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This paper analyses the quality of employment in the major cities of Colombia in 2009. The results show that, although the quality of employment has improved since 2001, it still continues to be below the necessary level of quality employment. It also demonstrates the endogenous nature of education and proposes a correcting procedure for obtaining consistent and efficient estimators of employment quality. In differentiating between salaried and self-employed workers, the results reveal that if an individual is self-employed, an increase in the number of years of education does not contribute to improving the quality of employment. This effect only occurs in the case of salaried workers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The concept of equilibrium has become the centerpiece of modern economic analysis. Moreover, it has provided the impetus behind the expansion of economic theory into areas of the social sciences that used to be regarded as remote. The current paper aims at explaining the changes in economic science that have brought about this process, while at the same time ofering a cursory discussion of the foundations of the concept of equilibrium, its strengths, the methodological challenges it presents, especially as regards the case of "multiple equilibria", and a sketch of alternatives that could tackle said challenges. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Comparative constitutional law scholarship has not realized that differences in the configuration of political institutions should bear upon the way courts do their jobs. This paper develops a comparative theory of judicial role that focuses on broad differences in political context, and particularly in party systems, across countries. I use a case study of the Colombian Constitutional Court (supplemented by briefer studies of the Hungarian and South African Constitutional Courts) to demonstrate how differences in political institutions should impact judicial role. Because Colombian parties are unstable and poorly tied to civil society, the Colombian Congress has difficulty initiating policy, monitoring the enforcement of policy, and checking presidential power. The Court has responded by taking many of these functions into its own hands. I argue that the Court's actions are sensible given Colombia's institutional context, even though existing theories of judicial role would find this kind of legislative-substitution inappropriate. Existing theory's focus on the anti-democratic nature of judicial action assumes a robust constitutional culture outside the courts and a legislature which does a decent job representing popular will -- both assumptions tend to be false in newer democracies. Thus, comparative public law scholars must be attentive to political context in order to build tools suitable for evaluating the work of courts around the world. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Polarization seems to be a more accurate concept for the explanation of the emergence of social conflicts than that of inequality. This paper succinctly presents both concepts and summarizes the theory and index of economic polarization developed by Esteban and Ray within its identification-alienation framework and some of its extensions such as the group and explained polarization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Revista de Economía Institucional is the property of Universidad Externado de Colombia and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This paper analyzes the management of surges in capital inflows to Emerging Markets. It reviews the main policy tools, including fiscal and monetary policy, exchange rate policy, foreign exchange market intervention, domestic prudential regulation, and capital controls. A key conclusion is that, if the economy is operating near potential, if the level of reserves is adequate, if the exchange rate is not undervalued, and if the lows are likely to be transitory, then use of capital controls --in addition to both prudential and macroeconomic policy-- is justified as part of the policy toolkit to manage inflows. Evidence from the current crisis suggests that controls aimed at achieving a less risky external liability structure reduced financial fragilities and increased growth resilience. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper seeks to understand from a regional perspective the causes of the civil war of 1876-1877 in the Northeastern Colombian Andes. An approximation is made to the urban hierarchy in the current Colombian departments of Santander and Norte de Santander between 1853 and 1875. The conditions leading to conflict and the change in that hierarchy are presented. In addition, intervening players and the location of the events of the war are identified. It concludes that the group that fell in urban hierarchy was the one that started the war and that this hierarchical change was one of the causes of the war. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper we analyze the impact on the value of future investments that would derive from the privatization of a state-owned road concessionaire, taking into account the ability of the government to handle the asymmetry of information vis à vis the concessionaire. A model based on auction theory is developed in order to quantify the expected impact on government from the privatization of the concessionaire assuming the concession contract is not modified. We conclude that if the government decides to privatize the concessionaire, significant changes are required in the concession contract, especially in the absence of institutional transformations that would improve the government supervisory and control capability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The assumption of rationality is central in current economic theory. This hypothesis is the pillar for the creation of the homo economicus of conventional theory. Starting with Adam Smith's approach to rationality, the aim of this paper is to contribute to the discussion of the main characteristics of the individual underlying the rational man of economics and their implications for economic analysis. The meaning of rationality according to several authors is reexamined and it is argued that the basis of Adam Smith's work is still valid. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper studies the duration of unemployment in Colombia as an indicator of the effectivity of search methods. This work is based on the Continuing Survey of Households (ECH), carried out in Colombia in the second quarter of 2006. Parametric (Weibull proportional risk) and nonparametric (Kaplan-Meier) duration models are estimated. The findings suggest that the duration of unemployment is strongly influenced by the search methods used by employees and the unemployed. Formal methods are the most effective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article studies the disentailment of mortmain in Colombia. Most of this land was held by the Catholic Church, which derived considerable economic and political power from its ownership. The Radical faction of the Liberal Party, which governed the country between 1863 and 1876, promoted numerous reforms directed at eliminating the institutions that had survived the years of Spanish colonial rule and were an obstacle to the advance of the economy. A substantial portion of all the properties of the Church were thus expropriated. this process was culminated with the signing of a treaty --"Concordato"-- between the Colombian government and Holy See. The treaty recognized in favor of the Church "the value of disentailed loans and property". Colombian historiography has given little attention to the process of disentailment, as a result of the influence of Conservative historiography, which portrayed it as a failure. This mistaken appreciation can only be corrected through research in primary sources. In this paper we have used primary sources that had not been discussed in the most influential works on Colombian economic history of the 19th century and conclude that it was the main economic reform of that period, since it represented at least 16% of the GDP of 1860 and was a very profitable operation for the government. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this work is to contribute to a critical analysis of what has been called 21st century socialism. Socialist regimes of the 20th century distorted the theoretical Marxian economic model partly because of the impossibility of socialist economic calculation. Allin Cottrell and Paul Cockshott argue that in 21st century socialism, supported by several political parties, social movements and some Latin-American governments, the impossibility of economic calculation can be overcome by the use of computers and the Internet. In this paper we offer criticism of economic and political aspects of Cottrell and Cockshott's theoretical design. Our discussion of the economic aspects is inspired by market socialism, while our discussion of political aspects draws on debates surrounding political or egalitarian liberalism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

El artículo trata las implicaciones de adoptar la dolarización financiera en Colombia. Define la dolarización financiera como la adopción oficial de una moneda extranjera para efectuar transacciones financieras. Analiza el impacto de la dolarización financiera en varios países latinoamericanos en base a evidencia empírica.

This article explains two enigmas related to the scientific career of Thomas C. Schelling, Nobel Prize in Economics 2005: How to explain his capacity to always produce new ideas? Why have his multiple pioneer ideas had more impact on other social sciences and not on economics? The paper proposes three hypotheses: the minor impact of the acquired knowledge of his theoretical work, a heuristic that always privileged the relationship between unpublished facts and unusual angles, and the creation of a spontaneous knowledge network that covered different disciplines dedicated to social interaction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

El artículo presenta una bibliografía de artículos sobre la economía institucional e incluye "La efectividad en términos de desarrollo de las instituciones multilaterales bajo restricciones de acción colectiva," escrito por Eduardo Wiesner Durán, "Colombia en las dos fases de globalización," escrito por Salomón Kalmanovitz, y "Globalización del capital y desarrollo institucional del sistema financiero," escrito por Edgar Demetrio Tovar García.

El artículo analiza la regulación de tarifas en el sector de la salud en Colombia. Según el autor, el objetivo de la regulación es "evitar una guerra de precios" que pueda comprometer la calidad de servicios. Se discuten los antecedentes de la regulación de tarifas. El artículo sigue con un análisis de la regulación, enfocando en cómo evitar pérdidas al sector hospitalario, y concluye que depende de la capacidad del gobierno para vigilar su aplicación.

