bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The Information Superhighway
Authors: Martin Murray S.
Published: January 2008

“The Information Superhighway” is constantly in the news. What does it mean for libraries? Although there have been assurances that libraries will be seen as equal partners in the new age of electronic communication, there are other indicators that libraries may be bypassed. A high school in Poughkeepsie, N.Y, heralded its “Internet Monarch Butterfly Project,” while another school announced that the Internet was being used to develop a worldwide relationships program. Then USA Today (May 20, 1994) reported that AT&T landed another big one—a contract to construct high tech, digital‐communications systems to transmit phone calls, computer data, TV channels, and interactive video. This deal could give them a lock on data transmission worldwide. Given that many Washington gurus, including the Vice President, have repeatedly assured libraries, schools and other public agencies that they will have an important role to play in developing new means of data transmission, what do these actions portend?
Buying a PC for Your Library
Authors: Dewey Patrick R.
Published: January 2008

Microcomputer acquisitions comprise major capital investments for libraries. This author proposes a six‐stepped model for selecting appropriate system configurations based on anticipated system utilization and guides libraries through applying the model to acquisition decisions. The author also describes currently available technology and makes suggestions as to its application to library situations.
A Reasonable Facsimile
Authors: Schmidt Steven J.
Published: January 2008

Telefax offers the library professional a rapid, dependable, and affordable way to send images from point A to point B. In the race for speed and accuracy, it is the hands‐down winner. Buying a telefax is no different than buying any other tool. The author guides you in the intracacies of facsimile options before you go shopping—helping you assess your actual needs, determine what extra features you want, and decide what your budget will stand.
R.I.P. NOTIS: Preparing for Vendor Death and Transformations
Authors: Holt Glen E.
Published: January 2008

At the A.L.A. convention in Miami Beach, some of us thought we heard Ameritech issue a death announcement for NOTIS, one of the the respected old‐guard of library automation systems.
The CLS bottom line: it's more than money, it's service
Authors: Calabrese Alice , Wozny Jay
Published: January 2008

The Chicago Library system serves one of the nation's largest public libraries, one of the nation's largest public school systems, over 200 special libraries, and 52 academic libraries. Its Executive Director and Deputy Director describe how they outsourced and contracted for major services. Outsourced and contracted services include ownership, operation, and maintenance of a central automation site, interlibrary loan delivery services, reference services, as well as other system operations.
Editorial
Authors: Harmon Charles
Published: January 2008

Editing a journal boils down to two very separate and distinct functions. First, deciding what articles you want to publish, finding good people to write those articles, and — perhaps most challenging — getting those people to agree to write the articles. The second function is reading the articles you solicit as well as those submitted for consideration and editing those; working with authors on reshaping and redeveloping the articles or just making editorial changes. Importantly, both parts allow the editor to shape the direction, feel, and focus of the journal.
Door‐to‐door canvassing and personal contact in library referenda campaigns
Authors: Hall Richard B.
Published: January 2008

Door‐to‐door canvassing is the single most effective campaign activity for persuading undecided voters to support a library issue and for getting “Yes” voters to get out and vote. Discusses the two forms of door‐to‐door canvassing: simply delivering the literature; and delivering campaign literature and making personal contact. Includes a sample script which can be used by canvassers.
NEW measures FOR business
Authors: Phillips Richard
Published: January 2008

Accurate measurement has been a key tool of management in the search for profits. But over the few years, new beliefs and views of how best to measure performance have given some companies what they as a competitive edge.
THE SENSE OF balance
Authors: Norton David
Published: January 2008

In the 1990s the Balanced Scorecard has become an established tool for integrating financial and non‐financial perspectives into performance management. Its co‐developer, Dr David Norton, talked about its evolution to Measuring Business Excellence.
The promise of SIMPLICITY
Authors: Jeanes Clive
Published: January 2008

In focusing on tight management of direct costs many businesses are overlooking the savings and increased profitability to be made by unravelling complexity, says Clive Jeanes.
COMPETITIVE STRATEGY
Authors: Porter Michael E.
Published: January 2008

Strategy may not be the most dynamic word in the business lexicon, but reports of its death as a core discipline are premature. The analytical approach to strategy first put forward in 1980 by Professor Michael E. Porter of the Harvard Business School was a watershed in business analysis. Measuring Business Excellence revisits Competitive Strategy, Professor Porter's seminal work, and finds that it remains a powerful framework for understanding the competitive situation faced by today's organizations.
THE EDGE OF satisfaction
Authors: Loveday Marion
Published: January 2008

What influence does customer loyalty have on the effectiveness of customer satisfaction as a measure of success? A three‐year study by the European Foundation for Quality Management uncovered some important links which are reflected in the latest revisions to the European model for business excellence.
EFFECTIVE METHODS for measuring the cost of poor quality
Authors: Sörqvist Lars
Published: January 2008

