Spatial Diffusion of Management Practices in Urban and Rural Areas

Data on production and management practices across firms are scarce.Therefore studies of rural and urban industrial development have usually abstracted from this issue or have invoked product cycle theory to explain comparative urban and rural productive ingenuity. Several qualitative studies of rural production have contradicted the product cycle hypotheses, but attempts to generalize these results have not succeeded. An attempt is made here to test the product cycle explanation of industrial location using the registry of firms with ISO 9000 certification in nine southern states. These data suggest a bifurcation of rural counties. Urban and rural counties containing certified firms have been much more likely to increase the number of such firms, but in those counties without certified firms the probability of new certified firms has declined     

The rural identity and the encroaching city: Governance,policy and development in Northern Virginia's Wine Country

In exurban areas, there are commonly issues and tensions associated with development and rural life. We assess how two counties located approximately one hour west of Washington, DC manage these tensions. Although both have enabled development, they have done so in different ways and neither has simply succumbed to exurban development as a given. Utilizing stakeholder interviews and document analysis, we note the different policy approaches that the two counties have taken and contrast them with the more common imagery of areas that fully acquiesce to suburban style development. Our findings suggest that tensions between the pressures of development and the persistent appeal of the rural identity occupy much time and attention in these two counties. Both counties have adopted observable policy changes driven by development pressures in recent years, underscoring a policy landscape that is in flux and the modern tension between the commercial economy of modernity, and the rural identity that is retained from the past. We observe that rural governance is largely about land, while urban governance is largely about people. As these two cases suggest, exurban governance has to be about both issues and this tension may lead to governance that is inherently unstable.     

重庆农村新型股份合作社发育动因研究——基于重庆500户农户和100位基层干部的调查数据

为了探索出适合城乡统筹区域的新农村股份合作社,基于重庆市12个县(市、区)的500户农户和100位基层干部的随机抽样调查数据,从制度经济学的角度研究重庆农村新型股份合作社的发育动因。结果表明:(1)农业经济效益低下,城乡居民收入差距大是合作社制度创新的根本原因;(2)作为农业的最直接生产和经营者的农户,认为通过组建或参与农村新型股份合作社,能够给他们带来较高的并且稳定的收益,因此农户便很容易地自愿组成一个个的初级行动团体,共同追逐更多的外部利润;(3)样本区大多数基层干部认为农村新型股份合作社是促进资源整合、提升农业产业化经营水平、加快新农村建设的有效途径。由此可见,无论是初级行动团体还是次级行动团体都对农村新型股份合作社表现出积极的参与意愿,农村新型股份合作社这种制度创新必将发生。     

Rural‐to‐Urban Commuting: Three Degrees of Integration

Commuting ties between rural places of residence and urban places of employment are among the most visible forms of rural–urban integration. For some rural areas, access to urban employment is a key source of population retention and growth. However, this access varies considerably across rural areas, with distance representing a primary deterrent. In addition to distance, the size of the urban community will also influence rural‐to‐urban commuting opportunities. In this paper, using Canadian data, we empirically estimated the influence of local rural population and job growth on rural out‐commuting within the urban hierarchy. We find consistent support for the deconcentration hypothesis where population moves to rural areas for lifestyle and quality of life reasons, while retaining urban employment. Further, we find some evidence that in addition to distance from the nearest urban center being a deterrent, increased remoteness from the top of the urban hierarchy exerts a positive influence on out‐commuting. Recognition of these types of rural–urban linkages through commuting is essential in designing Canadian rural policy and targeted programs that may effectively support local rural populations. In particular, they point to the need to have reasonable transportation infrastructure for urban accessibility, which should be complemented by other “built” infrastructure to improve the livability of rural communities.     

Interregional Fiscal Accounting

ABSTRACT Fiscal devolution fiom federal to state jurisdictions gives states more authority but also more responsibility for redistributing and stabilizing income. Both the revenue and expenditure sides of a state's budget are affected. This paper describes a social accounting matrix approach to documenting multi-regional, multi-jurisdiction fiscal accounts, called a fiscal SAM. Two of the many potential uses of a fiscal SAM are demonstrated. First, a fiscal SAM of rural, urban, and metro areas of Iowa is used directly to describe and compare the benchmark net fiscal situations of interdependent regions. Second, it is used to analyze the impacts of an economic downturn under a block-grant welfare system. Substate regions are relatively more specialized than state or national economies. Thus, for example, shocks to agriculture will directly affect agriculture-dependent counties more than other types of counties. Substate regions are also more interdependent than states, as well as more open than the nation as a whole. This means that indirect and spatial spillover effects of fiscal and other exogenous changes can be surprisingly large between counties. Here, analysis of fhe multipliers highlights the relative intensities of within and across-region effects of changes in the form of intergovernmental transfers. The multiplier simulation estimates the relative impacts and spillover effects of economic shocks under the new regime.     

