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This article studies a game between authors and editors. Editors play as leaders while authors are the followers. Authors maximize the number of publications seeking to increase the impact of their work in the literature, captured by citations. Editors maximize the quality of papers they publish in order to increase the reputation of their journals. The main results are: (i) rules aimed at increasing scholars productivity, such as requirements to obtain tenure, increase author's citations and journal's quality; (ii) editors willingness to build journal's reputation hurt journal's quality and increase author's publications; (iii) journal's reputation increases citations and journal's quality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper argues that identity economics and social psychology provide a useful frame of reference to interpret supererogatory actions and suggests that identity of companies can be a driving force behind these actions. Companies may perform actions against the narrow sense of economic rationality if those actions serve purposes of high importance for them. The climate crisis and the more recent COVID‐19 crisis call for supererogatory actions by companies more than ever before. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduces various articles and research papers of the 2001 issue of the "American Journal of Economics and Sociology."

Australia's large regional cities and towns display wide variation in how they are adjusting to the socio-economic transitions that have occurred over the past decade. One area of research interest has been in developing typologies of non-metropolitan performance. The current paper represents an analysis of Australian Bureau of Statistics 2001 Census data aimed at analysing non-metropolitan regions based on their performance across a range of selected socio-economic variables. Using model-based clustering methods, this paper places non-metropolitan regions into clusters depending on the degree to which they share similar socio-economic and demographic outcomes. These clusters form the basis of a typology representing the range of socio-economic and demographic outcomes at the regional level. Differences between the clusters are analysed using graphs of 95% confidence intervals on the individual means for each cluster. The typology provides a useful framework with which to develop a broad understanding of socio-economic processes and performance across different spatial scales. Las grandes capitales y ciudades regionales de Australia muestran una gran variación en el modo en que se están adaptando a las transiciones socio-económicas que han sucedido durante la década pasada. Un área de investigación de interés ha sido el desarrollo de tipologías de rendimiento no metropolitano. Este artículo representa un análisis de datos del Censo 2001 del Australian Bureau of Statistics dirigido a analizar regiones no metropolitanas basándose en su rendimiento en un rango de variables socio-económicas seleccionadas. Usando métodos de cluster basados en modelos, este artículo agrupa regiones no metropolitanas en clusters dependiendo del grado en que comparten resultados socio-económicos y demográficos similares. Estos clusters forman la base de una tipología que representa el rango de resultados socio-económicos y demográficos a escala regional. Las diferencias entre clusters son analizadas usando gráficas con intervalos de confianza del 95% para las medias individuales de cada cluster. La tipología proporciona un marco útil con el que desarrollar un conocimiento más amplio de los procesos socio-económicos y rendimiento en diferentes escalas espaciales. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This April 2003 issue of "The American Journal of Economics and Sociology" contains a collection of papers with a decidedly quantitative focus that attempt to measure unusual market phenomena. Each essay offers quantitative assessments of what the editor find to be interesting and unusual market phenomena. Consider Professor Stephanie O. Crofton's analysis of college tuition prices. She hypothesized that colleges that refuse to admit men in order to provide an "all women" campus experience would also end up charging higher tuition prices for their educational services. Her reason is that the preference to matriculate to a "male free" environment is held rather intensely by a small group of women. So who is discriminating really? Are the owners of the business, the trustees, certain employees already at work, or the sovereign customers? Consider the case of the professional sports association such as the National Hockey League (NHL). For quite some time the NHL explored ways to boost attendance at its games. In his contribution to this issue, Professor Rodney J. Paul examines the policy changes initiated by the NHL in terms of their quantitative impact on stadium attendance.

This paper operationalizes an analysis of resilience for social-ecological systems using system dynamics (SD) modelling. Resilience is a versatile concept that continues to gain popularity among researchers who study ways to reduce the vulnerability of social-ecological systems to a wide range of disturbances. However, its application in the policymaking domain still remains underdeveloped because it is difficult to understand the mechanisms that might enhance resilience and to measure the impact of potential policies. This paper proposes to use SD modelling as a tool to analyse resilience using simulations to quantify system response to disturbances and a causal analysis to identify ways to influence this response. With this aim, this paper proposes a set of fundamental characteristics of resilient responses and describes how to measure them using the results produced by SD models. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Presents an introduction to the April 2001 issue of the "American Journal of Economics and Sociology."

