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This study aims to investigate the relationship between government subsidies, R&D expenditures and overcapacity, and to explore the heterogeneity effects in different time periods and different types of companies. It can provide theoretical and practical guidance for the development of the photovoltaic industry.

This paper constructs a mediation model to explore the impact of government subsidies on overcapacity and on R&D expenditures, and to propose an indirect way to disentangle the impact of government subsidies on the creation of overcapacity from the positive aspect of increased R&D expenditures. A total of 94 listed enterprises in the Chinese photovoltaic industry were selected as the sample over the period 2012–2019.

There was significant overcapacity in the photovoltaic industry. Government subsidies had a positive effect in promoting overcapacity and R&D expenditures. The influence of government subsidies on excess capacity increased and on R&D expenditures decreased over time. Compared with large enterprises, government subsidies the small enterprises received had a greater positive impact on the overcapacity and a smaller positive impact on R&D expenditure. R&D expenditures restrained the influence of government subsidies on overcapacity, but the suppression effect was limited and decreased over time. The indirect effect in small enterprises was greater than that of large enterprises.

This paper studied government subsidies, R&D expenditure and overcapacity in the same framework and used bias-corrected bootstrapping to explore the path of “government subsidies–R&D expenditures–overcapacity”. The heterogeneous effects in different periods and different types of firms are discussed.

Aims to demonstrate, from a marketing and market segmentation point of view, the need to adapt the construct of the family life cycle to the particular features of the Spanish social environment, given the obvious differences in the structure of Spanish households in relation to the USA. From this marketing and cross‐cultural approach, a review of the literature has been conducted on the evolution of the construct and the most significant models that have been arising as the outcome of that evolution. A new life cycle model has been designed reflecting these particular features. Also, on the basis of data taken from the Family Budgets Survey, the capacity of the adapted model has been analysed for predicting household expenditure in comparison with the main US models and the most habitual socioeconomic variables, and for detecting market segments with different needs. The results obtained show the utility of the construct adapted, both as a segmentation variable and as a predictor, together with the typical socioeconomic variables that explain household expenditure. The practical and academic utility of the model from a marketing approach, its potential adaptation to the Mediterranean European environment, and the main methodological limitation of the research are also discussed.

The purpose of this paper is to explore the question regarding how the similar implementation traditions in two countries (Czech Republic and Italy) have influenced the implementation of activation policies in the frame of similar reform trajectories (decentralization and marketization) but different modes of governance (multilevel vs hierarchical).

Moving from a policy implementation studies approach, the paper assumes that substantive reforms and procedural reforms are mutually interdependent: activation policies often require changes in delivery structures while the changes in these structures influence the key substantive features of the activation policies. Further, implementation capacities and implementation traditions shape the real policies implemented.

Although the two countries compared are different in terms of the mode of governance emerging from the governance reforms, in both cases the gaps in coordination and implementation capacities have led to several implementation failures in the field of activation policies. In poorly developed active labour market policy (ALMP) regimes, activation governance reforms (such as decentralization and marketization) may not be effective due to enduring implementation gaps.

The paper is innovative since it develops a full‐fledged comparative approach by focusing on two countries with similar implementation traditions which contrast with different modes of governance. Furthermore, the findings put implementation traditions and capacities at the heart of policymaking.

Synthesizes the contributions of a number of scholars on competitive strategies. Discusses several imperfections in the literature. Submits three propositions for empirical testing in a fragmented industry ‐ the adhesives and sealants industry. The results of the investigation suggest that business units which compete with the low cost strategy and differentiation strategy have higher ROIs than enterprises which compete with low costs only or differentiation only. As a group, however, the high profit firms are not significantly larger in size than the groups of low profit companies studied. Thus, what is elaborated is that competing with both strategies may involve benefits that are not based on advantages of larger market shares and scale economies.

