Multiple paths in educational transitions: A multinomial transition model with unobserved heterogeneity

In many countries educational branching points consist of more than two qualitatively different alternatives, and only some alternatives provide the opportunity of continuing into higher education. I develop a multinomial transition model for modeling the effects of family background characteristics and individual characteristics on these complex educational careers. The model controls for unobserved heterogeneity that may, if ignored, result in biased estimates. Compared to previous research, I explicitly include instrumental variables that ensure identification of the unobserved component. I apply the model to the Danish case and analyze data which covers the educational careers of a cohort of Danes born around 1954. I find that the model brings forward non-trivial heterogeneity in the influence of family background and ability on qualitatively different choice alternatives both within and across transitions. I also find that not controlling for unobserved heterogeneity leads to marked underestimation of the family background effect on both early and late transitions in the educational career.     

Should commodity tax rates be uniform across regions in a heterogeneous country? Evidence from India

With countries increasingly adopting the Goods and Services Tax (GST) as their system of commodity taxes replacing the myriad of sales, excise and other form of indirect taxes, there is a move towards the two features that characterize the GST: uniform tax rates across items and identical tax rates across regions. When India introduced the GST in 2017, it followed several other countries in departing from the first feature but in keeping with universal practice embraced the second feature. The chief motivation of this paper is to subject this latter feature to critical scrutiny. The study examines the four GST rates in India by comparing them with counterfactual evidence based on preference based optimal commodity tax rates estimated by taking into account regional diversity in prices and spending. The benchmarking suggests that the current top GST rates (12%, 16% and 28%) are much higher than can be justified by the optimal rates. The Indian evidence is also in favor of departing from the universal practice in GST of adopting a uniform tax across items. The paper makes a methodological contribution by proposing a procedure for calculating spatial prices that can be applied to a wide basket of items. The study provides evidence on the redistributive potential of indirect taxation by showing the progressive nature of the optimal commodity taxes. The latter result is of particular significance in developing countries where indirect taxes raise the greater share of revenue and provide an important policy tool for tackling increasing inequality. The study concludes with a list of policy lessons as the country seeks to make further changes to its GST. While there is a significant literature on harmonization of indirect taxes across countries that belong to a single economic grouping such as the EU, there is no such literature between regions within a large heterogeneous country. The present study on tax harmonization between the states in India attempts to fill this gap.     

Lessons Learned: Pedagogical Tensions and Struggles with Instruction on Multiculturalism in Social Work Education Programs

While the importance of multiculturalism to social work education and practice has been extensively theorized in the social work literature, very little empirical attention has been paid to the concrete experiences of social work students within the classroom. The socializing influence of pedagogy is one aspect of the professionalization process that must be considered in addressing issues of diversity and inclusion in graduate education programs. This article addresses this gap by describing and analyzing the narratives of 15 minority graduate social work students. It examines their perception and experiences with instruction on multiculturalism with the graduate curriculum and the meaning they assign to these experiences. Their narratives illuminate the myriad ways that the curriculum excludes minority students and reproduces social inequality. Social work education has a responsibility to eliminate racism and inequality from the content of its courses and in its teaching methods. The identification of these negative socializing messages may assist educators in structuring curricular and pedagogical practices that can facilitate the academic success of all students.     

The Path to Social Work: Contextual Determinants of Career Choice among Racial/Ethnic Minority Students

While the importance of multiculturalism to social work education and practice have been extensively theorized in the social work literature, very little empirical attention has been paid to the concrete experiences of social work students with instruction on multiculturalism. The experience of students within the multicultural classroom is one aspect of the professionalization process that must be considered in addressing issues of diversity and inclusion in graduate education programs. This article addresses this gap by describing and analyzing the narratives of 15 minority graduate social work students. It examines their perception and experiences with the graduate multicultural curriculum and the meaning they assign to these experiences. Their narratives illuminate the myriad ways that the curriculum excludes minority students and reproduces social inequality. Social work education has a responsibility to eliminate racism and inequality from the content of its courses and in its teaching methodologies. The identification of these negative socializing messages may assist educators in structuring curricular and pedagogical practices that are compatible with the multiethnic groups that both serve and are served by the profession.     

Who Wants to Redistribute? An Analysis of 14 Post‐Soviet Nations

We investigate population groups' attitude regarding inequality reduction in post‐Soviet transitional countries of the Baltic, Central Asia and the Caucasus, as well as the Slavic countries and Moldova. Empirical evidence presented in this article demonstrates that despite skyrocketing inequality, erosion of social provisions and efforts to introduce an individualistic market economy ideology during the last 15 years, overall support for redistribution and welfare state efforts to counterbalance rising inequality remained strongly legitimized among citizens in all post‐Soviet countries. Nevertheless, there are differences between population groups in attitude: the older, the less educated, the poor and women express more support for redistribution; while the younger, the better educated, the rich and men tend to not support redistribution. Populations in transitional countries of the Caucasus and Central Asia that face higher inequality and less effective redistribution policies expressed a strong desire for more redistribution and more active social welfare policies.     

The poverty of growth with interdependent utility functions

We argue that with interdependent utility functions growth can lead to a decline in total welfare of a society if the gains from growth are sufficiently unequally distributed in the presence of negative externalities in consumption, i.e. envy.     

一个重要不等式的推广

对〔1〕中的结论 :若a ,b ,c∈R ,n∈N ,且有n≥ 2 ,则 (an bn cn) /3 ≥ [(a b c) /3] n。将其条件拓广到n个正数     

城乡收入差距影响因素的理论与实证研究

在新经济增长理论的框架下考察可能影响城乡收入差距的因素。基于1997-2003年间省级面板数据的估计结果显示,城乡间人均物质资本存量和人均人力资本存量差距是拉大城乡收入差距的因素。而用来反映城乡二元经济结构的指标中,用人口户籍变换来表示的城市化水平的发展也会扩大城乡收入差距,农村劳动力的流动对降低城乡收入差距有显著作用;城乡有别的财政支出结构也对城乡收入差距有显著影响。     

不平等概念与近代中国的不平等条约

法学上的平等指的是程序和条文上的平等,理想概念中的绝对平等是不存在的,我们判断中国近代史上的条约是否平等,依据的标准应该与国际法一致。条约的缔结是否有武力直接或间接的威胁,条约是否侵犯了中国的主权,约文是否对等,应是我们评判不平等条约的基本原则。由于近代条约的复杂多样,单凭几个原则是难以判定所有的条约的,对一些具体的问题还需要深入讨论。     

Social Justice in the Social Work Classroom: Applying a Professional Value to Social Work Education

Social justice is a primary value of social work and therefore has a place in discussions of social work education pedagogy. This is especially true for conversations pertaining to students who are underprepared, due to educational inequalities, for successful completion of writing assignments at the undergraduate level. If underprepared students are treated as equals to prepared students, then the social inequalities that contributed to or caused a student to be underprepared are perpetuated rather than challenged. The authors explore responses to underprepared students that are consistent with social work's professional value of social justice.