Social cloud has emerged as a case of sharing economy, where socially connected agents share their computing resources within the community. This paper considers the social cloud as an endogenous resource‐sharing network, where agents are involved in closeness‐based conditional resource sharing. This study focuses on (1) the impact of agents' decisions of link addition and deletion on their own local and global resource availability as well as on others' global resource availability (as spillover effects), (2) the role of agents' closeness in determining spillover effects, (3) agents' link addition behavior, and (4) stability and efficiency of the social cloud. The findings include the following: (i) Agents' decision of link addition (deletion) increases (decreases) their local resource availability. However, these observations do not hold in the case of global resource availability. (ii) In a connected network, agents experience either a positive or a negative spillover effect and there is no case with no spillover effects. Agents observe no spillover effects if and only if the network is disconnected with three or more components. Furthermore, an agent experiences negative spillover if there is no change in its closeness. Although an increase in the closeness of agents is necessary to experience positive spillover effects, the condition is not sufficient. (iii) We study the relation between agents' distance from each other, and their local as well as global resource availabilities. We prove that the local resource availability of an agent from another agent increases with decrease in the distance between them and that maximum local resource availability is obtained from the agent with the least closeness. Using these results, we discuss which agent to add a link to, so as to maximize the local resource availability. We discuss why such results are difficult to establish for global resource availability. However, in a two‐diameter network, we show that for an agent, link formation always increases the global resource availability. (iv) We also study resource‐sharing network formation and its efficiency in a strategic setting. We prove the existence of a pairwise stable network. Furthermore, we provide a set of conditions for a few prominent network structures (star, complete, wheel, and bipartite networks) to be pairwise stable. We show that the "connected in pairs, otherwise disconnected" network is better than a connected network, in terms of social welfare. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An overview of articles published in the June 2007 issue of "Business and Society Review" is presented. Various regulatory and voluntary frameworks used to promote ethical business conduct are explored. Most of the papers examined the social, economic and legal contexts in which businesses operate. The importance of law in governing business activity that is not only ethical but socially responsible is outlined. A set of research used economic analysis to show market trends that offer financial rewards to firms offering corporate transparency in contexts of strong public governance.

Copyright of Papers in Regional Science is the property of Wiley-Blackwell 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 Papers in Regional Science is the property of Wiley-Blackwell 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 article reports several issues and events related to economics in Australia. The South Australian Branch of the Economic Society of Australia invites all economists to attend the 38th Australian Conference of Economists (ACE) 2009 held in Adelaide, South Australia on September 28-30, 2009. The History of Economic Thought Society of Australia (HETSA) announces that the organization will already accepting applications for the 2009 (HETSA) Prizes award. The Economic Society of Australia has two publications entitled "The Economic Record and Economic Papers" and "Economic Papers: A journal of applied economics and policy."

The Regional Science Association was founded 50 years ago in December 1954; however,the institutional origins of the field were much earlier, perhaps when Walter Isard began his graduate studies in economics at Harvard University. This article briefly traces the history of the field of regional science and its association from those beginnings to the present. The focus of the article is the evolution of the association as an institution, and some of its major contributors, and to a much lesser extent, on the scope and scholarly content of the field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT. This paper examines the development of a separate economic niche for black entrepreneurs in Chicago's ethnic beauty aids industry. It argues that this economic niche developed in response to advantages black entrepreneurs had in mobilizing ethnic resources in the black community. The paper's findings lend support to general theoretical arguments stating that ethnicity, race, and other symbols for identity function as low-cost screening devices for evaluating the likelihood that trading partners will honor economic contracts, particularly in a market setting where formal market mechanisms are not fully developed. The findings are based on a series of in-person interviews with Korean, Jewish and black distributors of ethnic beauty aids in Chicago. Although this paper focuses on a single market niche, its conclusions indicate that greater attention needs to be paid to the effects of social, political, economic and structural factors on minority business development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Understanding climate-cropland interactions and their impact on future projections in West Africa motivated the recent development of a modeling framework that asynchronously couples four models for regional climate, crop growth, socioeconomics, and cropland allocation. This modeling framework can be applied to a future time slice using an equilibrium approach or to a continuous projection using a transient approach. This paper compares the differences between these two approaches, examines the transient dynamics of the system, and evaluates its impact on future projections. During the course of projection up to mid-century, food demand is projected to increase monotonically, while the projected crop yield shows a high degree of temporal dynamics due to strong climate variability. Such temporal dynamics are not accounted for by the equilibrium approach. As a result, the transient approach projects a generally faster future expansion of cropland, with the largest differences over Benin, Burkina Faso, Ghana, Senegal, and Togo. Despite the relative large differences between the two approaches in projecting land cover changes associated with cropland expansion, the projected future climate changes are fairly similar. While the additional cropland expansion in the transient approach favors a wet signal, both the transient and equilibrium approaches project a future decrease of rainfall in the western part of West Africa and an increase in the eastern part. For quantifying climate changes, the equilibrium application of the modeling framework is likely to be sufficient; for assessing climate impact on agricultural sectors and devising mitigation and adaptation strategies, transient dynamics is important. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article introduces various reports published within the issue, including one on intergenerational earnings mobility in the U.S., one on economic methodology and Ludwig Lachmann, and one on developments in medical technology.