An important challenge in monetary economics is the development of an endogenous theory of money, which introduces money in a natural way and not as an external imposition. This paper reviews different approaches that have been used in monetary economic literature, and argues that overlapping generation models and search models are the best choices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyzes the accumulation pattern of Spanish capitalism during the last half a century, based on the evolution of the capital return and the behavior of its main determinants: distribution and technical change. First, it explains the accumulation logic of the theory of work-value and argues that the so-called "law of the falling tendency of the rate of profit" (Ltdtg) provides a suitable frame to explain the movements of the capitalist development in the long term. It then shows how this dynamic has materialized in the development of world accumulation since the end of the second world war, and concludes that the evolution of the Spanish capitalism in this period follows the same world pattern, emphasizing its main singularities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cardoso is among the most famous thinkers on development and dependency theory. He successfully combines sociology, economics and political science to build an interdisciplinary view of Latin America's transformations. This paper analyses Cardoso's "radical" theoretical evolution between two major books, Dependency and Development in Latin America (1970) and Charting a New Course: The Politics of Globalization and Social Transformation (2001). The positions he occupied when he wrote these two books, academician-political opponent and then politician, could explain his evolution. Cardoso claims that new political and economic conditions have taken place and a new theory is thus required in order to "chart a new course". [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Revista de Economía Institucional is the property of Universidad Externado de Colombia and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This paper evaluates how economic theory deals with analyses of current real estate dynamics and urban residential structure. It shows the fundamental axioms of neoclassical spatial synthesis and their explanations in terms of equilibrium, and highlights ambiguous and unsatisfactory, but elegant, solutions to urban spatial economic structure and dynamics. It presents the critical heterodox approach to the fundamental axioms and the hypothesis of spatial equilibrium, and shows the main aspects of the central heterodox contribution to residential real estate dynamics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper shows the links between Hume's philosophy of customs and the basic principles of institutional theory. This relationship has been suggested by contemporary economists such as Vernon Smith and others, who see in Hume the origins of today's broadly accepted dichotomy between constructive and ecological reasoning, essential to institutional thinking. For Hume habit, as the main guide of life, can be used to comprehend individual and collective behavioural patterns. The question is whether his reflections on the subject are consistent with the foundations of his own philosophy of belief. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper evaluates how third level of attention hospitals in Bogotá choose between different contractual arrangements with health maintenance organizations (HMO), using criteria which seek to reduce transaction costs. Williamson's theoretical framework is used as a basis for an empirical test. Likert scales are used to operationalize the independent variables and the stochastic multicriteria acceptability analysis (SMAA) and multiple discriminant analysis (MDA) for the test of the hypothesis. Results indicate that both HMO's and third level of attention hospitals in Bogotá seek to reduce production rather than transactions costs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chronic renal insufficiency is one of the highest cost pathologies of greater financial impact for the general system of social security health care in Colombia. High-cost case concentration in some health entities made it necessary to distribute resources and patients to other entities in order to counteract the financial unbalance. This paper proposes that demand induction is the principal failure in this case. It presents some hypotheses regarding incentives facing firms in an oligopolic market and argues for the necessity of regulatory intervention in prices and quality and, especially, prevention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a group of argument models with the purpose of highlighting which debate characteristics should be kept in mind when analyzing written texts or oral speeches in different activities of daily life. It describes the importance of controversies in conceptual change and epistemology illustrated with a typical case of the debate on the challenges of free trade. The authors elaborate an interpretation of the explanation/understanding dualism in the social sciences through argumentation models and controversies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In Mexico, wages have stagnated and profits have increased since 1980. This paper analyzes the causes of this performance both at an aggregate and sectorial level. Although in theory trade liberalization should have led to increased wages and a reduction of profits, an unlimited supply of labor prevented wages from increasing and transformed productivity gains in higher returns on capital. Growth of qualified employment was not the result of generalized technological advances; it reflected changes in the composition of labor supply. Higher investment in human capital does not necessarily lead to higher productivity or income. If the improvement in education of the labor force is to generate higher productivity, a public policy of stimulus for economic growth is required. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Revista de Economía Institucional is the property of Universidad Externado de Colombia and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Revista de Economía Institucional is the property of Universidad Externado de Colombia and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Revista de Economía Institucional is the property of Universidad Externado de Colombia and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This second paper from Mauricio Avella describes the complete cycle of capital exports originating in the United States in the 1920's: the conversion of United States into a creditor nation; the role of New York as the dominant financial center; and the distribution of United States investments, particularly in South America. Moreover, it examines the availability of these exports to Colombia, and the consequences from collapsing of external credit granted by the United States. Finally, it reviews the balance of the main international creditors when the export cycle of American capital closed in the 1920's. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article shows the report presented by the Commission on Graduate Education in Economics in 1991 to the American Economic Association, it focuses on the extent to which graduate education in economic may have become too isolated from real economic problems. The report analyzes the first year core program and then fields, and it questions about the excessive emphasis given to mathematical technique versus economic substance. Thereafter the paper describes some perceived deficiencies of coursework as a whole: a lack of creativity on the part of students, and a lack of communication skills. Next, it examines the long process of selecting a dissertation, and shows advantages and disadvantages of mix of graduate schools. Finally, the report concludes with recommendations to solve the problems described. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this essay, Gonzalo Cataño examines the ideas on the State defended by the notable thinker and Colombian socialist leader: Gerardo Molina. The article presents a brief biography, followed by a study of his ideas concerning the functions of the State. Although a critical tone predominates all way through the article, it must be remembered that the limitations of an intelligent analyst of the public subjects are always more instructive than the correct considerations of a trivial expositor of the policy. The paper defines Provident State -- also known as Welfare State or Supportive State-- as a State that guarantees minimum standards of income, health, food, housing, education and labor, as political rights, not charity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article analyzes the non compliance of the law in Latin America, particularly in Colombia. The core of the paper is the contrast between two different approaches: the strategic vision which argues that this failure is a consequence of the lack of institutional capacity to impose effective penalties; and the rebellion vision, which explains the failure as an expression of values or ideologies. The article examines the doctrinal roots related with the strategic vision --the social capital theories, studies in Law and economics and the new institutionalism-- their reception in our environment and their application in the context of the judicial reform. This critical examination highlights the analytical differences between these two visions and their implications in the justice system and the social law: even though both visions are partial, each one of them is partly true. Compliance of law can not be achieved only by imposing sanctions and incentives, or by promoting a unilateral favorable attitude for compliance of the law. Rational behavior must also be complemented by the perception of the legitimacy of the institutions. Market and the democracy are both equally essential for the existence of a Rule of law. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the presence of positive transaction costs, institutions and the architecture of organizations take on fundamental importance. This paper measures costs of opening firms in the Brazilian garment industry. The measure of costs to start up a new business in the garment industry in Brazil shows a large variation between regions in the same city and between different areas of the country. Nine different procedures were found along with a time span of 64 days and an average cost of 11,3% of the GDP per capita. Also 39% of the firms declared that they operated informally for some time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recently a new approach to political economy has been consolidated. The political analysis of transaction costs is an attempt to solve some of the problems which arise in economic theories of public policy. This paper deals with the notions of transaction costs, institutional efficiency, governance structures and commitment value; and defines political interchange as political contracts. Political transactions have high transaction costs and the efficiency of the "political market" requires a democratic system with institutions that favour reasoned decisions and prevents democratic delegation from becoming abdication. This article surveys literature with a transaction cost perspective and shows that it has been very useful for the theoretical explanation of the role of political agents and the evolution of rules that guide their interaction. The main challenge is to provide empirical evidence to the theoretical proposals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this paper is to present the main differences between New Institutional Economics, NIE, and Original Institutional Economics, OIE, and to question some of the proposals that call for the gap between the two approaches to be bridge. This does not preclude the possibilities of a dialogue. Without ignoring some important theoretical developments in North's work, the author claims that NIE is a school that operates in the periphery of the neoclassical economics paradigm, and shares its ontological and methodological foundations; however these are very different from the evolutionary (Darwinian) economics of Thorstein Veblen. Though the task of integrating the OIE and NIE seems impossible following the road of eclecticism, a dialogue between them could open new perspectives and enrich institutional economics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Space, geography and territorial organization have gained importance in recent studies on economical and political development. This reveals a (re)territorialization of the theoretical approaches of development. This paper systematically studies new theories of economic growth, analysis of State transformation, neoinstitutionalist approaches and the environmental perspective. Though these theories come from different disciplines, they converge in a new paradigm of development. In this new approach, the territory is not considered a receptacle-perimeter of productive activities and sociopolitical process, but as an explanatory element of development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the main problems of the theory of games as a tool of economic analysis. It also points out the new perspectives of the solution concepts including their context and finally it presents some comments regarding the future of the field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this paper, which is part of a broader research project, is to analyse the fluctuations of output in a framework of imperfect competition based on the stylised facts. We conclude that these movements can be originated by supply or demand shocks, or simply by the adjustment of the economy when goods or labor markets are not balanced because of price and wages rigidities. On the other hand, it justifies the Keynesian argument related to government interference in cases where the economy cannot overcome a recessive stage on its own. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The idea that credit is important has gained importance in the contemporary macroeconomic theory. However, almost all the models that explicitly include financial variables in their explanation of economic behaviour continue to differentiate between the monetary and the real economy in the long run. This paper proposes a relationship between credit restrictions and financial crisis based on postkeynesian theory. In this context, credit rationalization appears as a natural phenomenon in modern capitalist economies, and not as a result of the bankers' voluntary action will or their imperfect information due to the confidentiality of investors' knowledge. Financial crisis are endogenous, but they can be prevented by the correct behaviour of the economic institutions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper shows how some of the most important concepts of the New Institutional Economics (NIE) can be expressed in terms of Implementation Theory (IT). First, it explains some of the expressions used by the NIE, such as institutions, transaction costs, property rights and methodological individualism. Afterwards, it gives a wide definition of the IT in order to establish correspondences between both theories. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There has recently been a resurgence of interest in how institutions affect economic performance. A review of this literature reveals that the concept of an 'institution' means different things to different scholars, both within economics and across the social sciences. This paper discusses what factors unify the different definitions of institutions, and develops a concept of institutions useful for the analysis of economic performance, and economic growth in particular. Specifically, it develops the notion of institutions as standard 'social technologies'. Economic growth results from the co-evolution of physical and social technologies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper criticizes multicausal and penal impunity explanations of violence and crime. It shows the analytical limits of identifying state and social institutional failure with objective causes of violence. But also highlights that impunity indicators cannot be confused with impunity itself. After showing those limits, it proposes an alternative approach based on two central facts that have been ignored: organized crime nature and the breakdown of colombian justice and security systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper shows the relevance of Popper's Rationality Principle (RP) for the appraisal of the impressive mass work emerging, in recent years, in the fields of rationality, learning, evolutionary games and behavioral economic theory. In contradistinction to the well-known rigid criteria of the falsacionist Popper, the RP covers a large and diverse spectrum of behaviors compatible with the minimal idea of 'acting in accordance with the situation'. Its relevance to understand the formation of social conventions or how agents learn 'to play Nash equilibrium' is argued at length here. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper summarizes theoretical models and empirical evidence concerning the political economy of public finances. It emphasizes political and institutional issues that influence different levels of public debt and fiscal deficits in countries and subnational entities with similar economic performance, and describes fiscal contract relationships between governors and voters using principal-agent theory. It then applies methods of experimental economics and game theory to evaluate how these relationships contribute to debt accumulation and fiscal unbalances, in a laboratory experiment in which participants act as agents (governors) and then as principals (voters). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Under what circumstances is it necessary or convenient for an agent to rely on habits and rules? This paper focuses on the types of decision situation giving rise to their use. Even optimisation requires the development of rules, and for this reason mainstream economics cannot legitimately ignore these questions. It argues that habits and rules are ubiquitous in human activity, presents a new taxonomy and analyses seven types of decision situations classified according to the type of information problem involved. Neither neoclassical nor behavioural economics can provide a complete account of the bases of habits or rules in these cases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper contributes to the debate regarding national government debt. It asks if government should excise public debt through inflation or pay it as it was stipulated, and argues that, from an economic and social point of view, what is desirable is the just fulfillment of State obligations. First section describes the evolution of national government finances over the last ten years. Second section shows different simulations to analyze the determinants of interest payments. Final section examines proposals that seek to reduce public debt though monetary emission and discusses some of its possible consequences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This essay analyzes liberal explanations of social order. Throughout exposition, Ovejero suggests the convenience of reviewing two central insights of liberalism, related with the way that the "problem" of social order is stated and its "solution" through the market. The "problem" is based on the unsustainable idea of presocial individuals inherent to liberalism. The article develops some arguments that shows why it has no sense to ask for the foundation of social order in that way. It supports that sociability can not be chosen, as the language can no be chosen either, in other words sociability can not be explained as a result of exchange or bargaining among individuals. The paper analyzes too the alternatives to explain the existence of social cement: passions, in terms of emotions and instincts, as the central basis that explains the way in which personal interests and the market would guarantee the social order. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper parts from the work developed by Sen about metaorders and metapreferences to explain illegality as a rational problem. After showing the scope of this categories, the author exposes some limits of the benefit cost analysis of illegality. He continues suggesting that the concept of metapreferences contributes to understanding the fuzzy space that exists between legal and illegal frontiers, and between legitimacy and illegitimacy. González point out the necessity of a more detailed analysis of the way in which beliefs and desires shape individual and social preferences, if we don't want to fall in simplistic explanations of illegality based on an arbitrary criteria of the good. He concludes too that the inconsistency of metapreferences can explain why more expenditures in security and justice don't result in a reduction of impunity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper provides a comparison between Adam Smith and David Ricardo's treatments of poverty in a capitalist society. The comparison focus on the different arguments they use to relate poverty to inequality and institutional realities. The discussion points out the life experiences of each author and their intellectual interests, taking into account that poverty was one of the most pressing social problems faced by England between the 18th and 19th century. Smith associates poverty with the stability of social order; while Ricardo postulates that poverty is a function of the distributive struggle and the forces of population growth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]