Empirical Evidence on Satisfaction with Privatization in Latin America: Welfare Effects and Beliefs

Since the 1980s, privatization of formerly state-owned firms has been extensively implemented by governments across Latin America. Despite the fact that most evaluations of the process fail to find significant adverse welfare effects, there has been a strong surge in public discontent with such policy in the region. This paper performs a systematic empirical analysis of the determinants of such discontent with privatizations in Latin America, using survey data from Latinobarometro covering 18 countries over the period 1995-2005, complemented by country level data on macroeconomic, political, and institutional aspects as well as data on privatization. Dissatisfaction appears to respond to absolute and relative welfare effects, as well as to individual beliefs and expectations.

Utility and income transfer principles: Interplay and incompatibility

International audienceIn this paper, it is assumed that income does not have a linear correspondence with utility. Consequently, transfers of income and transfers of utility that could improve social welfare are studied. The conditions for the fulfillment of generalized income transfer principles, relevant to any given order of stochastic dominance, are determined. The result relies on Bell polynomials and states that an income transfer principle of any order does not necessarily satisfy the utility transfer principle of the corresponding order

Pooled procurement of drugs in low and middle income countries

We use data from seven low and middle income countries with diverse drug procurement systems to assess the effect of centralized procurement on drug prices and provide a theoretical mechanism that explains this effect. Our empirical analysis is based on exhaustive data on drug sales quantities and expenditures over several years for forty important molecules. We find that centralized procurement of drugs by the public sector allows much lower prices but that the induced price reduction is smaller when the supply side is more concentrated

La négrette dans le vignoble de Fronton : le cépage et le terroir réconciliés ?

Petit vignoble proche de la métropole toulousaine, Fronton peut aujourd’hui profiter d’un atout évident dans ses perspectives de développement. Son cépage principal, la négrette, est en effet un cépage original, dont le Frontonnais a le quasi-monopole de la culture en France. Elle confère aux vins produits une typicité indéniable qui les singularise et les met en valeur. Dans un marché mondialisé, de plus en plus concurrentiel, au sein duquel les vins français souffrent particulièrement, Fronton cherche à profiter de son avantage ampélographique pour assurer sa pérennité, sans pour autant rejeter le modèle vitivinicole français construit autour de la logique de « terroir ».The Frontonnais, small vineyard region near from the urban area of Toulouse in the South-West of France, has true development perspectives, of which it should take profit. Its main vine type, the négrette, is a very original one. In fact, the Frontonnais is nearly the only region in which its culture and its vinification are mastered. Wines coming from this region are then very typical, which can be considered as a great advantage in the present market conditions. Actually, in a time when most of the French vineyards suffer of the harsh concurrence in the global wine market, Fronton has a true chance to develop its production and its recognition. Such an ampelographic advantage should be used to perpetuate this particular vineyard, in a way that does not mean a renunciation to French wine-making heritage – just an adaptation or re-qualification

Aplicación de los ultrasonidos a la caracterización del fraguado de un cemento

Doble titulacióEn este Proyecto Fin de Carrera (PFC) se ha estudiado la posibilidad de recuperar las propiedades reológicas de un cemento óseo de sulfato de calcio al centrifugar el cemento antes de fraguar. El método de las agujas de Gillmore se utiliza para definir cuando un cemento empieza a fraguar. Este método permite obtener el “tiempo inicial de fraguado (TIF) del cemento. El TIF se considera que es una característica del material. En este PFC las muestras estudiadas fueron centrifugadas a tiempos menores que el TIF característico. Para poder seguir la evolución de las reacciones de fraguado se ha optimizado un sistema de ultrasonidos por reflexión que permite monitorizar en continuo estas reacciones. Este sistema permite monitorizar la evolución de las propiedades acústicas del cemento durante el fraguado. Algunas de las propiedades que se han obtenido son la variación del coeficiente de reflexión en la intercara polimetilmetacrilato/cemento del sistema de medida, la evolución de la impedancia acústica del material, la evolución de la velocidad de propagación del sonido a través del cemento, así como, la variación de la densidad del cemento a lo largo del fraguado. En primer lugar se realizaron ensayos sobre muestras de cemento de sulfato de calcio a distintas relaciones líquido/polvo (1 < L/P(mL/g)<4), es decir, con distintas viscosidades iniciales. Este estudio nos permitió seleccionar una relación L/P apropiada para poder estudiar el efecto del centrifugado. La muestra seleccionada tenía una relación L/P=2 mL/g. Sobre esta muestra se realizaron ensayos de centrifugado a distintos tiempos. Todas las muestras se monitorizaron con el sistema de ultrasonidos. El resultado principal mostró que el centrifugado aceleraba las reacciones de fraguado de un cemento de sulfato de calcio. Además, el sistema de ultrasonidos se mostró óptimo para monitorizar todo el proceso de fraguado de los cementos. En este sentido, la determinación de los tiempos característicos de fraguado, i.e. TIF y “tiempo final de fraguado” (TFF), fue clara y precisa. Por lo tanto, este sistema de medida es más objetivo que el sistema de caracterización de las agujas de Gillmore