Knowledge search is considered a broad concept and semi-intentional behavior. The path and boundary conditions through which search strategies affect intra-organizational knowledge creation remain elusive. Drawing on recombinant search theory and knowledge-based view, the authors seek to identify knowledge complexity as an important intermediate variable between knowledge search and innovation performance, such as research and development (R&D) output and R&D output quality. A second goal of this study is to examine the moderating roles of government support and technological turbulence.

The authors employed a longitudinal panel of 609 global pharmaceutical firms and obtained the firms' patent records from 1980 to 2015 for the analysis. The authors used generalized estimating equations (GEE) to evaluate the models and tested the consistency via panel fixed-effects estimations.

The authors' findings show that organizational routine-guided search has a negative effect on knowledge complexity, while routine-changing search exerts a positive impact on knowledge complexity. Governmental support and technological turbulence moderate these relationships. Notably, knowledge complexity has an inverted U-shaped relationship with innovation performance.

The authors' research context, the pharmaceutical industry, may constrain the generalizability of our findings. In addition, potential types of routine-guided and routine-changing search behaviors were not considered.

Despite these limitations, this study offers important implications. First, knowledge complexity transmits the effects of knowledge search on innovation performance. Practitioners should balance routine-guided and routine-changing search processes to build and manage complex knowledge. Second, a moderate level of knowledge complexity is the key to good R&D output and R&D output quality.

The study identifies knowledge complexity as one important intermediate variable between knowledge search behaviors and intra-organizational knowledge creation.

Although the current world recession has deflected interest away from the question of supply adequacy, it remains a long‐term problem. To be sure, inventories are now being liquidated and raw material prices are falling, but as we look ahead to 1976 it is possible again to see a situation in which demands are pressing against capacity constraints. In the past it was commonly accepted that firms should expand their capacities ahead of increases in demand (and, if possible, ahead of their competitors' capacity increases). This approach is now being debated, as part of a broader questioning of some guidelines that have frequently been followed by business managers and executives.

The paper's aim is to study the system of interest, its crippling of the market by monetary manipulation and creation of gross disparity and its consequences and to explore an efficient Islamic alternative.

The application of science and its analytical tools analyses and solves economic problems. As regards Shariah perspective, it may be described as guided application of science to analyse and solve economic problems.

Gross inefficiency of the system of interest arises from its conflict with nature. Its sustenance requires monetary manipulation; however, the manipulation together with interest and gross disparity and deprivation created by it cripple markets that fail to determine just prices and to maintain vital economic balances and lead to gross inefficiency resulting in massive crisis. Monetary manipulation is serious fraud and a crime against humanity. Complexity of economic environment created by dominance of interest and its manipulation of currency has created gross misunderstanding among contemporary Islamic scholars and they have failed to project efficient Islamic alternatives. Removal of these misunderstandings and misunderstanding on the growth aspect of Zakah seem to be essential for freeing humanity from the clutches of the system of interest. Linking currency with a suitable well‐defined basket of national product provides a cost free exit from monetary manipulation. However, creation of mass awareness seems to be an initial first step.

Application of scientific approach and scientific knowledge to economic issues, especially the issue of currency, wealth measurement and analysis of system performance needs higher emphasis, efforts and resources.

There is need to create awareness regarding massive losses the economy suffers due to interest and monetary manipulation and to persuade governments to link currency with a suitable and well defined basket of national product. Interest and monetary manipulation have no place in Islam and as long free floats continue to be manipulated those who shun interest and exploitation must correct their accounting for the element of fraud incorporated by monetary manipulation. Consumer price index and wholesale price index may be used as a measure of currency manipulation.

It is an analytical study of economic problems and their efficient solution. It is most important for researchers, academics, government functionaries, social workers and all those who are concerned with economic growth, justice and welfare.

The impact of fiscal decentralization on equalization between regions has received significant attention but there has been much less research of the impact of decentralization on equalization within regions. Theory suggests that the tradeoff between local fiscal autonomy and equalization ought to be most pronounced at the sub-region level where rural-urban disparities in the level of development are substantial. This paper is an empirical analysis of the impact of fiscal decentralization on equalization within one Russian region, Leningrad (State). We show that the regional government uses a mixture of fiscal instruments to strike a balance between giving more budgetary autonomy to local governments and eliminating the disparities among them. We also develop a method for studying this tradeoff between decentralization and equalization when only limited data are available. Finally, we argue and demonstrate that without a detailed understanding of the institutional arrangement for intergovernmental fiscal relations, one cannot evaluate the equalization or decentralization implications.

