An important question in representative democracies is how to ensure that politicians behave in the best interest of citizens rather than their own private interests. Aside from elections, one of the few institutional devices available to regulate the actions of politicians is their pay...

The first part of the study compares the institutional settings of employee representation and collective bargaining in France and Germany. One important difference is that in France, many aspects of collective agreements are defined by labour law, whereas in Germany, collective bargaining...

"Many citizens, politicians and political activists voice concern about the political influence of business in the European Union (EU). But do business interests really pull the strings in Brussels? Contrary to what is widely expected, this book shows that business interests are no more...

Die vorliegende Untersuchung befasst sich mit den theoretischen Hauptsträngen der Eurobetriebsrat-Forschung (EBR-Forschung). Dieser internationale sowie interdisziplinäre Themenkomplex ist durch eine breite Vielfalt an Publikationen geprägt und erscheint in weiten Teilen als ein...

Dodd-Frank, the US financial reform law passed in response to the 2008 financial crisis, established the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), a new federal regulator with the sole responsibility of protecting consumers from unfair, deceptive, or abusive practices. This decision marked...

We propose a forensic approach to investigate the politico-economic forces that influence narrow vote outcomes in legislative assemblies. Applying nonparametric estimation techniques to a data set covering all roll call votes between 1990 and 2014, we can identify the existence of precise...

This paper examines the effects of political pressure groups (lobbies) on the emissions abatement decisions of countries and on the stability of international environmental agreements. We consider two types of lobbies, industry and environmentalists. We determine the influence of lobby-groups on...

This paper uses data on bill sponsorship and cosponsorship in the U.S. House of Representatives to estimate gender differences in cooperative behavior. We employ a number of econometric methodologies to address the potential selection of female representatives into electoral districts with...

Die vorliegende Untersuchung befasst sich mit den theoretischen Hauptsträngen der Eurobetriebsrat-Forschung (EBR-Forschung). Dieser internationale sowie interdisziplinäre Themenkomplex ist durch eine breite Vielfalt an Publikationen geprägt und erscheint in weiten Teilen als ein...

This paper challenges the focus on budget deficits that permeates the literature on fiscal policy. It analyzes countries running budget surpluses and asks why some of them preserved these surpluses while others did not. Whereas several OECD members recorded surpluses for just a few years,...

In a remarkably simple and yet in one of the most original and insightful observations of 20th century economics, Gordon Tullock observed that there are efficiency losses when public policies and political behavior create contestable rents. Tullock also observed that social losses from...

Mit dem Wandel der Arbeitsgesellschaft ist seit Langem auch eine Veränderung in der strukturellen Zusammensetzung der Belegschaften verbunden: Das klassische Industriearbeiter-Milieu mit traditionell hohem gewerkschaftlichem Organisationsgrad verliert an Boden, andere Erwerbsgruppen, bei denen...

Es wird allgemein davon ausgegangen, dass die Aktivitäten von auf freiwilliger Mitgliedschaft basierenden Verbänden nicht nur facettenreich sind, sondern gleichzeitig zu gesellschaftlichen, wirtschaftlichen und politischen Bereichen beitragen. In erster Linie wird in dieser Dissertation, Bezug...

Using a unique dataset, based on the 49th Swiss legislature, we assess lobbying effect on politicians' votes. Counselors' ties are approximated by their mandates in in legal entities. Political representatives' fidelity to their political group is measured by a dummy proximity indicator. We find...

Using the health care reform of 2004 as an experience, the reaction of consumers (insured persons) and producers (pharmaceutical industry) based on electoral behavior and relating to drug prices and co-payments imposed on drugs is analyzed. The changes in prices and medications after this reform...

This article analyzes the shifts of power relation and influence between pharmaceutical industry (producers), pharmacies, and social health insurers (SHI) in Germany based on drug prices. Since the health care reform of 2004, these interest groups have negotiated fees and discounts among each...

SWD-Schlagwörter: Interessenverband, Gesundheit, Gesundheitspolitik, Lobbyismus, Regulierung . - Freie Schlagwörter (Deutsch): Interessengruppen, Gesundheitsmarkt, Regulierung, politischer Druck, Lobbyismus. - Freie Schlagwörter (Englisch): interest groups, health care market, political...

By 2010, the average US state had passed 37 health insurance benefit mandates (laws requiring health insurance plans to cover certain additional services). Previous work has shown that these mandates likely increase health insurance premiums, which in turn could make it more costly for firms to...