bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Bolivia: between a rock and a hard place
Authors: Nicholls Peter 
Published: January 2010

The election in Bolivia in June 2002 revealed the plight of South America's poorest country trapped between the needs of its own population and external pressures to ‘modernise’ its economy in-line with overseas interests. After years of experiencing the impact of neo-liberal reforms, ‘anti-system’ sentiments are starting to challenge the ability of traditional politicians to represent their interests. The success of an outsider Eva Morales, holding a broadly socialist stance, represents a new departure for indigenous peoples who appear impatient with traditional political slogans. It holds the potential to unleash a new social dynamic into the political landscape of Bolivia, a landscape often compromised by outside interference and internal corruption.
Social policy, social exclusion and commodity fetishism
Authors: Kennedy Peter 
Published: January 2010

This article provides a political economy of social policy and its current emphasis on social inclusion/exclusion. It considers this in terms of three interrelated processes: the rise in a population surplus to capital; the rejuvenation of a reserve army of labour power; and the decline of the commodity form of labour power. On the basis of a critical examination of the work of Bauman (1998) and Byrne (1999), the article begins by looking at the way social exclusion/inclusion is understood in terms of a reserve army of labour and/or surplus population. The second part of the article demonstrates the relevance of Marx's concept of commodity fetishism to a more fundamental understanding of the implications of a society in which labour power is becoming increasingly surplus to capital“.
A precarious balance: Neoliberalism, crisis management, and the social implosion in Jamaica
Authors: Weis Tony 
Published: January 2010

This article examines the process of structural adjustment in Jamaica, and the various ways in which the contradictory tensions embedded in the current order are being contained. Although political, economic and social realities are deeply inequitable and potentially unstable, there are serious barriers to understanding, dialogue, organisation and optimism among the poor, which have produced implosive intra-class dynamics. Assessing these barriers provides insight into the challenge of re-inspiring alternative imaginations and collective opposition to class structures in Jamaica, as well as in other adjusted and heavily-indebted countries where a neoliberal fatalism is contributing to social atomisation, rather than to mobilisation.
Nationalism: the instrumental passion
Authors: Kitching Gavin 
Published: January 2010

Marxists and Communist parties have had difficulty understanding nationalism and dealing with nationalist movements. Neither they, nor Weberian theorists, have been able to understand the ‘passion’ engendered by nationalism—a passion which drives people to die for their nation. In this review of two books on nationalism, one by a Weberian, the other within the Marxist tradition, Gavin Kitching identifies the beginnings of a materialist theory of consciousness which partially explains the power of nationalist passions. The two books are: Imagined communities: reflections on the origin and spread of nationalism by Benedict Anderson (London, Verso, 1983) and Nations and nationalism by Ernest Gellner (Oxford, Basil Blackwell, 1983).
Thatcherism, populist authoritarianism and the search for a new left political strategy
Authors: Atkins Fiona 
Published: January 2010

A number of writers from the Left, particularly associated with Marxism Today, have suggested that there has been a shift to more right-wing policies and authoritarian and populist forms of government in advanced capitalist countries and that these can be seen as a response to the current world economic crisis. Fiona Atkins suggests that explanations of the shift towards more authoritarian government must take account of recent changes in economic structures and class relations. In particular she argues that it is necessary to recognise the implications of the increasing internationalisation of capital. By referring to third world examples, the author identifies a number of forms of authoritarian regime. The broader frame of reference indicates that a degree of eurocentrism has limited the understanding of authoritarianism in the current British debate.
Striking Smarter and Harder at Vauxhall: the new industrial relations of lean production?
Authors: Stewart Paul 
Published: January 2010

“[We aim to] form a partnership between all the Vauxhall people, working together to win, by focusing on customer satisfaction through teamwork and continuous innovation and improvement” (Working Together To Win: Luton Plant Agreement, 1992) “They don't understand that we ore taking action because of the situation they have created. They can't see that its their lean production that has pushed the fads to if. I tell you this though, we are definitely playing if smarter now. Anyhow, people are voting with their feet and clocking off early on Fridays”. (Vauxhall-GM shop steward December 1995 in response to spontaneous action by assembly fine workers)
Can we make our own history?
Authors: Durand Jean-Pierre 
Published: January 2010

