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The recent global financial crisis has also been widely characterized as a massive crisis of confidence. This article examines how economic surveys of well-being are deployed to maintain confidence in market institutions and activities. It argues that these economic surveys, which are ostensibly designed to measure confidence, happiness and other states of subjective well-being, are in fact responsible for enacting confidence among its respondents and the general public. The article employs a framework of ‘marketization’, connecting this framework to broader cultural studies of economics and economies that focus on the ways in which markets and the context in which they are received are ‘made’. Economic surveys work to create confidence in the current economic system by positing that positive social and cultural attitudes toward market activity are not merely related to but are actually responsible for market growth. As such, these surveys accomplish a double objective: they maintain economic expertise, infrastructures and devices as legitimate and necessary; and they maintain the notion that economic growth is central to the maintenance of social welfare and progress. The article concludes that the inculcation of confidence among individuals and institutions precludes the task of reflecting on and recognizing the inadequacy of the current economic situation and diminishes the seeming necessity for political action and reform. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Abstract: Migration and population growth lead in coastal zones, especially in developing countries like Benin in Western Africa, to extreme land use pressure, causing ecological as well as land cover and land use changes, socio-economic modifications, and conflicts of interest and generational conflicts. To detect those fast-moving processes area-wide remains almost impossible in developing countries due to the lack of official statistics, often restricted remote sensing data, and limited financial resources. Due to that lack of data, methods using representative samples and indicators are required. In order to detect and comprehend ongoing spatial processes in the coastal zone of Benin, available heterogeneous remote sensing data were analyzed and surveys were conducted. The processes of migration, agricultural dynamics, and coastal changes were identified and investigated through relevant indicators. By the use of remote sensing, the spatial expression of the complex process-structures can be detected in terms of changes, while socio-economic, demographic, and cultural analysis helps uncover and explain reasons for and settings of the observed changes. Findings such as those obtained constitute a prerequisite for coastal resources management and provide an important planning tool for decision makers. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Focuses on the validation of the National Newspaper Association survey and the Inland Press Association Inc. survey. Method of validation of the two annual surveys; Comparison of their key financial statement figures with that of a random national sample of small-circulation newspapers; Details of information on the annual cost studies of weekly newspapers.

The debate continues over the relative merits of interviewing by telephone. This article reports an attempt by the University of Michigan's Survey Research Center to evaluate the effectiveness of telephone surveys for gathering information about consumer attitudes, financial optimism, and plans to buy. The Center conducted two surveys using the telephone to reinterview respondents to its regular economic surveys. The author weighs the pros and cons of the method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Five months after the 2010 earthquake in Haiti, Statistics without Borders conducted a nationally representative sample survey to examine economic impact using a random digit dial sample of mobile phone numbers. We analyzed the anonymized survey data and the questionnaire that they made available for public use. Radical changes in household members occurred among post-earthquake Haitian households. Similar changes of household members that are caused by natural disasters have been associated with long-term psychological well-being in the literature. The survey also provides a rare look at gender discrepancy in employment retention following a natural disaster from a nationally representative survey. While the overall employment rate was down by 50% five months after the earthquake, our findings indicate that households with female heads are at a significantly greater risk of losing employment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The OECD's periodic reviews of member and non-member economies. Member country reviews are generally done on an 18 month cycle, while non-member reviews are done as agreed with the subject country. A minimum of 18 surveys are done each year. Each issue provides a comprehensive analysis of developments in the subject country, along with individual chapters covering key economic challenges being faced and recommendations for dealing with the challenges. See listing of recent surveys above. 250 pages each, 2010 Sub: 690 [euro] $900 550 [pounds sterling] [yen] 97 300 www.SourceOECD.org/03766438 www.oecd.org/bookshop?SUB-10011S1 www.oecd.org/bookshop?SUB-12011S1

The report entitled, "OECD Economic Surveys: Canada 2012," offers an exceptionally rigorous, in-depth, well-informed and well-documented review of policy and performance of Canada's economy and postsecondary system. The report is divided into three parts. The first part contains an overview of the Canadian economy, a summary of the rest of the report and recommendations. The second part (Chapter 1) deals with innovation, and the third part (Chapter 2) is about higher education in Canada. For Canadian higher education practitioners, policy-makers, and researchers, this document shows them how others with a more detached, international perspective view higher education in Canada. People who are interested in Canadian higher education will benefit from studying and discussing the observations, conclusions and recommendations in this report. In this article, the author mentions without elaboration two complex issues that he thought were handled extremely well in the report; then he identifies a huge question that is left after reading the report. He concludes with comments on a feature of Canadian higher education that seems to stand out in international comparisons and gives rise to questions about both data and policy.

