This book examines Irish economic development in the twentieth century compared with other European countries. It traces the growth of the Republic's economy from its separation from Britain in the early 1920s through to the present. It assesses the factors which encouraged and inhibited economic development, and concludes with an appraisal of the country's present state and future prospects.

Originally published between 1982 and 1996, and addressing issues of central importance to the competitiveness of firms and economies, the volumes in this set draw together research by leading academics in the area and provides a rigorous examination of key issues relating to employment in small businesses. They: Study both the growth and the barriers to growth of small firms Examine problems of rurality Investigate the variation in rates of new venture initiations across manufacturing industries Include a wide range of national case studies from Sweden, the Netherlands, the UK, Greece, Spain, Israel and Indonesia. Discuss marketing in the small business and the relationship between small and large firms in an advanced capitalist economy Reassess economic theories concerned with concentration and competition the relationship between small and large firms in an advanced capitalist economy Analyse the managerial factors most closely associated with successful small firms

This important and timely book examines how corporate governance has and should be developed in China to meet the challenges of enterprise and financial reform. It highlights key economic, social and political issues that China has to confront in order to transform the state owned industrial enterprises into a competitive and modern corporate sector. On Kit Tam critically appraises the main analytical frameworks and models of corporate governance in industrialized countries. He then assesses China's development in terms of current Western debates in relation to the role, function and evolution of corporate governance arrangements. He examines how the Chinese government has adopted a top-down approach combined with a market based Anglo-American model. The author also presents surveys of company directors, managers and supervisors reporting the current environment and analyses the choices available in the light of China's particular problems. He concludes with suggestions for a model of corporate governance in China. This book will be welcomed by economists and those interested in management studies, Chinese reform, international business, Asian studies, industrial organization and business strategy.

Using statistical analysis, this volume, originally published in 1925, examines the sociological aspects of the business cycle. It discusses which areas of social activity are influenced by the business cycle and measures the relative degree of this influence in each of the areas which are covered. Bringing together the work of economists and criminologists, this volume discusses topics such as births, deaths, poverty, crime, emigration and marriage in relation to business cycles.

Originally published in the Great Depression this accessible volume was aimed not only at the academic economist, but also the general reader. The cycles of panic, boom and bust are discussed and solutions provided as to how to get over the bust periods as efficiently as possible. The commodities of wheat and gold are discussed in detail, and comparisons made between UK and US budget surpluses and deficits.

The new Political Economy, which in 1815 captured the attention of a country exhausted by war and drained by economic crisis, was to have profound effects on British and, indeed, the Western world's economic and political life for more than a hundred years. Professor Langer's new study is the first to analyze fully the interplay of ideas, politics, and history in this crucial period of change. Rather than treating the theories of the classical political economists as a set of abstract formulations, the author looks at how they were actually applied to the political and moral problems of the day. He examines how the economists, their doctrines, and the ruling political alignments affected the course of history, particularly in the conflicts surrounding the Corn Law, the Poor Law, child labor, and the reform of the monetary system.

House prices and mortgage debt have moved to centre stage in the management of national economies, regional development and neighbourhood change. Describing, analysing and understanding how housing markets work within and across these scales of economy and society has never been more urgent. But much more is known about the macro-scales than the microstructures; and about the economic rather than social drivers of housing market dynamics. This book redresses the balance. It shows that housing markets are social, cultural and psychological - as well as economic - affairs. This multidisciplinary approach is helpful in understanding the economic staples of supply, demand, price and information. It also casts new light on the emotional and political economy of markets.

This book explores Public Procurement novelties and challenges in an interdisciplinary way. The process whereby the public sector awards contracts to companies for the supply of works, goods or services is a powerful instrument to ensure the achievement of new public goals as well as an efficient use of public funds. This book brings together the papers that have been presented during the "First Symposium on Public Procurement", a conference held in Rome last summer and to be repeated again yearly. As Public Procurement touches on many fields (law, economics, political science, engineering) the editors have used an interdisciplinary approach to discuss four main topics of interest which represent the four different parts in which this book is divided: Competitive dialogue and contractual design fostering innovation and need analysis, Separation of selection and award criteria, including exclusion of reputation indicators like references to experience, performance and CV's from award criteria, Retendering a contract for breach of procurement rules or changes to contract (contract execution), Set-asides for small and medium firms, as in the USA system with the Small Business Act that reserves shares of tenders to SMEs only.

