such reaction to laissez‐faire economics gave birth to a corpus of ideas which was to form the core intellectual bulwark of commercial protectionism and cultural freedom. Discusses and comments on the conflicting views which animated the confrontation through examination of the major works of the most illustrious exponents of both factions.
Discounting, hierarchies, and the social aspects of biodiversity protection
Authors: Gowdy John M.
Published: July 2002

Among biologists it is generally recognized that market activity is having a devastating effect on the biological world. The current worldwide loss of biodiversity may be of the same order of magnitude as the five mass extinctions which have decimated life on earth during the past 500 million years. One reason for the current crisis is that decisions about resource use are increasingly made from the narrow perspective of market exchange. Decisions made in this context necessarily place a lower value on preservation than those made in a broader social context. Although the phenomenon of discounting generally works against biodiversity conservation, policies may be devised to use discounting to implement land use policies which will take effect in the relatively distant future.
Trade, growth and welfare in a natural resource‐rich country
Authors: Hall Peter
Published: July 2002

Asks how hard should a small natural resource‐rich (NRR) country try to escape from a path of economic development which has been shaped by its physical resource endowments, a question relevant to Clem Tisdell’s own country, Australia and also New Zealand and Canada, among others. Comments on the perception that a country well endowed with all manner of natural resources may nonetheless not be making as much of its opportunities as it could. Looks at what is actually happening in Australia, questions whether it is a worry and if so, what should policy makers do?
Some implications of external labour mobility for the development of micro‐states
Authors: Treadgold Malcolm , Laplagne Patrick
Published: July 2002

Uses a one‐sector model to investigate how external labour mobility can affect the economic performance of micro‐states. In the absence of restrictions on labour market flows between a micro‐state and a larger economy, the micro‐state becomes virtually an extension of the large economy. It may expand or contract in total size relative to the larger economy, and gain or lose population accordingly; but the linkage of its level of real wages to the level of real wages in the larger economy constrains opportunities for independent growth in labour productivity and hence in output per capita. A labour‐exporting micro‐state will experience a more autonomous form of economic development when a binding quota on emigration detaches the domestic real wage from the foreign real wage. However, per capita growth is likely to be of a lower base than under conditions of unrestricted access.
Have women lost out in the development process?
Authors: Jahan Nilufar , Alauddin Mohammad
Published: July 2002

Investigates the impact of agrarian change on women in Bangladesh. In recent decades, especially since the introduction of seed‐fertilizer‐irrigation technology (Green Revolution), the agricultural and rural sectors of many LDCs, including Bangladesh, have undergone significant transformations and the distributional consequences remain largely a topic of acrimonious debate. Investigates wage differentials between rural male and female workers by employing Oaxaca’s wage equation. Explains women’s worsening position in terms of reduced access to, and control over, the means and rewards of productive activity. Feels that the bulk of empirical literature on distributional implications of agrarian change concentrates on share of grains between rich and poor farmers, the landowners and the landless, rural and urban consumers, but is limited in that very little attention is paid to the effects of technological change on male and female. Attempts to provide a comprehensive analysis of the relevant issues underlying male and female employment experiences and concludes that, despite significant changes, women may have lost out in the development process.
Public‐to‐private organizational transition
Authors: Nwankwo Sonny
Published: July 2002

Argues that conceptually, privatization entails changing organizational status from public to private and from a monopoly to a competitive situation. In practice, the outcome may be different. Many privatized utilities conform to neither the traditional notion of the public nor the private enterprise. The broad dichotomy of the public‐private model of enterprise classification no longer provides an adequate insight to the workings of organizations in today’s environment. The new challenges emanating from the increasingly complex nature of modern environment require a new philosophy of organizational classification ‐ a reconceptualization of conventional paradigms. Based on the UK’s privatization experience, offers a framework for identifying and delineating the boundaries of an emergent organizational type ‐ the national enterprise. It is suggested that a clear articulation of the national enterprise concept might be useful to governmental strategists in planning the process of transforming state‐owned enterprises.
Technology transfer for sustainable development
Authors: Martinsons Maris G. , Leung Andy K.Y. , Loh Christine
Published: July 2002

