bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Diagnostic Skills Training and Action Learning
Authors: Jones Richard P. , Woodcock Robert S.
Published: March 2008

During the last 18 months a novel approach to developing production and engineering managers within their own jobs has been created jointly by the Beer Division of Allied Breweries Ltd and the Food Drink and Tobacco Industry Training Board. The approach has been developed by providing formal training in diagnostic skills with in‐company training based on action learning principles. The aim of the training programme is to allow greater plant utilisation and to help to reduce the cost of downtime on each of its operating company sites by encouraging the production and engineering managers who attended the programme to train their own staff.
Training, Learning and the Instructor's Role
Authors: James Roger
Published: March 2008

Part I of this article examined the psychological theories of learning and their applications to training. The conclusion reached was that learning and its theories were irrelevant to the training process and an attempt was made to outline an alternative framework based on the interaction between trainer and trainee rather than on the “inner” processes of learning. In this part I intend to explore the changing nature of this social interaction as skilled behaviour develops in the trainee.
Reviewing the Health of a Health District—Part II
Authors: Walton Michael
Published: March 2008

This article continues the work reported in Part I in a previous issue of the journal and refers to a third significant training intervention within a Health District of the National Health Service. Perhaps the most significant feature of this work is the extent to which the ownership of the work moved from the personnel and training specialist to that of the top management group, the District Management Team and how its progress and development reflected the needs and concerns of this top group.
Putting Action Learning into Action
Authors: Boddy David
Published: March 2008

This monograph is written for those who wish to introduce a greater degree of reality into their management development programmes. It has become very clear that conventional off‐the‐job courses are not necessarily the best way to help managers increase their skills or find new and useful ways of thinking about problems. It is equally clear that if nothing systematic is done to expose managers to new ideas and practices, then existing methods and ways of thinking in an organisation will be reinforced, while the world changes.
Beyond the Peter Principle—Managing Successful Transitions
Authors: Parker Chris , Lewis Ralph
Published: March 2008

Laurence J. Peter, in his best selling book, The Peter Principle, argued that individuals are promoted to their level of incompetence. He saw this progression as being typified by successive promotion from success at lower levels until the individual gets to a point where he is described as inefficient. The Peter Principle has been accepted because it described clearly and vividly the experience of individuals and of organisations, but we believe that whilst it is descriptively correct, it is only partially true in its conclusions.
Engineers' Managerial Tasks
Authors: Wearne S.H.
Published: March 2008

A review of the evidence available on the extent that Chartered Engineers in the UK need expertise in budgeting, planning, organisation, motivation, contracts, industrial relations, health, safety law and other “managerial” subjects.
SKI—Management Self‐Development: A New Approach
Authors: Dingwall R.
Published: March 2008

“What on earth's SKI? Oh, no! Self‐development—a ‘new approach’. Not another article on self improvement for managers, or ‘how‐to‐break‐out‐of‐the‐recession‐and‐put‐British‐industry‐back‐on‐its‐feet’.” Is this what you thought when you read this title? Well, you'd be wrong.
Research Report—Skill Loss, Part I:
Authors: Annett John , Wilson Jean , Piech John
Published: March 2008

There is a well established belief that, once having learned, you never forget how to ride a bicycle. This is a myth. Whilst it is true that even after a long time without practice, people do not very often actually fall off their bicycles as they did when first aquiring the skill, there is ample evidence that skills do deteriorate if they are not regularly practised. Highly skilled sportsmen and musicians will readily agree that continued practice is necessary to maintaining a high degree of skill.
Managerial Obsolescence — Causes and Cures
Authors: O'Reilly A.P.
Published: March 2008

Managers occupy key positions in organisations. How effectively the management task is performed will largely determine the success, or otherwise, of the enterprise. Generally, the more successful the organisation, the greater will be job security and job satisfaction for existing employees, and the more likelihood there will be for the creation of more and better employment opportunities.
Appraisals: Changing Directions
Authors: Lusher Brian , James Alan
Published: March 2008

The article deals with an experience over some three years in changing the role, content, format and procedures of a formal appraisal system in a large, international manufacturing Company. It covers the reasons why change became necessary, the means by which the changes were agreed and implemented and an interim judgement of the effectiveness of the changes. The lessons learned by the specialists are stated.
Research Report—Skill Loss, Part II:
Authors: Annett John , Wilson Jean
Published: March 2008

In the first of our two articles on skill loss we concentrated on two kinds of investigation, surveys of the opinions of experienced individuals and controlled, but often highly artificial, experiments. In this the second article we shall describe the results of some studies using the “natural experiment” technique. Carrying out a natural experiment is rather like studying an eclipse or an earthquake. There is nothing the scientist can do about arranging the events, as is the rule in the classic laboratory experiment; one simply takes things as they come but hopefully with telescopes, seismographs or whatever appropriate measuring devices suitably deployed to record the events for subsequent analysis.
The Training Triangle
Authors: Elliott C.K. , Knibbs J.R.
Published: March 2008

