The dynamics of combining self-employment and employment

This study examines the extent to which wage-earning workers are simultaneously self-employed, a phenomenon not thoroughly investigated in earlier studies. We use matched employee-employer databases to present a detailed investigation of self-employment patterns within the post industrial sectors in Sweden from 1990 to 2002. We find that persons that combine self-employment with waged work constitute a majority of the total number of self-employed, and that most people enter self-employment by engaging first in combinatory work, indicating that the decision to move to self-employment is more complex than characterized in earlier research.Self-employment; income dynamics; entrepreneurship

Endogenous growth through knowledge spillovers in entrepreneurship: An empirical test

Endogenous growth theory is based on the notion that technological knowledge stimulates growth, yet the micro foundations of this process are rarely investigated and remain obscure. Knowledge spillover theory posits that growth is contingent on the technology dependence of industries, forming the landscape for technology entrepreneurs to launch and grow new ventures. We investigate these theoretical contingencies of endogenous growth with two research questions at two levels of analysis: First, do industries with a greater need for new technology-based entrepreneurship grow disproportionately faster than other industries? Second, do the knowledge spillover effects foster the growth of new technology based firms contingent on certain industry structures? These questions are examined empirically, using a comprehensive employee-employer data set on the science and technology labor force in Sweden from 1995 to 2002.Endogenous Growth; Entrepreneurship; Industry Evolution

Hybrid Entrepreneurship

In contrast to previous efforts to model the individual’s movement from wage work into entrepreneurship, we consider that individuals might transition incrementally by retaining their wage job while entering into self-employment. We show that these hybrid entrepreneurs represent a significant share of all entrepreneurial activity. Theoretical arguments are proposed to suggest why hybrid entrants are distinct from self-employment entrants, and why hybrid entry may facilitate subsequent entry into full self-employment. We demonstrate that there are significant theoretical and empirical consequences for this group and our understanding of self-employment entry and labor market dynamics. Using matched employee-employer data over eight years, we test the model on a population of Swedish wage earners in the knowledge-intensive sector.Hybrid entrepreneurship; Self-employment; Labour market dynamics; Transition determinants; Employee-employer data

Journaling as a Teaching and Learning Tool

Requiring students to keep journals is a most valuable teaching and learning tool. Student writing can be more than a way that we justify the grades we give students at the end of each term. Writing is a multi-functional tool that can be used not only for evaluation but also for teaching and learning. In using writing for teaching and learning, we help our students develop analytical, critical thinking, and organizational skills that will help them be successful. Requiring students to keep journals is just such a tool. In addition, it helps achieve the SDSU Lead Forward Goal of making students communication-able. Journaling can also help achieve a second Lead Forward Goal, that of student retention. Journals open a door to a personal connection between the teacher and the student that provides opportunities both to assist students in their academic lives and to serve as mentors. Britton et al. (1975, Chap. 6) have identified three types of writing in which students engage: transactional, expressive, and poetic. Transactional writing involves full and explicit communication. It is used to inform, persuade or instruct people. Our students usually utilize transactional writing either in essay examination questions or in term papers. The student communicates what has been learned in the course or in his or her research. I use both essay exams and term papers in my classroom to evaluate how well students have understood the content of the class. The problem with essay examinations and term papers is in the notion that they are used to evaluate how well students have understood the content of the class. Both activities assume that they have understood the material. Transaction writing is the basis for final evaluation, not really a process for getting to the point of mastering the material

Spatial displays as a means to increase pilot situational awareness

Experiences raise a number of concerns for future spatial-display developers. While the promise of spatial displays is great, the cost of their development will be correspondingly large. The knowledge and skills which must be coordinated to ensure successful results is unprecedent. From the viewpoint of the designer, basic knowledge of how human beings perceive and process complex displays appears fragmented and largely unquantified. Methodologies for display development require prototyping and testing with subject pilots for even small changes. Useful characterizations of the range of differences between individual users is nonexistent or at best poorly understood. The nature, significance, and frequency of interpretation errors associated with complex integrated displays is unexplored and undocumented territory. Graphic displays have intuitive appeal and can achieve face validity much more readily than earlier symbolic displays. The risk of misleading the pilot is correspondingly greater. Thus while some in the research community are developing the tools and techniques necessary for effective spatial-display development, potential users must be educated about the issues so that informed choices can be made. The scope of the task facing all is great. The task is challenging and the potential for meaningful contributions at all levels is high indeed

The Role of the Elementary School Principal in the Education of the Gifted Child

No abstract provided by author

Effects of fertilizer nitrogen and cropping systems on the availability of nitrogen for corn production in Iowa

Studies were conducted to acquire a better understanding of the effects of fertilizer nitrogen and cropping systems on the availability of nitrogen for corn (Zea mays L.) production in Iowa. The availability of nitrogen for corn production was assessed by analyzing soil samples collected when corn plants were 15 to 30 cm tall. The distributions of nitrate found in the soil profiles at this time were surprisingly similar in that the highest concentrations of nitrate always occurred in the top 15-cm layers of soils, and concentrations gradually decreased with increasing depth below the surface. This finding supports recent ideas that nitrate movement in soils is strongly influenced by preferential movement of water through soil macropores.;Amounts of nitrate found in the surface 30-cm layers of soils at this time were highly correlated with corn yields. This finding indicates that a late-spring soil test for nitrate has great potential as a practical tool to determine fertilizer nitrogen needs at sidedressing.;Differences in yields observed between corn after corn and corn after soybean (Glycine max L.) were largely explained by nitrogen effects. When expressed in fertilizer equivalents, the amounts of nitrogen carried over from soybean to corn exceeded the amounts indicated by the late-spring soil nitrate test. The differences in yield could be explained by considering the amounts of nitrogen required to decompose corn residues and the amounts released during decomposition of soybean residues. These observations suggest that continuous corn and corn in rotation with legumes need to be treated as separate categories in the late-spring soil test.;Analysis of soils from long-term rotation-fertility experiments showed that cropping systems and fertilizer nitrogen treatments caused significant differences in the organic nitrogen contents of soils during the past thirty years. The results emphasize a need for greater consideration of changes in soil organic nitrogen content when evaluating the efficiencies and environmental impacts of various cropping systems and fertilization practices