The paper critically examines the program on Education for All (EFA) in India, namely Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) in a financing and development framework. In doing so, the paper identifies a number of policy and implementation gaps in the program. A fine-tuning of the existing matching shares by discriminating the matching shares in terms of need for, ability to provide matching shares and to strengthen the absorptive capacity could go a long way in attaining the horizontal equity in terms of every child completing elementary schooling in India. This would also ensure the other desirable principles of intergovernmental transfers such as predictability, transparency, and incentive mechanism besides improving utilization.

Further, it clearly emerges that only after ensuring the basic minimum levels in terms of physical and human infrastructure, and ensuring equal access to all the child population of age group of 6–14, quality is given priority. Thus, the challenge is both improving the qualitative and quantitative targets of UEE with enhanced resource allocation to education. Hence, Center is to ensure release of funding for SSA through special efforts as the program requires enormous funding and serious commitment of both central and state governments.

On the developmental aspects, the scheme not only widens social inequity but also perpetuates the declining quality of public provision by encouraging alternate schools and para teachers, besides the financing norms. These low-cost options will result in serious ramifications on equity, quality, balance, and sustainability of the basic education structure.

The purpose of this paper is to examine resource allocation under the centrally sponsored scheme Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) and its impact on development of elementary education in India. First, the author describes the current educational disparity across states in terms of state funding. Second, the author shows that interstate disparities in education resources have more to do with capacity of states to finance elementary education. For this, the author examines funding mechanism under SSA, focusing on principles of adequacy and absorptive rates. Third, the author analyzes the impact of additional funding on the progress of elementary education across states. Fourth, the author demonstrates how funding under SSA reinforces rather than reduces interstate disparity in school funding. Finally, the author concludes with certain policy implications for reforming federal transfers in Right to Education (RTE)-SSA, which can easily be extended to Rashtria Madhya Shiksha Abhiyan (RMSA) to be more responsive to educational inadequacy, effort and capacity across states.

The author uses box plots for illustrating interstate disparity across various indicators on financing and growth of elementary education. Box plots are good at portraying extreme values and illustrate differences between distributions. Because the thrust of the paper is examining difference in distribution across and within states, box plots appropriately portray the distribution of both. Further, coefficient of variation is estimated in education funding and its impact variables.

Interstate disparity in additional to the funding of SSA through discretionary transfers is examined by looking at two principles of inter-governmental transfers, viz., adequacy and absorptive rates. In a way, it appears that the educationally backward states getting the highest shares and also as per the requirement of the child population, but not necessarily so in terms of their relative proportions of enrolment, schools and teachers. Yet another revelation is that actual absorptive rates are much less than apparent absorptive rates. Unambiguously, additional resources coming from the Center for Development of Education can have a positive influence only after states have achieved a certain threshold level of absorptive capacities. As evidenced, fiscal disability is not compensated by transfers via SSA, as matching shares are uniform across states.

One significant limitations of the study is its use of administrative data. Often, administrative data from developing countries especially on social sector like education report inflated figures. The study uses primarily such but published secondary data sources.

Finally, the author suggests certain policy implications for reforming federal role in the current RTE-SSA, which can easily be extended to RMSA, a CSS in secondary education, to be more responsive to state effort and capacity.

Though SSA attempts to address regional imbalance, the accumulated initial advantage of better-off states with uniform norms under SSA funding widens the interstate disparity rather than reduce it. It is, hence, mandated to look at building capacities and enable states for a level-playing field.

It adds value to existing studies in two ways: rarely studies examine SSA expenditures and its impact on development and financing of elementary education, and examine a question on horizontal equalization mechanism whether additional allocation under SSA induce or reduce interstate disparity.