Volume 2, Issue 3, July 2009 Edition
The Bretton Woods Institutions and the Environment:
Organizational Learning within the World Bank and the
International Monetary Fund (IMF)
Alexandra Lindenthal, and Martin Koch
Abstract
Due to a growing public awareness, in the last 40 years environmental impacts of development projects financed and supported by the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) have come into view. Since then, the member states have pressured both organizations to implement environmental concerns. We analyze the reactions of the World Bank and the IMF’s bureaucracies towards their principals’ demands. To reveal if, and to what extent, the observed reactions of both bureaucracies towards environmental integration can be assessed as organizational learning, we develop in a first step a heuristic model that allows for a distinction between different levels of learning (compliant and non-compliant, single-loop and double-loop). In a second step we describe the efforts of the bureaucracies of the World Bank (from the 1970s until today) and the IMF (from the 1990s until today) to integrate environmental protection into their activities. Due to our interest in the quality of the organizational changes, we finally analyze if and to what extent the bureaucracies’ reactions to the new external demand qualify as organizational learning. Furthermore, we discuss which factors helped or hindered organizational learning.
Key words: organizational learning; environmental integration; World Bank; IMF
Comparative analyses of Human Resource AccountingDisclosure Practices in Nigerian Financial Service and Manufacturingcompanies
OyewoBabajide Michael
Abstract
With rapid changes in the business environment, organizations are now looking at intellectual assets such as human resources as unique assets that bring about competitive advantage. In spite of the strategic position that human assets occupy, sufficient attention has not been given to standardizing reporting practices. It is against this backdrop that the research examines human resource accounting practices of financial service and manufacturing firms in Nigeria. By content-analysing the financials of 12-selected companies, human resource accounting disclosure indices were derived. Study variables were subjected to statistical procedures such as ANOVA, T-test and Correlation. The study found out that though human resource accounting disclosure practice index of banks is higher in comparison to manufacturing companies, the difference is not statistically significant. Also, there is a strong positive relationship between human resource accounting disclosure and company size. It was the findings of this research that there is a positive connection between the volume of financials and human resource reporting. To enhance the credibility of financial reports, firms may consider valuing and incorporating human assets in their financial statements. Relevant authorities should look into drawing-up specific financial reporting standard on human resource activities to address problems of arbitrariness in human resource accounting disclosure.
Key words: Financial Reporting, Human Resource Accounting, Intellectual asset, Nigeria, Strategic Management Accounting
Assessment of the Economic and Environmental Impact of Double Glazed Façade Ventilation Systems in Mediterranean Climates
David Valentín, Alfredo Guardo, Eduard Egusquiza, Carme Valero, and Pere Alavedra
Abstract
Free convection is the most often used method in order to reduce solar load gains on a building with double glazed façades (DGFs). However, depending on the climate factors, the thermal performance of a DGF may not be satisfactory and extra energy costs are required to obtain suitable comfort conditions inside the building. Forced ventilation systems are a feasible alternative to improve the thermal performance of a DGF in Mediterranean climates where large solar gains are a permanent condition throughout the year. In this paper the feasibility of using diverse forced ventilation methods in DGF is evaluated. In addition, an economical comparison between different mechanical ventilation systems was performed in order to demonstrate the viability of DGF forced ventilation. Moreover, an environmental study was carried out to prove the positive energetic balance on cooling loads between free and forced convection in DGF for Mediterranean climates. For this investigation, a CFD model was used to simulate the thermal conditions in a DGF for the different ventilation systems. Results obtained for heat flux, temperature and reductions in solar load gains were analyzed and applied for the economic and environmental research.
Key words: double glazed façades (DGF); Coandă nozzle; forced convection; building thermal performance; cooling load savings; environmental impact
Integrating Sustainability in Management Education
Emmanuel Raufflet
Abstract
Over the last decade, numerous modules, courses, and programs in Management Education have integrated sustainability into their curricula. However, this “integration” has translated into very diverse forms and contents. This article aims to clarify these ambiguities. It maps four forms of sustainability integration in Management Education. These four distinct forms are (1) discipline-based integration, in which the anchoring point is the business discipline (sustainability is added as a dimension of this body of knowledge); (2) strategic-/competitive-based integration, in which the anchoring point is the strategy of the organization (sustainability is viewed as a potential contributor to the firm’s competitive advantage); (3) integration by application, in which managerial tools and approaches from business disciplines are applied so as to contribute to addressing a sustainability challenge; and, last, (4) systemic integration, in which the anchoring point is a social-ecological-economic challenge defined from an interdisciplinary perspective. Implications of this chapter for the design of courses and programs and the practice of sustainability in Management Education are twofold. First, this article contributes to going beyond the prevailing tendency of studies in the field of sustainability in Management Education to focus mainly on tools and applications. In doing so, this article helps frame these challenges on the level of course and program design. Second, this article helps management educators map what they are intending to achieve by the integration of sustainability into the Management Education curriculum.
