Comparing Fiscal Squeezes Across Nine Country Cases

2014 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rozana Himaz ◽  
Christopher Hood
Keyword(s):  
Institutional Change ◽  
Financial Economic ◽  
Quantitative Comparison ◽  
Vote Share ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Spending Cuts ◽  
Constant Prices

This chapter offers a systematic quantitative comparison of the nine country cases examined in the book. It uses reported spending and tax data to compare the depth and duration of those squeezes, and to show how far depth and duration vary according to whether squeeze is measured by tax and spending in constant prices or relative to GDP, and whether squeeze is measured in terms of spending cuts or tax increases. It shows there is no common set of financial, economic or political preconditions for fiscal squeezes in the nine cases. It also looks at the aftermath of fiscal squeezes in electoral and other outcomes, showing that political incumbents often but not always experienced loss of vote share or loss of office. It also shows that (contrary to common claims about the impact of fiscal squeeze) constitutional or major institutional change only followed fiscal squeeze in two of the cases.

Beyond the austerity-driven hypothesis: Political economic theses on penality and the recent prison population decline

2021 ◽  
pp. 147737082110006
Author(s):  
José A. Brandariz
Keyword(s):  
Prison Population ◽  
Population Decline ◽  
Theoretical Frameworks ◽  
The Past ◽  
Economic Forces ◽  
Global North ◽  
Economic Perspectives ◽  
Political Economic ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Spending Cuts

In what might be called the ‘austerity-driven hypothesis’, a consistent strand of literature has sought to explain the prison downsizing witnessed in many jurisdictions of the global north over the past decade by referring to the financial crisis of the late 2000s to early 2010s and its effects in terms of public spending cuts. Since this economic phase is essentially over, whereas the (moderate) decarceration turn is still ongoing, there are good reasons to challenge this hypothesis. This article delves into the non-economic forces that are fostering a prison population decline that, 10 years on, is becoming the new ‘penal normal’. The article thereby aims to spark a dialogue not only with the scholarship exploring the prison downsizing but also with certain theoretical frameworks that have played a key role in examining the punitive turn era. Additionally, the article contributes to the conversation on the need to reframe materialist readings on penality in a ‘non-reductionist’ fashion. By revisiting heterodox theses and scrutinizing the impact of recent penal changes on traditional materialist accounts, the article joins the collective endeavour seeking to update political economic perspectives on punishment and the penal field.

Alliance Participation, Treaty Depth, and Military Spending

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joshua Alley
Keyword(s):  
Empirical Evidence ◽  
Research Design ◽  
Military Spending ◽  
Central Question ◽  
Alliance Politics ◽  
Military Expenditures ◽  
Defense Cooperation ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Spending Cuts

Abstract How does alliance participation affect military spending? Some argue that alliance membership increases military expenditures, while others contend that it produces spending cuts. I argue that deep formal defense cooperation modifies the impact of alliance participation on military expenditures and can explain increases and decreases in spending by small alliance members. Security-seeking junior members of deep alliances usually decrease military spending because these treaties are more credible. Joining shallow alliances often increases junior alliance member military spending, however. I test the argument by creating a latent measure of alliance treaty depth and using it to predict differences in how alliance participation affects military spending. The research design generates new empirical evidence linking alliance participation and percentage changes in state military spending from 1919 to 2007. I find that deeper alliance treaties tend to decrease military spending by junior alliance members, and shallow alliances often increase military spending. These results help scholars and policymakers better understand a central question about alliance politics that has been debated in scholarship for decades.

Re-using Open Government Data (OGD) published by the Election Commission of India (ECI)

foresight ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 20 (5) ◽  
pp. 507-526 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stuti Saxena
Keyword(s):  
Academic Research ◽  
Vote Share ◽  
Open Government ◽  
Party Affiliation ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Demographic Profiles ◽  
Open Government Data ◽  
Government Data ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Election Commission

Purpose The paper aims to “re-use” the Open Government Data (OGD) published by the Election Commission of India (ECI). Bihar’s performance across General Elections, 2014, and Bihar Legislative Assembly Elections, 2015, is compared, wherein the role of contestants’ demographic profiles in determining their vote share is being investigated. Design/methodology/approach Hypotheses are derived based on the impact of contestants’ demographic profiles (age, marital status, social category, political party affiliation, educational qualification, availing telephone and email facility, criminal antecedents) on their vote share. Following a quantitative approach, multiple regression and logistic regression are used to draw inferences from the data contestants’ affidavits – sourced from the ECI website. Findings Results show that contestants’ demographic profiles impact their vote share in the elections. While the ECI website is a viable source for re-using the data available there, data are not available in a user-friendly format and this leads to difficulty in being re-used by different stakeholders. Originality/value Academic research on OGD re-use is negligible, and the present study seeks to contribute towards extant literature by underlining the significance of re-using OGD by drawing inferences from the data accessible via ECI.