Can we still make our own history? Continuing our series of POLEMICS, Jean-Pierre Durand considers the continuing relevance of Marx's concept of the dialectic for explanations of contemporary social and economic changes. In particular, he argues that while Marx's dialectic is crucial for explanations of social contradictions and crises today, it is not an adequate guide to social and political action. THE LEADING WORK OF MARX has a sub-title: A Critique of Political Economy. I believe that Marx was one of the best thinkers of capitalism. Capitalism is not dead, even though it has changed greatly in a century and a half. I shall therefore show, in the second part of this paper, how much the discoveries of Marx can still be of use to us and how they remain essential for a scientific approach towards contemporary capitalism. On the other hand Marx, supported by Lenin and others of his spiritual offspring, has led the revolution he advocated and the societies in which capitalism is developing… towards capitalism itself. I shall not dwell here on the specificities of those peasant, or simply rural, societies, nor in fact on the history of real socialism, but merely on the question of Marx as militant: in other words can one be both a militant and a scholar and, in particular, both a good militant and a good scholar?
The Prospects for Workplace Trade Unionism: Evaluating Fairbrother's Union Renewal Thesis
Authors: Gall Gregor 
Published: January 2010

Peter Fairbrother has extensively developed the thesis of ‘union renewal’, which seeks to show that the challenges posed to contemporary trade unionism can be met by changes in the form of unionism. This critique, while welcoming the general thrust of the thesis, questions its validity and application as a result of its failure to consider a number of areas and issues. TRADE UNIONISM IN BRITAIN is universally recognised as experiencing deep-seated and long-standing difficulties. However considerable disagreement exists amongst trade unionists, the left and academics over what can be done to remedy this malaise. Fairbrother (1989, 1990, 1994a, 1994b, 1996a, 1996b, 1998) has made a significant contribution to the under-considered question of what conditions and processes are necessary for workplace trade unionism to regain its former influence and avoid a number of deficiencies characteristic of its behaviour in more influential periods. In making a critical but constructive and fraternal assessment of Fairbrother's work, it essential to start by stressing the common points of agreement.
A Comparison of Two Widely Applied Models of Shareholder Returns in the Context of Takeover Offer Gains for Australian Bidders
Authors: Simmonds David P. 
Published: January 2010

The impact of different modelling and testing procedures is explored on inferences concerning expected acquisition benefits to bidding shareholders. Two widely accepted return models are examined and found to imply different outcomes for Australian bidding shareholders, despite controlling for potential size- and survivor-related biases and also curbing the influence of extreme observations. A comparison of bidder returns with typical reference portfolio values, via the (0, 1) market model, finds significant wealth gains for bidding shareholders. Those gains evaporate when bidder returns are measured against their own performance standards, via the market model. The choice of return model is not the only decision affecting conclusions. Traditional tests are also examined and found to be unreliable. Conflicting conclusions are reached, under the market model, according to the chosen return measure. The inadequacy of traditional tests is demonstrated and the conflict eliminated when more robust bootstrapping tests are applied. Conclusions are more consistent for traditional tests when the (0, 1) market model is used.
Inflation and the Investing Borrower
Authors: Everett J. E. 
Published: January 2010

The Mathews Committee report recommends that assets should be depreciable for tax purposes according to replacement cost rather than historic cost, to compensate for inflation. But there is a reverse side to the argument. Under the present taxation system, part of the interest expense allowed on borrowed funds is really a repayment of capital in times of inflation. This paper examines the two effects quantitatively. It is shown that, for a project financed entirely by borrowings, the extra tax benefit on interest expenses exceeds the extra tax cost on depreciation allowances. If the Mathews Committee recommendations on depreciation are adopted and borrowers are allowed to deduct interest payments in full, then inflationary distortions might be accentuated rather than relieved.
Project 3P-12 Months Later
Authors: Volard S. V. 
Published: January 2010

This paper updates a case study published in the April, 1978 issue of this journal. The case study described a change programme in a small tyre company in Brisbane, based on three inter-related factors that appear to underpin much of what we call “Industrial Democracy”: employees participating in important decisions about group objectives, contributing to group performance in a significant way and sharing the rewards of group accomplishment. The description covered the first seven months of that change programme, during which some remarkable changes took place in performance as a result of the initiatives of employees. Problems became apparent during that first stage and other problems have surfaced during the next twelve months. This paper discusses the nature of these problems, their possible causes, and the measures taken (or not taken) to correct them.
The Prediction of Corporate Failure: Testing the Australian Experience
Authors: Castagna A. D. , Matolcsy Z. P. 
Published: January 2010

