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| 2. |
- Batabyal, Amitrajeet A. A., et al.
(författare)
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Creative capital, information and communication technologies, and economic growth in smart cities
- 2019
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Ingår i: Economics of Innovation and New Technology. - : ROUTLEDGE JOURNALS, TAYLOR & FRANCIS LTD. - 1043-8599 .- 1476-8364. ; 28:2, s. 142-155
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We study aspects of economic growth in a stylized smart city with two distinct features. First, the modeled inhabitants of this city are smart because they possess skills. Using the language of Richard Florida, these inhabitants comprise the city's creative class and hence they possess creative capital. Second, the city is smart because it uses information and communication technologies (ICTs) and we model one specific kind of ICT use. In this setting, we first derive expressions for three growth related metrics. Second, we use these metrics to show that the economy of smart city A converges to a balanced growth path (BGP). Third, we compute the growth rate of output per effective creative capital unit on this BGP. Fourth, we study how heterogeneity in initial conditions affects outcomes on the BGP by introducing a second smart city B into the analysis. At time t = 0 two key savings rates in city A are twice as large as in city B. We compute the ratio of the BGP value of income per effective creative capital unit in city A to its value in city B. Finally, we compute the ratio of the BGP value of skills per effective creative capital unit in city A to its value in city B.
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| 3. |
- Batabyal, Amitrajeet A., et al.
(författare)
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A political-economy analysis of the provision of urban anti-crime technologies in a model with three cities
- 2020
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Ingår i: Technological forecasting & social change. - : Elsevier BV. - 0040-1625 .- 1873-5509. ; 160
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We use a theoretical political-economy model with three cities and analyze three questions. First, should police in these cities have access to contentious crime fighting technologies such as facial recognition software? We describe a condition involving benefit, cost, and spatial spillover terms which tells us when the police ought to be provided with this technology. Second, if police are to be offered this technology then what are the properties of a policy regime that provides this technology in a decentralized way? We identify a condition that depends only on benefit and cost terms which tells us when this technology is to be made available in the cities in a decentralized way. Finally, what are the properties of a policy regime that provides the technology in a centralized way with equal cost sharing by the cities? We obtain two conditions involving benefit and spatial spillover terms that describe scenarios in which (i) the technology is provided with majority voting in a city even though it is inefficient to do so and (ii) it is efficient to provide the technology in a city but majority voting will lead to this technology not being provided.
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| 4. |
- Batabyal, Amitrajeet A., et al.
(författare)
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A Two-Sector Model of Creative Capital Driven Regional Economic Growth
- 2018
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Ingår i: Journal of Quantitative Economics. - : Springer Nature. - 0971-1554 .- 2364-1045. ; 16:3, s. 831-840
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We study aspects of economic growth in a region that is creative in the sense of Richard Florida. We model creativity by supposing that the region under study has two sectors. The first sector uses physical capital {K(t) } and trained workers {A(t) W(t) } to produce creative capital {R(t) }. The second sector uses physical and creative capital to produce a final consumption good {Q(t) }. In this setting, we accomplish four tasks. First, we derive the equations of motion for physical capital per trained worker (k) and creative capital per trained worker (r). Second, we find combinations of k and r for which k˙ = r˙ = 0. Third, we investigate whether the economy of our creative region has a balanced growth path (BGP). Finally, assuming that our region is initially on a BGP, we study the impact of a permanent increase in the savings rate (s) on the trajectory of output per worker.
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| 5. |
- Batabyal, Amitrajent A., et al.
(författare)
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On pessimism and optimism by forward looking agents and the need for pensions
- 2018
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Ingår i: Asia-Pacific Journal of Regional Science. - : Springer Science and Business Media B.V.. - 2509-7954 .- 2509-7946. ; 2:1
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We study whether pessimism and optimism about the future by forward looking agents provides a rationale for pensions. We first distinguish between an agent’s true and pessimistic preferences and then analyze whether this agent’s level of saving depends on the pessimism parameter (π) and how welfare measured by the agent’s true preferences depends on π. Next, we examine whether it is possible for pessimism to increase the agent’s true utility and then show that this kind of pessimism does not provide a rationale for pensions. Moving on to optimism, we study the need for a pay-as-you-go (PAYG) pension system when the agent is optimistic about the generosity of the PAYG system. This optimism is modeled with a parameter (ω). In this setting, we first study the impact that an increase in ω has on the agent’s saving and then examine whether this agent’s welfare increases or decreases in ω. Finally, we show that this kind of optimism does not justify the presence of the PAYG pension system.
