an article by Ross Brown (University of St Andrews, UK) and Suzanne Mawson (University of Stirling, UK) published in Cambridge Journal of Regions, Economy and Society Volume 12 Issue 3 (November 2019)
Abstract
Efforts to develop entrepreneurial ecosystems (EEs) have proliferated in recent years, marking it out as the latest industrial policy ‘blockbuster’.
This article reports the findings from the first comprehensive empirical analysis of EE policy approaches. It posits a basic typology of different policy frameworks deployed under the ecosystem rubric.
The findings suggest the concept is fraught with conceptual ambiguity and is predominantly (and rather crudely) used to promote ‘more’ entrepreneurship.
The research suggests the concept is a ‘messy metaphor’, open to wide-ranging misinterpretation and misuse by policymakers.
In terms of recommendations, eradicating network failures, avoiding crude policy isomorphism and tailoring bespoke interventions to the specific nature of EEs are viewed as key policy lessons.
JEL Classification: L26, O12, O25, R58
Showing posts with label public_policy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label public_policy. Show all posts
Friday, 29 November 2019
Saturday, 12 October 2019
The Heavy Burden of Obesity: Key findings for the United Kingdom
Copied and pasted from a Powerpoint single page visual
Chart / graph does not copy
The United Kingdom has one of the highest rates of obesity: nearly one in three adults are obese.
As a result, people in the United Kingdom live on average 2.7 years less due to overweight.
Overweight accounts for 8.4% of health expenditure; and lowers labour market outputs by the equivalent of 944 thousand full-time workers per year. Combined, this means that overweight reduces United Kingdom’s GDP by 3.4%.
To cover these costs, each person in the United Kingdom pays an additional GBP 409 in taxes per year.
Lost labour market output based on average wages, per capita per year, in USD PPP
To tackle the obesity epidemic, the United Kingdom has put in place a number of policies, including voluntary front-of-pack food labelling and taxes on sugary drinks. However, more can be done. Implementing a communications policy package or policies to encourage reformulation would prevent non-communicable diseases, reduce health expenditure and increase the productivity of the workforce:
A communications package – with mandatory front-of-pack labelling and advertising regulations, and mass media campaigns – could prevent 130 thousand non-communicable diseases by 2050, save GBP 54 million per year in health cost, and increase employment and productivity by the equivalent of 9 thousand full-time workers per year.
Public health actions to promote healthier lifestyles have a positive impact on population health and are an excellent investment: On average, for every 1 GBP invested, up to 6 GBP are returned in economic benefits
Source: OECD, The Heavy Burden of Obesity, 2019
Find the full report at oe.cd/obesity2019 where you can read the online version as an OECD Library Subscriber or purchase the printed version. Nothing free that I could find.
Chart / graph does not copy
The United Kingdom has one of the highest rates of obesity: nearly one in three adults are obese.
As a result, people in the United Kingdom live on average 2.7 years less due to overweight.
Overweight accounts for 8.4% of health expenditure; and lowers labour market outputs by the equivalent of 944 thousand full-time workers per year. Combined, this means that overweight reduces United Kingdom’s GDP by 3.4%.
To cover these costs, each person in the United Kingdom pays an additional GBP 409 in taxes per year.
Lost labour market output based on average wages, per capita per year, in USD PPP
To tackle the obesity epidemic, the United Kingdom has put in place a number of policies, including voluntary front-of-pack food labelling and taxes on sugary drinks. However, more can be done. Implementing a communications policy package or policies to encourage reformulation would prevent non-communicable diseases, reduce health expenditure and increase the productivity of the workforce:
A communications package – with mandatory front-of-pack labelling and advertising regulations, and mass media campaigns – could prevent 130 thousand non-communicable diseases by 2050, save GBP 54 million per year in health cost, and increase employment and productivity by the equivalent of 9 thousand full-time workers per year.
Public health actions to promote healthier lifestyles have a positive impact on population health and are an excellent investment: On average, for every 1 GBP invested, up to 6 GBP are returned in economic benefits
Source: OECD, The Heavy Burden of Obesity, 2019
Find the full report at oe.cd/obesity2019 where you can read the online version as an OECD Library Subscriber or purchase the printed version. Nothing free that I could find.
