Thursday, October 31, 2019

Children's Defense Fund Cradle to Prison Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Children's Defense Fund Cradle to Prison - Essay Example 2). The â€Å"Cradle to Prison† pipeline was revealed to be hosted by The University of Houston Law School to address crucial issues affecting American children, particularly to achieve the goal of showing â€Å"leaders on all levels the growing need for a partnership with America's children ensuring that they have, safe housing, adequate education, mentorship-cultural programs, and universal healthcare† (Keeton, 2008, par. 2). The alarming numbers of children of going to prison have instigated immediate measures to inform the public of the dilemma, which, according to Edelman: "Adult's are what's wrong with children" (Keeton, 2008, par. 5). The importance of what you learned (So What?) As the program aimed to challenge American adults to address the alarming neglect for children, the message would be ineffective if no positive action is rendered upon the call. The importance of the message therefore is seen and determined in terms of the number and extent of assistance that is accorded by people who were made aware of the advocacies of the program.

Tuesday, October 29, 2019

Religion Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 2

Religion - Essay Example Christianity believes in the existence of one God, who is the Alfa and omega (Herbert 45). Christians believe that God is the one who made everything possible on earth after creating them in 6 days and resting on the 7th day. Buddhism on other hand is a religion which originated in Nepal, India. In Christianity, their place of worship includes: chapel, church, basilica, cathedral, personal dwellings and home bible studies (Herbert 22). For Christianity, God can be worshipped anywhere, weather in church or not. When it comes to Buddhism, places of worship include; monasteries, pagodas, nunneries and temples. It is estimated Buddhism to have existed since 2500 years ago whereas Christianity’s time of origin is estimated at 33AD (Herbert 53). In relation to the goal of religion, Buddhism aims at attaining Enlightment so as to be released from what they term as they cycle of death and rebirth in order to attain Nirvana (Herbert 67). When it comes to Christianity, the religion aims to loving God plus obeying his commandments, gets saved through Jesus Christ in order for one day to enter the Kingdom of heaven. According to Buddhism, human beings have the ability to possess anger, greed, ignorance, delusion, cravings and so many other qualities. Such individuals with negative abilities are referred in the religion as ‘fools† (Herbert 78). Buddhism preaches that those who would not have walked the Eightfold Path are those referred to as ordinary people. In contrast, in Christianity, they believe in the concept that man is always born by sin which was original created when Adam and Eve ignored God’s authority in the Garden of Eden. It is hence through salvation that’s one sin’s are washed away by the blood of Jesus. Those who would not have been saved by death will head to hell (Herbert 90). Buddhism has their God named as Brahma or Avalokitesvara whereas in Christianity, God has so many names: God, Yahweh, Gott, Dios, Gud, Eli,

