Suchergebnisse

In Chapter 1 of the dissertation, the role of social networks is analyzed as an important determinant in the search behavior of the unemployed. Based on the hypothesis that the unemployed generate information on vacancies through their social network, search theory predicts that individuals with large social networks should experience an increased productivity of informal search, and reduce their search in formal channels. Due to the higher productivity of search, unemployed with a larger network are also expected to have a higher reservation wage than unemployed with a small network. The model-theoretic predictions are tested and confirmed empirically. It is found that the search behavior of unemployed is significantly affected by the presence of social contacts, with larger networks implying a stronger substitution away from formal search channels towards informal channels. The substitution is particularly pronounced for passive formal search methods, i.e., search methods that generate rather non-specific types of job offer information at low relative cost. We also find small but significant positive effects of an increase of the network size on the reservation wage. These results have important implications on the analysis of the job search monitoring or counseling measures that are usually targeted at formal search only. Chapter 2 of the dissertation addresses the labor market effects of vacancy information during the early stages of unemployment. The outcomes considered are the speed of exit from unemployment, the effects on the quality of employment and the short-and medium-term effects on active labor market program (ALMP) participation. It is found that vacancy information significantly increases the speed of entry into employment; at the same time the probability to participate in ALMP is significantly reduced. Whereas the long-term reduction in the ALMP arises in consequence of the earlier exit from unemployment, we also observe a short-run decrease for some labor market groups which suggest that caseworker use high and low intensity activation measures interchangeably which is clearly questionable from an efficiency point of view. For unemployed who find a job through vacancy information we observe a small negative effect on the weekly number of hours worked. In Chapter 3, the long-term effects of participation in ALMP are assessed for unemployed youth under 25 years of age. Complementary to the analysis in Chapter 2, the effects of participation in time- and cost-intensive measures of active labor market policies are examined. In particular we study the effects of job creation schemes, wage subsidies, short-and long-term training measures and measures to promote the participation in vocational training. The outcome variables of interest are the probability to be in regular employment, and participation in further education during the 60 months following program entry. The analysis shows that all programs, except job creation schemes have positive and long-term effects on the employment probability of youth. In the short-run only short-term training measures generate positive effects, as long-term training programs and wage subsidies exhibit significant locking-in'' effects. Measures to promote vocational training are found to increase the probability of attending education and training significantly, whereas all other programs have either no or a negative effect on training participation. Effect heterogeneity with respect to the pre-treatment level education shows that young people with higher pre-treatment educational levels benefit more from participation most programs. However, for longer-term wage subsidies we also find strong positive effects for young people with low initial education levels. The relative benefit of training measures is higher in West than in East Germany. In the evaluation studies of Chapters 2 and 3 semi-parametric balancing methods of Propensity Score Matching (PSM) and Inverse Probability Weighting (IPW) are used to eliminate the effects of counfounding factors that influence both the treatment participation as well as the outcome variable of interest, and to establish a causal relation between program participation and outcome differences. While PSM and IPW are intuitive and methodologically attractive as they do not require parametric assumptions, the practical implementation may become quite challenging due to their sensitivity to various data features. Given the importance of these methods in the evaluation literature, and the vast number of recent methodological contributions in this field, Chapter 4 aims to reduce the knowledge gap between the methodological and applied literature by summarizing new findings of the empirical and statistical literature and practical guidelines for future applied research. In contrast to previous publications this study does not only focus on the estimation of causal effects, but stresses that the balancing challenge can and should be discussed independent of question of causal identification of treatment effects on most empirical applications. Following a brief outline of the practical implementation steps required for PSM and IPW, these steps are presented in detail chronologically, outlining practical advice for each step. Subsequently, the topics of effect estimation, inference, sensitivity analysis and the combination with parametric estimation methods are discussed. Finally, new extensions of the methodology and avenues for future research are presented. ; In Kapitel 1 der Dissertation wird die Rolle von sozialen Netzwerken als Determinante im Suchverhalten von Arbeitslosen analysiert. Basierend auf der Hypothese, dass Arbeitslose durch ihr soziales Netzwerk Informationen über Stellenangebote generieren, sollten Personen mit großen sozialen Netzwerken eine erhöhte Produktivität ihrer informellen Suche erfahren, und ihre Suche in formellen Kanälen reduzieren. Durch die höhere Produktivität der Suche sollte für diese Personen zudem der Reservationslohn steigen. Die modelltheoretischen Vorhersagen werden empirisch getestet, wobei die Netzwerkinformationen durch die Anzahl guter Freunde, sowie Kontakthäufigkeit zu früheren Kollegen approximiert wird. Die Ergebnisse zeigen, dass das Suchverhalten der Arbeitslosen durch das Vorhandensein sozialer Kontakte signifikant beeinflusst wird. Insbesondere sinkt mit der Netzwerkgröße formelle Arbeitssuche - die Substitution ist besonders ausgeprägt für passive formelle Suchmethoden, d.h. Informationsquellen die eher unspezifische Arten von Jobangeboten bei niedrigen relativen Kosten erzeugen. Im Einklang mit den Vorhersagen des theoretischen Modells finden sich auch deutlich positive Auswirkungen einer Erhöhung der Netzwerkgröße auf den Reservationslohn. Kapitel 2 befasst sich mit den Arbeitsmarkteffekten von Vermittlungsangeboten (VI) in der frühzeitigen Aktivierungsphase von Arbeitslosen. Die Nutzung von VI könnte dabei eine "doppelte Dividende" versprechen. Zum einen reduziert die frühe Aktivierung die Dauer der Arbeitslosigkeit, und somit auch die Notwendigkeit späterer Teilnahme in Arbeitsmarktprogrammen (ALMP). Zum anderen ist die Aktivierung durch Information mit geringeren locking-in'' Effekten verbunden als die Teilnahme in ALMP. Ziel der Analyse ist es, die Effekte von frühen VI auf die Eingliederungsgeschwindigkeit, sowie die Teilnahmewahrscheinlichkeit in ALMP zu messen. Zudem werden mögliche Effekte auf die Qualität der Beschäftigung untersucht. Die Ergebnisse zeigen, dass VI die Beschäftigungswahrscheinlichkeit signifikant erhöhen, und dass gleichzeitig die Wahrscheinlichkeit in ALMP teilzunehmen signifikant reduziert wird. Für die meisten betrachteten Subgruppen ergibt sich die langfristige Reduktion der ALMP Teilnahme als Konsequenz der schnelleren Eingliederung. Für einzelne Arbeitsmarktgruppen ergibt sich zudem eine frühe und temporare Reduktion, was darauf hinweist, dass Maßnahmen mit hohen und geringen "locking-in" Effekten aus Sicht der Sachbearbeiter austauschbar sind, was aus Effizienzgesichtspunkten fragwürdig ist. Es wird ein geringer negativer Effekt auf die wöchentliche Stundenanzahl in der ersten abhängigen Beschäftigung nach Arbeitslosigkeit beobachtet. In Kapitel 3 werden die Langzeiteffekte von ALMP für arbeitslose Jugendliche unter 25 Jahren ermittelt. Die untersuchten ALMP sind ABM-Maßnahmen, Lohnsubventionen, kurz-und langfristige Maßnahmen der beruflichen Bildung sowie Maßnahmen zur Förderung der Teilnahme an Berufsausbildung. Ab Eintritt in die Maßnahme werden Teilnehmer und Nicht-Teilnehmer für einen Zeitraum von sechs Jahren beobachtet. Als Zielvariable wird die Wahrscheinlichkeit regulärer Beschäftigung, sowie die Teilnahme in Ausbildung untersucht. Die Ergebnisse zeigen, dass alle Programme, bis auf ABM, positive und langfristige Effekte auf die Beschäftigungswahrscheinlichkeit von Jugendlichen haben. Kurzfristig finden wir jedoch nur für kurze Trainingsmaßnahmen positive Effekte, da lange Trainingsmaßnahmen und Lohnzuschüsse mit signifikanten locking-in'' Effekten verbunden sind. Maßnahmen zur Förderung der Berufsausbildung erhöhen die Wahrscheinlichkeit der Teilnahme an einer Ausbildung, während alle anderen Programme keinen oder einen negativen Effekt auf die Ausbildungsteilnahme haben. Jugendliche mit höherem Ausbildungsniveau profitieren stärker von der Programmteilnahme. Jedoch zeigen sich für längerfristige Lohnsubventionen ebenfalls starke positive Effekte für Jugendliche mit geringer Vorbildung. Der relative Nutzen von Trainingsmaßnahmen ist höher in West- als in Ostdeutschland. In den Evaluationsstudien der Kapitel 2 und 3 werden die semi-parametrischen Gewichtungsverfahren Propensity Score Matching (PSM) und Inverse Probability Weighting (IPW) verwendet, um den Einfluss verzerrender Faktoren, die sowohl die Maßnahmenteilnahme als auch die Zielvariablen beeinflussen zu beseitigen, und kausale Effekte der Programmteilahme zu ermitteln. Während PSM and IPW intuitiv und methodisch sehr attraktiv sind, stellt die Implementierung der Methoden in der Praxis jedoch oft eine große Herausforderung dar. Das Ziel von Kapitel 4 ist es daher, praktische Hinweise zur Implementierung dieser Methoden zu geben. Zu diesem Zweck werden neue Erkenntnisse der empirischen und statistischen Literatur zusammengefasst und praxisbezogene Richtlinien für die angewandte Forschung abgeleitet. Basierend auf einer theoretischen Motivation und einer Skizzierung der praktischen Implementierungsschritte von PSM und IPW werden diese Schritte chronologisch dargestellt, wobei auch auf praxisrelevante Erkenntnisse aus der methodischen Forschung eingegangen wird. Im Anschluss werden die Themen Effektschätzung, Inferenz, Sensitivitätsanalyse und die Kombination von IPW und PSM mit anderen statistischen Methoden diskutiert. Abschließend werden neue Erweiterungen der Methodik aufgeführt.

La Facultad de Odontología de la Universidad El Bosque, encausa la formación de odontólogos integrales, fundamentada en una concepción holística coherente con el Modelo propuesto por Engel en 1977, e implementado como modelo biopsicosocial y cultural. Esta tesis se enmarca en la línea de investigación del doctorado: "Bioética y Educación". Se realiza un análisis de los conflictos y de los dilemas que surgen de las tensiones que se generan entre el Enfoque de formación que se nutre de la bioética, y la problemática que se suscita, en el desarrollo de las prácticas formativas del estudiante de Odontología, a causa de las dificultades que enfrentan los estudiantes para conseguir pacientes y cumplir con los objetivos de formación clínica. Si bien esta disconformidad se reporta en la revisión de literatura relacionada con la problemática planteada en esta tesis, parece todavía ser un aspecto de poca trascendencia, en los espacios de formación de las facultades de Odontología del país, en razón a que las clínicas en las que se lleva a cabo estas prácticas se encuentran en un ambiente educativo y no de prestación de servicios. Este estudio se realizó bajo la metodología empírico-exploratoria de carácter cualitativo en tres fases. En la primera fase, se revisaron los programas académicos con el fin de determinar si en estos existe apropiación del modelo biopsicosocial y la bioética, en tanto que son dos áreas que se han estructurado de forma transcurricular. En la segunda fase se realizaron cuestionarios autodireccionados a docentes, estudiantes y pacientes, con el fin de indagar sobre la apropiación del enfoque de formación biopsicosocial cultural y bioético y si se generan tensiones o conflictos que lleven a desvirtuar el modelo. En la tercera fase se estructuraron 6 grupos focales para un total de 30 participantes: 10 docentes, 10 estudiantes y 10 pacientes, para profundizar en los hallazgos encontrados en la segunda fase y explorar la posible existencia de conflictos que conlleven a la conformación de dilemas en las prácticas formativas docente asistencial. Entre los hallazgos más destacados en la revisión de los programas se vislumbró que el área comunitaria es el que tiene mayor claridad en la aplicación del enfoque de formación Biopsicosocial Cultural y Bioético. Los docentes y estudiantes de la Facultad de Odontología reconocen con suficiencia el modelo Biopsicosocial, el cual es concebido como un modelo holístico de calidad de vida, como un modelo de atención centrado en el paciente y como un paradigma de formación de carácter integral. Se evidenciaron tensiones entre el modelo de formación bajo el enfoque biopsicosocial propuesto por la Universidad El Bosque y el modelo de atención en las clínicas odontológicas, en razón a la presencia de conflictos en la relación docente- pacienteestudiante debida principalmente a la exigencia académica del cumplimiento de requisitos prácticos durante la atención de los pacientes, conflictos que pueden desencadenar en dilemas de diversas categorías. Esta realidad invita a un análisis juicioso al interior de los programas de Odontología del país que determine la necesidad imperiosa de plantear desde la bioética nuevas propuestas de formación integral, enmarcadas en la construcción de consensos que permitan dar un abordaje bioético, plural, multidisciplinario, social y humanístico en los espacios reales del sistema de prestación de servicios en salud, en donde se acojan y se contemplen unas prácticas docencia-servicio dirigidas a la solución de la necesidad real del paciente y a la vez, que el estudiante en formación guiado por su tutor colabore en dar cobertura en salud a la población. Se proponen lineamientos para una recontextualización del enfoque de formación biopsicosocial teniendo como eje transversal la bioética. Se plantea una integración de las áreas a partir de núcleos temáticos que le permitan al estudiante asociar y aplicar progresivamente los conocimientos básicos adquiridos en los contextos de las prácticas formativas intra y extramurales, mediante un modelo de atención centrado en el paciente a partir de una pedagogía crítica que asegure el aprendizaje significativo y la creación de conciencia social. Se invita a establecer diálogos para una construcción colectiva desde la autorreflexión de otros programas de Odontología, que lleven a repensar y redimensionar la formación de los futuros Odontólogos. Por último, se hace un especial énfasis en que ésta es una responsabilidad que compete no sólo a las Universidades sino también a los Ministerios de Salud y de Educación, de tal forma que se establezcan acuerdos y compromisos que tiendan a mejorar las condiciones de formación de los futuros Odontólogos, permitiéndoles asumir como propia una perspectiva ética para la humanización de la atención, ejercer con responsabilidad social y colaborar con el sistema de salud, ampliando su cobertura. ; Doctor en Bioética ; Doctorado ; The Dental School at El Bosque University, bases its duty to be on a comprehensive training of dentists with a holistic philosophy consistent with a biopsychosocial model proposed by Engel (1977) and implemented as biopsychosocial and cultural approach at El Bosque University (Escobar Triana, 1991; Ovalle, 2010). This research, based on a qualitative model, was conducted with the participation of students, teachers and patients, attending dental clinics at the university. Similarly, elements of analysis arising from the review of curricula were integrated. This thesis is part of the doctoral research line : "Bioethics and Education" as an analysis of conflict and / or Bioethical dilemmas that arise during the practical training of dental students, something demonstrated in the literature as a problem which has not been given the importance. Deserves discussion and make a true diagnosis within dentistry programs in the country, in order to determine whether there is a need to put forward new proposals for training in teaching- assistance practices which come to improve the health and quality of life impacting social responsibility to the Colombian population. This study was conducted under an exploratory qualitative methodology in three phases in which in a first stage academic programs were reviewed in order to determine the ownership right of the biopsychosocial model and bioethics. A second phase in which there were made autodireccional questionnaires that included teachers, students, patients and a third phase by focus groups with teachers, students and patients to determine at a glance bioethics existence of tensions, conflicts and dilemmas between the training model under the biopsychosocial approach and cultural and the training practice teaching assistance . Among the most important findings is envisioned that the community area is the one that most clearly has the training approach. Teachers and students of the dental school recognized with suffiency the biopsichosocial model, which is conceived as a holistic quality of life model, as a model of care focused on the patient and as a paradigm of integral charácter formation Among the most significant findings was glimpsed, in vocational training practices are tensions between academic rigor with practical compliance requirements for patient care and the training approach involving humanized and comprehensive care, giving rise a bioethical dilemma. Guidelines are proposed for a recontextualization of the biopsychosocial approach model having as axis bioethics. There is a proposal of an integration of the areas starting from thematic cores that allow student associate and progressively apply the basic knowledge acquired in the contexts of formative practices intra and outside through a model of care focused on the patient from a critical pedagogy ensuring meaningful learning and social awareness inviting to a collective construction and an invitation for self-reflection of other Dental programs, to rethink and reshape the formation of the dentists, along with the Government sectors as the Ministry of Health and Welfare as well as Education. All this, in order to establish agreements and commitments with the purpose of improving the training of future dentists, allowing them to take as their own, ethical perspective for the humanization of care, exercise social responsibility and work with the health care system to expand its coverage.

