INCREASING RETURNS IN A MODEL WITH CREATIVE AND PHYSICAL CAPITAL: DOES A BALANCED GROWTH PATH EXIST?

Amitrajeet A. BATABYAL

Department of Economics, Rochester Institute of Technology, 92 Lomb Memorial Drive, Rochester, NY 14623-5604, USA.
aabgsh@rit.edu

Abstract

In this note we study aspects of economic growth in a region that produces a final consumption good with creative and physical capital. This consumption good is manufactured with a production function that exhibits increasing returns to scale. Our analysis leads to three results. First, we compute the growth rate of creative capital in our regional economy. Second, we show that despite the presence of increasing returns, the regional economy under study converges to a balanced growth path (BGP). Finally, we compute the growth rates of physical capital and output on the BGP.

Keywords: Balanced Growth Path, Creative Capital, Creative Region, Economic Growth, Increasing Returns

JEL classification: R11, D20
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EMPLOYMENT AND HUMAN CAPITAL IN THE GREEK HOTEL INDUSTRY

Efstathios VELISSARIOU
Department of Business Administration – Division of Hospitality management
Technological Educational Institute of Thessaly, GR
belissar@teilar.gr

Christos AMIRADIS
Department of Business Administration Division of Hospitality management
Technological Educational Institute of Thessaly, GR
amic@teilar.gr

Abstract
Tourism can have significant impacts on employment in tourist destinations. It must be also noted that the human capital in the tourism sector, and more specifically in hotels, constitutes a basic factor of quality. The effectiveness of service in the Hotel industry is often linked with the sufficient number of hotel personnel, their individual qualities and efficient Human resources management. The development of the hotel industry in Greece and the resulted employment and characteristics of the human resources in relationship to the hotel classification are presented in the present paper.
The paper presents and compares studies and statistical data related to employment and the human capital in the hotel industry in Greece. Several studies in the last years dealt with the volume and the characteristics of employment in the hotel enterprises in Greece. These studies show that the indicator “employee per bed”, as well as the educational level of the employees, are directly related to the category classification of the hotels. Furthermore the employment in the hotel sector in Greece is calculated at 3.2% of total employment, while the employment in the tourism sector is estimated at 10% of the labor force in Greece. The paper concludes with proposals regarding the employment of personnel in the Greek hotel industry.

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THE PSYCHOLOGICAL AND SYMBOLIC FACTOR OF GREAT BRITAIN’S GEOSTRATEGY IN THE CYPRUS-SUEZ ISSUE

Professor Ioannis Th. MAZIS
Faculty of Turkish Studies and Modern Asian Studies
School of Economic and Political Sciences
National and Kapodistrian University of Athens
mazis@her.forthnet.gr; yianmazis@turkmas.uoa.gr

Abstract

In the present paper I argue that, since Cyprus came under the British rule and for at least seven decades, Britain did not consider Cyprus a “territory of major strategic importance for the Crown”. I also argue that the policy makers of colonial Britain probably considered this island one of the “poor colonies”, since it did not have raw material deposits or any kind of industrial infrastructure. Thus, I suggest that Greek researchers should examine how Great Britain was perceiving the strategic importance of Cyprus until the end of World War II and, therefore, should not insist on blaming the Greek side that, supposedly, did not take into account Britain’s sensitivity and “unwisely sought the Union (Enosis) of Cyprus with Greece, which annoyed Britain and led to the well-known traumatic events”.

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