Sunday, October 27, 2019

Inter Firm Relationships in the Silicon Fen

Inter Firm Relationships in the Silicon Fen The attention that clusters have received from policy makers and academics has substantially increased in the last 20 years. Since Porters seminal work on The Competitive Advantage of Nations (1990) presented clusters as one of the determinants of the international competitiveness of nations and regions, many scholars have adopted and further developed his approach. Porter bases his arguments on what he describes as the globalization paradox, pointing out that despite the logical implications that the globalisation process might have in dismissing the relevance of regional factors, the most competitive firms in world are located in groups geographically concentrated in specific locations. That perspective contributed to attracting attention to the existence of characteristics tied to a local context that could not be accessed by firms positioned elsewhere, and more, to the positive effects that the concentration and the geographic proximity could exert on the firms competitiveness. However influential, Porters ideas were not the precursor to discussing the competitive outcomes originating from the geographic concentration of firms (Martin and Sunley, 2003). The roots of cluster theory go back to the industrial districts identified by Marshall (1890), who offered the first detailed description about the economic and social systems created as a result of the spacial concentrations of industrial activities. The Marshallian industrial districts were arrangements of small firms interconnected by commercial operations (buyers and sellers) and other firms engaged in the same or similar activities, that shared productive factors, such as the labour market, infrastructure and tacit knowledge (Becattini, 2004, p. 68). According to Marshals descriptions, a group of firms operating in one specific sector within a well-defined, concentrated and relatively small geographic area would experience higher levels of productivity and innovation, indeed the emergence of a fertile e nvironment for technical and organisational developments. Thus the local characteristics would enable the emergence of an industrial atmosphere that would increase the firms potential to acquire (especially tacit) knowledge, and create positive external economies accessible only to the firms located within the district (Asheim, 2003, p. 416). That perspective tried to evidence that firms geographically concentrated could accesses restricted positive exogenous benefits (exogenous to firms, but endogenous to the district), which would be an alternative to the scale economies achieved by a single (integrated) firm. Additionally, following some of the seminal ideas proposed by Marshall, it is possible to observe a significant number of economic geographers that also explored regional development using the spatial economic agglomeration to support their ideas. Some examples of concepts emerging from that theoretical trend are regional innovation milieux (Crevoisier, 2004), neo-Marshallian nodes (Amin and Thrift, 1992) and learning regions (Asheim, 1995). More examples can be found in Markusen (1996, p. 297), in which another three different types of industrial districts are described according to the firms configurations, internal versus external orientations and governance structures: a hub-and-spoke industrial district, which is concentrated around one or more dominant firms; a satellite platform, formed by a group of unconnected branches embedded in external links; and the state-anchored district, concentrated on one or more public-sector institutions. Despite the logical and robust assumption s found in many of those concepts, their influence and dissemination were not as successful as the more general cluster framework proposed by Porter. Martin and Sunley (2003) attributes the successful dissemination of the Porter concepts to the very general descriptions and delimitations that encompass a wide range of actors and many different structures. Following much of the concepts proposed by Porter, the description of advantages conferred on clustered firms associated with a general and structured analytical framework stimulated the development and dissemination of academic studies and subsidized the creation of supply-side competitiveness policies directed at structuring and supporting the development of clusters (Pitelis, 2010). That fact resulted in what Martin and Sunley (2003) describe as a policy panacea in the use of clusters as a standard (sometimes the unique) target for promoting competitiveness, innovation and economic growth. Moreover, in the last 20 years an increasing number of empirical studies in different countries and sectors have been observed, which aim to identify and discuss the competitive outcomes originating from the concentration of firms and other actors in the same location, for example: Brazil à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" shoe manufacturing in the Sinos Valley (Schmitz, 2000); Spain à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" the text ile and clothing industries in Catalonia (Porter, 1998); Taiwan à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" electronic products at the Hsinchu Science Park (Chen, 2008); and the United States à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" computer and information systems at the Silicon Valley (Saxenian, 1994). The large significant number of academic studies has resulted in a large number of definitions aiming to describe and establish an accepted cluster template (e.g., Enright, 1996; Swann and Prevezer, 1996, Rosenfeld, 1997; Porter, 1998) to support policy makers and academics has led to intense debates and controversial perspectives. Even though the concept of clusters has been increasingly widely disseminated and used by geographers, economists and policy makers, it has suffered from some conceptual confusion. Porter defines a cluster as a geographic concentration of interconnected companies, specialized suppliers, service providers firms in related industries, and associated institutions (for example, universities, standards agencies and trade associations) in particular fields that compete but also co-operate (1998, p. 197). However, Martin and Sunley (2003, p. 12) present consistent arguments that indicate the vagueness and superficiality of the concept proposed by Porter. Accordin g to their arguments, those characteristics make the concept of cluster means different things to different researchers and policy makers, creating problems for its proper use in the guidance of academics and governments. Those highly controversial aspects of the cluster theory have stimulated the continuous emergence of new concepts and definitions for clusters. Proposing a definition aiming to fill some of the gaps and failures found in extant cluster theory, Pitelis (2010, p. 5) defines clusters as geographical agglomerations of firms in particular, related, and/or complementary, activities, with a geographical dimension, that exhibit horizontal and/or vertical intra- and/or inter-sectoral linkages, which operate in the context of a facilitatory socio-institutional setting, and which co-operate and compete (co-opete) in inter-national markets. That definition tries offer to a more delimited approach that incorporates four major elements: geographical agglomeration, linkages, social-capital  [1]  and co-opetition (competition and cooperation). The use of those four elements in a single definition offers the possibility to cover the cluster characteristics using delimited criteria to identify and distinguish developed clusters from less complex geographical agglomerations of firms and institutions. Although it is possible to observe some level of ambiguity encompassing the clusters theory, the existence of links interconnecting local actors complemented by geographical dimensions constitute some of the main common points used to guide academics and policy makers with interesting by the competitive outcomes originating from clusters. Those characteristics have frequently been used as the starting point to understand the economic dynamics of clustered firms, putting emphasis on the levels of innovation and productivity emerging from the concentration of different actors in the same area. Suggesting conditional characteristics to the presence of competitive advantages obtained by firms inside clusters, Ketels (2004) considers that the positive economic effects originated from the geographical concentration will only take place if four critical characteristics are shared among firms and institutions: Proximity: they must be geographically close to allow the emergence of knowledge spillovers and to share the same common resources; Linkages: the necessity of similarities in their activities leading to the establishment of connections and synergies; Interactions: the social interactions developed among firms, clients, suppliers, research institutes, and so on, is what forms the social capital that becomes possible firms to achieve differentiated competitive performances; Critical mass: it is important to have a significant number of firms and institutions in order to create meaningful impacts on performance of the local actors. Those characteristics described by Ketels may be used to guide the identification and distinction between developed clusters (Pitelis, 2010) from incipient clusters (Schmitz, 1999) in order to dismiss some incorrect interpretations associated with the clusters dynamics. Considering that the presence of geographic concentration of firms in the same industry is strikingly common around the world (Porter, 1990, p.120), it is necessary the use of specific benchmarks to distinguish and classify different groups of firms geographically concentrated according to their specific characteristics (Gordon and McCann, 2000; Isbasoiu, 2006). Describing how the existence of local capabilities  [2]  create differentiated conditions for companies within real clusters, Menzel and Fornahl (2010) argue that clusters are essentially formed from path dependencies (Martin and Sunley, 2006), transaction costs economies (McCann and Sheppard, 2003) and small cognitive distances originating from spatial proximity (Maskell, 2001). Thus, that set of factors are expected to create a specific regional dynamics with influence on the firms economic performance. Taking into consideration the different stages of a cluster life cycle, and the misunderstandings related to the claims associated with the clusters and competitiveness, Schmitz points out that A group of small producers making the same or similar things in close vicinity to each other constitutes a cluster, but such concentration in itself brings few benefits (1999, p. 4), emphasizing that the mere presence of firms in a delimited area does not represent a source of value creat ion able to improve in a significant way the local economic performance. Following the arguments above, the differences between regional clusters and simple agglomerations (groups of firms) lie mainly on the interconnected nature and spatial proximity. Thus, clusters are characterized by intense collaborative networks and concentrations of collaboration and competition (co-opetitition) (Pitelis, 2010), conditions which offer significant opportunities and stimulate the emergence of regional competitive advantages (Steinle and Schiele, 2002). Complementarily, another critical characteristic observed within clusters is the diversity of actors. According to Porter (1990, 1998, 2000), an industrial cluster includes suppliers, consumers, related industries, governments, and supporting institutions such as universities. This way, the existence of a regional network formed by a significant group of interconnected local actors is one of the critical factors to understand the differentiated competitive performance of firms within clusters (Steinle and Schiele, 2002 ). Illustrating that argument, Saxenian (1994) observed that Hewlett Packard and other firms at the Silicon Valley had their performance improved by the development long-term partnerships with suppliers located geographically close. Moreover, based on that observation, Saxenian concluded that, especially in high-tech industries, the physical proximity represents a facilitator to the establishment of efficient collaborative arrangements required to create and manage complex products and services. 1.2 Evolutionary Stages of Industrial Clusters Despite the vast cluster literature, the number of academic works discussing the evolutionary patterns of clusters overtime is not so extensive. Some examples can be found in Pouder and John (1996), Klepper (2001, 2007), Wolter (2003) and Andersson et al., (2004), and despite the divergent perspectives, it is accepted that clusters follow a kind of life cycle comprised by different phases that significantly differ in their characteristics and influence on firms performance. Regarding the cluster dynamics, Pouder and John (1996) argue that comparative analysis between clustered and non-clustered firms during the industry life cycle reveal that firms within clusters outperform those geographically dispersed at the initial stages of development, and have a worse performance at its end. That fact suggests that the cluster life cycle is not just a local representation of the industry trajectory, but is a result from local peculiarities. The comparative analysis developed by Saxenian (1994 ) between the computer industry in Boston and Silicon Valley illustrates how different clusters belonging to the same industry are very likely to follow different trajectories (Menzel and Fornahl, 2010). Proposing a different perspective, Klepper (2001, 2007) suggests a model to demonstrate how the clusters life cycle is determined by some the industry patterns. Klepper analyzed the automobile, tire and television industries and observed that at the beginning of the industry life cycle it was not possible to observe clear geographic concentrations of firms, with most of the firms spatially dispersed. He observed that in those industries clusters started to emerge and develop according to the industry growth rates. Klepper argues that the local characteristics originating from the spacial proximity (e.g., intensive spin-off process) give the stimulus for the geographic agglomeration of the whole industry, not only for specific groups. At the time the industry growth rate reduces, the attractiveness to remain agglomerated will also decrease and the industry will become dispersed again. That model proposed by Klepper represents a Technology-Product- Industry (TIP) life cycle. The logic behind this model is on the impact that the evolution of products and innovations has on the size, number, and location of firms. Wolter (2003) criticizes the model proposed by Klepper arguing that the growth rate cannot explain the agglomeration process in all industries on equal basis. Moreover, Wolter disagrees with the determinist perspective proposed by the TIP model, once it neglects that mature industries can be reinvented by radical or incremental innovations of new products and process. Analyzing the economic performance of firms within clusters Pouder and John (1996) attribute to the existence of mental models and biased cognitive focus the characteristics responsible for shaping the movement through the clusters life cycle. Following that perspective, at initial stages the cluster dynamics creates an innovative environment that exerts positive impacts on the firms performance. However, overtime that initial condition is eroded by strong institutional pressures that create a homogeneous macroculture that acts inhibiting the innovative capacity of the firms within the cluster. As in the model presented by Klepper (2001, 2007), that trajectory proposed by Pouder and John may also be criticized by the determinism that ignores the possibility of adaptations or reconfigurations in order to avoid lock-ins and other negative effects. Considering