Reducing a company's non‐value creating costs — the cost of poor quality — is one of the best ways of increasing profitability and competitiveness, yet ineffective measurement prevents many businesses realizing the benefits. In the second of a two‐part report on research among some of Sweden's largest companies, Lars Sörqvist describes some of the more effective methods they have pinpointed.
SUN LIFE'S human resources SCORECARD
Authors: Brassington Keith , Slemen Sarah
Published: January 2008

Sun Life, one of the UK's largest providers of long‐term personal finance products, is deploying a customized scorecard of measures within its human resources department to tie its objectives more closely to company strategy.
ALL CHANGE on the instrument panel
Authors: Cardinaux Pierre‐Alain
Published: January 2008

The management of the future will be based on a broader, global reporting system rather than just operational figures. Modern ‘instrument panels’ will measure not just financial and internal performance but the achievement of strategic targets, external performance and the satisfaction of stakeholders.
THE WAY organizations get SMARTER
Authors: Häcki Remo L
Published: January 2008

By identifying the fundamentals of what makes an organization intelligent, companies can manage their behaviour patterns and culture to maximize their corporate IQ.
WHEN KNOWLEDGE is wealth
Authors: Erik Sveiby Karl
Published: January 2008

Karl Erik Sveiby starts out with a big advantage over most of the authors and consultants offering their views and services about knowledge management. In his latest book, The New Organizational Wealth, he expands on his insights as a managing partner in building Affärsvälden, which grew from 10 people when it was founded in 1979 to one of Sweden's largest specialist publishers employing 160 staff when it was taken over in 1994. He talked to Measuring Business Excellence at the launch of the book, which is reviewed on page 64.
From PERFORMANCE MEASUREMENT to PERFORMANCE MEASUREMENT
Authors: Bittlestone Robert
Published: January 2008

Corporate interest in non‐financial performance measures may be a phenomenon of the nineties but it is nothing new. But the extent to which it brings about a change in company behaviour and business results hinges on the recognition that it is not an end in itself but a crucial component in the performance management cycle.
CABLE AND WIRELESS MEASURES MANAGEMENT for CHANGE
Authors: Webster Jeremy
Published: January 2008

As global and local market forces combined to challenge Cable and Wireless' lucrative monopoly on telephone services in the Caribbean a key part of its response was the development of a business performance index. Bringing together customer and employee satisfaction indices with a set of financial indicators, the index allows local business units to align with customer demands, adapt to changing heeds, equip employees to do their job better and maximize the use of resources.
A bridge TO expectations
Authors: Cardell Stephen
Published: January 2008

Understanding that benchmarking is a collection of approaches, rather than a single tool, is fundamental to its successful use. By water has developed a framework which steers users toward the most appropriate approach.
TRADE OFFS FOR CLIMATE CONTROL
Authors: Phillips Gareth
Published: January 2008

As a result of the climate change agreements signed in Rio and Kyoto, in 1992 and 1997 respectively, trading in carbon emissions is a reality. Systems of verification and certification such as that devised by SGS Forestry will underpin the regulation and monitoring of the emerging market.
FITTING STANDARDS FOR PUBLIC SERVICES
Authors: Hamilton David
Published: January 2008

Rather than waiting to comply with pressure to install certified management systems in the public sector, County Durham Care set out to customize the ISO 9000 series as a framework for monitoring and focusing development.
IDENTIFYING THE COST of POOR QUALITY
Authors: Sörqvist Lars
Published: January 2008

Most businesses would be happy to increase turnover by 10%, yet that is the scale of loss through poor quality revealed by projects in Swedish companies. And 10% may be just the tip of the iceberg.
ACCOUNTING FOR THE TRIPLE BOTTOM LINE
Authors: Elkington John
Published: January 2008

Pressure is growing from governments and their citizens for business to measure and manage the impacts and outcomes of its behaviour in a range of areas. The demand has led to the formulation of a ‘triple bottom line’ to reflect economic, social and environmental performance.
KEEPING THE DATA WAREHOUSE OFF THE ROCKS
Authors: Farley Jon
Published: January 2008

Organizations are investing heavily in ‘data warehouse’ systems to capitalize on the information generated by day‐to‐day contact with customers. But many risk steering their business from the engine room rather than the bridge through poor implementation, argues Jon Farley.
a PRACTICAL DIAGNOSIS OF BUSINESS EXCELLENCE
Authors: Eskildsen Jacob , Dahlgaard Jens
Published: January 2008

In conducting full‐scale implementation of a total quality management programme an organization's success will depend on how well it can answer two basic questions: ‘where are we now?’ and ‘how do we proceed?’. A quantitative measurement tool developed at Aarhus School of Business and used by a major European corporation gives management an instrument to gauge its level of business excellence and identify important opportunities for improvement.
The ant and the consumer
Authors: Ormerod Paul
Published: January 2008

