Institutions and Caribbean Economic Performance: Insights from Jamaica

We explore the impact of social institutions on economic performance in Jamaica through a reinterpretation of the plantation economic model. In its original form, the plantation model fails to develop a causal link between the plantation legacy and persistent underdevelopment. Despite its marginalization, the model remains useful for discussions on growth and development. Consequently, we offer a reappraisal using the causal insights from Kenneth Sokoloff and Stanley Engerman. We use two examples to demonstrate how inequality encourages the formation of institutions that are inconsistent with growth, and an empirical analysis to confirm the hypothesized relationship between inequality, institutions, and economic development. Since inequality is expected to influence growth indirectly, we use a structural specification, which follows William Easterly’s recent test of Sokoloff and Engerman’s argument. Our reliance on a time-series specification is unique. We demonstrate that the expectation that, on average, inequality and growth is negatively related and that institutions may compromise growth are accurate for Jamaica, the most cited Caribbean nation in the current discourse. Our results carry several policy implications, including support for the recent calls in Jamaica for political restructuring. However, both the paucity of similar studies and the importance of the implications for sustainable growth and development demand further analyses.

《企业运营与发展》课程教学初探

首都职工素质教育工程的全面实施开创了职工教育的新模式,为职工终身学习创造了条件,得到了企业和职工的广泛欢迎,在社会上引起了强烈反响。作为一名授课教师,要对开展素质教育工程的意义有深刻的认识。在教学过程中注重与学员的交流。要根据考核要求,结合学员实际水平,确定授课重点。并注意结合成人学习特点,改变教学模式,引导学员主动参与教学活动,强化学员自主学习意识。     

Old and New Labour Narratives of Whitehall: Radicals,Reactionaries and Defenders of the Westminster Model

This article argues that throughout its history, the leadership of the Labour Party has chosen to embrace a benign view of the Civil Service, as part of a wider acceptance of the constitutional status quo reflected in the Westminster model. There has nevertheless been a long tradition in the wider Labour movement that has questioned whether Whitehall is capable of working for a government with radical aspirations. This article examines Labour's historical approach towards Whitehall, before reflecting on the extent to which the present Administration, while appealing to radical and reforming rhetoric has, like its predecessors, continued to embrace the status quo. It concludes by arguing that a contemporary and credible narrative capable of challenging the Westminster model has yet to emerge from the broader movement.     

学习化社会中的成人教育模式

成人教育是学习化社会的实现途径、终身教育体系中不可或缺的重要部分 ;成人教育的发展有赖于包括目标模式、组织与机构模式和课程模式等多层面的发展模式的有效组织与实施。     

西部地区银行性金融机构网络化的发展前景

银行性金融机构电子化进程在短短的十年间取得了长足发展,对推动经济发展起到了积极的作用,但发展是不平衡的,区域银行特别是西部地区中小规模的银行性金融机构的电子化进程发展相对滞后,需要针对其环境特点及现状进行具体的分析研究,以确定合适的发展模式和发展策略,使西部地区中小规模的银行性金融机构在网络浪潮中抓住机遇,提高核心竞争力。     

试论环保产业在推动延边跨越式发展中的战略地位

环保产业是适应环境保护需求而发展起来的新兴产业,是未来经济发展中最具潜力的新的经济增长点之一。延边要实现跨越式发展,必须重视环保产业。     

社区工作者与传统居委会干部之专业比较

社区建设的发展和深入 ,关键在于社会工作者的自身建设。本文从六个方面论述了社区工作者与传统居委会干部的不同 ,从而确立了社区工作者的专业角色特征     

Quality Management in Public-Sector Organizations: Evidence from Six EU Countries

Although there is considerable evidence for the hypothesis that an efficient use of management techniques is the key to a good public service delivery, a lot of studies come to the conclusion that there is only partial, reluctant implementation or even a general lack of the use of such techniques by public managers. This paper examines the determinants for the use of quality management techniques in public sector organizations from six EU countries. It turns out that especially more organizational autonomy and result control appear to be of importance while, surprisingly, the combination of these variables leads to negative results.     

Financial Health in Australian Local Government: The Application of a Funding Assessment Model to Brisbane and Sydney City Councils

Local government financial viability measurement in an accrual budgeting environment poses complex challenges. Financial measures frequently generate conflicting results. A rating scale to assess financial management, constructed originally for South African municipalities (Dollery & Graves, 2009), represents a useful tool to analyze financial health trends. Applying a “Likert-like” scale to financial performance measures to assess “funding compliance”, the model in this article assists municipalities to avoid financial difficulties. To demonstrate the applicability of this model, we apply the model to the Brisbane City Council and the Sydney City Councils. Results show that the model represents a valuable aid to financial management decision-making.     

Urban Regeneration Policy from the Integrated Urban Development Model in the European Union: an Analytical Approach Based on the Study of Spanish Cities

For several years, local governments have been tackling new challenges related to the regeneration of their cities within the physical sphere, as well as in their economic and social aspects. This task is developed in accordance with what has been called the Integrated Urban Development Model, understanding the integrated nature of this approach not only in terms of the spheres of public policy involved, but also in relation to their management. In this paper, this management is analysed in terms of the development of mechanisms for New Local Governance and New Public Management (NPM). Using Spanish municipalities as a case study, this paper develops an analytical tool for the analysis of this model of urban intervention within the European context, paying close attention to the development of mechanisms for New Local Governance from a multilevel perspective, as well as the development of mechanisms for NPM.