The purpose of this paper is to address some of the methodological issues which have evolved from the literature on corporate failures, and to report the results of an empirical investigation on the usefulness of financial models for the prediction of corporate failures. The experimental design is based on the 21 listed public companies that failed in Australia during the period 1963 to 1977, inclusive, and which met with minimum data requirements. It examines the performance of linear versus quadratic classification rules; temporal versus atemporal models; equal versus unequal priors of failure, variable dimension reduction, and a validation test proposed by Lachenbruch (1967). The results of the study suggest that it is difficult to identify a unique model to predict corporate failures, without specifying the utility preference of the user. Utility preference in this context refers to the minimization of either Type I, Type II, or the overall error rate of a failure model.
Some Estimates of Direct and Indirect Bankruptcy Costs in Australia: September 1978–May 1983
Authors: Pham T. , Chow D. 
Published: January 2010

This study estimates some direct and indirect costs of bankruptcy in the Australian context from September 1978 to May 1983. The findings are: first, there was some degree of capital market inefficiency in the processing of infor Mation relevant to the bankrupt firms; second, bankruptcy costs, in particular indirect costs, were sizeable, approximately over 20% of firm's value; third, the expected present value of bankruptcy costs greatly exceeded the tax benefits from leverage for thirteen of the fourteen firms under study; and, fourth, there was a negative relationship between corporate leverage and the probability of bankruptcy (or expected bankruptcy costs), implying capital structure decisions are affected by the prospect of bankruptcy costs.
The Impact of Microelectronics on Scale in Manufacturing Industries
Authors: Markowski S. , Jubb C. D. 
Published: January 2010

The traditional treatment of economies of scale ignores the complexity of manufacturing processes and is inadequate for an analysis of the impact of technological change. Complexity in manufacturing processes results, inter alia, from the multi-product capabilities of production facilities and the need to control the production of several outputs. This aspect of production activity must be addressed if the economics of diffusion of microelectronics-based technologies is to be studied. This paper examines the sensitivity of cost functions to changes in the characteristics and utilisation of production facilities and discusses the impact of microelectronics on scale, scope and scheduling flexibility of manufacturing facilities.
Models of Inflation Forecasts: Some Australian Evidence
Authors: Chan Keith K.W. , Pham Toan M. 
Published: January 2010

This paper provides Australian evidence of the comparative forecasting power of the three inflation models (interest rate, time series, and survey forecasts). In particular, it examines the rationality (in the Muthian sense) of the survey forecasts. The following results are obtained: first, the survey forecasts are rational; and, second, the survey has the highest forecasting power.
The Predictiveness of Bankruptcy Models: Methodological Problems and Evidence
Authors: Pacey John W. , Pham Toan M. 
Published: January 2010

This paper addresses three methodological problems in previous studies of bankruptcy models using MDA and logit/probit techniques: (i) the use of choice-based and equally distributed samples in model estimation and validation; (ii) the use of arbitrary cut-off probabilities; and, (Hi) the assumption of equal costs of errors in prediction tests. Corrected MDA and probit models are estimated for a sample of Australian companies from 1966 to 1986. In contrast to previous studies our results show that first, bankruptcy prediction models based upon publicly available financial statement infor Mation possess insignificant predictive power; and second, the variables chosen for such models are characterised by non-multivariate normality and heteroskedasticity.
Sex of Applicant and the Availability of Business “Start-Up” Finance
Authors: Fay Michael , Williams Lesley 
Published: January 2010

While women are undoubtedly disadvantaged in the process of preparing for a career in business ownership, there is a lack of experimental evidence to verify the belief that loan managers discriminate against women at the point of loan application. This study, therefore, investigates the extent to which concerns that women in business face discrimination from trading banks when seeking to raise start-up capital are valid. Scenarios of an application for loan finance to purchase a commercial enterprise were mailed to loan officers of major trading bank branches. The scenarios were identical in all respects, except that half included a photograph of a male applicant and the remainder a photograph of a female. Loan officers were asked whether or not they would approve loan finance for the proposed business, and to indicate factors that contributed to their decision. Significant differences in loan officer response to female and male applicants were observed. This supported the widely held perception that women face discrimination in seeking start-up capital.
Evidence of Price Change Volatility Induced by the Number and Proportion of Orders of a Given Size
Authors: Walsh David M. 
Published: January 2010

We examine the contribution of order flow parameters (order size, number of orders and proportions of orders conditioned on order size) to the volatility of price change. To a lesser extent, we also examine the impact of these parameters on the mean of price change. Innovations in this study include the use of orders rather than trades and the testing of robustness of results across calendar and transaction time sampling. We find that: (a) there is a positive correlation between the number of orders, of any size, and volatility; (b) the price change in each order size category increases as order size increases; (c) number and proportion of orders are uncorrelated with price change per se; and (d) volatility appears negatively correlated with the proportion of small orders, uncorrelated with the proportion of medium‐sized orders, and positively correlated with the proportion of large orders.
Predicting Earnings Growth Using E/P Ratios: Australian Evidence
Authors: Allen Dave E. , Lisnawati Henrietta , Clissold Martyn 
Published: January 2010