The Triangle, Stuart, in an important article on management development, talked of the “contractual triangle”, the relationships of the three parties involved in a management development programme — the manager, the educational institution and the manager's employing organisation. He argued a case for encouraging the parties to make explicit their expectations from the development process and to confront the areas where conflict becomes apparent in order to develop what he terms “compatible contracts”. This paper sets out some of the preliminary findings of a number of research studies which the authors have been conducting in an effort to understand more about these expectations and about the relationships, particularly between the manager and the educational institution. The overall research programme will, it is hoped, shed light upon the nature of the expectations of each party to the development contract; it will explore the extent to which these expectations are attainable; and it will consider more fully the notion of the “compatible contract” and ways of achieving it.
Organizational Development in Tanzania
Authors: Gaarder Robert
Published: March 2008

Tanzania is beautiful but, unfortunately, Tanzania's beauty is not matched by the prosperity of its people. This article is about the people of Tanzania and their struggle to keep pace with the world around them. In particular, it is the story of the people of one organization, The Tanzanian Rural Development Bank, (TRDB), and their efforts to better address Tanzania's rural development needs by soliciting the aid of American management consulting and training.
Language in International Business—Some Training Implications
Authors: Lowe Judy
Published: March 2008

In November 1981, the author was approached by the BBC for assistance in preparing a series of TV programmes for transmission in April 1982 on British management since UK entry into the EEC. This article is an edited version of material provided for the series.
Management Educators Look to their Market
Authors: Reynier Paul
Published: March 2008

In the current climate there is little justification for any sector of the economy to be complacent about the future. Few managers in industry today will willingly support courses and services which do not offer them some clearly identifiable cost/benefit. Few would question the responsibility of those involved with management training in the education sector to take every step to ensure that public money is spent as effectively as possible.
Training for Tomorrow
Authors: Mallier A.T. , Rosser M.J.
Published: March 2008

In the last ten years the UK labour market has undergone a series of significant changes which have important implications for those involved in training. This monograph explains the implications of the growth of part‐time employment before presenting the results from a survey of employers and institutions, such as the MSC, regarding the provision of training for part‐time workers, and makes some comparisons with the situation in other countries. Certain issues are raised which may provide a basis for different policies in the future. The question of whether or not technological change is likely to lead to greater part‐time employment, and in particular more part‐time work by males, is also discussed.
Developing Shop Stewards
Authors: Schuller Tom , Robertson Don
Published: March 2008

Some years ago, in a paper entitled “Workplace Industrial Relations”, Stanley Parker noted that:
Ethical Issues for Training Practitioners
Authors: Newby A.C.
Published: March 2008

Why Bother With Ethics? Have you ever set up a group process learning activity which leaves some participants angry or unhappy and not knowing what to do with their feelings? When you use role play, how does a “bad” character role get allocated? Do you believe that a management order to carry out a certain type of training spares you from asking whether it is right to do it? These are all examples of ethical conflicts that can arise in day‐to‐day training, and it is questions such as these that we need to face as training practitioners.
Introducing Marketing into the Smaller Firm
Authors: Brown Rick
Published: March 2008

This article reviews and evaluates a programme of marketing education for the smaller firm, based on the principles of action learning. The programme concentrates on practical skills and their implementation within the firm, and consists of part residential tuition, part in‐company counselling and part workshop development. It lasts over a five‐month period during which the central, integrating feature, is an individual project which enables each participant to construct, under guidance, a marketing plan for his company.
“AROUSAL”: A Model to Match Reality
Authors: Lansley Peter
Published: March 2008

In the search for more effective learning methods, “real life” simulations have many attractions although their development requires a sound base of information about business practice and the translation of this knowledge into a form suited to simulation.
Preparing Managers for Industry:
Authors: Gamble Paul R. , Messenger Sally
Published: March 2008

A look at how professional qualifications could help UK hospitality managers to raise their standards of expertise to meet the European challenge.
Tourism and Hospitality Management: New Horizons
Authors: Go Frank
Published: March 2008

Hospitality educators and business executives must collaborate to ensure the industry's successful adaptation to change resulting from globalisation of trade and tourism.
Putting the Pieces Together
Authors: Mulder Martin
Published: March 2008

A conceptual framework of training and development. At first sight, the contributions of the various authors in this issue differ significantly as to the content of their study. Nonetheless each study focuses on conditions of Human Resource Development (HRD), or more specifically on a component of the comprehensive conceptual model of training and development outlined in Figure 1. This model is of a descriptive nature and depicts the position of training and development in organizations.
THE ILLYRIAN FIRM AND FELLNER'S UNION‐MANAGEMENT MODEL
Authors: LAW PETER J.
Published: March 2008