The article discusses the discrepancies arising out of communicative consumer questionnaires. To illustrate the point of how such bias can affect the results of a survey, the author presents a survey done by the Economics Division of the Canadian Department of Agriculture in 1951. The results of the survey differed from a wholesale audit by a large margin. The author performed two surveys of his own, based on the original, in an attempt to lower the discrepancy between the results of the survey and the figures found in the wholesale audit. His conclusions were that it is difficult to escape an upward bias in purchase data obtained by a consumer interview. Questions asking how often a product is used with no time-frame is more likely to produce erroneous results.

The IAB Establishment Panel is a large annual establishment survey and servesas a data source for many empirical analyzes, e.g., on labor demand, wages and industrial relations but also for influential policy evaluations. We analyze the selectivity of the IAB Establishment Panel compared with the administrative population of all establishments in Germany to test whether the IAB Establishment Panel is biased towards ‘‘good employers''. By design the survey over-samples large, thus high paying and stable establishments. After flexibly controlling for elements of the sampling design, we do not detect any meaningful difference between establishments participating in the survey and the full population regarding key economic performance indicators. If anything, we observe a slight overrepresentation of stable and slow growing establishments. For applied research, the results highlight that ‘‘typical'' econometric specifications may not be sufficient to control for selectivity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper describes innovation-related data available from international economic surveys conducted by the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. These data are collected in conjunction with the international transactions accounts of the United States and in surveys of the operations of multinational companies (MNCs). The paper focuses on five innovation-related series: receipts and payments of royalties and license fees; exports and imports of research, development, and testing services; sales of services by foreign affiliates classified in the research and development services industry; MNC R&D spending; and MNC R&D employment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rice is a key component in global food security, as it is the main ingredient in the daily diets of around 3 billion people, especially in Asia. Like all agricultural production, rice cultivation depends on scarce natural resources. This article briefly outlines the utilization of land and water in rice production, and suggests an approach for optimizing use efficiency, namely through the combination of rice and fish culture. The authors argue that the utilization of land and fresh water is optimized through integrated and complementary production of rice and fish— two basic foods items in daily local diets. The article reviews currently available scientific literature on integrated rice-fish systems. Rice-fish culture systems are briefly characterized, and respective yield potential and interactions between rice and fish are discussed. Results of socio-economic surveys regarding the adoption of integrated rice-fish culture are summarized. The article also reviews literature on the impact of fish culture on rice field ecology as outlined in studies on weed infestation, insect populations, and greenhouse gas emissions. The article concludes that rice-fish culture can be an option to help rice producing countries keep pace with soaring domestic demand for food, especially fish. Integrated rice and fish culture optimizes the benefits of scarce land and water resources through complementary use, and exploits the synergies between fish and plant. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Scholars (n = 580) from 69 countries who had contributed articles in the field of Economics during the year 2015 participated in a survey that gauged their perceptions of various aspects of co-authorship, including its benefits, motivations, working relationships, order of authorship and association preferences. Among the main findings, significant differences emerged in the proportion of co-authored papers based on age, gender and number of years the researchers had spent in their present institution. Female scholars had a greater proportion of co-authored papers than male scholars. Respondents considered improved quality of paper, contribution of mutual expertise, and division of labor as the biggest benefits of and motivation for co-authorship. Contrary to common perceptions that Economics researchers used a predominantly alphabetical order of authorship, our study found that a considerable percentage of respondents (34.5%) had practiced an order of authorship based on the significance of the authors’ contribution to the work. The relative importance of tasks differed significantly according to whether researchers co-authored as mentors or co-authored as colleagues. Lastly, researchers were found to associate, to varying degrees, with other researchers based on socio-academic parameters, such as nationality, ethnicity, gender, professional position and friendship. The study indicates that Economics authors perceive co-authorship as a rewarding endeavor. Nonetheless, the level of contribution and even the choice of association itself as a co-author depends to a great extent on the type of working relationship and socio-academic factors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There has been growing interest in the measurement of well-being and subjective well-being across western countries. In New Zealand, official