DOES TELEVISION ENTRY DECREASE THE NUMBER OF MOVIE THEATERS?

This paper empirically examines the impact of competition in the television (TV) industry on the number of movie theaters, their attendance, and their box office revenues. Studies of firm entry usually focus on the impact of regulation on economic outcomes within an industry, thereby neglecting its impact on neighboring industries. Using changes in regulation in the Spanish local TV station industry, we estimate the impact of TV entry on the movie theater industry between 1993 and 2005. Our findings show that local TV entry decreased the number of theaters and screens in a province, as well as movie attendance and box office revenues. (JEL L11, L43, L82)     

Statistical inference for olfactometer data

Summary.  Olfactometer experiments are used to determine the effect of odours on the behaviour of organisms such as insects or nematodes, and typically result in data comprising many groups of small overdispersed counts. We develop a non-homogeneous Markov chain model for data from olfactometer experiments with parasitoid wasps and discuss a relation with the Dirichlet–multinomial distribution. We consider the asymptotic relative efficiencies of three different observation schemes and give an analysis of data intended to shed light on the effect of previous experience of odours in the wasps.     

Exploring the foundations of the intercultural policy paradigm: a comprehensive approach

In this second decade of the twenty-first century, interculturalism is emerging as a new policy paradigm to deal with diversity dynamics. It is basically viewed as a set of policies sharing one basic idea: that the interaction among people from different backgrounds matters. Its concerns are to intervene politically and to propose a way to manage the dynamics of diversity, based on exchange and interpersonal relations. I propose exploring a foundational internal debate, based on the premise there are at least three different, but complementary, normative strands: contractual, cohesion and constructivist strands. My ultimate purpose is to defend a comprehensive view, grounded on the argument that no one can have the sole authority to define intercultural policy, since the three strands can be applied at different moments, according to different purposes. The challenge is for policy managers to be able to achieve a balance between the three policy drivers.     

Anonymity in large societies

In a social choice model with an infinite number of agents, there may occur “equal size” coalitions that a preference aggregation rule should treat in the same manner. We introduce an axiom of equal treatment with respect to a measure of coalition size and explore its interaction with common axioms of social choice. We show that, provided the measure space is sufficiently rich in coalitions of the same measure, the new axiom is the natural extension of the concept of anonymity, and in particular plays a similar role in the characterization of preference aggregation rules.     

How does newspaper coverage of collective action vary?: Protest by Indigenous people in Canada

Newspapers are a widely used source of data about collective action and social movements. In this study, we build upon a growing body of literature that critically assesses the coverage that newspapers provide of protest. We consider coverage in relation to a set of protest events that have yet to be considered in the literature (protest by Indigenous people in Canada); we consider multiple years (1985 and 1995); and finally, we measure coverage differently than has been done in previous studies (multiple articles and type of coverage as opposed to yes/no assessments). Using data on forty-three protest events, covered in seven Canadian newspapers, we find that while some events are covered by a similar number of newspapers, the volume of articles and type of coverage can be very different. We also find that for most newspapers, coverage rates improved over time. Scholars must be careful to assess whether increases in protest are real or merely reflect increases in coverage.     

Distance-maintaining in infants' reaction to an adult stranger

In an infant-controlled experiment, 38 babies aged 9–10 months, while accompanied by their mothers, were confronted with a novel inanimate object and an unfamiliar person. Among them, 17 who approached both the toy and the stranger were labeled ‘bold,’ while 17 others approached the toy but not the stranger, and were classified as ‘shy.’ A comparison of the familiarization strategies displayed by these two groups in the stranger situation was performed. It showed (1) that no fear nor any clear-cut sign of negative affect towards the stranger appeared in either group; (2) that the same process of maintaining a distance between themselves and the stranger was apparent in all infants, bold as well as shy; and (3) that a main difference between the two groups was the pace at which they performed the same kind of distal familiarization. A reinterpretation of the function of distance-maintaining in infant reaction to strangers is proposed, whereby it is seen as a positive and appropriate social behavior, rooted in the conception of persons that infants of that age are believed to possess.     

Mediterranean thinking in migration studies: A methodological regionalism approach

The core reflection of this article is to explore the potential of using the Mediterranean as a category of analysis for migration studies, what epistemological and ontological effects this may have and how this could be done. To better capture this focus, I will speak about Med-Thinking. This Mediterranean scale of analysis invites us to follow methodological regionalism. In practice, this means that we need to encourage scholars to channel their findings towards the development of a Mediterranean approach. To develop an integrative and reflexive regional approach, I will first point out the background premises of such a normative effort and second, I will present the main analytical tools framing this Med-Thinking approach by articulating four main dimensions: epistemic solipsism, holism, homeostatic and positive thinking on migration. In the end, I will suggest some paths to promote the continued application of the Med-Thinking approach for the development of Mediterranean migration studies.