Vand- og energisystemer er tæt forbundne. Der er behov for energi i de fleste trin i vandforsyning, mens vand er nødvendig for at udnytte og bearbejde energiressourcer og generere elektrisk strøm. Politiske målsætninger om at sikre tilstrækkelig vand og energi er dog ofte modstridende og forårsager konflikter om disse to ressourcer. Dette problem vil blive forværret yderligere af befolkningsvækst, stigende levestandard og klimaændringer, hvilket understreger vigtigheden af at udvikle integrerede vurderinger og løsninger. Dette studie bygger videre på denne problemstilling, og fokuserer på samspillet mellem vand- og elkraftsystemer, med det mål at identificere en metode, til at vurdere den bredere spatiotemporale interaktion mellem vandog energisystemer. Den foreslåede metode kombinerer vandforbrugere og energiproducenter i et fælles optimeringsproblem, hvor omkostningerne til elproduktion minimeres og værdien af vandfordeling maksimeres. Denne metode ændrer managementproblemet af vand- og energisystemet fra at have flere målsætninger til kun at have et enkelt: minimering af nettoomkostningerne. Den økonomiske værdi af vand er beregnet som en funktion af systemets tilstand, og denne værdi anvendes til at bestemme optimale tildelinger for hvert tidskridt i planlægningshorisonten. De fysiske forbindelser mellem de to systemer er beskrevet som begrænsninger af optimeringsproblemet, og problemet er løst ved hjælp af stokastisk dynamisk programmering eller stokastisk dual dynamisk programmering. Metoden blev implementeret på Den Iberiske Halvø for at vurdere nogle af samspillene mellem vand- og elsystemet. Effekten af klimaændringer på det nuværende Iberiske elsystem blev vurderet. Det blev fundet, at den forventede reduktion af nedbøren vil mindske afstrømningen og produktionen af vandkraft samt øge efterspørgselen på vand til kunstvanding, mens de forventede temperaturstigninger vil ændre den sæsonbestemte efterspørgsel på strøm. Den foreslåede metode blev brugt til at bestemme værdien af vandkraft i et koblet vand-elsystem, og resultaterne var sammenlignelige med traditionelle metoder, hvor værdien af vandkraft repræsenteres gennem eksterne priser. Sættes værdien af vandkraft til en konstant pris, blev det fundet at sæsonudsvingene i efterspørgslen og afstrømningen repræsenteres dårligt, hvilket kan gøre denne antagelse uegnet. Dette skyldes, at tilgængeligheden og dermed værdien af vandkraft påvirkes. Månedlige priser kunne repræsentere sæsonudsving bedre, men resulterede i urealistisk management, såsom tømning af reservoiret i løbet af den måned med højest pris, som kun kan undgås gennem inddragelse af yderligere begrænsninger. Tilføjelse af en simpel repræsentation af elmarkedet i en hydro-økonomisk model resulterede derimod i en mere realistisk reservoirmanagement som tilpasses ændringer i afstrømning. Effekten af en spatial aggregering på en analyse af vand-elsystemer blev evalueret ved at sammenligne resultater fra en aggregeret og disaggregeret model. Den aggregerede model, hvor alle reservoirer var repræsenteret som et enkelt ækvivalent energireservoir, forudsatte værdifuld indsigt i forvaltningen af vand og elsystemer på et generelt plan for hele Den Iberiske Halvø. Den disaggregerede model viste, at optimale allokeringer blev opnået ved at styre vandressourcerne forskelligt i hvert afstrømningsområde i henhold til lokal indstrømning, lagerkapacitet, vandkraftsproduktivitet og kunstvandingsefterspørgsel og -produktivitet. Dette understreger betydningen af at inkludere spatiale forskelle i denne type analyser. Metoden blev med succes anvendt til at vurdere samspillet mellem vand- og elsystemerne på Den Iberiske Halvø. Metoden er fleksibel og kan potentielt anvendes til at modellere flere aspekter af vand-energi-neksus. Eksempelvis kan nævnes energikrav i transportsektoren og effekten af bioenergi på landbrug, konsekvenser for køling af termiske elværker ved mindre afstrømning i floderne samt effekten på vandressourcerne ved at opsamle og lagre kulstof. Det stigende pres fra befolkningstilvæksten, stigende levestandard, og klimaændringer på vand, energi, jord, og klima, øger behovet for integrerede metoder og modeller til vurdering af forbindelsen mellem disse systemer. Den her foreslåede metodologiske ramme, er et skridt fremad i udviklingen af disse integrerede værktøjer. ; Water and energy systems are closely linked. Energy is needed in most stages of water usage, while water is needed to extract and process energy resources and generate electric power. However, policy goals associated with providing adequate water and energy supplies are often in opposition, causing conflicts over these two resources. This problem will be aggravated by population growth, rising living standards and climate change, highlighting the importance of developing integrated assessment and solutions. In this context, this study focused on the interaction between water and electric energy (or power) systems, with the goal of identifying a method that could be used to assess the broader spatio-temporal interactions between water and energy systems. The proposed method is to include water users and power producers into a joint optimization problem that minimizes the cost of power production and maximizes the benefits of water allocation. This approach turns the multiobjective problem of water and power system management into a single objective one: net costs minimization. The economic value of water is calculated as a function of the state of the system, and this value is used to determine optimal allocations for each time step of the planning horizon. The physical linkages between the two systems are described as constraints in the optimization problem, and the problem is solved using stochastic dynamic programming or stochastic dual dynamic programming. The method was implemented on the Iberian Peninsula to assess some of the interactions between the water and power system. The impact of climate change on the current Iberian power system was assessed. It was found that expected precipitation reductions will reduce runoff, decrease hydropower production, and increase irrigation water demand; whereas expected temperature increases will modify seasonal power demand patterns. The proposed approach was also used to determine hydropower benefits in a coupled water-power system, and the results compared with traditional methods that represent hydropower benefits through exogenous prices. It was found that representing hydropower benefits through a constant price can be inadequate because it does not reflect the seasonality in power demand and water inflows, which affect the availability, and therefore value, of hydropower. Monthly prices were able to represent seasonality but resulted in unrealistic operation rules, such as emptying the reservoir during the month with the highest price, which can only be avoided through the inclusion of additional constraints. In contrast, including a simple representation of the power market into a hydro-economic model resulted in more realistic reservoir operation policies that adapted to changing inflow conditions. The effects of spatial aggregation on the analysis of water-power systems were evaluated by comparing results from an aggregated and a partially disaggregated model. The aggregated model, where all reservoirs were represented as a single equivalent energy reservoir, provided valuable insights into the management of water and power systems, but only at the Peninsula scale. The disaggregated model revealed that optimal allocations were achieved by managing water resources differently in each river basin according to local inflow, storage capacity, hydropower productivity, and irrigation demand and productivity. This highlights the importance of considering spatial differences in this type of analysis. The method was successfully used to assess linkages between the water and the power systems of the Iberian Peninsula. The framework is flexible and can potentially be used to model more aspects of the water-energy nexus, for instance: the energy requirements of the transport sector and the impact of biofuels on agriculture; the impact of reduced river discharge on cooling of thermal power plants; or the impact of carbon capture and storage on water resources. The increasing pressure of population growth, rising living standards, and climate change on water, energy, land, and climate systems will increase the need for integrated methods and models to assess the linkages between these systems. The methodological framework proposed here is a step forward in the development of these integrated tools.

The current work is devoted to estimating the term structure of interest rates based on a generalized optimization framework. To x the ideas of the subject, we introduce representations of the term structure as they are used in nance: yield curve, discount curve and forward rate curve. Yield curves are used in empirical research in nance and macroeconomic to support nancial decisions made by governments and/or private nancial institutions. When governments (or nancial corporations) need fundings, they issue to the public (i.e. the market) debt securities (bills, bonds, notes, etc ) which are sold at the discount rate at the settlement date and promise the face value of the security at the redemption date, known as maturity date. Bills, notes and bonds are usually sold with maximum maturity of 1 year, 10 years and 30 years respectively. Let us assume that the government issues to the market zero-coupon bonds, which provide a single payment at maturity of each bond. To determine the price of the security at time of settlement, a single discount factor is used. Thus, the yield can be dened as the discount rate which makes the present value of the security issued (the zero-coupon bond) equal to its initial price. The yield curve describes the relationship between a particular yield and a bond's maturity. In general, given a certain number of bonds with dierent time to maturity, the yield curve will describe the one-to-one relationship between the bond yields and their corresponding time to maturity. For a realistic yield curve, it is important to use only bonds from the same class of issuer or securities having the same degree of liquidity when plotting the yields. Discount factors, used to price bonds, are functions of the time to maturity. Given that yields are positive, these functions are assumed to be monotonically decreasing as the time to maturity increases. Thus, a discount curve is simply the graph of discount factors for dierent maturities associated with dierent securities. Another useful curve uses the forward rate function which can be deduced from both the discount factor and the yield function. The forward rate is the rate of return for an investment that is agreed upon today but which starts at some time in the future and provides payment at some time in the future as well. When forward rates are used, the resulting curve is referred to as the forward rate curve. Thus, any of these curves, that is, the yield curve, the discount curve or the forward rate curve, can be used to represent what is known as the term structure of interest rate. The shapes that the term structure of interest rates can assume include upward sloping, downward sloping, atness or humped, depending on the state of the economy. When the expectations of market participants are incorporated in the construction of these curves representing the term structure, their shapes capture and summarize the cost of credit and risks associated with every security traded. However, constructing these curves and the choice of an appropriate representation of the term structure to use is not a straightforward task. This is due to the complexity of the market data, precisely, the scarcity of zero-coupon bonds which constitutes the backbone of the term structure. The market often provides coupons alongside market security prices for a small number of maturities. This implies that, for the entire maturity spectrum, yields can not be observed on the market. Based on available market data, yields must be estimated using traditional interpolation methods. To this end, polynomial splines as well as parsimonious functions are the methods mostly used by nancial institutions and in research in nance. However, it is observed in literature that these methods suer from the shape constraints which cause them to produce yield curves that are not realistic with respect to the market observations. Precisely, the yield curves produced by these methods are characterized by unrealistic t of the market data, either in the short end or in the long end of the term structure of interest rate. To ll the gap, the current research models the yield curve using a generalized optimization framework. The method is not shape constrained, which implies that it can adapt to any shape the yield curve can take across the entire maturity spectrum. While estimating the yield curve using this method in comparison with traditional methods on the Swedish and US markets, it is shown that any other traditional method used is a special case of the generalized optimization framework. Moreover, it is shown that, for a certain market consistency, the method produces lower variances than any of the traditional methods tested. This implies that the method produces forward rate curve of higher quality compared to the existing traditional methods. Interest rate derivatives are instruments whose prices depend or are derived from the price of other instruments. Derivatives instruments that are extensively used include the forward rate agreement (FRA) contracts where forward rate is used and the interest rate swap (IRS) where LIBOR rate is used as oating rate. These instruments will only be used to build up the term structure of interest rates. Since the liquidity crisis in 2007, it is observed that discrepancies in basis spread between interest rates applied to dierent interest rate derivatives have grown so large that a single discount curve is no longer appropriate to use for pricing securities consistently. It has been suggested that the market needs new methods for multiple yield curves estimation to price securities consistently with the market. As a response, the generalized optimization framework is extended to a multiple yield curves estimation. We show that, unlike the cubic spline for instance, which is among the mostly used traditional method, the generalized framework can produce multiple yield curves and tenor premium curves that are altogether smooth and realistic with respect to the market observations. U.S. Treasury market is, by size and importance, a leading market which is considered as benchmark for most xed-income securities that are traded worldwide. However, existing U.S. Treasury yield curves that are used in the market are of poor quality since they have been estimated by traditional interpolation methods which are shape constrained. This implies that the market prices they imply contain lots of noise and as such, are not safe to use. In this work, we use the generalized optimization framework to estimate high-quality forward rates for the U.S. Treasury yield curve. Using ecient frontiers, we show that the method can produce low pricing error with low variance as compared to the least squares methods that have been used to estimate U.S. Treasury yield curves. We nally use the high-quality U.S. Treasury forward rate curve estimated by the generalized optimization framework as input to the essentially ane model to capture the randomness property in interest rates and the time-varying term premium. This premium is simply a compensation that is required for additional risks that investors are exposed to. To determine optimal investment in the U.S. Treasury market, a two-stage stochastic programming model without recourse is proposed, which model borrowing, shorting and proportional transaction cost. It is found that the proposed model can provide growth of wealth in the long run. Moreover, its Sharpe ratio is better than the market index and its Jensen's alpha is positive. This implies that the Stochastic Programming model proposed can produce portfolios that perform better than the market index.