Monday, 17 June 2019
Broadband and uneven spatial development: The case of Cardiff City-Region
an article by Calvin Jones and Dylan Henderson (Cardiff Business School, UK published in Local Economy: The Journal of the Local Economy Policy Unit Volume 34 Issue 3 (May 2019)
Abstract
The internet and e-connectivity more generally are increasingly held to be an important element of business success. Evidence however suggests that the productive impacts of such technologies are contingent on factors that include firm size and sector, and human capital.
It follows that if companies with these characteristics are unevenly distributed across space, the increasing importance of broadband in economic activity might impact unevenly on economic outcomes across space.
We examine the Cardiff City-Region in South Wales, where the distribution of businesses and skills suggests that without policy intervention the roll-out of broadband might further increase economic disparities between the relatively prosperous coastal belt and the poorer post-industrial hinterland.
Abstract
The internet and e-connectivity more generally are increasingly held to be an important element of business success. Evidence however suggests that the productive impacts of such technologies are contingent on factors that include firm size and sector, and human capital.
It follows that if companies with these characteristics are unevenly distributed across space, the increasing importance of broadband in economic activity might impact unevenly on economic outcomes across space.
We examine the Cardiff City-Region in South Wales, where the distribution of businesses and skills suggests that without policy intervention the roll-out of broadband might further increase economic disparities between the relatively prosperous coastal belt and the poorer post-industrial hinterland.
Thursday, 29 March 2018
Housing policy: Learning from the past and looking to the future
a column by David Miles for VOX: CEPR’s Policy Portal
The housing market faces major challenges in both the short and long run in terms of affordability, price variability, ownership structures, financing, and their impacts upon wider macroeconomic stability. This column summarises a conference on lessons for the future of housing, jointly organised by the Brevan Howard Centre for Financial Analysis at Imperial College Business School and CEPR.
Continue reading
The housing market faces major challenges in both the short and long run in terms of affordability, price variability, ownership structures, financing, and their impacts upon wider macroeconomic stability. This column summarises a conference on lessons for the future of housing, jointly organised by the Brevan Howard Centre for Financial Analysis at Imperial College Business School and CEPR.
Continue reading
Friday, 24 November 2017
Urban futures, population ageing and demographic decline
an article by Philip McCann (Sheffield University Management School, UK) published in Cambridge Journal of Regions, Economy and Society Volume 10 Issue 3 (October 2017)
Abstract
This article examines the geographical drivers and outcomes of demographic ageing and population decline and the possible differential impacts on cities and regions.
Evidence from OECD and European Union regions and cities is used to motivate discussions about the likely long-run effects of demographic change on the efficacy of public policy to manage the population decline and the fiscal implications of trends towards governance decentralisation.
As it becomes evident, there are significant, demographically driven asymmetries regarding both the fiscal underpinnings of local government and the efficacy of local land-use management and adjustment policies. In general, regions facing adverse demographic trends appear to be increasingly vulnerable over the long-term to increasing fiscal constraints, thereby limiting their ability to effectively and pragmatically manage decline.
JEL Classification: D31, H70, J18, R11
Abstract
This article examines the geographical drivers and outcomes of demographic ageing and population decline and the possible differential impacts on cities and regions.
Evidence from OECD and European Union regions and cities is used to motivate discussions about the likely long-run effects of demographic change on the efficacy of public policy to manage the population decline and the fiscal implications of trends towards governance decentralisation.
As it becomes evident, there are significant, demographically driven asymmetries regarding both the fiscal underpinnings of local government and the efficacy of local land-use management and adjustment policies. In general, regions facing adverse demographic trends appear to be increasingly vulnerable over the long-term to increasing fiscal constraints, thereby limiting their ability to effectively and pragmatically manage decline.
JEL Classification: D31, H70, J18, R11
Tuesday, 10 October 2017
Prisons should mirror society: the debate on age-segregated housing for older prisoners
an article by Tenzin Wangmo, Violet Handtke, Wiebke Bretschneider and Bernice Simone Elger (University of Basel, Switzerland)
published in Ageing & Society Volume 37 Issue 4 (April 2017)
Abstract
The debate on age-segregated housing for older prisoners has seldom captured the perspectives of older prisoners and professionals (‘stakeholders’) working in a European prison setting. To address this gap in the research, 35 older prisoners from Switzerland and 40 stakeholders from three European countries (including Switzerland) were interviewed for the study.
Data analysis was conducted thematically, and the validity of coding was established independently from the primary author. Interpretation of study results was agreed upon by all authors.
