Growth and Inequality Effects of Decades of Financial Transformation in OECD Countries

an article by Boris Cournède and Catherine L. Mann (OECD Economics Department, Paris, France) published in Comparative Economic Studies Volume 60 Issue 1 (March 2018)

Abstract

Finance has massively expanded and deeply changed across OECD countries over the past 50 years. Rapid growth of finance has been accompanied by a debt shift away from business towards household credit and, after 2000, a withering of equity capital.

Econometric investigations indicate that these changes have contributed to slowing down potential growth.

In OECD countries, higher credit/GDP ratios imply slower trend growth, especially when lending goes to households; by contrast, additional stockmarket funding boosts growth.

Moreover, these trends have contributed to widening inequalities.

There is a case for policymakers to focus on macro-prudential policy tools that optimise growth-stability trade-offs.

JEL Classification: D14, D63, G1, G2

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Multicultural integration in British and Dutch societies: education and citizenship

an article by Christopher Adam Bagley (Liverpool John Moores University, UK and University of Southampton, UK) and Nader Al-Refai (Yarmouk University, Irbid, Jordan) published in Journal for Multicultural Education Volume 11 Issue 2 (2017)

Abstract

Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to review and synthesize published studies and practice in the “integration” of ethnic and religious minorities in Britain and The Netherlands, 1965-2015, drawing out implications for current policy and practice.

Design/methodology/approach
This paper is an evaluative review and report of results of work on citizenship education for young Muslims and their peers in English schools.

Findings
Young Muslims have positive attitudes to “good citizenship”, as Islamic socialization makes them particularly responsive to citizenship messages. But there is hard-core racial prejudice and Islamophobia in about 25 per cent of adults. In The Netherlands, this xenophobia has supported far-right politicians who are strongly anti-Muslim. This paper cites evidence that continued prejudice may lead to alienation and radicalization of some minorities.

Research limitations/implications
Unchecked prejudice concerning minorities can have negative implications for both majority and minority groups – this broad hypothesis deserves further research in both Dutch and British societies.

Practical implications
In Britain, success in Muslim schools in fostering positive citizenship implies that Muslim groups can maintain “quiet dignity” in following Islamic pathways to good citizenship.

Social implications
State support for religious-foundation schools should be offered to all religious groups and should not be withheld from Muslim minorities for “security” reasons.

Originality/value
This overview by two Muslim educators offers new insights and proposals in the acceptance of Muslim minorities in Europe.

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What happened to the Beacon schools? Policy reform and educational equity

an article by Emma Smith (University of Leicester) published in Oxford Review of Education Volume 41 Issue 3 (2015)

Abstract

This paper considers the impact of the Beacon schools initiative on the social and academic characteristics of secondary schools in England.

The Beacon schools programme ran from 1998 to 2004 and epitomised the (then) Labour government’s focus on school improvement through diversity, collaboration and partnership. This paper looks at variation in the academic and social characteristics of the 322 secondary Beacon schools over a nine-year period.

The findings show that Beacon schools were among the most advantaged state schools in England and while they continue to outperform the general school population, the data suggest that the performance gap has decreased and there is little evidence that Beacon status conferred an advantage on schools, in terms of standard measures of academic success.

The Beacon school initiative exemplifies some of the key issues with policy based education reform.

• First, its emphasis on collaboration provokes tensions between schools that are increasingly in competition with each other.
• Secondly, clearly defined and measurable medium and long term outcomes for the initiative were not prescribed, thus making it difficult to determine the efficacy of the intervention.
• Finally, that the initiative did not appear to have any appreciable effect on the social and academic characteristics of the Beacon schools raises issues about the usefulness of externally prescribed interventions and the potential that they have to make a real difference to educational equity.

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Participation and equity in higher education: are we going back to the future?

an article by Linda Leach (Massey University, New Zealand) published in Oxford Review of Education Volume 39 Issue 2 (April 2013)

Abstract

This article provides an overview of policy developments related to participation and equity in higher education in New Zealand, England and Australia from the 1960s to 2011. It explores these developments in four sections.

First, it sets the scene by tracing the shift from elite universities to massification.

Second, it summarises key participation and equity policy developments between the 1960s and 2008 in the three countries to set the context for the post-global financial crisis developments.

It then traces the different policy responses to the financial crisis, identifying Australia’s pathway as different from those taken in New Zealand and England.

Fourth, it explores the success of these policies, identifies a change in the equity discourse and considers some strategic institutional responses to the changing policies in each country and the likely effects of those.

It argues that the austerity approaches taken by New Zealand and England are likely to take them back to a future of selective, elite universities but that Australia may continue its counter-cyclical policies to support equity objectives – unless there is a change of government and/or pressures from rapidly increasing enrolments produce policy change.

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World of Work Report 2012: Better Jobs for a Better Economy

This new study from the International Labor Organization (ILO) examines the performance of different countries since the start of the global crisis through the prism of the quantity and quality of jobs.

The World of Work Report 2012 provides a comprehensive analysis of recent labour market and social trends, assesses risks of social unrest and presents employment projections for the next five years. The report emphasizes that while employment has begun to recover slowly, job quality is deteriorating and there is a growing sense of unfairness. Moreover, given the pressure on governments to rein in expenditure, policy efforts have focused on structural reforms to boost employment creation. However, if policy instruments are not carefully designed, they could exacerbate the employment situation and aggravate further equity concerns, with potentially long-lasting adverse consequences for both the economy and society.

The report addresses the following questions:

• To what extent has the slow recovery aggravated social conditions, including falling incomes, deepening poverty and worsening inequality?
• Have countries gone too far, too fast with fiscal consolidation? How should they support recovery while meeting fiscal goals in the medium term?
• What can be expected from recent labour market reforms?
• How can investment be boosted so as to ensure a long-lasting recovery in both the economy and jobs?
• What have been the barriers to implementing a more job-centred and equity-enhancing policy approach? Why has the business-as-usual scenario maintained its centrality despite the increasing risk of social unrest?

This report calls for a carefully designed policy approach that takes into consideration the urgent need to create quality jobs while at the same time laying the ground for a more productive, fairer economy and labour market.

Download the full report (PDF 109pp)

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Communication, equity and the voluntary provision of a public good by heterogeneous groups

an article by Kenneth S. Chan (City University of Hong Kong and McMaster University, Hamilton, Canada), Stuart Mestelman and R. Andrew Muller (McMaster University, Hamilton, Canada) and Robert Moir (University of New Brunswick, Saint John, Canada) published in Journal of Socio-Economics Volume 41 Issue 1 (January 2012)

Abstract

Twenty-four laboratory sessions were conducted to evaluate the roles of communication and group heterogeneity when voluntary contributions determine the level of public good provision by small groups of individuals. Simple heterogeneity has one individual in a group having either greater endowment of resources or a greater preference for the public good than the others. Complex heterogeneity has one individual in a group having both higher endowment and greater preference for the public good. Without communication, members of heterogeneous groups tend to coordinate more on equal contribution shares than predicted by the conventional public goods model but consistent with a model incorporating a preference for equity. The distribution of relative contributions and total payoffs within groups exhibit strong interactions between communication and heterogeneity, leading to less equitable distributions of payoffs as heterogeneity becomes more complex. A model of equity theory helps to organize the results. Results suggest that communication may refocus the objective of group members.

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