Forty years of doctoral public relations research in Spain: A quantitative study of dissertation contribution to theory development

In this article, doctoral dissertations on public relations written at Spanish universities (1965–2004) are examined in order to gain an understanding of the level of theory development within the discipline. The following subjects are studied: growth over time, universities where they were written, use of language, gender and the topics of doctoral dissertations. Although still in its early development, public relations doctoral research in Spain is a well-established and burgeoning field in terms of the total of theses examined (62). The conclusion, however, is that their contribution to theory building in public relations has been negligible, with the practical or operational side of public relations standing out more than the conceptual and theoretical side.     

NOTES FOR A NEW GUIDE TO KEYNES (I): WAGES,AGGREGATE DEMAND,AND EMPLOYMENT

I revisit the General Theory’s discussion of the role of wages in employment determination through the lens of the New Keynesian model. The analysis points to the key role played by the monetary policy rule in shaping the link between wages and employment, and in determining the welfare impact of enhanced wage flexibility. I show that the latter is not always welfare improving.     

The Office of Facts and Figures: Archibald MacLeish and the “strategy of truth”

This paper presents a man and a stage seldom cited in the history of public relations—Archibald MacLeish and the Office of Facts and Figures, and his idea of “strategy of truth” as an ethical contribution of propaganda to facilitate the dialogue and debate which are necessary in democratic societies.     

Measuring the adoption of innovation. A typology of EU countries based on the Innovation Survey

Based on the Community Innovation Survey, this paper suggests new indicators of innovation adoption. The magnitude of innovation adoption is assessed for 22 EU countries and different industries. The most striking feature is the correlation between the innovation activities and the adoption rate. Countries with strong R&D and human resources and high innovation output exhibit the highest adoption rates. This supports the idea that innovation adoption requires an absorption capability. In addition, the specificities of each country regarding the prevailing types of innovation and adoption (product or process, cooperation-based adoption or internal adoption) allow us to draw up a typology of the EU countries, for which a specific geographical pattern is observed.     

Variance reduction in the study of a test concerning the behrens-fisher problem

A simulation case study illustrating the implementation of a variance reduction technique appropriate for dichotomous response variables is presented. In this simulation study, concerning the power of the Cochran and Cox test for the equality of means under possibly unequal variances, variance reductions of around 80% or more are obtained. More importantly, a known property of the Cochran and Cox, its conservative character, is detected thanks to the use of variance reduction.     

Quality of Work and Aggregate Productivity

We inspect the relationship between quality of work and productivity. Using Spanish aggregate data for the period 2001–2006, we find that quality of work is an additional factor to explain productivity levels in sectors and regions. Consequently, quality of work is not only an objective per se, but it also may be a production factor able to increase the wealth of regions. In our work we use two alternatives definitions of quality of work, coming respectively from survey data and from a social indicators approach. Besides, we employ two different measurements of labour productivity, in order to test the robustness of our result. We estimate our model using a simultaneous equation model for our panel of data, and we find important differences in high and low human capital sectors. The former display a positive relationship between quality of work and productivity, while the latter show a negative relationship.     

Montée en qualification et modification de la répartition au sein de la chaîne de valeur mondiale du secteur de l’électronique

Le secteur de l’électronique repose sur une chaîne de production mondiale particulièrement complexe. Les auteurs s'appuient sur des données de la base WIOD pour la période 2000–2014 afin d'apprécier la contribution des pays à cette chaîne de valeur. Ils examinent notamment l'incidence de la crise financière mondiale de 2007–2008 sur son évolution et établissent une cartographie des interactions internationales. L’étude révèle une augmentation des délocalisations depuis la crise financière, la Chine et d'autres pays d'Asie de l'Est étant devenus les principaux pôles de création de valeur. Elle montre aussi que les technologies de production ont connu une transformation radicale, accompagnée d'une montée en qualification.     

Sociodemographic characteristics of gay and lesbian victims of intimate partner psychological abuse in Spain and Latin America / Características sociodemográficas de gais y lesbianas víctimas de abuso psicológico en pareja en España e Hispanoamérica

Psychological abuse in same-sex couples has hardly been studied in Spain and Latin America, despite its importance in society and public health. The objective of this study is to examine the prevalence of psychological abuse in same-sex couples in Spain and Latin America and analyse the associated sociodemographic characteristics. An online survey was conducted with 663 gay and lesbian respondents from Spain and Latin America. Of the total sample, 10.6% reported that they perceived themselves as victims of psychological abuse from their partner (9.6% in gay men and 10.7% in lesbians). In gay men, differences were found between victims and non-victims on the sociodemographic variables of age, professional status, and daily alcohol consumption. In lesbians, significant differences were found between victims and non-victims in the country and professional status variables. When comparing gay and lesbian victims, significant differences were found in professional status and alcohol consumption. This study contributes to better understanding of this phenomenon, and it reveals the need for further research.     

Upskilling and distributional changes in the electronics global value chain

The electronics industry has one of the most complex global production chains in the international economy. Using data from the World Input–Output Database for the period 2000–14, this article traces individual contributions to the value chain in order to observe how financial turmoil has affected its evolution over time and to map international interactions. The authors point to a rise in offshoring until the outbreak of the global financial crisis of 2007–08, as China and other Eastern Asian economies became an essential node of value creation. They also detect a deep transformation of production technologies, accompanied by a process of upskilling.