Participants' opinions regarding age-segregated housing for older prisoners were split. An almost equal number of prisoners and stakeholders had similar arguments in favour of and against such living arrangements.
The findings encompassed three major themes: ‘prisons should mirror society’ and thus age-mixed housing was preferable as it ensured generational exchange; a ‘separate unit within the prison’ would allow continuity of personal and other relationships and at the same time respond to older prisoners' specific health and environmental needs; finally, participants felt it was important to think critically about ‘the criteria’ for placing older prisoners in an age-segregated arrangement.
We conclude that the debate on consolidated versus separate housing is bifurcated. Any push towards segregation based only on high prison violence and unvalidated context-specific information may result in unreliable public policy.
Abstract
The debate on age-segregated housing for older prisoners has seldom captured the perspectives of older prisoners and professionals (‘stakeholders’) working in a European prison setting. To address this gap in the research, 35 older prisoners from Switzerland and 40 stakeholders from three European countries (including Switzerland) were interviewed for the study.
Data analysis was conducted thematically, and the validity of coding was established independently from the primary author. Interpretation of study results was agreed upon by all authors.
Participants' opinions regarding age-segregated housing for older prisoners were split. An almost equal number of prisoners and stakeholders had similar arguments in favour of and against such living arrangements.
The findings encompassed three major themes: ‘prisons should mirror society’ and thus age-mixed housing was preferable as it ensured generational exchange; a ‘separate unit within the prison’ would allow continuity of personal and other relationships and at the same time respond to older prisoners' specific health and environmental needs; finally, participants felt it was important to think critically about ‘the criteria’ for placing older prisoners in an age-segregated arrangement.
We conclude that the debate on consolidated versus separate housing is bifurcated. Any push towards segregation based only on high prison violence and unvalidated context-specific information may result in unreliable public policy.
Wednesday, 31 July 2013
Public policy futures: A Left trilemma?
an article by Peter Taylor-Gooby (University of Kent, UK) published in Critical Social Policy Volume 33 Number 3 (August 2013)
Abstract
Why is it so hard for the Left to produce a coherent, progressive and practicable response to the crisis, when markets and private enterprise have so obviously failed?
One answer is that the Left faces a trilemma in developing adequate, electable and progressive public policy.
It must respond adequately to the economic crisis to be seen as competent, it must address the established themes in public opinion to be electable, and it must develop generous and inclusive policies, to be progressive.
This article identifies conflicts in all three areas: low public sector productivity growth and demographic shifts tighten already harsh spending constraints. Entrenched public suspicions of higher taxes for any but the distant rich and a public discourse which makes rigid distinctions between those deserving and undeserving of state welfare conflict with egalitarian or redistributive policies. Both spending constraints and the key themes in public opinion conflict with generous and inclusive policies.
The Coalition strategy, by contrast, rests on a private enterprise-led recovery, work-ethic values and policies that exclude less deserving groups. It does not face the same problems.
This article analyses a range of policy programmes suggested by commentators on the centre-left in the light of these points.
It concludes that a central task for a progressive strategy is not so much designing the policies which will be attractive and will meet needs effectively as developing a framework of provision which will help to build solidarity and shift public discourse in order to make inclusive and generous policy possible.
Abstract
Why is it so hard for the Left to produce a coherent, progressive and practicable response to the crisis, when markets and private enterprise have so obviously failed?
One answer is that the Left faces a trilemma in developing adequate, electable and progressive public policy.
It must respond adequately to the economic crisis to be seen as competent, it must address the established themes in public opinion to be electable, and it must develop generous and inclusive policies, to be progressive.
This article identifies conflicts in all three areas: low public sector productivity growth and demographic shifts tighten already harsh spending constraints. Entrenched public suspicions of higher taxes for any but the distant rich and a public discourse which makes rigid distinctions between those deserving and undeserving of state welfare conflict with egalitarian or redistributive policies. Both spending constraints and the key themes in public opinion conflict with generous and inclusive policies.
The Coalition strategy, by contrast, rests on a private enterprise-led recovery, work-ethic values and policies that exclude less deserving groups. It does not face the same problems.
This article analyses a range of policy programmes suggested by commentators on the centre-left in the light of these points.