In the English county of Cornwall the annual invading army of tourists which are its biggest source of income are referred to unkindly as ‘emmets’, an ancient word for ‘ants’. Yet the observed behaviour of real life ants suggests that the locals have instinctively hit on a model which has enormous implications for any industry or business trying to understand how its consumer market works.
TO BUY OR NOT TO BUY
Authors: Concetta Di Maio Maria
Published: January 2008

The rationale that a deeper understanding of the psychological motivation for a consumer's purchasing decisions will lead to more effective marketing campaigns has been put to the test by Telecom Italia Mobile using the Schwartz Value Inventory.
A FRESH IMPETUS FOR internal audits
Authors: Frei Urs
Published: January 2008

Too often an organization's internal audit process falls down due to a tired routine that fails to bring weak points to light. Audits linked to business objectives rather than restricted to operating processes, as laid down in ISO 9000, can refresh the impetus.
THE DANGERS of COMPETITION
Authors: Conti Tito
Published: January 2008

In an independent view of the evolution of ISO 9000 and the quality award models, Tito Conti, one of the chief architects of the European model for business excellence, warns of the the dangers of a developing hegemony.
TOTAL asset utilization
Authors: Luftig Jeffrey T
Published: January 2008

An overview of a productivity metric for profitability enhancement and focused cost reduction that addresses the reasons why many cost or quality initiatives under‐deliver or fail to turn efficiency ‘improvements’ into increased profit.
Procurement moves centre stage
Authors: Janssen Alexander , Wu Yuan Wen
Published: January 2008

Market conditions are undermining the commonly held view of the procurement function as a service‐providing cost centre. A benchmarking consortium of leading companies guided by Juran Institute has been exploring best practice in a strategic context.
PLANS FOR THE FUTURE
Authors: Wilson Jonathan
Published: January 2008

Forecasting based on measurement and control is losing its relevance as a tool for successful planning and organizational management. In the new business climate an understanding of chaos and complexity theory will be the key to winning performance.
VALUES THE DAWN OF social RESPONSIBILITY
Authors: McIntosh Malcolm
Published: January 2008

As head of the corporate citizenship unit at the UK's Warwick Business School and a former European director of the Council on Economic Priorities Malcolm McIntosh is well placed to assess the clamorous interest of businesses in the “values chain” since the launch last year of SA 8000. He talked to Jan Jonker about the spread of the international standard for social accountability and where it is leading.
THE IMPACT OF BRAND LOYALTY on NEW PRODUCT LAUNCHES
Authors: Hofmeyr Jan , Rice John
Published: January 2008

How a measure of consumer commitment can reduce the high failure rate of new product launches was the subject of the award winning paper at this year's congress of the European Society for Opinion and Marketing research.
THE WALL STREET shuffle
Authors: Reece Damian
Published: January 2008

As market capitalism celebrates its first decade of undisputed hegemony its oldest barometer — the US stock market's Dow Jones Industrial Average — has undergone one of the rare revisions of its constituent companies. In reseating the top table of corporate America it aims to remain representative of the evolving US economy.
The Exploding Service Sector: Meeting the Challenge through Behavioral Management
Authors: Luthans Fred
Published: January 2008

All aspects of the expanding service sector, including its growth, importance, status and role, are examined. Moments of truth, called here MOTs, are identified as crucial in the successful running of service companies, and a behavioral approach is suggested as an excellent method of getting front‐line employees to increase the incidence of + (or positive) MOTs for customers' and the company's, benefit.
To Get Back to Business Basics, Find a Poet
Authors: Peters Tom
Published: January 2008

Using a lecture tour in China as a starting‐point, some fundamentals of management are reconsidered.
Consulting Activities in Organisational Change
Authors: Margerison Charles J.
Published: January 2008

Consulting assignments go through various steps and stages. It is important to know what these are so you can identify what needs to be done, when and how. This article outlines the steps and stages seen occurring in most consulting work.
Managing Change through Communication Technologies in Third World Countries
Authors: Fulk Janet , Rogers Everett M. , Von Glinow Mary Ann
Published: January 2008

The fundamental premises of three different models of diffusion of new technologies are described; the similarities and differences in prediction which are derivable from the three perspectives are highlighted. These perspectives include (1) diffusion of innovation; (2) technology transfer; and (3) critical mass theory. The article examines these predictions within the context of the unique social, cultural and political environments of developing countries. To illustrate the results of this approach, these theories are applied retrospectively to three technologies introduced into developing countries. They differentially explain diffusion and the subsequent use of these technologies. Implications for change management and technology policy are presented and future research is suggested.
Critical Issues in Large‐scale Change
Authors: Joyce Covin Teresa , Kilmann Ralph H.
Published: January 2008

