Search

This paper examines the national saving behaviour in the process of economic growth through a comparative analysis of countries in developing Asia from a historical perspective. Developing Asia provides an ideal laboratory for the study with considerable differences in the saving behaviour among countries and over time within individual countries, notwithstanding the 'model saver' image of the region that is based mainly on the experience of high-performing East Asian economies. The empirical analysis distinguishes between private and government saving rates, with specific emphasis on the former. The results of the empirical analysis are consistent with the view of a 'virtuous circle' between growth and saving, with growth initiating the saving transition. No evidence to suggest that a prior phase of promoting saving through specific policy initiatives is needed to initiate the process of growth and structural transformation. The private saving rate is also associated positively with export orientation of the economy, and net foreign capital inflows and negatively with the young dependency ratio of the population and domestic credit availability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the cause-and-effect relationship between the elderly population and global economic growth, focusing on different continents. A panel dataset spanning from 1961 to 2020 is utilized, with Gross Domestic Product (GDP) serving as the key measure for economic growth, represented as the percentage change in annual GDP. The study specifically centers on individuals aged 65 and above as a percentage of the total population. The analysis employs a Panel Granger causality test to assess the impact of the elderly population on economic growth. The results reveal a unidirectional Granger causality for Africa and Oceania, suggesting a one-way influence from the elderly population to economic growth. Conversely, instances of bidirectional Granger causality are identified for Asia, Europe, North America, and South America, indicating a mutual influence between the elderly population and economic growth during the study period. The study concludes that an endogenous relationship between economic growth and the elderly population emerges, but notably, this relationship becomes apparent only after an economy has completed its transition in economic development. This implies that the dynamics of the elderly population and economic growth are interlinked, with the nature of their interaction becoming more pronounced in the later stages of economic development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study explores the complex interplay between corruption, economic growth, and logistics performance in EU nations, utilizing a mixed-method approach and data from pre- and post-pandemic periods. Applying the Resource-Based View (RBV) and Qualitative Comparative Analysis (QCA), it identifies critical conditions impacting GDP growth, highlighting the intertwined roles of pre-pandemic logistics and corruption perceptions. The findings, relevant for policymakers, underscore the importance of robust governance in navigating economic challenges. This novel approach combines RBV and QCA, offering insights into the dynamics of financial and logistical landscapes during global upheavals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Extant scholarly discourse on ecological governance within China predominantly underscores the salient role of the central state. This is unsurprising given the statist policy trajectory transitioned from an emphasis on swift economic growth to focusing on emerging ecological challenges in the last decade. However, this article deviates from this prevailing emphasis, pivoting instead to the tangible practices and realities of ecological governance at the grassroots level. Through an ethnographic investigation, this article delves into the nuances of ecological governance within the Tibetan regions of Qinghai Province, China, emphasising the interplay between local communities, environmental non‐governmental organisations and the local state. The article introduces the concept of 'pluralistic ecological governance', advocating for the integration of diverse governance structures, institutional frameworks and stakeholder involvements. This approach encompasses a thorough consideration of diverse knowledge systems, motivations of community participation and local‐state relations, vital for addressing the complex nature of ecological issues. The study contends that 'pluralistic ecological governance' not only encompasses different stakeholders but also critically examines various forms of knowledge and motivations, along with the diverse interests these stakeholders contribute to both the discourse and practice of ecological conservation on the ground. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Within a wider framework of institutional factors of economic growth and the relationship between population growth and GDP growth, this article focuses on the population growth and GDP growth per capita for 30 countries in Africa between 1960 and 2020. We provide a comparative analysis of approaches to methodology and results obtained in the impact of population growth on GDP/pc growth discourse. By performing the Bootstrapped Panel-Granger Causality test, the estimation results show that half of the countries showed no causality and other half of countries showed different levels of significant causality. The most seen causality is the unidirectional causality from GDP growth per capita to population growth. In addition, unidirectional causality is observed from population growth to GDP growth per capita and bidirectional causality. Overall, the results add more evidence into the research of endogenous population growth theory, which implies that there is country-specific environment which determines the causality between these two variables. