Labor Mobility in Bolivia: On-the-job Search Behavior of Private and Public Sector Employees

This paper estimates structural parameters of both a simple and an extended job separation model with the purpose of understanding constraints in the labor market in Bolivia. The results confirm the hypothesis that skilled labor is a scarce commodity in Bolivia, while unskilled labor is abundantly available. This implies that skilled employees shop around for alternative employment opportunities and quit their jobs when a better opportunity arises. The quit rate among skilled employees in the private sector is much higher than the quit rate among skilled employees in the public sector. The reverse is true for the lay-off rate, and together this suggests that the private sector has difficulties maintaining its skilled labor. The estimates of the wage sensitivity of job search effort parameters presented in this paper suggest that it would be difficult for the private sector to improve its capacity to retain skilled employees by increasing wages – skilled employees in the private sector do not seem to reduce their on-the-job search in response to higher wages. The results are consistent with the hypothesis that the public sector in Bolivia, inflated by high levels of foreign aid (about 10% of GDP), may be detracting scarce human resources from local productive sectors, potentially jeopardizing the opportunity for sustainable development.Mobility, on-the-job search, labor markets, Bolivia

The Static and Dynamic Benefits of Migration and Remittances in Nicaragua

This paper utilizes a unique three-wave panel of household data from Nicaragua, which allows a thorough exploration of the relationships between migration, remittances and household consumption. The paper distinguishes between the effects of emigration and the impacts of remittances received. There is a self-selection bias in the decision to send a migrant, as well as in the decision to receive remittances. To adequately correct for these selection biases, we develop a bivariate selection correction procedure. Perhaps surprisingly, the results show that households do not benefit (in terms of higher consumption growth) from receiving remittances, but rather from having migrants abroad. This suggests that not only money are remitted from abroad, but also something more subtle, which could be business ideas, belief systems, aspirations, patterns of social interaction, and other intangibles, which have been dubbed social remittances.Migration, Remittances, Social Remittances, Nicaragua, Bivariate Selection Correction

Financing of local government with special reference to vertical and horizontal revenue sharing

Regional Conference on Local Self Governance People's Participation and Development : Preconditions for Peace and Stability, Kampala, Uganda 30 August - 4 September 1993."Decentralization" is a label that is put on many bottles. '"Decentralization" may mean everything from "deconcentration", where the Central Government exerts its powers through satellites scattered around in the country; via "delegation” where the Central Government keeps control, but temporarily lends its power to subordinate units; to genuine "devolution", where the local governments have Powers to make their own binding decisions which cannot be reversed by any superior authority as long as they are consistent with the law, and where they have financial means of their own that cannot be taken away from them

The Impact of Aid on Recipient Behavior: A Micro-Level Dynamic Analysis of Remittances, Schooling, Work, Consumption, Investment and Social Mobility in Nicaragua

Remittances are a very important source of income for many Nicaraguan families. More than 40% of all households receive remittances that on average amount to 12-15% of total household income in these households. More than 30% of these households receive remittances at least monthly, implying that it is a relatively stable source of income. This paper shows that remittances do tend to reduce the vulnerability of households and increase their upward social mobility, at least as long as the households do not depend too heavily on remittances. However, remittances also cause moral hazard problems. Nicaraguans tend to reduce their labor supply in response to more remittances, and they also tend to reduce their savings rates, both of which are detrimental to long run economic growth.Remittances, aid, Nicaragua

How to Analyse Comprehension in Print Advertising: Advertising Effect from a Peircean Perspective

The present article shows how the composition of an advertisement influences the creation of comprehension in the receiving process. It is suggested that composition is a varying structure of inference fields, and on this foundation, it is emphasised how composition is underrated in consumer research and in its classical modelling of the cognitive effect of advertising, especially comprehension as an effect, and as a contributing factor in the ongoing mental assimilation of the message in general. That composition is an important factor in an advertisement’s cognitive construction of the message is demonstrated via a so-called reduction analysis, that is, an operation in the ad’s composition; its inference fields. This reduction analysis is meant as a preliminary method to establish hypotheses concerning how the composition supports different kinds of comprehension, and to be able to further test such hypotheses experimentally

Kampagne, komposition, konsolidering: En analyse af den kognitive udvikling i Silk Cut

