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Building blocks of economic complexity

Source: JournalistsResource.org
 

Economists who study international development often focus on measuring countries’ aggregate and per-capita volumes of output. However, the mix of industries and products — the diversity within an economy — is an important and under-appreciated variable in predicting potential growth, according to scholars at the Center for International Development at the Harvard Kennedy School.

Minority vulnerability in privileged occupations: African-American financial advisers

Source: JournalistsResource.org

Corporations often claim to be meritocracies where advancement is based strictly on performance. However, subtle barriers can block advancement for minorities in some settings. One framework of understanding proposed by academics is the “minority vulnerability thesis,” which suggests that meritocratic “ideologies” can mask workplace decisions that — intentionally or not — reinforce historical patterns of discrimination.

The China syndrome: Local labor market effects of import competition in the United States

Source: JournalistsResource.org

As U.S. imports from China have increased over the past two decades, scholars have studied and debated their precise effects on American workers. Because local economies often have their own dynamics and distinct mix of companies, such imports may have very different outcomes in various regions of the country.

The promise and perils of private voluntary regulation: Labor standards and work organization in two Mexican garment factories

Source: JournalistsResource.org
 

As supply chains stretch around the globe, scrutiny of working conditions in distant factories has increased. But international labor standards often depend on corporations engaging in “private voluntary regulation,” and even when such standards are adhered to, factory floor dynamics may determine their actual effectiveness.