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Transformations in Business & Economics is the property of Vilnius University 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 study examines the effect of traditional and digital financial inclusion on economic growth in 130 developed and developing countries in 2014 and 2017. The motivation behind this study emerges from the critical need to discern not only how traditional and digital financial inclusion individually influence economic growth, but also to compare their relative contributions. In addition, there exists a potential non-linear relationship between traditional and digital financial inclusion, wherein both forms of financial inclusion can exert a positive influence on economic growth up to a specific threshold. For this purpose, traditional and digital financial inclusion indices were developed as distinct measures to investigate the relative contribution of each to economic growth. Cross-sectional sample splitting and threshold estimation were utilised to analyse whether the effects of each financial inclusion index on economic growth varied across different levels of digital and traditional financial inclusion. This study yielded two notable findings. First, the effect of traditional financial inclusion on economic growth is pronounced in countries with low levels of inclusion. Second, digital financial inclusion has a greater positive impact on economic growth in countries with higher levels of digital financial inclusion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Revista de Ciencias Sociales (13159518) is the property of Revista de Ciencias Sociales de la Universidad del Zulia Venezuela 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 Spanish Journal of Comparative Education / Revista Española de Educación Comparada is the property of Editorial UNED 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.)

Despite the dearth of research on innovation, the key determinants of innovation performance still need to be clarified. Besides, a comparative analysis of the determinants of innovation performance across countries at different income levels has yet to be found. This study, therefore, aims to bridge this research gap by considering the innovation performance of 63 countries. Participating countries were purposefully selected from the Global Innovation Index (GII) dataset. Multistage and multimodal analyses were conducted, including multiple linear regressions, hierarchical regression, and ANOVA, to examine the variation in innovation performance and pinpoint critical determinants in each category of countries. The result reveals that human capital, research, infrastructure, and business sophistication are the key pillars determining countries' innovation performance. In a variable-level analysis, innovation linkage and knowledge absorption (both of business sophistication), research and development (R&D), and infrastructure (inculcating both physical and digital) are the best predicting variables. The shortage of human capital to promote R&D is the biggest bottleneck hampering innovation in the lower-middle-income category. Also, both human capital for R&D activities and innovation linkage equally affect the upper-middle-income, and the latter one, innovation linkage, remains the main challenge even for the high-income category. The study implies that innovation performance predicts a country's economic growth. The level of innovation performance and the determinants of innovation vary per the countries' income levels. Accordingly, countries and firms in various income categories should prioritize tackling their respective bottlenecks hindering innovation performance in their policy directions. The study claims to have extended the horizon of understanding determinants of innovation across countries and revealed the most crucial factors in each category of countries. Further empirical comparative research can be done by incorporating an informal institution, national culture, as an additional determinant and specifying sectors across income categories. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Most developing and developed countries, today are faced with a lot of economic, social, and political challenges as a result of internal or external factors such as the World Financial Crisis and Covid19. In these circumstances, the crucial objective of any government is to improve the national economic performance by increasing domestics and foreign investments. Investments efficiency is the main pillar in the increase of the economic growth of any economy. This paper aims to measure the efficiency of the investments towards economic growth in the Republic of Croatia and Slovenia by applying a comparative analysis. The specific objective of our paper is to determine the best ICOR level, the correlation between ICOR and GDP, and the impact on the economic growth of both countries. The research methodology will include the analysis of the efficiency of the investment measured by the indicators Incremental Capital-Output Ratio (ICOR) based on the World Bank approach. The period of observation includes the period from the year 1995 to 2020. The investment efficiency (ICOR) in both countries is expected to move between 1 and 6. The findings of this research are that each one-point decrease of the ICOR level of Croatia increases the economic growth by 1.961 percent, while the ICOR level of Slovenia increases less the Economic growth by 0.259 percent. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The term internationalization has been mainly used to show the expansion of economic activities of firms outside of their home country where they aim at capturing a bigger market. The Central and Eastern Europe region has gone through a process of market transition over the past few decades, yet the business internationalization process has played an important role in the states' economies. The aim of this paper is to analyze the firm internationalization process in the new member states and the Western Balkans countries and gain a better understanding of the process and its course over time. Due to different geopolitical circumstances, the Western Balkan countries did not attract as many investors as much as the EU member states in CEE did that have had a constant flow of investments once they were members of the EU. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Within the national innovation system literature, the low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) eligible for the World Bank's International Development Association (IDA) support, are rarely part of empirical discourses on growth, development, and innovation. One major issue hindering empirical analyses in LMICs is the lack of complete data availability. This work offers a new full panel dataset with no missing values for IDA-eligible LMICs. I use a standard, widely respected multiple imputation method (specifically, Predictive Mean Matching) developed by Rubin in the 1980s, which conforms to the structure of multivariate continuous panel data at the country level. The incomplete input data consisting of many variables come from publicly available established sources. These variables, in turn, capture six crucial country-level capacities: technological capacity, financial capacity, human capital capacity, infrastructural capacity, public policy capacity, and social capacity. Such capacities are part and parcel of the National Absorptive Capacity Systems (NACS). The dataset (MSK dataset) thus produced contains data on 47 variables for 82 LMICs between 2005 and 2019. The dataset has passed a quality and reliability check and can therefore be used for comparative analyses of national absorptive capacities and development, transition, and convergence among LMICs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We adopt the FMOLS and Granger causality technique to analyse the effect of energy use and carbon emissions on output growth in selected West African economies, which includes Nigeria, Gambia and Ghana, from 1970 to 2019. Findings confirm that energy use enhances growth in the three selected West African economies. But in terms of significance, energy consumption is significant in Nigeria and Gambia at a 1% level of significance while it is insignificant for the Gambia. CO2 emission positively and significantly propels economic growth for the three selected West African economies. For Nigeria, causality evidence shows no direct influence among the variables. For Ghana, we find a bi-causal association between output growth and carbon emissions and a unidirectional causality from pollution to energy consumption. For Gambia, economic growth causes CO2 emissions. We recommend that the West African government reinforce their stand on a sustainable growth path through energy conservation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For a long period institutions were either ignored as a relevant economic growth factor or taken as given in standard economic growth theory. The new institutional theory identifies institutional quality as a fundamental factor for the difference in the level of economic development among the countries. Based on the relevant literature and the available data and empirical analysis, this theory seems to the point. The purpose of the paper is to review the characteristics of institutions and to identify their role in achieving economic growth and development in modern societies and economies. The paper is structured in several parts. The first part reviews the new theories, with the main focus on institutional theories, that are elaborating on the linkages between the quality and efficiency of the institutions and their role in sustaining economic growth, and at the same time, they are highlighting the primary importance of the institutions in achieving economic growth. The second part of the paper elaborates on the transmission mechanisms through which institutions impact economic growth. In the third part, a comparative analysis of the quality, capacity, and (in)/efficiency of the institutions in North Macedonia and selected countries from the Region is given. For the purpose of the paper, available data from relevant international organizations are used, such as the World Bank, and Transparency International, which are suitable for the identification of the quality, efficiency, and capacity of institutions. Based on the available data, qualitative and quantitative analyses are performed by the authors. At the end of the paper, a summary overview of the impact of institutions on sustaining economic growth in а long run, based on the conducted analysis within the paper, is given. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this paper is to analyze the dynamic relationship between economic growth and CO2 emissions for a set of 98 countries over the lengthy period from 1951 to 2014. We describe the topology and hierarchy of countries and introduce a different concept of economic performance based on the idea of dynamic regimes. These regimes are defined by the average levels of per-capita CO2 emissions and the growth rates of per-capita GDP. By presenting a nonparametric clustering technique, the paper identifies two main groups. One cluster can be identified as the group of developed countries, which presents a homogeneous structure and tends toward more similar dynamics over time. The other cluster, associated with developing countries, is homogeneous but the dynamics of the countries do not show convergence. The study also finds some, though little, mobility between the groups. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Historical city centers are important places for cities in terms of their cultural, historical, economic, and social characteristics. Due to the rapid economic growth and excessive population increase experienced in the recent period, most cities have faced an uncontrolled growth. Because of the related pressures, historical city centers have been adversely affected in terms of their physical, functional, economic, and social structure. This study aims to develop spatial strategies to contribute to the solution of the problem mentioned above. It focuses on the spatial configuration of the study area and utilizes the space syntax method and parameters, as well as a comparative analysis of some key indicators. The study presents the results of the spatial strategy developed through the identification of points of special interest (SA), strategic priority areas (SPA), and urban sub-foci (USP). As a result of the analysis and the suggestions developed, it has been revealed that there is a significant increase in the socio-spatial characteristics of both the city area and the historical city center. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although corruption has attracted researchers' attention for more than 30 years, it remains one of the most significant political challenges all countries face. Even though corruption measures have improved, they lack reliability and clarity. Two aspects of corruption are examined in this paper: a) its measurement and b) its effects on the economic performance of 83 developing countries in the period 2012–2018 with AR (1) and FM-OLS data processing techniques. It provides an extensive reference for and critical assessment of different corruption index approaches, focusing on the already known and widespread indicators. Furthermore, it refers to the measures most suited for statistical analyses regarding perceptions and experiences. In addition, the study's empirical results show that corruption hinders the economic growth of those developing countries. Different levels of corruption impact economic growth in different regions; specifically in Latin American countries, corruption impacts positively on economic growth or vice versa; in the other regions, it is negative. Finally, investment, human development, government growth, and institutional quality play essential roles in economic growth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Green development is an effective way to achieve economic growth and social development in a harmonious, sustainable, and efficient manner. Although the Yangtze River Economic Belt (YREB) plays an important strategic role in China, our understanding of its spatiotemporal characteristics, as well as the multiple factors affecting its green development level (GDL), remains limited. This study used the entropy weight method (EWM) to analyze the temporal evolution and spatial differentiation characteristics of the GDL in the YREB from 2011 to 2019. Further, fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA) was used to analyze the influence path of GDL. The results showed that the GDL of the YREB increased from 2015 to 2019, but the overall level was still not high, with high GDL mainly concentrated in the lower reaches. The GDL model changed from being environmentally driven and government supported in 2011 to being environmentally and economically driven since 2014. The core conditions for high GDL changed from economic development level (EDL) to scientific technological innovation level (STIL) and environmental regulation (ER). The path for improving GDL is as follows: In regions with high EDL, effective ER, moderate openness level (OL), and high STIL are the basis, supplemented by a reasonable urbanization scale (US). In areas with low EDL, reasonable industrial structure (IS) and STIL are the core conditions for development; further, EDL should be improved and effective ER and OL implemented. Alternatively, without considering changes to EDL, improvement can be achieved through reasonable OL and US or effective ER. This study provides a new method for exploring the path of GDL and a reference for governments to effectively adjust green development policies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The literature has analysed economic growth issues for nearly 250 years, and formulated theories, indicators and calculations. The same cannot be observed for economic development. This is reflected, among others, by the fact that some publications still use the terms economic growth and development synonymously. In the present study, the authors, after a brief theoretical overview of economic development and path dependency, quantified the economic development of 19 Hungarian counties and the capital city using a complex index, and then examined the changes in the index between 1995 and 