There is now a considerable literature on the Illyrian firm (that is, the firm which is assumed to maximise income per worker), and it has been argued that the analysis may have relevance for the labour‐managed or co‐operative enterprise. Significant contributions to this literature have been made by Domar (1966), Vanek (1970), Meade (1972, 1974) and others but the seminal paper is generally recognised to be that of Ward (1958).
DISCONTINUITY PROBLEMS IN A GENERALIZED PRICE LEADERSHIP MODEL
Authors: REID GAVIN C.
Published: March 2008

1. Introduction There exists substantial evidence that price leadership is a common form of market structure. By contrast, theoretical treatments of this phenomenon are rare. This paper attempts to extend in three directions the existing treatments of the price leadership model. Firstly, it provides a mathematical statement of the model, generalizing existing geometrical and literary approaches, and extending the mathematical version of Hadar (1971, pp. 115–117). Secondly, it admits of the possibility of many followers, rather than adopting the conventional assumption of just one follower, or an anonymous aggregate of followers regarded as a competitive fringe. An essential feature of the analysis is that the output of each firm is a significant part of total market output. Thus the smooth continuous supply curve which emerges when followers are massed together in a competitive fringe is no part of the analysis. Thirdly, the paper attempts to take seriously the problems of discontinuity which arise in this type of market when a follower is forced out of business: a matter which is frequently ignored in the theorizing of economists.
ALTERNATIVE MEASURES OF AGGREGATE EXCESS LABOR DEMAND
Authors: REECE WILLIAM S.
Published: March 2008

I. Introduction In a recent issue of this Journal, G. Briscoe and D.A. Peel present novel estimates of the relationship between aggregate excess labor demand and the rate of change of nominal wages. While I agree with their view that in explaining wage changes a more direct measure of excess labor demand than the unemployment rate would be preferred, I feel their method for calculating this measure is seriously flawed. While the authors explicitly hypothesize a disequilibrium process generating wage changes they ignore the implications labor market disequilibrium has for the estimation of their labor demand curve. I discuss below the implications of labor market disequilibrium for the Briscoe‐Peel method of estimating excess labor demand.
A REJOINDER ON ALTERNATIVE MEASURES OF EXCESS DEMAND
Authors: BRISCOE G. , PEEL D.A.
Published: March 2008

W.S. Reece (5) has commented on our recent study in this Journal (2) in which we attempted to compare a more comprehensive measure of excess demand for labour in the UK manufacturing sector and then applied the resulting series to help explain money wage inflation. Whilst agreeing with our argument for using excess demand for labour services in preference to the level of unemployment, Reece is unhappy with our estimates of the respective labour and hours demand functions and is also critical of our second stage procedure of deriving excess demand indices from the computed functions. We recognise the validity of Reece's objection to our method of obtaining the excess demand series and indeed, we conceded the difficulty of our approach in the original study (2, pp. 33–35). However, we do not consider that his criticism of our estimation of the labour and hours demand functions is correct, or that our subsequent application of this result need invalidate the original derivation of the input demands. Although we welcome new research which will permit superior methods for separately estimating demand and supply functions for markets in disequilibrium, we believe there remain some significant difficulties with the methods which Reece cites (3 and 4) as providing the basis for his ‘superior’ approach.
MARKET EFFICIENCY: THE ROLE OF ISSUING HOUSES
Authors: BUCKLAND R. , YEOMANS K.A.
Published: March 2008

Introduction In a recent article in this Journal Newbould, Stray and Wilson (1976) analysed the discounts or premiums on the price of newly issued equities by reference to the issue adviser. Their conclusions, based on a comparison between 1959–63 and 1969–73, were that (a) the most efficient advisers (those showing the lowest discounts) gained business between these periods and (b) new entrants to the market accounted in part for the general increase in efficiency observed over the decade. The evidence therefore appeared to support their basic hypotheses that resources tend to flow from inefficient towards efficient firms and that efficiency tends to rise in markets where freedom of entry exists.
THE LEADING SECTOR DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY: A REPLY TO PROFESSOR CURRIE
Authors: HANSON JAMES A.
Published: March 2008

Professor Currie's Comment not only strengthens his already well‐known leading sector strategy of development; it also raises some further interesting questions regarding the behavior of suppliers in Latin America which are crucial to the choice of policy for development. While the definitive answers to these questions probably lie beyond our limited, present knowledge, I hope this clarifying reply to his comment will offer some tentative answers which may have important implications for the application of the leading sector strategy.
THE GRAVITY MODEL AND MIGRATION BEHAVIOUR: AN ECONOMIC INTERPRETATION
Authors: VANDERKAMP JOHN
Published: March 2008

