Family entrepreneurs in all honesty cannot grasp this new concept. Just now, while we are still experiencing a worldwide financial and economic crisis, which has by no means been overcome yet, there is talk of increasing taxation of assets. In recent years, small and medium-sized and larger...

The reintroduction of a wealth tax in Germany would not contribute to more fairness in terms of the ability to pay principle. On the contrary: Since wealth in form of human capital is not taxed, a wealth tax would lead to a massive unequal treatment of people with the same ability to pay. The...

In this chapter both theory and empirics are used to show that our picture of the processes of economic development changes radically when nature is introduced as a capital asset. Particular features of institutions that fashion societies' use of the natural-resource base are identified and...

I study data on bribes actually paid by individuals to public officials, viewing the results through a theoretical lens that considers the implications of trust networks. A bond of trust may permit an implicit quid pro quo to substitute for a bribe, which reduces corruption. Appropriate networks...

This paper develops the link between poverty and inequality by focussing on a class of poverty indices (some of them well-known) which aggregate normative concerns for absolute and relative deprivation. The indices are distinguished by a parameter that captures the ethical sensitivity of poverty...

The purpose of this background paper is: i) to synthesize the discussions regarding the concept of human development, so as to inform the 2010 Report’s definition, and ii) drawing on the extensive policy and academic literatures, to propose relationships between the concept of human...

The paper focuses on satisfaction with income and proposes a utility model built on two value systems, the `Ego' system - described as one own income assessment relatively to one own past and future income - and the `Alter' system - described as one own income assessment relatively to a...

El propósito de este trabajo es conocer los determinantes de la participación en organizaciones sociales en Chile, y evaluar si la participación ha conducido a una mejora en el bienestar económico de los hogares, utilizando el enfoque del capital social. Se estimaron modelos de...

The paper focuses on satisfaction with income and proposes a utility model built on two value systems, the `Ego' system - described as one own income assessment relatively to one own past and future income - and the `Alter' system - described as one own income assessment relatively to a...

When asymmetry or non-verifiability of information, or non- excludability of users, makes contracts incomplete or unenforceable, and where for these and other reasons there are impediments to efficient bargaining, we show that private contracting will not generally assign the control of assets...