Routledge Handbook of Social and Sustainable Finance brings together an international cast of leading authorities to map out and display the disparate voices, traditions and professional communities engaged in social finance activity. With a clear societal or environmental mission, foundations, individual and group investors, as well as public bodies around the world have become increasingly eager to finance and support innovative forms of doing business. Together, founders and established businesses alike are embracing new sustainable business models with a distinct stakeholder approach to tackle social or environmental problems in what they see as a failed economic system in crisis. As a result, the topic of social and sustainable finance is at the forefront of financial economic thought. This Handbook is divided up into three parts. The first, "The Landscape of Social and Sustainable Finance and Investments", comprises of chapters from a multitude of perspectives in an effort to grasp the entirety of the landscape. The second, "Challenges, Suggestions, Critiques and Debates", focuses on areas ranging from sociological underpinnings to critical takes on markets, and the identification of specialized business models. Amongst ethical considerations, topics include the scaling of impact, an analysis of sustainability as risk prevention and comparative analyses of various methods of justification and measurement. In the third and final section, "Markets and Institutions", contributions range from various perspectives on sustainable banking to environmental marketplaces, and finally on to practical cases and country specific observations. This volume is essential reading for both academics and students in economics and finance. It is also of interest to those who study environmental economics, microeconomics and banking.

`This is an important book that deserves to be read by everyone concerned with presenting major environmental issues.' Geography ` ... an essential text for policy makers and aid professionals, as well as for students of environmental studies and international development ... It is indeed, a book appropriate to the urgent and critical issues which it addresses.' - Journal of Environmental Management

Why Delegate? moves beyond the standard economic accounts of delegation to offer a fresh take on a wide variety of issues and shows how essential the act of delegating is to our society. From mundane tasks like choosing a plumber to weightier ones like running a country, the world turns on delegation. We delegate particular tasks to people we believe have more expertise than we do. When it is successful, delegation improves efficiency, expands the range of responsible actors, and even increases happiness. When delegation fails, though, it brings conflict, corruption, and an absence of accountability. In Why Delegate?, Neil J. Mitchell investigates the incentives to delegate and the risks we take in doing so. He demonstrates how a new, modified understanding of the simple structure of the delegation relationship-the principal-agent relationship, as economists have described it-simplifies a myriad of important and seemingly disparate problems in private and public life. Using real-world case studies including child abuse in the Catholic Church, the Volkswagen pollution scandal, and FIFA corruption, Mitchell illustrates the broad functionality of delegation logic and the wide range of incentives at work in these relationships. Diverse examples reveal the opportunism of both the leaders and the led and show how accepted accounts of the principal-agent relationship are incomplete. By drawing on multidisciplinary research to address complex questions of motivation, control, responsibility, and accountability, the book builds a broader, more useful logic of delegation. Why Delegate? moves beyond the standard economic accounts of delegation to offer a fresh take on a wide variety of issues and shows how essential the act of delegating is to our society. Mitchell's comprehensive account of the contexts, causes, and effects of delegation develops a new way to understand both the theory and practice of this critical relationship.

Argues that environmental problems need to be looked at internationally, in terms of the global economic system, and that the degradation of the environment is not `natural', but an historical process which is intrinsically linked and shaped by economic and political systems.

eBook available with sample pages: 0203408888

Truett and Truett's Eighth Edition shows how to use economic analysis to solve problems and make effective decisions in the complex world of business. The highly successful problem-solving approach, clear and accurate presentation of economic theory, and outstanding cases combine to make the best presentation of managerial economics yet.
* Walks readers step by step through specific types of problems, including elasticity calculations, cost minimization, and profit maximization.
* Shows how real-world firms have addressed issues discussed in the book.
* Emphasizes the global aspects of managerial economics and its application in the international marketplace.

In Poverty from the Wealth of Nations , the author presents an analysis of the evolution of global disparities that goes beyond the earlier neo-Marxist critiques of global capitalism. He moves beyond their narrative by inserting two additional asymmetries into the global economy - those created by 'unequal races' and unequal states. The author analyzes not only the power of markets, but the powers that shaped these markets. More importantly, he marshals cross-country evidence to show that loss of sovereignty retarded industrialization, human capital formation and economic growth.