This paper proposes an epistemological model based on cybernetic principles and activity theory to interpret two levels of problems that are intertwined in our social-economic system, namely the liveability and sustainability problems. In the first part of the paper, important principles and concepts from related fields of cybernetics and activity theory are introduced for later construction of a model. In the second part, a model is constructed on the basis of the introduced concepts. To validate the proposed model, the current economic crisis is studied in the third part. An important contribution of the proposed model is a theoretical understanding of the two levels problems and how to construct macro social-economic policies to avoid similar crisis in the future. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Identifying the nature of the association between climate, environmental, socio-economic and political context and disease remains a major challenge, yet a better comprehension of the linkages is imperative if predictive models to guide public health responses are to be devised. Our understanding of the relationships could be improved through investigations of historical epidemics. In this paper we draw on a range of published and unpublished documents to explore the complex relationship between climate, environmental change and epidemic disease (re)emergence in East Africa, and Uganda in particular. This is a region which has experienced climate variability at a range of temporal and spatial scales, but which also has a long history of episodic epidemic disease. We focus on the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries – a time of social, economic and political reordering in East Africa associated with European colonial intervention, but also a period which witnessed a variety of climatic, ecological and disease events. It will be argued that these developments coalesced, creating a set of spatially distinctive social and environmental conditions which fostered the emergence and prolongation of one of the most deadly episodes of disease in East African history, the sleeping sickness epidemic of c.1900–20. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of People & Nature is the property of Wiley-Blackwell 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.)

An exploration of the ethical implications of mining uranium in South Australia by weighing up the impact on future generations in social, economic and environmental terms. In South Australia, we have ‘a knot of problems’ in the sense used by Bateson that can be described in a case study that illustrates the complexities for planners and policy makers. The paper suggests that one of the greatest challenges for policy makers is to match the right kind of knowledge to an issue. This requires ‘phronesis’ or a process of matching based on dialogue (see Aristotle in Nicomachean Ethics translated by Irwin). A score card needs to be developed to support ethical, sustainable governance. It is based on the assumption that we can create our own futures. This behooves us to develop sustainable approaches with future generations in mind. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present paper investigates, empirically, whether global economic integration can lead to national social disintegration, as proclaimed by Rodrik. One can perhaps conjecture that a drop in the generalized trust in a country may signal a rise in social disintegration. Using the survey data on the generalized trust provided by the World Values Surveys, the present paper finds that, in general, there is a positive openness-trust relationship. However, when globalization undermines domestic income distribution, it will weaken this openness-trust relationship. There is also evidence of a threshold inequality above which the openness-trust relationship turns negative. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper identifies the extent to which James Buchanan's interpretation of Knut Wicksell’s unanimity rule, as spelled out in the second essay in Finanztheoretische Untersuchungen (1896), has come to dominate the public economics literature despite competing with the interpretation offered by Richard Musgrave. A brief summary of the differing interpretations is offered. Citation analysis is used to examine the frequency with which Wicksell is cited and by whom. The sociology of the economics profession and avenues for the dissemination of ideas are examined to understand the dominance of Buchanan's particular interpretation and application of the unanimity rule. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Economy of Communion is an experience of social economy sprung from the praxis of the Focolare Movement, an ecumenical and inter-religious organization with roots in the Catholic Church. This radical social phenomenon is played out in intersecting local and global networks. Businesses operating within the paradigm form communications and ‘thought networks’ spanning the globe, but function typically within local markets. Within a decade this ideal has spread to 100 countries, attracted some 800 firms, generated almost 100 academic theses, and been accorded significant international recognition through UNESCO and the Council of Europe and through the award of various honorary doctorates by prestigious universities. This paper examines the systemic philosophical, cultural and organizational factors associated with its dissemination. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Psychological evidence and casual intuition predict that sunny weather is associated with upbeat mood. This paper examines the relationship between morning sunshine in the city of a country's leading stock exchange and daily market index returns across 26 countries from 1982 to 1997. Sunshine is strongly significantly correlated with stock returns. After controlling for sunshine, rain and snow are unrelated to returns. Substantial use of weather-based strategies was optimal for a trader with very low transactions costs. However, because these strategies involve frequent trades, fairly modest costs eliminate the gains. These findings are difficult to reconcile with fully rational price setting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper focuses on the emergence and growth of sustainable industries, specifically analyzing the rise of the wind energy industry in California. Based on a favorable institutional environment and the presence of abundant natural capital, the wind energy industry took root and flourished in California during the last two decades. This paper analyzes this phenomenon by exploring the determinants of where and when wind energy projects would be established. Findings suggest that in locations where natural, social, and economic influences converged, greater wind energy activity followed. The paper advances a simple framework that uses natural capital, site specificity, and institutional environments to predict which sustainable industries will enjoy growth in coming decades. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Survey‐based cultural dimensions are used extensively in empirical analysis as the primary source of quantitative cultural scores. However, survey‐based cultural dimensions have a significant endogeneity problem. The individuals responding to the surveys are affected by their current socioeconomic condition and environment (social mood), meaning that the outcomes are a mixture of culture and current socioeconomic effects. The World Value Survey (WVS) waves provided empirical support for the endogeneity problem. Our empirical findings show that in‐country scores frequently change between waves. In addition, the countries in the WVS change their ranking between waves; so, even the relative position held by a country is questionable when measured along survey‐based cultural dimensions. This finding contrasts with the idea that cultural values are sticky. We provide an alternative method for capturing cultural dimensions based on the grammatical structures of languages that capture ancestral culture with no fear of the current socioeconomics pollution of the measure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT. The aim of the paper is to present the economic sociology of Alfred Marshall (1842-1924). Three topics are discussed in the paper: Marshall's ideas of how preferences are generated, the theory of action, and finally the introduction of a fourth factor of production, organization. Throughout the paper Marshall's broad perspective is demonstrated. It is argued that Marshall's approach encourages a closer connection between sociologists interested in economic phenomena and economists. This conclusion is strengthened because of the resemblance of Marshall's analysis to those offered by Max Weber and Thorstein Veblen. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT. In the July, 1998 issue of The American Journal of Economics and Sociology Professor Tomislav V. Kovandzic strongly criticized the 1997 work on gun control by Kwon, Scott, Safranski and Bae, which appears in the same journal. A rejoinder by Kwon et al. refuted Kovnanzic's criticisms and the authors stand by their published results. The purpose of this comment is to reconsider some of the points raised by Kovandzic and to consider other issues not raised in the original exchange. The bottom line is that several of the criticisms by Kovandzic are valid and, in fact, other serious econometric problems may plague the original paper by Kwon et al. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article reviews the report "People: From Impoverishment to Empowerment," presented at the third Roundtable Conference entitled "Change: Social Conflict Or Harmony" held at Stockholm, Sweden in 1994, edited by Uner Kirdar and Leonard Silk. This collection of economic and social policy papers is presented in four parts: (1) Reduction of Poverty, (2) Expansion of Productive Employment, (3) Enhancement of Social Cohesion, and (4) Building Blocks of Security for People. Each part is divided into three or more chapters each of which contains multiple essays. The papers are of high quality and are logically sequenced so as to allow the reader to understand the evolution of the policies or programs under each of the broad topics. Stimulating summaries of the issues and arguments appear at the beginning of each main part of the book and are followed by the lessons learned and measures needed to alleviate the problem. Part 1, on Reduction of Poverty, in its first chapter explores how poverty affects politics, the economy, the environment, and society. The next chapter reviews what other has been tried before and the lessons learned.