It concludes that a central task for a progressive strategy is not so much designing the policies which will be attractive and will meet needs effectively as developing a framework of provision which will help to build solidarity and shift public discourse in order to make inclusive and generous policy possible.
Thursday, 28 February 2013
Part-time working by students: is it a policy issue, and for whom?
an article by Erica Smith (University of Ballarat, Australia) and Wendy Patton (Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, Australia) published in Journal of Education and Work Volume 26 Issue 1 (2013)
Abstract
This paper uses data from interviews with representatives of national and state organisations that have a policy interest in student-working in Australia.
The interviewees included representatives from employer bodies and trade unions as well as government organisations. The data are used to discuss these stakeholders’ perceptions of the main advantages and disadvantages of working by young full-time students and the ways in which organisations in the business and educational sectors have adapted their policies and practices for student-working.
The analysis is then used to inform a discussion about whether this is a legitimate area for public policy formulation and if so, what principles might underpin such policy and what some policies might look like.
Abstract
This paper uses data from interviews with representatives of national and state organisations that have a policy interest in student-working in Australia.
The interviewees included representatives from employer bodies and trade unions as well as government organisations. The data are used to discuss these stakeholders’ perceptions of the main advantages and disadvantages of working by young full-time students and the ways in which organisations in the business and educational sectors have adapted their policies and practices for student-working.
The analysis is then used to inform a discussion about whether this is a legitimate area for public policy formulation and if so, what principles might underpin such policy and what some policies might look like.
Thursday, 31 January 2013
Cross-country rankings in inter-generational mobility: a comparison of approaches from economics and sociology
an article by Jo Blanden (University of Surrey, London School of Economics) published in Journal of Economic Surveys Volume 27 Issue 1 (February 2013)
Abstract
This paper summarises research on the relative level of intergenerational mobility – whether classified by income, education or social class.
The literatures on education and income mobility reveal a similar ranking with South America, other developing nations, southern European countries and France tending to have rather limited mobility although the Nordic countries exhibit strong mobility.
Estimates of mobility based on social class point to rather different patterns, and we demonstrate that these differences are most likely generated by intergenerational earnings persistence within social classes.
The second part of the paper looks for explanations for the differences in earnings and education persistence and finds that mobility is negatively correlated with inequality and the return to education but positively correlated with a nation's education spending.
Abstract
This paper summarises research on the relative level of intergenerational mobility – whether classified by income, education or social class.
The literatures on education and income mobility reveal a similar ranking with South America, other developing nations, southern European countries and France tending to have rather limited mobility although the Nordic countries exhibit strong mobility.
Estimates of mobility based on social class point to rather different patterns, and we demonstrate that these differences are most likely generated by intergenerational earnings persistence within social classes.
The second part of the paper looks for explanations for the differences in earnings and education persistence and finds that mobility is negatively correlated with inequality and the return to education but positively correlated with a nation's education spending.
Friday, 25 January 2013
The squeezed middle: The pressure on ordinary workers in America and Britain
via Resolution Foundation Publications
a Policy Press publication by Sophia Parker
Summary
As wages stagnate but living costs keep rising, the pressure on working people grows more intense. The issue of living standards has become one of the most urgent challenges for politicians in both Britain and America. “The squeezed middle” brings together experts from both sides of the Atlantic to ask what the UK can learn from the US.
American workers have not benefited from growth for an entire generation – the average American worker earned no more in 2009 than in 1975. Now British workers are undergoing a similar experience. No longer can they assume that when the economy grows their wages will grow with it.
This collection brings together for the first time leading economic and policy thinkers to analyse the impact of different policies on those on low-to-middle incomes and to explain what lessons the UK can learn from America’s “lost generation”. This timely book is essential reading for everyone concerned about the living standards crisis, an issue which could decide elections as well as shaping the future for millions of working families.
“This timely book provides incisive analysis from leading scholars of a key issue of contemporary politics on both sides of the Atlantic. It explores why middle incomes have stagnated and discusses what might be done about it. If you read one political book this year you should read this one.”
Andrew Gamble, Professor of Politics, University of Cambridge
Buy from Policy Press or Amazon
a Policy Press publication by Sophia Parker
Summary
As wages stagnate but living costs keep rising, the pressure on working people grows more intense. The issue of living standards has become one of the most urgent challenges for politicians in both Britain and America. “The squeezed middle” brings together experts from both sides of the Atlantic to ask what the UK can learn from the US.