Over the last two decades, manufacturers in Australia have implemented process improvement methodologies to assist in driving down the costs of operations brought on by customers wanting better quality and responsiveness. Closely following in the footsteps of the manufacturers, since the early 2000's, are service organizations, including those in Healthcare, Finance/Banking, IT and Government (Public sector). Lean Six Sigma is one such process improvement methodology. It is seen as the latest philosophy of continuous improvement in many companies world-wide. Following an extensive literature review, it is clear that Lean Six Sigma has been based on earlier continuous improvement philosophies like Total Quality Management as well as the combination of Lean and Six Sigma. There are clearly some similarities and differences between Lean Six Sigma and Total Quality Management. It is not clear in the literature whether companies are deploying Lean Six Sigma because the previous initiatives failed and it will result in better outcomes or it is a natural progression to adopt a new innovation and a new technique. It is not clear if the drivers to deploy Lean Six Sigma are different to previous quality improvement initiatives. Total Quality Management was introduced in the 1980's to create a culture of continuous improvement, improve quality and enhance an organization's competitive advantage and it is interesting to establish if Lean Six Sigma has been deployed to deliver something else or the same since Total Quality Management did not deliver the expected benefits. It is clear in the literature that Lean Six Sigma has been successful but success seems to vary according to the performance or success measure used. For example, if success is defined as higher market share then Lean Six Sigma may not be deemed successful but if success is defined as process cost reduction or savings resulting from an improvement project due to better delivery performance and process capability then it may be deemed successful. The literature covers the concept of a "Mature" deployment of Lean Six Sigma which is another way of measuring success apart from success from improvement projects. An organization which has a high level of maturity and where projects are successful is one that is likely to have a culture of sustainable continuous improvement. Little attention has been directed towards how Lean Six Sigma should be deployed. Some companies have deployed Six Sigma first then Lean and other companies have deployed Lean first to identify low hanging fruit and then implemented Six Sigma and others have implemented the combined program from day one. Also, the literature suggests that deployment of Lean Six Sigma needs to be different in small and medium-sized organizations. In the literature, it is clear that the phases of a Six Sigma methodology (Define-Measure-Analyze-Improve-Control) are well-defined but there has been little attention given to the definition of what constitutes a Lean Six Sigma methodology. For example, in many companies Lean Six Sigma deployments use the DMAIC methodology and also use Lean tools at various stages and in others Lean is separately deployed concurrently with DMAIC. Factors critical to success of Lean Six Sigma have been identified in the literature. It is unclear whether these factors are critical to short-term gains or long-term sustainable benefits. This phenomenon also seems to be the case for Total Quality Management (TQM) implemented by many organizations around the world during the 1990's. Included in these critical success factors for Lean Six Sigma is the need for highly-trained Lean Six Sigma experts, known as Master Black Belts and Black Belts (and other levels of "Belts") and the importance of corporate or organizational factors. In the literature the concept of a competency-based perspective of these factors is introduced. In Australia, Lean Six Sigma has been deployed successfully in many companies involved in manufacturing and service, both large and small and medium-sized and in the public sector. However, it has been disbanded in some companies because of an apparent failure of the program, which also appears to be the case for some Total Quality Management deployments. It is unclear as to why this has happened but it is suggested that it is so due to the different measures of success of the program. Also in Australia, some anecdotal evidence suggests that the ongoing deployment of Lean Six Sigma is susceptible to a change of the Chief Executive Officer of the organization. Other evidence suggests that the companies that disbanded the program some years ago are re-deploying it using funding provided by the Australian Federal and State Governments. Further evidence suggests that the Lean Six Sigma programs are now becoming very successful in many other industry sectors like Healthcare and Government in Australia. Thus, in this thesis the researcher considers the following research questions relating to a Lean Six Sigma deployment. 1. What are the key drivers and success measures of a Lean Six Sigma deployment? 2. How has Lean Six Sigma been deployed and is it affected by organizational size? 3. What are the competencies of an organization that result in the successful deployment of Lean Six Sigma? 4. What are the personal competencies of the deployment leader and project leaders for the Lean Six Sigma deployment to be successful? 5. What success factors are common between Lean Six Sigma and previous quality improvement initiatives such as Total Quality Management (TQM)? In developing and examining these questions, a comprehensive literature review and four fieldwork phases involving qualitative and quantitative research was completed. There are two fieldwork phases using qualitative research (fieldwork phases 1 and 3) and two fieldwork phases using quantitative research (fieldwork phases 2 and 4). Fieldwork phase 1 (Chapter 4) involves face-to-face interviews using semi-structured questions with senior managers in organizations in Australia that have deployed Lean Six Sigma. Seven case organizations have been selected – four cases in manufacturing and three in service. This has revealed a number of significant issues relating to key drivers, deployment strategies, critical success factors and challenges and benefits of the deployment. Factors critical to success include organizational competencies and competencies of the experts involved in Lean Six Sigma. Fieldwork phase 2 (Chapter 5) considers an in-depth analysis of Lean Six Sigma in one of the seven organizations. The aim of fieldwork phase 2 was to gain insights into the relationship between critical success factors and performance measures for this case. The case was in Healthcare and was chosen as a result of the interest of the interviewee in fieldwork phase 1 to examine their improvement program more fully using input from all senior managers. Fieldwork phase 3 (Chapter 6) involves the use of an open questionnaire with two Lean Six Sigma experts. The aim of fieldwork phase 3 was to gain further insights into the required competencies of the Master Black Belt and Black Belt in Lean Six Sigma. Using the insights from fieldwork phases 1, 2 and 3, a model for the sustainable deployment of Lean Six Sigma program was developed. Sustainability is defined as the combination of successful projects and a level of maturity of the Lean Six Sigma deployment. Fieldwork phase 4 (chapter 7) involves testing the developed model using a National Survey of Operations Excellence Managers in Australian organizations that have deployed Lean Six Sigma. The aim of fieldwork phase 4 is to obtain objective evidence of what factors are critical for a sustainable Lean Six Sigma deployment. A number of key insights are revealed contributing to the theory and practice of Lean Six Sigma. A discussion of the key insights are presented in chapter 8 followed by conclusions and recommendations being presented in chapter 9.

The high street and the retail sector are facing a period of flux with tremendous pressures from local, national and global consumer trends, including rapid changes in the fiscal climate affecting local authorities. This situation has become particularly acute since the global economic downturn of 2008, which many see as the start of a significant long term global restructuring or the world's economy. Building on the findings of recent Government thinking, including the "Understanding high street performance" report by Genecon and the UK Department for Business, Innovation and Skills published in 2012, this study argues for a fresh approach to the situation faced by the retail sector, the high street and, more generally, town centres across the country. Instead of a reactive approach to consumer trends, this report argues for a re-think of the strategic positioning of town centres to reclaim them to their rightful position and role as places that serve their communities, visitors, businesses and key stakeholders with a quality of experience that encourages them to keep coming back, staying longer and becoming local residents in due course. In line with this, the achievement of prosperity for town centres is aligned here with their strategic aspirations, and ability to satisfy changing demands, which this report suggests includes a holistic approach to the integration and management of the daytime, evening and night time economies. These three segments of the 24-hr economy should be seen as part of one menu that town centres offer in an economy increasingly driven by customer experience and perceptions. To achieve this, key town centre decision makers - who should include the business community as well as local residents - need first to establish a vision for the future of their town centre that is anchored in the 'personality' or unique characteristics of their town, sometimes referred to as the 'DNA' of the place. The aims of this study are to: 1. Present a set of tools that will help places of different sizes (from small market towns to large city centres and potentially also villages and rural locations) to plot a locally tailor-made strategic road map towards prosperity informed by their stakeholders. 2. Develop and present a state-of-the-art Town Centre Classification Matrix linked to a 'personality' test for town centres. This tool, which can be used for individual retailers and businesses as well as entire towns and tourist destinations, represents the first stage of strategic positioning and includes key elements of perceptions among visitors, residents and businesses. 3. Develop and present a new and clear national performance framework for town centres is presented. This framework is linked to the Town Centre Classification Matrix and allows places to evaluate their current situation and to monitor progress towards their strategic vision or objectives. This is achieved through a ground-breaking approach that effectively demystifies the concept of town centre performance indicators. Each indicator is explained in an approachable manner with data collection methodologies that include the possibility of using commercially available data or adopting a do-it-yourself method to field research locally. 4. Empower and support communities, Town Teams, Portas Pilots, local authority representatives, businesses operating in or near town centres, trader organisations, Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs), town centre managers, business improvement district managers, policy makers, town planners, charities, national retail associations, shopping centre managers, urban regeneration practitioners, tourism officers, consultancies and researchers. 5. Help locations and centres of all sizes to make key investment decisions adopting a strategic approach using decision support tools (including key performance indicators) that enable decision makers to prioritise and deal with local issues effectively. Additionally, the indicators used in this study also support users who wish to do so in pursuing further market research avenues to gain a better understanding of their town centre and the complexity of interactions between different parameters. This includes the differences that may exist in some places between facts and perceptions (e.g. reported retail crime versus perceptions of crime and safety in the town centre). As in any change management context, it is vital to know the facts so that informed decisions can be taken to prioritise available resources effectively. Based on the findings of this study, there follow ten key recommendations for further action from central government, LEPs, the retail sector and key local decision makers: 1. The role of retail and other businesses (e.g. leisure) in town centres should be revised to adopt a more holistic approach bringing the daytime, evening and night time economies under a common umbrella of strategic positioning and performance. 2. The national performance framework for town centres and Town Centre Classification Matrix presented here should be adopted nationally as part of a wider package to support ailing high streets and town centres. 3. A National Observatory for Town Centre Prosperity should be created for the UK, based on the Town Centre Performance Barometer Toolkit presented here. This national observatory should act as a common database of best practice and avoid simplistic benchmarking or league table approaches. Instead, it should focus on the sharing of innovative and entrepreneurial practices adopted by different town centres to achieve prosperity through inclusive and strategic partnership approaches at all levels. 4. A long term analysis of UK town centre prosperity trends should be carried out on the basis of field data collected using the performance criteria presented in this study. Whilst the indicator-based Town Centre Performance Barometer Toolkit is adequate for a first snap shot of the issues affecting different town centres today, it will only provide limited assistance to locations unless trends can be developed for each indicator through continuous use over a longer time frame. 5. The role of effective and genuine partnership-based place management as a key mechanism in the strategic visioning and delivery of prosperous town centres of all sizes should be recognised and supported by central and local government, urban regeneration professionals, LEPs and key local decision makers. This should apply not only to the operational management of town centres but, crucially, to key decisions affecting their development, including major interventions and regeneration projects with an impact on future growth prospects. 6. The effectiveness of current place management models (including Town Teams, Portas Pilots and Business Improvement Districts, among others) should be investigated further with due attention to place management practice overseas to establish more focused support interventions from the public and private sectors in achieving better results in each case without reinventing the wheel. 7. The impact of high performing town and city centres on neighbouring smaller centres should be investigated further, particularly by LEPs, taking a regional network and impact approach to avoid a polarisation of resources towards a (limited number of) high performing town or city centres or the squandering of resources on duplication in a small geographic area. Similarly, governance issues affecting LEPs and local councils in areas (including town centres) located on different local authority boundaries should be addressed as part of a wider framework. 8. The interactions between town centre performance parameters and their cause-effect relationships should be researched further as there is currently a limited level of evidence and understanding of these beyond relatively simple one-to-one (and not one-to-many) relationships. 9. A better understanding of consumer behaviour within the town centre ecosystem needs to be achieved at both macro and micro level in order to better support long-term decision making for their effective strategic positioning. This study offers a first step towards this by highlighting the importance of visitor perceptions but does not address the deeper and more complex mechanisms that govern the development of these perceptions. 10. The national observatory recommended above should develop further the indicator-based toolkit presented here to create indices linked to a weighting system for individual indicators derived from an extensive nation-wide field research programme on town centre prosperity.