Cybernation is defined as the combination of the computer and the automated self-regulating machine. Enthusiasm for cybernation is likewise giving rise to myths, which may harden unless they are given critical attention. The new myths are somewhat reinforced by technocratic thinking which is often ill informed along economic and sociological lines. As myths, some of the newer convictions, which are developing, are also an outcropping of what has come to be called the Triple Revolution. In evaluating the assumptions of cybernation here the author is not declaring either that they are in error or that they are beyond the bounds of possibility. What the author wishes to maintain in this paper is that if these assumptions remain untempered by institutional realities and by some new and necessary conceptual considerations of an economic nature, they will not prove very serviceable for the task of managed social change. Furthermore, if these assumptions remain unguided by an appropriate social philosophy, a cybercultural credo will remain at best programmatic. Unless detailed blueprints for various forms of needed devotees of cybernation can work out social change, the cybercultural revolution will never enter the realm of Realpolitik. The excuse for this paper, then, will be the effort to examine critically the excesses of enthusiasm, which characterize those who are now marching under the banner of cybernation, and to suggest some critical remedies, which are in order.

The public sector has been unjustly neglected by the strategic management field as an object of study. In Britain we now see significant changes in public sector management, notably the introduction of an 'internal market' in the National Health Service. This paper reviews three theoretical perspectives on these developments and develops propositions for empirical enquiry based on the economic sociology perspective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The main purpose of this paper is to compare the decomposition properties of rank‐dependent and level‐dependent indicators of income‐related inequality of health. We do so by focusing on the decomposition by population groups. We show that level‐dependent indices have more desirable subgroup decomposability properties than rank‐dependent indices. This may prove to be an important argument in favour of the use of level‐dependent indices. The difference between the subgroup decomposition results of rank‐dependent and level‐dependent indices is illustrated by means of an empirical study using Australian health and income data. We consider subgroups based on sex, age and employment status. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT The design and implementation of base of the pyramid (BoP) solutions or products require multinational companies to make adjustments to their business strategies and processes. While this strategic opportunity has been argued for in BoP related publications, a 'traditional' strategic management perspective has not been applied. This paper aims towards using the strategic management process as an analytic framework for case studies at the BoP, allowing analysis of which aspects are particularly critical for achieving respective solutions. This includes reaching sustainability related objectives. A total of seven cases covering both products and services have been researched, allowing a contribution towards the applicability of strategic management in respective situations. Further, the importance of specific strategy process elements is assessed. While it seems obvious that strategic management thought can be applied, the analytic criteria put forward (i.e. company, initial need, motivation, external analysis, stakeholder, product/service, strategic choice, organizational implementation, supply chain, economic outcome, effects on sustainable development) are particularly geared towards the BoP solutions. While previous literature centres on analysing needs, the case based research provides the insight that aspects of internal organization, supply chain management and sustainability outcomes are of equal importance. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Trust is important in economics: several transactions are based on it; unfortunately it is difficult to measure. The recent economic literature on social capital shows a positive association between this concept and trust. As social capital is easier to measure than trust, this paper analyzes the possibility of assessing trust using a measure of social capital. A basic trust game is played in three Western European countries with undergraduate students; a questionnaire measures their level of social capital as time spent within social networks. This measure is stronger and more precise than the ones generally used. The use of an experiment instead of a questionnaire allows for constructing a measure of trust that is continuous in principle. Moreover, to play an experiment allows for observing the behavior of the participants better than by the means of a survey. The results are supportive of the fact that trust can be assessed through social capital, although the presence of a strong geographical effect has to be accounted for. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper studies the impact of HIV/AIDS on per capita income and education. It explores two channels on how HIV/AIDS affects income that have not been sufficiently stressed by previous literature: the reduction of the incentives to stay in school due to shorter expected longevity and the reduction in productivity of experienced workers. In the model, individuals live for three periods, may get infected in the second period, and with some probability die of AIDS before reaching the third period of their lives. Parents care for the welfare of the future generations so that they will maximize lifetime utility of their dynasty. The simulations predict that the most affected countries in Sub-Saharan Africa in the future will be, on average, 30% poorer than they would be without AIDS. Schooling will decline in some cases by 40%. These figures are dramatically reduced with widespread medical treatment, as it increases the survival probability and productivity of infected individuals. ( JEL O11, I12, C15, O55) [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Attempting to revitalize the substantive approach to economics in the tradition of K. Polanyi, this paper revives the neglected substantive theory of money's origins by Bernhard Laum and thus disputes the formal approaches that see the origins of money in the context of trade. A wide range of evidence, from archeological to etymological, is utilized to demonstrate that relations between men and God, carried out through the intermediary