The results of a study designed to investigate issues in large‐scale change efforts are presented. The sample for this study consisted of 398 individuals with expertise in the area of planned change. Individuals were asked to indicate the types of issues they perceived as having a positive or negative impact on large‐scale change programs in general. Respondents also provided data on 312 specific change efforts. Results indicate that several variables, including high industry competition, a high percentage of employee participation and the participation of employees from many organizational levels, may have a significant positive impact on the success of large‐scale change programs.
Communication and change: Effective change communication is personal, global and continuous
Authors: Goodman Michael B. , Holihan Virginia C. , Willis Karen E.
Published: January 2008

This paper examines strategies to meet the communication challenge of change brought on through planned transitions, by the stress of a crisis, or as a result of the social transformation in work and the nature of work. It explores the cycles of change to create a foundation for understanding the communication of change to individual people in an organisation. It examines the impact of reengineering as a change vehicle, the role of trust in reengineering, and some reasons reengineering appears to have shortcomings for individuals coping with change. A reengineering case study is also presented. Successful communication of change demonstrates an understanding of the cycle of change, the importance of trust in the communication process, the essential personal nature of change, the necessity for continuous face‐to‐face communication, and a recognition that current global changes are symptoms of a shift in the human condition.
British Airways' internal communication programme
Authors: Jones Peter
Published: January 2008

Good communication sits at the heart of any successful enterprise. Internal communications is also being recognised increasingly as a powerful leader within a business — particularly, although not exclusively, a service business. There are numerous reasons for this. The pace of change in business and the demands of employees to be enfranchised are only two. Ensuring that the communication needs of employees and the business are met requires increasingly demanding systems designed to establish communications as a contributor to the business. It requires the role modelling and rewarding of good communication from the centre and the ownership of the communications process by line management. This paper sets out some of the ways British Airways is meeting these challenges.
The Valuation of European Financial Firms
Authors: Danbolt Jo , Rees William
Published: January 2008

We extend the recent literature concerning accounting based valuation models to investigate financial firms from six European countries with substantial financial sectors: France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Switzerland and the UK. Not only are these crucial industries worthy of study in their own right, but unusual accounting practices, and inter‐country differences in those accounting practices, provide valuable insights into the accounting‐value relationship. Our sample consists of 7,714 financial firm/years observations from 1,140 companies drawn from 1989–2000. Sub‐samples include 1,309 firm/years for banks, 650 for insurance companies, 1,705 for real estate firms, and 3,239 for investment companies. In most countries we find that the valuation models work as well or better in explaining cross‐sectional variations in the market‐to‐book ratio for financial firms as they do for industrial and commercial firms in the same countries, although Switzerland is an exception to this generalization. As expected, the results are sensitive to industrial differences, accounting regulation and accounting practices. In particular, marking assets to market value reduces the relevance of earnings figures and increases that of equity.
The Impact of Reputation on the Informativeness of Earnings and Accounting Choices
Authors: AlNajjar Fouad K. , Riahi‐Belkaoui Ahmed
Published: January 2008

The article hypothesizes that the level of reputation affects both the informativeness of earnings and the magnitude of discretionary accounting accrual adjustments. The hypothesis exploits the following: the positive relationship between reputation and firms' risk‐return profiles, and managers' incentives in using discretionary accounting accrual adjustments. Results show that reputation is positively associated with earnings' explanatory power for returns, and related to the magnitude of accounting accrual adjustments.
Cross‐Cultural Differences in the Perceived Morality of Accounting Manipulations: The Effect of Acculturation
Authors: Cohen Jeffrey R. , Pant Laurie W. , Sharp David J.
Published: January 2008

In a world of increasingly global commerce, individual managers frequently migrate permanently to a new place of work. Over time, they acculturate—they learn and acquire the values of their host culture. The differences between national cultures' norms concerning the morality of questionable (by North American norms) accounting practices, and the ways in which individuals' beliefs about the morality of such action change as they settle into a new culture, are not well understood. This paper presents an exploratory study of the acculturation process with respect to accounting ethics of Chinese managers moving to Canada for an extended period of time. We test for two effects: first, for differences in ethical perceptions and intentions between members of the two cultures resident in their country of birth, and second, the effect of a significant acculturation effect on the Chinese group resulting from their living in Canada and studying in a North American MBA program for approximately one year. We find two acculturation effects. First, Chinese managers perceived a questionable cost accounting allocation to be more ethical than the Chinese in Canada. Although there was no significant difference in an overall measure of morality, investigation of this effect among various moral schema identified some perceptions of utilitarianism, moral Tightness and self‐interest to be significantly different among those Chinese who had spent one year in Canada compared to those in China, and closer to the beliefs of the Canadian‐born managers. We also found an acculturation effect relating to intention to take a questionable action. While there was no significant difference in intention between the Canadian‐born and Chinese in China, the newly‐arrived Chinese in Canada were significantly more willing to take the questionable action. This result was robust to controls for social desirability bias, gender and work experience. We conclude that reasoning processes differ between Chinese and Canadian managers, and are affected by an intense one‐year acculturation process (the first year of a North American MBA program). However, the acculturation process of the Chinese in Canada appeared to result in their greater willingness to undertake a questionable cost allocation than either their Canadian‐born or Chinese in China colleagues.
Economic Freedom and Macroeconomic Determinants of Economic Growth: Cross‐Country Evidence
Authors: AINajjar Fouad K.
Published: January 2008