American workers have not benefited from growth for an entire generation – the average American worker earned no more in 2009 than in 1975. Now British workers are undergoing a similar experience. No longer can they assume that when the economy grows their wages will grow with it.
This collection brings together for the first time leading economic and policy thinkers to analyse the impact of different policies on those on low-to-middle incomes and to explain what lessons the UK can learn from America’s “lost generation”. This timely book is essential reading for everyone concerned about the living standards crisis, an issue which could decide elections as well as shaping the future for millions of working families.
“This timely book provides incisive analysis from leading scholars of a key issue of contemporary politics on both sides of the Atlantic. It explores why middle incomes have stagnated and discusses what might be done about it. If you read one political book this year you should read this one.”
Andrew Gamble, Professor of Politics, University of Cambridge
Buy from Policy Press or Amazon
Wednesday, 9 January 2013
unemployment benefits and earnings
via ToUChstone blog: A public policy blog from the TUC
by Nigel Stanley
The Conservative case for capping benefits is that they have been growing faster than earnings, as their poster today [8 January] seeks to highlight.
Being a pedantic grammarian this poster annoys me regardless of its message – Labour is not an ARE it is an IS.
I thought it might be interesting to look at how unemployment benefit has moved compared to earnings over a slightly more representative period. So I turned to the DWP’s Annual Abstract of Statistics, which is designed (among other things) to give precise answers to such questions.
Continue reading and do go right down to the comments where Nigel Stanley admits that his second graph is not as helpful as it might have been. I certainly found it a bit difficult which is not the purpose of graphical representation!
by Nigel Stanley
The Conservative case for capping benefits is that they have been growing faster than earnings, as their poster today [8 January] seeks to highlight.
Being a pedantic grammarian this poster annoys me regardless of its message – Labour is not an ARE it is an IS.
I thought it might be interesting to look at how unemployment benefit has moved compared to earnings over a slightly more representative period. So I turned to the DWP’s Annual Abstract of Statistics, which is designed (among other things) to give precise answers to such questions.
Continue reading and do go right down to the comments where Nigel Stanley admits that his second graph is not as helpful as it might have been. I certainly found it a bit difficult which is not the purpose of graphical representation!
Friday, 9 November 2012
Religion, public policy and equalizing opportunities
an article by Alison Green and Adrian Barton (University of Plymouth) and Nick Johns (University of Cardiff) published in Critical Social Policy Volume 32 Number 4 (November 2012)
Abstract
This paper examines the role of Faith-Based Groups (FBGs) in social and public policy. Specifically it provides an analysis of the conflicts that can arise between the culture and values of different FBGs and welfare provision.
Its purpose is to clarify the source of this conflict and to contribute a balanced discussion on how equality legislation should apply to different religious groups.
We commence by providing some historical and policy context, but rapidly move on to discuss very current and contemporary debates that are taking place in FBGs and in government.
The use of a model showing the way that particular social welfare provision contributes to equality of opportunity and/or community cohesion allows the reader to clearly see where the tensions can arise for policy makers in deciding where to allocate provision.
Abstract
This paper examines the role of Faith-Based Groups (FBGs) in social and public policy. Specifically it provides an analysis of the conflicts that can arise between the culture and values of different FBGs and welfare provision.
Its purpose is to clarify the source of this conflict and to contribute a balanced discussion on how equality legislation should apply to different religious groups.
We commence by providing some historical and policy context, but rapidly move on to discuss very current and contemporary debates that are taking place in FBGs and in government.
The use of a model showing the way that particular social welfare provision contributes to equality of opportunity and/or community cohesion allows the reader to clearly see where the tensions can arise for policy makers in deciding where to allocate provision.
Tuesday, 2 October 2012
Enterprise and entrepreneurship in English higher education: 2010 and beyond
an article by David Rae (University of Lincoln, UK) Lynn Martin, (Manchester Metropolitan University Business School) Valerie Antcliff, (Manchester Metropolitan University) and Paul Hannon (National Centre for Entrepreneurship Education, Coventry) published in Journal of Small Business and Enterprise Development Volume 19 Issue 3 (2012)
Abstract
Purpose
This article aims to report the results of a complete survey of enterprise education in all higher education institutions (HEIs) in England, undertaken in 2010 by the Institute for Small Business & Entrepreneurship (ISBE) on behalf of the National Council for Graduate Entrepreneurship (NCGE). The survey builds on prior work undertaken by the NCGE in England in 2006 and in 2007.
