The theory about missing links of economic growth often lags behind the empirical estimations of ... more The theory about missing links of economic growth often lags behind the empirical estimations of such links. A consensus has emerged that ethnic fractionalization has a negative impact on growth, also when controlled for income inequality. Often, although implicitly, the assumed channel is social cohesion. We analyse the effect of fractionalization on social cohesion with a different inequality measure, namely a social measure of inequality: the Inclusion of Minorities Index. Our results indicate that it is social exclusion, which reduces social cohesion, rather than diversity as such. We conclude that future studies of social cohesion and its relation to growth may benefit from using measures of social exclusion next to ethnic diversity.
Http Dx Doi Org 10 1080 135457097338753, Jan 20, 2011
A focus group is an open group interview from which research hypotheses can be derived. It enable... more A focus group is an open group interview from which research hypotheses can be derived. It enables economic research to step down from its narrow theoretical assumptions and to embed research questions in a life context. It also can contribute to strong objectivity and when done in women's groups and/or on gender issues, focus groups can contribute to a feminist methodology. Experience from a focus group by the author held in Africa has indicated how diverse and enriching economic notions can become, when discussed in a ...
Http Dx Doi Org 10 1080 13552070127734, Jul 1, 2010
ABSTRACT This paper discusses some of the relationships between gender relations and finance, par... more ABSTRACT This paper discusses some of the relationships between gender relations and finance, particularly at the meso- and macro-levels of financial transactions and trends. I focus on gender-based inequalities in finance, and the gender-based inefficiencies in finance that are created as a result. I argue that these gender biases in finance perpetuate both inequalities between women and men, and poverty.
... from personal income tax, social security contributions, property taxes and other small taxes... more ... from personal income tax, social security contributions, property taxes and other small taxes (International Monetary Fund, 2003: Table III.2). ... implication the SME sector, goes beyond its role as a source of income for those who ... Banks and state programmes 46.6 32.4 ...
It was in the summer of 2008 that the first bank in the US fell, Lehman Brothers. At the time, bo... more It was in the summer of 2008 that the first bank in the US fell, Lehman Brothers. At the time, both the general public and economists thought that it was an entirely American phenomenon. Within a few months, however, the crisis had spread across Europe, with banks falling or being taken over by the state, including devastating bankruptcies of Iceland's main banks. Yet for most of 2009, the general view was still that the crisis would not hurt the developing world. It was seen as a rich men's crisis, right at the heart of the ...
To what extent can Amartya Sen's ideas on... more To what extent can Amartya Sen's ideas on freedom, especially his conceptualization of development as freedom, enrich feminist economics? Sen's notion of freedom (as the capability to achieve valued ends) has many attractions and provides important opportunities to analyze gender inequalities. At the same time, Sen's recent emphasis on freedom as the dominant value in judging individual well-being and societal
In his Ethics, Aristotle argued that human beings try to further a variety of values by balancing... more In his Ethics, Aristotle argued that human beings try to further a variety of values by balancing them, stating that people try to find a middle road between excess and deficiency. The author develops and applies this idea to the values of economics, arguing that in the ...
Social capital has been a contested notion among economists since it came up in economic literatu... more Social capital has been a contested notion among economists since it came up in economic literature in the mid 1990s. It is not a theory as human capital theory is, nor is it a clearly distinguishable field of study, but it is a concept that has been embraced as the missing link in economic analysis. Basically, the concept addresses the social and cultural aspects of human behavior, recognizing that these dimensions have economic implications. Given the variety of views among economists on social capital, there are various definitions of social ...