of state-religious authorities, played a causal role in the genesis of the ox-unit of value and account, and, further, in the origins of money, and, subsequently, coinage. The substantive state-religious approach presented in this paper is also compared and contrasted to the Chartalist perspective on money's origins. It is concluded that the substantive approach presented in this paper differs from the more formal approaches (e.g., Metallism) because it does not rely upon a projection of modern institutions and habits of thought (e.g., a medium of exchange; monetary taxation) into ancient societies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Canadian Journal of Economics is the property of Wiley-Blackwell 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 begins by considering the Australian evidence on intergenerational social and economic mobility in the context of the international literature. Recent evidence from the Youth in Focus project is used to highlight the effects of growing up in socio-economic disadvantage on a range of outcomes for young Australians. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Social volcanology refers to the integration of social science research methods into the traditionally physical domain of volcanology. This emerging multi-methodological research area draws from many disciplines in order to examine hazard-mitigation strategies that are community focused. A key facet of social volcanology is the role of culture and this paper explores the influence of traditional cultural values in relation to the 2006 volcanic crisis at Mt Merapi (Java). This paper describes the complex amalgam of cultural and socio-economic factors that influence community reactions to volcanic hazards and demonstrates the need for interdisciplinary hazard research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyses the nature and details of the association that the integration of social and environmental considerations with corporate strategy has for different competitive advantages and innovation activities at the firm level. Its objective is to answer the question as to whether a positive link exists between integration and the effects of environmental and social performance on these different dimensions of economic performance. The question of the specific form of this relationship is also raised. These questions are analysed using cluster analysis and regression models. Results are presented for four different dimensions of competitive advantage, and for two types of innovation activity. These raise the possibility that the process of integration is more important for bringing about a positive link than a resulting integration type. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since the second half of the 1990s, cross-sectoral, sectoral and company-level bargaining has developed into a key movement in transnational industrial relations in the European Union. Originally stimulated by EU institutions, these forms of bargaining have since progressed autonomously. At present, it is difficult to say exactly what effect, if any, they can have on individual working conditions. Based on a 2005 report to the European Commission, this paper argues for EU legislative action to create an optional framework for transnational collective bargaining, in the form of a Council regulation to be adopted under the social and economic cohesion chapters of the EU Treaty. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dutch municipalities and provinces have recently introduced many changes relating to management control. This paper explores the role of economic and social rationality in the introduction of reforms, and the nature of possible future reforms. Based on interviews with politicians and professional managers and on documents, the paper examines experiences with recent management changes. In addition, it discusses ‘change initiating factors’. Budget cuts and trends seem to be such change initiating factors. However, particularly more demanding citizens, increases in voters' volatility and politicians' uncertainty seemed to initiate changes. The paper speculates that in the near future, too, it could be a rational survival strategy for politicians and managers to focus on initiatives that are intended to enhance performance and efficiency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper addresses the philosophical question: ‘why rehabilitate urban river systems?’ within an Australian context. Rehabilitation of river systems has become an important objective of many local, state and national governments around the world, who allocate substantial investment into various river projects. An understanding of the various factors influencing stream condition and potential rehabilitation options is essential in order to determine how the process is undertaken, and how success is measured. This paper examines the triple bottom line (economic, social and environmental) factors that influence decisionmaking with respect to urban stream rehabilitation and management and considers their relative value and importance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Xiaokai Yang's theory of economic specialisation under increasing returns to scale is a formal development of the fundamental Smith-Young theorem on the extent of the market and the social division of labour. In this theory specialisation--and thus the social division of labour--is firmly embedded in a system of perfectly competitive markets. This leaves unresolved whether and how such development processes are possible in economies based on more primitive, non-market organisations. In this paper we discuss a general relational model of economic interaction. Within this non-market environment we discuss the emergence of economic specialisation and eventually of economic trade and a social division of labour. We base our approach on three levels in organisational development: the presence of a stable relational structure; the presence of relational trust and subjective specialisation; and, finally, the emergence of objective specialisation through the institution and social recognition of economic roles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The introduction focuses on the work of sociologist and economic theorist, Talcott Parsons, who is featured in this issue of "The American Journal of Economics and Sociology," and the development of economic sociology. The taping of Parsons' March 1973 seminar at Brown University was directed by Alan Sondheim of the Rhode Island School of Design; a follow-up seminar was also videotaped. An edited transcript of the event is published in this issue. The archived copy is in the Parsons Papers collection which is housed at Harvard University.

