An overlapping generations approach to price policies in privatehealthcare insurance. The Catalan case

We analyze premium policies and price dispersion among private healthcare insurance firms from an overlapping-generations model. The model shows that firms that apply equal premium to all policyholders and firms that set premiums according to the risk of insured can coexist in the short run, whereas coexistence is unlikely in the long run because it requires the coincidence of economic growth and interest rates. We find support for the model’s results in the Catalan health insurance industry. Keywords: Economic theory, price policies, health insurance, health economics, overlapping-generations. JEL Classifications: I11 / L11 / L23

The Impact of Cooperation on R&D, Innovation andProductivity: an Analysis of Spanish Manufacturing and Services Firms

This paper investigates relationships between cooperation, R&D, innovation and productivity in Spanish firms. It uses a large sample of firm-level micro-data and applies an extended structural model that aims to explain the effects of cooperation on R&D investment, of R&D investment on output innovation, and of innovation on firms’ productivity levels. It also analyses the determinants of R&D cooperation. Firms’ technology level is taken into account in order to analyse the differences between high-tech and low-tech firms, both in the industrial and service sectors. The database used was the Technological Innovation Panel (PITEC) for the period 2004-2010. Empirical results show that firms which cooperate in innovative activities are more likely to invest in R&D in subsequent years. As expected, R&D investment has a positive impact on the probability of generating an innovation, in terms of both product and process, for manufacturing firms. Finally, innovation output has a positive impact on firms’ productivity, being greater in process innovations.

Difusión del consumo de leche en España (1865- 1981)

La aproximación habitual en el estudio de la difusión del consumo de un alimento, además de descomponer su aportación nutricional, consiste en estudiar la evolución de sus consumos medios. Pero en todo proceso de difusión de un nuevo producto, establecer el consumo promedio es tan importante como conocer el número de consumidores. Este artículo propone un análisis de la recepción del consumo de leche entre la población española atendiendo a ambas dimensiones entre finales del siglo XIX y 1981. Esto es, se combinará el conocimiento de la evolución del número de consumidores con el de sus niveles medios de consumo. Adoptar este planteamiento supone enfrentarse con el problema de la ausencia de datos sobre la magnitud de consumidores en las fuentes estadísticas disponibles. Este artículo propone una estrategia metodológica diseñada para reconstruir la evolución de esa población tanto en una escala temporal como espacial.

The Impact of Cooperation on R&D, Innovation and Productivity: an Analysis of Spanish Manufacturing and Services Firms

This paper investigates relationships between cooperation, R&D, innovation and productivity in Spanish firms. It uses a large sample of firm-level micro-data and applies an extended structural model that aims to explain the effects of cooperation on R&D investment, of R&D investment on output innovation, and of innovation on firms’ productivity levels. It also analyses the determinants of R&D cooperation. Firms’ technology level is taken into account in order to analyse the differences between high-tech and low-tech firms, both in the industrial and service sectors. The database used was the Technological Innovation Panel (PITEC) for the period 2004-2010. Empirical results show that firms which cooperate in innovative activities are more likely to invest in R&D in subsequent years. As expected, R&D investment has a positive impact on the probability of generating an innovation, in terms of both product and process, for manufacturing firms. Finally, innovation output has a positive impact on firms’ productivity, being greater in process innovations. Keywords: innovation sources; productivity; R&D Cooperation

Resposta de duas cultivares de arroz irrigado à densidade de semeadura e à adubação nitrogenada

Diversos estudos foram realizados sobre densidade de semeadura e adubação nitrogenada em arroz irrigado, mas poucos trabalhos estudaram esses dois fatores conjuntamente. O objetivo deste trabalho foi avaliar o efeito da densidade de semeadura e da adubação nitrogenada no rendimento de grãos e nos componentes do rendimento, em duas cultivares de arroz irrigado. O experimento foi realizado no campo, durante os anos agrícolas de 1998/1999 e 1999/2000. Os tratamentos constituíram-se das combinações de duas cultivares de arroz irrigado (BR-IRGA 410 e IRGA 417), quatro densidades de semeadura (50, 100, 150 e 200 kg ha-1) e quatro níveis de nitrogênio (0, 40, 80 e 120 kg ha-1), distribuídos em blocos ao acaso, com quatro repetições. O rendimento de grãos em resposta à adubação nitrogenada não foi influenciado pela densidade de semeadura, exceto na densidade mais baixa, no segundo ano. O rendimento de grãos não variou dentro da faixa de densidade de semeadura testada. A eficiência de uso do nitrogênio foi maior na cultivar BR-IRGA 410 do que na IRGA 417 e diminuiu com o incremento da adubação nitrogenada.

Identity and combinations of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungal isolates influence plant resistance and insect preference

1. Accumulating evidence indicates that plant resistance against above-ground herbivores can be affected by the presence of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) in association with the host plant. Little is known, however, about how AMF composition can influence herbivore choice to feed on a particular plant. 2. Unravelling the preference-performance hypothesis in a multitrophic context is needed to expand our knowledge of complex multitrophic interactions in natural systems. If given mycorrhizal fungal genotypes increase attractiveness for a herbivore (reduced plant resistance), then the benefits of increased unpalatability provided by the mycorrhizal fungi (increased plant resistance) might be outweighed by the increased herbivore recruitment. 3. This was addressed by designing three experiments to test the effects of different AMF genotypes, inoculated either alone or in combination, to measure intraspecific AMF effects on plant resistance and insect herbivore preference. Using strawberry (Fragaria vesca L.) plants that were colonised by eight different combinations of Rhizophagus irregularis isolates, we measured effects on plant growth, insect growth and survival, as well as feeding preferences of a generalist herbivore caterpillar (Spodoptera littoralis Boisduval). 4. Overall, it was found that: (i) AMF influenced plant resistance in an AMF genotype-specific manner; (ii) some AMF inoculations decreased insect performance; (iii) insects preferentially chose to feed more on leaves originating from non-mycorrhizal plants; but also that (iv) in a whole plant bioassay, insects preferentially chose the biggest plant, regardless of their mycorrhizal status. 5. Therefore, AMF-mediated trade-offs between growth and resistance against herbivores have been shown. Such trade-offs, particularly driven by plant attractiveness to herbivores, buffer the positive effects of the mycorrhizal symbiosis on enhanced plant growth.