Economists have had problems interpreting the gravity model, particularly as applied to migration behaviour. Its physical analogy is unappealing and theories of economic behaviour do not generally give rise to gravity laws. Some years ago Niedercorn and Bechdolt (1969) published a paper in which they provide a derivation of the gravity model using utility theory. Their approach is, however, much more applicable to other flows of human interaction across space, such as travel or communication flows, than it is to migration flows. The major purpose of this paper is to indicate a set of assumptions which might underlie a gravity model of migration and to show that these assumptions are quite severe. One important implication is that we should fully expect any real world migration pattern to deviate from the predictions of a gravity model. Nevertheless, the gravity specification may be a useful starting point in the analysis of migration behaviour, as it imposes restrictions on the formulation of the estimating equations. Thus we may fruitfully study how and why the real world migration patterns diverge from gravity flows.
EFFICIENCY CRITERIA AND LAND REFORM EFFECTS IN BRAZIL
Authors: BERNSTIEN RICHARD E. , DEANS ROBERT H.
Published: March 2008

In the land reform literature an important issue has been the effect land redistribution has on the allocation of resources and agricultural productivity. Generally, monopolistic behaviour of plantation owners with respect to land has prevailed since control of the land has generated monopsonistic power with respect to labour. This behaviour would result in a lesser degree of land utilization by large land owners and a lower value of marginal product for labour on small farms than on large farms. The rural labour force is effectively left with no options for employment other than the plantation sector. The monopolization of land causes a higher land/labour ratio for large operations than for small farmers. In a competitive market with tillable land held constant, the value of marginal product for labour for the two farm classes would be equal. Further, monopsony theory reveals that output and employment would be lower than in a competitive market.
DISGUISED UNEMPLOYMENT AND THE PARTICIPATION RATE IN URBAN COLOMBIA
Authors: BERRY ALBERT
Published: March 2008

The last few decades have seen increasing attention to problems of open and disguised unemployment (and underemployment) in developing countries. Open unemployment appears to have increased in the sixties. Disguised unemployment of persons in the labour force (as defined by marginal product of labour below the wage) is a key element in the labour surplus interpretations of underdeveloped economies. In developed countries, hidden or disguised unemployment is thought of primarily in terms of nonparticipation related to the difficulty of obtaining a job; the usual proxy for such difficulty is the unemployment rate. As open unemployment has risen in the urban areas of many L.D.C's, while participation rates have at the same time been falling, it is natural to ask whether this particular form of hidden unemployment is becoming increasingly important in those countries. More generally, a country's participation rate is a valuable indicator of the degree of utilization of the labour force; the hints it may provide as to the nautre of the labour market and the demand for labour are one of several contributions it makes to the understanding of an economic system.
Monetarism
Authors: TREVITHICK JAMES
Published: March 2008

We have in recent years witnessed a spectacular revival of a doctrine which most economists had presumed to be dead, buried and thoroughly discredited. This is a doctrine which came to be known as the Treasury View. In brief the Treasury View stated that all attempts to stimulate employment by means of bond‐financed budget deficits (what Keynes called “loan expenditure”) were doomed to ignominious failure. The grounds for this belief varied somewhat, but underlying it was the view that the successful sale of government debt on the capital market would deprive private investors of access to an equal quantity of funds with which they might otherwise have purchased capital equipment. Nor would matters be materially improved if the increased competition for “investible funds” raised the level of savings via a rise in the rate of interest, for the rise in savings would, by definition; be accompanied by an equal fall in consumption expenditure. In other words, a rise in one form of expenditure would be exactly offset by reductions in the other components of aggregate spending.
THE POST‐WAR INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS CYCLE
Authors: HARGREAVES‐HEAP S.P.
Published: March 2008

This paper seeks to establish the existence of an international business cycle during the postwar period through a variety of statistical techniques. It also isolates some of the features of this cycle: for example, the differing levels of synchronization between different countries and the changes in these levels over time. One conclusion is that future work on the international cycle must focus on the observed simultaneity between the U.S., Japan and Germany. Another surprising conclusion, given the theoretical consequences of increased integration, is that there is no evidence of a tendency towards greater synchronization over the period.
IMPORT SUBSTITUTION v. EXPORT PROMOTION IN THE CENTRAL AMERICAN COMMON MARKET (CACM)
Authors: BULMER‐THOMAS V.
Published: March 2008

Industry, which in the 1960s was assumed to have made a major contribution to the growth of the Central American Common Market (CACM), has since 1968 lost its dynamism. Its revitalisation depends essentially on a choice between a deepening of the import substitution process and promotion of industrial exports outside the region.
A “POST‐KEYNESIAN” ALTERNATIVE TO “KEYNESIAN” MACROMODELS
Authors: SKOURAS THANOS
Published: March 2008

This paper presents, both diagrammatically and algebraically, a two‐sector model that exemplifies and shares some of the basic characteristics to be found in the work of Kalecki, Joan Robinson, Kaldor and, in general, the “Post‐Keynesian” school of writers.
Peru : Economic Policies and Structural Change, 1968 –1978
Authors: Sheahan John
Published: March 2008