Telecommunications Infrastructure in the Southeastern United States: Urban and Rural Variation

The capabilities of central office (CO) telephone switches in four southeastern states (Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, and Tennessee) provide detail on spatial variation in telecommunications technologies. A proposed six‐level hierarchy of switch capability was used. Switches with digital capability are concentrated disproportionately in metropolitan areas, largely in response to larger numbers of business establishments. The overall picture in the Southeast is one of tremendous variation—variation across states and variation within the four states being studied. Rural (nonmetro) counties generally, but not always, have both fewer switches overall and fewer switches with digital capability. North Carolina and Tennessee, the two most urban of the four states, also have seen the greatest entry by new telecommunications competitors. These two states have the largest percentages of advanced (digital) switches in both metro and rural counties. At the county level, the number of switches is primarily a function of a county's population but, even more significantly in three states, of the number of business establishments in the county. On the whole, it is residents of metropolitan—not rural—areas who are most likely to be served by newer forms of digital telecommunications.     

Commuting distances to local non‐farm workplaces and out‐migration: The case of Northeast Thailand

The relationship between commuting distances and where people work has been studied for urban contexts in both developed countries and developing countries. However, few studies have examined the situation in rural areas, and none look at commuting distances to non‐farm workplaces in rural areas of developing countries. This paper investigates how commuting distance, and thus accessibility, to local non‐farm work influences non‐farm employment and out‐migration from rural villages in Northeast Thailand. The main issues examined are: (i) the distance that rural residents travel to work in local non‐farm jobs; and (ii) the influence that local non‐farm employment has on the number of outmigrants from rural villages. The study finds: (i) distance between villages and non‐farm work sites impact the number of villagers who are employed in regular wage work; (ii) beyond 20 km villagers are less likely to travel to non‐farm employment using their own means of transportation; and (iii) employment in regular wage work decreases outmigration. The findings from this study contribute to the debates over the drivers of rural out‐migration, rural livelihood changes, and agrarian changes that are taking place in Southeast Asia.     

Regional Development and Land Use Change in the Rocky Mountain West, 1982‐1997

ABSTRACT Economic and demographic restructuring, along with the increasing desirability of environmental amenities, have driven growth in the eight‐state region of the Rocky Mountain West to extraordinary levels in recent decades. While social scientists have developed a solid conceptual understanding of the processes driving growth and change in the region, the broad nature of the land use outcomes associated with in‐migration has not received nearly as much scholarly attention. This article initiates an in‐depth empirical investigation on the magnitude, nature, and spatial variation of land use change in the Rocky Mountain West over the 1982‐1997 time period. Data from the USDA's National Resources Inventory reveals that the conversion of landscapes from rural to urban types of land uses varies significantly from place to place, not only in terms of total land developed, but also with respect to how population pressures and a number of other local characteristics of counties manifest themselves in the spatial pattern of growth.     

中国西部地区县域城乡统筹发展模式探讨

县域城乡统筹发展是西部地区经济社会发展的必由之路。现阶段,受资源禀赋、人力资源、产业发展、制度环境等要素条件影响,中国东、中、西部县域城乡统筹发展水平有明显差异。自2001年国家实施西部大开发战略以来,特别是“十一五”时期,西部地区县域经济城乡统筹发展已经取得积极成效。西部不少市县在立足当地实际、因地制宜地加快县域城乡统筹发展的过程中,逐步形成各具特色的县域城乡统筹发展模式。对于西部地区县域城乡统筹发展模式的研究,也就在于总结、梳理西部各省县域城乡统筹发展成就、经验和做法,比较不同区域、不同县区县域城乡统筹发展路子或模式,探讨西部地区统筹城乡发展、转变经济发展方式思路和对策。     

Job Lock in Rural versus Urban Labor Markets

While the possible negative effect of employer‐sponsored health insurance on labor mobility (job lock) has spawned substantial research, little research has considered differences in job lock between rural and urban areas. Job lock might differ in rural areas because of specific features of rural economies, in particular, the thinness of rural labor markets. This paper estimates measures of job lock for rural and urban areas. Parameter estimates suggest that it is larger in rural areas. The results also indicate that nonwage benefits such as retirement plans, paid vacation, and sick pay are more important factors in married rural workers decisions to change jobs while wages are a more important factor in the transition decisions of single urban workers.     

