Politická ekonomie, 2012 (vol. 60), issue 3

Articles

Subjektivní indikátory blahobytu: přístupy, měření a data

Subjective Indicators of Well-Being: Approaches, Measurements and Data

Jiří Večerník

Politická ekonomie 2012, 60(3):291-308 | DOI: 10.18267/j.polek.843

There is a growing effort to find alternative measures of the overall performance of economy and social development. More complex indicators are constructed, multi-dimensional approaches are searched and concepts of subjective well-being are increasingly applied. While academic research is booming and politicians are interested about innovative approach in the West, not much attention is given to the topic in the Czech Republic. The article drafts some of many problems appearing on the interface of the objective and subjective indicators. In the first section, some multi-dimensional approaches are tackled and in the second, concepts of happiness and...

Dopady změn daně z přidané hodnoty na reálné příjmy domácností

The Impact of VAT Changes on the Households´ Real Incomes

Libor Dušek, Petr Janský

Politická ekonomie 2012, 60(3):309-329 | DOI: 10.18267/j.polek.844

The article evaluates the distributional impacts of the value added tax changes in the Czech Republic using the Household Budget Survey, a representative sample of approximately 3000 households. It evaluates the impacts on the living standards both for the VAT reform that was actually approved in 2011, as well as for alternative reform proposals that were discussed during 2011 and that also considered a reduction in payroll tax rates. The estimates refl ect the recent empirical fi ndings about the incidence of consumption and payroll taxes. Unifying the VAT at a single tax rate has an almost proportional impact on the households from the 2nd to impact...

Regionální disparity a financování regionální politiky - některé poznatky z České republiky

Regional Disparities and Financing of Regional Policy - Some Lessons from the Czech Republic

Oldřich Hájek, Jiří Novosák, Petr Zahradník, Pavel Bednář

Politická ekonomie 2012, 60(3):330-348 | DOI: 10.18267/j.polek.845

This paper deals with the relationship between regional disparities and financing of regional policy. The Czech Republic and the Convergence goal of cohesion policy were chosen as a case study. Four themes are discussed in this regard. First, the spatial distribution of funds is analyzed with respect to the disparity goal of regional policy. Second, the coherence of regional policy on different regional levels is evaluated. Third, the differences in evaluations based on the seat of applicants on one hand and place of realization on the other are discussed. Finally, some thematic issues are considered. Our findings point at some ambivalent conclusions...

Listinné akcie na majitele a veřejné zakázky

Bearer Shares in Paper Form and Public Procurement

Jana Chvalkovská, Petr Janský, Jiří Skuhrovec

Politická ekonomie 2012, 60(3):349-361 | DOI: 10.18267/j.polek.846

This article examines for the first time the relationship between transparency of ownership structure and (i) profits of firms winning public procurement contracts and (ii) competition for the contracts and savings of the public authority. These characteristics are compared for two groups of public procurement contract winners that differ by their ownership structure. The detailed data from the Czech Republic are used and the firms with bearer shares in paper form serve as the less transparent firms. The results show that less transparent firms have significantly higher profit margins in terms of tens of percentage points and participate in less competitive...

Informační asymetrie a systém dvojího standardu ve vztahu zdravotník - pacient

Information Assymetry and Double Standard in the Doctor-Patient Relationship

Martin Janíčko, Ivo Koubek

Politická ekonomie 2012, 60(3):362-379 | DOI: 10.18267/j.polek.854

The aim of the article is to explore the doctor - patient relationship using the information asymmetry framework and principal-agent theory. From the perspective of economic exchange, this relationship is relatively specific, as an uneven rank and position of the agents involved play an important role here. It is argued that this unevenness arises from several different factors, such as education and qualification, work experience, path dependence, and the nature of goods and services provided. The relationship specificity is then discussed from a theoretical point of view while its most important elements are highlighted and put into a wider context....

Consultations

David Ricardo, Robert Torrens a autorstvo princípu komparatívnych výhod

David Ricardo, Robert Torrens and the Origins of the Principle of Comparative Advantage

Martin Grančay, Nóra Szikorová

Politická ekonomie 2012, 60(3):380-394 | DOI: 10.18267/j.polek.847

The authorship of the principle of comparative advantage is generally credited to David Ricardo. Recent papers published in scientific journals have cast doubt on this axiom and have debated roles of Robert Torrens, James Mill and John Stuart Mill in its history. We show many of the arguments used in this debate are unscientific and unverifiable. After conducting an analysis of the history of development of the principle we define the difference between minimum satisfactory and complex formulation of the principle. We come to the conclusion that the first satisfactory explanation of comparative advantage was offered by Robert Torrens.

Od Misese k Schutzovi. Otázka apriorismu v ekonomii

From Mises to Schutz. A Question of Apriorism in Economics

Petr Špecián

Politická ekonomie 2012, 60(3):395-410 | DOI: 10.18267/j.polek.848

The study analyzes Mises's approach to the question of apriorism in a broader methodological context. It shows that it is not inevitable to advocate the aprioristic character of economics (resp. science of human action), as Mises does, to maintain the subjectivist-individualist methodology and the effort to adequately grasp the general laws of human action from its perspective. The present redefinition of apriorism is developed on the basis of thoughts of Barry Smith and Alfred Schutz. It suggests abandoning the apodictic character of apriori (which is untenable) and move closer to a broadly defined empiricism. The methodological insights developed...

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