The role of new technologies in the economic growth of Andalucia

This paper explores the contribution of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) on economic growth and labor productivity growth of Andalucía during 1995-2004. We find that the contribution of ICT assets to total market GVA growth is quantitatively modest. Anyway the contribution to GVA growth and employment growth within the intensive ICT sectors has experienced a considerable increase in Andalucía. Although our analysis detects that intensive ICT sectors exhibit a high productivity level with respect to that of the non intensive ones, our main conclusion is that the advantages that might emerge from the use of ICT are nor yet observable in the economic dynamics of Andalucía, at least in a similar manner to that of the most developed.Information and Communication Technologies, productivity growth, regional growth

Riesgos de la contaminación atmosférica en la salud

En esta revisión narrativa, se presentan los llamados “contaminantes clásicos”. El grupo lo conforman las partículas en suspensión, el ozono troposférico, el dióxido de nitrógeno y el dióxido de azufre. El objetivo es analizar los riesgos para la salud pública que la exposición a estos contaminantes genera según el tiempo y sus niveles de concentración en el ambiente. Además, se trata de justificar unos niveles de contaminación seguros para la población, por debajo de los cuales hay una reducción significativa de los índices epidemiológicos de morbi-mortalidad. Para ello, se ha realizado una búsqueda bibliográfica en bases de datos de Ciencias de la Salud. Como conclusión, a partir de ello, se presentan y justifican los niveles de concentración atmosférica recomendados con los cuales el estado de la salud pública se encuentra fuera de riesgo

La anticoncepción desde la farmacia comunitaria, Una visión clínica

Los métodos anticonceptivos empleados con mayor frecuencia son de dispensación o venta en la farmacia comunitaria. Destacan entre ellos los anticonceptivos hormonales orales y los preservativos con un porcentaje de uso respectivamente del 20 y el 38% y son con diferencia los más utilizados. Pero también otros menos habituales, como dispositivos intrauterinos o de baja eficacia, como cremas espermicidas, se van a adquirir en la farmacia; sin olvidarnos de la anticoncepción de urgencia que, desde hace un año, es de libre dispensación. En todos los casos, el contacto con el farmacéutico va a ser el último que los usuarios van a tener con un profesional sanitario antes de empezar o continuar con un tratamiento, o utilizar el anticonceptivo. Esto hace que la farmacia tenga un puesto clave desde el cual ofrecer educación sanitaria e información sobre el correcto uso de cada uno de los métodos, buscando garantizar la eficacia y la seguridad del tratamiento

Productivity growth and technological change in Europe and the U.S.

This paper presents an evaluation on the technological sources of labor productivity growth across European countries and the US economy for the period 1980-2004. Assets of capital are divided into those related to the information and communication technologies (ICT), and non-ICT assets. Technological progress is divided into neutral change and investment specific change. Previous exercises have aimed at ICT as a serious contributor to the upsurge of US productivity from 1995 on. Contribution to productivity growth from each type of technological progress for the US and EU-15 countries is computed using two different approaches: a growth accounting and a general equilibrium. The US and Denmark are the countries with the larger contribution from ICT-technological progress. Overall, we find that Europe is well behind the US in terms of the effects of ICT technological change.Productivity growth, Investment-specific technological change, Neutral technological change

Test item taxonomy based of functional criteria

There are many taxonomies that try to classify and apply some consistency to the very many item types currently in existence. They all have various limitations, however, such as ambiguous classification criteria, little discrimination between format types, and referring almost exclusively to pen-and-paper or screen-based items. This paper aims to overcome these limitations by proposing a new item format taxonomy based on functional criteria. Current classifications are reviewed, the criteria they are based on are examined and their limitations are identified. The proposed alternative classification identifies four essential components of items according to function: the structure of the included content, the device used for transmission of the question to the examinee, the device for receiving the response, and the instructions to the examinee about how to understand and respond to the item. The combination of different facets of these four components allows any format of item to be classified, both existing formats and those that may appear in the future. In addition to systematically and coherently classifying items, this new taxonomy may also be of great utility in the construction and research of new items. The proposed model is illustrated by examples showing how specific items are classified, using a checklist as a guide.Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad de España PSI2014-56114-PMinisterio de Economía y Competitividad de España PSI2017-85724-

Persistence in inequalities across the Spanish regions

In this paper we investigate several issues concerning persistence in inequalities of relative income per capita among the Spanish regions over 1980-2002. For that purpose we take a Bayesian approach which extends the work by Canova and Marcet (1995). Firstly, we study to what extent there exists a fixed effect bias in the standard cross-section estimates, and we find that the speed of convergence is indeed underestimated. Secondly, we provide a battery of results in which steady states and convergence rates have been obtained for a continuum of prior distributions. Finally, we also deal with persistence in inequalites by determining whether initial conditions matter in the distribution of regional steady states, and our conclusion is that regional disparities tend to persist over time in Spain.Convergence, Inequalities, Bayesian Econometrics, Gibbs sampling

The Productivity Paradox and the New Economy: The Spanish Case

This paper studies the impact of the information and communication technologies (ICT) on economic growth in Spain using a dynamic general equilibrium approach. Contrary to previous works, we use a production function with six different capital inputs, three of them corresponding to ICT assets. Calibration of the model suggests that the contribution of ICT to Spanish productivity growth is very relevant, whereas the contribution of non-ICT capital has been even negative. Additionally, over the sample period 1995-2002, we find a negative TFP and productivity growth. These results together aim at the hypothesis that the Spanish economy could be placed within the productivity paradox.New economy, information and communication technologies, technological change, productivity paradox.

Beyond the R&D effects on innovation: the contribution of non-R&D activities to TFP growth in the EU

A significant part of the innovation efforts carried out across very heterogeneous economies in Europe is under the form of Non-R&D innovation activities. But the traditional macro approach to the determinants of TFP does not handle this issue appropiately. This paper has proposed and estimated an augmented macro-theoretical model to the determinants of total factor productivity (TFP) by jointly considering the effects of R&D endowments and the impact of Non-R&D innovation activities on …firms´ levels of productivity. The estimation of the model for a sample of EU26 countries covering the period 2004-2008 shows that the distinction between R&D and Non-R&D endowments really matters for a number of different issues. First, the results show a sizable differential impact of these endowments on TFP growth, being the impact of R&D twice as big as the impact of Non-R&D. Second, absorptive capacity is only linked to R&D endowments. And third, the two types of endowments cannot strictly been seen as complements at least for the case of countries with high R&D intensities or high Non-R&D intensities

ICT-specific technological change and productivity growth in the US 1980-2004

This paper studies the impact of the information and communication technologies (ICT) on U.S. economic growth using a dynamic general equilibrium approach. We use a production function with six different capital inputs, three of them corresponding to ICT assets and other three to non-ICT assets. We find that the technological change embedded in hardware equipment is the main leading non-neutral force of the U.S. productivity growth and accounts for about one quarter of it during the period 1980-2004. As a whole, ICT-specific technological change accounts for about 35% of total labor productivity growth.New economy, information and communication technologies, specific-technological change, neutral-technological change.