Design/methodology/approach
The survey aimed to establish a complete picture of curricular and extra-curricular enterprise and entrepreneurship education. The survey uses a similar structure to the previous survey, enabling comparison to be made with enterprise provision over the 2006-2010 period, as well as with the 2008 European survey of entrepreneurship in HE.
Findings
The results provide a stock-take of enterprise education provision in participating HEIs and highlight the connections in institutional strategies between enterprise education, incubation/new venture support, graduate employability, innovation and academic enterprise. The paper reveals “hotspots” and gaps in enterprise provision and offers “benchmarks” for the sector.
Research limitations/implications
The article offers a summary of the implications for the future development and sustainability of enterprise education in HE, in relation to policy, funding and other changes in the sector. It also considers these issues in relation to recommendations from professional educators and government policy for future development of enterprise in HE and comments on the policy impact of this work.
Originality/value
The timing of the survey, in May-July 2010, was important as it reflected the end of a period of over ten years of sustained investment in enterprise in higher education by the previous Labour government in the UK, through a range of funding initiatives. As major public expenditure reductions in support for HE and enterprise activity followed, this represented the “high water mark” of publicly funded enterprise activity in the HE sector, and raised the question of how enterprise education and support activities would become sustainable for the future. The report analyses existing provision, assesses its development over the 2006-2010 period, and provides conclusions and recommendations covering future policy, development, resourcing, and sustainability of enterprise and entrepreneurship provision in higher education.
Abstract
Purpose
This article aims to report the results of a complete survey of enterprise education in all higher education institutions (HEIs) in England, undertaken in 2010 by the Institute for Small Business & Entrepreneurship (ISBE) on behalf of the National Council for Graduate Entrepreneurship (NCGE). The survey builds on prior work undertaken by the NCGE in England in 2006 and in 2007.
Design/methodology/approach
The survey aimed to establish a complete picture of curricular and extra-curricular enterprise and entrepreneurship education. The survey uses a similar structure to the previous survey, enabling comparison to be made with enterprise provision over the 2006-2010 period, as well as with the 2008 European survey of entrepreneurship in HE.
Findings
The results provide a stock-take of enterprise education provision in participating HEIs and highlight the connections in institutional strategies between enterprise education, incubation/new venture support, graduate employability, innovation and academic enterprise. The paper reveals “hotspots” and gaps in enterprise provision and offers “benchmarks” for the sector.
Research limitations/implications
The article offers a summary of the implications for the future development and sustainability of enterprise education in HE, in relation to policy, funding and other changes in the sector. It also considers these issues in relation to recommendations from professional educators and government policy for future development of enterprise in HE and comments on the policy impact of this work.
Originality/value
The timing of the survey, in May-July 2010, was important as it reflected the end of a period of over ten years of sustained investment in enterprise in higher education by the previous Labour government in the UK, through a range of funding initiatives. As major public expenditure reductions in support for HE and enterprise activity followed, this represented the “high water mark” of publicly funded enterprise activity in the HE sector, and raised the question of how enterprise education and support activities would become sustainable for the future. The report analyses existing provision, assesses its development over the 2006-2010 period, and provides conclusions and recommendations covering future policy, development, resourcing, and sustainability of enterprise and entrepreneurship provision in higher education.
Monday, 3 September 2012
Working longer in European countries: underestimated and unexpected effects
an article by Dominique Anxo and Thomas Ericson (Linnaeus University, Vaxjo, Sweden) and Annie Jolivet, (Institute of Economic and Social Researches (IRES) and Studies Center on Age and Populations at Work (CREAPT), Paris) published International Journal of Manpower Volume 33 Issue 6 (2012)
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to analyse the main evolutions and the current situation of the 50-74-year-olds on the labour market in eight European countries (Denmark France, Germany, Italy, The Netherlands, Sweden, Poland and the UK).
Design/methodology/approach
Based on a cross-country comparative approach, this overview draws on detailed analysis of the situation of older workers and public policies in each of the selected countries but also on a wide range of available studies and statistics on employment and welfare outcomes.
