LEGISLATIVE TURNOVER,FISCAL POLICY,AND ECONOMIC GROWTH: EVIDENCE FROM U.S. STATE LEGISLATURES

Increased turnover among legislators can make them short‐sighted, affecting fiscal policy and economic growth. We exploit the exogenous variation in legislative turnover induced by term limit laws and by redistricting in the 50 U.S. states, finding that increased turnover increases capital spending by state governments, which may be designed to constrain future governments. The changes may cause long‐run distortions in the economy, reducing long‐term economic growth. (JEL H72, H73, H76)     

On the Trail of Courageous Behavior

This article is an examination of courageous behavior as manifested in the activities of American whistleblowers and environmental activists in the United States, Israel, and the former Czechoslovakia. It examines how these dissenters against illegal or unethical behavior were able to sustain their demand for accountable behavior by government and industry. The article, which draws upon interviews with sixty-four whistle-blowers and one hundred and forty activists, union officials, business executives and journalists, focuses on the significance of social capital in generating protest; the whistleblowers' and activists' strong cultural commitment to the efficacy of action; their determination to accumulate the evidence and expertise; their ability to secure strategically placed allies; and their mechanisms for overcoming fear and intimidation. The authors conclude by indicating the significance of sociology in analyzing, legitimizing, and publicizing the contributions of courageous individuals to the creation and maintenance of a democratic society.     

The provision of education and opportunities for future employment for pregnant schoolgirls and schoolgirl mothers in the UK

This paper will report on the results of three recent surveys into educational provision for pregnant schoolgirls and schoolgirl mothers: these surveys have examined the position in England and Wales, and for the first time, in Scotland and in Northern Ireland. As well as reporting what is currently available for young mothers in the UK, the paper will raise issues of entitlement to a full education for these young women, issues of equal opportunity and issues of access. It will seek to point to questions that need to be considered in terms of policy for young mothers and their children. The political debate in the UK has recently centred on the notion of these young women being a drain on the national purse. This paper will seek to address this notion, and will point to the need for access to credible courses leading to employment and childcare in order to increase the chances of these young women becoming taxpayers, and good parents.     

AN EXPRESSIVE VOTING THEORY OF STRIKES

Union members may vote for a strike even if they do not expect to thereby increase their wages. For under majority voting any one member's vote for a strike is unlikely to be decisive. A union member who obtains a non-infinitesimal emotional benefit from the act of voting for a strike may therefore vote in its favor. This hypothesis can explain the existence of strikes and the conditions which make strikes especially likely.