Competitive Capabilities among Manufacturing Plants in Developing,Emerging, and Industrialized Countries: A Comparative Analysis

Competitive capabilities have been defined as a plant's actual performance relative to its competitors, with the most commonly investigated capabilities being quality, delivery, flexibility, and cost. However, most research in this realm has investigated capabilities within developed countries, and neglected the context of developing and emerging nations, which are increasingly becoming viable economic entities in global supply chains in their own right. The present study fills this gap and carries out a comparative analysis of competitive capabilities among plants in developing, emerging, and industrialized countries. Basing our arguments on the resource‐based view of the firm, we suggest that the influence of competitive capabilities on each other varies among plants in differentially industrialized regions. Specifically, we suggest that, on average, competitive capabilities tend to influence each other to a greater degree in plants in emerging and developing countries compared to industrialized countries. Along similar lines, we suggest that the influence of the four competitive capabilities on performance improvement is manifested more strongly among plants in emerging and developing countries than among plants in industrialized nations. We investigate these contentions with data from 1,211 plants in 21 countries. The results are particularly important for decision makers as they decide on the increasingly global location of their manufacturing operations or the configuration of their global supply chains.     

Trends and Socioeconomic Gradients in Adult Mortality around the Developing World

We combine data from 84 Demographic and Health Surveys from 46 countries to analyze trends and socioeconomic differences in adult mortality, calculating mortality based on the sibling mortality reports collected from female respondents aged 15–49. The analysis yields four main findings. First, adult mortality is different from child mortality: while under‐5 mortality shows a definite improving trend over time, adult mortality does not, especially in sub‐Saharan Africa. The second main finding is the increase in adult mortality in sub‐Saharan African countries. The increase is dramatic among those most affected by the HIV/AIDS pandemic. Mortality rates in the highest HIV‐prevalence countries of southern Africa exceed those in countries that experienced episodes of armed conflict. Third, even in sub‐Saharan countries where HIV prevalence is not as high, mortality rates appear to be at best stagnating, and even increasing in several cases. Finally, the main dimension along which mortality appears to differ in the aggregate is by sex. Adult mortality rates in sub‐Saharan Africa have risen substantially higher for men than for women—especially so in the high HIV‐prevalence countries. On the whole, the data do not show large gaps by urban/rural residence or by school attainment.     

A latent class analysis of young adult gamblers from the Manitoba Longitudinal Survey of Young Adults

Informed by the Pathways Model, the current study utilized latent class analysis (LCA) to empirically derive subtypes of gamblers based on measures of impulsivity, anxiety, depression, drug use and alcohol dependence. The sample in this study (N = 566) was comprised of young adult gamblers (18–22 years of age) who participated in the Manitoba Longitudinal Survey of Young Adults (MLSYA). Multinomial regression was utilized to examine how demographic variables and participant scores on the Problem Gambling Severity Index (PGSI) predicted membership in gambler classes from the LCA. Results of the LCA revealed three classes of gamblers: emotionally vulnerable, non-problem and impulsive. Multinomial regression showed that older age (i.e. 20–22 years of age), lower income (< $20,000 per year), living independently and PGSI scores were associated with increased odds of being classified as an impulsive gambler. Identifying as European, living independently and PGSI scores were associated with increased odds of being grouped in the emotionally vulnerable class of gambler. These results suggest that young adult gamblers are not a homogeneous group but instead are best understood as falling into different subtypes based on shared characteristics outlined in the Pathways Model.     

ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY AND VEHICLE SAFETY: THE IMPACT OF GASOLINE TAXES

Policies to reduce carbon emissions by vehicles, such as fuel economy standards and gasoline taxes, have impacts on vehicle weight and thus on safety. This paper develops a model that separately identifies the impact of vehicle weight on mortality and selection effects that impact accident propensity. The main results are that (1) the safety externalities associated with heavy vehicles are greater than the environmental ones; (2) under fuel economy standards, vehicle weights have recently decreased with little likely effect on accident deaths; and (3) similar environmental benefits could be combined with substantial reductions in deaths by implementing higher gasoline taxes. (JEL H23, D62)     

FEAR OF NOVELTY: A MODEL OF SCIENTIFIC DISCOVERY WITH STRATEGIC UNCERTAINTY

This paper analyzes the production of fundamental research as a coordination game played by scholars. In the model, scholars decide to adopt a new idea only if they believe that a critical mass of peers is following a similar research strategy. If researchers observe only a noisy idiosyncratic signal of the true scientific potential of a new idea, we show that the game presents a single threshold equilibrium. In this environment, fundamental research proceeds with large structural breaks followed by long periods of time in which new ideas are unsuccessful. The likelihood of a new idea emerging depends on various parameters, including the rewards of working in the old paradigm, the critical mass of researchers required to create a new school of thought and scholars' ability to properly assess the scientific value of new ideas. (JEL O31, C72, A14)     

The socio-demographic legacy of the Khmer Rouge period in Cambodia

The study presented in this paper is an examination of the long-term impact of genocide during the period of the Khmer Rouge regime (1975-79) in Cambodia. The very high and selective mortality of the period had a major impact on the population structure of Cambodia. Fertility and marriage rates were both very low under the Khmer Rouge, but recovered immediately after the regime's collapse. Because of the shortage of eligible men, the age and education differences between partners tended to decline. The period also had a lasting impact on the educational attainment of the population. The school system collapsed during the period and therefore individuals -- especially men -- who were of school age at the time have a lower educational attainment than those from the preceding and subsequent birth cohorts.     

Constructing the legitimacy of a financial cooperative in the cultural sector: a case study using textual analysis

This article investigates the foundations of cooperative identity and how it is constructed by the organization. More specifically, our research focuses on a financial cooperative in the simultaneously emerging and consolidating cultural sector. The originality of this article lies in the methodology used – textual analysis. We use the Economies of Worth model developed by Boltanski and Thévenot (2006 Boltanski , L. and Thévenot , L. , 2006 . On justification: economies of worth . Studies in Cultural Sociology Series Princeton : Princeton University Press . [Google Scholar]), which accounts for a plurality of legitimate forms of evaluation used in the processes of critique and justification.     

BOOK REVIEWS

Books reviewed in this article: Amartya Sen Identity and Violence: The Illusion of Destiny Mary E. Daly The Slow Failure: Population Decline and Independent Ireland, 1922‐1973