(2021). Introduction. Economic and Political Studies: Vol. 9, A Special issue on Behavioral and Experimental Economics for Policy Making, pp. 1-3.

Abstract Conspiracy theories are widespread in the modern information era. Being exposed to conspiracy theories may affect behaviour, for example, by spreading mistrust among people and within organisations, even if it does not necessarily generate widespread beliefs in the conspiracy narrative. Our paper investigates the effect of exposure to conspiracy theories on strategic sophistication. We present

Abstract Green banking is a comparatively new development in the financial world. It is a form of banking that considers the social and environmental impacts of banking activities. Most studies on green banking focussed on customers, management, and other stakeholders without considering the perspective of employees, whose daily work is normally affected. To fill in the gap, the primary aim of this

Abstract City diplomacy is a major trend in the soft power development. As cities face daily political issues deriving from globalisation (such as mass tourism, migration, climate change, and commodification of culture), they demand for, rather than contesting with a nationstate, an operational reinterpretation of sovereignty oriented to solve problems. Political economy approach is a useful method

Abstract Commodity futures have been largely blamed for the price hikes in 2007/mid-2008 and 2010/2011 and the decreased food security around the world, especially in less developed countries. There still exist serious disagreements between most economists and policymakers as to whether this is the case. We run time-series regressions for all samples and subsamples for lower-income, middle-income,

Abstract We examine the gift exchange hypothesis on both the quantity and quality of work using a hybrid field-laboratory labour market experiment. We recruited participants to enter survey data for a well-known charitable organisation. Workers were paid either a high or low wage. We find that although the total number of surveys entered did not vary in terms of wages, high wage workers made fewer

Abstract Electoral clientelism or vote buying has been regarded as undermining democratic institutions and weakening the accountability of the state towards its citizens, especially the poor. Social identity as a form of political mobilisation may contribute to this, enabling support to be won with clientelist transfers. This paper reports data from a novel laboratory experiment designed to examine

Abstract We explore the effects of competitive incentives and of their time horizon on the evolution of both asset prices and trading activity in experimental asset markets. We compare (i) a no-bonus treatment; (ii) a short-term bonus treatment in which bonuses are assigned to the best performers at the end of each trading period; (iii) a long-term bonus treatment in which bonuses are assigned to the

Abstract Starting in December 2019, COVID-19 had been spreading across the world on a limited scale for a quarter until March 2020 when the death toll in the countries comprising the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) finally started to mount. However, despite the relatively late outbreak in the region, the ASEAN market had already plunged along with other regional markets across the world

Abstract At the core of the decision to invest in prevention are individuals who face immediate real costs against future and uncertain benefits. In this paper, we elicit subjects’ willingness to pay to reduce future risk. In our experiments, subjects are given a cash endowment and a risky lottery. They report their willingness to pay to exchange the risky lottery for a safe one. Subjects play the

Abstract Based on experimental data, this paper confirms, in a controlled environment, converging theoretical and empirical results that, when individuals insure, they choose to insure themselves with a full cover. This insurance behaviour creates an opportunity for the public authority to drive people to enter the insurance market where they would buy full insurance. This paper also sheds light on

Abstract This article demonstrates that whistleblowing often receives little attention in public administration due to ambivalence regarding administrative roles held by public administrators, the fluid scalar chain and horizontal linkages, and competitive and intricate public, organisational and private interests. Drawing on comparative analysis to elucidate the broader scope of anti-corruption reforms

Abstract This paper attempts to explore the direct effects and spill-overs of COVID-19 on stock markets. Using conventional -tests and non-parametric Mann–Whitney tests, we empirically analyse daily return data from stock markets in the People’s Republic of China, Italy, South Korea, France, Spain, Germany, Japan and the United States of America. Our empirical results show that (i) COVID-19 has a negative

Abstract The peer-to-peer lending industry has experienced recent turmoil, posing risks to fintech companies and banks. Based on a random sample of 33,669 borrowers who had downloaded peer-to-peer lending platforms prior to submitting loan applications to a well-known fintech company, Du Xiaoman Financial (formerly Baidu Finance), this article evaluates the predictive power of borrowers’ internet behaviours

Abstract This article addresses the tax progressivity decision of a rent-maximising government under the circumstances that voters’ perceptions of the tax price of public goods are biased by cognitive anomalies (i.e. fiscal illusion) and that the electorate opts for re-appointing or for dismissing the incumbent according to a retrospective voting logic. Given electoral and constitutional constraints

Abstract This research develops a model of optimal political expenditures and shows how money inevitably controls government leaders, subject only to a single constraint relating to negative public reaction. The paper demonstrates theoretically why many businesses do not make such investments despite abnormally high returns from the expended political capital. In particular, firms with less economic