Proactive efforts are increasingly advocated to conserve scarce resources, prevent future deterioration of our natural environment and sustain economic development. The progress towards, and prospects for, such sustainable development in Hong Kong were recently investigated. The long‐standing role of the territory as an international gateway and a development model for the People’s Republic of China magnifies the significance of this research. Although business activities and consumer attitudes in Hong Kong indicate that economic issues still dominate ecological concerns, support was found for a technology transfer theory of environmentalism. The socio‐economic psychology of Hong Kong favours market incentives rather than command‐and‐ control policies. Entrepreneurial incentives, information to raise public awareness and effective environmental technology transfer can be the foundation of a strategic environmental management effort across Greater China.
Ten years on: an appraisal of New Zealand’s economic restructuring 1984‐1994
Authors: Chatterjee Srikanta
Published: July 2002

Assesses and appraises New Zealand’s economic restructuring between 1984 and 1994. Provides an historical overview of the country’s economic performance and looks at past governmental policies. Examines the impact of the return to power of the Labour Party in 1984 and provides a broad chronology of the reform measures as they have evolved. Examines the compatibility of micro‐ and macro‐economic policies and then looks at possible achievements.
Crisis in capitalist welfare programmes
Authors: Gustavson Robert L.
Published: July 2002

Examines the Kansas job opportunities and basic skills programme to analyse why education and training programmes fail to reduce poverty and promote self‐reliance for programme participants. Uses profit model analysis to examine the effect of the Kansas job opportunities and basic skills programme on job readiness and employment. Examines client accountability to evaluate compliance with programme directives. Concludes that welfare recipient participation rates in KanWork education and training hold the key to understanding why Kansas welfare programmes contribute little to clients gaining marketable job skills.
The internationalization of the yen: with an emphasis on East Asia
Authors: Iwami Toru , Sato Kiyotaka
Published: July 2002

Discusses the possibility of an international monetary system composed of the US dollar, the German deutschmark and the yen as an alternative to the system based solely on the US dollar. Points out that the yen is playing a limited role in the international economy. Discusses the factors which cause the restriction of the yen, with particular reference to other Asian countries and their shift of official reserves from the dollar towards the yen. Suggests that Japan must find new trade relations which are less dependent on the US market if the yen is to increase its share of international trade transactions.
The moral foundations of The Wealth of Nations
Authors: Fitzgibbons Athol
Published: July 2002

Discusses some of the differences between Adam Smith’s The Wealth of Nations and his earlier work The Theory of Moral Sentiments. Gives an account of what Smith primarily intended by these works, i.e. to resolve the values conflict ‐ that of natural liberty versus traditional, conservative virtues. Identifies the ideas and cultures which influenced Smith in his writing; defines the thematic structure of The Wealth of Nations and describes and evaluates the arguments behind Smith’s resolution of the values conflict as detailed in his work.
Sustainability of land use in north‐east India
Authors: Tisdell Clem , Roy Kartik
Published: July 2002

Reports on a mission to north‐east India undertaken in September 1996 with a view to developing a joint research programme on sustainability of land use in that area. Describes the mission, the travel involved and the nature of the agreement which was reached with members of the North‐East Hill University, Mizoram Campus and with participants of Arunachal University. Identifies priority areas for future research as sustainable agriculture and use of forestry resources with the mission focus of attention being on Mizoram and Arunachal Pradesh. States that the majority of the population in north‐eastern Indian states consists of tribal people, many of whom still engage in shifting agriculture and are still very dependent on forest resources for their livelihood. Explains that, owing to rising populations and the desire for higher incomes, traditional practices in agriculture and forest use in this part of India are no longer sustainable, noting that the incomes of local people and their way of life are therefore threatened and there is urgent need for research to find new alternatives.
The Japanese food distribution system and the Large Scale Retail Store Law
Authors: Tsuchiya K. , Riethmuller P.
Published: July 2002