Findings
The eight selected countries display similarities: a u-shaped pattern of employment rates of older workers (55-64 years old) over the last 40 years, with an increase since the mid 1990s, the later exit of higher educated workers and the higher prevalence of non-standard employment contracts among older workers. On the other hand, considerable disparities can be observed regarding the gender gap in employment rate, current employment rates, self-employment and part-time employment among older workers.
Social implications
Specific questions will be more acute with the effective postponement of retirement: increasing inequalities between groups of older workers, increasing uncertainty about the age of retirement, the way to keep lower educated workers in their jobs, sustainable working conditions, increasing risks of age discrimination, and impact of care of older relatives.
Originality/value
This paper offers a synthetic overview with a special attention paid to the main features of the countries’ exit patterns at the end of the working life, the prevailing public policies and the specificity of the different national employment and societal models.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to analyse the main evolutions and the current situation of the 50-74-year-olds on the labour market in eight European countries (Denmark France, Germany, Italy, The Netherlands, Sweden, Poland and the UK).
Design/methodology/approach
Based on a cross-country comparative approach, this overview draws on detailed analysis of the situation of older workers and public policies in each of the selected countries but also on a wide range of available studies and statistics on employment and welfare outcomes.
Findings
The eight selected countries display similarities: a u-shaped pattern of employment rates of older workers (55-64 years old) over the last 40 years, with an increase since the mid 1990s, the later exit of higher educated workers and the higher prevalence of non-standard employment contracts among older workers. On the other hand, considerable disparities can be observed regarding the gender gap in employment rate, current employment rates, self-employment and part-time employment among older workers.
Social implications
Specific questions will be more acute with the effective postponement of retirement: increasing inequalities between groups of older workers, increasing uncertainty about the age of retirement, the way to keep lower educated workers in their jobs, sustainable working conditions, increasing risks of age discrimination, and impact of care of older relatives.
Originality/value
This paper offers a synthetic overview with a special attention paid to the main features of the countries’ exit patterns at the end of the working life, the prevailing public policies and the specificity of the different national employment and societal models.
Monday, 20 August 2012
Across the little divide? Life histories of public and third sector “boundary crossers”
an article by David Lewis (Department of Social Policy, London School of Economics and Political Science) published in Journal of Organizational Ethnography Volume 1 Issue 2 (2012)
Abstract
Purpose
Organizational life and policy-making is increasingly conceived in terms of a “three sector” model – public, private and “third”. The purpose of this research paper is to examine a little-studied phenomenon that increasingly characterises societies in both the “developed” and the “developing” worlds. It aims to argue that these “sectors” have permeable boundaries, and that increasing numbers of activists and professionals operate across such boundaries, with important implications for policy and work.
Design/methodology/approach
The research paper reports on a set of new ethnographic life-work history data from the UK, Bangladesh and Philippines to explore experiences of people who cross between, or straddle, the third sector and the public sector.
Findings
The paper constructs a preliminary typology of boundary crosser archetypes for purposes of further analysis. This is based on motivations and levels of boundary crossing. Boundary crossing of this kind is linked with the concept of “work role transition”, and with the micro-politics of policy contention.
Practical implications
The paper concludes by suggesting that such work may offer new practical insights into strengthening the capacity of both third sector and government agencies.
Originality/value
The paper aims to be original in opening up this new topic for further discussion (and in particular problematizing the idea of sector boundaries), and through using the life history method as part of organisational ethnography.
Abstract
Purpose
Organizational life and policy-making is increasingly conceived in terms of a “three sector” model – public, private and “third”. The purpose of this research paper is to examine a little-studied phenomenon that increasingly characterises societies in both the “developed” and the “developing” worlds. It aims to argue that these “sectors” have permeable boundaries, and that increasing numbers of activists and professionals operate across such boundaries, with important implications for policy and work.
Design/methodology/approach
The research paper reports on a set of new ethnographic life-work history data from the UK, Bangladesh and Philippines to explore experiences of people who cross between, or straddle, the third sector and the public sector.
Findings
The paper constructs a preliminary typology of boundary crosser archetypes for purposes of further analysis. This is based on motivations and levels of boundary crossing. Boundary crossing of this kind is linked with the concept of “work role transition”, and with the micro-politics of policy contention.
Practical implications
The paper concludes by suggesting that such work may offer new practical insights into strengthening the capacity of both third sector and government agencies.
Originality/value
The paper aims to be original in opening up this new topic for further discussion (and in particular problematizing the idea of sector boundaries), and through using the life history method as part of organisational ethnography.