Abstract Extant literature has argued that, with major extension of democracy since the 1990s, political business cycle has become more intense and has made African political systems more fragile. In light of this, this paper examines both the existence of African political business cycles and their impact on human development. It confirms the existence of political business cycles in Africa. Estimates

Abstract The current China–US trade war that started in early 2018 has been the largest of this kind in the global market in the past half century, if not longer. Many speculations about the reasons for and progress and potential implications of the trade war emerge. Countries must understand the reasons for the war to avoid future trade wars. Predicting what will happen in the near future and the

Abstract On 23 June 2016, the citizens of the United Kingdom (UK) took part in one of the most iconic votes in modern economic history as they voted in favour of the UK leaving the European Union (EU). This has resulted in great uncertainty around the future of the economy of the UK as well as the world economy. There were obvious and immediate effects around the time of the vote, such as the decrease

Abstract The current paper focusses on the co-movement between oil prices and renewable energy stock markets in a multivariate framework. The vine copula approach that offers a great flexibility in conditional dependence modelling is used. More specifically, we investigate the issue of the average dependence and co-movement between oil prices (West Texas Intermediate [WTI]) and renewable energy stock

Abstract What are the effects of weak economic performance in East and Southeast Asia? In particular, does weak performance lead to citizens’ dissatisfaction and, correspondingly, increase preference for stronger governments who may achieve economic targets more quickly? Recent elections in less-democratic nations and emergent democracies of East and Southeast Asia suggest growing support for political

Abstract Singapore’s remarkable economic development in the past five decades since independence has attracted much policy attention. This article first provides a brief overview of Singapore’s economic development. The second part discusses Singapore’s development strategies that are aligned with the Washington Consensus: globalisation, conservative fiscal and monetary policies, investments in education

Abstract Latin America has been experiencing a process of pension reform for more than three decades. Although these reforms have had some success in helping the systems achieve fiscal sustainability, they have not provided the citizens of Latin American countries with broad social protection, thus leaving a certain proportion of people without access to pensions during their old age and, in many cases

Abstract This paper analyses occupational mobility in the labour market using survey data from a headhunting company. Four aspects of occupational mobility are discussed: the frequency of occupational mobility, cross-industry mobility, cross-ownership mobility and the influence of the macro economy on occupational mobility. The following are our findings: (1) educational level may insignificantly or

Abstract In April 2013, the Bank of Japan (BOJ) introduced an inflation target of 2% with the aim of overcoming deflation and achieving sustainable economic growth. But due to lower international oil prices it was unable to achieve this target and was forced to take further measures. Hence, in February 2016, the BOJ adopted a negative interest rate policy by massively increasing the money supply through

Abstract Financialisation research has originally focussed on the US experience, but the concept is now increasingly applied to emerging economies (EMEs). There is a rich literature stressing peculiarities of individual country experiences, but little systematic comparison across EMEs. This paper fills this gap, providing an overview of the debate and identifying six financialisation interpretations

Abstract The paper considers the relationships between financialisation and economic performance. Financialisation is a persistent feature of industrialised capitalism, the nature of which differs over time and space. The present era of financialisation (since circa 1980) has been a world-wide phenomenon proceeding from different starting points and developing at different speeds, and can be viewed

This special issue comprises articles based on a pan-European research project (CEDEFOP, 2016) on career transitions of low-qualified and low-skilled adults, their approaches to learning and experiences with career guidance and counselling. Narrative interviews with 105 people from the Czech Republic, Denmark, England, France, Germany, Italy and Poland were undertaken, half of which were repeated after

Abstract In European politics, the issue of neo-liberalism is both dominant and contested. This political position has a foundation in an influential economic theory. This economic variant of a universal theory of human behaviour is known as ‘economic imperialism’. It is very influential in the other social sciences as well. The ‘rational-choice-model’ (RCM) is frequently employed to explain social

Abstract The roles that nationalism has played in modern history are highly controversial. While the growing literature on the subject has offered refined empirical analyses, it leaves major ethical inquiries out of the picture. This paper fills the void by examining the prevalence of nationalism through the lens of a fundamental philosophical divide between communal particularity and human universality

Abstract The relationship between bureaucratic corruption and economic growth has been a much debated topic in the studies of economics and political science in the past decades. However, no theoretical consensus has been reached in this field. Corresponding to the divergence in theoretical perspectives, empirical evidence is mixed as well. As a fundamental step to examine the correlation between corruption

Abstract The article discusses the increasing levels of public sector corruption despite the NRM government’s pursuing of accountability reforms and anti-corruption policy strategies. It asserts that having an impressive legal and institutional framework in place to enhance accountability and control corrupt tendencies may not be enough if political factors are ignored. In the absence of exemplary