the arguments proposed by Menzel and Fornahl (2010, p. 8) that very few clusters follow a rigid life cycle from emergence to growth and decline, it is expected that clusters evolve overtime according to the local dynamics created by economic and social interactions among firms and institutions. That dynamics may be influenced, but not strictly determined by industry patterns (Wolter, 2003). Following a generic and stylized trajectory, within successful clusters the local network formed by inter-firm connections will tend to be intensified overtime, with an increasing number of formal and informal interactions between the long-established companies and new the ones attracted to the cluster. Even though it is more conceivable to assume that the decisions adopted by firms and institutions are shaped by specific circumstances, a generic trajectory can be described following the stages illustrated in Figure 1. Figure 1: The cluster life cycle C:UsersLucasAppDataLocalMicrosoftWindowsTemporary Internet FilesContent.WordSem tÃÆ' ­tulo.jpg Source: Andersson et al. (2004, p. 43) Agglomeration: It is possible to observe the existence of a number of companies and other actors (e.g. banks, government agencies, universities, accountants, and lawyers offices) in a specific region working around the same or interrelated activities. Emerging cluster: Forming the embryo to the cluster some actors start to cooperation around some core activities, and start to realize the existence of common linkages. Developing cluster: The linkages are intensified by the emergence and attraction of new actors to the region, resulting in the creation of more interaction. In this context the development of inter-firm-cooperation becomes more evident through the development of joint efforts. The Mature cluster: This stage is configured by the presence of a certain critical mass of factors that consistently influence the competitive performance of the firms inside the cluster. The internal dynamics is characterized by the presence of an institutional environment, strong linkages, complementarities and the emergence of new firms through startups, joint ventures and spin-offs. Transformation: Indeed the process of continuous environmental change in markets, technologies, regulations and other process, to be successful a cluster have to innovate and adapt to these new conditions, other way stagnation and decay may affect the cluster dynamics. That process of change/adaptation may happen through the emergence of one or several interconnected clusters with focus in other activities, or by new configuration in terms of networks of firms and institutions. The presence of economic benefits for clustered firms described by authors like Schmitz and Nadvi (1999), Ketels (2004), Isbasoiu (2006) and Pitelis and Pseiridis (2006) are closely related to the stage of development that a cluster is experiencing. For example, an emerging cluster is not actually a cluster, since the small number of firms is not expected to present a high level of linkages and do not form a critical mass. Moreover, the absence of strong interdependencies such as labour mobility, spin-off, socioeconomic networks and intense exchange of good and services prevent the emergence of local capabilities. Thus, same considering that this stage constitutes the embryo that determines the future cluster orientation, at this point the firms are not expected to be strongly influenced by a complex local dynamics. Observing that fact, Menzel and Fornahl (2010) present a skeptical position regarding the effectiveness of any competitiveness policy intended to stimulate the development of clusters at initial stages (agglomeration and emerging), since the existence of horizontal and vertical links among firms concentrated in the same region constitutes a very common fact around the world. Thus, it is almost impossible to distinguish agglomerations with real potential to become a cluster from less complex structures. Consequently, emerging clusters are almost always only described ex-post. After the initial stages of the clusters life cycle it is expected the development and intensification of interdependencies between firms within cluster boundaries (Press, 2006). Indeed the development of those interdependencies, firms start to resemble more with each other, being observe the emergence of convergent designs in terms of technological models (Menzel and Fornahl, 2010), specialized labour market (Cooke et al., 2007), production systems (Pitelis, 2010) and inter-firm relationships (Blien and Maier, 2008). Moreover, developing clusters also attract a high number of start-ups that act stimulating the intensification of intra-cluster relationships. This way, that process of convergence and expansion of the number of firms within the cluster boundaries culminates in the development of self-reinforcing external economies that decrease the heterogeneity among firms at the same time that creates benefits like transactions cost economies and the privileged access to local knowle dge. As clusters reach the stage of maturity, the standards and configurations originating from past decisions become consolidate and it is observed a reduction in the growth rate of firms attracted to the cluster (Klepper, 2007). At this point the cluster trajectory may take two different directions. Keep unchanged, and suffer with a homogenization process that creates bias economic activities and therefore prevent firms to adapt to external shocks (Menzel and Fornahl, 2010). That situation traps firms in previous successful development path and lead to the geographic dispersion of the local actors and to the deterioration of the interdependencies and capabilities. The other possible trajectory is observed in clusters that reach the stage of maturity and successfully sustain the local dynamics by a continuous process of reconfiguration and adaptation to the external shocks (Wolter, 2003). 1.2 Clusters and Economic Performance The extant theory offers a wide range of explanations to justify the economic and competitive benefits experienced by firms located within clusters. Krugman (1991) stress the existence of increasing returns originating from the concentration of firms in the same area, arguing that the geographic proximity puts together the main parts related to firms activities (e.g., labours, firms, suppliers and costumers) resulting in transaction costs economies. Following other perspective, Schmitz and Nadvi (1999) argue that unintentional external economies are not sufficient to explain the competitiveness of firms located within clusters, attributing to the existence of deliberate joint actions (e.g., sharing equipments, associations, strategic alliances and producers improving components) a critical source of the competitive advantages. Pitelis and Pseiridis (2006) explain the levels of competitiveness and productivity associated with clustered firms considering the existence of specialized hu man resources, infrastructure and befits associated with unit costs economies complemented by the presence of an institutional atmosphere. Stressing a different point of view, Bahlmann and Huysman (2008) adopts the knowledge-based view of clusters to emphasize the relevance of knowledge spillovers among the firms to explain the advantages originated from the agglomeration process. Dupuy and Torre (2006) explains the existence of cluster in terms of the advantages originating from trust relationships that increase confidence and reduce risk and uncertainty about the intra-cluster operations taking place among the firms. Moreover, Zyglidopoulos et al. (2003), describe the positive effects that the reputation of a cluster may exert on the internalization process of small and micro enterprises through the alleviation of strategic constraints associated with factors like qualified work force, financing and reduction of the firms legitimation expenses. Despite that wide range of arguments, the most traditional perspective found in the cluster literature has explained the competitive advantages of clusters in terms of productivity and innovation (Pitelis, 1998; Porter, 1998), suggesting that the special characteristics originated from the economic and geographic proximity have significant impact on those two factors. Supplementary, Enright (1998) considers that the characteristics present inside the clusters local environment result in pressures, incentives and capabilities that increase the firms competitiveness comparatively to dispersed competitors, explaining the clustering process in terms of geographically restricted characteristics. Moreover, Solvell et al. (2003) suggests that the competitive advantages emerging from regional clusters may be classified as static and dynamics. According to this perspective, while the agglomeration process triggered and sustained intensively or exclusively by factors like natural resources, low cost labors and government subsidies offers a vulnerable (easy to be copied, substituted or simple eroded by environmental changes) competitive position, clusters based on dynamics characteristics like multi-sectorial externalities, advantages of scale and scope and specific knowledge spillovers are more dynamics and competitive. Extending the arguments presented by Solvell and his colleagues, Andersson et al. (2004) considers that the sustainability of static and dynamic competitive advantages is not strictly determined, arguing that static factors are the main responsible for the emergence of clusters, while the dynamics factors are only developed along the different stages of the cluste r life cycle. Complementing the understanding about the influence of the cluster dynamics on the firms economic performance some authors like Porter (2001); Garnsey and Heffernan (2007); Karlsson (2008) and Mason (2008) describe the existence of a self-reinforcing process originating from the agglomeration externalities that contribute to create a regional virtuous-circle of increasing productivity, competitiveness and value creation. Following that argument, the economic and geographic proximity will stimulate firms to innovate more indeed benefits originating from local capabilities, which will stimulate even more the agglomeration process through the intensification of inter-firm relationships and the attraction of other firms from outside the cluster, which in turn will strength the local capabilities (Blandy, 2003, p. 101). Thus, the dynamics of clusters is expected to be self-reinforced by agglomeration benefits with significant influence on the firms performance. Putting together the arguments associated with the economic impacts experienced by clustered firms indeed the existence of local factors, it is possible to identify and describe the following positive location-specific externalities: Cost savings indeed the geographic proximity with specialized suppliers, labours and distributors; Knowledge-spillovers (intentional and unintentional), since firms inside clusters can benefit from the knowledge dissemination process that may take place especially through inter-firm cooperation, specific linkages and labour mobility; Deliberate joint actions facilitated by the engagement in alliances and partnerships to achieve strategic objectives; Trust relationships, that through the geographic and economic proximity minimize the uncertainty associated with commercial operations, resulting in transactions costs economies; Pressures for higher performance, stimulated by the proximity with competitors; Specific Infrastructure and public goods that are oriented to attend the cluster demands, like roads, ports, laboratories and telecommunication networks; Complementarities, associated with firms in different activities but sharing common factors like raw material, clients and technologies that may enhance the cluster efficiency as whole. Discussing the role of regional clusters in shaping competitive patterns, Tallman et al. (2004) proposes a distinction between the types of competitive advantages emerging from clustered firms: based on traded interdependencies and based on untraded interdependencies. The concept of traded interdependencies is related to the existence of inter-firm transactions inside the cluster, and is observed in formal exchange operations that may take place in form of alliances, commercial operations and acquisitions. On the other hand, untraded interdependencies are related to less tangible effects, and are based on shared knowledge for which no market mechanism exists; with no formal exchange of value for value (Tallman et al. 2004, p. 261). To illustrate the mechanisms by which the untraded interdependencies take place, it is possible to mention unintentional external economies associated with tacit knowledge shared through mechanisms like labor mobility. Those different types of interdependencies, especially untraded, present at the cluster level, represent a source of competitive advantage that is likely to be causal ambiguous (for firms inside and outside the cluster) and high complex in terms of their origins, what consequently constitutes attributes difficult to be replicated by competitors. However, the presence of untraded effects, especially unintentional knowledge spillovers, is viewed Enright (1998) as a constraining factor for firms within clusters, since the establishment of an efficient information flow may limit the firms capacity to obtain monopoly profits from the development of innovations. Complementing the negative effects originating from the clusters dynamics, some authors also describe agglomeration diseconomies that have a negative impact firms located within clusters. For example, congestion effects (Arthur, 1990), institutional sclerosis (Pouder and John, 1996; Pitelis, 2010), rigidities associated with labour mobility and natural resources (Krugman, 1989) and pollution (Fan and Scott, 2003). This way, the dynamics and performance of a cluster is determined by the interplay between positive and negative externalities observed during the different stages of development that a cluster is expected to pass overtime (Wolter, 2003) Limitations in the Cluster Theory Notwithstanding the advances in the cluster theory some questions still remain insufficiently explored. One of the main limitations observed in the current state of the cluster literature is the lack of comparative perspectives to explain the advantages and disadvantages of clusters relatively to other alternative models of organization of economic activities. In his very novel approach, Pitelis (2010) suggests that any perspective trying to explain clusters in terms of absolute advantages is at the very best incomplete. In this context, Pitelis proposes the comparison of clusters vis-ÃÆ'  -vis to markets and hierarchies in order to understand the reasons and conditions that lead firms to engage in intra-clusters relationships, market operations (outside the cluster) or integrate within the firms hierarchy. In fact it is not necessary a great effort to conclude that most of the cluster theory has been developed following a mono-institutional approach (e.g. Porter, 1990, 1998; Saxe nian, 1994; Rosenfeld, 1998; Swann and Sennett, 1998; Schmitz and Nadvi, 1999), while some few exceptions concentrated on transactions costs (e.g. Fujita and Thisse, 1996; Iammarino and McCann, 2006; Takeda et al., 2008) and knowledge creation efficiency (e.g. Hendry et al., 2000; Tracey and Clark, 2003; Reinau, 2007; Kongmanila and Takahashi, 2009) have been drawn on a comparative approaches between clusters and open-market operations. Assuming the arguments proposed by many scholars that clusters are engines of innovation (Davis, 2006, p. 32), the lack of comparative perspectives do not answer the question why clusters are more efficient than markets or the hierarchy to improve the firms innovative capacity (Pitelis, 2010). Thus, despite the wide number of ramifications observed in the cluster theory such as innovative efficiency, productivity, social capital and social interactions, its explicative power remains almost always