Regional income inequality in Italy in the long run (1871–2001). Patterns and determinants

The chapter presents up-to-date estimates of Italy’s regional GDP, with the present borders, in ten-year benchmarks from 1871 to 2001, and proposes a new interpretative hypothesis based on long-lasting socio-institutional differences. The inverted U-shape of income inequality is confirmed: rising divergence until the midtwentieth century, then convergence. However, the latter was limited to the centrenorth: Italy was divided into three parts by the time regional inequality peaked, in 1951, and appears to have been split into two halves by 2001. As a consequence of the falling back of the south, from 1871 to 2001 we record σ-divergence across Italy’s regions, i.e. an increase in dispersion, and sluggish β-convergence. Geographical factors and the market size played a minor role: against them are both the evidence that most of the differences in GDP are due to employment rather than to productivity and the observed GDP patterns of many regions. The gradual converging of regional GDPs towards two equilibria instead follows social and institutional differences − in the political and economic institutions and in the levels of human and social capital – which originated in pre-unification states and did not die (but in part even increased) in postunification Italy.

Disentangling the link between health and social capital: A comparison of immigrant and native-born populations in Spain

An increasing body of research has pointed to the relevance of social capital in studying a great variety of socio-economic phenomena, ranging from economics growth and development to educational attainment and public health. Conceptually, our paper is framed within the debates about the possible links between health and social capital, on one hand, and within the hypotheses regarding the importance of social and community networks in all stages of the dynamics of international migration, on the other hand. Our primary objective is to explore the ways social relations contribute to health differences between the immigrants and the native-born population of Spain. We also try to reveal differences in the nature of the social networks of foreign-born, as compared to that of the native-born persons. The empirical analysis is based on an individual-level data coming from the 2006 Spanish Health Survey, which contains a representative sample of the immigrant population. To assess the relationship between various health indicators (self-assessed health, chronic conditions and long-term illness) and social capital, controlling for other covariates, we estimate multilevel models separately for the two population groups of interest. In the estimates we distinguish between individual and community-level social capital. While the Health Survey contains information that allows us to define individual social capital measures, the collective indicators come from other official sources. In particular, for the subsample of immigrants, we proxy community-level networks and relationships by variables contained in the Spanish National Survey of Immigrants 2007. The results obtained so far point to the relevance of social capital as a covariate in the health equation, although, the significance varies according to the specific health indicator used. Additionally, and contrary to what is expected, immigrants’ social networks seem to be inferior to those of the native-born population in many aspects; and they also affect immigrant’s health to a lesser extent. Policy implications of the findings are discussed. Keywords: health status, social capital, immigration, Spain

Decentralization and the Welfare State: What Do Citizens Perceive?

Trust in public institutions and public policies are generally perceived as a precondition for economic recovery in times of recession. Recent empirical evidence tends to find a positive link between decentralization and trust. But our knowledge about whether decentralization – through increased trust – improves the perception of the delivery and effectiveness of public policies is still limited. In this paper we estimate the impact of fiscal and political decentralization on the perception of the state of the education system and of health services, by using the 2002, 2004, 2006 and 2008 waves of the European social survey. The analysis of the views of 160,000 individuals in 31 European countries indicates that while the effect of fiscal decentralization on the perception of the state of the health and education system is limited, political decentralization clearly affects citizen’s satisfaction with education and health delivery. The influence of political decentralization, however, is highly contingent on whether we consider the capacity of the local or regional government to exercise authority over its citizens (self-rule) or to influence policy at the national level (shared-rule). Keywords: Education, health, satisfaction, fiscal and political decentralization, Europe. JEL codes: H11, H77

Comparação de modelos matemáticos na estimativa das perdas de produtividade de grãos em arroz irrigado

Os objetivos deste trabalho foram comparar modelos matemáticos e identificar, entre variáveis morfológicas, a de melhor ajuste na previsão de perdas de produtividade em arroz irrigado por interferência da cultivar EEA 406, simuladora de arroz-vermelho. Foram realizados quatro experimentos, sendo um no campo e os demais em casa de vegetação. Três cultivares de arroz, BRS-38 Ligeirinho, IRGA 417 e BR-IRGA 409, foram estudadas no campo, com espaçamento entrelinhas de 15 e 25 cm, além de populações da cultivar competidora (dez níveis). Em casa de vegetação, realizaram-se experimentos em monocultivos e em série de substituição. A análise dos dados foi realizada com aplicação de modelos lineares e não lineares de regressão. O melhor ajuste dos dados de perdas de produtividade em arroz foi encontrado com o modelo de dois parâmetros. Área foliar e cobertura do solo estimaram melhor as perdas de produtividade de grãos do que a massa seca da cultivar simuladora. Os modelos testados indicam que a redução do espaçamento entrelinhas aumenta a habilidade competitiva das cultivares de arroz em relação à cultivar concorrente.

Geometria a Renato Des Cartes anno 1637 gallice edita, nunc autem cum notis Florimondi de Beaune,... in linguam latinam versa et commentariis illustrata, opera atque studio Francisci a Schooten,...

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