Maximizing shareholder value: a new ideology for corporate governance

The decade-long boom in the US stock market and the more recent boom in the US economy have fostered widespread belief in the economic benefits of the maximization of shareholder value as a principle of corporate governance. In this paper, we provide an historical analysis of the rise of shareholder value as a principle of corporate governance in the United States, tracing the transformation of US corporate strategy from an orientation towards retention of corporate earnings and reinvestment in corporate growth through the 1970s to one of downsizing of corporate labour forces and distribution of corporate earnings to shareholders over the past two decades. We then consider the recent performance of the US economy, and raise questions about the relation between the maximization of shareholder value and the sustainability of economic prosperity.     

Insuring morality

This article describes and compares two forms of moral regulation employed in connection with insurance institutions. The first governs through moralized personal attributes or pressures like 'temptation' and 'character'. The second governs through moralized institutional or system attributes and processes described in terms of 'efficiency'. The article traces these forms of moral regulation from the mid-nineteenth century to the present, arguing that both continue to inform popular and specialized discourses of risk.     

‘He's snooty ‘im’: exploring ‘white working class’ political disengagement

Using a small pilot qualitative study conducted in the North of England prior to the 2010 general election, we seek to understand why our respondents might feel actively disengaged from mainstream politics. It is argued that one major reason is because politicians are seen as lacking understanding of the local contexts in which these low-wage workers live. The gulf between represented and representative is widened if politicians fail to communicate in a ‘down to earth’ way. This indicates that social inequality between represented and representative is a factor in disengagement, but that such disengagement is not the result of apathy on the part of citizens. Further research is required, but our study suggests that if politicians fail to recognise their privilege and politics fails to address economic disadvantage across ethnic groups then disengagement from mainstream politics is likely to worsen.     

Bargaining Constitutional Design in Italy: Judicial Review as Political Insurance

Why would politicians, who expect to hold political power in the future, choose to create a constitutional court with the power of judicial review that can veto politicians' policies? Some theories suggest that international forces may be causal, as institutions or ideas are diffused geographically or within legal systems. Others focus on domestic politics as driving the decision to institute judicial review. Among these are the commitment, hegemonic preservation, party alternation and insurance theories. This article looks at the decision to establish a constitutional court in the Republic of Italy, the first post-World War II court in Europe that was not in a federal system. It argues that the insurance model drove the decision of the Italian Christian Democrats to support creation of a constitutional court at the point of constitutional design, but later to delay implementation once in power. Conversely, the Italian Communist–Socialist bloc opposed establishment of the court at the Constituent Assembly that wrote the post-war constitution on the ideological ground that it was contrary to popular sovereignty. However, once the leftist bloc found itself in the role of the opposition, it became a champion of the Constitutional Court and judicial review. The insurance theory is shown to explain the behaviour of the Christian Democrats in both design and implementation phases and the actions of the Communist–Socialist bloc during implementation.     

Designing,Implementing, and Evaluating a Media Campaign Illustrating the Bystander Role

SUMMARY

The present article discusses convents as homes. Resulting from the study of a Gregorian source presently housed at DePaul University's Richardson library, this article probes the complexities and restrictions of convent life in 17th century Spain. The Sanctoral de Visperas (1653) functions as a backdrop for a consideration of how singing chant and attendant rituals enriched the lives of nuns. Also included are references to nuns from this period who were outstanding musicians and poets and whose works have recently received enthusiastic attention.     

Evidencing the benefits of cluster policies: towards a generalised framework of effects

Policy Sciences - Regions around the world employ cluster-based policies as part of their industrial, innovation and development policy mixes. They have become a key tool in smart specialisation...     

Domestic Violence Alleged in California Child Maltreatment Reports During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Journal of Family Violence - During the COVID-19 pandemic, reports to child abuse and neglect hotlines have dropped significantly across the United States. Yet, during this same period, calls to...     

POTENTIAL EFFECTS OF PROPOSED PRICE GOUGING LEGISLATION ON THE COST AND SEVERITY OF GASOLINE SUPPLY INTERRUPTIONS

The rise in gasoline prices that followed the devastation causedby Hurricanes Rita and Katrina has led to proposals for federal"price gouging" legislation. This paper analyzes the potentialeconomic costs of such proposals in light of the experiencegained from prior episodes of gasoline supply interruptionsand efforts to impose price controls. Studies of previous spikesin the price of gasoline, including those after Katrina andRita, have consistently found that price increases were dueto the normal operation of supply and demand and not price manipulation.Studies of gasoline price controls find that neither consumersnor the economy benefit, because the apparent monetary savingsto consumers are transformed into costs of waiting or otherforms nonmarket rationing that exceed the monetary savings.Price controls also make shortages worse by reducing the incentiveto provide additional supplies. We apply these lessons to estimatethe additional economic cost that would have been incurred hadprice controls like current legislation been in effect afterthe hurricanes, and conclude that economic damages would havebeen increased by $1.5–2.9 billion during the two-monthperiod of price increases.