restricted Inter Firm Relationships in the Silicon Fen Inter Firm Relationships in the Silicon Fen The attention that clusters have received from policy makers and academics has substantially increased in the last 20 years. Since Porters seminal work on The Competitive Advantage of Nations (1990) presented clusters as one of the determinants of the international competitiveness of nations and regions, many scholars have adopted and further developed his approach. Porter bases his arguments on what he describes as the globalization paradox, pointing out that despite the logical implications that the globalisation process might have in dismissing the relevance of regional factors, the most competitive firms in world are located in groups geographically concentrated in specific locations. That perspective contributed to attracting attention to the existence of characteristics tied to a local context that could not be accessed by firms positioned elsewhere, and more, to the positive effects that the concentration and the geographic proximity could exert on the firms competitiveness. However influential, Porters ideas were not the precursor to discussing the competitive outcomes originating from the geographic concentration of firms (Martin and Sunley, 2003). The roots of cluster theory go back to the industrial districts identified by Marshall (1890), who offered the first detailed description about the economic and social systems created as a result of the spacial concentrations of industrial activities. The Marshallian industrial districts were arrangements of small firms interconnected by commercial operations (buyers and sellers) and other firms engaged in the same or similar activities, that shared productive factors, such as the labour market, infrastructure and tacit knowledge (Becattini, 2004, p. 68). According to Marshals descriptions, a group of firms operating in one specific sector within a well-defined, concentrated and relatively small geographic area would experience higher levels of productivity and innovation, indeed the emergence of a fertile e nvironment for technical and organisational developments. Thus the local characteristics would enable the emergence of an industrial atmosphere that would increase the firms potential to acquire (especially tacit) knowledge, and create positive external economies accessible only to the firms located within the district (Asheim, 2003, p. 416). That perspective tried to evidence that firms geographically concentrated could accesses restricted positive exogenous benefits (exogenous to firms, but endogenous to the district), which would be an alternative to the scale economies achieved by a single (integrated) firm. Additionally, following some of the seminal ideas proposed by Marshall, it is possible to observe a significant number of economic geographers that also explored regional development using the spatial economic agglomeration to support their ideas. Some examples of concepts emerging from that theoretical trend are regional innovation milieux (Crevoisier, 2004), neo-Marshallian nodes (Amin and Thrift, 1992) and learning regions (Asheim, 1995). More examples can be found in Markusen (1996, p. 297), in which another three different types of industrial districts are described according to the firms configurations, internal versus external orientations and governance structures: a hub-and-spoke industrial district, which is concentrated around one or more dominant firms; a satellite platform, formed by a group of unconnected branches embedded in external links; and the state-anchored district, concentrated on one or more public-sector institutions. Despite the logical and robust assumption s found in many of those concepts, their influence and dissemination were not as successful as the more general cluster framework proposed by Porter. Martin and Sunley (2003) attributes the successful dissemination of the Porter concepts to the very general descriptions and delimitations that encompass a wide range of actors and many different structures. Following much of the concepts proposed by Porter, the description of advantages conferred on clustered firms associated with a general and structured analytical framework stimulated the development and dissemination of academic studies and subsidized the creation of supply-side competitiveness policies directed at structuring and supporting the development of clusters (Pitelis, 2010). That fact resulted in what Martin and Sunley (2003) describe as a policy panacea in the use of clusters as a standard (sometimes the unique) target for promoting competitiveness, innovation and economic growth. Moreover, in the last 20 years an increasing number of empirical studies in different countries and sectors have been observed, which aim to identify and discuss the competitive outcomes originating from the concentration of firms and other actors in the same location, for example: Brazil à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" shoe manufacturing in the Sinos Valley (Schmitz, 2000); Spain à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" the text ile and clothing industries in Catalonia (Porter, 1998); Taiwan à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" electronic products at the Hsinchu Science Park (Chen, 2008); and the United States à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" computer and information systems at the Silicon Valley (Saxenian, 1994). The large significant number of academic studies has resulted in a large number of definitions aiming to describe and establish an accepted cluster template (e.g., Enright, 1996; Swann and Prevezer, 1996, Rosenfeld, 1997; Porter, 1998) to support policy makers and academics has led to intense debates and controversial perspectives. Even though the concept of clusters has been increasingly widely disseminated and used by geographers, economists and policy makers, it has suffered from some conceptual confusion. Porter defines a cluster as a geographic concentration of interconnected companies, specialized suppliers, service providers firms in related industries, and associated institutions (for example, universities, standards agencies and trade associations) in particular fields that compete but also co-operate (1998, p. 197). However, Martin and Sunley (2003, p. 12) present consistent arguments that indicate the vagueness and superficiality of the concept proposed by Porter. Accordin g to their arguments, those characteristics make the concept of cluster means different things to different researchers and policy makers, creating problems for its proper use in the guidance of academics and governments. Those highly controversial aspects of the cluster theory have stimulated the continuous emergence of new concepts and definitions for clusters. Proposing a definition aiming to fill some of the gaps and failures found in extant cluster theory, Pitelis (2010, p. 5) defines clusters as geographical agglomerations of firms in particular, related, and/or complementary, activities, with a geographical dimension, that exhibit horizontal and/or vertical intra- and/or inter-sectoral linkages, which operate in the context of a facilitatory socio-institutional setting, and which co-operate and compete (co-opete) in inter-national markets. That definition tries offer to a more delimited approach that incorporates four major elements: geographical agglomeration, linkages, social-capital  [1]  and co-opetition (competition and cooperation). The use of those four elements in a single definition offers the possibility to cover the cluster characteristics using delimited criteria to identify and distinguish developed clusters from less complex geographical agglomerations of firms and institutions. Although it is possible to observe some level of ambiguity encompassing the clusters theory, the existence of links interconnecting local actors complemented by geographical dimensions constitute some of the main common points used to guide academics and policy makers with interesting by the competitive outcomes originating from clusters. Those characteristics have frequently been used as the starting point to understand the economic dynamics of clustered firms, putting emphasis on the levels of innovation and productivity emerging from the concentration of different actors in the same area. Suggesting conditional characteristics to the presence of competitive advantages obtained by firms inside clusters, Ketels (2004) considers that the positive economic effects originated from the geographical concentration will only take place if four critical characteristics are shared among firms and institutions: Proximity: they must be geographically close to allow the emergence of knowledge spillovers and to share the same common resources; Linkages: the necessity of similarities in their activities leading to the establishment of connections and synergies; Interactions: the social interactions developed among firms, clients, suppliers, research institutes, and so on, is what forms the social capital that becomes possible firms to achieve differentiated competitive performances; Critical mass: it is important to have a significant number of firms and institutions in order to create meaningful impacts on performance of the local actors. Those characteristics described by Ketels may be used to guide the identification and distinction between developed clusters (Pitelis, 2010) from incipient clusters (Schmitz, 1999) in order to dismiss some incorrect interpretations associated with the clusters dynamics. Considering that the presence of geographic concentration of firms in the same industry is strikingly common around the world (Porter, 1990, p.120), it is necessary the use of specific benchmarks to distinguish and classify different groups of firms geographically concentrated according to their specific characteristics (Gordon and McCann, 2000; Isbasoiu, 2006). Describing how the existence of local capabilities  [2]  create differentiated conditions for companies within real clusters, Menzel and Fornahl (2010) argue that clusters are essentially formed from path dependencies (Martin and Sunley, 2006), transaction costs economies (McCann and Sheppard, 2003) and small cognitive distances originating from spatial proximity (Maskell, 2001). Thus, that set of factors are expected to create a specific regional dynamics with influence on the firms economic performance. Taking into consideration the different stages of a cluster life cycle, and the misunderstandings related to the claims associated with the clusters and competitiveness, Schmitz points out that A group of small producers making the same or similar things in close vicinity to each other constitutes a cluster, but such concentration in itself brings few benefits (1999, p. 4), emphasizing that the mere presence of firms in a delimited area does not represent a source of value creat ion able to improve in a significant way the local economic performance. Following the arguments above, the differences between regional clusters and simple agglomerations (groups of firms) lie mainly on the interconnected nature and spatial proximity. Thus, clusters are characterized by intense collaborative networks and concentrations of collaboration and competition (co-opetitition) (Pitelis, 2010), conditions which offer significant opportunities and stimulate the emergence of regional competitive advantages (Steinle and Schiele, 2002). Complementarily, another critical characteristic observed within clusters is the diversity of actors. According to Porter (1990, 1998, 2000), an industrial cluster includes suppliers, consumers, related industries, governments, and supporting institutions such as universities. This way, the existence of a regional network formed by a significant group of interconnected local actors is one of the critical factors to understand the differentiated competitive performance of firms within clusters (Steinle and Schiele, 2002 ). Illustrating that argument, Saxenian (1994) observed that Hewlett Packard and other firms at the Silicon Valley had their performance improved by the development long-term partnerships with suppliers located geographically close. Moreover, based on that observation, Saxenian concluded that, especially in high-tech industries, the physical proximity represents a facilitator to the establishment of efficient collaborative arrangements required to create and manage complex products and services. 1.2 Evolutionary Stages of Industrial Clusters Despite the vast cluster literature, the number of academic works discussing the evolutionary patterns of clusters overtime is not so extensive. Some examples can be found in Pouder and John (1996), Klepper (2001, 2007), Wolter (2003) and Andersson et al., (2004), and despite the divergent perspectives, it is accepted that clusters follow a kind of life cycle comprised by different phases that significantly differ in their characteristics and influence on firms performance. Regarding the cluster dynamics, Pouder and John (1996) argue that comparative analysis between clustered and non-clustered firms during the industry life cycle reveal that firms within clusters outperform those geographically dispersed at the initial stages of development, and have a worse performance at its end. That fact suggests that the cluster life cycle is not just a local representation of the industry trajectory, but is a result from local peculiarities. The comparative analysis developed by Saxenian (1994 ) between the computer industry in Boston and Silicon Valley illustrates how different clusters belonging to the same industry are very likely to follow different trajectories (Menzel and Fornahl, 2010). Proposing a different perspective, Klepper (2001, 2007) suggests a model to demonstrate how the clusters life cycle is determined by some the industry patterns. Klepper analyzed the automobile, tire and television industries and observed that at the beginning of the industry life cycle it was not possible to observe clear geographic concentrations of firms, with most of the firms spatially dispersed. He observed that in those industries clusters started to emerge and develop according to the industry growth rates. Klepper argues that the local characteristics originating from the spacial proximity (e.g., intensive spin-off process) give the stimulus for the geographic agglomeration of the whole industry, not only for specific groups. At the time the industry growth rate reduces, the attractiveness to remain agglomerated will also decrease and the industry will become dispersed again. That model proposed by Klepper represents a Technology-Product- Industry (TIP) life cycle. The logic behind this model is on the impact that the evolution of products and innovations has on the size, number, and location of firms. Wolter (2003) criticizes the model proposed by Klepper arguing that the growth rate cannot explain the agglomeration process in all industries on equal basis. Moreover, Wolter disagrees with the determinist perspective proposed by the TIP model, once it neglects that mature industries can be reinvented by radical or incremental innovations of new products and process. Analyzing the economic performance of firms within clusters Pouder and John (1996) attribute to the existence of mental models and biased cognitive focus the characteristics responsible for shaping the movement through the clusters life cycle. Following that perspective, at initial stages the cluster dynamics creates an innovative environment that exerts positive impacts on the firms performance. However, overtime that initial condition is eroded by strong institutional pressures that create a homogeneous macroculture that acts inhibiting the innovative capacity of the firms within the cluster. As in the model presented by Klepper (2001, 2007), that trajectory proposed by Pouder and John may also be criticized by the determinism that ignores the possibility of adaptations or reconfigurations in order to avoid lock-ins and other negative effects. Considering the arguments