The growth and mutations of the institutionalfabric are an outcome of the conduct of the individu... more The growth and mutations of the institutionalfabric are an outcome of the conduct of the individual members of the group, since it is out of the experience of the individuals, through the habituation of the individuals, that institutions arise; and it is in this same experience that these institutions act to direct and define the aims and end of conduct.-Thorstein Veblen, 1961
The theory about missing links of economic growth often lags behind the empirical estimations of ... more The theory about missing links of economic growth often lags behind the empirical estimations of such links. A consensus has emerged that ethnic fractionalization has a negative impact on growth, also when controlled for income inequality. Often, although implicitly, the assumed channel is social cohesion. We analyse the effect of fractionalization on social cohesion with a different inequality measure, namely a social measure of inequality: the Inclusion of Minorities Index. Our results indicate that it is social exclusion, which reduces social cohesion, rather than diversity as such. We conclude that future studies of social cohesion and its relation to growth may benefit from using measures of social exclusion next to ethnic diversity.
Http Dx Doi Org 10 1080 135457097338753, Jan 20, 2011
A focus group is an open group interview from which research hypotheses can be derived. It enable... more A focus group is an open group interview from which research hypotheses can be derived. It enables economic research to step down from its narrow theoretical assumptions and to embed research questions in a life context. It also can contribute to strong objectivity and when done in women's groups and/or on gender issues, focus groups can contribute to a feminist methodology. Experience from a focus group by the author held in Africa has indicated how diverse and enriching economic notions can become, when discussed in a ...
Http Dx Doi Org 10 1080 13552070127734, Jul 1, 2010
ABSTRACT This paper discusses some of the relationships between gender relations and finance, par... more ABSTRACT This paper discusses some of the relationships between gender relations and finance, particularly at the meso- and macro-levels of financial transactions and trends. I focus on gender-based inequalities in finance, and the gender-based inefficiencies in finance that are created as a result. I argue that these gender biases in finance perpetuate both inequalities between women and men, and poverty.
... from personal income tax, social security contributions, property taxes and other small taxes... more ... from personal income tax, social security contributions, property taxes and other small taxes (International Monetary Fund, 2003: Table III.2). ... implication the SME sector, goes beyond its role as a source of income for those who ... Banks and state programmes 46.6 32.4 ...
It was in the summer of 2008 that the first bank in the US fell, Lehman Brothers. At the time, bo... more It was in the summer of 2008 that the first bank in the US fell, Lehman Brothers. At the time, both the general public and economists thought that it was an entirely American phenomenon. Within a few months, however, the crisis had spread across Europe, with banks falling or being taken over by the state, including devastating bankruptcies of Iceland's main banks. Yet for most of 2009, the general view was still that the crisis would not hurt the developing world. It was seen as a rich men's crisis, right at the heart of the ...
To what extent can Amartya Sen's ideas on... more To what extent can Amartya Sen's ideas on freedom, especially his conceptualization of development as freedom, enrich feminist economics? Sen's notion of freedom (as the capability to achieve valued ends) has many attractions and provides important opportunities to analyze gender inequalities. At the same time, Sen's recent emphasis on freedom as the dominant value in judging individual well-being and societal
In his Ethics, Aristotle argued that human beings try to further a variety of values by balancing... more In his Ethics, Aristotle argued that human beings try to further a variety of values by balancing them, stating that people try to find a middle road between excess and deficiency. The author develops and applies this idea to the values of economics, arguing that in the ...
Social capital has been a contested notion among economists since it came up in economic literatu... more Social capital has been a contested notion among economists since it came up in economic literature in the mid 1990s. It is not a theory as human capital theory is, nor is it a clearly distinguishable field of study, but it is a concept that has been embraced as the missing link in economic analysis. Basically, the concept addresses the social and cultural aspects of human behavior, recognizing that these dimensions have economic implications. Given the variety of views among economists on social capital, there are various definitions of social ...
The growth and mutations of the institutionalfabric are an outcome of the conduct of the individu... more The growth and mutations of the institutionalfabric are an outcome of the conduct of the individual members of the group, since it is out of the experience of the individuals, through the habituation of the individuals, that institutions arise; and it is in this same experience that these institutions act to direct and define the aims and end of conduct.-Thorstein Veblen, 1961
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