Spotlights important developments in the Japanese food distribution system over the past two to three years. States that, foreign pressure, combined with economic and social change in Japan, has forced the Japanese Government to alter some government regulations, including the Large Scale Retail Store Law. Reports that these regulatory changes, combined with other changes in the Japanese economy and society, have led to an increase in the number of supermarkets in Japan, and also to an expansion in the number of convenience stores and mini supermarkets. Discusses these developments and outlines possible implications for foreign firms interested in selling into the Japanese food market.
Valuation of gains and losses, fairness and negotiation outcomes
Authors: Borges Bernhard F.J. , Knetsch Jack L.
Published: July 2002

Reports the results of two experimental tests of the extent to which the large disparity between people’s valuation of gains and losses, and related fairness determinations, are used in judging the acceptability of alternative negotiating or conflict resolution proposals. Participants acted as arbitrators and selected their preferred resolution of conflicts, involving either the division of gains or sharing responsibility for losses. Different cases were presented in which one or the other party incurred varied combinations of direct or opportunity costs, or received varied forms of payments. Contrary to conventional economic assumptions, but consistent with earlier behavioural findings, direct costs incurred by one party to the negotiation were far more important than opportunity costs in setting the terms of a more acceptable resolution. The results strongly suggest that recent behavioural findings might be used to improve the design of negotiating and conflict resolution proposals.
Health service pricing reforms in Kenya
Authors: Mwabu Germano , Wang’ombe Joseph
Published: July 2002

In December 1989, the Government of Kenya implemented cost sharing reforms in a substantial portion of public health facilities. In September 1990 the Government suspended registration fees for out‐patient treatments, but reintroduced them in April 1992 after a lapse of a 20‐month period. Assesses the effects of these policy changes on demand for out‐patient services using a small data set from a rural district in central Kenya. Finds that, although medical services are inelastic with respect to user charges, cost sharing led to a significant reduction in out‐patient attendance: demand for out‐patient care declined by about 40 per cent. Consistent with this finding, suspension of registration fees in 1990 is associated with a 30 per cent increase in attendance. This increase occurred despite the retention of fees for diagnostic services. By March 1991, seven months after the suspension of fees, service demand had recovered remarkably and was only about 20 per cent below its original level. Further, finds that patients are more sensitive to fees for diagnostic services than they are to registration fees.
Ethical aspects of initiating anti‐dumping actions
Authors: McGee Robert W. , Block Walter
Published: July 2002

Explores the question of whether initiating an anti‐dumping action constitutes unethical conduct. Suggests that it is generally accepted that stealing and destroying the property of others are wrong, and that hiring someone to do the stealing or destruction for you is also wrong. Concludes that initiating an anti‐dumping action constitutes unethical conduct, since anti‐dumping actions involve theft and the destruction of property, not to mention the violation of contract and property rights and the freedom of association.
Al‐Ghazzali on social justice
Authors: Mehmet Ozay
Published: July 2002

States that Abu Hamid Muhammad Al‐Ghazzali (ad1058‐1111) is generally regarded as the Islamic equivalent of Kant. Reveals that he was a prolific and influential scholar, and that a central objective of Ghazzali in all his writings was the unity of knowledge, rooted in the Oneness of God, and reason (i.e. intellect plus free will) as the path for all moral concepts ultimately leading to the belief in God. Argues that Ghazzali’s ideas of good government, Dawlat, based on social justice, ad’l, penned 1,000 years ago, are still refreshing and relevant today. For, as humanity approaches a new millennium and globalization is slowly integrating peoples and cultures of the world, demands for global equity and good governance are at the top of the international reform agenda. Concludes that, in this context, Ghazzali’s ideas are especially relevant for a critical analysis of a discipline, i.e. economic development, which has for too long been Eurocentric.
Models of aboriginal communities in Canada’s north
Authors: Elias Peter Douglas
Published: July 2002

Reveals that in recent years, four models of northern Canadian aboriginal (Indian, Inuit and Métis) communities have been persuasive guides to shaping development strategies. Here they are called the dual economy model, the political economy model, the mixed economy model, and the cultural model. States that each model provides a useful, but partial description and analysis of how northern communities work and that in contrast, aboriginal leaders have advocated a comprehensive approach to development, or simultaneous political, economic and cultural development. Posits that because each dominant model is partial, initiatives launched from any one perspective are likely to satisfy only a part of local development goals. Concludes that model builders should find new ways to integrate the strengths of their respective concepts and create flexible tools needed for comprehensive development.
Society and self‐managing teams
Authors: Hanson Lee
Published: July 2002