proposed by Menzel and Fornahl (2010, p. 8) that very few clusters follow a rigid life cycle from emergence to growth and decline, it is expected that clusters evolve overtime according to the local dynamics created by economic and social interactions among firms and institutions. That dynamics may be influenced, but not strictly determined by industry patterns (Wolter, 2003). Following a generic and stylized trajectory, within successful clusters the local network formed by inter-firm connections will tend to be intensified overtime, with an increasing number of formal and informal interactions between the long-established companies and new the ones attracted to the cluster. Even though it is more conceivable to assume that the decisions adopted by firms and institutions are shaped by specific circumstances, a generic trajectory can be described following the stages illustrated in Figure 1. Figure 1: The cluster life cycle C:UsersLucasAppDataLocalMicrosoftWindowsTemporary Internet FilesContent.WordSem tÃÆ' ­tulo.jpg Source: Andersson et al. (2004, p. 43) Agglomeration: It is possible to observe the existence of a number of companies and other actors (e.g. banks, government agencies, universities, accountants, and lawyers offices) in a specific region working around the same or interrelated activities. Emerging cluster: Forming the embryo to the cluster some actors start to cooperation around some core activities, and start to realize the existence of common linkages. Developing cluster: The linkages are intensified by the emergence and attraction of new actors to the region, resulting in the creation of more interaction. In this context the development of inter-firm-cooperation becomes more evident through the development of joint efforts. The Mature cluster: This stage is configured by the presence of a certain critical mass of factors that consistently influence the competitive performance of the firms inside the cluster. The internal dynamics is characterized by the presence of an institutional environment, strong linkages, complementarities and the emergence of new firms through startups, joint ventures and spin-offs. Transformation: Indeed the process of continuous environmental change in markets, technologies, regulations and other process, to be successful a cluster have to innovate and adapt to these new conditions, other way stagnation and decay may affect the cluster dynamics. That process of change/adaptation may happen through the emergence of one or several interconnected clusters with focus in other activities, or by new configuration in terms of networks of firms and institutions. The presence of economic benefits for clustered firms described by authors like Schmitz and Nadvi (1999), Ketels (2004), Isbasoiu (2006) and Pitelis and Pseiridis (2006) are closely related to the stage of development that a cluster is experiencing. For example, an emerging cluster is not actually a cluster, since the small number of firms is not expected to present a high level of linkages and do not form a critical mass. Moreover, the absence of strong interdependencies such as labour mobility, spin-off, socioeconomic networks and intense exchange of good and services prevent the emergence of local capabilities. Thus, same considering that this stage constitutes the embryo that determines the future cluster orientation, at this point the firms are not expected to be strongly influenced by a complex local dynamics. Observing that fact, Menzel and Fornahl (2010) present a skeptical position regarding the effectiveness of any competitiveness policy intended to stimulate the development of clusters at initial stages (agglomeration and emerging), since the existence of horizontal and vertical links among firms concentrated in the same region constitutes a very common fact around the world. Thus, it is almost impossible to distinguish agglomerations with real potential to become a cluster from less complex structures. Consequently, emerging clusters are almost always only described ex-post. After the initial stages of the clusters life cycle it is expected the development and intensification of interdependencies between firms within cluster boundaries (Press, 2006). Indeed the development of those interdependencies, firms start to resemble more with each other, being observe the emergence of convergent designs in terms of technological models (Menzel and Fornahl, 2010), specialized labour market (Cooke et al., 2007), production systems (Pitelis, 2010) and inter-firm relationships (Blien and Maier, 2008). Moreover, developing clusters also attract a high number of start-ups that act stimulating the intensification of intra-cluster relationships. This way, that process of convergence and expansion of the number of firms within the cluster boundaries culminates in the development of self-reinforcing external economies that decrease the heterogeneity among firms at the same time that creates benefits like transactions cost economies and the privileged access to local knowle dge. As clusters reach the stage of maturity, the standards and configurations originating from past decisions become consolidate and it is observed a reduction in the growth rate of firms attracted to the cluster (Klepper, 2007). At this point the cluster trajectory may take two different directions. Keep unchanged, and suffer with a homogenization process that creates bias economic activities and therefore prevent firms to adapt to external shocks (Menzel and Fornahl, 2010). That situation traps firms in previous successful development path and lead to the geographic dispersion of the local actors and to the deterioration of the interdependencies and capabilities. The other possible trajectory is observed in clusters that reach the stage of maturity and successfully sustain the local dynamics by a continuous process of reconfiguration and adaptation to the external shocks (Wolter, 2003). 1.2 Clusters and Economic Performance The extant theory offers a wide range of explanations to justify the economic and competitive benefits experienced by firms located within clusters. Krugman (1991) stress the existence of increasing returns originating from the concentration of firms in the same area, arguing that the geographic proximity puts together the main parts related to firms activities (e.g., labours, firms, suppliers and costumers) resulting in transaction costs economies. Following other perspective, Schmitz and Nadvi (1999) argue that unintentional external economies are not sufficient to explain the competitiveness of firms located within clusters, attributing to the existence of deliberate joint actions (e.g., sharing equipments, associations, strategic alliances and producers improving components) a critical source of the competitive advantages. Pitelis and Pseiridis (2006) explain the levels of competitiveness and productivity associated with clustered firms considering the existence of specialized hu man resources, infrastructure and befits associated with unit costs economies complemented by the presence of an institutional atmosphere. Stressing a different point of view, Bahlmann and Huysman (2008) adopts the knowledge-based view of clusters to emphasize the relevance of knowledge spillovers among the firms to explain the advantages originated from the agglomeration process. Dupuy and Torre (2006) explains the existence of cluster in terms of the advantages originating from trust relationships that increase confidence and reduce risk and uncertainty about the intra-cluster operations taking place among the firms. Moreover, Zyglidopoulos et al. (2003), describe the positive effects that the reputation of a cluster may exert on the internalization process of small and micro enterprises through the alleviation of strategic constraints associated with factors like qualified work force, financing and reduction of the firms legitimation expenses. Despite that wide range of arguments, the most traditional perspective found in the cluster literature has explained the competitive advantages of clusters in terms of productivity and innovation (Pitelis, 1998; Porter, 1998), suggesting that the special characteristics originated from the economic and geographic proximity have significant impact on those two factors. Supplementary, Enright (1998) considers that the characteristics present inside the clusters local environment result in pressures, incentives and capabilities that increase the firms competitiveness comparatively to dispersed competitors, explaining the clustering process in terms of geographically restricted characteristics. Moreover, Solvell et al. (2003) suggests that the competitive advantages emerging from regional clusters may be classified as static and dynamics. According to this perspective, while the agglomeration process triggered and sustained intensively or exclusively by factors like natural resources, low cost labors and government subsidies offers a vulnerable (easy to be copied, substituted or simple eroded by environmental changes) competitive position, clusters based on dynamics characteristics like multi-sectorial externalities, advantages of scale and scope and specific knowledge spillovers are more dynamics and competitive. Extending the arguments presented by Solvell and his colleagues, Andersson et al. (2004) considers that the sustainability of static and dynamic competitive advantages is not strictly determined, arguing that static factors are the main responsible for the emergence of clusters, while the dynamics factors are only developed along the different stages of the cluste r life cycle. Complementing the understanding about the influence of the cluster dynamics on the firms economic performance some authors like Porter (2001); Garnsey and Heffernan (2007); Karlsson (2008) and Mason (2008) describe the existence of a self-reinforcing process originating from the agglomeration externalities that contribute to create a regional virtuous-circle of increasing productivity, competitiveness and value creation. Following that argument, the economic and geographic proximity will stimulate firms to innovate more indeed benefits originating from local capabilities, which will stimulate even more the agglomeration process through the intensification of inter-firm relationships and the attraction of other firms from outside the cluster, which in turn will strength the local capabilities (Blandy, 2003, p. 101). Thus, the dynamics of clusters is expected to be self-reinforced by agglomeration benefits with significant influence on the firms performance. Putting together the arguments associated with the economic impacts experienced by clustered firms indeed the existence of local factors, it is possible to identify and describe the following positive location-specific externalities: Cost savings indeed the geographic proximity with specialized suppliers, labours and distributors; Knowledge-spillovers (intentional and unintentional), since firms inside clusters can benefit from the knowledge dissemination process that may take place especially through inter-firm cooperation, specific linkages and labour mobility; Deliberate joint actions facilitated by the engagement in alliances and partnerships to achieve strategic objectives; Trust relationships, that through the geographic and economic proximity minimize the uncertainty associated with commercial operations, resulting in transactions costs economies; Pressures for higher performance, stimulated by the proximity with competitors; Specific Infrastructure and public goods that are oriented to attend the cluster demands, like roads, ports, laboratories and telecommunication networks; Complementarities, associated with firms in different activities but sharing common factors like raw material, clients and technologies that may enhance the cluster efficiency as whole. Discussing the role of regional clusters in shaping competitive patterns, Tallman et al. (2004) proposes a distinction between the types of competitive advantages emerging from clustered firms: based on traded interdependencies and based on untraded interdependencies. The concept of traded interdependencies is related to the existence of inter-firm transactions inside the cluster, and is observed in formal exchange operations that may take place in form of alliances, commercial operations and acquisitions. On the other hand, untraded interdependencies are related to less tangible effects, and are based on shared knowledge for which no market mechanism exists; with no formal exchange of value for value (Tallman et al. 2004, p. 261). To illustrate the mechanisms by which the untraded interdependencies take place, it is possible to mention unintentional external economies associated with tacit knowledge shared through mechanisms like labor mobility. Those different types of interdependencies, especially untraded, present at the cluster level, represent a source of competitive advantage that is likely to be causal ambiguous (for firms inside and outside the cluster) and high complex in terms of their origins, what consequently constitutes attributes difficult to be replicated by competitors. However, the presence of untraded effects, especially unintentional knowledge spillovers, is viewed Enright (1998) as a constraining factor for firms within clusters, since the establishment of an efficient information flow may limit the firms capacity to obtain monopoly profits from the development of innovations. Complementing the negative effects originating from the clusters dynamics, some authors also describe agglomeration diseconomies that have a negative impact firms located within clusters. For example, congestion effects (Arthur, 1990), institutional sclerosis (Pouder and John, 1996; Pitelis, 2010), rigidities associated with labour mobility and natural resources (Krugman, 1989) and pollution (Fan and Scott, 2003). This way, the dynamics and performance of a cluster is determined by the interplay between positive and negative externalities observed during the different stages of development that a cluster is expected to pass overtime (Wolter, 2003) Limitations in the Cluster Theory Notwithstanding the advances in the cluster theory some questions still remain insufficiently explored. One of the main limitations observed in the current state of the cluster literature is the lack of comparative perspectives to explain the advantages and disadvantages of clusters relatively to other alternative models of organization of economic activities. In his very novel approach, Pitelis (2010) suggests that any perspective trying to explain clusters in terms of absolute advantages is at the very best incomplete. In this context, Pitelis proposes the comparison of clusters vis-ÃÆ'  -vis to markets and hierarchies in order to understand the reasons and conditions that lead firms to engage in intra-clusters relationships, market operations (outside the cluster) or integrate within the firms hierarchy. In fact it is not necessary a great effort to conclude that most of the cluster theory has been developed following a mono-institutional approach (e.g. Porter, 1990, 1998; Saxe nian, 1994; Rosenfeld, 1998; Swann and Sennett, 1998; Schmitz and Nadvi, 1999), while some few exceptions concentrated on transactions costs (e.g. Fujita and Thisse, 1996; Iammarino and McCann, 2006; Takeda et al., 2008) and knowledge creation efficiency (e.g. Hendry et al., 2000; Tracey and Clark, 2003; Reinau, 2007; Kongmanila and Takahashi, 2009) have been drawn on a comparative approaches between clusters and open-market operations. Assuming the arguments proposed by many scholars that clusters are engines of innovation (Davis, 2006, p. 32), the lack of comparative perspectives do not answer the question why clusters are more efficient than markets or the hierarchy to improve the firms innovative capacity (Pitelis, 2010). Thus, despite the wide number of ramifications observed in the cluster theory such as innovative efficiency, productivity, social capital and social interactions, its explicative power remains almost always restricted