This study examines the cross‐sectional relationship between economic growth and variables suggested by the economic literature as affecting economic growth. The results show that economic freedom, in addition to known macroeconomic variables, is significantly related to economic growth.
Market Effects, Size Contingency and Financial Ratios
Authors: Hopwood William , McKeown James C.
Published: January 2008

This study presents theoretical and empirical analyses to suggest a previously‐unknown size‐related contingency in the relationship between market variables and various commonly‐used financial ratios, including Net Income/Total Assets, Current Assets/Sales, Current Assets/Current Liabilities, Current Assets/Total Assets, Cash/Total Assets, Long‐Term Debt/Total Assets, Accounts Receivable/Sales. The size contingency in this relationship is shown to be due to the cross‐sectional variability of the ratios themselves. Moreover, simply adding a size dummy to the model will not correct for the problem. Empirical results show that the effect is very strong and subjects to severe misinterpretation any study that uses financial ratios on the right‐hand‐side of a linear model.
The Functional Relationships Among Earnings, Cash Flows and Stock Returns in Korea
Authors: Suk Yoon Soon , Miller Gary
Published: January 2008

This paper investigates the functional relationships between stock returns and two representative performance measures. The two measures are earnings and cash from operations. In addition, this paper assesses the association of stock returns with the decomposed components of earnings. Our study documents that earnings dominate cash from operations in terms of the relationships with the stock returns. When the stock returns are regressed on the decomposed components of earnings, cash from operations consistently shows strong positive relationships with stock returns. The efficient capital market hypothesis posits that changes in reported earnings without cash flow implications should not affect stock prices. However, our regression results indicate that non‐current accruals have strong relationships with the stock returns even though they lack cash flow implications. Perhaps this may imply that cosmetic earnings increases might be rewarded with increases in stock prices.
Expected Long‐Run Return on Equity in a Residual Income Valuation Model
Authors: Soffer Leonard C.
Published: January 2008

I show that the common residual income model assumption that return on equity approaches zero in the long run as competitive advantage dissipates is incorrect. This erroneous assumption comes from the common misinterpretation of the spread between return on equity and the cost of equity as a measure of economic profit. I also show that an unbiased accounting system (Feltham and Ohlson, 1995), which would make such an interpretation acceptable, is unlikely to exist in actual financial statements. Finally, I argue that because an accounting system can be deemed to be unbiased only if the firm's value is already known, the concept is of little practical use for actual valuation work.
On the Relationship between Earnings, Cash Flows and Returns: An Australian Postscript to Lev and Zarowin (1999)
Authors: Jones Stewart
Published: January 2008

In a recent US study, Lev and Zarowin (1999) documented a steady decline in the value relevance of financial statements over a twenty year period. They attribute this decline, in part, to the inadequate financial reporting of intangibles, and particularly US accounting requirements for the immediate expensing of these items. In contrast to US accounting standards, capitalization of R&D expenditure is permitted in Australia under Approved Australian Accounting Standard AASB 1011 “Accounting for Research and Development Costs.” As expected, the capitalization of intangibles was found to be significantly higher in the new economy sector, with an increasing trend towards capitalization over the past five years. The results are broadly consistent with the US study. However, while not unequivocal, the results also suggest that the earnings‐return relationship was steadier, and the cash flow‐return relationship stronger overall in the new economy sector, indicating some tentative support for proponents of capitalization.
Accounting for Future Tax Assets and Liabilities under CICA Handbook Section 3465
Authors: Zeng Tao
Published: January 2008

This paper explores the value relevant information of future income taxes under The Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants (CICA) handbook section 3465. CICA handbook section 3465 requires Canadian companies to use the asset and liability method to account for income taxes. Consistent with prior studies, this paper shows that future tax assets are positively associated with share prices, suggesting that they are valued as assets. Future tax liabilities are negatively associated with share prices, suggesting that they are valued as liabilities. Future tax value allowance, which is created for future tax assets, is negatively associated with share prices. This study also explores the value relevant information of future tax asset and liability categories. In addition, this paper explores what determines the valuation of future tax assets and liabilities. It is argued that future tax assets are more (less) valuable if (no) sufficient future income will be generated in the near future to utilize these tax assets; future tax liabilities will reduce share prices more (less), if there is a higher (lower) likelihood of reversal in the short run. The results support this argument. It is shown that (1) future tax assets are less valuable if the firm's value allowance is higher (i.e., the management does not expect the firm will generate sufficient taxable income in future years to utilize these tax assets), or the firm's leverage is higher (another proxy for no sufficient future taxable income), and (2) future tax liabilities reduce share prices less if the firm's investment in capital properties is increased.
The Relative Value of Non‐U.S.‐Based Annual Reports and Accounts: A Price and Trading Volume Analysis
Authors: Olibe Kingsley O. , Cready William M.
Published: January 2008