Key words: sustainability; integration; program design; management education
Suborganizations of Institutions in Library and Information Science Journals
Dalibor Fiala
Abstract
In this paper, we analyze Web of Science data records of articles published from 1991 to 2010 in library and information science (LIS) journals. We focus on addresses of these articles’ authors and create citation and collaboration networks of departments which we define as the first suborganization of an institution. We present various rankings of departments (e.g., by citations, times cited, PageRank, publications, etc.) and highlight the most influential of them. The correlations between the individual departments are also shown. Furthermore, we visualize the most intense citation and collaboration relationships between ―LIS‖ departments (many of which are not genuine LIS departments but merely affiliations of authors publishing in journals covered by the specific Web of Science category) and give examples of two basic research performance distributions across departments of the leading universities in the field.
Key words: departments; ranking; PageRank; citations; collaborations
Protests against Amalgamation in Colonial Ewedome, British Mandated Territory, 1920 to 1948
Wilson K. Yayoh
Abstract
The issue of amalgamation has featured prominently in recently scholarly works on the discourse on ethnic identity and chieftaincy disputes in the southern section of British Togoland. This article examines the various protestations that characterised the implementation of the policy of amalgamation and the reactions of the colonial government. Almost all existing scholarly literature on Britain’s African empire emphasises the relative weaknesses of the colonial state, particularly in the pre-World War II period. There are pertinent examples from West Africa that demonstrate the weakness of the colonial state in terms of its capacity to alter social and economic behaviour amongst its subjects.
Key words: amalgamation, ethnic identity, policy, social, economic, behavior
Generic Skills and the Employability of Electrical Installation Students in Technical Colleges of Akwa Ibom State, Nigeria
Caleb, E. C And Udofia, A.E
Abstract
Generic skills are key competencies that can be used across a large number of different occupations and they provide a platform for the development of employability skills needed by young people and adults. This study investigated the influence of generic skills on the employability of Electrical Installation and maintenance students in Technical Colleges of Akwa Ibom State. It employed the survey research design, 3 research questions and 2 null hypotheses guided the study. A total of 60 Electrical Installation students drawn from a population of 80 students were randomly stratified to form the sample. The researchers developed instrument tagged “electrical Installation employability indices” (EIEI) was used for data collection. The instrument was face and content validated and the reliability index was established at .89 using the test retest method. The statistical tools used for the study were mean and Analyysis of Variance (ANOVA). The research findings reveal that Electrical Installation students possess essential generic skills and it was concluded that the generic skills have an influence on their employability. It was recommended that lecturers emphasize the importance of generic skills and they should also encourage group discussions in classrooms.
Key words: generic skills, employability, TVET, Electrical Installation and maintenance
Modelling of Indian Stock Prices using Nonhomogeneous Poisson Processes with Time Trends
Rupal Shah and K. Muralidharan
Abstract
The financial sector in India has undergone radical reforms, particularly in the stock market segment, since early 1990s. Testing duration in stock markets concerns the ability to predict the turning points of bull and bear cycles. This article study some point process models to fit the data from Indian stock market cycles. We have considered the BSE 30 (SENSEX) data from January, 1991 to August, 2012 for bull and bear markets. The duration dependence of stock market cycles can help to pinpoint the peaks and troughs in these cycles. Upon carrying out various statistical procedures and goodness of fit tests, we found that the Nonhomogeneous Poisson Process models like Power Law Process, Modulated Power Law Process, Log-linear process and other models are some of the possible alternative models to describe the data. We provide estimates, confidence interval estimates and tests of hypothesis for the parameters involved in a particular model.