For five surprising years, from 1968 to 1973, Peru achieved the near miracle of social reform combined with good economic growth. As if in revenge, the classic catastrophes that have plagued so many Latin American countries when they have tried to move in new directions then surged up to stop the process: a foreign exchange crisis, accelerating inflation, paralysed growth, rising unemployment, and intensified social conflict. Was all this necessary? What might have been done better? And what might be done now to resume growth without further taking apart the reforms?
Wages, Sickness Benefits and Absenteeism
Authors: Thomas R.B.
Published: March 2008

There has been a marked increase in the level of absence from work in the UK in recent years. There have also been increases in earnings and sickness benefits, and this paper examines these income variables as determinants of absence.
The effect on Macroeconomic Management in the UK of the Transition from Fixed to Floating Rates
Authors: Minford Patrick
Published: March 2008

A rational expectations model estimated for the UK is used to simulate macroeconomic policy under fixed and floating exchange rates. Under fixed rates inflation and interest rates are effectively set internationally; monetary policy only affects the reserves even in the short run and cyclical variations in fiscal policy are able to influence output in a fairly standard manner. Under floating rates, fiscal and monetary policy have rapid impacts on inflation and interest rates producing unfamiliar financial effects on expenditure which eliminate or reserve the conventional output multipliers. Stabilisation policy is still feasible but has to take account of these effects.
Portugal, Spain and Greece: On the Dynamic Effects of Joining the EEC
Authors: Katos A.V.
Published: March 2008

The purpose of this paper is to analyse the possible effects of an economic integration of Portugal, Spain and Greece with the EEC upon the welfare of the region with respect to dynamic effects (such as changes in relative efficiency). To achieve this an ex‐ante model is employed making use of data adjusted for the purchasing power of the different currencies.
Factor Prices and Labour‐Saving Technology in Brazil's Agriculture
Authors: Mueller Charles C.
Published: March 2008

The paper questions the widely accepted view according to which distorted factor prices are the main determinant of rural unemployment and under‐employment in Brazil. It is argued that more than distorted relative prices, the very limited technological alternatives available, together with the pattern of land ownership and the “urban bias” style of the country's agricultural policies are the main forces behind the introduction of capital‐intensive processes in Brazil's more advanced agriculture, and the related problems of labour absorption.
Portfolio Choice with Imperfect Capital Markets
Authors: Appelbaum Elie , Katz Eliakim
Published: March 2008

In this paper we consider the effects of certain capital market imperfections on portfolio choice problems. We show that as a result of these imperfections, the distribution functions of rates of return may depend on portfolio allocation, thus leading to non‐convexities and consequently to patterns of specialisation rather than diversification.
Macro‐economics and Equilibrium in the Commodity Market
Authors: Demery L. , Phelps M.
Published: March 2008

This note shows that much conventional macro‐economic literature uses two inconsistent definitions of equilibrium in the commodity market. Equilibrium is defined as income equalling expenditure when deriving the IS curve; but when overall equilibrium is treated the requirement for equilibrium is that planned supply equals planned demand. The note shows that these inconsistent definitions lead to a confusing and often erroneous exposition of disequilibrium behaviour.
Negative Value Added and the Measurement of Production Changes
Authors: Silver M.S. , Golder P.
Published: March 2008

This paper discusses the meaning and measurement of negative value added both in real and money terms. Examples as to how it might occur are provided and methods of dealing with inconsistencies which arise because of it, will be outlined.
Why Oligopoly Prices Don't Stick
Authors: Loomes Graham
Published: March 2008

Sweezy's kinky demand curve and prediction of price rigidity under oligopoly has recently been supplemented by a similar prediction (on different grounds) by Drèze. This paper questions assumptions made by both authors and shows that alternative assumptions reverse the prediction.
A Modified Money Supply Multiplier for the UK in the 1970s
Authors: Dennis Geoffrey E.J.
Published: March 2008

The simple, conventional approach to the determination of the money supply utilises a multiplier that links the money supply to the volume of high‐powered money. In the tradition of Friedman and Schwartz the multiplier is an expression including the currency ratio of the public (c) and the reserve ratio of the banks (r). In this note it is argued that such an approach must be altered for the UK institutional environment since the introduction of Competition and Credit Control. A modified multiplier expression is defined including the ratio (e) between banks' eligible liabilities and their holdings of deposits that are included in sterling M3. The modified model is then presented diagrammatically.
Trends in Terms of Trade of LDCs
Authors: Nguyen The‐Hiep
Published: March 2008