Tuesday, 12 June 2012
Open innovation and SMEs: …
Exploring policy and the scope for improvements in university-based public programmes through a multidisciplinary lens
an article by Arturo Vega (Canterbury Christ Church University, UK) and David Brown and Mike Chiasson (Lancaster University, UK) published in International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behaviour & Research Volume 18 Issue 4 (2012)
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to explore, through the use of a multidisciplinary lens, the policy context and the scope for improvements in university-based public programmes focused on improving innovation in small and medium enterprises (SMEs).
Design/methodology/approach
The authors use the street-level bureaucracy (SLB), combined with the systems of innovation approach (SIA) and diagnostic analysis (DA) to understand the context components that impact on public programme services. The study is part of a research programme oriented to the diffusion of information systems in SMEs and which used original interview-based programme support case studies, interviews with regional policy managers, and documentation relating to the policy system and different public programmes. Although the empirical work was UK and European Union centric the results of the research have wide applicability.
Findings
The paper establishes the importance of programme contexts for diagnosing and providing a basis for public programme improvements. It further demonstrates the robustness of the context analysis framework to provide insights into proposed policy changes. The responsibility of improving programme contexts relies on actors that operate outside programme organisations, for instance EU funding bodies, government departments in charge of SME policies, public-private partnerships, and private evaluators. Given this complexity it is suggested that SME associations have a potentially important role in increasing participation by SMEs in the public programme for innovation and knowledge support policy. Despite possible policy changes the requirement for public programme support for innovation and hence the role of universities as programme providers is confirmed and expanded.
Research limitations/implications
The results demonstrate the value of a multidisciplinary framework to analyse programme interventions at both macro and micro levels and provide a basis for programme policy and policy implementation improvements.
Originality/value
This research is a novel attempt to use the SLB, SIA and DA to public programme university-based interventions in SMEs and SME policies in general. It complements extant research on open innovation and knowledge exchange by extending the concept of public programme contexts. Beneficiaries of the findings include policy makers, programme organisations, universities, SME associations, and researchers.
an article by Arturo Vega (Canterbury Christ Church University, UK) and David Brown and Mike Chiasson (Lancaster University, UK) published in International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behaviour & Research Volume 18 Issue 4 (2012)
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to explore, through the use of a multidisciplinary lens, the policy context and the scope for improvements in university-based public programmes focused on improving innovation in small and medium enterprises (SMEs).
Design/methodology/approach
The authors use the street-level bureaucracy (SLB), combined with the systems of innovation approach (SIA) and diagnostic analysis (DA) to understand the context components that impact on public programme services. The study is part of a research programme oriented to the diffusion of information systems in SMEs and which used original interview-based programme support case studies, interviews with regional policy managers, and documentation relating to the policy system and different public programmes. Although the empirical work was UK and European Union centric the results of the research have wide applicability.
Findings
The paper establishes the importance of programme contexts for diagnosing and providing a basis for public programme improvements. It further demonstrates the robustness of the context analysis framework to provide insights into proposed policy changes. The responsibility of improving programme contexts relies on actors that operate outside programme organisations, for instance EU funding bodies, government departments in charge of SME policies, public-private partnerships, and private evaluators. Given this complexity it is suggested that SME associations have a potentially important role in increasing participation by SMEs in the public programme for innovation and knowledge support policy. Despite possible policy changes the requirement for public programme support for innovation and hence the role of universities as programme providers is confirmed and expanded.
Research limitations/implications
The results demonstrate the value of a multidisciplinary framework to analyse programme interventions at both macro and micro levels and provide a basis for programme policy and policy implementation improvements.
Originality/value
This research is a novel attempt to use the SLB, SIA and DA to public programme university-based interventions in SMEs and SME policies in general. It complements extant research on open innovation and knowledge exchange by extending the concept of public programme contexts. Beneficiaries of the findings include policy makers, programme organisations, universities, SME associations, and researchers.
Monday, 12 March 2012
Big ideas: wellbeing and public policy
a paper CEPCP355 from CentrePiece – The Magazine for Economic Performance February 2012
Richard Layard outlines the development of CEP research on what makes people happy and how society might best be organised to promote happiness.
Full article (PDF 4pp)
Richard Layard outlines the development of CEP research on what makes people happy and how society might best be organised to promote happiness.
Full article (PDF 4pp)
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