Key words: Power Law Process, Log linear process
Alexandra Lindenthal, and Martin Koch
Abstract
Due to a growing public awareness, in the last 40 years environmental impacts of development projects financed and supported by the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) have come into view. Since then, the member states have pressured both organizations to implement environmental concerns. We analyze the reactions of the World Bank and the IMF’s bureaucracies towards their principals’ demands. To reveal if, and to what extent, the observed reactions of both bureaucracies towards environmental integration can be assessed as organizational learning, we develop in a first step a heuristic model that allows for a distinction between different levels of learning (compliant and non-compliant, single-loop and double-loop). In a second step we describe the efforts of the bureaucracies of the World Bank (from the 1970s until today) and the IMF (from the 1990s until today) to integrate environmental protection into their activities. Due to our interest in the quality of the organizational changes, we finally analyze if and to what extent the bureaucracies’ reactions to the new external demand qualify as organizational learning. Furthermore, we discuss which factors helped or hindered organizational learning.
Key words: organizational learning; environmental integration; World Bank; IMF
 [Abstract-PDF]
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[References]
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2.3.7.2009.1
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Comparative analyses of Human Resource AccountingDisclosure Practices in Nigerian Financial Service and Manufacturingcompanies
OyewoBabajide Michael
Abstract
With rapid changes in the business environment, organizations are now looking at intellectual assets such as human resources as unique assets that bring about competitive advantage. In spite of the strategic position that human assets occupy, sufficient attention has not been given to standardizing reporting practices. It is against this backdrop that the research examines human resource accounting practices of financial service and manufacturing firms in Nigeria. By content-analysing the financials of 12-selected companies, human resource accounting disclosure indices were derived. Study variables were subjected to statistical procedures such as ANOVA, T-test and Correlation. The study found out that though human resource accounting disclosure practice index of banks is higher in comparison to manufacturing companies, the difference is not statistically significant. Also, there is a strong positive relationship between human resource accounting disclosure and company size. It was the findings of this research that there is a positive connection between the volume of financials and human resource reporting. To enhance the credibility of financial reports, firms may consider valuing and incorporating human assets in their financial statements. Relevant authorities should look into drawing-up specific financial reporting standard on human resource activities to address problems of arbitrariness in human resource accounting disclosure.
Key words: Financial Reporting, Human Resource Accounting, Intellectual asset, Nigeria, Strategic Management Accounting
| [Abstract-PDF]
|
[References]
|
2.3.7.2009.2
|
Assessment of the Economic and Environmental Impact of Double Glazed Façade Ventilation Systems in Mediterranean Climates
David Valentín, Alfredo Guardo, Eduard Egusquiza, Carme Valero, and Pere Alavedra
Abstract
Free convection is the most often used method in order to reduce solar load gains on a building with double glazed façades (DGFs). However, depending on the climate factors, the thermal performance of a DGF may not be satisfactory and extra energy costs are required to obtain suitable comfort conditions inside the building. Forced ventilation systems are a feasible alternative to improve the thermal performance of a DGF in Mediterranean climates where large solar gains are a permanent condition throughout the year. In this paper the feasibility of using diverse forced ventilation methods in DGF is evaluated. In addition, an economical comparison between different mechanical ventilation systems was performed in order to demonstrate the viability of DGF forced ventilation. Moreover, an environmental study was carried out to prove the positive energetic balance on cooling loads between free and forced convection in DGF for Mediterranean climates. For this investigation, a CFD model was used to simulate the thermal conditions in a DGF for the different ventilation systems. Results obtained for heat flux, temperature and reductions in solar load gains were analyzed and applied for the economic and environmental research.
Key words: double glazed façades (DGF); Coandă nozzle; forced convection; building thermal performance; cooling load savings; environmental impact
| [Abstract-PDF]
|
[References]
|
2.3.7.2009.3
|
Integrating Sustainability in Management Education
Emmanuel Raufflet
Abstract
Over the last decade, numerous modules, courses, and programs in Management Education have integrated sustainability into their curricula. However, this “integration” has translated into very diverse forms and contents. This article aims to clarify these ambiguities. It maps four forms of sustainability integration in Management Education. These four distinct forms are (1) discipline-based integration, in which the anchoring point is the business discipline (sustainability is added as a dimension of this body of knowledge); (2) strategic-/competitive-based integration, in which the anchoring point is the strategy of the organization (sustainability is viewed as a potential contributor to the firm’s competitive advantage); (3) integration by application, in which managerial tools and approaches from business disciplines are applied so as to contribute to addressing a sustainability challenge; and, last, (4) systemic integration, in which the anchoring point is a social-ecological-economic challenge defined from an interdisciplinary perspective. Implications of this chapter for the design of courses and programs and the practice of sustainability in Management Education are twofold. First, this article contributes to going beyond the prevailing tendency of studies in the field of sustainability in Management Education to focus mainly on tools and applications. In doing so, this article helps frame these challenges on the level of course and program design. Second, this article helps management educators map what they are intending to achieve by the integration of sustainability into the Management Education curriculum.
