Ethnic conflict and job separations

We study the effect of the second Intifada—a violent conflict between Israel and its Palestinian neighbors which erupted in September 2000—and the ensuing demonstrations of Arab citizens of Israel on labor market outcomes of Arabs relative to those of Jewish Israelis. The analysis relies on a large matched employer–employee dataset, focusing on firms that in the pre-Intifada period hired both Arabs and Jews. We find that until September 2000 Arab workers had a lower rate of job separation than their Jewish peers and that this differential was significantly reduced after the outbreak of the Intifada.     

Recognition and gendered identity constructions in labour activation

Few studies have considered how labour activation programmes affect participants’ identity construction, particularly from a gender comparison perspective. Using qualitative data and recognition theories, this exploratory study of the Norwegian Qualification Program examined how gender may affect labour activation recipients’ identity construction and sense of social value. The findings suggest that women experience labour activation as an enabling process, facilitating an enhanced sense of social value and status. In contrast, men experience either no such change or a diminution of their sense of worth and status. The study shows how cultural values regarding gender, work and employment are embedded in social work practice and activation policy implementation. Underscoring how activation may be intertwined in such cultural values and norms, the study calls for further research to understand these processes, as they may affect outcomes in labour activation policy.     

Combining registration-system and survey data to estimate birth probabilities

With the widespread availability of event-history data, demographers have increasingly eschewed registration-system data in favor of survey data. We propose instead using survey and registration-system data in combination, via a constrained maximum-likelihood framework for demographic hazard modeling. As an application, we combine panel survey data and birth registration data to estimate annual birth probabilities by parity. The general fertility rate obtained from registration-system data constrains the weighted sum of parity-specific birth probabilities. The variances about the parity-specific birth probabilities are halved when registration-system data are used to constrain the estimates. Other demographic applications are discussed.     

Rural Telephone Company Adoption of Service Innovations: A Community Field Theory Approach*

Abstract Recent telecommunications innovations have the potential to improve the economic vitality of rural communities, but many rural telephone companies have not adopted them to provide needed advanced services. To explain the differences in adoption by rural telephone companies we distinguish between service innovations, adopted primarily to improve direct services to clients, and operations innovations, adopted primarily to improve the operation of the business. Using community interaction field theory we develop and test a conceptual framework for the adoption of innovative service telecommunications technologies by Iowa rural telephone companies. As field theory predicts, involvement in local economic development activities has a strong, direct effect on innovativeness. Results suggest that the service and operations innovations distinction has theoretical utility in explaining organizational innovativeness.     

The management of international manufacturing networks: a missing link towards total management of global networks

Abstract

The purposes of this article are to provide a brief overview of the research on international manufacturing networks (IMNs), identify corresponding gaps and provide background for the papers published in this special issue. First, this article shows the importance of addressing the management of IMNs, especially in times of global turbulence as a result of new economic, political and technological trends. Second, it highlights research into the management of IMNs as a missing link in the Operations Management (OM) discipline, as most of the current OM research neglects the fact that the internal structures and relationships of multi-plant organizations inside firms play a critical role in how a supply chain/network operates and relies mostly on scholars in other fields for insights into high-level and strategic issues in the management of global operations. Finally, this article argues there is still a lot to do in order to develop new theories towards the total management of global networks that can holistically analyze different global (intra- and inter-firm multi-functional) networks and address the complex interdependencies between them.     

Decomposition of the Shrinking Middle-class and Directional Mobility in Finland 1995–2012

This paper investigates the middle-class decline in Finland from 1995 to 2012. The purpose is to examine how changes in the probabilities of belonging to the middle class in different socioeconomic groups have contributed to the middle-class decline while taking into account changes in the relative sizes of the groups. A decomposition analysis indicates that most of the decline has been due to the probability effect, especially among the least-educated population. Changes in age demographics and educational structure have contributed to the decline. The results of the decomposition are supported by mobility results, which indicate that individuals with a tertiary (no secondary) degree have been subject to upward (downward) mobility over the observed time period. In conclusion, the middle-class decline and polarization in Finland are asymmetrically reflected in different education groups. The highly educated have climbed up the income distribution, while the least educated have fallen.

     

‘The brainy ones are leaving’: the subtlety of (un)cool places through the eyes of rural youth

The aim of this paper is to study place dynamics in relationships between academically-oriented young people and their local rural places. With point of departure in rural settings with less obvious flagship attractions and cultural assets compared to urban high amenity settings, the paper contributes to the limited literature on the perception of place among academically-oriented youth, who in future potentially belong to the professional category of knowledge workers. Addressing identity, place and the concept of cool in relation to rural youth, we analyse the ?ndings from 23 qualitative, in-depth interviews conducted with 49 young people in secondary education in two rural regions of Denmark to identify place dynamics in the relationships between these young people and their local places. The paper adds to the youth literature by demonstrating how rural youth produce, articulate and maintain identities and visions for desired futures with aspirations for urban lifestyles. Findings show that the interviewed youth's relationships to their local rural place are characterised by con?icting feelings of attachment, detachment, pride and entrapment, and that such feelings reflect on identity construction and seem to play an important role for future migration intentions.     

Financial Development,Institutional Quality and Poverty Reduction: Worldwide Evidence

Social Indicators Research - There is a burgeoning literature on wealth in the rich world. It mainly focuses on the top. This paper shows that assets can also matter for the analysis of poverty and...     

What Determines the Substantive Influence of Public Participation? An Investigation of Planners’ Views on Conditions for Participatory Practices in Denmark

Conditions that enable successful public participation have received increased attention in research and practice. This paper contributes with an empirical study of the conditions that determine the substantive influence of public participation processes. We explore a list of conditions in a Danish context through a survey of practitioners’ perceptions of practice and through interviews with practitioners. The findings support the growing criticism of the widespread notion that the choice of methods is a fundamental determinant of the success of public participation. The findings lead us to propose a more prominent role of contextual conditions in practice.