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- Caragliu, Andrea, et al.
(författare)
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The winner takes it all : forward-looking cities and urban innovation
- 2016
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Ingår i: The annals of regional science. - : Springer. - 0570-1864 .- 1432-0592. ; 56:3, s. 617-645
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- This paper offers a new perspective on urban innovation and enters the debate on the contribution of non-material growth-enhancing factors to the socio-economic performance of cities. Because of the often widespread availability of "hard" production factors, most cities increasingly compete for attracting non-material production factors whose role, in light of the more widespread diffusion of physical production factors, may ultimately determine their long-run economic success. Against this background, our paper focuses on a relatively neglected non-material factor, viz. urban risk attitude. In fact, cities offer the competitive and challenging environment where individual characteristics of actors may enjoy their highest returns; risk-loving and innovative individuals may sort in large urban agglomerations. The paper tests whether cities attracting such individuals and, thus, enjoying a more positive and open attitude towards risk, tend to innovate more. The empirical analysis of the paper is based on the most recent (2008/2009) wave of the European Values Study. Micro- data on about 80,000 individuals located in different EU urban areas are used to calculate city-specific attitudes towards risk that go beyond individual characteristics. This city-level risk attitude variable is then used within a knowledge production function approach, as an explanatory variable for urban innovation (patent applications to the European Patent Office) along with more traditional knowledge determinants (human capital and R&D expenditures). Our empirical results show that cities with a more open and positive attitude towards risk ceteris paribus also tend to be more innovative. In addition, we find that, unlike traditional knowledge production factors, this factor faces no decreasing returns. While further research might be beneficial in order to more precisely pinpoint the extent of such effects, our findings appear to be robust and suggest a positive role for the urban attitude towards risky endeavours in explaining urban innovation.
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| 8. |
- Dziecielski, Michal, et al.
(författare)
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Basins of attraction around large cities : A study of urban interaction spaces in Europe
- 2021
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Ingår i: Cities. - : Elsevier. - 0264-2751 .- 1873-6084. ; 119
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The geographic dispersion and size distribution of cities seem, at first glance, to exhibit a random pattern. Clearly, physical geography, geo-political history and climatology shape irregular constraints and forms in the global pattern of urban evolution, so that an entirely regular spatial picture of cities and their interactions in space is not plausible. In the history of urban geography, regional science and spatial planning, several attempts have been undertaken to identify or derive organised or stylised structures in the seemingly chaotic system of real-world settlements. Examples are Central Place Theory, the Tinbergen-Bos models of hierarchical spatial systems, or Tellier's topo-dynamic corridors. The present paper seeks to offer a stylised and quantitative depiction of the relative spatial positions and spheres of influence of 14 large European cities in a geo-gravitational force field, based on detailed data on an extensive set of multidimensional indicators from the multi-annual GPCI (Global Power City Index) data set. Assuming an interconnected urban network, the paper tests and maps out the existence of gravitational interactions between urban agglomerations by producing impact fields of spatial attractors (basins of attraction) in the European urban system. This approach forms an illustration of the emerging Systemic Economic Geography (SEG). Given the multi-annual nature of our data, we address particularly the complex urban field dynamics using the principle of gravitational interactions. The dynamics of individual urban agglomerations is calculated and mapped out using Newton's second law of motion for a study on fractal geometry. This 'neo-Newtonian' approach is able to trace spatial spheres of influence of urban agglomerations, while the underlying algorithm allows to test the factors responsible for spatial resistance or geographic frictions. In this way, we can delineate the contours of a stylised map for the gravitational fields of cities with different size, distance frictions and geographical locations. The paper addresses in particular the effect of generalized friction parameters for a set of pluriform urban key characteristics on the gravitational urban arena in Europe. It turns out that size, relative spatial position, spatial friction and multidimensional urban moderator variables are responsible for the emergence of a complex and often disorganised urban spatial interaction field. Our analysis frames in a nutshell the principles of spatial attractors in the urban geography of our world, and of Europe in particular. Such 'virtual reality' experiments shed light on the dynamic complexity of urban systems.
