Search results for "Economic system"
showing 10 items of 232 documents
Mapping Local Democracy in Romania
2016
In East European settings, during transition, local democracy experienced great difficulties in turning from a theoretical model into a functional mechanism. As basis for citizens' political involvement, local democracy can be mapped in various ways. The authors intend to draw a map of local democracy in Romania by focusing on the function and scope of local government (second tier government), the relationship between local and central government, and the outcomes of the recent reform process. The authors intend to evaluate the quality of local democracy by the interactions between elected councilors and citizens. How elected councilors imagine their functions and responsibilities and how …
Modeling the enterprising character of European firms
2003
In an increasingly globalized economy, innovation pursuing the speeding up of technological changes takes a renewed interest. In this study, we attempt to show those characteristics and variables that make businesses successful, especially innovative small and medium‐sized enterprises. The article focuses on this business sector because the contribution of it to employment generation, wealth distribution and economy appraisal is frequently set to the fore in current political and economic debate. A study of 408 businesses, according to data from the European Commission and the Spanish Centro para el Desarrollo Tecnológico Industrial – Center for Industrial and Technological Development – (y…
Electoral Rules and Proportionality in Spain: Estimating the Impact of some Swedish Rules Through the 2011 Electoral Data
2016
In democratic countries policy making is always framed by many procedures and rules. Some of these rules are particularly critical for allowing more or less proportionality in legislative chambers, though the behavior of political actors also matter. The rules used for technically converting votes into political representatives often exercise such an important role in western countries. In this chapter we provide an estimation of the impact upon proportionality between seats and votes that might have resulted in the 2011 Spanish general elections if some Swedish electoral rules had been applied, ceteris paribus. As we are aware that electoral reforms favouring proportionality may hinder the…
Federalism, Cultural Policies, and Identity Pluralism: Cooperation and Conflict in the Spanish Quasi-Federal System
2014
The division of cultural policy between different levels of administration and the coordination between them in federal countries is a relatively neglected area of research, even though the cultural sphere always requires a balanced combination of autonomy and governance. A particularly interesting case of this equilibrium arises in Spain; often described as a quasi-federal system, both regarding its model of state and within the sphere of cultural policy. However, we demonstrate that, despite the broadly decentralized development of cultural administration in Spain—a plurinational and multicultural state—different recent judicial and political processes are distorting the quasi-federalism …
Theory on State and Politics in Religious Peacebuilding
2016
In this chapter, Steen-Johnsen offers an overview over theoretical perspectives which allow us to consider how the political strategies of a state to regulate civil society influence the opportunities of religious peacebuilders. Drawing upon theories of state–civil interactions, she suggests that religious actors engaged in peacebuilding can be considered as being affected by political strategies aiming at regulating the civil sphere. Steen-Johnsen argues that the state and civil spheres are interlinked and mutually influential but warns against viewing actors in the civil sphere as dictated by the political strategies of a state authority. Religious actors should rather should rather be co…
Networks to State Capture: Business Elite Networks and Mechanisms of Corporate State Capture in Central American Countries
2017
This paper aims to find out what configuration of business elite networks enables corporate state capture. To achieve this goal, it first uncovers and analyses business elite networks through interlocking directorates in three Central American countries using network analysis, and second, analyses the relationship between business elite networks and the mechanisms that enable corporations to capture states: namely revolving doors and the funding of political parties in the 2014 elections. Findings indicate that when some of the business elites configure a large and cohesive networked business community, while the rest is fragmented, corporate state capture is more likely to occur, as in the…
Mozambique’s Megaproject-Based Economic Model: Still Struggling with Uneven Development?
2019
Megaprojects in aluminium production, coal and natural gas extraction, and hydropower generation play a key role in the Mozambican economy. Based on the concepts of global value chains and linkages, this chapter shows that remarkable transformations are taking place in these sectors, including the expansion of production, the attraction of FDI and the emergence of new players from the Global South who now compete with transnational companies from traditional economic partner countries of Mozambique. The authors highlight potentials (in terms of economic transformation, especially positive side effects through the provision of electricity and rehabilitation of transport infrastructure) as we…
Measuring International Competitiveness of Romania by Using Porter's Diamond and Revealed Comparative Advantage
2013
Abstract International competitiveness generate a number of challenges because creates profitability for companies, welfare for citizens, sustainable prosperity for the economy as long as it is perceived as a constructive concept. The aim of present paper is to identify the international competitiveness of Romania by analyze the competitive advantage and disadvantage according to Porter‘s Diamond, on one hand, and by calculate revealed comparative advantage according to Balasa, on the other hand. The results show that Romanian has more competitive disadvantage than competitive advantage, even if by comparison with European Union, Romania has some revealed comparative advantage.
Conflict, Evolution, Hegemony, and the Power of the State
2013
In a model of evolution driven by conflict between societies more powerful states have an advantage. When the influence of outsiders is small we show that this results in a tendency to hegemony. In a simple example in which institutions differ in their “exclusiveness” we find that these hegemonies will be inefficiently “extractive” in the sense of having inefficiently high taxes, high compensation for state officials, and low welfare.
Ongoing Economic Restructuring in the Wake of the Latest Economic Crisis: A Russian Perspective
2013
Abstract The latest economic crisis has brought into focus long-standing discussions regarding the role played by services in contemporary economies. Whether viewed as a support for the well-established manufacturing sector, or growth engine in its own right, the third economic sector has become a focus point for policy makers worldwide. The paper follows the effects of the crisis on the tertiarization process, with an emphasis on developing economies, where this phenomenon is barely coming of age. The research is centered on the IT market, as this is seen as a comprehensive measure of the maturity and sophistication of the services sector.