Friday, October 25, 2019

Californias Promise Essays -- State Government, State Deficit

In the 1960’s California experienced reverence through the reputation of being a promising great state. The increasing population as well as the massive publicity, contributed in highlighting this notion. However, in 2011, California no longer holds the same reputation in the eyes of its residents. With a current state deficit of $25.4 Billion, many Californians believe that the state is hopeless and can no longer regain to its past stardom. Famed Historian, Kevin Starr argues that California has lost its promise entirely; however, California has not lost its promise entirely for the fact that California is still the eighth largest economy in the world. California is able to function even with a dysfunctional government and institutional structure. California still has the potential to recover its reputation as a great promising state. By tackling the state’s dilemma, we are able to understand why and how California lost its greatness. Once we analyze the core probl ems of the state, such as the initiative process, the state legislature, and misrepresentation of the public, we will have a better understanding of how to tackle the issue. First, an obvious problem of the state is the usage of the initiative process. Originally, it gave â€Å"Californians the power to propose constitutional amendments and law that fellow citizens will vote on without the legislature’s involvement (Van Vechten, 20).† However, today, special interest groups have used this process abusively. In fact, initiative campaigns became an industry of its own in California. According to Mathews and Mark, â€Å"in 1996, annual spending on initiative campaigns in California topped $140 million (Mathews and Mark, 68).† Special interests groups that are financially well o... ...tion of 38 million people, California still has the potential to be great. If in fact California lost its promise, the state would not have that large of a population nor would it have the eighth largest economy in world. The problem of California is in the structure of the legislature and the institutions and practices that it has. There are unchecked power given to the people through the initiative process and there are fundamental structural flaws in the state legislature. By addressing these problems and critically thinking what needs to be reformed, California can potentially get its old reputation. However, we must reform without unconsciously changing the right things in our state. If California just reforms in the same way it used to, the states’ future may be ruined. Innovative means of solution is needed in order to stir the state to the right direction.