Die vorliegende Arbeit untersucht junge Erwachsene als Zielgruppe für den Bio-Lebensmittelmarkt. Das Wachstum des Bio-Marktes ging während der letzten Jahre mit einem deutlichen Wandel der Käuferschaft einher. Im Gegensatz zu den Anfängen der Bio-Vermarktung, als die meisten Bio-Käufer Anhänger der Vollwerternährung mit eher links-alternativem Bewusstsein waren und der Kauf von Bio-Produkten meist auch Ausdruck der politischen Einstellung war, finden sich heute vielfältigere Gründe für den Bio-Kauf und eine erweiterte Bio-Kundschaft. Diese zunehmende Heterogenität der Käufer führte u. a. auch zu differierenden Ansprüchen an die Produkte und an das Marketing im Bio-Bereich. Immer häufiger wird daher eine Segmentierung des Bio-Marktes in unterschiedliche Käufergruppen durchgeführt, die dann eine gezielte Ansprache ermöglicht. Eine interessante Zielgruppe für den Bio-Markt stellen junge Erwachsene dar. Bei ihnen handelt es sich nicht nur um eine große Kundengruppe, die sowohl heute als auch in Zukunft beträchtliche Umsätze tätigen kann, sondern es gehen auch entscheidende Konsum-Impulse von ihnen auf die übrige Bevölkerung aus. Über die Versorgung und Erziehung ihrer Kinder prägen sie einerseits das Ernährungs- und Konsumverhalten nachfolgender Generationen mit. Aber auch als Leitbild für andere Konsumenten setzen junge Menschen in der Gesellschaft vielfach Konsum-Trends, die dann übernommen werden (Diekhof 1999, S. 34f, Kumpf 1983, S. 282ff). In dieser Arbeit wurde daher die Zielgruppe der heutigen jungen Erwachsenen im Hinblick auf die Faktoren untersucht, die für den Bio-Konsum ausschlaggebend sind und anhand derer Empfehlungen für das Marketing abgeleitet werden können. Hierzu wurde zunächst eine theoretische Analyse des Bio-Marktes und der definierten Zielgruppe durchgeführt, in der vor allem die kaufverhaltensrelevanten Faktoren im Hinblick auf den Bio-Kauf herausgearbeitet und betrachtet wurden. Im Anschluss daran wurden mittels eines Methodenmix aus zwei quantitativen und einer qualitativen empirischen Untersuchung einige der Faktoren näher auf ihre Bedeutung im Hinblick auf die Konsumentscheidung für oder gegen Bio-Lebensmittel bei jungen Erwachsenen überprüft. Die erste Studie belegte mit Hilfe quantitativer Befragungsmethodik, dass fast ausschließlich hohe Bildungsschichten Bio-Produkte kannten und damit überhaupt in der Lage waren, Auskunft über das Image zu geben. Bei den Befragten überwog ein positives Image von Bio-Lebensmitteln. Jedoch wurde neben Assoziationen wie gesund , wohlschmeckend und modern in erster Linie der hohe Preis mit Bio-Lebensmitteln verbunden. Dieser konnte denn auch als die Hauptbarriere gegen den Bio-Kauf bei jungen Erwachsenen ermittelt werden. Weitere Gründe waren Zeitmangel, aber auch geringes Interesse, so dass letztlich trotz des guten Images nur etwa 11 % der Befragten regelmäßig Bio-Produkte kauften. Die befragten jungen Frauen waren dabei insgesamt gesundheitsbewusster und stärker motiviert, alternative Produkte zu kaufen, als die jungen Männer. Bei beiden Geschlechtern konnte in den höheren Altersgruppen ein stärkeres Interesse an Bio-Produkten beobachtet werden. Mit Hilfe der zweiten Studie konnten diese Ergebnisse, ebenfalls durch eine quantitative Befragung, erweitert werden. Es wurde nachgewiesen, dass die Veränderungen in den Lebensumständen eines jungen Erwachsenen sich z. T. stark auf das Ernährungs- und Lebensmittelkaufverhalten auswirken. In der Single-Phase, der ersten von drei betrachteten Phasen des Familienlebenszyklus, sind junge Erwachsene demnach i. d. R. keine Erfolg versprechende Zielgruppe für den Bio-Markt, da andere Lebensbereiche in dieser Zeit größere Bedeutung haben als die Ernährung. Während der zweiten Phase (Partnerschafts-Phase) kann das Interesse an Bio-Produkten aufgrund eines oft gestiegenen Qualitätsanspruches wachsen. In der dritten betrachteten Phase des Familienlebenszyklus (Phase mit Kindern) bestehen nach den Untersuchungsergebnissen die größten Chancen für eine erhöhte Bereitschaft zum Bio-Kauf. Diese steht v. a. im Zusammenhang mit der Verantwortung für die eigenen Kinder. Mit Hilfe der letzten Studie, einer qualitativen Befragung in Form problemzentrierter, teilbiographischer Einzelinterviews, wurde herausgearbeitet, dass die Entscheidung zum Konsum von Bio-Lebensmitteln bei jungen Erwachsenen sowohl von der Ernährung im Elternhaus, als auch von Bezugspersonen wie Freunden oder der Partnerin/dem Partner beeinflusst werden kann. Letztere erweisen sich oft als Anstoß für eigenen Bio-Konsum, jedoch müssen in jedem Fall mehrere Faktoren zusammenwirken um regelmäßigen Kauf zu initiieren. Da eine Beeinflussung dieser Faktoren durch Marketingaktivitäten nur begrenzt möglich ist, wurde geschlussfolgert, dass bei einem beträchtlichen Teil der jungen Erwachsenen unter den derzeitigen Bedingungen kaum Interesse für Bio-Produkte zu wecken ist. Obgleich es sich bei jungen Erwachsenen um eine interessante Zielgruppe mit großem Potenzial handelt, sollte daher nicht versucht werden, die gesamte Gruppe undifferenziert anzusprechen. Hierdurch würden unnötig hohe Ausgaben ohne Effekt getätigt. Die Empfehlung für das Marketing, mit der die Arbeit abschließt, lautete deshalb, in erster Linie auf die Segmente der Zielgruppe zu fokussieren, bei denen eine erhöhte Bereitschaft zur Auseinandersetzung mit der Thematik besteht. Dies sind kurz gefasst in erster Linie die älteren Segmente innerhalb der Gruppe junger Erwachsener mit höherem Bildungsstand. Insbesondere junge Erwachsene mit Kindern und vor allem Frauen sind dabei am ehesten Erfolg versprechende Zielgruppen. Durch die benannten Einflüsse auf andere Konsumenten und die Kinder kann so eine zwar langfristige aber auf Dauer effektive Ausweitung des Bio-Konsums bei jungen Erwachsenen erzielt werden. Zudem wurde eine veränderte Positionierung vorgeschlagen, die den untersch! iedlichen Ansprüchen dieser heterogenen Kundengruppe eher entspricht, um einen größeren Teil der jungen Erwachsenen dennoch zum Konsum zu motivieren. ; This study investigates young adults as a target fort he organic food market. The recent growth of the organic market was accompanied by a change in it s consumers. Unlike in the beginning of the marketing of organic food, when most of the organic consumers where wholefood consumers and left-wingers, whose buying behavior was expressing their political orientation. Today there are various reasons to buy organic food. This growing heterogeneity of consumer types consequently led as well to different demands regarding organic products and their marketing. Therefore, segmentation into different consumer groups is found more and more, so that consumers can be targeted better. An interesting target group for the organic market are young adults. Not only are they a large group of consumers with a high turnover today and in the future. But also they are having a high influence impulse on other consumer groups. By raising and educating their children, they form eating and consumption habits of following generations. Also, as opinion-leaders for many other consumers, young people often set consumption trends (Diekhof 1999, p.34f.; Kumpf 1983, p 282ff.) This study therefore investigates the target group of todays young adults to find factors that are relevant for their organic consumption and on which advice for the marketing can be given. A theoretical analysis of the organic market and for the defined target group was done first, in which the relevant factors for organic consumption were shown. Then two quantitative and one qualitative study followed to investigate some of the factors further, with respect to their influence on young consumers buying decisions for or against organic products. The first study proved that mostly people with a high educational level know organic products and thus were able to answer the questions. A positive image of organic products was dominant in this group. Besides healthy , tasty and modern , a high price was associated to organics in the first place. This proved to be the main barrier against organic consumption in this group. Further reasons were a lack of time and/or a lack of interest, so that despite the good image, only 11% of the interviewees regularly purchased organic food. Allover young women were more health conscious and had a stronger motivation to buy alternative products than the men. In both genders a higher interest could be found in higher age groups. The second study showed moreover, that changes in the life cycle had strong effects on the eating and consumption habits of young adults. According to the results, being single, young adults are not a promising target group for organics as other areas than food are more important in that stage of life. In the second phase of the life cycle of young adults, the life with a partner, the interest in organic food rises, as quality starts to matter. In the third phase of the life cycle, the life with own children, the interest in organic food becomes much higher, as there is a strong feeling of responsibility for the children. For the last study, a qualitative research in form of problem orientated, partly biographic one-to-one interviews was conducted. It could be shown, that the decision for organic consumption of young adults is connected to the food and eating habits of their childhood as well as to socially relevant persons like friends or the partner. Although the partner often is the reason to start thinking about organic food, to initiate regular consumption, more factors have to work together. These factors can only partly be influenced by marketing activities, so that is was concluded, that in a high percentage of young adults, no interest in organics can be initiated. Thus even if young adults are an important and interesting target group with high potential, the existing sub-groups should be addressed differently, so not to waste marketing efforts. The advice for the marketing of organic products is to focus on those segments, that are interested in the subject at all. These are the higher age-groups among the young people with a high educational level, especially those with children and women in the first place. Although this will have a long-term effect, it will cause a growth of the organic market. Also a different positioning was proposed to account for the different demands of the heterogeneous group of young adults and thus to motivate the different groups better to increase their organic consumption.