surveys such as the New Zealand General Social Survey, the Disability Survey, and Te Kupenga have asked people about outcomes in multiple aspects of their lives alongside their satisfaction with their lives overall. Outside the Official Statistics System (OSS), surveys such as Gallup and the Sovereign Wellbeing Survey have collected similar data. Measuring well-being offers governments an opportunity to understand the factors, and combinations of factors, that enable people to live the lives that they themselves most value, and have reason to value. This article discusses how cross-domain analysis of multi-dimensional datasets can offer clues to policymakers around complex social issues relating to social inclusion, such as discrimination, institutional trust, loneliness, and aspects of civic and cultural participation. Understanding the associations between various outcomes and indicators can help inform the design and targeting of services facilitating better returns from social investments. In this sense we not only need to measure what matters, but we then need to work to ensure that those measures count in policy dialogues and decision-making. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aaker’s (1997) brand personality (BP) scale is widely used in research and is an important foundation for the theory of BP. Building on extant critiques of the scale, this article considers the possibility that Aaker’s (1997) scale methodology ‘creates’ the BP that it measures. Using pictures of rocks as stimuli, this article applies the principles of Aaker’s methodology to examine the BP of rocks. Rocks are the chosen stimuli as they do not have any obvious commonalities with brands, or have antecedents to BP formation. Findings revealed that each of the rock stimuli has a distinct BP and that the personality is developed from sometimes surprisingly detailed personifications. In consideration of the importance of Aaker’s scale in the development of the BP concept, the findings raise questions about its conceptualisation and emphasises the importance of critical examination of the methods used to measure marketing concepts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pedagogically, literature reviews are instrumental. They summarize the large literature written on a particular topic, give coherence to the complex, often disparate, views expressed about an issue, and serve as a springboard for new ideas. However, literature surveys rarely establish anything approximating unanimous consensus. Ironically, this is just as true for the empirical economic literature. To harmonize this dissonance, we offer a quantitative methodology for reviewing the empirical economic literature. Meta-regression analysis (MRA) is the regression analysis of regression analyses. MRA tends to objectify the review process. It studies the processes that produce empirical economic results as though they were any other social scientific phenomenon. MRA provides a framework for replication and offers a sensitivity analysis for model specification. In this brief essay, we propose a new method of reviewing economic literature, MRA, and discuss its potential. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Examines the employment variables that are included in small business surveys conducted by the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) in the U.S. Survey measures of the NFIB that are related to the unemployment measure being computed by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics; Actual and predicted rates of unemployment from 2001 to 2004; Actual and predicted level of employment based on gross domestic product levels from 1990 to 2000.

Users of government economic statistics may be surprised to learn that not all are direct products of purpose-designed surveys. Financial statements, tax records, administrative regulatory data, and private-industry records are [...]

The somewhat surprising strength in consumer spending in recent years has focused renewed attention on the much-debated wealth effect, the notion that when individuals feel wealthier, they consume more. This [...]

Consumer Expenditure Survey data for 1960 and 1996 are used to examine the real consumption of single-earner and dual-earner households. Both real consumption quantities and budget shares of consumption categories [...]

In this paper we try to assess the impact of ERP-implementations on the development of non-financial organizational performance, as described by Shang and Seddon (2002) and Eckartz et al. (2009). We assess this impact for Dutch small and medium-sized enterprises, using a small but unique dataset. Several aspects of the performance of organizations are compared before and after the introduction of an ERP-system, taking into account a three-year period, and controlling for several influential factors (like organizational size, financial health and sectoral differences). We conclude that by and large, organizational performance increased significantly more for organizations that implemented an ERP-system in the last three years than for organizations that did not implement such a system. We also conclude that organizations that implemented an ERP-system at most three years ago did not have significantly lower non-financial performance than organizations that did not implement such a system. Additional analyses suggest that we would oversell our results if we would claim that ERP-systems are the main or sole source of the effects found. Nevertheless, although limited to Dutch SMEs, our results contradict some of the views expressed in the ERP-literature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pierre-Daniel G. Sarte Over the latter half of the 1990s, the U.S. economy experienced both a substantial decrease in the savings rate and a significant run-up in household net worth. [...]