Many policies in several Western European countries and the U.S. aim to counter spatial concentrations of deprivation and create more socio-economically mixed residential areas. Such policies are founded on the belief that neighbourhoods have a strong and independent effect upon the well-being and life-chances of individuals. The adequacy of the evidence base to support this position has been the subject of spirited debate on both sides of the Atlantic. The primary purpose of this book is to contribute to this policy-relevant discussion by presenting new scholarship from many countries that rigorously quantifies various sorts of neighbourhood effects through the use of cutting-edge social scientific techniques. The secondary purpose of this book is to introduce these techniques to a wider array of housing and planning researchers and to show how a variety of disciplines have offered insightful, synergistic perspectives. Research on neighbourhood effects has over the last 15 years led to a body of knowledge extending far beyond the sociological urban research where it originated. The problem of quantifying neighbourhood effects and the use of associated methodologies (like multi-level analysis, instrumental variables) has attracted scholars from criminology, sociology, social geography, economics and health science, and thus serves as a critical locus for interdisciplinary scholarship. This book was previously published as a special issue of Housing Studies.

Enterprise and entrepreneurship is of strong interest to policy-makers because new and small firms can be a key contributor to job and wealth creation. However this contribution varies spatially, with some areas in a country having new firm formation rates that are up to three or four times higher than others. The vast majority of these new firms begin in the geographical area in which the founder lives, works or was born emphasising that entrepreneurship is a local event. The book documents a diversity of research approaches to examining the regional determinants of entrepreneurship in countries as contrasting as India and Sweden. The Editors call is for scholars to better understand the long run factors that influence enterprise at the local and regional level. For policy makers the Editors challenge is for them to be much clearer about the targets for their policies. Is it new firms, new jobs, productivity and does it matter where these targets are delivered? This book was published as a special issue of Regional Studies.

The election of the Clinton administration in the United States and the debate in the European Community about the consequences of the industrial policy clause in the Maastricht treaty have put industrial policy back on the academic and political agenda again. This volume brings together the key articles on industrial policy, ranging from general theoretical perspectives and overviews of the literature to studies of the experience of particular countries, including Japan and the newly industrialising countries of East Asia. Four articles are concerned with the industrial programmes of the European Community. This is a comprehensive and authoritative compilation of work on a theme of interest to economists and political scientists.

The rural landscape of the Third World is generally seen as one worked by the impoverished. Chris Dixon shows that this is an increasingly inaccurate picture. Wealth does exist, with the landed often maintaining lifestyles comparable to their richest urban neighbours. And while land remains the basis of real wealth, the rural workforce is diversifying its activities away from agriculture becoming involved in a range of manufacturing, processing, trading and service industries. Yet still rural poverty persists, and the book illustrates just how difficult it is to assess the success of development initiatives adopted to eliminate it. This book, first published in 1990, provides a general introduction to the approaches, policies, and problems associated with Third World rural development. Rural Development in the Third World is relevant to students of geography, the environment and developmental issues.

Keynesian economics claimed to have overcome the problem of economic depressions. However, as Mattick argues that crises are inherent within capitalism and that neither the market nor Keynesianism can stop "the steady deterioration of the economy". Written in 1974, Economic Crisis and Crisis Theory is one of Mattick's most valuable contributions to the Marxist critique of political economy and radical theory in general.

Competition, Monopoly and Corporate Governance covers three broad themes, each associated with a particular strand of Keith Cowling's own writings in industrial economics and each represented by four specially commissioned papers. Providing a critical perspective on many current issues in industrial economics the themes are as follows: internationalisation, trans-nationalism and technical change; monopoly, oligopoly and social welfare; and corporate governance, mergers and the evolution of industrial structure. These chapters provide a challenge to much of the prevailing orthodoxy. There is also an appreciation of Keith Cowling's long association with the University of Warwick, spanning more than 30 years. A distinguished series of authors have contributed to the book, including several of Europe's best-known industrial economists. Academics, economists and political scientists in the area of industrial economics will find this volume invaluable.

In this challenging book, John King makes a sustained and comprehensive attack on the dogma that macroeconomic theory must have 'rigorous microfoundations'. He draws on both the philosophy of science and the history of economic thought to demonstrate the dangers of foundational metaphors and the defects of micro-reduction as a methodological principle. Strong criticism of the microfoundations dogma is documented in great detail, from some mainstream and many heterodox economists and also from economic methodologists, social theorists and evolutionary biologists. The author argues for the relative autonomy of macroeconomics as a distinct 'special science', cooperating with but most definitely not reducible to microeconomics. The Microfoundations Delusion will prove a stimulating and thought-provoking read for scholars, students and researchers in the fields of economics, heterodox economics and history of economic thought.