I mikrobølgesystemers sendere er effektforstærkeren en nøglekomponent, som i vid udstrækning bestemmer systemets formåen, pres og effektforbrug. Traditionelt har mange effektforstærkere til militære og kommercielle anvendelser været baseret på elektronrør. De har høj virkningsgrad og kan levere meget høje effekter ved pulseret drift. Med deres forventede levetider er begrænsede, de fylder meget, og de er mindre velegnede til distribuerede anvendelser i moderne udstyr, f.eks. phase-array systemer. Halvleder effektforstærkerteknologi er her et alternativ til de elektronrørsbasered effektforstærkere. Den seneste fornyede interesse i dette forskningsområde skyldes i høj grad udviklingen af GaN (galliun nitrid) halvleder teknologien, som allerede har gjort sig gældende på radio og radar markedet. Forskningsområdet for den foreliggende PhD afhandling er udvikling procedurer til design af ulineære halvleder effektforstærkere med tilhørende fremstillings- og afprøvningsmetoder, især med henblik på anvendelse at den nyeste "state of the art" teknologi. Det er her muligt at identificere to typer GaN effektforstærkere, den hybride og den monolitiske MMIC (Microwave Monolithic Integrated Circuit) forstærker. Der nærværende forskningsarbejde fokuserer på og demonstrerer praktisk opbygning af begge typer. Først diskuteres designet og den tilhørende eksperimentelle undersøgelse og vurdering af en 50 W halvleder C-bånds effektforstærker baseret på "European Monololithic Microwave Integrated Circuit" GaN teknologi. Dette design skal benyttes som en grundsten i den fremtidige udvikling af sender/modtager modulet til den næste generation af Sentinel satellit telemålings radarer. Det er et kompakt to trins design med et areal på kun 6730 x 3750 µm 2 , som minimerer overlapningen mellem kurveformerne for de simulerede indre drain strømme og spændinger, hvorved der opnås en høj virkningsgrad. Designprocessen omfatter mange forskellige aktiviteter som valg af teknologi, verifikation af såvel småsignal som storsignal transistor modeller, herunder "load-pull" målinger, samt ulineær harmonisk balance simuleringer, stabilitets analyse, syntes af tilpasningskredsløb, analyser af parameterspredninger samt afprøvning under højeffekt betingelser. Forstærkeren blev fremstillet hos United Monolithic Semiconductors, UMS, med deres 0,25 µm gate GaN proces, der er i en afsluttende udviklingsfase. Målinger under pulserende drift viste meget fine resultater med en maksimal udgangseffekt på 53 W ved 4,74 GHz og en maksimal virkningsgrad på 55,8% (PAE, power added efficiency) ved 4,9 GHz. Forstærkeren havde en god storsignal båndbredde fra 4,85 GHz til 5,3 GHz med 1-2 dB kompression og en udgangseffekt over 40 W (46,75 dBm +/- 0,25 dB) med en forstærkning omkring 19 dB. Det svarer til en 0,5 dB båndbredde på 450 MHz. Virkningsgraden varierede fra 50% til 54% PAE og repræsenterer "state of the art" i C-bånd for en enkelt chip forstærker på dette effektniveau. Alle eksperimentelle data er i god overensstemmelse med tilsvarende simuleringer. Endvidere blev der konstrueret, opbygget og afprøvet en særdeles effektivt hybrid 100 W X-bånd effektforstærker, ligeledes baseret på 0,25 µm gate GaN teknologi. Formålet med denne del af PhD arbejdet var udvikling af en X-bånd højeffektforstærker, med potentiale til at erstatte de elektronrørsforstærkere, der benyttes i radarsystemer fra Terma A/S, som medfinansierede projektet. Disse radarer er til rent civile anvendelse indenfor trafikovervågning i lufthavne, kystovervågning eller kontrol med skibstrafik i havne. Designprocessen omfattede her teknologivurdering, "load-pull" og harmonisk balance simuleringer, elektromagnetisk modellering af bondetrådsforbindelser, fastlodning af transistor chips samt design, montering og test af hybridkomponenter. Der blev opnået fremragende resultater for et enkelttrins hybrid forstærkerdesign med en "power-bar" chip på 20 mm periferi om det aktive areal. Bedste måling gav 94,5 W udgangseffekt under pulserende drift ved 8,3 GHz med en forstærkning på 7.6 dB og med en maksimal virkningsgrad > 60% PAE. Dette resultat er bedre end andre publicerede X-bånds virkningsgrader ved tilsvarende effektniveauer. Forstærkerens båndbredde var begrænset til 200 MHz. Mellem 8,1 og 8,3 GHz var minimum udgangseffekten ved 1 dB kompression højere end 75 W, virkningsgraden over 35% PAE med forstærkningsvariationer +/- 0,5 dB omkring 7,5 dB. De opnåede effektniveauer svarede til de simulerede forventninger, men med en forskydning i frekvens til 1 GHz under de simulerede resultater. ; The power amplifier used in the transmitter of a microwave system is a key issue, and it derermines the system performance, cost, power consumption and reliability to a considerable extent. Traditionally, most of high power amplifiers used in military and commercial applications were tube-based amplifiers. They are efficient and provide very high power levels operating at low duty cycles. But they have a questionable longterm reliability, large footprints and they are not suitable for modern equipment with a decentralized transmitter, like a phase array system. Solid State Power Amplifier technology is the alternative to the tube-based amplifiers. Recently, there has been a renewed interest in this research field thanks, to a large extent, to the development of GaN semiconductor technology, that is already having an important impact on the wireless and radar market. The scope of this PhD dissertation lies in the development of nonlinear design methodologies, manufacturing, and efficient testing of Solid State High Power Amplifier modules, with special focus on GaN state of the art technology. It is possible to identify two types of GaN Solid State High Power Amplifiers: the Hybrids and the Monolithic Microwave Integrated Circuits. The research work presented here focuses on practical realization and demonstration of these two types of amplifiers. The design and experimental performance assessment of 50W Solid State C-band High Power Amplifier using European Monolithic Microwave Integrated Circuit GaN technology is discussed. The design will be used as a baseline for future developments of the next generation of the Sentinel satellite remote sensing radar T/R modules. The twostage design features a 6730 X 3750 µm 2 compact footprint. The overlapping between simulated intrinsic drain current and voltage waveforms is minimized, thus providing good power added efficiency. The design process encompasses a wide range of activities including technology assessment, small and large signal model validation using load pull measurements, nonlinear harmonic balance simulations, stability analysis, matching network synthesis, evaluation of spreads and high power testing. The design has been fabricated at the United Monolithic Semiconductors foundry using their 0.25 µm gate length GaN process, which currently is under final development. Pulsed high power measurements provided excellent results. The maximum average power level measured under pulsed operation was 53 W at 4.74 GHz, and the maximum overall PAE measured was 55.8% at 4.9GHz. The device presents a good bandwidth under large signal operation. At 1-2dB compression point, in the frequency range from 4.85 GHz to 5.3 GHz, the output power is larger than 40 W (46.75dBm +/- 0.25 dB) with the gain ranging around 19 dB. This corresponds to a 0.5dB bandwidth of 450MHz. PAE varies between 50%-54% along all this frequency range. These measurements present state of the art efficiency at C-band for these power levels achieved with a single chip. An efficient 100 W X-band hybrid high power amplifier using 0.25 µm gate length GaN technology was successfully designed, assembled and tested. The goal of the project was to develop a high power amplifier for X-band frequencies with capabilities to replace the vacuum tubes used in the radar systems designed by Terma, the company co-funding the project. These radars are purely civilian systems used for applications like traffic surveillance within airports, coastal and air surveillance, environmental surveillance of sea surfaces and vessel traffic monitoring in harbors. The design process included technology evaluation, load pull and harmonic balance simulations, bondwire array and transition electromagnetic modelling, die attach, device fabrication and testing. Outstanding results were obtained for a single stage hybrid design using a power bar with 20 mm active area periphery. 94.5 W were measured under pulsed operation at 8.3 GHZ and with a gain of around 7.6dB. The maximum power added efficiency obtained was at >60%. This efficiency is higher than any other published for these power levels at X-band. Limited bandwidth was achieved. Along the 200 MHz band between 8.1 to 8.3 GHz, and at 1 dB compression point, the device was delivering power levels larger than 75 W, PAE >35% and gain oscillating between 7.5 +/- 0.5 dB. Measurements were shifted down in frequency 1 GHz, but simulations predicted maximum power levels similar to the ones measured.

The main goal of this dissertation is to present an interpretation of what it should mean for a society to fulfil the ideals of freedom and equality. I argue that society should equalise levels of individual freedom. I defend this thesis in three stages, which are associated to the three parts of the dissertation. Part (A) is devoted to the elaboration of a new conception of freedom. The objective is to rehabilitate the intuitive idea that associates individual freedom with the ability to do or be what one wants. In chapter 1, I engage with the analytical literature on freedom and develop a conception of freedom according to which individuals are free overall to the extent that they have the specific freedoms they authentically prefer, where a specific freedom is defined by the probability that the agent will realise a phenomenon. The extent of one's freedom is thus made to depend on how reality relates to what one authentically wants it to be. In chapter 2, I offer a method for the measurement of freedom so conceived. According to this method, a person's level of overall freedom is obtained by multiplying the physical extent of her actual specific freedoms by the evaluative extent to which these actual specific freedoms correspond to her authentically preferred ones. In part (B), I defend the claim that a strictly and continuously equal distribution of this individual freedom is the best embodiment of moral equality. Firstly, in chapter 3, I argue that freedom is a better egalitarian currency than welfare, resources, capabilities and pluralist alternatives because freedom's anti-perfectionism, anti-fetishism and flexibility make it an optimal tool for the pursuit of any life plan. Freedom supports equally moral persons regardless of the ends they require, the means they need or the relative value they assign to these means. Secondly, in chapter 4, I defend strict and continuous equality as a distributive criterion over time. I show that efficiency-based and responsibility-based arguments in favour of inequalities are incompatible with the equal respect owed to moral persons. As long as individuals qualify as moral persons, they are owed equal respect and hence equal amounts of overall freedom. Thirdly, I address the famous claim according to which freedom and equality are conflicting ideals. I argue that this claim either stems from mistaking a conceptual distinction between a currency and a distributive criterion as a conflict of ideals, or expresses deeper disagreement over the meaning of freedom or the role of aggregative considerations in moral distributions. In any case, the claim is seriously weakened if not entirely destroyed. Parts (A) and (B) form the ideal theory of Equal Freedom. In part (C), which is constituted by chapter 5, I try to show how this ideal theory can guide us in nonideal circumstances. Firstly, I suggest a model to understand the relation between ideal and nonideal theory. I argue that nonideal theory is best understood as involving the maximisation of the realisation of the ideal under feasibility constraints and moral constraints imposed by the very nature of the ideal. Secondly, I apply this model to Equal Freedom. The main result is a radically egalitarian balance between concerns for feasibility, relative and absolute levels of overall freedom. Thirdly, I discuss in more detail policy strategies and proposals to equalise freedom in nonideal circumstances. As an example, I assess the desirability and feasibility of a 'right to be heard', which is an enforceable right given to employees that provides them with a capacity to alter their workplace environment in accordance with their life plans. This evaluation concludes my defence of Equal Freedom as the core of a theory of social justice. ; Le principal objectif de cette thèse est de présenter une interprétation de ce que devrait être une société qui réalise les idéaux de liberté et d'égalité. J'y défends l'idée selon laquelle une telle société devrait égaliser la liberté individuelle. Cette défense s'articule en trois moments, qui correspondent aux trois parties de la thèse. La partie (A) est consacrée à l'élaboration d'une nouvelle conception de la liberté. Il s'agit de réhabiliter l'intuition qui associe la liberté individuelle à la capacité de faire ou d'être ce que l'on veut. Dans le chapitre 1, je me sers de la littérature analytique portant sur la liberté pour développer une conception de la liberté selon laquelle les individus sont libres dans la mesure où ils possèdent les libertés spécifiques qu'ils préfèrent authentiquement, considérant qu'une liberté spécifique se définit par la probabilité qu'un agent réalisera un phénomène. L'étendue de la liberté d'une personne dépend donc du degré de correspondance entre la réalité et ses préférences authentiques portant sur la réalité. Dans le chapitre 2, je propose une méthode pour mesurer cette liberté. Selon cette méthode, le niveau de liberté globale d'une personne s'obtient en multipliant l'étendue physique de ses libertés spécifiques actuelles par le degré de correspondance entre la valeur de ces libertés spécifiques et celle des libertés qu'elle préfère authentiquement. Dans la partie (B), je défends l'idée qu'une égalisation stricte et continue de cette liberté individuelle est la meilleure interprétation de l'égalité morale. Premièrement, dans le chapitre 3, je suggère que la liberté est une meilleure unité de comparaison pour l'égalitarisme que le bien-être, les ressources, les capabilités et les alternatives pluralistes car son anti-perfectionnisme, son anti-fétichisme et sa flexibilité en font un outil optimal pour la poursuite de tout plan de vie. La liberté offre en effet un soutien égal aux personnes morales sans égard aux fins qu'elles poursuivent, aux moyens qu'elles requièrent ou à la valeur relative qu'elles accordent à ces moyens. Deuxièmement, au chapitre 4, je propose l'égalité stricte et continue comme critère s'appliquant aux distributions ayant une dimension temporelle. Je montre que les arguments qui justifient des inégalités en se fondant sur des considérations d'efficacité ou de responsabilité sont incompatibles avec l'égal respect qui est dû aux personnes morales. Tant et aussi longtemps que des individus se qualifient comme personnes morales, on leur doit un égal respect et par conséquent, des quantités égales de liberté globale. Troisièmement, je traite de la fameuse idée selon laquelle la liberté et l'égalité sont des idéaux qui s'opposent. Je soutiens que cette idée découle soit d'une méprise concernant la distinction conceptuelle entre une unité de comparaison et un critère distributif, ou d'un désaccord plus profond portant sur le sens de la liberté ou le rôle de considérations agrégatives dans la détermination des distributions morales. Dans tous les cas, cette idée en sort sérieusement affaiblie sinon complètement anéantie. Les parties (A) et (B) constituent la théorie idéale d'Égale liberté. Dans la partie (C), qui est formée du chapitre 5, je tente de montrer comment cette théorie idéale peut nous guider dans des circonstances non-idéales. Premièrement, je suggère un modèle pour comprendre la relation entre la théorie idéale et la théorie non-idéale. Je soutiens que la théorie non-idéale doit être comprise comme impliquant la maximisation de la réalisation de l'idéal moyennant le respect des contraintes de faisabilité ainsi que des contraintes morales imposées par la nature même de l'idéal. Deuxièmement, j'applique ce modèle à l'idéal d'Égale liberté. Le résultat principal de cette application est un équilibre radicalement égalitaire entre l'importance à accorder à la faisabilité, aux niveaux relatifs ainsi qu'aux niveaux absolus de liberté globale. Troisièmement, je discute plus en détail de stratégies et de propositions de politiques publiques pouvant égaliser la liberté dans des circonstances non-idéales. En guise d'exemple, j'évalue la désirabilité et la faisabilité d'un « droit d'être entendu », qui est un droit destiné aux employés afin de leur offrir une capacité de modifier leur environnement de travail en conformité avec leur plan de vie. Cette évaluation conclut ma défense d'Égale liberté en tant que composante essentielle d'une théorie de la justice sociale. ; (ISP 3) -- UCL, 2012