2019. The final part of the paper analyses the expected similarities and differences in the development paths up to 2024. The counties have followed different development paths over the last 25 years, a trend that is also reflected over the forecast horizon. The development trajectories of the counties are more sensitive to shocks than the paths of specific GDP output, due to global, macro and local shocks that occur from time to time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The dispute between economic growth and greenhouse gas emissions is one of the major challenges of the twenty-first century. The central issue of the emerging economies revolves around the decoupling of economic growth and the rising carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions. This study examines the decoupling the CO2 emissions from the economic growth through the employment of the Tapio decoupling index and decomposition of CO2 emissions into its pre-determined factors through the Log Mean Divisia Index (LMDI) decomposition technique for Pakistan, India, and China (PIC) for a time span of 1990–2014. The findings of the Tapio elasticity analysis depict that in a few years, environmental impact has been seen to be decoupled from the economic growth in the respective PIC countries. However, relatively Pakistan experienced expensive negative decoupling; India mostly experienced weak decoupling and expensive coupling, while China exhibited weak decoupling in multiple years. In addition, the analysis of Tapio decoupling elasticity showed that energy intensity is the key factor supporting the decoupling in PIC countries, while population, affluence (GDP per capita) and energy structure have weakened the progress of decoupling. Furthermore, the analysis of the LMDI decomposition suggested that population, energy structure and affluence in PIC countries increase the CO2 emissions, while energy intensity reduces CO2 emissions, while mixed effects are reflected by carbon intensity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BELT ROAD INITIATIVE was launched by China in 2013 to connect Asia, Africa, Europe and Russia as a part of geo-political and geo-economic strategy. Now there are two perspectives regarding this project that prevail in the world; one focuses on the shared economic growth whereas the other highlights that China is working for its national interest only. Infrastructure developments for all the participating countries emphasize upon the win-win situation for all whereas debt trap perspective indicated that China is trying to change the global order by introducing new financial institutions. The objectives of this research article is to have a clear knowledge regarding these both perspectives and to offer a study on the basis of which, researchers can plan their future research for Belt Road Initiative. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The objective of the article is the analysis of the relation between social values, economic freedom and economic growth. The first part explores the international empirical literature, the second part presents the main outputs of the statistical analysis. There are two statistical techniques used in the empirical analysis: the correlational analysis and the cross-country time series panel regression. The conclusion is that the poorer countries in the sample with lower scores of economic freedom and achievement motivation have a higher speed of economic growth. There is an indirect impact of the social values on the economic growth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of System Research & Information Technologies / Sistemnì Doslìdžennâ ta Ìnformacìjnì Tehnologìï is the property of Institute for the Applied System Analysis at the NTUU KPI 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 Triple Helix is the property of Brill Academic Publishers 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.)

The purpose of the article is to perform an empirical assessment and comparative analysis of Okun’s Law for Bulgaria, Greece and Russia. Ordinary least squares regressions of time series data (from the first quarter of 2000 to the third quarter of 2019 in Bulgaria and Greece, and from the first quarter of 2003 to the third quarter of 2019 in Russia) are employed to estimate the relationships between unemployment, economic growth and the output gap. The results from the empirical analysis show that while in Bulgaria the phase of the business cycle does not affect the validity and strength of the manifestation of Okun’s Law, in Greece and Russia the link between unemployment and output is cyclically influenced – it is much stronger during contraction than it is during expansion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Comparative Economic Research is the property of Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu Lodzkiego 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 is a comparative analysis of Nigeria and Kenya, the largest economies in West and East Africa respectively, on the basis of the time series properties of their economic activities through the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and growth rate series. It further analyses how differing policy and political economy processes contributed to the two countries' economic growth trajectories despite becoming independent republics at almost the same time. We study the two economies using a long‐memory‐fractionally integrated approach. The results show a high degree of persistence in both cases. When non‐linearities are taken into account, evidence of mean reversion is found in