The controversial Prebisch thesis in international economics of development asserts that (i) less‐developed countries (LDCs) experience a long‐run deterioration in their terms of trade with developed countries (DCs), and (ii) these experiences are the cause of the ever‐widening gap in their per capita incomes with DCs. By surveying the controversy and discussing the connection between trends in terms of trade and international economic inequality, this paper attempts to disprove some widely held notions derived from misinterpretations and from broad generalisations with indirect inferences. We conclude that there is need for case studies; in order to evaluate and select appropriate policy options.
Equilibrium, Disequilibrium and Unemployment Theory: A Simple Illustrative Model
Authors: Hannah S.P.
Published: March 2008

This paper illustrates the fundamental issues of “disequilibrium” unemployment theory by means of a relatively simple model. Both the static and dynamic approaches to this subject are combined within a consistent analytical framework. Although a formal model is outlined the emphasis is on intuitive argument rather than technical detail.
Economic Growth, Savings and Housing Finance in Japan
Authors: Ichimura Shinichi
Published: March 2008

The rapid growth of the Japanese economy is well known and needs no elaboration. Table I here gives a summary picture with its international comparison. I have discussed elsewhere (Ichimura, 1979) the main factors accounting for the rapid growth and mentioned ten factors:
Definitions of Domestic Credit Expansion for the United Kingdom
Authors: Cobham David
Published: March 2008

Several different definitions of Domestic Credit Expansion (DCE) in the UK have been used either for official or for academic purposes, yet apart from an early paper by Art is and Nobay (1969) there has been little serious discussion of the issues involved. This expository note is intended to clarify the differences between the various definitions. Section I uses a table of assets and liabilities by sector to show the relationship between DCE, the change in money supply (ΔM) and the balance of payments/change in foreign reserves (ΔR)for a simple monetary system. Section II uses a more complex table to present three official definitions of DCE for the UK and three definitions that have been used in academic work. Section III considers the choice between the definitions in terms of the purposes for which the concept of DCE might be used. Section IV summarises the main conclusions.
Friedman's Methodology: A Comment on Boland
Authors: McLachlan Hugh V. , Swales J.K.
Published: March 2008

In a recent article, Boland attacks critics of Friedman's methodology. He writes:
Another Incomes Policy?
Authors: Foley Bernard J.
Published: March 2008

Once again political pressure is building up in the United Kingdom for the introduction of some form of incomes policy. This article offers a theoretical framework for investigating the macro‐consequences of different types of policy. In particular it looks at the implications for the functional distribution of National Income and the possible effects on investment policy.
Demand for Currency and the Black Economy in the UK
Authors: Matthews K.G.P.
Published: March 2008

The size and growth of the so‐called “black economy” has provided a great deal of discussion in recent years. Typically the discussion has been confined to editorials and articles in leading newspapers, but of late politicians, civil servants and even academics, on both sides of the Atlantic have commented on the rise of the black economy. Despite this volume of comment, very few serious attempts have been made actually to measure the size of this unobserved sector for the UK.
A New Look at International Monetary Reform
Authors: Scammell W.M.
Published: March 2008

There have been three essays in international monetary reform during the past 40 years. The first was unique in that, at Bretton Woods in 1944, representatives of two nations dominated the planning of a world monetary system which was, in essence, to endure for twenty‐five years. The uniqueness of this lay in the clean start made possible by the vacuum left by the war — an opportunity certainly not to be repeated. The fact that the Bretton Woods system prevailed, with modification and adaptation, for almost as long as the international gold standard testifies to the fact that its planning was not ill done.
Why Growth Rates Do Differ
Authors: Bell M.W. , Silver M.S. , Stray S.J.
Published: March 2008

This article identifies serious weaknesses in various commonly used methods of measuring “average” growth rates over several time periods. An alternative method is proposed which satisfies two essential criteria: firstly it smoothes the data to remove “exceptional variation” in the time series, and secondly, it incorporates a compounding process which, it is suggested, is an essential requirement of a “correct” average growth rate.
International Big Business, 1957–77: A Sequel on the Relationship between Size and Growth
Authors: Droucopoulos Vassilis
Published: March 2008

The hypothesis that the percentage growth rates of firms over a certain period of time are independent of their initial sizes — the Law of Proportionate Effect, alias Gibrat's Law — has attracted the attention and stimulated the efforts of a great number of economists. This is due to several striking implications of the Law. Firstly, “if such a law of proportionate growth held without any restriction the consequence would be a continual increase in the dispersion of the sizes, that is to say, the concentration of industry would increase over time” (Hart and Prais, 1956, p. 171). Secondly, “if the law was confirmed … it would suggest that there was no optimum size of firm from the point of view of growth since all sizes of firm were equally likely to benefit from growth” (Pickering, 1974, p. 116). Thirdly, “it would be very difficult to adopt a deterministic explanation of the growth of firms” (Pickering, 1974, pp. 116–7), since according to the Law, growth is a purely stochastic phenomenon that arises from the cumulative effect of the random operation of a large number of factors acting independently of each other. Lastly, “there will be no continuity in the growth pattern of firms” (Eatwell, 1971, p. 402). This means that the growth rate of a firm in a certain period has no influence on the growth rate in subsequent periods.
Bilateral and Multilateral Cost‐of‐Living Comparisons: A Comment on Methodology
Authors: Silver M.S.
Published: March 2008