The main goal of this dissertation is to present an interpretation of what it should mean for a society to fulfil the ideals of freedom and equality. I argue that society should equalise levels of individual freedom. I defend this thesis in three stages, which are associated to the three parts of the dissertation. Part (A) is devoted to the elaboration of a new conception of freedom. The objective is to rehabilitate the intuitive idea that associates individual freedom with the ability to do or be what one wants. In chapter 1, I engage with the analytical literature on freedom and develop a conception of freedom according to which individuals are free overall to the extent that they have the specific freedoms they authentically prefer, where a specific freedom is defined by the probability that the agent will realise a phenomenon. The extent of one's freedom is thus made to depend on how reality relates to what one authentically wants it to be. In chapter 2, I offer a method for the measurement of freedom so conceived. According to this method, a person's level of overall freedom is obtained by multiplying the physical extent of her actual specific freedoms by the evaluative extent to which these actual specific freedoms correspond to her authentically preferred ones. In part (B), I defend the claim that a strictly and continuously equal distribution of this individual freedom is the best embodiment of moral equality. Firstly, in chapter 3, I argue that freedom is a better egalitarian currency than welfare, resources, capabilities and pluralist alternatives because freedom's anti-perfectionism, anti-fetishism and flexibility make it an optimal tool for the pursuit of any life plan. Freedom supports equally moral persons regardless of the ends they require, the means they need or the relative value they assign to these means. Secondly, in chapter 4, I defend strict and continuous equality as a distributive criterion over time. I show that efficiency-based and responsibility-based arguments in favour of inequalities are incompatible with the equal respect owed to moral persons. As long as individuals qualify as moral persons, they are owed equal respect and hence equal amounts of overall freedom. Thirdly, I address the famous claim according to which freedom and equality are conflicting ideals. I argue that this claim either stems from mistaking a conceptual distinction between a currency and a distributive criterion as a conflict of ideals, or expresses deeper disagreement over the meaning of freedom or the role of aggregative considerations in moral distributions. In any case, the claim is seriously weakened if not entirely destroyed. Parts (A) and (B) form the ideal theory of Equal Freedom. In part (C), which is constituted by chapter 5, I try to show how this ideal theory can guide us in nonideal circumstances. Firstly, I suggest a model to understand the relation between ideal and nonideal theory. I argue that nonideal theory is best understood as involving the maximisation of the realisation of the ideal under feasibility constraints and moral constraints imposed by the very nature of the ideal. Secondly, I apply this model to Equal Freedom. The main result is a radically egalitarian balance between concerns for feasibility, relative and absolute levels of overall freedom. Thirdly, I discuss in more detail policy strategies and proposals to equalise freedom in nonideal circumstances. As an example, I assess the desirability and feasibility of a 'right to be heard', which is an enforceable right given to employees that provides them with a capacity to alter their workplace environment in accordance with their life plans. This evaluation concludes my defence of Equal Freedom as the core of a theory of social justice. ; Le principal objectif de cette thèse est de présenter une interprétation de ce que devrait être une société qui réalise les idéaux de liberté et d'égalité. J'y défends l'idée selon laquelle une telle société devrait égaliser la liberté individuelle. Cette défense s'articule en trois moments, qui correspondent aux trois parties de la thèse. La partie (A) est consacrée à l'élaboration d'une nouvelle conception de la liberté. Il s'agit de réhabiliter l'intuition qui associe la liberté individuelle à la capacité de faire ou d'être ce que l'on veut. Dans le chapitre 1, je me sers de la littérature analytique portant sur la liberté pour développer une conception de la liberté selon laquelle les individus sont libres dans la mesure où ils possèdent les libertés spécifiques qu'ils préfèrent authentiquement, considérant qu'une liberté spécifique se définit par la probabilité qu'un agent réalisera un phénomène. L'étendue de la liberté d'une personne dépend donc du degré de correspondance entre la réalité et ses préférences authentiques portant sur la réalité. Dans le chapitre 2, je propose une méthode pour mesurer cette liberté. Selon cette méthode, le niveau de liberté globale d'une personne s'obtient en multipliant l'étendue physique de ses libertés spécifiques actuelles par le degré de correspondance entre la valeur de ces libertés spécifiques et celle des libertés qu'elle préfère authentiquement. Dans la partie (B), je défends l'idée qu'une égalisation stricte et continue de cette liberté individuelle est la meilleure interprétation de l'égalité morale. Premièrement, dans le chapitre 3, je suggère que la liberté est une meilleure unité de comparaison pour l'égalitarisme que le bien-être, les ressources, les capabilités et les alternatives pluralistes car son anti-perfectionnisme, son anti-fétichisme et sa flexibilité en font un outil optimal pour la poursuite de tout plan de vie. La liberté offre en effet un soutien égal aux personnes morales sans égard aux fins qu'elles poursuivent, aux moyens qu'elles requièrent ou à la valeur relative qu'elles accordent à ces moyens. Deuxièmement, au chapitre 4, je propose l'égalité stricte et continue comme critère s'appliquant aux distributions ayant une dimension temporelle. Je montre que les arguments qui justifient des inégalités en se fondant sur des considérations d'efficacité ou de responsabilité sont incompatibles avec l'égal respect qui est dû aux personnes morales. Tant et aussi longtemps que des individus se qualifient comme personnes morales, on leur doit un égal respect et par conséquent, des quantités égales de liberté globale. Troisièmement, je traite de la fameuse idée selon laquelle la liberté et l'égalité sont des idéaux qui s'opposent. Je soutiens que cette idée découle soit d'une méprise concernant la distinction conceptuelle entre une unité de comparaison et un critère distributif, ou d'un désaccord plus profond portant sur le sens de la liberté ou le rôle de considérations agrégatives dans la détermination des distributions morales. Dans tous les cas, cette idée en sort sérieusement affaiblie sinon complètement anéantie. Les parties (A) et (B) constituent la théorie idéale d'Égale liberté. Dans la partie (C), qui est formée du chapitre 5, je tente de montrer comment cette théorie idéale peut nous guider dans des circonstances non-idéales. Premièrement, je suggère un modèle pour comprendre la relation entre la théorie idéale et la théorie non-idéale. Je soutiens que la théorie non-idéale doit être comprise comme impliquant la maximisation de la réalisation de l'idéal moyennant le respect des contraintes de faisabilité ainsi que des contraintes morales imposées par la nature même de l'idéal. Deuxièmement, j'applique ce modèle à l'idéal d'Égale liberté. Le résultat principal de cette application est un équilibre radicalement égalitaire entre l'importance à accorder à la faisabilité, aux niveaux relatifs ainsi qu'aux niveaux absolus de liberté globale. Troisièmement, je discute plus en détail de stratégies et de propositions de politiques publiques pouvant égaliser la liberté dans des circonstances non-idéales. En guise d'exemple, j'évalue la désirabilité et la faisabilité d'un « droit d'être entendu », qui est un droit destiné aux employés afin de leur offrir une capacité de modifier leur environnement de travail en conformité avec leur plan de vie. Cette évaluation conclut ma défense d'Égale liberté en tant que composante essentielle d'une théorie de la justice sociale. ; (ISP 3) -- UCL, 2012

The recent economic downturn The decline in GDP during the recession has been concentrated in manufacturing and construction and triggered significant (though smaller) declines in basic services (distribution, hotels and restaurants, and transport). The decline in manufacturing production was particularly strong in Germany, while in Spain and Ireland as well as the Baltic states there was a pronounced decline in construction, which had expanded markedly in these countries over the years preceding the recession. Just as in previous economic downturns in the EU, the recent recession has hit investment goods industries (including construction) much harder than consumer goods industries, essentially because investment can be postponed in a way that consumption cannot; nevertheless, within the latter, the production of durable goods – which are similar to investment goods in this respect – was hit hard as well. The effect on employment of the downturn differed markedly among sectors and countries according to the strength of the measures adopted both by employers and governments to preserve jobs, but also according to expectations about the pace and scale of recovery and the sustainability of the previous pattern of growth. Although average hours worked declined significantly in manufacturing during the worst period of the recession in 2009, supported by measures to preserve jobs in many countries, since then there has been a widespread increase, reflecting the reluctance of employers to take on workers in the context of a hesitant recovery and the uncertainty of longer-term prospects. Just as the recession disproportionately affected industry, so too the recovery was in its initial stages stimulated by an upturn in manufacturing as demand for investment and durable goods picked up. This was especially the case for chemicals and motor vehicles where output began to recover strongly in the latter part of 2009 and during 2010. Value-added in industry grew by 6% between 2009 and 2010 in the EU as a whole, considerably more than in other parts of the economy (in construction, value-added continued to decline). In those sectors where most efforts have been made to preserve jobs – in the engineering industries and motor vehicles in particular – labour productivity at the beginning of 2011 was below the level before the onset of recession in a number of countries. This could dampen the rate of job creation as and when recovery takes place since it implies that output could be increased without any immediate need to expand employment. Employment trends in selected sectors results from analysis of long-term developments Employment is strongly related to changes in value-added, though an increase in value-added tends to be partly met by productivity growth as well as by employing more people. Similarly, a fall in value-added tends to be associated with a decline in productivity growth as well as a decline in employment, though lags in adjustment may delay the latter. The relationship between employment and real wages tends to be significant in manufacturing, where increases in real wages tend to reduce the growth of employment; this is not the case in services. In the UK, as in the US, real wages tend to adjust more quickly to changes in labour demand than in Germany and France, suggesting that labour markets are more flexible in the former countries. There is an inverse relationship between average hours worked and the number employed, indicating in general that the more hours people work, the smaller the number employed and vice versa, so that adjustments in working time has an important effect on jobs. Investment in ICT has positive and significant effects on employment in manufacturing, probably working through improvements in productivity. The opposite is the case in services, suggesting that the increasing use of ICT tends to reduce employment. After a shock, it takes up to three years for employment to return to trend levels in France, Spain, Belgium and the Netherlands. In the other countries, the pace of adjustment is faster, at only one-and-a-half to two years on average. Changes in the composition of employment Over the recession period from 2007 to 2010, the share of jobs filled by women continued to increase across the EU. This, however, reflects the large job losses in manufacturing and construction where few women are employed. In most sectors, even in services, the share of jobs filled by women declined. The share of jobs filled by workers aged 55 and over has increased in most parts of the EU over the past ten years, reflecting a tendency for older people to remain longer in work. This continued to be the case over the recession period, unlike during previous periods of economic downturn when early retirement has been a major means of reducing work forces. The main group hit by the present crisis are the young below the age of 25. The proportion of the work force with tertiary education increased in all sectors over the years leading up to the recession; the same is true for the share of employment accounted for by managers and professionals. Both trends have continued over the recession period. There has been a shift from full-time to part-time jobs over the recession period, which may reflect uncertainty among employers over future prospects as well as the pursuit of more flexible organization of work. Employment experience in previous economic downturns There are some differences between previous periods of downturn in those sectors in which employment was most affected. In all periods, however, employment continued to expand in business services and hotels and restaurants. Economic crises were predominantly weathered by adjustments in hours worked to preserve jobs and the know-how of the work force, thus limiting the costs of re-employment and training. This tendency was strongest in the 1970s, moderate in the 1980s and mixed in the 1990s. Value-added was generally more volatile than the number employed and hours worked. During the three periods of economic downturn, value-added grew only in business services. The largest losses were observed in machinery and equipment, basic metals and construction in all three periods. Sectoral interdependencies For each job created by an increase in final demand in a particular sector, there are between 1.4 and 2.3 additional jobs created in the economy as a whole. Employment multipliers are highest in manufacturing (especially in chemicals, electrical equipment and transport equipment) and are lowest in services, which need fewer inputs from other sectors. Domestic employment multipliers tend to have remained broadly unchanged over the past 15 years or so whereas international employment multipliers (the effect of growth in one country on employment in others) have increased markedly, reflecting the growing importance of production networks and international integration. Employment creation in services is mainly a domestic process, whereas within manufacturing, job creation takes place internationally (particularly in textiles, chemicals and electrical equipment and transport equipment). Growth of demand in the EU tends to lead to significant employment creation in other countries, reflecting the increase in imports that it results in. This is particularly so with respect to electrical equipment, textiles and chemicals, though it is also the case for each of those that growth of demand increases employment not only in the Member State in which it occurs but also in other parts of the EU. Measures taken to support employment during the crisis Measures to counter the effect of the recession on employment were implemented in all Member States. However, those were mainly general; relatively few responses were sector-specific, such as car scrapping schemes, which were introduced in a number of countries, and cuts in value-added tax on hotels and restaurants (in Ireland and France). But there has been a decentralization of pay bargaining to company level in some sectors in some countries (such as in basic metals or chemicals in Germany). Many countries introduced expansionary fiscal policies to stimulate demand as well as short-time working arrangements (mainly concentrated in manufacturing). In a number of countries, there has been an expansion of training and work experience programmes, recruitment incentive schemes for employers hiring new workers, support to business start-ups, measures to increase access to credit, pay freezes and more flexible working arrangements, all designed to increase employment. Young people, who have been severely affected by the recession and the lack of job creation, have been a particular target for government support, in the form of subsidized employment schemes, work placement programmes, work experience or training guarantees and intensified job search assistance.