Recent research has highlighted the value of employing the idea of networks to describe the interrelatedness of today's globalizing economy. Networks facilitate flows of knowledge, ideas, managerial techniques and capital between firms both within and across political borders. This paper argues that the reconstruction of social connections through which information is created, given value and exchanged is fundamental to an understanding of not only contemporary but also historical patterns of economic globalization. We focus on the networks of the capitalist elite running 12 major multinational enterprises, active across British imperial territories, between c .1900 and c .1930. An examination is made of the economic and spatial interlocks between firms created by board members who were multiple directors. Social underpinnings of multiple directorates are examined by exploring the common, overlapping social spheres within which individuals engaged. A clearer grasp of the ways in which corporate activity operated in the early 1900s can provide a better understanding of the social context of global economic operations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper argues that Weber's outline and research program is only of limited relevance for present-day economic sociology and heterodox economics because Weber had a rather narrow and static understanding of rationality and the economy. Uncertainty, both as a basic fact of economic life and in the interpretation of what rational action means in specific contexts, is missing in his approach. After a short discussion of the secondary literature on Weber's methodology, the paper focuses on the most important writings of Weber on methods and economics (e.g., his outline and some parts of Economy and Society). The result of our investigation is that Weber shared a rather narrow, neoclassical understanding of the Austrian variant of economics. His important construction of goal-oriented behavior as the major methodological advice to analyze human action presupposes the idealized assumptions of perfect knowledge. His understanding of the market exchange process, price setting, and the functioning of full competition are rather conventional and elementary. Weber's genius did not materialize in the field of economics, but in his sociology of religion and law and in his sociology of domination. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Transport costs have always been an important dimension in regional science. It is therefore remarkable that regional science and transport economics have developed in a rather unconnected way. Although being distinct, the routes of the two were parallel, and there are signs that the two fields will get closer to each other. This paper further discusses long run trends in transport costs and the potential spatial consequences. The main conclusion is that although in terms of money and time, the performance of transport has improved enormously, many economic activities have not become footloose to the extent as expressed by the notion of 'death of distance'. One of the reasons discussed is the role of transaction costs, some being clearly related with distance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduces articles and research papers of the April 2001 issue of the "American Journal of Economics and Sociology."

Max Weber's magnum opus Economy and Society (Wirtschaft und Gesellschaft. Soziologie) was for the most part published only after his premature death in June 1920. Only the chapters on basic sociological terms, the categories of social action, and the Three Types of Legitimate Domination were sent to the publishers by Weber himself; the other manuscripts were found in a pile on his desk. The editions by Marianne Weber and Melchior Palyi and by Johannes F. Winckelmann are in many ways unsatisfactory, and the controversy about the correct composition of Economy and Society persists. This article reconstructs the origins of the various texts of Economy and Society on the basis of the available source material, notably the correspondence between Weber, Marianne Weber, and the publishers. It shows that in many ways the editions available at present do not live up to Max Weber's own intentions. Both the arrangement and the precise wording of the texts are unreliable, and the time sequence of the texts written from 1909 to 1914 and then in part rewritten and reorganized in 1919–1920 is uncertain. A segment of an earlier draft of parts of the chapter on Communities (Gemeinschaften) found among Weber's papers allows the conclusion that as early as 1905–1906, Weber had outlined a universal historical scheme of all known civilizations. This is to say that Economy and Society is not as closely linked to Weber's work on the Outline of Social Economics (Grundriss der Sozialökonomic) as has been previously assumed. This article offers a precise reconstruction of the complicated history of Wirtschaft und Gesellschaft. Soziologie—the exact title agreed upon by Weber and his publisher Paul Siebeck shortly before his death. It shows the development of Weber's theoretical conceptions and the corresponding changes of his terminology much more clearly, and paves the way to a better understanding of his magnum opus. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]