Thursday, October 24, 2019

Corruption in Procurement

UNIVERSITY OF DAR ES SALAAM BUSINESS SCHOOL| AN ASSESSMENT OF CORRUPTION IN THE PROCUREMENT PROFESSION IN GOVERNMENT: CASE IN TANZANIA. | | BY| BERNARD, HELLEN| REG. NO. 2009-06-00929 | RESEARCH PROPOSAL SUBMITTED FOR APPROVAL TO CARRY OUT RESEARCH FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTERS OR BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION. | Table of Contents 1. 0 INTRODUCTION 1. 1 background3 1. 2 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM4 2. o research aim6 2. 1 RESEARCH OBJECTIVES6 3. 0 RESEARCH QUESTIONS†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦6 3. 1 RESEARCH HYPOTHESIS. 7 4. 0 LITERATURE REVIEW 4. 1 CONCEPTUAL LITERATURE†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦8 4. THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. 10 4. 3 EMPIRICAL LITERATURE†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. 12 5. 0 METHODOLOGY†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢ € ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. 14 REFERENCES†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. 17 1. 0. INTRODUCTION 1. 1 Background The Tanzania Government has long realized the importance of public procurement to the economic development of Tanzania and hence to the fulfillment of key objectives within the national Poverty Reduction Strategy. To this effect, Tanzania was one of the first countries in Sub-Saharan Africa to enact a law modeled on the UNCITRAL model law. Since 1996, when the first country procurement assessment report (CPAR) was carried out, the Government has been working closely with the World Bank and other development partners to enhance the economy and efficiency of its procurement system and to make it more transparent and accountable. The Government has long acknowledged that there is rampant corruption in Tanzania and has been fighting hard to reduce it. It is estimated that at the national level about 20 percent of the government expenditure on procurement is lost through corruption, mainly through kick-backs and bogus investments that have to be written off. Considering that public procurement accounts for about 70 percent of the entire government expenditure budget, this translates to a loss of TShs 300 billion (USD 300 million) per year, enough to finance the combined annual recurrent budgets of the ministries of health and education. Clearly such a loss is economically unsustainable. Major losses occur in construction and supply contracts, which are the major avenues for corruption, particularly at the local government level. The need for enhancing the transparency of the procurement system cannot therefore be overemphasized. The Government of Tanzania is fully aware that its public procurement is still weak and needs to be strengthened substantially to enable it to ensure that the procurement laws and institutions become effective tools in the efficient and transparent management of public funds. Strategic management in the public sector begins by looking up toward politics -the current expectations and aspirations of citizens and their representatives and the older political agreements formally enshrined in the legislation that defines public managers' mandates for action. Corruption had been inculcated in the political culture of most underdeveloped countries; while, it still elicits the criticism and opposition of the public, it has nonetheless been accepted as a fact in the political life. One of the primary areas of corruption is in the procurement process. Grounded on the idea that, the bread and butter of politicians exists in this aspect, the procurement process has been the locus and target of most politicians aiming to get a slice of the cake. In third world countries, this part of the cake proves to be the life of people. The foreign aid given by international organizations like the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund and the government revenue from taxes is easily lost once the budget is distributed to departments and the â€Å"purchase† of equipments and materials has begun. . Earlier on we questioned the assumption or perception that corruption, especially petty corruption is a function of low pay. In our review of theories of motivation we noted that there is consensus among theorists on motivation on pay being a necessary, but not sufficient condition for an employee to perform at a minimum level in an organization. Where an employee has a perception that the level of compensation given by the employer cannot and will not meet basic living/existence needs, and the employee is not in a position to exit from the organization, he/she will adopt deviant work behavior, which will include a number of income maintenance strategies, including corruption to address the income shortfall. 1. 2 statement of the problem The procurement process has been the locus of government corruption- unless this can be addressed; the citizens of Tanzania will continue to suffer. It is necessary that strategies and measures be introduced in the government procurement profession to reduce the corruption in this process and in effect, corruption in the government. Procurement corruption is deeply rooted in the political culture and traces its roots on the nature of governments. As long as the nature of government and politics remains to be relatively immature, corruption in the procurement process will remain. Thus, the need for strategies to hamper this occurrence arises. A focus on newspaper reports, editorials and letters from readers in any of the last ten years would make one conclude that this country has been eaten away by the corruption scourge. Contrast the foregoing situation with what obtained between 1961, as we became independent and the late 1970s. The decade following Tanzania’s independence (1960-1970) did not manifest intense corruption. Where it took place it tended to be restricted to low-level officials who demanded and received negligible sums of money. As the country expanded the public sector and public administration institutions progressively decayed, entailing the rise of bureaucratic malfunctioning, opportunities for rent-seeking behavior and asking and offering bribes started creeping in. In the same period, the cost of living rose dramatically while public service pay remained static or declined. Public officials became driven by a culture of survival and they progressively adopted deviant behavior patterns discussed earlier in the paper, including the use of corruption as an income maintenance strategy. To address and control the trend of increased corruption, the Nyerere Government enacted the leadership code as part of the Arusha Declaration which had been adopted in 1967 and dedicated Tanzania to the pursuit of Ujamaa and Self Reliance as its ideology. While moral suasion through a socialist code of conduct was making its contribution to the fight against corrupt tendencies, the country came to experience a major economic crisis following the oil crisis and the after effects of the war with Idd Amin in the late 1970s and early 1980s, with double digit inflation, major fiscal deficits and negative economic growth. That situation saw the state lose its ability to pay public servants a living wage. Official salaries, even at managerial and executive levels, fell below subsistence needs, creating incentives to look for side incomes. As the state controlled economy declined, an informal one arose to take its place. Smuggling became rampant. In the end, the harsh realities of scarcity and poverty overwhelmed the dedication to socialist equality and corruption became embedded in Tanzania society. 2. 0 RESEARCH AIM This study aims to propose measures and strategies that could resolve the issue of government corruption in the procurement process. . 1 research objectives This research paper aims to: 1. Identify the different procurement corruptions in governments of Third World countries 2. Determine the stages of the procurement process and discover where corruption happens 3. Evaluate the nature of Third World Government and politics and the corruption in procurement 4. Propose measures that can reso lve the issue of corruption in the procurement profession 3. 0 RESEARCH QUESTIONS This study seeks to answer the following questions: 1. What are the indicators of procurement corruption and how extensive is it mong governments (Developed, developing and Third World) 2. What are the different corrupt practices in the process of procurement? 3. Outlining the procurement process, what stage(s) does corruption happen? 4. In relation to the nature of Third World Governments, what is their relation and to what degree that these two variables (corruption in procurements and government) affect each other? 5. What are the measures and strategies that governments have employed to address this issue? 3. 1 Research hypothesis 1. The nature of government and politics in a country is significantly related to its corruption practices 2. The more accountable the government, the lesser the tendency of corruption in the procurement process 3. Further, procurement corruption is directly related to the lack of transparency in government purchases. 4. 0 LITERATURE REVIEW 4. 1 Conceptual literature CORRUPTION Corruption is a very widespread phenomenon with most governments having a least some. While corruption usually meets with disapproval, it may have some redeeming features (Tullock, 1996). It may make possible smaller or no salary payments to officials who, if carefully supervised, will still carry out their functions on a fee-for-service basis (Tullock, 1996). Transparency International (TI) has chosen a clear and focused definition of the term: Corruption is operationally defined as the misuse of entrusted power for private gain. TI further differentiates between â€Å"according to rule† corruption and â€Å"against the rule† corruption. Facilitation payments, where a bribe is paid to receive preferential treatment for something that the bribe receiver is required to do by law, constitute the former. The latter, on the other hand, is a bribe paid to obtain services the bribe receiver is prohibited from providing. The cost of corruption The cost of corruption is four-fold: political, economic, social, and environmental. On the political front, corruption constitutes a major obstacle to democracy and the rule of law. In a democratic system, offices and institutions lose their legitimacy when they are misused for private advantage. Though this is harmful in the established democracies, it is even more so in newly emerging ones. Accountable political leadership cannot develop in a corrupt climate. Economically, corruption leads to the depletion of national wealth. It is often responsible for the funneling of scarce public resources to uneconomic high-profile projects, such as dams, power plants, pipelines and refineries, at the expense of less spectacular but more necessary infrastructure projects such as schools, hospitals and roads, or the supply of power and water to rural areas. Furthermore, it hinders the development of fair market structures and distorts competition, thereby deterring investment. The effect of corruption on the social fabric of society is the most damaging of all. It undermines people's trust in the political system, in its institutions and its leadership. Frustration and general apathy among a disillusioned public result in a weak civil society. That in turn clears the way for despots as well as democratically elected yet unscrupulous leaders to turn national assets into personal wealth. Demanding and paying bribes become the norm. Those unwilling to comply often emigrate, leaving the country drained of its most able and most honest citizens. Environmental degradation is yet another consequence of corrupt systems. The lack of, or non-enforcement of, environmental regulations and legislation has historically allowed the North to export its polluting industry to the South. At the same time, careless exploitation of natural resources, from timber and minerals to elephants, by both domestic and international agents has led to ravaged natural environments. Environmentally devastating projects are given preference in funding, because they are easy targets for siphoning off public money into private pockets. PROCUREMENT Procurement is the full process involved in acquiring required goods, services or works. Procurement involves identifying the requirement of the purchasing authority, building a list of minimum requirements, and then scoring any interested parties who meet the minimum requirements, usually offering the highest score based on the most economically advantageous bid, commonly known as â€Å"best value†. Part of the Procurement process is also to manage the contract once awarded, to ensure that the successful suppliers, or suppliers, are providing a quality service. Collaborative contracts are becoming more commonplace; where multiple public bodies will combine their requirements and run a single Procurement process to meet their merged requirements. Due to the higher volume of business promised by collaborative contracts, suppliers will usually offer larger discounts. Collaborative contracts are usually led by one public body, acting on behalf of the others. In addition to this, some Procurement Centers of Expertise set up and manage contracts on behalf of public bodies, allowing all public bodies to use these collaborative contracts. Some examples of these Centers of Expertise are OGC, Buying Solutions and Procurement Scotland. The stage of the Procurement cycle when suppliers are invited to submit bids is known as the Tendering process. Usually, in addition to submitting their monetary bid, suppliers are required to respond to a questionnaire which the public body has put together with the intention of identifying and eliminating suppliers who are unable to meet their basic requirements, thereby preventing their tender from being successful regardless of whether they have the most economically advantageous bid. . 2 Theoretical framework The systematic study of political corruption encompasses matters of definition, typology, cause, and consequence, linked by a common theoretical framework. A substantial body of literature explores these issues, but many problems exist. The countless definitions inadequately set out the fundamental normative and behavioral dimensions of corruption and fail to incorporate the phen omenon into a broader theoretical framework or to deal accurately with the question of private interests. Typologies of corruption, though equally rife, also seem to lack clear theoretical relevance. Existing explanations of corruption can be attacked for projecting confusing and contradictory hypotheses, for being fragmentary, and for failing to differentiate various types of corrupt behavior; those centering on the functions of corruption also seem incomplete. Some, for instance, underscore the positive effects of corruption in integrating ruling elite but fail to question whether corruption influences feelings of legitimacy toward government or inspires destabilizing protests and mobilizations. As a form of deviant political behavior, corruption is political conduct contrary to political norms. This definition underscores both its normative and behavioral components. The normative aspect of corruption centers on the evaluative standards or rules that determine political propriety: the criteria used to judge the legitimacy or illegitimacy (i. e. , the â€Å"corruptness†) of a political act; the behavioral aspect corresponds to observable actions (Morris, 1991). The norm provides the standard by which all acts of government are to be interpreted and judged. Accordingly, any private usurpation of that pertaining to the public domain, which negates this principle, invites condemnation. An important issue that warrants attention concerns the role of personal gain or interest. Including personal gain or what is tantamount to private interest in a definition of corruption presents two major problems. First, it is generally held that all acts are a function of personal gain; in formal theory, this is referred to as â€Å"rationality. † Consequently, all acts by government officials, whether corrupt or otherwise, are thought to be motivated by a rational promotion of private interest. In other words, a non corrupt act is promoted by personal interest just as is a corrupt act. Since personal interest is an assumption of human behavior and a constant, it need not be included in a definition Strategic management in the public sector begins by looking up toward politics -the current expectations and aspirations of citizens and their representatives and the older political agreements formally enshrined in the legislation that defines public managers' mandates for action. Politics, and the laws that politics produce, deserve this pride of place for three key reasons. First, it is this realm that managers must search to discover what purposes are deemed publicly valuable and can, therefore, be practically and normatively sustained as the focus of their managerial efforts. It is in and through politics that they can discover and help shapes their mandates for action. Second, political institutions grant public managers the resources they need to accomplish their operational purposes–including money and authority over their own organizations and over those beyond their organizations who can contribute to the managers' purposes. Third, it is to politics and law that public managers are both theoretically and practically accountable; their performance is graded and their reputations made within this realm. Procurement contracting often entails large monetary sums and involves widely known or powerful people inside and outside government. Thus, this kind of corruption can be especially damaging to a country in terms of distorted incentives, undermined public trust, and inequitable distribution of national budgets. This is particularly prevalent in Third World countries where the political socialization of people seems to accept corruption as a part of the political culture. Among the principal types of procurement corruption includes: collusion in bidding (leading to higher costs/prices for the city, payments for which may or may not be shared with corrupt officials); kickbacks by firms to â€Å"fix† procurement competition; and bribes to officials who regulate the winning contractor's behavior (which may permit lowball bids with subsequent cost overruns and unnecessary changes in contract specifications) (Klitgaard, MacLean, and Parris, 2000). 4. 3 Empirical literature Corruption is about economics, gaining power, maintaining power and unfortunately to some, survival (Green, 2000). Generally, it's been my experience that corruption usually involves bribery, kickbacks, gratuities and gifts to government employees from individuals doing business or attempting to do business with the government. A large percentage of corruption taking place within governments and businesses worldwide rests within the procurement of goods and services. The movement toward decentralization, accountability, and democratic forms of government at the local level is gathering momentum (Klitgaard, MacLean, and Parris, 2000). In this context, the enormous costs of corruption are being explicitly recognized, as is the urgent need to correct governmental malfeasance (Klitgaard, MacLean, and Parris, 2000). Corruption is an entrenched symptom of misgovernance often reflected in patronage, red tape, ineffective revenue-generating agencies, large scale bribery in procurement, and failure to deliver services to city dwellers When the government needs a good or service, the city government has the two broad alternatives of making it or buying it: that is, the city can provide the good or service itself, or rocure it from the private sector (Klitgaard, MacLean, and Parris, 2000). Corruption is one of the dimensions of this choice. Because contracting is â€Å"where the money is†, most government officials are tempted by the lure of procurement services often at the expense of the public. Recent developments and current trends are highlighting the role of accountants in governance. Foremost among these are: the increasing concern with rising levels of corruption, the renewal of interest in accountability and transparency as inoculations against corruption; the new government focus on results, benchmarking and value-for-money (the â€Å"new public management†) and the corresponding thrust in the private sector through business process reengineering, knowledge management and intranets — where accounting systems play a major role; decentralization and participation by citizens and NGOs in public management are multiplying the needs for credible accounting information; the privatization of utilities in several countries is increasing the need for regulation, in which accountants have a major role in reducing information asymmetry; the globalization of corporate finance has enhanced the need for global standards of accounting and auditing; the Asian crisis has highlighted the weaknesses in transparency, in financial sector regulation and in corporate g overnance generally in a number of countries (Bennett,   2000). There are several measures that could be done in order to reduce the incidence of corruption. First, reducing the scope and role of personality politics. An increase in public policy debates and other activities of government, opening the closed doors, and permitting greater public scrutiny of official processes would clearly have such an impact. Generally, the more public government affairs become, the less corrupt they can be (Bennett,  2000). Enhancing the autonomy of the state's subsystems would also reduce the likelihood of corruption. This could be pursued, for instance, by creating an effective civil service system or merit system or opening up grass-roots political involvement. Such reforms would cripple the centralization of recruitment and thereby temper the loyalty patterns that currently prevail. Strengthening the autonomy and role of Congress or democratizing corporate organizations would be steps in this direction (Bennett,  2000). Strengthening social organizations would also impinge on corruption. This could be done by reducing the tutelary role of the state and lessening the dependency of social organizations on the state or by enhancing popular input into the organizations themselves. Not only must businesses or union’s articulate demands on the government, but such organizations must be structurally responsive to the demands of their constituents. Tying the fate of leaders of social organizations to criteria internal to the group rather than those determined by the state would greatly inhibit current patterns of corruption (Bennett,  2000). 5. 0 METHODOLOGY This chapter will discuss the method of research to be used, the respondents of the study, the sampling technique, the instrument to be used, the validation of the instrument, the administration of the of the instrument and the statistical treatment of the data that will be gathered. Research Methodology and Techniques for data collection This study will use the descriptive approach. This descriptive type of research will utilize interview, observation and questionnaires in the study. To illustrate the descriptive type of research, the researcher will be guided by Calmorin when he stated: â€Å"Descriptive method of research is to gather information about the present existing condition. The purpose of employing this method is to describe the nature of a situation as exists at the time of the study and to explore the cause/s of particular phenomena. Proposed subject Population/Sample The general population for this study will be composed of government officials and personnel in the procurement process, randomly selected private companies who have been involved in the bidding process and randomly selected citizens. I will use a combination of cluster and random sampling. First, I will cluster the respondents from the government, the private sector and the public sector. To make the sampling easier for every specific cluster, I will seek the aid of any anti-corruption non-government organization to facilitate the names and addresses of the respondents or have them together in one place (i. e. in an organizational meeting) so that the surveys can be given in one session. I will pick one hundred (100) respondents per cluster for a total of three hundred (300) respondents. Validation of the Instrument For validation purposes, I will initially submit a survey questionnaire and after approval, the survey will be given to five responden ts from the government, private corporations and the public sector. After the survey questionnaire will be answered, I will ask the respondents for any suggestions or any necessary corrections to ensure further improvement and validity of the instrument. I will again examine the content of the survey questionnaire to find out the reliability of the instrument. I will exclude irrelevant questions and will change words that would be deemed difficult by the respondents, too much simpler terms. Administration of the Instrument The revised instrument will then be administered to the respondents of the study which will be chosen through a combination of cluster and random sampling. I will exclude the ten respondents who will be initially used for the validation of the instrument. I will also tally, score and tabulate all the relevant data in the survey questionnaire. Statistical Treatment of Data When the entire survey questionnaire will have been collected, the researcher will use statistics to analyze all the data. The statistical formulae to be used in the second and third part of the survey questionnaire will be the following: 1. Percentage – to determine the magnitude of the responses to the questionnaire. 2. Weighted Mean 3. I will use chi-square to relate the participation rate of the government employees, companies and the public sector. I will be assisted by the SPSS in coming up with the statistical analysis for this study. Resource, Confidentiality and other consideration The survey respondents and interviewees’ identities will be held confidential. Only I will have the knowledge on their identities and utmost secrecy will be provided. Further, personalities who do not want to be quoted in interviews will not be disclosed. REFERENCES. 1. Klitgaard, Robert, MacLean, Ronald and Parris, Lindsey, Corrupt Cities: A Practical Guide to Cure and Prevention, Ics Press, 2000 2. Bennett, Anthony, â€Å"The Role of Accounting in Good Governance†, In Carter, Williiam, Davies, Mark, El, Yassin and Ford, Kevin, Government Ethics and Law Enforcement: Toward Global Guidelines, Praeger Publishers, 2000 3. Green, Vincent, â€Å"An Approach to Investigating Corruption in Government†, In Carter, Williiam, Davies, Mark, El, Yassin and Ford, Kevin, Government Ethics and Law Enforcement: Toward Global Guidelines, Praeger Publishers, 2000 4. Morris, Stephen, â€Å"A State-Society Approach to the Study of Corruption â€Å", Corruption & Politics in Contemporary Mexico, University of Alabama Press, 1991