the GDP series in the two countries. This is indicative of how the two countries in very distinct African contexts followed broadly different but, in some ways, similar paths toward economic growth since independence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Economía Coyuntural, Revista de Temas de Coyuntura y Perspectivas is the property of Instituto de Investigaciones Economicas y Sociales Jose Ortiz Mercado (IIES-JOM) 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 attempts to explain why China performed better than India in reducing poverty. As two of the most populous countries in the world, China and India have both experienced fast economic growth and high inequality in the past four decades. Conversely, China adopted a more export-oriented development strategy, resulting in faster industrialization or urbanization and deeper globalization, than India. Consequently, to conduct the comparative study, we first decompose poverty changes into a growth and an inequality components, assessing the relative importance of growth versus distributional changes on poverty in China and India. Then, Chinese data are used to estimate the impacts of industrialization, urbanization and globalization on poverty reduction in rural China. The major conclusion of this comparative study is that developing countries must prioritize employment generation in secondary and tertiary industries through industrialization and globalization in order to absorb surplus agricultural labor, helping reduce poverty in the rural areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Previous studies found inconsistent results for insurance-growth nexus. The aim of this study is to examine the relationships between life and non-life insurance with economic growth. The study applies pooled mean group method to examine long-term and short-term insurance-growth nexus over the period of 1980 to 2015. The findings of the study show that there exists a positive and significant relationship between life insurance and economic growth in the long-term and short-term for all selected countries, except when insurance penetration is used as a proxy. However, a positive and significant relationship was observed for non-life insurance and economic growth for all four proxies in the long-term and short-term. The relationship between insurance and economic growth is found to be different across countries and across proxies because of diverse factors such as diversity and variety of insurance products, religious and cultural traditions, level of education, and State involvement, not covered in this research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The study aims to shed light on cross-country comparisons of brand engagement in self-concept (BESC) among consumers from European countries and to link presumed differences with country-level economic growth and materialism. This study contributes to the literature on the customer–brand relationship and provides implications for international branding strategies. Design/methodology/approach: This observation study explored levels of BESC in three European countries. Questionnaire data were collected from consumers of Austria (N = 302), Italy (N = 431) and Poland (N = 410) with the purpose to make cross-country comparisons of BESC among consumers. Findings: The results provide evidence for partial scalar invariance of the BESC scale. Cross-country comparisons of latent means reveal that Polish consumers score higher on BESC than consumers from Austria and Italy. Moreover, Austrian consumers score higher on BESC than Italian consumers. Research limitations/implications: Culture as a contextual factor of BESC should be studied further. The findings should be replicated with non-convenience samples in additional cultural contexts to improve the generalizability of data. Structural equation modeling could be used to investigate psychological drivers of BESC differences. Practical implications: The findings coming from the cross-country comparisons of BESC are of practical relevance to marketing managers: they should tailor their branding and communication strategies accordingly. Originality/value: So far, the understanding of cross-cultural and cross-country differences in consumer–brand relationships has remained limited. This study adopts a rigorous approach to cross-cultural research enriching the literature on BESC from a cross-country perspective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nuanced explanations of the factors underpinning the mafia's movements across territories have recently been proposed. However, more light must be shed on the mechanisms through which mafiosi try to infiltrate the legal economy in non-traditional territories. Accordingly, this study aims to micro-found interactions and exchanges that mainly involve mafiosi, politicians and economic actors in expansion areas. Focusing on the local level, we will show how the misuse of several administrative tools generates a profitable opportunity structure for mafiosi. To this end, we present an in-depth comparative case study of three events involving the construction industry that took place in Northern Italy. The main findings show that: (i) mafiosi are skilled at smoothing social relations, enlarging and consolidating opaque networks predating their arrival; (ii) they give rise to different types of mutual exchanges and network structures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study is to make a comparative analysis of the effects of capital flight on economic growth in ECCAS, ECOWAS and SADC countries over the 1984-2015 period. The pooled mean groups (PMG) regression results show that the effect of capital flight on economic growth is negative and significant in SADC, unlike ECOWAS and ECCAS, where it is either positive or negative depending on whether or not the interaction between capital flight and private investment is taken into account. The main recommendation is to make the investment climate more attractive and promote the development of technological research, which could help minimize the outflow of capital in the long run. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As China's economy has entered the development stage of a "new normal," the traditional path relying on investment scale expansion for economic growth can no longer sustain. Thus the key of the supply-side structural reform lies in breaking through the long-term path dependence and facilitating the transformation and innovation of socio-economic and urban development. This paper takes Shenzhen as the benchmark of the comparative study, and Guangzhou and Tianjin as the comparative object to analyze the contributions of the demand-side "troika" - investment, consumption, and export, to economic growth from 1986 to 2015. Then, it introduces multiple growth elements on the supply-side to analyze the significant contribution elements in urban economic growth and their contribution degrees. Meanwhile, in combination with the economic development background and the policy guidance since the reform and opening up, the paper analyzes the characteristics of the development paths and their trends of the three cities. In the end, based on the comparative study, it carries out a discussion on the development path for mega-cities and their urban planning strategies at the new era from three perspectives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper provides a comparative analysis of results of estimating specific efficacy that characterizes the amount of gross regional product depending on expenditure on technological innovations, the fixed capital and the average annual number of persons employed. This approach includes comparison of actual data with normative values calculated for three types of models: linear, logarithmic, and power multiplicative. The particular performance indicator is determined as a relation between actual and normative values for the Russian Federation's Central District's regions. The investigation's information base was statistical data on the regions of the RF CFD for 2007-2016. The issues under discussion are differences in results of evaluation obtained in using the first, second and third type models. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Metropolitan has progressively emerged as a new form of urban governance. Understanding the urban expansion process and its determinants at metropolitan level should provide critical references for urban management and planning. Using time-series nighttime stable light data (1993–2012), this paper captures the full continuum of urban expansion process in 30 major metropolitans of China. Greater expansion intensity and faster expansion speed are observed in metropolitans along the eastern coast. Conversely, the metropolitans in northeastern China exhibit lower urban expansion intensity and speed. Potential determinants are selected based on extensive literature review from four categories: economic, social, demographic, and natural. Multivariable linear regression and variances partitioning are employed to identify and compare the determinants of urban expansion and their relative importance across the 30 metropolitans. Results show that urban expansion is not only subjected to different categories of determinants but also influenced by their combinations. More specifically, the identified determinants vary with metropolitans but present some similarities. Economic growth, industrial development, and economic structural transformation are the key economic determinants. Population and labor growth, population urbanization, and population structure act as essential demographic determinants. Primary social determinants include infrastructure construction, energy consumption, and real estate development, while dominant natural determinants are the amount and topology of available land. Cluster analysis is further applied and it generates three major driving forces profiles among the 30 metropolitans, with respect to the relative importance of different categories of determinants and their combinations. The driving force profiles should be useful for managers to set priorities in decision making procedure and develop optimal urban strategies. Our study is believed to advance the understanding of driving mechanism governing urban expansion at metropolitan level and further provide deeper spatial insights for international habitat research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