Analyse des données du Dispositif Cantonal d'Indication et de Suivi pour les personnes Toxicodépendantes (DCIST) : 2010-2012

Le Dispositif Cantonal d'Indication et de Suivi pour les personnes Toxicodépendantes (DCIST) est un outil central de la politique de prévention et de lutte contre la toxicodépendance dans le canton de Vaud a. Ses principaux objectifs sont : Améliorer l'adéquation entre l'offre de prestations et les besoins des usagers; Améliorer la coordination des prestations sociales et médicales en développant le travail en réseau, aussi bien dans la prise en charge de l'usager que dans son suivi et son maintien dans le réseau social et médical. Le DCIST a donc pour but de renforcer le rôle du canton de Vaud dans le pilotage et la planification des prestations dans le domaine de l'aide aux personnes dépendantes et s'adresse à toute personne toxicodépendante, avec ou sans problématique d'alcool associée, ayant un projet de prise en charge dans un établissement socio-éducatif (ESE). Le passage par ce dispositif est également un préalable nécessaire à l'octroi d'une garantie financière par le SPAS dans le cadre des séjours résidentiels

Empirical Evidence on Satisfaction with Privatization in Latin America: Welfare Effects and Beliefs

Since the 1980s, privatization of formerly state-owned firms has been extensively implemented by governments across Latin America. Despite the fact that most evaluations of the process fail to find significant adverse welfare effects, there has been a strong surge in public discontent with such policy in the region. This paper performs a systematic empirical analysis of the determinants of such discontent with privatizations in Latin America, using survey data from Latinobarometro covering 18 countries over the period 1995-2005, complemented by country level data on macroeconomic, political, and institutional aspects as well as data on privatization. Dissatisfaction appears to respond to absolute and relative welfare effects, as well as to individual beliefs and expectations

Empirical Evidence on Satisfaction with Privatization in Latin America: Welfare Effects and Beliefs

Since the 1980s, privatization of formerly state-owned firms has been extensively implemented by governments across Latin America. Despite the fact that most evaluations of the process fail to find significant adverse welfare effects, there has been a strong surge in public discontent with such policy in the region. This paper performs a systematic empirical analysis of the determinants of such discontent with privatizations in Latin America, using survey data from Latinobarometro covering 18 countries over the period 1995-2005, complemented by country level data on macroeconomic, political, and institutional aspects as well as data on privatization. Dissatisfaction appears to respond to absolute and relative welfare effects, as well as to individual beliefs and expectations

Integrating Wind Flow Analysis in Early Urban Design: Guidelines for Practitioners

The research focused on simulating wind patterns in urban planning design offers substantial contributions to both the social and economic aspects of the urban planning and design field. To begin with, it addresses a critical factor in urban development, especially in Mediterranean climates, where natural ventilation significantly influences summer comfort. By incorporating predictive numerical simulations of urban wind patterns, this study provides valuable insights into improving outdoor thermal comfort within urban areas. This holds particular importance in the context of adapting to climate change, as it equips urban planners and architects with informed decision-making tools to create more sustainable and comfortable urban environments. Additionally, this research makes an economic contribution by presenting guidelines for iterative wind simulations in the early stages of designing medium-scale urban projects. Through the validation of a simulation workflow, it streamlines the design process, potentially reducing the time and resources required for urban planning and architectural design. This enhanced efficiency can result in cost savings during project development. Moreover, the study's recommendations concerning simulation parameters, such as wind tunnel cell size and refinement levels, offer practical insights for optimizing simulation processes, potentially lowering computational expenses and improving the overall economic viability of urban design projects. To summarize, this research effectively addresses climate-related challenges, benefiting both social well-being and economic efficiency in the field of urban planning and design, while also providing guidance for more efficient simulation-driven design procedures

Mothers’ and fathers’ autonomy-supportive and controlling behaviors : an analysis of interparental contributions

Objective. The goal of this study was to examine how mothers and fathers contribute to each other’s autonomy supportive and controlling behaviors toward their child. Design. The participants were heterosexual parental dyads from two prospective studies (Study 1, n =289; Study 2, n = 202). Mothers and fathers completed questionnaires assessing their autonomy supportive and controlling behaviors toward their adolescent child. Results. In both studies, results from structural equation modeling revealed reciprocal partner effects where mothers’ autonomy support at Time 1 predicted fathers’ autonomy support at Time 2, and fathers’ autonomy support at Time 1 predicted mothers’ autonomy support at Time 2. Reciprocal partner effects were also observed for controlling behaviors. These reciprocal relations were not statistically different across mothers and fathers. Conclusions. These results provide support for interparental contributions regarding autonomy supportive and controlling parenting behaviors. Mothers and fathers should thus be aware that their parenting behaviors can be influenced by each other, including both positive and negative parenting behavior