Key words: sustainability; integration; program design; management education
| [Abstract-PDF]
|
[References]
|
2.3.7.2009.4
|
Suborganizations of Institutions in Library and Information Science Journals
Dalibor Fiala
Abstract
In this paper, we analyze Web of Science data records of articles published from 1991 to 2010 in library and information science (LIS) journals. We focus on addresses of these articles’ authors and create citation and collaboration networks of departments which we define as the first suborganization of an institution. We present various rankings of departments (e.g., by citations, times cited, PageRank, publications, etc.) and highlight the most influential of them. The correlations between the individual departments are also shown. Furthermore, we visualize the most intense citation and collaboration relationships between ―LIS‖ departments (many of which are not genuine LIS departments but merely affiliations of authors publishing in journals covered by the specific Web of Science category) and give examples of two basic research performance distributions across departments of the leading universities in the field.
Key words: departments; ranking; PageRank; citations; collaborations
| [Abstract-PDF]
|
[References]
|
2.3.7.2009.5
|
Protests against Amalgamation in Colonial Ewedome, British Mandated Territory, 1920 to 1948
Wilson K. Yayoh
Abstract
The issue of amalgamation has featured prominently in recently scholarly works on the discourse on ethnic identity and chieftaincy disputes in the southern section of British Togoland. This article examines the various protestations that characterised the implementation of the policy of amalgamation and the reactions of the colonial government. Almost all existing scholarly literature on Britain’s African empire emphasises the relative weaknesses of the colonial state, particularly in the pre-World War II period. There are pertinent examples from West Africa that demonstrate the weakness of the colonial state in terms of its capacity to alter social and economic behaviour amongst its subjects.
Key words: amalgamation, ethnic identity, policy, social, economic, behavior
| [Abstract-PDF]
|
[References]
|
2.3.7.2009.6
|
Generic Skills and the Employability of Electrical Installation Students in Technical Colleges of Akwa Ibom State, Nigeria
Caleb, E. C And Udofia, A.E
Abstract
Generic skills are key competencies that can be used across a large number of different occupations and they provide a platform for the development of employability skills needed by young people and adults. This study investigated the influence of generic skills on the employability of Electrical Installation and maintenance students in Technical Colleges of Akwa Ibom State. It employed the survey research design, 3 research questions and 2 null hypotheses guided the study. A total of 60 Electrical Installation students drawn from a population of 80 students were randomly stratified to form the sample. The researchers developed instrument tagged “electrical Installation employability indices” (EIEI) was used for data collection. The instrument was face and content validated and the reliability index was established at .89 using the test retest method. The statistical tools used for the study were mean and Analyysis of Variance (ANOVA). The research findings reveal that Electrical Installation students possess essential generic skills and it was concluded that the generic skills have an influence on their employability. It was recommended that lecturers emphasize the importance of generic skills and they should also encourage group discussions in classrooms.
Key words: generic skills, employability, TVET, Electrical Installation and maintenance
| [Abstract-PDF]
|
[References]
|
2.3.7.2009.7
|
Modelling of Indian Stock Prices using Nonhomogeneous Poisson Processes with Time Trends
Rupal Shah and K. Muralidharan
Abstract
The financial sector in India has undergone radical reforms, particularly in the stock market segment, since early 1990s. Testing duration in stock markets concerns the ability to predict the turning points of bull and bear cycles. This article study some point process models to fit the data from Indian stock market cycles. We have considered the BSE 30 (SENSEX) data from January, 1991 to August, 2012 for bull and bear markets. The duration dependence of stock market cycles can help to pinpoint the peaks and troughs in these cycles. Upon carrying out various statistical procedures and goodness of fit tests, we found that the Nonhomogeneous Poisson Process models like Power Law Process, Modulated Power Law Process, Log-linear process and other models are some of the possible alternative models to describe the data. We provide estimates, confidence interval estimates and tests of hypothesis for the parameters involved in a particular model.
Key words: Power Law Process, Log linear process
| [Abstract-PDF]
|
[References]
|
2.3.7.2009.8
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