Wednesday, October 23, 2019

Gothic Genre Explored in Tim Burton’s Films Essay

This is often ignited by key scenes that feature macabre, supernatural, fantasy or science fiction. This is evident in the various scenes within each of Tim Burton’s Films. Tim Burton incorporates the style of Gothic elements such as Gothic style architecture and prominent dark lighting in the film, Edward Scissor Hands (1990). Through these film techniques, Burton thus is able to explore the the dark and damaged world of the suburbia. These techniques include the bright lighting within the suburbia residences, which often emphasizes the contrasting dark lighting from black shades implemented by the hand made metal structures that is prominently used within Edward’s Victorian styled manor/home. Such discrepancies between bright and dark lighting is evident in the scene where Pegg decides to visit Edward’s isolated mansion in hopes to sell her Avon products, despite her failure from her seemingly welcoming suburbia. Pegg’s exclusion implements the idea that the suburbia is the damaged world, which is evident in the scene whereby many residences such as Joyce impolitely ignores Pegg from entering her house while selling her Avon products. This juxtaposes the seemingly warm-hearted suburbia, which in fact is not. However Edward’s home provides more warmth than the suburbia. Tim Burton also contrasts the general suburbia and the Gothic styled architecture of Edward’s Victorian style manor. The conformity of the suburbia is evident in the scene where residences of the suburbia robotically leave their picture perfect houses with clean cut lawns to work. The dichotomies of light and dark lighting, the suburbia’s commitment in submitting to conformity provides a sense of uneasiness and a sinister atmosphere for the audience, because the audience is challenged to reason that the Suburbia is actually the damaged world, despite the eerie aura that Edward’s home project through its dark lightning and threatening appearance. Through Burton’s exploration of the damaged suburbia world, he has successfully fused gothic elements such as light and dark lighting complimented by gothic styled architecture and structures, in effectively creating the horror film, Edward Scissor hands (1990). Similarly in the film, Nightmare before Christmas (1993), Tim Burton also integrates dark lighting and unconventional style of architecture, in the gothic setting of Halloween town. Tim Burton aims to depict Halloween town as the damaged world by portraying its setting with harsh and direct lighting complimented with monochromatic tones. This is evident in the opening musical scene of the film, whereby the buildings and the residents of halloween town is depicted in various panning and establishing film shots. Burton also explores this damaged world through Halloween town’s set such as narrow based structures, mythical organic structures, elongated silhouettes, bone like trees, deep shadows and textured woods. This is evident in the scene, when protagonist Jack Skellington wanders aimlessly in the deserted forest, after the previous Halloween event celebration was finished. The dark and intense lighting implemented by the unusual geometrical structures and architecture of Halloween town fabricates an unnatural, creepy and an uneasy atmosphere amongst the audience. The effect on the audience perspicuously demonstrates the expected reaction based on the standards of horror films. Therefore through Tim Burton’s employment of the gothic elements such as dark lighting and gothic styled architecture, Burton successfully explores Halloween town as the damaged world, thus fabricating an effective horror film. In the film, Sleepy hollow (1999), Tim Burton also integrates various Gothic elements such as Dark lighting and Gothic styled architecture, to emphasize the damaged world of Sleepy Hollow, in efforts to achieve a successful horror film. Tim Burton continuously present the town of Sleepy Hollow under monochromatic tones and shadows, under the principal influence of film noire, a style that highlights the macabre and haunted aura of Sleepy Hollow, through an abundant use of black and white tones with splashes of red. Burton also uses sets in the film that feature dense forests of skeletal trees, rotting and gothic styled houses with prominent exaggeration of key landmarks such as the detail and seemingly animate structure of the ‘Tree of the Dead’. This is evident in the scene whereby, Ichabod Crane with his fellow associates Katrina Vangareth and Young Jonathan Masbeth, come in contact with the ‘Tree of the Dead’, within the haunted â€Å"Western Woods†. In attempts to discover what lies inside the ‘Tree of the Dead’, Ichabod Crane is forced to cut his way through its wooden flesh while fighting to repel the showering red blood, only to see a collection of rotting and blood-soaked heads (from the victims). Burton’s emphasis on the film noire style with splashes of blood-red colours and the gothic styled and animate architectures of Sleepy Hollow, play a significant part in creating a morbid and terrifying character of the damaged world of Sleepy Hollow. Through the incorporation of gothic elements such as dark lighting and film noire implemented by gothic styled architecture, Burton successfully explores Sleepy Hollow as a damaged world and thus effectively create the horror film,Sleepy Hollow (1999). Tim Burton successfully uses gothic elements in creating the horror film, Edward Scissor Hands (1990), through the interpretation of Edward as the flawed hero. Burton delineates Edward as the flawed hero through his physical abnormality and structure considering that he has hands for scissors and that he is an imitation of life considering that he was constructed by a creator not by the normal cycle of human birth. The audience can recall that Edward’s perception of what is good and bad is seemingly altered or underdeveloped since his creator a. k. a. father died without teaching him the extensions of social etiquette and laws including his unfinished hands. Burton emphasizes Edward’s incomplete hands as it plays an important role in allowing the audience to understand Edward’s flaws and limitations to experience the normalities of being a human being which include interactions such as merely shaking hands or to touch another. An example of this is evident in the key scene whereby Edward is questioned by Kim to hold her, however realizing his physical constraints, Edward replies melancholy, â€Å"I can’t†. Burton also includes a key scene that highlights the flaws of Edward’s knowledge beyond than that of his naiveness and basic desire for goodness. This feature scene highlights how Edward is questioned by Kim’s father during Dinner after being arrested for trespassing Jim’s home. Kim’s father motions Edward to answer a simple question of wether to give a lost brief case full of money to the police or use the lost money to buy gifts for their loved ones, however Edward fails to answer correctly, quoting that it should be â€Å"be given to my loved ones†. This demonstrates that his isolation within the confines of his outlying manor/home on the hill has greatly effected his knowledge of lawful conduct within a law-abiding world that does not accept him, understand him nor want him. Edward’s physical constraints and flaws within his knowledge of social etiquette/manner and lawful conduct vividly provides the audience that Edward clearly has imperfections as a hero and thus this response creates an emphatic yet supernatural atmosphere amongst the audience towards Edward. Overall, through the interpretation of Edward as the Flawed Hero, Tim Burton has successfully used Gothic elements to create the horror component in the film, Edward Scissor Hands (1990). Tim Burton successfully uses Gothic elements in creating the horror film, Nightmare before Christmas (1993), through the interpretation of Jack Skellington as the flawed hero. Tim Burton explores the flaws of Jack Skellington a. k. a the Pumpkin King considered as the king of Halloween Town, through presenting his true feelings of boredom from the repeated and monotonous arrangement of the Halloween event, his desire to break free from Halloween Town’s conformity and to expand his vision and boundaries of how Halloween should be executed. Burton puts great emphasis on Jack’s flaws through key musical scenes such as when Jack fails to celebrate joyfully after the previous Halloween event, whereby he wanders melancholy in the cemetery towards the woods in search of better and unconventional entertainment as well as Jack’s utter amusement in his contact with Christmas Land. The audience is challenged in reasoning what jack fails to continue and submit towards the expectations of being the traditional hero, which is one whom does not let his/her inner feelings disrupt the vision of what must always be done. In this case Jack fails to continue his role as the Pumpkin King to rule the traditional ways of Halloween Town. Through the portrayal of Jack Skellington as the flawed hero, Tim Burton successfully combines this gothic element in the film, Nightmare before Christmas (1993), thus creating effectively a horror film. In the film, Sleepy Hollow (1999), Tim Burton successfully employs Gothic elements in creating a horror film, through the interpretation of Ichabod Crane as the flawed hero. Burton portrays Ichabod Crane as a mysterious man whom does not submit within the social and scientific field, given that he is not taken into consideration regarding his field as being an inventor and mortician. Ichabod is depicted as a flawed hero due to that he has a disturbed past and unorthodox approach of manner in responding towards his work and associates. This is mainly due to the fact that Ichabod has been orphaned since the persecution of his mother accused of being a witch, which explains his obsession of the truth and his association with the spiritual and supernatural realms. This is achieved through Burton’s incorporation of key scenes such as the recurrent flashbacks in the form of Ichabod’s nightmare’s, depicting his childhood interactions with his mother and also his witnessing of his mother’s gruesome death by merciless torture and also his unconventional manners as a man who faints in the sight of blood. This challenges the audience’s expectations of what a hero should qualify as being socially acceptable and independently aware to courageously face his fears regardless of their past influences. However Ichabod Crane is opposite to these expectations, which plays a significant role in creating a disturbed and uncanny feel amongst the audience and are forced to realize that this film qualify to the standards of a horror films. Through Tim Burton’s portrayal of Ichabod Crane as the flawed hero, he successfully integrates gothic elements within Ichabod’s character, in effectively producing a Horror component in the film,Sleepy Hollow (1999). In the film, Edward Scissor Hands (1990), Tim Burton employs gothic elements to achieve a sense of dread and terror, such as music and motif, costume, dialogue complimented by omens and supernaturals, which effectively creates a horror film. Burton incorporates dreamlike and ethereal music evident in the scenes where Edward is free to express his emotions such as when edward sculpts the angel from pure ice. Busy and fast-phased music parallels the fast-like mainstream of the suburbia society. It allows the audience to experience the true atmosphere which is one of perjury, social ignorance and influences of rumors. This attributes greatly in shaping the damaged world of the Suburbia, thus creating the sense of dread and terror for the audience. Burton also implements this through Edwards costume, motif, omens and supernatural elements. The dominant idea within this Movie’s setting is the portrayal of Edward’s hands as razor-sharped scissors. It serves as a constant reminder to the audience of what Edward’s hand symbolize to be the drawback of having an artificial life which include the limitations in interacting with people even those he loves. Edward is the presence of the supernatural since Edward’s jet-black body suit that is fabricated with hand-sewn patches and supportive belts portrays the physical character of Edward as a creation designed and made by man to imitate life. Burton also utilizes a style of dialogue that is concise and reservedness evident in Edward’s speech phase,which emphasizes the kind, shy and honest nature of Edward. It also indicated his awkwardness with socially interacting with people and also emphasizes the underdeveloped yet good natured knowledge of Edward. Through these gothic elements the audience is able to experience the mysterious and awkwardness nature of Edward, in contrast to the defective nature of the suburbia. In employing these various gothic elements, Tim Burton successfully fabricates the horror component in the film, Edward Scissor Hands(1990). Tim Burton utilizes gothic elements in the film, Nightmare before Christmas (1993), to achieve a sense of dread and terror, among which include music and motifs, costume, dialogue with fragments of omens and supernatural elements, designed to create an effective horror film. Their are constant musicals performed by a particular character such as Jack Skellington, Sally, Oggie Boogie Man which Burton uses to emphasize what the characters are feeling the strongest and also their personality. Such as in the scene whereby Jack sings a melancholy song in a cemetery expressing his failure in Christmas. Another example includes Sally’s wishful song expressing for her yearning feelings for Jack. An example of fast phased, rhythmic and casino like themed music emphasizes Oggie boogie’s nature of being a gambler and also highlights his dangerous and mischievous nature in gambling the victim’s lives he will consume. Burton also incorporates motifs ; omens and supernatural elements. The dominant idea within this film’s setting is the existence of the Seasonal Events such as Halloween and Christmas emphasized though the 5 seasonal portal doors inside the woods which is a portal to it’s seasonal event town such as Halloween Town and Christmas Town. Other examples include the appearance of supernatural beings such as the residences of Halloween Town such as Jack being a skeleton, Sally a frankenstein creation, vampire and zombie residents etc. , which is bizarre and otherworldly. Burton also utilizes costume that is primarily characterized to suit the nature and status of a character, such as Jack wears a jet-black and bizarre tuxedo which ultimately allows himself to be characterized as a Halloween citizen. However Santa Claus wears the traditional Christmas costume which indicates that he is a citizen of the Halloween Town. These categorical style of costumes enables the audience to understand what each character plays a part in the story, which also contributes to the sense of eeriness and creepiness. The Dialogue has a fusion of jargon, colloquialism as well as formal language that sustains the intended atmosphere such as during the scene when Sally rummages through her potions of â€Å"Frogs Breath† and â€Å"Worms squirt† to poison her creator’s soup. The use of jargon sustains an eerie, bizarre and a sense of dread and terrorizing atmosphere for the audience. Tim Burton’s fusion of gothic elements, enable him to create a sense of dread and terror amongst the audience, therefore effectively creating a the horror film, Edward Scissor Hands (1990). In the film, Sleepy Hollow (1999), Tim Burton creates a sense of dread and terror, which effectively fabricates a horror film, through the various gothic elements within the movie such as music and motifs, costume, dialogue complimented by the influence of omens and supernatural elements. Tim Burton utilizes dreamlike and ethereal theme of music evident during the scenes of Ichabod’s past childhood memories through nightmares and also when the town elders lie murdered in the church with Katrina unconscious, after Baltus Van tassel was killed by the Headless Horseman. The repetition of ethereal themed music indicates the presence of a supernatural elements such as witch craft in Ichabod’s dream and the murderous bidding of the headless horseman in the church. The dominant idea within this Movie’s setting is the consecutive appearance of the decapitated head of the victims, murdered by the Headless Horseman. The consistent appearance of the head, signifies the presence of the headless horseman and thus the continuity of the fear and complications kept alive by the residents of Sleepy Hollow. Burton also uses 18th century styled clothing to explore the modern world in contrast with the traditional and ancient supernatural world full of witches, legends and auntings, which in turn implements to the film’s sense of dread and terror. This is also paralleled with Burton’s use of formal and expressive style of dialogue, which effectively sustains the seriousness of the situation, that also emanates a suspenseful and mysterious phase to the story/ film. Last but not least burton incorporates omens and supernatural elements such as the fact the Sleepy Hollow is a damaged world influenced by ancient witch craft both good and ev il, the presence of legendary and hellbound avengers which is the headless horseman. Supernatural elements also includes the inclusion of witches in state of possession as well as Ichabod Crane’s influence within the spiritual and supernatural realms. All of these gothic elements play an essential factor in maintaing a suspenseful and sinister atmosphere for the audience. Through Burton’s incorporation of these gothic elements, he has successfully created a sense of dread and terror , thus effectively creating the horror film, Sleepy Hollow (1999). Tim Burton is a successful auteur of gothic films, a sub genre of horror. He has a easily identifiable style that creates dread and terror in the hearts of his audience. He repeats his repeated use of gothic elements such as the dark and eerie setting in the films Edward Scissor Hands (1990), Nightmare before Christmas (1993) and Sleepy Hollow (1999), are created through the use of elongated shadows, harsh lighting, stylized gothic sets and foreboding musical motifs. His flawed protagonists are consistently isolated from those they seek to be accepted by. Edward Scissor hands through his physical deformity, Jack Skellington through his loneliness and boredom and Ichabod Crane through his association with the Supernatural realms, lack of social etiquette and also his avante-garde experimental ways of thinking. Through these skillfully combined gothic elements, suspenseful and horror films are produced.