And I Will Try to Fix You: A Study of Heterogeneity in Job Satisfaction with Implications for Flexible Employment Contracts

This paper is an empirical study of slope heterogeneity in job satisfaction. It provides evidence from the generalized ordered probit models that different job characteristics tend to have different distributional impacts on the overall job satisfaction. For instance, standard models tend to significantly underestimate the effects of monthly salary and hours worked at generating the "highly" satisfied workers, whilst lowering the incidence of the "very dissatisfied" workers. Although our results should be viewed as illustrative, we provide discussions of their potential implications for employers and they could help with the design of employment contracts.generalized ordered probit, employment contract, heterogeneity, job satisfaction, salary, work-life balance

Firm size and taxes

The scale dependence in firm growth (smaller firms grow faster) is systematically reflected in the size distribution. This paper studies whether taxes affect the equilibrium firm size distribution in a cross-country context. The main finding is that the empirical association between firm growth and corporate tax (VAT) is positive (negative), with notable differences in the response of manufacturing firms and that of the others. We draw implications for recent debate on the impact of taxes and tax avoidance on the organization of firms in the economy

Four Essays on Trade, Globalization, and Wage Inequalities

Ph.DDOCTOR OF PHILOSOPH

Alternative Approaches to the Development of Early Childhood Education in Singapore

A knowledge-intensive, innovation-driven economy needs innovative and creative individuals in business, government, and the various professions. Singapore’s education system has an important role to play in equipping the young with the right qualities. This could be better achieved by moving away from an overly rigid education system that places undue emphasis on rote learning and examination scores, to an education system that develops students’ creativity and critical thinking abilities, and encourages their innate curiosity and willingness to experiment. We examine, as a backdrop, various economic theories of entrepreneurship and, believing that it is important to begin with a good educational foundation, the features of some alternative approaches to pre-school education. We also examine Singapore’s attempts to promote independent thinking and creativity among Singaporean students, and other countries’ experiences, in particular those of Finland and the Netherlands. Among other issues, emphasis is placed on play and the fostering of students’ love of learning, in less structured settings, as the media of learning during early childhood education.Entrepreneurship; Pre-school Education; Play-based Learning; Reggio Emilia approach; Montessori Method; Teach Less, Learn More (TLLM) initiative

Thailand's 2011 flooding : its impacts on direct exports and global supply chain disruptions

Recent flooding that seriously affected Thailand’s industrial manufacturers highlights the fact that prevailing just- in-time procurement and management systems have not recognized the damage that can result from supply chain disruptions, as well as the pivotal role played by building up resilience in supply chains. Vulnerabilities are particularly pertinent to the Thai economy as production plants are heavily concentrated in a few provinces. There are some approaches to managing the risks of supply chain disruptions that can build up the supply chains resilience to uncertainties

Thailand's 2011 flooding : its impact on direct exports and global supply chains

Because any disruptions to a single node of production may lead to a breakdown of the entire production chain, natural disasters and some man-made catastrophes can endanger the just-in-time approach to procurement and production. Based on the experience of Thailand’s flood disaster, this study examines the extent to which supply chain disruptions translate into plunges in production and export performance. Investment in untapped inventory and suppliers can be prohibitively costly. The analysis reveals some implications for corporate culture and management mindsets to take into consideration when there are potential sources and impacts of risks, and how to assess them systematically

Post-Crisis Investment Performance of ASEAN Countries: Impact of FDI

The paper studies the post-Asian crisis investment performance of crisis affected countries in ASEAN. The empirical evidence clearly indicates that the ASEAN and East Asian countries are emerging from the Asian crisis with strong output growth. As expected, the output growth seems to be driven by the growth in export sector. The growth in the post-crisis period indicates that it is reaching the level similar to that of the pre-crisis. However, the paper highlights that the output growth in the post crisis period is also observed with rising unemployment rate, growth government deficit, and declining FDI inflows into the South-East Asian region. The empirical evidence also indicates that there is a fundamental shift in the industrial structure of the South- East after the Asian crisis. This directly raises the issue of sustainability of the output growth in the post-crisis period.Singapore, development, institutions, finance

Learning by Exporting and High-tech Capital Deepening in Singapore Manufacturing Industries, 1974-2006

A number of fundamental factors enhance the growth of industries' productivity. Among others, the export-led and high-tech capital deepening strategies are widely adopted by developing economies. This paper attempts to empirically investigate the extent to which both industrial development policies affect the total factor productivity growth (TFPG) in Singapore manufacturing industries from 1974 to 2006. Using the panel data estimations, I find that both development strategies bring about TFPG via non-neutral technological growth, and the former more largely explains TFPG than does the latter. The present study captures the measure of learning by exporting by the lagged export intensity and therefore contributes to the literature, in which only whether or not firms are active in export markets is conventionally employed. Methodologically, my main contributions are a more detailed treatment of (non-neutral) technological changes, and an improved measure of export intensity.Learning by Exporting, High-tech Capital Deepening, Total Factor Productivity Growth, Neutral and Factor-biased Technological Progress