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to measure consumer-based brand equity in the supermarket industry and to identify the strategy drivers associated with levels of brand equity for consumers' typically patronized supermarkets. Design/methodology/approach – A nine state survey of consumers was conducted to provide brand equity ratings of 22 national, regional, and specialty supermarket brands. Findings – Factor analysis yields two brand equity outcome dimensions and eight brand equity drivers. A large proportion of consumers clearly have strong feelings about the supermarkets they patronize, and that effort expended in keeping customers, service level, and product quality and assortment appear to be basic requirements for achieving high levels of consumer-based brand equity. The top supermarket brands typically score highly on at least one other key driver of equity. Supermarket brands that use formal loyalty programs to drive patronage in general have lower levels of customer-based brand equity. Research limitations/implications – Selection of designated supermarkets was limited by spatial distribution in the geographic area. The sample is more affluent and educated than the general US population. Practical implications – As retailers search for ways to compete more effectively for consumer dollars and loyalty, they need to explore in more detail the customer-based brand equity and the drivers of customer equity associated with their retail brands. Originality/value – This paper is the first to link consumer-based brand equity and the supermarket branding efforts that drive it for specific retail brands. In an industry with numerous choices in nearly all market areas and low switching costs, successful branding can translate into emotional commitment, shopping loyalty, and even person-to-person promotion of the brand to others. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Economists' credibility has been waning in recent years. Critics usually cite the profession's preoccupation with abstract reasoning and its focus on seemingly irrelevant topics that hold little interest for individuals outside the discipline. While economic science has enormous potential for improving living standards, the profession's adverse reputation is indicative of a discipline seemingly void of any social contribution. This article presents the results of a recently conducted survey of professional economists. The survey was undertaken to ascertain economists' opinions of their own professional work, including the progress of economic research, its usefulness for society, and factors that determine the publication of that research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We argue that the dread of Genetically Modified (GM) food is an expression of the individual's demand for information as a self-protective action. This study empirically examines the determinants of the demand for information on Genetically Modified Food and tests whether this demand is jointly determined with the individual's dread of GM food. A UK representative sample of the 1999 Eurobarometer Survey is employed and the study undertakes multivariate analysis of information-related survey responses. The results provide some evidence for the hypothesis that demand for information stands as a self-protective attitude that occurs in the absence of information. Furthermore, knowledge of science and information channels are both associated with a larger demand for information and lower dread of GM food. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article presents a list of tabular information about the American Economic Association taken from the Universal Academic Questionnaire, an annual survey of U.S. economics departments, in 2004.

This article provides an overview of the consumer survey conducted by the Melbourne Institute of Applied Economic and Social Research. The consumer surveys cover three major areas: consumer sentiment, consumer inflationary expectations and household saving intentions. Additional survey data collected on a quarterly basis include wage-related data, which track employees' self-reported wage changes. Also, respondents' retail purchase intentions are surveyed on behalf of an external marketing company. The Melbourne Institute consumer survey is conducted monthly by telephone by OZ INFO, an external survey company. The survey covers 11 broad areas, with some questions asked every month but others asked on a quarterly basis, as specified. In early 2003, a number of questions were added to the standard Melbourne Institute consumer survey to assess attitudes to the Iraq war and the risk of terrorism. Future plans for further developing the usage of the Melbourne Institute consumer survey dataset include assessing the possibilities for making available the associated unit record data in easily accessible form to those who are interested. As of 2004, the raw data collected in this survey are not publicly available. A range of options exists for packaging and selling the survey unit record data to potential users. These options include putting the data into some sort of data cube capable of linking various data in the dataset.