The issue of sustainable agriculture has attracted considerable attention. Sustainable agriculture encompasses economic viability, social acceptance, conservation of the environment, and food quality. The present thesis aims to evaluate the sustainability of conventional (CON), integrated (INT), and organic (ORG) production systems (PS). The assessment of sustainability of different PS was made in terms of the four most significant aspects of sustainability—agronomic, economic, environmental, and food quality—at the field level (i). Agronomic parameters such as the number of leaves, leaf area index, fruit characteristics, and seed/oil yield and economic feasibility were evaluated for oil seed pumpkin (ii). The environmental sustainability was assessed through the ecological footprint and weed biodiversity index (iii). The study of food quality determined the internal quality (total phenol, sugar, organic acid, vitamin C, mineral, and nitrate content and antioxidant activity) and sensory evaluation (iv, v). The sustainability of the PS for the four crops was assessed using a qualitative multi-attribute model (DEXi methodology (vi). Because field trial was conducted in protected landscapes (PL), the options for the development of PLs with the ORG PS were evaluated. To obtain the data, a field trial was conducted on a 4000 m2 area in the years 2008 to 2011. Wheat, oil seed pumpkin, red beet, and cabbage grown by the three different PSs—CON, INT, and ORG—and a control plot were studied. They were arranged in a randomized complete block split-plot design with four replications. The production systems differed in plant protection and fertilization strategies, as defined by legislation and standards. Survey of literature point out that indicator are the basis of assessing sustainability, the assessment of sustainability should encompass at least three pillars of sustainability (i). Agronomic parameters (ii) and economic feasibility were evaluated for oil seed pumpkin in the field trial. The leaf area index differed significantly between CON (4.8 for CON and 4.1 for ORG) and other production systems at later growth stages (BBCH = 600-700), and it was highly correlated with the yield (808 kg ha-1 for CON and 723 kg ha-1 for ORG). The yield and all agronomic parameters were significantly lower in ORG ; however, the economic feasibility analysis showed that the financial results could be higher because of lower production costs (1.784 € ha-1 for CON and 1.434.5 € ha-1 for ORG) and higher product prices. The same economic feasibility analysis results were also obtained for cabbage and red beet (iii). The Biodiversity Ecological Footprint index (iii) were interpreted using the SPIonExcel tool and the Shannon-Weaver Diversity Index for the weeds species diversity. The ecological footprint of ORG was 3.3 times lower than that of CON (21 ha to 70 ha), and the Shannon-Weaver diversity index of ORG was significantly higher than that of CON (which was 20% higher, 0.66 for CON and 0.86 for ORG). The internal quality were studied for red beet and white cabbage. Sensory evaluation of sauerkraut samples was made. In the case of red beet, the differences were significant for vitamin C (23.3% higher for ORG than for CON), antioxidant activity (30.3% higher for ORG than for CON), and some microminerals (Na, Cu, Fe, Mn, and Zn) (iv). In the case of cabbage, a significantly lower amount of P and N and a significantly higher amount of Na, Mg, and total phenols (in ORG 0.360 GAE mg g-1 FW and in CON 0.310 GAE mg g-1 FW) was found for ORG than for CON cabbage. The concentration of nitrates is significantly lower in ORG (530 mg kg-1 for CON and 370.37 mg kg-1 for ORG). The sensory evaluation of sauerkraut samples was performed by 100 consumers using a nine-point hedonic scale. The ORG and control samples were evaluated significantly better than the INT and CON samples (overall acceptability was 5.94 for ORG and 5.34 for CON) (v). The core of the qualitative multi-model (DEXi methodology) is a hierarchical tree that divides ; Cilji trajnostnega kmetijstva so ekonomska upravičenost, socialna sprejemljivost, ohranjanje okolja in kakovost hrane. Namen disertacije je ocenjevanje trajnosti pridelovalnih sistemov, in sicer konvencionalnega (KON), integriranega (INT) in ekološkega (EKO) pridelovalnega sistema (PS). Ocenjevanje trajnosti PS je temeljilo na štirih najpomembnejših vidikih trajnosti – agronomski, ekonomski in okoljski vidik ter vidik kakovosti hrane – na ravni njive (i). Agronomski parametri kot so število listov, indeks listne površine, lastnosti plodov, pridelek semena in olja in ekonomska upravičenost so bili ovrednoteni za oljne buče (ii). Okoljska trajnost je bila ocenjena skozi okoljski odtis in indeks diverzitete plevelnih vrst (iii). Kakovost hrane je zajemala proučitev notranje kakovosti (skupni fenoli, sladkor, organske kisline, vitamin C, vsebnost mineralov in nitratov ter antioksidativno aktivnost) in senzorično ocenjevanje (iv, v). Trajnost PS za štiri posevke je bila ocenjena z uporabo kvalitativnega multi-atributivnega modela (DEXi metodologija) (vi). Zaradi lokacije poljskega poskusa na zavarovanem območju (ZO) je bila proučevana možnost razvoja ZO z EKO PS. Za zagotovitev podatkov je bil vzpostavljen poljski poskus v skupni velikosti 4000 m2 v letih 2008 do 2011. Pšenica, oljne buče, rdeča pesa in zelje so bili pridelovani v treh različnih PS – KON, INT, EKO – in kontrolne parcelice. Poskus je bil vzpostavljen kot naključni blok sistem v štirih ponovitvah. PS so se razlikovali v strategijah gnojenja in varstva rastlin, kot je definirano v zakonodaji in standardih. Osnovna obdelava tal, setev in datumi ter metode žetve oziroma spravila so bile enake za vse parcelice. Pregled literature je pokazal, da so indikatorji osnova za ocenjevanje trajnosti. Ocenjevanje bi naj zajelo vsaj tri vidike trajnosti ; ogrodja bi naj bila dovolj široka v času in prostoru, prenosljiva, upoštevajoča lokalne in globalne vplive ter primarno namenjena odločevalcem (i). Agronomski parametri (ii) ter ekonomska upravičenost pridelave so bili ovrednotene za oljne buče v poljskem poskusu. Indeks listne površine se je signifikantno razlikoval med KON (4,8 za KON in 4,1 za EKO) in drugimi PS pri poznejših fazah rasti (BBCH=600-700), in je bil visoko povezan s pridelkom (808 kg ha-1 za KON in 723 kg ha-1 za EKO). Pridelek in ostali agronomski parametri so bili signifikantno nižji v EKO, vendar pa je ekonomska upravičenost pokazala, da je finančni rezultat lahko višji v EKO zaradi nižjih proizvodnih stroškov (1.784 € ha-1 za KON in 1.434,5 € ha-1 za EKO) in višje odkupne cene. Enake rezultate je pokazala analiza ekonomske upravičenosti za rdečo peso in zelje (iii). Združen indeks biodiverzitete in okoljskega odtisa (iii) je bil interpretiran z uporabo orodja SPIonExcel in Shannon-Weaverjevega diverzitetnega indeksa za diverziteto plevelnih vrst. Okoljski odtis v EKO je bil 3,3 krat nižji kot v KON (21 ha proti 70 ha). Shannon-Weaver diverzitetni indeks je bil v ORG signifikantno višji kot v KON (20% višji, 0,66 za KON in 0,86 za EKO). Notranja kakovost so bile proučevane za zelje in rdečo peso. Senzorično ocenjevanje je bilo opravljeno za vzorce kislega zelja. V primeru rdeče pese (iv) so bile razlike signifikantne za vitamin C (23,3% višje vrednosti za EKO kot za KON), antioksidativno aktivnost (30,3% višje vrednosti za EKO kot za KON), in nekatere mikrominerale (Na, Cu, Fe, Mn in Zn). V primeru zelja je bila v EKO signifikantno nižja vsebnost fosforja in dušika in signifikantno višja vsebnost natrija, magnezija in skupnih fenolov (0,360 v EKO in 0,310 GAE mg g-1 FW v KON) kot v KON. Koncentracija nitratov je bila v EKO signifikantno nižja kot v KON (530 za KON in 370,37 mg kg-1 za EKO). Senzorično ocenjevanje vzorcev kislega zelja je opravilo 100 potrošnikov z uporabo 9- stopenjske hedonske lestvice. Vzorci ORG in kontrolnega obravnavanja so bile signifikantno bolje ocenjeni kot INT in KON vzorci (splošna sprejemljivost v EKO 5,94 in 5,34 v KON) (v). Ogrodje kvalitativ

Hindu nationalism has seen a dramatic growth in India and abroad from the nineteen eighties. This growth has coincided with – and relates in complex ways to – several other highly significant developments, including (in no particular order) the instituting of liberalization in the economy; the legislation on reservations for 'Other Backward Castes' and its implementation; the intensification of the integration of the middle classes into the global economy; and the intensifying pauperization of the rural poor. These developments as well as Hindu nationalism's links with them have been the subject of scholarly attention from a variety of perspectives and disciplines. Apart from these however, one may also note the unfolding of less obvious, but equally significant and related developments in this period: the growth and intensification of female feticide and infanticide; the increase in dowry related violence and deaths; the targeting of women as objects of sexual violence, especially during communal riots, but also routinely; the increasing presence of women in rightwing organizations and mobilizations; an intensification in the policing of sexual discourses and sexuality; conversely and paradoxically, there has also been an increase in the visibility of women in the public sphere (through for instance, the widening of options for employment for women). Feminist scholarship has addressed several of these issues, independently and in their intersections; it has also addressed the rise of Hindu nationalism. However, there is little work on the relations that obtain between these issues and the more obvious ones set out above. Specifically, there was and remains a serious deficiency of attention to the relations between masculinity and Hindu nationalism. This study hopes to contribute towards addressing this deficiency in several ways. Firstly, it seeks to locate itself in the theoretical and analytical spaces between gender studies and political economy. It attempts to do so by reviewing and then parting from, the dominant trends in the theoretical and analytical debates on men and masculinity. In my thesis I have therefore focused, not on kinds and forms of masculinity – which remains the dominant approach in masculinity studies – but on the ways in which institutions, organizations and structures come to be gendered, and consequently, on the processes of gendering that are invoked in the articulation and elaboration of power within specific structural, institutional and/or organizational relations. I have sought to develop this argument specifically with regard to masculinity/ies by proposing the idea of 'masculine hegemony'. Briefly, through this term I wish to suggest that uneven power distribution may be understood in Gramscian hegemonic terms, and that this hegemony is usually gendered as masculine. Any given society is organised along multiple and intersecting hierarchies of domination and subordination that determine the access to and exercise of power – the distribution and possession of its resources and rights – within it, as well as the terms within which that power is (to be) exercised. Further, the organisation of these hierarchies may be discerned as hegemonic formations that favour specific social groups and/or alignments. Any given hegemonic condition is thus layered by multiple and intersecting hierarchies of domination and subordination that extend far beyond conventionally recognised macro manifestations –race, nation, region, religion, community, class – to its manifestations at the fundamental 'cellular' (or in Gramsci's terms, 'molecular') level of the family and the organisation of sexuality. Thus, while the multi-layered hegemonic formations that constitute the given hegemonic condition are all diversely marked by other signs – of race, class, age, region, religion, etc – they are all inflected by the foundational discourse of gender. This is the broad theoretical perspective within which the thesis is elaborated, because it provides for the multiple articulation of complex phenomena with each other, across history as well as across regions. Based on this, and secondly, it seeks to approach the issue of Hindu nationalism from a historical perspective. The study therefore begins by chronologically examining the term 'Hindu' and the various semantic and social transformations in its history, beginning with its early derivation from 'Indus', through the medieval period when it gradually but nebulously came to identify a community, to its coalescence into the more concrete religio-social entity that emerged through the colonial encounter and the caste and other reform movements of the nineteenth century, to its politicization under B G Tilak and V D Savarkar (among others) into a religio-cultural nationalism in the early part of the twentieth century. Crucial to understanding this evolution, the study argues, is the pan-Indian spread of the Brahmin castes (as opposed to the localized presence of the lower-castes), and the consequent identification of 'Hindu' territory with the presence of the Brahmins. In mapping this process, I emphasize the gender and caste dynamics inherent to the construction of this identity, especially in the concretizing of communal lines around the issue of personal laws, and elaborate on the economic, communal and political determinants of this gendered dynamic in the construction of the identity 'Hindu'. It thus argues that the strongly Brahmanical caste-profile of the anti-colonial nationalist movement indicates the extent to which Brahmanical patriarchy (or masculine hegemony) and its practices came to define the hegemonic understanding of the identity 'Hindu' as well as 'India' – and continued to do so even after independence. The argument of the thesis is that, unless one takes account of these processes, it is difficult to fully comprehend the depth, scale and reach of Hindu nationalism – as a latent and as an active ideology. Thirdly, I argue the need to factor in another process in the understanding of Hindu nationalism, which also has its roots in the colonial encounter but which gains a different dynamic after independence: the idea and practice of 'development'. The study proceeds to briefly historicize the idea of development and then to chart the trajectories of its implementation through the Nehruvian emphasis on Planning and state driven social change, and the consequent impact on the changing social, economic and political theatre of the country after independence. It analyses this impact specifically on the gender and caste dynamics of this period, arguing that the Brahmanical hegemony of the pre-independence period begins to transform in the seventies, as it negotiates with and then accommodates the increasing visibility and volubility of lower caste presence in the political domain. Similarly, even as women's movements successfully moved the state to implement policies that actually empowered women and made possible their greater participation in the public sphere, the gradual and ongoing process of shifting control of the economy from the state to the private sector has ensured that safeguards for women, labor, lower castes and other marginal groups are almost non-existent, or at best, remain arbitrary and at the mercy of the private sector. The study proposes that the processes of liberalization and privatization were thus crucial to the transformation of Brahmanical masculine hegemony, in its strategies to retain hegemonic power. In other words, the study argues that the developmentalist agenda of the post-independence Indian state contributed, in no small measure, to the resurgence of Hindu nationalism on the political stage, from the late seventies and particularly in the eighties, into the present. Finally, the study explores the tensions and relations that obtain between the multiple dichotomies generated in the thesis – the personal and the political, the hegemonic and the hegemonised, upper caste and lower caste, Hindu and non-Hindu, masculine and feminine, modern and traditional, etc. I argue that Hindu nationalist positions should not be understood as manifest only in its organizational and/or institutional manifestations, but in and through this field of beliefs, actions and relations that constitute the masculine hegemony of Brahmanical patriarchy, within and from which Hindu nationalism finds its visceral roots. I close by proposing that unless we take cognizance of this, and look beyond the electoral performances of the Bharatiya Janata Party to the ways in which hegemonies are maintained using the very tools and structures intended to dismantle them we will not truly be able to counter the Hindu right or its masculinist violences.