This paper reports the results of the effects of the release, in the United Kingdom, annual reports and accounts (ARA), on security prices and trading volume of the U.K. firms. If the information reported in the annual reports and accounts (ARA) is relevant, the U.S. security market will respond to the release news through return and volume variances. Both signals are indicators of the relevance of the annual reports and accounts. The results of the analysis suggest the existence of unexpected returns to the annual reports and accounts and no corresponding U.S. trading volume response. The price results are in marked contrast to the findings of previous research that examined the information content of U.S. domestic annual reports, but do not detect a stock price response (e.g., Foster et al. 1986; Bernard and Stober 1989; Cready and Mynatt 1991). Our stock price analyses indicate that non‐U.S. GAAP accounting measures do not impede U.S investors' ability to use U.K. firms' ARA in valuing the sample firms. Indeed, U.S. investors use information from the ARA in their valuation of U.K. firms. Since trading responses to a disclosure are generally more easily detected than price responses (Cready and Hurtt 1999), these findings jointly suggest the provincial nature of the ARA release.
Are Bigger State and Local Public Pension Plans More Cost Efficient? An Analysis of Economies of Size
Authors: Dulebohn James H. , Chen Hsiu‐Lang
Published: January 2008

State and local public pension plans cover a significant number of workers and represent a major component of the nation's retirement system. This study examined the size‐administrative cost relationship of public pension plans to ascertain whether cost savings can be realized by increasing pension plan size. The results indicated that while the consolidation of smaller plans will generate administrative cost savings, the consolidation of larger plans will generate savings only up to an optimal membership size at which point cost savings will end. In addition, optimal size was found to differ for active and beneficiary members indicating that membership composition needs to be considered when assessing the potential for cost savings.
Institutional Investors and Trading Volume Reactions to Management Forecasts of Annual Earnings
Authors: Cairney Timothy D.
Published: January 2008

This paper examines the effect of institutional investors on the trading volume reaction to management forecasts of annual earnings. Based on a sample of forecasting firms between 1990 and 1992, institutional investors are examined as heterogeneous types, rather than as a single group as done in prior research. The findings contribute to the growing literature on institutional investor types in two ways: (1) institutional categories differ in their trading patterns, and (2) if the categories are classified into active and inactive types, then greater trading by active institution‐types signals greater investor‐level information asymmetries and greater trading by inactive institution‐types signals lower investor‐level information asymmetries. Overall, the results suggest that increased firm voluntary disclosures, as encouraged by the SEC and the AICPA, may be differentially informative to different types of investors.
The New and Improved Consumer Behavior Theory
Authors: Meadows Edward
Published: January 2008

Introduction One of the fresher breezes to rustle the leaves in the Black Forest of microeconomic theory has been fueled by the “new” consumer behavior theory, based on the household production function. The theory was developed in the early 1960s by Gary Becker, his colleagues and graduate students in the Labor Workshop at Columbia University. Becker's 1965 Economic Journal article, “A Theory of the Allocation of Time,” (1) is regarded as the seminal elucidation. But concurrently, other Workshop participants, such as Owen, Dean, Mincer, et al(2), did research on time allocation theoretics and applications, and credit for primal development of the new theory is also given to Lancaster for his 1966 paper, “A New Approach to Consumer Theory,” (3). However, one must go back to 1947 and Wassily Leontief's Econometrica article on the separability of functions (4) to find the clear Schumpeterian Vision necessary to evolution of the theory. Michael and Becker (5) have even claimed to find antecedents ranging back to 1789 and Jeremy Bentham's Principles of Legislation (6).
A Pedagogic Note: Comparison of 0LS, 2SLS and 3SLS Estimation Methods
Authors: Heck J. Louis
Published: January 2008

Introduction The application of statistics to the study of economic relationships is often characterized by unique problems. Although prediction may be an important part of a study's objectives, generally the econometrician is more concerned with the form of the relationship between economic variables for such information enables him to define the transmission mechanism between economic variables. Knowledge of the functional relationship between variables makes it possible to trace the impact of a change in a control or policy variable on and through other variables in the system under study.
THE DEVELOPMENT OF SET THEORY AND ITS APPLICATION TO ECONOMIC ANALYSIS
Authors: SCHULTZ JOHN A.
Published: January 2008

During the twentieth century mathematics has expanded at an unprecedented rate. This expansion has been accompanied by the increased application of mathematics to science. At a time when pure mathematics has been placing more and more emphasis on abstraction and the analysis of broad concepts there has been a corresponding proliferation of practical applications. This seems to have resulted from the fact that the sciences, too, have become more concerned with the discernment of general patterns in the study of nature. This search for simplifying ideas has increased the demand for ever more abstract tools of analysis.
DISINTERMEDIATION AND ITS EFFECT ON THE STABILITY OF SAVINGS CAPITAL AT FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS
Authors: WALKER ELISE
Published: January 2008

