Showing 1 - 10 of 62
This Paper documents that the rise of (Western) Europe between 1500 and 1850 is largely accounted for by the growth of European nations with access to the Atlantic, and especially by those nations that engaged in colonialism and long distance oceanic trade. Moreover, Atlantic ports grew much...
Persistent link: https://www.econbiz.de/10005067437
Military priorities influence a significant proportion of the resources that capitalist societies devote to R&D. Some of the commanding heights of civil economies have been powerfully shaped by the opportunities created by specifically military R&D. This paper is an attempt to sketch the...
Persistent link: https://www.econbiz.de/10005281392
Recent Eurobarometer survey data are used to document and explain the stock of social capital in 27 European countries. Social capital in Central and Eastern Europe – measured by civic participation and access to social networks – lags behind that in Western European countries. Using...
Persistent link: https://www.econbiz.de/10005792441
Labour market frictions are not the only possible source of high unemployment. Credit market imperfections, driven by microeconomic frictions and influenced by macroeconomic factors, could also be to blame. To develop this idea in a simple and tractable macroeconomic model, we treat credit and...
Persistent link: https://www.econbiz.de/10005792453
In a capitalist economy capitalists can sell their stake in a firm on the stock market whereas workers cannot sell their jobs. It is argued that when workers have some bargaining power this asymmetry in property rights leads to inefficiencies. The consequences of this are explored and certain...
Persistent link: https://www.econbiz.de/10005662149
How to sustain cooperation is a key challenge for any society. Different social organizations have evolved in the course of history to cope with this challenge by relying on different combinations of external (formal and informal) enforcement institutions and intrinsic motivation. Some societies...
Persistent link: https://www.econbiz.de/10008468568
Analyzing data from a unique survey of managers of Chinese private firms, we investigate how family ties with firm heads affect managerial compensation and job assignment. We find that family managers earn higher salaries and receive more bonuses, hold higher positions, and are given more...
Persistent link: https://www.econbiz.de/10008468597
We conduct the first systematic evaluation of the world’s largest community-based development program--China’s flagship …
Persistent link: https://www.econbiz.de/10008468658
China’s economic reforms have resulted in spectacular growth and poverty reduction. However, China’s institutions look … ill-suited to achieve such a result, and they indeed suffer from serious shortcomings. To solve "China puzzle" this paper … analyses China’s institution - a regionally decentralized authoritarian system. The central government has control over …
Persistent link: https://www.econbiz.de/10008468688
A stylized model of the Chinese economy is developed with three production sectors: agriculture, non-traded industrial goods, and industrial exports. The state purchases food from farmers by dual-track pricing; urban food sales are subsidized through ration coupons. Marginal prices clear markets...
Persistent link: https://www.econbiz.de/10005123495