This article addresses social dimensions and implications of the rise of the information, skill‐intensive economy based on self‐managing teams. The basis of the paper is an historical analysis of how “Taylorist” industrialization suppressed the self‐directing, team‐based labour process which had characterized pre‐industrial America, in the process inflicting deep long‐term economic and social costs even as it helped produced unprecedented prosperity. Extrapolating from the historical analysis, in the second section of the paper social trends are discussed which seem likely to emerge in the future with the establishment of an information‐ and skill‐intensive economic organization based on self‐managing teams.
The Schumpeterian hypothesis and technical change
Authors: Kinugasa Tatsuo
Published: July 2002

This paper provides an empirical test of the available evidence concerning firms’ productivity structure and the Schumpeterian hypothesis using the Japanese trunk route airlines during the period 1977‐1993. Empirical tests of this hypothesis have traditionally examined the relationship between some measure of innovative activity and firm size. Former studies have employed the growth rate of productivity as a measure of innovative activity in empirical tests. However, the innovative activity should be measured as the rate of technical change using some innovative inputs and outputs. Since the total factor productivity (TFP) can be decomposed into the technical change and the scale economies terms, this study demonstrates the shift in the cost function associated with technical change, and the change of economies of scale. In this study, the technical change and the scale economies are directly measured by using trans‐log type function. Lastly, the Schumpeterian hypothesis is tested by the technical change. From the empirical results, the Schumpeterian hypothesis is rejected.
Trying to stay Canadian ‐ maybe
Authors: Pike Robert M.
Published: July 2002

This paper examines recent Canadian public policies intended to create a window for domestic entertainment programming on television in the face of a series of economic and technological factors which favour greater cultural integration with the American television market. These factors include the limited revenues available to the conventional public and private TV sectors, audience fragmentation through cable, and both the readily availability, and audience acceptance in English Canada, of inexpensive shows from the USA. Recent policies have focussed upon increasing the number of Canadian cable channels in a country where most people subscribe to cable; but paradoxically, public funding for the mainstay of domestic entertainment programming, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, is being drastically cut. The impacts of these cuts on the Corporation’s mandate, and proposed remedies, are outlined. It is concluded that public broadcasting policies are now being determined by economic rather than cultural goals, and that the Corporation is a victim of this trend.
Good governance in sustainable development: the impact of institutions
Authors: Roy K.C. , Tisdell C.A.
Published: July 2002

The possibilities for good governance depends on institutional structures and the economic resources available for ensuring governance. In some cases centralised governance structures are inefficient. In other cases, decentralised structures turn out to be inadequate. In India decentralisation of power to village level has not improved the efficiency of rural development. Decentralisation of power, it is said, by facilitating the empowerment of people in local communities can contribute to more sustainable development. On the other hand, in India, the delegation of power to the states in some cases has resulted in the destruction of the environment. Thus centralised and decentralised governance structure have both merits and demerits. Preservation of the environment which is essential for sustainable development cannot be achieved unless the pressure on forest and natural resources is reduced. This cannot happen in the absence of appropriate property rights of local communities and of rural women. In West Bengal as well as in the central Himalayan region in India it has been found that the disappearance of community control and restrictions on the user rights of villagers reduced the incentive and ability of villagers to use forest sustainability. On the other hand, in Russia, pristine forests are being degraded because of lack of resources of the weak central government. Good governance also depends on appropriate institutions. Corruption, bureaucratic inefficiency, inefficient and corrupt law enforcement agencies undermine the capacity of institutions to facilitate good governance for sustainable development. Corruption and rent seeking activities can grow even in an economy which has tried to apply outward oriented economic policies if an appropriate institutional environment does not exist. A state which assumes predatory or semi‐predatory status can systematically incapacitate all institutions for good governance and effective implementation of policies. Thus formulation of policies cannot ensure effective implementation in the absence of good governance which in turn cannot be achieved in the absence of appropriate institutions. Hence, sustainable development requires good policies and effective provision of institutions conducive to good governance.