The classic ‘higgledy‐piggledy growth’ studies by Little (1962), Rayner and Little (1966), Brealey (1967), and Lintner and Glauber (1967) essentially reported that earnings changes over time appear to be randomly distributed. More recently Fuller, Huberts and Levinson (1992) have undertaken a US study which challenges some of these earlier findings. Their study utilised the earnings‐to‐price ratio as the market's implicit forecast of future earnings changes. Their results suggested that high E/P stocks tend to have relatively lower earnings changes whilst low E/P stocks tend to have higher earnings changes. This study reworks Fuller, Huberts and Levinson's study on a sample of 207 listed Australian companies for the period 1972–1984. On balance, our results support their findings.
Dimensions of Association in Sociology: an Organizational Map of an Academic Discipline
Authors: Cappell Charles L. , Guterbock Thomas M. 
Published: January 2010

Sociologists' voluntary memberships in specialty sections within the American Sociological Association (ASA) can be assumed to reflect both the social organization of an intellectual society and the cognitive structure of the discipline's subject matter. Data aescribing the frequencies of joint memberships in each pair of the ASA's specialty sections from 198U to 1984 are analyzed using multidimensional scaling and clustering techniques. A large joint frequency of membership in two sections is taken as an indicator of intellectual affinity between the two specialty areas. We find that sociology has developed a multidimensional associational structure with three dimensions able to account for most of the relational structure. Nine broad specialty areas subsume the twenty-three specialty sections. A major bifurcation of the discipline appears between the explicitly Marxist specialty (and related "critical" specialties) and "Standard American Sociology" (SAS). A few specialties, notably among them tne Sociology of Population, appear as isolates. The major cognitive aimension, therefore, appears to be a parauigmatic divergence between the Marxist-Critical school and a collection of specialties oriented around the major institutions and problems of the welfare state. The other major dimensions accounting for the overlaps in section membership appear to be methodological distinctions based on different units of analysis (micro vs. macro) and, to a lesser extent, different degrees of quantification. Sociology in North America, viewed through its formally organized association, displays a complex pattern of differentiation, but the discipline nevertheless remains segmented by competing paradigms.
The modernisation of trade unions in Denmark
Authors: Lind Jens 
Published: January 2010

The experience of the past 20 years of declining membership rates in most European countries is no doubt the main reason for identifying a crisis of trade unionism, prompting a direct opportunity to look further into what might be the reason, what has gone wrong and what should be done to modernise trade unions to get them back on the main track again. In Denmark, however, declining membership rates are not the starting point for investigating what unions could do better. Unlike most other European trade unions, the Danish trade unions have experienced a constant increase in trade union membership rates - approximately 80% of all wage earners are unionised in 1994 - but this does not indicate that trade unionism in Denmark does not have any problems. Neither does it mean that the unions are beyond criticism nor that they do not need to implement changes in a modernising effort. The unions are aware of this and indeed so are their critics. To evaluate the necessity for modernisation, the changes in society - especially changes in working life and the political/ideological environment - are a starting point, and this is closely connected to the second topic to be dealt with here, namely the changing contours of the (potential) members. Thirdly to be discussed are issues and trends in collective bargaining, including the international perspectives, and fourthly trade union structures and internal functioning. Finally some main perspectives of change will be pointed out concentrating on the role of trade unions in society and membership participation.
Modernisation of trade unions in Spain
Authors: Miguélez Faustino 
Published: January 2010

Spanish unions are facing the same challenges as other European unions - but they are also having to cope with the economic, political and cultural legacy of the Franco regime. In this article, Faustino Miguélez, looks at how that legacy has coloured their response to issues like unemployment, the changing labour market, and the impact of new technology. Despite their low membership, the unions still exert great influence on Spanish society. They are trying to overcome their historic divisions, and to broaden their social base by building closer links with other civic groups. They are making determined efforts to attract the growing number of women workers and workers in insecure jobs to the union movement. Membership is strong in the public sector, and among the new high-tech workers. But the unions have made little impact in the burgeoning number of small firms, and their internal structure has to become more decentralised. As for Europe - that will have to wait. It barely figures on the agenda of most Spanish workers, says Senor Miguélez, and union policy reflects this. The emphasis is still mostly on regional and national issues. Perhaps that too is a legacy of the isolationism of the Franco regime.