Economics of the firm and economic growth: a hybrid theoretical framework of analysis

Abstract

The main goal of this study is to achieve a critical discussion around the conceptualization of the firm and its role in the dynamic process of economic growth. By reviewing the theoretical matrix of the economics of the firm we go beyond the mainstream economics of the firm proposing a hybrid approach combining evolutionary and population ecology, which is likely to constitute a fruitful path for the conceptualization of the firm in the process of economic growth. Specifically, the analysis confronts the distinct theoretical perspectives around some imperative and controversial issues such as the nature of knowledge and learning and the cognitive capacities of economic agents within the firm. We argue that the economic understanding of growth and development of human societies will strongly benefit from a conceptualization of the firm capable of capturing the spirit of the Knightian firm. Overcoming the shortcomings of the mainstream growth models, which conceive firms as a black box, the proposed hybrid approach recalls the true nature of the firm as an organization. Issues related to the organizational arrangements that sustain the feasibility of productive activities and to the incentive contracts are also taken into account. Although acknowledging some recent important contributions within mainstream economic growth theory to adopt more realistic concepts of the firm, we believe that evolutionary and organizational population perspectives include crucial pointers in developing further research aimed at the construction of economic growth models based on a micro-economic perspective that is closer to the reality of firms.     

From pillar to post: Women and social work studies in the 21st century

Abstract

A decade or so after the acknowledgement and inclusion of women's issues in mainstream social work courses, we find the circumstances in which such education occurs have changed. The 'third wave' of feminism has revisited the feminist agenda of the 1960s and 1970s; there has been a paradigm shift in what tertiary education is perceived to offer; and global theories have been replaced by post modern interpretations. This article discusses the impact of these changes for social work education drawing on the authors' experiences with the 'Women and Social Work' elective subject in the Bachelor of Social Work Degree at the University of New South Wales, Australia. This elective was popular until the mid 1990s when it failed to attract students. The authors reflect on their experience of teaching the subject and their understanding of current feminism to identify a way forward in the attempt to rekindle student enthusiasm for feminist understandings and provide education which will further the emancipatory project of social work.     

Testing Covariance Stationarity

In this paper, we show that the widely used stationarity tests such as the Kwiatkowski Phillips, Schmidt, and Shin (KPSS) test have power close to size in the presence of time-varying unconditional variance. We propose a new test as a complement of the existing tests. Monte Carlo experiments show that the proposed test possesses the following characteristics: (i) in the presence of unit root or a structural change in the mean, the proposed test is as powerful as the KPSS and other tests; (ii) in the presence of a changing variance, the traditional tests perform badly whereas the proposed test has high power comparing to the existing tests; (iii) the proposed test has the same size as traditional stationarity tests under the null hypothesis of stationarity. An application to daily observations of return on U.S. Dollar/Euro exchange rate reveals the existence of instability in the unconditional variance when the entire sample is considered, but stability is found in subsamples.     

从《林纾的翻译》看钱钟书的翻译思想

本文重点探讨了著名翻译学家钱钟书在其所著的《林纾的翻译》一文中所提出的“诱”、“讹”、“化”的翻译思想，以及其对于中西异质性语言文化之间的互解互译具有的理论上的实践意义。     

社会环境观在连续体文体分析中的应用——基于《高级英语》的案例分析

用韩礼德的社会环境观分析连续体文体《高级英语》，既可以加深对《高级英语》的认识，又能探索出一条区别于语言描写的连续体文体分析之路。分析过程表明：社会环境观的研究角度独特，研究结果见地深刻，且操作性强，但与语言描写法相比，其产生的结论较为宏观，故在日常的研究中，两种方法应结合起来使用，以相辅相成，互作补充。     

司马迁经济思想的道家渊源及其发展

道家思想的核心是＂道＂,＂道＂在经济上的体现亦为＂无为＂,＂无为＂才能使经济活动合乎＂道＂。司马迁作为道家经济思想的集大成者,在《史记.货殖列传》中将道家经济思想发扬光大,其中体现的关于发展经济思想及善因论理论,体现出司马迁经济思想的道家渊源以及司马迁对道家经济思想的扬弃和发展,具有极高的时代价值和意义。     

Distribution theory and inference for polynomial-normal densities

This paper considers a class of densities formed by taking the product of nonnegative polynomials and normal densities. These densities provide a rich class of distributions that can be used in modelling when faced with non-normal characteristics such as skewness and multimodality. In this paper we address inferential and computational issues arising in the practical implementation of this parametric family in the context of the linear model. Exact results are recorded for the conditional analysis of location-scale models and an importance sampling algorithm is developed for the implementation of a conditional analysis for the general linear model when using polynomial-normal distributions for the error.     

Evaluating Item Discrimination Power of WHOQOL-BREF from an Item Response Model Perspectives

Quality of life (QOL) has become an important component of health. By using the methodology of psychometric theory, we examine the item properties of the WHOQOL-BRIEF. Samejima’s graded response model with natural metrics of the logistic response function was fitted. The results showed items with negative natures were less discriminating. Items written in a specific way were more suitable to assess certain subgroups. The national items showed variation in discriminatory power. Questions measuring objective and specific issues performed worse than items assessing general aspects of the QOL.     

哲学与文学理论关系问题研究

目前学术界在文学理论中关于反本质主义问题的争论一直未能停止。究其原因，反本质主义论者的一个重要观点就是文学理论过分依赖哲学，受其影响而丧失了文学理论的学科基础与自身理论的合理性。文学理论中本质主义问题出现的原因在于：受哲学影响，文学理论过度发展其理论品格的一极，在脱离创作实践中放弃了实践品格的追求。当下文学理论应在保持其理论品格的同时，突出其实践品格，在文学创作实践中提高理论再生能力。     

“生产的自然条件”与生产力发展的二重性——析马克思主义生产力理论之生态文明视角

马克思的生产力理论具有双重视角。唯物史观所谓的"生产力标准",是立足于工业文明的视角,在不考虑"生产的自然条件"前提下而得出的价值观;因此,它尽管赋有"决定历史发展的终极动力"地位,毕竟只能在普遍性的意义上存在。而在对现实的生产力发展模式的研究中,马克思立足于后工业文明的生态文明视角,创立了"生产的自然条件"范畴,并据此界定了生产力发展的现实意义:生产力能否实现与"生产的自然条件"之良性结合。这就为人类从工业文明的生产方式转型为生态文明的生产方式指明了路向。