The theoretical base for cost‐of‐living comparisons between geographical areas is examined and developed. The interpretation of bilateral comparisons is discussed within a framework of a matrix of cost‐of‐living comparisons with all countries being listed in both columns and rows. The use of multilateral comparisons is questioned.
Some Analytics of Income Tax/Transfer Systems
Authors: Creedy John
Published: March 2008

Although there has been a great deal of discussion of the relative merits of alternative income maintenance schemes, the precise relationships between benefit levels and tax rates required are not usually examined in detail. The purpose of the present article is, therefore, to provide comparable results for a number of systems so that the “trade‐offs” involved can easily be examined and compared. The majority of results are quite general, and do not depend on the form of the distribution of gross income, but in common with other analyses it has not been possible to allow for incentive effects. Some of the schemes have been examined elsewhere, but the results presented below provide a much more unified and simplified set of comparisions. While fairly simple results may be obtained for the relationships between taxes and benefits, it is much more difficult to provide convenient expressions for the dispersion of post‐transfer income. However, a method of calculating the coefficient of variation of post‐transfer income is presented in the final section of this article.
The “New” Theories of Trade and UK's Comparative Advantage in Engineering Products
Authors: Akano Olasupo , Ingham Keith
Published: March 2008

The Leontief Paradox (Leontief, 1953) generated two major responses. There was, on the one hand, the body of research which was directed at further empirical verification of the simple Heckscher‐Ohlin theory using other countries' data. On the other hand, there were the studies which attempted to explain the paradox by turning on the alleged invalidity of specific Heckscher‐Ohlin assumptions. It was from the latter category that the “new” theories of trade emerged as evolutionary extensions of the basic Heckscher‐Ohlin theory. These hypotheses are concerned with the separate influences of inter‐country differences in specific labour skills, technology, and scale economies on the pattern of trade flows in manufactures.
The Generalised System of Preferences and Canadian Imports of Manufactured and Semi‐Manufactured Products from Developing Countries
Authors: Kumar Ramesh C. , Akbar S.
Published: March 2008

The effects of reductions in Canadian tariffs on imports from thirty non‐OPEC Third World countries are estimated using quarterly data for the period 1972–79. Estimates of total trade expansion, trade diversion and trade creation are obtained using linear and a log‐linear specification. The results imply that the trade diversion effect is in general and for most commodity groups larger than the trade creation effect.
Exchange Rate Expectations and the Short‐Run Effectiveness of Monetary Policy
Authors: O'Connell Joan
Published: March 2008

This article is concerned with the reconsideration of the proposition that monetary policy is more effective under flexible exchange rates than under fixed, in the light of the low elasticities of imports and exports with respect to the exchange rate that may prevail in the short run. It is shown that when the framework put forward in this context is modified, recent results are not generally supportable.
Optimal Size of Firm as a Problem in Transaction Costs and Property Rights
Authors: Kay N.M.
Published: March 2008

The article examines the firm from the perspective of transaction costs and property rights analysis. It is concluded that in the absence of transaction costs, indivisibilities and diseconomies can be dealt with through market transactions, and size of firm is independent of technological considerations. In such circumstances, size of firm is indeterminate in neoclassical theory irrespective of initial assumptions regarding market structure. It is argued that Neoclassical theory is self‐contradictory in its assumptions and that an institutionalist approach to the theory of the firm is required to resolve problems of this nature.
Specific Factor and Optimal Intervention to Achieve Non‐Economic Objectives
Authors: Wang Leonard F.S.
Published: March 2008

In this article the author explores the optimal policies to achieve non‐economic objectives in the presence of a specific factor and demonstrates that the same policies—though not necessarily at the same level—are required as in the traditional two‐by‐two trade model. In addition, it is shown that a direct subsidy on the specific factor will be the optimal policy for the exploitation of domestic‐owned resources.
Distributed Lag Behaviour in the Housing Market: Some Further Evidence
Authors: Harris June M. , Borooah Vani K.
Published: March 2008

This article is a study of the distributed lag relationship between completions and starts of private dwellings in the UK and extends some results previously published in this journal. The main finding confirms that a proper study of builders' behaviour, as manifested in the distributed lag relationship between completions and starts, must allow for both disequilibrium effects and time varying lag structures. However, in examining the economic variables that modified builders' behaviour (and hence the lag structure) it was found that both the rate of house price inflation and the level of building society mortgage advances had an important influence. An increase in both caused builders, in the expectation of easier sales, to quicken their rates of completion. Additional plausible influences — like the level of construction activity in the public sector were, however, not supported by the data.
Capital Utilisation, Capital Intensity and Factor Productivity: A Comparison of Factories in Developing and Industrialised Countries
Authors: Wabe J. Stuart , Gutierrez‐Camara José
Published: March 2008