This book is the first of its kind to provide a comprehensive overview of happiness in Economics. Although it is comparatively unusual to put happiness and economics together, the association appears increasingly exciting and fruitful. A number of studies have been produced following Richard Easterlins and Tibor Scitovskys pioneering works throughout the 1970s. The essays collected in this book provide an authoritative and comprehensive assessment both theoretical, applied and partly experimental of the whole field moving from the so-called paradoxes of happiness in Economics. The book breaks new ground, particularly on the more recent directions of research on happiness, well-being, interpersonal relations and reciprocity. The meaning of happiness is thoroughly explored and the tension between a hedonic-subjective idea of happiness and a eudaimonic-objective one is discussed. This volume opens with Richard Easterlins own assessment of the main issues. Other authors include Robert H. Frank, Robert Sugden, Bruno S. Frey, Alois Stutzer, Richard Layard, Martha C. Nussbaum, Matt Matravers, Bernard M.S, van Praag, Oded Stark, You Q. Wang, Ruut Veenhoven, Charlotte Phelps, Stefano Zamagni, and Luigi Pasinetti.

How can we effectively aggregate disparate pieces of information that are spread among many different individuals? In other words, how does one best access the 'wisdom of the crowd'? Prediction markets, which are essentially speculative markets created for the purpose of aggregating information and making predictions, offer the answer to this question. The effective use of these markets has the potential not only to help forecast future events on a national and international level, but also to assist companies in providing, for example, improved estimates of the potential market size for a new product idea or the launch date of new products and services. The markets have already been used to forecast uncertain outcomes ranging from influenza outbreaks to the spread of other infectious diseases, to the demand for hospital services, to the box office success of movies, climate change, vote shares and election outcomes, to the probability of meeting project deadlines. The insights gained also have many potentially valuable applications for public policy more generally. These markets offer substantial promise as a tool of information aggregation as well as forecasting, whether alone or as a supplement to other mechanisms like surveys, group deliberations, and expert opinion. Moreover, they can be applied at a macroeconomic and microeconomic level to yield information that is valuable for government and commercial policy-makers and which can be used for a number of social purposes. This volume of original readings, contributed by many of the leading experts in the field, marks a significant addition to the base of knowledge about this fascinating subject area. The book should appeal to all those with an interest in economics, forecasting or public policy, and in particular those with an interest in the study of money, investment and risk.

The aim of the book is to highlight the law and economics issues confronting civil law countries. The following questions are addressed in this volume: to what extent have the existing codes in civil law countries been designed to incorporate economic considerations? Can the modifications made to codified rules over time be explained by a will to react to new economic constraints? Which economic problems are at the root of the revision of codes? And, given that the code is not the only source of law in civil law countries, the volume also explores the relationship between law and economics in the context of both the legislature and the courts.

For Principles of Microeconomics courses at two- and four-year colleges and universities Reveal the relevance of economics through real-world business examples One of the challenges of teaching Principles of Microeconomics is fostering interest in concepts that may not seem applicable to students' lives. Microeconomics, Fifth Edition makes economics relevant by demonstrating how real businesses use economics to make decisions every day. Regardless of their future career path-opening an art studio, trading on Wall Street, or bartending at the local pub-students will benefit from understanding the economic forces behind their work. This program provides a better teaching and learning experience-for you and your students. It will help you to: * Personalize learning with MyEconLab: This online homework, tutorial, and assessment program fosters learning and provides tools that help instructors to keep students on track. * Show students how economics is relevant: Relatable features ground course material in the real world, showing students how these ideas are relevant and facilitating understanding. * Foster thorough understanding via a flexible, student-focused approach: An engaging, captivating writing style and student-friendly learning aids motivate and engage students. Please note that the product you are purchasing does not include MyEconLab. MyEconLab Join over 11 million students benefiting from Pearson MyLabs. This title can be supported by MyEconLab, an online homework and tutorial system designed to test and build your understanding. Would you like to use the power of MyEconLab to accelerate your learning? You need both an access card and a course ID to access MyEconLab. These are the steps you need to take: 1. Make sure that your lecturer is already using the system Ask your lecturer before purchasing a MyLab product as you will need a course ID from them before you can gain access to the system. 2. Check whether an access card has been included with the book at a reduced cost If it has, it will be on the inside back cover of the book. 3. If you have a course ID but no access code, you can benefit from MyEconLab at a reduced price by purchasing a pack containing a copy of the book and an access code for MyEconLab (ISBN:9781292059785) 4. If your lecturer is using the MyLab and you would like to purchase the product... Go to www.myeconlab.com to buy access to this interactive study programme. For educator access, contact your Pearson representative. To find out who your Pearson representative is, visit www.pearsoned.co.uk/replocator