 I det følgende skal der sættes fokus på ’Silk Cut’ kampagnen, som udfoldede sig fra 1983–1997. Ærindet er, for det første, at vise, hvordan kampagnens opbygning af forståelse hviler på et samspil mellem (erindrings)skemaer, som skaber kontinuitet i og imellem kampagnens ellers adskilte udtryk. For det andet, at vise, hvordan disse skemaer og den ledsagende kontinuitet i forståelsen med kampagnen er bundet op på en særlig ’æstetisk’ struktur – nemlig rebusstrukturen. For det tredje, at vise, hvordan denne struktur har karakter af gåde, og igangsætter en proces med problemløsnings karakter, som på sin side vil påvirke kontinuiteten i kampagnens opbygning af forståelse. Endelig, for det fjerde, er ærindet at spørge til kampagnens opbygning af forståelse fra et eksplicit semiotisk perspektiv for på den baggrund at vise, hvordan kampagnens effekt kan skyldes, at dens opbygning mimer nogle formelle strukturer i forståelsen

How to Analyse Comprehension in Print Advertising: Advertising Effect from a Peircean Perspective

The present article shows how the composition of an advertisement influences the creation of comprehension in the receiving process. It is suggested that composition is a varying structure of inference fields, and on this foundation, it is emphasised how composition is underrated in consumer research and in its classical modelling of the cognitive effect of advertising, especially comprehension as an effect, and as a contributing factor in the ongoing mental assimilation of the message in general. That composition is an important factor in an advertisement’s cognitive construction of the message is demonstrated via a so-called reduction analysis, that is, an operation in the ad’s composition; its inference fields. This reduction analysis is meant as a preliminary method to establish hypotheses concerning how the composition supports different kinds of comprehension, and to be able to further test such hypotheses experimentally

Kampagne, komposition, konsolidering: En analyse af den kognitive udvikling i Silk Cut

 I det følgende skal der sættes fokus på ’Silk Cut’ kampagnen, som udfoldede sig fra 1983–1997. Ærindet er, for det første, at vise, hvordan kampagnens opbygning af forståelse hviler på et samspil mellem (erindrings)skemaer, som skaber kontinuitet i og imellem kampagnens ellers adskilte udtryk. For det andet, at vise, hvordan disse skemaer og den ledsagende kontinuitet i forståelsen med kampagnen er bundet op på en særlig ’æstetisk’ struktur – nemlig rebusstrukturen. For det tredje, at vise, hvordan denne struktur har karakter af gåde, og igangsætter en proces med problemløsnings karakter, som på sin side vil påvirke kontinuiteten i kampagnens opbygning af forståelse. Endelig, for det fjerde, er ærindet at spørge til kampagnens opbygning af forståelse fra et eksplicit semiotisk perspektiv for på den baggrund at vise, hvordan kampagnens effekt kan skyldes, at dens opbygning mimer nogle formelle strukturer i forståelsen

Pupils’ Conception of Organic Foods and Healthy Eating in School. Qualitative insights from focus group interviews with 5th and 7th grade pupils in a Copenhagen elementary school

Adult habits, including unhealthy eating patterns, are largely established during a person´s childhood and early youth. In this connection, public schools are important health promoting platforms due to their potential for encouraging interest, knowledge and learning about health related issues. The main aim of the study was to shed light on primary and lower secondary school pupils´ everyday experience with food, nutrition, ecology and health in connection to public organic school food, using the municipality of Copenhagen as a case. We have examined how a procurement and provision strategy that primarily originates from “backstage agents” such as engaged politicians and civil servants and governed by administrative priorities, is perceived among agents at the front stage arena - the school. Furthermore we have investigated to which degree the pupils experience a connection between the “organicness” of the food program and the underlying organic supply chain principles, and to which degree the pupils experience a connection between the “organicness” of the food program and classroom initiatives in subjects related to ecology and health. In February 2008, we approached a public school which proved willing to participate in our study. Subsequently, over a period of four weeks, we designed an interview guide used to conduct focus group interviews with pupils from grades 5 and 7, which were then transcribed. In general, pupils were very interested in ecology as a subject. However it seems that they do not see a very strong connection between the healthy, organic meals offered at school and class room activities related to health and ecology. The pupils did not feel that they had been involved in the decision to establish organic and healthy food procurement. As a result they held that they did not feel very committed or engaged in the school provision initiative, and the organic and healthy food procurement was not highly sought after on the part of the pupils. This appears to justify a distinction between the perspective that front stage actors have, including pupils, and the perspective of politicians and planners that operate back stage. The distance between these two stages, which tends to increase in large scale municipal school food systems, is an important challenge to address when planning school food interventions. There seems to be a potential for linking organic school food service more closely with curricular activities, and for linking issues of healthier eating and organic food supply. There is also a need for greater involvement of the pupils and other front stage actors when the food service system and food related curricular activities are planned