7,626 research outputs found

    Is there a prison size dilemma?: an empirical analysis of output-specific economies of scale

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    We advocate a nonparametric multi-output framework to estimate output specific economies of scale and we apply this model to male prisons in England and Wales over the sample period 2009-2012. To estimate output-specific returns to scale in prisons, we consider not only the cost-per-place, but also qualitative outputs such as purposeful out-of-cell activity and successful reintegration. Furthermore, we introduce environmental heterogeneity using the characteristics of the prison(ers). England and Wales offers a unique example to study economies of scale in prisons as the UK has started to build new super-size prisons in order to replace the most outdated prisons

    REALIZING EFFICIENT USE AND CONSERVATION OF LAND UNDER PRIVATE OWNERSHIP: A REBUTMENT TO NOBEL ECONOMICS LAUREATE THEODORE W. SCHULTZ

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    Rebutting Theodore W. Schultz's assertions that small farmers are rational, low income countries saddled with traditional agriculture have not the problem of many farmers leaving agriculture for nonfarm jobs, part-time farming is efficient, and economies of scale have no logical basis and not stood the test of time, this paper presents that in (1) the low income countries still saddled with traditional agriculture, (2) the low income countries developing towards the high income economy, and (3) the high income countries, numerous able-bodied part-time and absent farmers earning higher off-farm income tend to under-utilize or idle small (and often fragmented) farms without selling or leasing them to full-time farmers to achieve economies of scale which do have logical basis and stood the test of empirical findings; and indicates that this is a global problem unresolved under private land ownership in both developing and developed countries. Thus small farmers in so doing are not so rational to the societal and their own fundamental interests. The paper also shows that in Central-Eastern Europe and Central Asia under private land ownership or possession many farmers voluntarily remain in collective land operation which perpetuates the low individual incentives. The paper further analyses the dilemmas the EU has been facing in resolving food overproduction, reducing trade-distorting agricultural subsidies and tariffs, keeping self-sufficiency, retaining small farmers in agriculture while strengthening large farmers, and efficient land use; and the crucial imperfections in the EU enlargement process. The paper thus proposes possible solutions on how to protect private land ownership, while transferring under-utilized land to full-time farmers; prevent the high costs of the traditional land consolidation, but still reaching its aims; keep part-time small farmers in agriculture, meanwhile bolstering full-time large farmers; avoid collective land operation, in the meantime benefiting from collective services; boosting EU enlargement but not adding burdens on the EU; retain non-cereal agriculture on ecologically sensitive land, at the same time improving the environment and precluding food overproduction; reduce trade-distorting agricultural subsidies and high tariffs, whereas making full-time farmers viable and competitive; and promote off-farm activities, for the meantime reinforcing agriculture.Land Economics/Use,

    Feminist Reflections on the Scope of Labour Law: Domestic Work, Social Reproduction and Jurisdiction

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    Drawing on feminist labour law and political economy literature, I argue that it is crucial to interrogate the personal and territorial scope of labour. After discussing the “commodification” of care, global care chains, and body work, I claim that the territorial scope of labour law must be expanded beyond that nation state to include transnational processes. I use the idea of social reproduction both to illustrate and to examine some of the recurring regulatory dilemmas that plague labour markets. I argue that unpaid care and domestic work performed in the household, typically by women, troubles the personal scope of labour law. I use the example of this specific type of personal service relation to illustrate my claim that the jurisdiction of labour law is historical and contingent, rather than conceptual and universal. I conclude by identifying some of the implications of redrawing the territorial and personal scope of labour law in light of feminist understandings of social reproduction

    What's Neoliberalism Got to Do With It? Towards a Political Economy of Punishment in Greece

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    SAGE copyright policy clearly states that the co-authors 'may not post the final version of the article as published by SAGE or the SAGE–created PDF – ‘version 3’. Thus we cannot achieve the submitted (SAGE.pdf) version

    Factors affecting SMEs' strategic decisions to approach international markets

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    [EN] The internationalisation challenges that face all companies are no longer the exclusive concern of multinationals. Participation in the international marketplace has become a reality for large firms and small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) alike. This kind of participation can be rewarding for both companies and employees. The markets that SMEs enter and the success of this entry depend on several factors such as cultural differences, company tradition, venture capital, products and competitors. The goal of this study is therefore to understand whether the characteristics of the external market, the characteristics of the company itself and the barriers to internationalisation influence the strategic approach that SMEs adopt in their internationalisation processes. Using data on 320 Portuguese SMEs, we apply multivariate analyses to test the dimensions of internationalisation. We find that the decision of SMEs to internationalise involves an institutional change in response to external pressures in the home country. SMEs under greater institutional pressure not only tend to expand further but also engage in their initial international activities more radically.This work is supported by FEDER funds from COMPETE 2020 and Portuguese funds - PORTUGAL 2020. Project IEcPBI - Interactive Ecosystem for Portuguese Business Internationalization - POCI-01-0145-FEDER-032139.Azevedo Lobo, C.; Fernandes, CI.; Ferreira, JJ.; Peris-Ortiz, M. (2020). Factors affecting SMEs' strategic decisions to approach international markets. European J of International Management. 14(4):617-639. https://doi.org/10.1504/EJIM.2020.107607S61763914

    Regional and local productivity in the public sector: where do we stand?

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    Direct consumption of economic resources by public sector agencies in producing services is a highly significant part of the GDP of OECD countries; yet, productivity in the public sector is a topic that has been long overlooked by research. This paper synthesises what we know about productivity in the public sector at the subnational level to date. It starts with a brief recap of what public sector productivity is and what is not. The next section considers how the specific functions characteristic of the regional and local public sector condition productivity, and the foundation expectations we can formulate about productivity differences across tiers of government. The paper continues with a summary of single-service studies of sub-national government productivity and the best available ideas for improving the productivity of regional, big city and local governments in ways that may generate more growth in their economies. The final parts of the paper are devoted to the renewed importance of governmental resilience and innovation at regional and local levels and on how more inclusive, balanced or compensating forms of economic development may help in lagging regions, especially in the context of adverse climate change. The conclusions argue that boosting public services productivity can also strengthen sub-national governments’ contribution to regional and local growth, and to alleviating these major new risks and challenges

    The Role of School Improvement in Economic Development

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    The role of improved schooling, a central part of most development strategies, has become controversial because expansion of school attainment has not guaranteed improved economic conditions. This paper reviews the role of education in promoting economic wellbeing, with a particular focus on the role of educational quality. It concludes that there is strong evidence that the cognitive skills of the population – rather than mere school attainment – are powerfully related to individual earnings, to the distribution of income, and to economic growth. New empirical results show the importance of both minimal and high level skills, the complementarity of skills and the quality of economic institutions, and the robustness of the relationship between skills and growth. International comparisons incorporating expanded data on cognitive skills reveal much larger skill deficits in developing countries than generally derived from just school enrollment and attainment. The magnitude of change needed makes clear that closing the economic gap with developed countries will require major structural changes in schooling institutions.

    Policy Impact in Criminal Justice: Intended and Unintended Consequences

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    This dissertation contains three chapters dealing with criminal justice policy. First, through time series analysis, it is found that there is no deterrent effect to the juvenile death penalty. Next, the idea of symbolic bureaucratic representation is explored using police stop data. The final chapter looks for any positive economic impact prison privatization has upon local economies
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