Data on shift‐working, annual hours and employment are used to derive alternative measures of capital utilisation in seven countries. There is a positive relationship between utilisation and capital intensity, and utilisation levels in developing countries are significantly higher than in industrialised countries. Inter‐country comparisons of capital productivity are made by comparing industries with similar levels of capital per production worker. It is shown that output per input of capital services in some developing countries is half that of comparable industries in industrialised countries. However, the higher levels of utilisation in developing countries partially offset these low values for the productivity of capital services. Data on labour productivity and earnings are combined to measure labour costs per unit of output and thus throw light on the overall competitive position of industry in the different countries.
The “Multiplier” in Economic Literature
Authors: Currie Lauchlin
Published: March 2008

From time to time various economists have been attracted to the idea of a multiplier. Probably the most noted and most discussed has been the Keynesian Multiplier — the relation of an increase in investment to an increase in income. However, the term, or at least the concept, has been used explicitly or implied in the writing of other economists. The purpose of this note is to explore the concept a little more deeply than has been customary.
Wicksell's Critique of Ricardo's Chapter “On Machinery”
Authors: Hansson Bjorn
Published: March 2008

The purpose of this article is to look at Wicksell's critique of Ricardo's analysis of the effects of the introduction of machinery in the third edition of The Principles. It is shown that Wicksell's critique illustrates the difference between classical and neoclassical methods of analysis.
Review Article: Decisions, Process and the Market
Authors: Shackle G.L.S.
Published: March 2008

This work of imaginative splendour is the product, in the first place, of Israel Kirzner's magnificient effort in designing, directing and editing a symposium in honour of Ludwig von Mises. Its contents illustrate the presence still of giants in our profession: Lachmann with fifty years of fame; James Buchanan and Stephen Littlechild who lead the van of to‐day's subjectivism. The level of excellence is carried down the list by brilliant minds: Stephan Boehm, Mario Rizzo, Lawrence White, Brian Loasby and many others.
Joseph Schumpeter and the Austrian School of Economics
Authors: Simpson David
Published: March 2008

This article does not pretend to represent an exhaustive survey of all the differences and similarities existing between Joseph Schumpeter and his fellow Austrians. To have carried out such a task would have required a detailed knowledge of the literature which was beyond that of the present writer. Instead, what is offered here is a particular interpretation of the major characteristics of Austrian economics, the relationship of Schumpeter to these, together with some fragmentary evidence in support of the views expressed. The article begins with a brief resumé of the leading personalities of the Austrian School of Economics. In the second section the suggestion that Schumpeter was not a true member of the Austrian School is examined. It is shown that the minor differences which did exist between Schumpeter and his colleagues on technical questions are more than outweighed by agreement on the substantive issues of their economic analysis. The third section deals with the attitudes of the Austrian School to questions of method while the remaining sections deal with the classical tradition in the theory of economic growth.
Research Programmes in Competitive Structure
Authors: O'Brien D.P.
Published: March 2008

In 1933 two books on competitive structure were published. One, extracted from a Harvard PhD filed six years earlier, dealt with the workings of the competitive process. Seeking not to supplant, but to supplement Marshall, this book by E. H. Chamberlin focused on an effort involving the use of a diagrammatic apparatus to highlight certain fundamental relationships between variables in the competitive process. It did not analyse real firms but nor did it attempt to pretend that such were irrelevant, and to concentrate on positions of competitive equilibrium only. It dealt with problems of arrival at equilibrium, false trading, and a whole variety of issues relevant to an actual competitive process. Supervised by Allyn Young, it drew on a wide range of references and showed evidence of the kind of thorough scholarly preparation which has always been characteristic of the best American PhDs.
Models of Interfuel Substitution in the UK
Authors: Westoby Richard
Published: March 2008

The pattern of fuel demand in two sectors of the UK economy is modelled by means of translog cost functions. The models specified in this study are designed to capture the effects of changes in relative fuel prices and assess the impact of technical change on the demand for fuels. Estimates of biases of technical change and price elasticities for the demand for fuels are calculated from an econometric study with the models.
Residential Energy Demand: A Case Study of Pakistan
Authors: Iqbal Mahmood
Published: March 2008

A model for household demand for energy in Pakistan is developed on the basis of stock of fuel‐consuming appliances and their rate of utilisation. Income and price elasticities of fuels are estimated by the OLS and GLS methods. These elasticities are found statistically significant and consistent with a priori knowledge of economic theory. Several policy implications are pointed out and suggestions are made for improvement in future estimation.