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Economic Stability (economic + stability)
Selected AbstractsCorporate Governance in South Africa: a bellwether for the continent?CORPORATE GOVERNANCE, Issue 5 2006Melinda Vaughn The recent onslaught of corporate scandals has compelled the world to acknowledge the profound impact of corporate governance practices on the global economy. Corporate governance is of particular concern in developing economies, where the infusion of international investor capital and foreign aid is essential to economic stability and growth. This paper focuses attention on corporate governance initiatives in South Africa, given its significance as an emerging market, its potential leadership role on the African continent and the country's notable corporate governance reform since the collapse of apartheid in 1994. The evolution of the country's corporate structure and the forces driving corporate governance reform over the past decade will be examined, followed by a review of the most notable reform initiatives in place today. Finally, an assessment of those initiatives will be presented, along with recommendations concerning how South Africa's initiatives can serve as models of enhanced corporate governance standards for the African continent. [source] Complexity of Family Life Among the Low-Income and Working Poor: Introduction to the Special IssueFAMILY RELATIONS, Issue 2 2004Patricia Hyjer Dyk Like all families, low-income and working-poor families need economic stability, safety, good health, and engagement in the larger community. However, the complexity of their lives is greatly impacted by limited economic resources. Three primary themes are explored by the 12 articles in this special issue: competing stressors and tensions, effective parenting, and economic stability and financial decision making. Key findings and program and policy implications identified by each set of authors are discussed. This body of work provides research-based practice and policy suggestions to guide future efforts in partnering with families to strengthen their families and communities for successful enhancement of child well-being. [source] Off-site monitoring systems for predicting bank underperformance: a comparison of neural networks, discriminant analysis, and professional human judgmentINTELLIGENT SYSTEMS IN ACCOUNTING, FINANCE & MANAGEMENT, Issue 3 2001Philip Swicegood This study compares the ability of discriminant analysis, neural networks, and professional human judgment methodologies in predicting commercial bank underperformance. Experience from the banking crisis of the 1980s and early 1990s suggest that improved prediction models are needed for helping prevent bank failures and promoting economic stability. Our research seeks to address this issue by exploring new prediction model techniques and comparing them to existing approaches. When comparing the predictive ability of all three models, the neural network model shows slightly better predictive ability than that of the regulators. Both the neural network model and regulators significantly outperform the benchmark discriminant analysis model's accuracy. These findings suggest that neural networks show promise as an off-site surveillance methodology. Factoring in the relative costs of the different types of misclassifications from each model also indicates that neural network models are better predictors, particularly when weighting Type I errors more heavily. Further research with neural networks in this field should yield workable models that greatly enhance the ability of regulators and bankers to identify and address weaknesses in banks before they approach failure. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] NATO expansion: ,a policy error of historic importance'INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS, Issue 6 2008MICHAEL MCCGWIRE European security depends on the effective collaboration of the five major powers; it will be undermined by the extension of NATO, a policy driven by US domestic politics. The main threats to security are: the breakdown of political and economic stability; unintended nuclear proliferation and/or failure of the START process; Russia's evolving political and territorial aspirations. All three will remain marginal as long as Russia is constructively engaged with the West. NATO expansion threatens that engagement. It is seen by all strands of Russian opinion as violating the bargain struck in 1990 and will likely lead to the withdrawal of cooperation. Invitations to Poland, Hungary and the Czech Republic cannot be rescinded, but the consequences can be mitigated by refraining from integrating them into NATO's military structure, by ceasing to insist that NATO membership is open to all, and by perpetuating the de facto nuclear-weapons-free zone that presently exists in Central and Eastern Europe. Britain's stance could be pivotal. [source] Comparing adults in Los Angeles County who have and have not been homelessJOURNAL OF COMMUNITY PSYCHOLOGY, Issue 6 2001Michael R. Cousineau This study compares the formerly homeless with those who have not been homeless on several characteristics, based on a telephone survey of the general adulate population. The study was conducted in Los Angeles County. Researchers estimate how many and what percentage of adults (aged 18 or older) have been homeless in the past 5 years and the types of places people stayed while they were homeless. An estimated 370,000 adults have experienced homelessness within the past 5 years, 5.7% of the adult population (95% confidence interval [CI] 5.2,6.2). A third were literally homeless (in a shelter, street, or car). Just over half (56%) stayed with a friend or relative while homeless. Nine percent had a mixed experience. Compared to those who were not homeless, the formerly homeless are disproportionately poor, African American, not in the job market, on public assistance, and in poor health. There are few differences when comparing place of birth, citizenship status, or length of residence in Los Angeles County. Yet many homeless have been able to achieve some economic stability. Implications for the development of intervention and prevention programs are discussed. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. [source] A Model of Community,Based Venture Capital Formation To Fund Early,Stage Technology,Based FirmsJOURNAL OF SMALL BUSINESS MANAGEMENT, Issue 4 2002Howard Van Auken This paper suggests a model of capital formation that concurrently establishes a mechanism to fund early,stage technology,based firms and meets the economic development needs of rural communities. Investors in a community capital investment fund can gain high rates of return on investment while firms realize all of the benefits associated with the investment, community support, and expanded network. The model includes factors associated with the community environment (community,based factors that impact community members' participation) and external support environment (factors that facilitate the accumulation of investment capital within a community). The result of a community effort can be an environment in which members of the community contribute to an investment fund, cooperate in attracting firms, and provide networking assistance to new business owners. Communities benefit through job creation and economic stability. Community members benefit through wealth creation. [source] Language Learning and the Politics of Belonging: Sudanese Women Refugees Becoming and Being"American"ANTHROPOLOGY & EDUCATION QUARTERLY, Issue 4 2007Doris S. Warriner In this article, I explore the complicated relationship between ideologies of language and language learning, discourses of immigration and belonging, and the actual lived experiences of individual language learners. The analysis demonstrates how questions of educational access, economic stability, and social membership are all influenced by a range of social, political, and historical factors, particularly for recently arrived immigrants and refugees from war-torn African contexts. 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