During the economic expansion from 2001 to 2007, the growth of real personal income in the seven county region of Northwest Indiana and the state of Indiana did not match the national benchmark. In large part, this was due to a more robust growth rate for real net industry earnings, earnings generated by workforce activity, and the growth of real property income. The growth in real transfer payments was roughly similar among the three regions. However, Northwest Indiana and Indiana did roughly share in the national decline in real personal income during the recession of 2007 to 2009. Comparing real personal income levels at the end of the recession in 2009 to levels at the beginning of the expansion, all three regions are better off, with the nation leading. Without transfer payments, however, personal income levels in both Indiana and Northwest Indiana would have been lower in 2009 than in 2001. This paper examines the role of the various components of real personal income in the growth and cyclical swing of income over the economic expansion of 2001 to 2007, and recession of 2008 and 2009 for the three regions. The key role of transfer payments in attenuating the economic downturn in Northwest Indiana and Indiana, relative to the nation is examined. The intent of the analysis is to demonstrate the role of transfer payments as income support in slower-growing regions such as Northwest Indiana and Indiana. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since 1980, China and India have achieved remarkable rates of economic growth and poverty reduction. The emergence of China and India as major forces in the global economy has been one of the most significant economic developments of the past quarter century. This paper examines sources of economic growth in the two countries, comparing and contrasting their experiences over the past 25 years. In this paper, we investigate patterns of economic growth for China and India by constructing growth accounts that uncover the supply-side sources of output change for each economy. Some of the results confirm themes that have emerged from the prior literature on the economic development of the two countries, however, some new findings emerge as well. In addition to decompositions of aggregate growth, we construct separate accounts for the three major economic sectors: agriculture; industry; and services. This level of detail enables us to highlight key differences in the development paths taken by China and India. In conclusion, we assess the prospects for future growth in each country. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper aims to examine the contribution of ICT and education to economic growth concerning the Middle East countries in comparison with the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) economies. The main reason why the most and the least developed countries are compared regarding the measurement of the effects of ICT and education, is to get an insight into whether such effects depend on the levels of development of the country. Herein, a panel dataset is employed consisting of 18 years, from 2000 to 2017, for 10 Middle Eastern and 24 OECD countries, and the OLS fixed-effect and GMM methods are applied. The results show that ICT is positively associated with economic growth in both groups of countries. The effect of internet users is minimal for the Middle East compared to OECD countries where as the impact of mobile subscription is observed to be higher in the Middle East compared to the OECD counterpart. With respect to policy implications, this study recommends that the Middle East governments should invest more in ICT along with other infrastructures, so as to benefit from ICT and to realize significant economic growth. • We examine the contribution of ICT and education to economic growth of Middle East and OECD countries. • We find that ICT has a positive contribution to economic growth in both groups of countries. • We find that the impact of mobile subscription is higher in Middle East compared to the OECD countries. • Policies should to promote invest more in ICT along with other infrastructures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mining of tin and other related activities have been active and thus leading to economic growth in the Jos area of Nigeria for more than a century. However, mining of minerals has been confirmed to enhance the concentrations of heavy metals and natural radioisotopes in the soil, air and water bodies in the environment. In an attempt to evaluate the radiological burdens resulting from tin mining activities at Rayfield-Du area of Jos, specific activities of naturally occurring radioactive nuclei (238U, 232Th and 40K) concentrations were evaluated in soil samples collected from the mine site. The soil samples were classified as normal soil (S), tailings (T) and mineral soils (M) and their corresponding mean activities for 238U, 232Th and 40K were analysed using an HpGe detector-based gamma spectrometric system. The mean activity concentration for 238U, 232Th and 40K were 323.44, 877.63 and 864.99 Bq/kg, 138.84, 469.31 and 578.65 Bq/kg and 168.83, 436.08 and 346.1 Bq/kg, respectively for M, T and S samples. The calculated radiation dose parameters for the soil samples were all higher than the recommended safety limit. For all the collected soil samples, the external hazard risk Hext were 2.21, 2.81 and 4.44 for S, T and M, respectively while the mean calculated radium equivalent was 819, 1057 and 1645 Bq/kg for S, T, and M, respectively. The excess lifetime cancer risk estimated for the mine was more than the world average value. The radio-ecological dose rate estimate for non-human biota in the mine revealed that all non-human species except lichen and bryophyte had absorbed dose rate less than the 10 µGy/h screening dose. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents a commentary on the article "The Expansion of the Public Economy: A Comparative Analysis," which appeared in the previous issue. According to the author, the article started on distributional inequality in the advanced capitalist societies presented at the 1976 annual meeting of the American Political Science Association. He infers that control of government by left-of-center parties was associated with the extent and growth of extractive capacity of the state.