Understanding the Impact of Electoral Systems on Women's Representation

2016 ◽  
Vol 13 (03) ◽  
pp. 379-404 ◽  
Author(s):  
Frank C. Thames
Keyword(s):  
Political Science ◽  
Electoral Systems ◽  
Vote Share ◽  
Political Systems ◽  
Women's Representation ◽  
Women’S Representation ◽  
The Impact

The study of electoral systems is a key area of research within political science. In part, the attention paid to electoral systems reflects their importance to democratic political systems. Electoral systems define “what constitutes” a vote, establish “a rule for how votes are totaled,” and create a mechanism for “translating vote share into seat allocations” for representative institutions (Bawn 1993, 966). These roles mean that electoral systems impact not only how interests are represented, but also how accountability is structured.

scholarly journals The impact of Covid-19 pandemic on the institutional change in developing countries

2021 ◽  
Vol 20 (3) ◽  
pp. 587-601
Author(s):  
Tomasz Legiędź
Keyword(s):  
Developing Countries ◽  
Institutional Change ◽  
Institutional Economics ◽  
Influenza Pandemic ◽  
Civil Liberties ◽  
New Institutional Economics ◽  
Institutional Changes ◽  
Current Events ◽  
Institutional System ◽  
The Impact

Motivation: The Covid-19 pandemic is having a critical impact on economies, especially in developing countries. Such a serious external shock affects the distribution of economic rents, thus leading to potentially large institutional changes. Naturally, in the short term we are dealing with an economic crisis and a restriction of civil liberties in both autocratic and democratic countries, however, it is not known what the dynamics of institutional changes will be in the longer run. Aim: The main purpose of the article is to answer if the Covid-19 pandemic becomes a turning point that will determine the institutional system in developing countries for the next few decades. The first part of the article outlines the theory of institutional change, with particular emphasis on the role of external shocks. The next section presents studies on the socioeconomic impact of two major epidemics: The Black Death and the Great Influenza Pandemic. The third part conducts an assessment as to what extent the current pandemic may affect institutions in developing countries, by reference to the example of two countries: Tunisia and Cambodia. The analysis is conducted from the perspective of the new institutional economics. Results: If we look at the experiences from previous pandemics, current events and refer to the literature on the theory of institutional change, we can conclude that significant institutional changes caused by Covid-19 are unlikely. The process of institutional change is characterized by a specific complexity and changing dynamics. Nonetheless, it is the internal factors, reflecting the actions of people trying to maximize the benefits, which are the main cause of change in an institutional system. Therefore, the Covid-19 pandemic is more likely to strengthen the endogeneity of the process of institutional change, rather than change its course.

scholarly journals FINANCIAL PROVISION OF THE PENSION SYSTEM IN THE EUROPEAN COUNTRIES AND UKRAINE UNDER GLOBALIZATION

2012 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 73-80
Author(s):  
Tetiana Ivashchenko
Keyword(s):  
Pension System ◽  
Negative Impact ◽  
Financial Economic ◽  
European Countries ◽  
Pension Insurance ◽  
Pension Systems ◽  
The Social ◽  
System Functioning ◽  
The Impact

The most contradictions arise today over the pension system reforming. Each year the states spent significant resources to finance social and economic needs of the population. The positive effect of the nominal growth of the social and economic guarantees in Ukraine leveled nowadays in terms of financial, economic and political instability. Also the processes of depopulation have a very negative impact on the financial viability of the PAYG pension system. Given this, the research aim was to study and discuss tendencies in financial provision of the pension systems in the European countries and Ukraine under globalization. As a result in the process of research the main features of functioning and providing of the pension insurance systems in European countries and Ukraine were examined; the impact of the depopulation processes on the financial provision of the pension systems was determined; problems, related to introduction of the funded system of pension insurance were analyzed; the role of the minimum pension institute in provision of the effective pension system functioning was disclosed and recommendations in relation to optimization of pension insurance and providing сo-operation under globalization were developed.

Corruption Scandals, the Evolution of Anti-Corruption Institutions, and Their Impact on Brazil’s Economy

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mariana Mota Prado ◽  
Lindsey Carson
Keyword(s):  
Institutional Change ◽  
Economic Performance ◽  
Window Of Opportunity ◽  
Institutional Reforms ◽  
Government Reforms ◽  
The Impact

This chapter considers corruption in the Brazilian context and the impact this may have had on economic performance. It is first suggested that a corruption scandal can create a window of opportunity for reforms, such that a government’s action or inaction in the aftermath of a scandal may signify its commitment to institutional change. The chapter assesses the impacts of past scandals and responsive institutional reforms on perceptions of corruption. Finally, the chapter considers how foreign and domestic investors may react to government reforms, as well as perception-based indicators of corruption. It is argued that some corruption scandals have had significant impact on institutional reforms and corruption indicators in Brazil.

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