THE CAUSES AND EFFECTS OF DISINTERMEDIATION Disintermediation is a relatively new term on the financial scene in America. The term was first coined in mid‐1966 and has since, to the dismay of many, become part of the daily vocabulary of bankers and economists. Originally, it sprang up to describe the outflow of funds from deposits at financial intermediaries (commercial banks, savings and loan associations and mutual savings banks) to investments yielding a higher return. Since that time, disintermediation, has taken on several additional forms such as fractional disintermediation, which addresses differences between the maximum interest rate that can be paid on a time deposit with a specified maturity at a financial intermediary and the interest rates prevailing on the similar instruments in the open market. Another new form of savings outflow is passbook disintermediation which will be discussed later. No matter which form of disintermediation is addressed, the same difficulty exists for the depository institutions — how to remain competitive when interest rates rise above the maximum ceiling rates allowed by law.
ADAM SMITH: REFLECTIONS ON THE BICENTENNIAL REAPPRAISAL
Authors: COATS A.W.
Published: January 2008

In 1976, amid the vastly greater celebrations of the bicentennial anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, there was the greatest orgy of historical nostalgia in the history of economics, occasioned by the bi‐centenary of the Wealth of Nations. In addition to a veritable deluge of scholarly books, articles, pamphlets, conferences, and symposia, and also innumerable popular and ephemeral effusions, all the mass media were enlisted. There were countless magazine and newspaper articles, some radio and T.V. programs, at least one especially commissioned technicolor film and, for all I know, there may also have been bicentennial poems, paintings, sculptures, and choral symphones!
THE MARKET FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS IN THE SOUTH: AN ECONOMIC ANALYSIS
Authors: MAY GREGORY
Published: January 2008

Economics has long neglected the performing arts and its struggle to be self‐sufficient. This paper examines briefly one sector of the performing arts, namely the audience. There exist four pertinent factors for a concern with the audience. First, if the arts are a “good thing,” an effort should be made to determine who is deprived of the experience. Second, the characteristics of the audience must be known before an evaluation of ticket pricing and distribution policies can occur. “A third reason for concern with the nature of the audience is associated with the issue of government support. Both the desirability and the political feasibility of government support may depend, at least in part, on the composition of the audience. Fourth, effective marketing policy requires some form of a demand function and this requires some knowledge about the composition of the consumers. From this angle, the producer can package his product for maximizing sales and adequately prepare physical facilities for performances. The relevance between an audience and the performer pertains to a producer and a consumer in the simplest microeconomic terms. We can develop a demand function here, and hopefully find some intermediate point corresponding variables in the supply function. Thus the composition of the audience lies at the disposal of the practical economic tools of the analyst.
THIRTY YEARS OF THE AMERICAN COUNCIL OF ECONOMIC ADVISORS: AN INFORMAL EVALUATION
Authors: NORTON HUGH S.
Published: January 2008

The Council of Economic Advisers celebrated its thirtieth year in 1976. What has been its impact? Like most institutions the council has had periods of both increasing and waning influence during its existence. Let us summarize them briefly.
MARKET STRUCTURE AND PROFITABILITY
Authors: CHAPPELL BILL
Published: January 2008

The purpose of this paper is to critically examine and test the relationship between market structure and profitability in the industrial sector of the U. S. economy. The majority of empirical studies testing this relationship have found a positive but weak correlation between concentration and profitability. The basic point of contention in the literature is the explanation of why this correlation exists. The traditional or “Harvard school” interpretation of a positive correlation between profit levels and concentration across industries is that market power is associated with concentration and results in relatively higher prices than competition allows in unconcentrated industries (a price effect). A more recent hypothesis, which is associated with the Chicago school of economics, is that profitability in concentrated industries is a result of their efficiency and corresponding lower costs of production (a cost effect).
MALE‐FEMALE WAGE DIFFERENTIALS IN THE UNITED STATES
Authors: KIKER B.F. , CROUCH HENRY L.
Published: January 2008

The increasing importance of women as participants in the labor force during the last few decades has led to an increasing amount of research effort to identify, measure, and explain male‐female wage differentials (see, for example, Sanborn, 1964; Bayer and Astin, 1968; Fuchs, 1971; Cohen, 1971; Manche, 1971; Suter and Miller, 1971; Sawhill, 1973; Hamilton, 1973; Gwartney and Stroup, 1973; Ferber and Lowry, 1976). Owing to data limitations that led to specification errors and/or errors in variables, the results of most of the analyses of male‐female wage differentials may be biased, as the authors themselves point out. Also, analysts who used Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) regression techniques failed to account for the simultaneity between the wage, or earnings, variable and certain of the explanatory variables in regression. In addition, since some of the explanatory variables usually included in regression have different magnitudes or signs for men and women, past analyses that contained a sex dummy variable to deduce wage differentials were misspecified.
A MONETARIST MODEL OF PRICE ADJUSTMENT IN A SMALL OPEN ECONOMY
Authors: BORDO MICHAEL D. , CHOUDHRI EHSAN U.
Published: January 2008

