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Content:Bohn, Frank: The Politics of Surprise Devaluations: Modelling Motives for Giving Up a Peg JBNST - Vol. 233/5+6 - 2013, pp. 562-574.
+ show abstract- hide abstractPlanned ‘‘surprise’’ devaluations are often spurred by non-economic circumstances: a rentseeking
government; political instability; or the opportunity to put the blame on a predecessor
government. In this paper, these aspects are incorporated in the monetary and fiscal policy
framework first suggested by Alesina and Tabellini (1987). It is shown that reneging on a fixed
exchange rate promise unambiguously produces short term benefits, but long run losses. This
leads to a non-straightforward trade-off between greediness (propensity for expropriation) and
political stability (which implies a low time preference). The findings are empirically relevant
and theoretically robust to extensions. Gilroy, B. Michael, Elmar Lukas, Christian Heimann: Technology Site Germany and International Knowledge Spillovers JBNST - Vol. 233/5+6 - 2013, pp. 575-599.
+ show abstract- hide abstractThe inherent technical capability of a domestic economy has a significant effect upon trade. In
addition, the innovation achievement potential of foreign countries and their companies may
also enhance a given situation. International trade and foreign direct investment (FDI) provide
knowledge transmission channels for innovation and research and development spillovers. Applying
a Panel Analysis for the period 1990 to 2008, this study examines the bilateral export
flows of Germany with the remaining 31 OECD countries. Using an extended gravity model
the study investigates which influence the trade partners’ innovation potential, as well as the
research intensity of foreign multinational companies (MNCs) has upon German exports.
The novel aspect of this study is the introduction of a direct measure for knowledge spillover.
The findings show, that the trade partners’ innovation potential as well as their FDI has a
significant positive influence upon trade. In particular, the more innovative a foreign MNC
located in Germany is, the greater the amount of German exports. Grösche, Peter, Christoph M. Schmidt, Colin Vance: Identifying Free-riding in Home Renovation Programs Using Revealed Preference Data JBNST - Vol. 233/5+6 - 2013, pp. 600-618.
+ show abstract- hide abstractIdentifying free-ridership is significant to several issues relevant to program evaluation, including
the calculation of net program benefits and assessments of political acceptability. Despite
the potential of free-ridership to seriously undermine the economic efficiency of a program
intervention, for instance to foster energy efficiency, the issue remains largely absent from contemporary
environmental and energy policy discussions in Europe. One reason for this neglect
is the inherent difficulty of assessing which households would have undertaken the energyconservation
activity even without the program. This paper proposes a procedure to calculate
the free-rider share using revealed preference data on home renovations from Germany’s
residential sector.We employ a discrete-choice model to analyze the effect of grants on renovation
choices, the output fromwhich is used to assess the extent of free-ridership under a subsidy
program very akin to an implemented grants program in Germany. Our empirical results
suggest only very moderate energy savings induced by the program, making free-riding a
problem of outstanding importance. Grund, Christian, Christine Harbring: Trust and Control at the Workplace JBNST - Vol. 233/5+6 - 2013, pp. 619-637.
+ show abstract- hide abstractBased on two representative samples of employees, the German Socio Economic Panel and the
European Social Survey, we explore the relation between certain measures of control in employment
relationships (i. e. working time regulations, use of performance appraisal systems,
monitoring by supervisors, autonomy to organize the work) and individuals’ inclination to
trust others. Trust is measured by the general trust question like in most other economic studies
based on surveys. We find that strict working time regulations, monitoring and lack of
autonomy – all indicators for control at the workplace – are negatively associated with trust.
Monitoring also moderates the relation between the existence of a formal performance appraisal
system and individuals’ trust.Moreover,we contribute to the literature on trust by gathering
hints to other potential correlates of trust. Knetsch, Thomas A.: A User Cost Approach to Capital Measurement in Aggregate Production Functions JBNST - Vol. 233/5+6 - 2013, pp. 638-660.
+ show abstract- hide abstractA method is proposed to measure capital services in production. This means that productive
assets are weighted according to their user costs. The user costs of the individual asset classes
are estimated based on data from the national accounts and other sources. The results show
that, in the observation period between 1991 and 2011, enterprises’ capital services expand
faster than the officially published capital stock. For the economy as a whole, this applies only
to phases of cyclical expansion. As the capital stock is aggregated using asset prices, the differences
can be explained by the different weighting methods in conjunction with the varying
speeds at which the individual asset types have accumulated over time. In growth accounting,
different estimates of total factor productivity emerge. The methodological difference, however,
does not significantly affect the estimates of parametric production function specifications. Siliverstovs, Boriss: Dating Business Cycles in Historical Perspective: Evidence for Switzerland JBNST - Vol. 233/5+6 - 2013, pp. 661-679.
+ show abstract- hide abstractIn this study we suggest a chronology of the classical business cycle in Switzerland based on
dating algorithms suggested in Artis et al. (2004) and Harding and Pagan (2002). A further
contribution of our study is that we determine the sensitivity of the chronology with respect to
the particular GDP vintage used. For this purpose we employ a real-time database that contains
59 vintages of GDP data starting from 1997Q4 and ending in 2012Q2. We show that major
changes in identified phases of the classical business cycle in Switzerland can be well traced to
several benchmark revisions to the national accounts. In the absence of benchmark revisions
the vintage-to-vintage variation exerts a comparatively minor effect on identified phases of the
classical business cycle. Staszewska-Bystrova, Anna: Modified Scheffé’s Prediction Bands JBNST - Vol. 233/5+6 - 2013, pp. 680-690.
+ show abstract- hide abstractThe formula for the Scheffé prediction bands proposed by Jordà and Marcellino (2010) is reconsidered.
It is demonstrated, that in many cases of practical interest, the bands fail to satisfactorily
approximate the uncertainty associated with a path-forecast. A modification of the Scheffé
method is proposed which improves the coverage properties of the bands. Thomä, Jörg, Volker Zimmermann: Knowledge Protection Practices in Innovating SMEs JBNST - Vol. 233/5+6 - 2013, pp. 691-717.
+ show abstract- hide abstractThis paper examines the use of innovation protection mechanisms in small and medium enterprises
(SMEs). By starting from a knowledge-based view the aim is to achieve a better understanding
of how the role perceived by innovating SMEs of patent protection and the long-term
retention of qualified personnel relates to different company-specific factors. Moreover, the
interplay between patents and employee retention and their mutual interdependencies with other
appropriation methods such as secrecy or lead time advantages are explored. This is because
different knowledge protection practices must not only separately provide barriers to imitation,
but may also reinforce each other as complements. In several ways, the results provide insights
into some of the appropriation strategies taken by smaller firms. For example, a staff-related
appropriation strategy seems to be essential for many SMEs because of their informal mode
of learning and innovation characterized by experience-based know-how with strong tacit elements.
A relatively strong complementary relationship has been observed between employee
retention and the use of lead time advantages. The paper concludes with a discussion of the
implications for policy and research.
Book Reviews Barnett, William A.: Getting it Wrong. How Faulty Monetary Statistics Undermine the Fed, the Financial System and the Economy JBNST - Vol. 233/5+6 - 2013, pp. 718-719.
Heckman, James J.: Giving Kids a Fair Chance JBNST - Vol. 233/5+6 - 2013, pp. 720-721.
Pies, Ingo, Martin Leschke (Hrsg.): Edmund Phelps’ strukturalistische Ökonomik JBNST - Vol. 233/5+6 - 2013, pp. 722-722.
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