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It has been widely argued that willingness to communicate (WTC) in a second language (L2) is a dual construct of the learner's trait and state. This study aimed to explore the relationships between trait-level antecedents (students' demographic features) and their L2 WTC. A sample of 1,502 university students was recruited to participate in this study. Data on their age, gender, and family socioeconomic status (SES) were collected. A questionnaire of L2 WTC was adopted to measure the participants' WTC in meaning-focused activities and WTC in form-focused activities. A path model was tested via structural equation modelling, and significant relationships between student demographic features (age, gender, and SES) and L2 WTC were observed. The major findings were that male students had higher WTC in meaning-focused activities, but female students showed higher WTC in form-focused activities, and student age was negatively related to WTC in meaning-focused activities.
Keywords: Willingness to communicate, second language acquisition, demographic feature, higher education;

AbstractHow does trade openness affect individuals' social policy preferences in emerging markets? Drawing upon the theories of economic openness, risk, and social policy preference, we examine how trade openness and job sectors jointly shape preferences on social protection in China, the largest emerging market. Using the World Value Survey (WVS) Wave VI and archival macroeconomic indicators in 2012, we find that trade openness is associated with higher demands for government responsibility in social protection. We also find, compared with public-sector employees, private-sector employees exhibit lower levels of support to the role of government in social protection. The public–private divide in policy preferences, nevertheless, diminishes in regions with high levels of trade openness. This research provides new evidence to the risk-model of social policy preferences in the Chinese context. It also highlights the importance of considering the significant differences between public and private-sector employees in their social policy preferences.

PurposeA city is a spatial carrier of innovation activities. Improving the level of urban innovation can play a significant supporting role in building an innovative country. China began to implement the innovative city pilot policy in 2008 and continued to expand the policy into more areas for exploring the path of innovative urban development with Chinese characteristics and improving urban innovation.Design/methodology/approachBased on mechanism analysis, this paper used the panel data of 269 cities from 2003 to 2016 to empirically test the effect of the pilot policy on the level of urban innovation by using different methods, such as the difference-in-differences model.FindingsThe results show that the innovative city pilot policy significantly improves the level of urban innovation. However, according to the findings of the heterogeneity analysis, the effect of the pilot policy on improving the innovation level in direct-controlled municipalities, provincial capitals and sub-provincial cities is weaker than that in ordinary cities, and the effect of the pilot policy on improving the innovation level in cities with a higher quality of science and education resources is weaker than that in cities with lower quality of science and education resources.Originality/valueMoreover, as the level of urban innovation increases, the effect of the pilot policy on improving the level of urban innovation is an asymmetric inverted V shape, which means the effect is first strengthened and then weakened. The research also finds that the locational heterogeneity of the pilot policy for improving the level of urban innovation is not notable. In addition, the innovative city pilot policy can strengthen the government's strategic guidance, promote the concentration of talent, incentivize corporate investment and optimize the innovation environment, having a positive impact on urban innovation. Moreover, the effect of concentration of talent and the effect of corporate investment incentive are the important reasons for the pilot policy to promote the improvement of the level of urban innovation.

A carbon tax imposes additional costs on emission-intensive fuels so as to reduce emissions. The primary aim of this paper is to investigate the environmental effects of carbon taxes. First, this paper reviews existing studies which evaluated the effects of carbon taxes on carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions for different countries. The review shows that carbon taxation is an effective instrument to reduce CO2 emissions. Then, Transportation and Environment Strategy Impact Simulator (TRESIS) is used to assess the impacts of a carbon tax on car use and CO2 emissions in the Sydney metropolitan area, and results shows that it would reduce CO2 emissions by 3.7 percent and reduce car kilometres driven by 3.5 percent in 2017. Its potential economic impact in terms of revenue generated is also presented in this paper.

"This book describes the scale and complexity of China's energy system, using Sankey diagrams to visualize the energy flows across the economy and categorizing the differences between provinces. China's provinces extend over a vast area and are at different stages of economic development. Regional planning and inter-regional optimization will be essential for planning a future infrastructure that will allow China as a whole to optimize and avoid overcapacity and inefficiency. In this context, it introduces a new energy systems modeling approach and demonstrates its application in the power sector. This power model can help optimize the overall design of the power system and reveal how different future investment choices, e.g. natural gas fired power, only emerge when details such as regional, seasonal and diurnal demand factors are considered. Lastly, it looks at options for mitigating carbon and the major role that renewables & natural gas could play, as well as carbon pricing."--Publisher's description