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| 9. |
- Farrell, Kyle
(författare)
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Rapid Urbanization : An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Urban Transition in Developing Countries
- 2018
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- This thesis is concerned with the challenges posed by the contemporary urban narrative in developing countries. It is premised on the notion of the urban transition, which posits that as a country develops it undergoes a transformation from a predominantly rural society to a predominantly urban one. Throughout most of history, the urban transition was largely a phenomenon confined to what are considered todays developed countries; however, sometime around the middle of the 20th century, this began to change and the urban transition began to takeoff in developing countries. The contemporary urban narrative differentiates itself from historical accounts in that it is unfolding at an unprecedented pace and scale, placing significant pressure on urban areas. With the pressures of rapid urbanization and rapid urban growth already outstripping the capacities of local governments, planning and managing the urban transition is arguably one of the most important topics of the 21st century. In an attempt to identify approaches for managing the unprecedented pace and scale of the contemporary urban narrative, this thesis sets out to investigate the forces underpinning it. It has been organized into two parts: the first part comprises a comprehensive cover essay setting out the overarching research agenda and the second part comprises a series of five articles that make up the empirical analysis. Both sections can be read independently or constitute a single entity.The main contribution of this thesis is the introduction of a multidisciplinary framework for conceptualizing the urban transition in developing countries and its application to several case studies. The so-called ‘Rapid Urban Growth Triad’ situates the components of urban growth (rural to urban migration, urban natural population increase and reclassification of rural areas as urban) within their dominant theoretical discourses. As such, it views urban natural population increase as a demographic factor effected by changes in fertility and mortality patterns, rural to urban migration as an economic factor resulting from rural push and urban pull dynamics, and reclassification of rural areas as urban as a political/ administrative factor which occurs through the annexation of neighboring settlements, rural areas upgraded as urban, settlements crossing defined population thresholds and changes in urban definition. The framework offers explanatory power to the previously neglected components of urban growth and serves as a diagnostic for examining the urban transition under a range of circumstances.Utilizing the new conceptual framework as the primary mode of analysis, this thesis employs several demographic accounting techniques to disaggregate urbanization into its individual components of urban growth and computes their individual contributions to the overall urban increment. China, Nigeria and India have been selected as notable case studies, as these three countries are expected to account for the largest increase in urban population over the coming decades. The findings indicate that rural to urban migration has been the dominant component of urban growth in China, while urban natural population increase has been the dominant component in Nigeria and India; furthermore, in all three case studies, reclassification has made a more sizable contribution than initially understood. Moreover, it was found that in some instances the policies being prescribed to manage the urban transition did not match the identified sources of growth, suggesting a potential policy mismatch. This thesis also reveals several dynamics pertaining to the unprecedented pace and scale of the urban transition and the relationship between urbanization and economic growth. Collectively, these findings offer a more nuanced account of the urban transition in developing countries.Despite the urban transition being a universal event that unfolds in nearly all countries of the world, this thesis finds that it does not necessarily unfold in a uniform manner, suggesting the notion of multiple urbanization trajectories. These findings have implications for existing policies, which tend to be based on a rather outmoded understanding of the urban transition. Ultimately, this thesis calls for more informed (evidenced-based) approaches for understanding and managing the urban transition in developing countries.
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| 10. |
- Farrell, Kyle, et al.
(författare)
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The Evolution of National Urban Systems in China, Nigeria and India
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Annan publikation (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- As a country transitions from a lower order of development to a higher order of development, it undergoes a structural transformation. Accordingly, the spatial economy transforms from a system organized around smaller economic units distributed throughout the countryside, to one comprising larger economic units concentrated in dense urban areas. While historically this process unfolded at a rather gradual pace, it is now being redefined by the unprecedented pace and scale of the contemporary urban narrative. This has presented new patterns of urbanization. Utilizing comparable datasets for China, Nigeria and India this paper examines the evolution of national urban systems under conditions of rapid urban transformation. In doing so, it scrutinizes three key dynamics: the spatial distribution of cities, the rate of growth by city size class and the size hierarchy of cities. The results are compared to see if uniform patterns emerge. The findings of this paper suggest a certain degree of heterogeneity among national urban systems; and in some instances contrasting patterns can be observed. We thus caution against a ‘one size fits all’ approach to interpreting the urban transition in developing countries. The findings of this paper have implications for both theory and policy.
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