학위논문 (석사)-- 서울대학교 대학원 : 정치학과, 2012. 2. 박찬욱. ; 본 연구는 1970년대 이후 미국의 통상정책 결정과정에서 주된 절차적 기제로 작용해온 신속처리절차(Fast-track procedures)가 2002년 무역법을 통해 무역증진권한(Trade Promotion Authority; TPA)으로 재입법되는 과정의 동학을 의회-행정부 관계를 중심으로 설명하는 것을 목적으로 한다. 신속처리절차는 대통령이 비관세장벽 관련 내용이 포함된 무역협정을 체결하고 이행법안을 의회에 제출하면 양원은 수정안 제출 없이 가부만을 결정해서 90일내에 처리해야 한다는 규정으로 1974년 무역법에서 처음 도입된 이래 30년 간 미국의 무역정책결정과정에서 중요한 위치를 차지해왔다. 하지만 자유무역정책에 대한 양당의 합의가 약해지면서 1994년 만료되었고, 2002년 8월 6일 부시 대통령이 법안에 서명을 하면서 8년 만에 통상정책결정과정에 다시 등장했다. 그렇다면 어떠한 맥락에서 클린턴 행정부 시기에는 부결되었던 연장 법안이 부시 행정부 때는 성공할 수 있었을까? 기존의 연구들은 1997년과 2001년 표결 분석을 통해 의원 차원에서 이익집단ㆍ유권자들과의 관계, 정당 차원에서 단점정부를 그 요인으로 지적한다. 하지만 입법과정에서 의회의 행태는 의원 개인, 정당 두 차원 외에도 행정부와의 관계에서 입법부로서의 의회를 강화하고자 하는 유인의 영향을 받는데 본 논문은 마지막 차원에 주목한 설명을 제시하고자 한다. 즉 의회는 국내외 경제적 상황, 유권자와 이익집단에 대한 고려, 행정부 등 다양한 요구에 대응하는 과정에서 입법부로서의 지위 강화를 위해 행정부와의 관계에서 개입을 증대하는 동시에 실패했을 경우에 부담해야 하는 비난, 지지기반의 이탈과 같은 손실을 최소화하는 방향으로 정책을 입안하려고 했고, 그 결과로 2002년에 무역증진권한이 다시 입법되었다는 것을 보이고자 한다. 입법 과정을 보면 초기에는 기존 연구 결과에서 나타나듯 의원 개인의 차원에서는 재선을 위해 유권자와 이익집단을 고려했고 정당 차원에서는 다수당이 되려는 선거 정치에 대한 고려와 이익집단과의 관계에서 통과와 저지의 공을 주장하려는 의도에서 정당 간 대립이 나타나기도 했다. 하지만 입법과정이 본격화되고 상원에서 안데스 산맥 국가들에 대한 무역특혜협정, 무역조정지원과 포괄법안의 형태로 입법되는 것으로 논의되면서 양당의 지도부는 의회가 미국의 전반적인 무역정책의 수립에 어떻게 개입해야 하는가에 대한 고민을 시작했다. 의회는 무역개방이 필요하다는 방향성에는 전반적으로 동의하고 있었고 WTO Doha Round가 임박해오고 있는 상황에서 행정부에 권한을 위임하지 않았다가 미국의 무역과 경제 상황이 악화된다면 그에 대한 책임을 온전히 부담해야 하기 때문에 무역증진권한의 입법을 통해 책임을 공유할 필요가 있었다. 이 경우 직접적인 권한 행사 주체는 행정부이기 때문에 실패했을 때는 행정부에 책임을 전가할 수 있는데다 권한의 위임범위와 재량권을 더욱 축소하고 적극적으로 개입해 무역 정책을 수립할 수 있기 때문에 의회의 입장에서는 결과에 대한 직접적인 책임을 회피할 수 있다. 동시에 절차의 적용 요건을 강화하고 감독기구를 늘리고 등의 조치를 통해 협상과정에 의회가 능동적으로 개입할 수 있는 통로를 확대하고, 행정부가 의회의 의사와 반하는 협상을 할 여지를 줄이기 위해 재량의 범위를 제한했다. 하지만 2002년 무역법에서 의회의 무역정책수립에 대한 적극적인 개입 의지가 가장 강하게 드러난 부분은 주도적으로 무역개방으로 인해 피해를 입은 부문에 대한 보상정책을 수립했다는 점이다. 무역조정지원에서 규정한 정책들은 분배정책적인 특성으로 인해 수혜자들에게 공을 주장하기는 쉽지만 비난을 받거나 실패할 확률은 낮기 때문에 의회의 입장에서는 헌법상 수임기관으로서 무역정책을 적극적으로 수립하는 의무를 다하고 있다고 주장하기에 효과적인 조치였다. 의회는 이처럼 무역조정지원 법안을 통해 적극적으로 개입해 직접 무역정책을 수립하고 무역협정체결과정에서 개입을 증대하는 동시에 권한을 위임하지 않았을 경우 WTO Doha Round에서 미국의 협상지위 약화로 미국의 무역과 경제 상황이 악화될 수 있다는 우려 때문에 개입의 정도를 자제하고 행정부에 직접적인 무역협정체결권한을 위임하는 내용의 무역증진권한을 입법한 것이다. ; The purpose of this study is to analyze the dynamics of legislating the Trade Act of 2002 which granted Trade Promotion Authority, previously called fast-track negotiating authority, to the President of the United States focusing on the relations between the executive and Congress. Fast-track procedures were set forth in the Trade Act of 1974, stipulating that once the president formally submits a bill implementing a trade agreement concerning non-tariff barriers, both houses must vote on the bill without any amendments or filibusters. Being continuously in effect for 30 years, they have acted as a principal procedural mechanism for enacting trade agreements since 1970's. As the bipartisan consensus on free trade was eroded by the emergence of social issues like labor and environment in trade talks, however, they expired in 1994 due to failure to reach an agreement on how these issues should be handled. In 2002, a long and enthusiastic debate in both houses finally ended and the procedures were restored after a 8-year hiatus during the Bush presidency. If that is the case, in what circumstances was it possible for president Bush to regain the authority that president Clinton failed to win? The existing studies which conducted a comparative analysis on the roll-call voting that took place in 1997 and 2001 pointed out that representatives' consideration of constituents including pressure from interest groups and divided government had a noticeable effect in the different consequences. But besides these two, the respective members and party, a motive to reinforce the legislative branch as an institution has a impact on the behavior of Congress. This study aims to propose an explanation focusing on the third dimension from a view of interbranch politics. Then, responding to both domestic and international economic condition, demand from interest groups and constituents, and request from the executive branch, Congress approved the measure as a consequence of reflecting the intention to improve its status by increasing engagement with the process of decision making in the executive branch and minimize the loss such as the blame from the public or decrease in support accompanying failure of certain policy at the same time. In the early stage of legislation congressmen's consideration of constituents for winning reelection and partisan rivalry prevailed as other studies predicted. But as the actual legislative process progressed, the situation changed. With the Senate Democrats insisting on enactment of the omnibus trade bill incorporating TPA and two other bills, Andean Trade Preference Act and Trade Adjustment Assistance, concern over how Congress should engage with the establishment of generic trade policy spread throughout the party leaders. Congress agreed with the executive branch on the need of trade expansion and delegating the power to negotiate trade agreements for imminent WTO Doha Round because it would make them share the responsibility for possible deterioration in economy and trade in the future. The fact that the direct agent of exerting the authority was the executive branch had Congress make up its leeway as it could shift all the blame onto the other branch. Furthermore, when the economy got worse Congress could curtail the limit of the delegation and discretionary power given to the executive and establish trade policy firsthand. Delegating the authority, Congress expanded the means to actively involve in negotiating process by reinforcing its role of oversight, downsizing the discretionary power to prevent the executive from concluding the agreement despite congressional opposition, and tightening up the conditions to meet for the application of the fast-track procedures. But the most impressive part of the Trade Act of 2002 is TAA which reflected Congress's intension to play a leading role in making compensation policy for the people who got injured by trade. In conclusion, a broad agreement that TPA should be extended spread over Congress as it would consolidate the firm standing of the United States in trade talks including the upcoming WTO Doha Round. Moreover, Congress did not want to take full responsibilities or blame for the potential deteriorating economy. But at the same time Congress wanted to increase its engagement with trade policy making with the authority originally given to it by Constitution and its grown capabilities. The effort to restore the fast-track negotiating authority; TPA during the Bush presidency was feasible as it was linked to TAA bill, a measure taken by Congress to expand its involvement in trade policy making, and some steps to increase its engagement with the process of negotiation were taken. In other words, the Trade Act of 2002 was legislated as a result of Congress' struggle to balance between two motives, desire to avoid blame and increase its engagement with policy making. ; Master

Solo exhibition, touring to Eastside Projects (Birmingham, Nov 2010 - Jan 2010), Cornerhouse (Manchester, Feb - April 2011), mima (Middlesbrough, April - July 2011). The exhibition offered a survey of ten years of the artist's practice and included a major new video commission, entitled 'Memento Park'. Exhibition press release: Eastside Projects proudly presents the debut of Memento Park, a major touring solo show by Carey Young commissioned in conjunction with Cornerhouse, Manchester and mima, Middlesbrough. A new video commission, Memento Park (2010), is central to the exhibition, which surveys a decade of the artist's practice, including a number of key video works and recent photographic and text works. Carey Young's internationally renowned work focuses on the interconnections between economic systems, legal language and contemporary culture. Using a variety of media and settings she often uses found tools, language and training processes from the worlds of the multinational corporation and global law firm, altering them to create fictional and absurd scenarios which explore notions of performance, autonomy, criticality and imagination. Positioning herself as an insider to these predominant systems, she takes a stance between complicity and resistance as she criticizes them playfully through the use of their own methods and language. Key to the exhibition, Memento Park was shot in a statue park in Budapest containing a large collection of monumental, socialist realist Soviet statues in poses of 'suspended animation'. We see the figures surrounded by bustling contemporary life passing by outside the park, which undercuts the statues' historical importance and impressive physical impact by giving them a provisional, peripheral context reminiscent of the works of the late post-minimal artist Robert Smithson. Nevertheless, the seductive lushness of the surrounding greenery, shot mainly at the beginning and end of the day, gives these icons of propaganda a strange and beautiful serenity, as if we are witnessing the dusk and dawn of an idyll. This subtle and nuanced new work expands and laterally shifts the focus of Young's ongoing interests in performance, politics and rhetoric. Many of the recent works have not been seen in the UK before, including a new image from the artist's Redshift series (2010), a series of cameraless photographs created in the darkroom by exposing light through translucent meteorite fragments as if they were photographic negatives, presented with a text relating to experimental ideas in copyright, and its relation to time and the distribution of images; and Obsidian Contract (2010), a legal text proposing the exhibition space as a new area of publicly-owned land via a reversed text reflected in a black mirror, a device which has a long tradition within witchcraft and the occult in many cultures, and is also associated with the Romantic landscape tradition in painting. Eastside Projects has been altered to form three cinema rooms housing the videos Memento Park (2010), Uncertain Contract (2009) and Product Recall (2007). In Uncertain Contract, we see an actor interpret a script composed of legal terms from a commercial contract, the white backdrop of his rehearsal space referencing the 'white cube' of the gallery as well as the appearance of contractual documents. The specific terms of the contract have been omitted, leading to an 'uncertain' contract in which the meaning is open to interpretation. For Product Recall, we see Carey Young undergoing a psychoanalysis session in which she is asked to remember a series of advertising slogans belonging to global companies, all whom are active as art sponsors and which brand themselves around 'imagination' or 'inspiration'. It remains ambiguous whether the point of the exercise is for the artist to remember the slogans, or to forget them. The rooms reform gallery space through a sequence of finished and unclad stud walls providing spaces for monitor based video works Terms & Conditions (2004), I am a Revolutionary (2001), and Everything You've Heard is Wrong (1999) and works from the photographic series Body Techniques (2007). Terms and Conditions is a short video that features a female presenter speaking to camera in a welcoming tone whilst standing in an idyllic agricultural landscape. Her speech appears to discuss the 'site' but the text is actually a composite of disclaimers from corporate websites, within the rural setting, the speech seems both absurd and curiously apt. I am a Revolutionary sees the artist within the stage-like environment of an empty office space, undergoing a presentation skills training session with her own personal trainer. Together they work hard at perfecting a line from what appears to be a larger speech—"I am a revolutionary"—words which could equally come from heroic 'business leadership' rhetoric as from the words of political or anti-globalisation agitators. Everything You've Heard is Wrong is a video of a performance held at Speakers' Corner, London, in which Young, dressed in a smart business suit, delivers a skills workshop on successful corporate-style communication in the midst of the traditional Sunday mayhem of speakers and onlookers. Body Techniques is a new series of eight photographs that considers the interrelationships between art and globalized commerce. The title of the series refers to a phrase originally coined by Marcel Mauss and developed by Pierre Bourdieu as habitus, which describes how an operational context or behavior can be affected by institutions or ideologies. Set in the vast building sites of Dubai and Sharjah's futuristic corporate landscape, the series sees the artist alone and dressed in a suit, reworking some of the classic performance-based works associated with Conceptual art, including pieces by Richard Long, Bruce Nauman, Dennis Oppenheim and Valie Export. In recasting earlier works centered around the physicality of the body in time and space, it is ambiguous whether the artist is molding herself to the landscape or exploring ways of resisting it. Three further text works complete the exhibition, including Cautionary Statement (2007), a text piece based on 'forward looking statements', a type of corporate disclaimer allowing firms to discuss the future whilst not being held to account if such statements do not come to pass; and a new version of Inventory (2007), which declares the current total value of the chemical elements that make up the artist's body on the exterior billboard of Eastside Projects. A new major monographic publication will accompany the exhibition, with texts by Jennifer Allen, Raimundas Malasauskas and Jill Magid and Carey Young. Memento Park tours to Cornerhouse, Manchester (4 Feb – 20 March 2011) and mima, Middlesbrough (31 March – 10 July 2011). Each venue will present a different selection of works by the artist, allowing a variety of themes to emerge across her diverse and ambitious practice. Research Profile: Carey Young is a Senior Lecturer in Photography in the Faculty of Media at LCC. Having completed an MA in Photography at the Royal College of Art in 1997, her artistic work employs a variety of media, including photography, video, text and performance, and has gained a national and international reputation. She often explores themes such as portraiture, landscape and the sublime by using found tools and language from the worlds of the multinational corporation or global law firm. Her solo exhibitions include the solo show Memento Park, touring to Eastside Projects, Birmingham, Cornerhouse, Manchester and mima, Middlesborough in 2010-2011; Contracting Universe, Paula Cooper Gallery, New York (2010); Carey Young: Uncertain Contracts, Museum of Art, Rhode Island School of Design (2009); Speech Acts, Contemporary Art Museum St. Louis (2009); Counter Offer, The Power Plant, Toronto (2009); and Business as Usual, John Hansard Gallery & tour (2001.) She has participated in the British Art Show 6, the Moscow Biennale, Sharjah Biennale, Tirana Biennale and Taipei Biennale, and been included in many significant group exhibitions at venues including MoMA/PS1 (New York, the New Museum (New York), Hayward Gallery (London), ICA (London), Whitechapel Gallery (London), Frieze Projects at the Frieze Art Fair (London) and Secession (Vienna). Her works are in the collections of Arts Council England, Tate and the Centre Pompidou and she is represented by Paula Cooper Gallery, New York.