How do prices in a small open economy such as Canada adjust to external disturbances in the short‐run? What role does domestic monetary policy play in the adjustment process?
CURRENCY QUESTIONS IN THE CARIBBEAN
Authors: CONNOLLY MICHAEL B.
Published: January 2008

The Haitian gourde is one of the most curious and exotic currencies of the world. On it is printed the striking statement: “The banknote, in conformity with the Constitution of the . Republic of Haiti, is payable to the bearer in legal money of the United States of America at the rate of five gourdes for one dollar.” Amazingly, the gourde stands exactly where it was set by the Convention of April 12, 1919 at five gourdes per dollar. This fixity in the exchange rate is a remarkable achievement of an otherwise totally squalid economy record, which has been made very much due to the total convertibility of gourdes into dollars and their easy co‐existence and use in Haiti. Such a feat runs counter to early suggestions in the newly developing currency substitution literature that currency competition promotes instability in rates. A very different story emerges due west on the largest English‐speaking island in the Caribbean, Jamaica, where monetary turbulence has been the rule since 1978. The currency there was initially backed 50 percent by pounds sterling when the Bank of Jamaica began operation in May 1961, but switched to a dollar peg in January 1973 at $1,10 US, a rate maintained through 1977. After the economic problems of 1976–77, the Jamaican dollar was devalued 15½ percent in January 1978 and, under the strong advice of the International Monetary Fund, a further 32 percent in May 1978. Following was a “crawling peg” devaluation of 1½ percent per month until October 1978, then 1 percent a month until May 1979, when the current dollar peg of 56.13 cents per Jamaican dollar was established. This dramatic decline in the currency was caused in part by expansionary monetary policies of the Bank of Jamaica monetizing budget deficits, and in part by the decline in tourism, the fall in bauxite and steel output, and the oil shocks Jamaica experienced. (From 1974 to 1979, the government budget deficit went from 168 million Jamaican dollars (J$) to 551 mill J$ with a peak of 625 million in 1978, holdings of government debt by the central bank from 72 to 898 mill J$, and net foreign assets or reserves of the central bank plunged from 141 to minus 778 mill J$ (Source: International Financial Statistics, IMF 1980 Yearbook and IFS January 1981 issue).) The International Monetary Fund set specific performance criteria such as devaluation and ceilings on government budget deficits for successive draws on a substantial loan of 351 million U.S. dollars or 360 percent of Jamaica's quota at the end of 1979.
THE MONETARY APPROACH TO THE BALANCE OF PAYMENTS AND IMPORTATION OF INFLATION: A FURTHER ANALYSIS AND EMPIRICAL EVIDENCE
Authors: KULKARNI KISHORE G.
Published: January 2008

The main aims of this paper include a revision of the essentials of the monetary approach to the balance of payments by constructing a monetary model, an extension of the model to explain the importation of inflation in an open economy and an application of the formulated model to the two small open economies, the Netherlands and Singapore. The most important contribution of the monetary approach to the balance of payments is its focus on the role of money as opposed to the focus of traditional approaches on the real variables and on the current account of the balance of payments. Influenced originally by Johnson (1972), there have been several theoretical as well as empirical analyses supporting the major contentions of the monetary approach to the balance of payments. Notable among these are Mussa, Frenkel and Johnson (1975), Kemp (1975), Whitman (1975), and Kreinin and Officer (1978). On the basis of common elements enclosed in the writings of these authors, it is possible to construct such a model and then solve it, first, for foreign reserves inflow, and second, for the domestic inflation rate as a dependent variable. This formulation is similar to the ones found in Bhatia (1982) and Salvatore (1983), but is broader in its implications. A check of the validity of the relationships of the monetary model is also attempted by using the annual data of the Netherlands and Singapore.
RECENT INVESTIGATIONS OF THE FISHER EFFECT AND THE STABILITY OF THE REAL RATE OF INTEREST
Authors: SMITH STEPHEN S.
Published: January 2008

The past two decades of economic activity in the U.S. have been characterized by both high inflation and interest rates in comparison to previous periods of stability. The importance of these two variables to our economic welfare and to the effectiveness of economic policy have led to renewed interest in the Fisher Effect. This is the hypothesis put forth by Irving Fisher describing the relationship between these two variables. It usually takes the form R = re + pe + repe (1) in which R is the nominal rate of interest, re is the expected real rate of interest, and pe is the expected rate of change of prices. The term repe is usually considered insignificant and is dropped, giving R = re + pe. (2) Although this equation can be readily quantified on an ex post basis using actual rather than expected values, the fact that expectation of r and p are not directly observable have always made it difficult to derive an ex ante measure of the real rate.