Jobs,Houses, and Trees: Changing Regional Structure,Local Land‐Use Patterns,and Forest Cover in Southern Indiana

Land‐use and ‐cover change is a topic of increasing concern as interest in forest and agricultural land preservation grows. Urban and residential land use is quickly replacing extractive land use in southern Indiana. The interaction between land quality and urban growth pressures is also causing secondary forest growth and forest clearing to occur jointly in a complex spatial pattern. It is argued that similar processes fuel the abandonment of agricultural land leading to private forest regrowth, changes in topography and land quality, and declining real farm product prices. However, the impact of urban growth and development on forests depends more strongly on changes in both the residential housing and labor markets. Using location quotient analysis of aggregate employment patterns, and the relationship between regional labor market changes, the extent of private forest cover was examined from 1967 to 1998. Then an econometric model of land‐use shares in forty southern Indiana counties was developed based on the net benefits to agriculture, forestland, and urban uses. To test the need to control explicitly for changes in residential demand and regional economic structure, a series of nested models was estimated. Some evidence was found that changing agricultural profitability is leading to private forest regrowth. It was also uncovered that the ratio of urban to forest land uses is better explained by incorporating measures of residential land value and industrial concentration than simply considering population density alone.     

The impact of external knowledge sourcing on innovation outcomes in rural and urban businesses in the U.S.

This paper examines the relationship between external knowledge sourcing and a diverse set of innovation outcomes in rural and urban establishments in the U.S. Existing studies in the broader knowledge management literature principally examine firms in a single industry, overwhelmingly rely on patent data to proxy for innovation, and cannot account for the innovations of businesses in rural American markets. By addressing these limitations using data from the 2014 Rural Establishment Innovation Survey of the USDA's Economic Research Service, this research provides novel insights into how externally acquired knowledge by American establishments may support innovation. Results of the analysis suggest that external knowledge sourcing may specifically promote product, process, and green innovation in U.S. firms. While collective results when external sources of information are divided by industry orientation fail to show that sources outside of a firm's industry play a dominant role in the innovation processes of American establishments in general, findings provide evidence for an outsized impact of these relationships within rural establishments specifically and suggest that external knowledge sourcing from extra‐industry organizations is most critical for promoting successful innovation in rural firms. Results additionally indicate that knowledge sourcing from non‐local organizations may be more important for supporting innovation in rural compared to urban markets.     

石家庄市耕地变化及其驱动力分析

为了制定切实可行的耕地保护措施和城乡居民点集约用地标准,应用对比分析和主成分分析法,分析了石家庄市耕地变化特征及其驱动力。结果表明,石家庄市耕地总面积和人均耕地面积呈现减少趋势,减少速率时间和区域差异明显,经济发展速度快的年份和经济发展水平高的县市减少速率大;经济发展是耕地减少的根本动力,人口增长是耕地减少的重要因素,科技进步和复种指数提高补偿了耕地减少的产能损失,国家政策松紧对耕地减少速率具有重要影响;应从控制人口数量、科学规划并严格控制建设用地、加强基本农田保护等方面加强耕地保护,以促进区域人地关系协调发展。     

江西省统筹低碳城乡一体化研究

城乡一体化是中国的重大战略决策,也是中国工业化和城镇化顺利推进的根本保证。为了促进江西省低碳城乡一体化发展,需要就江西省城乡一体化发展过程中存在的问题进行剖析,分析出现这些问题的原因和本质,以及解决的方法和途径,并在此基础上提出相应的对策和政策建议。通过采用定性和定量的分析方法,从能源供应、绿色低碳、耕地保护、城乡差距、城市规模等方面,对江西省城乡一体化的现状、未来的发展趋势以及面临的挑战进行了分析。结果表明,江西省在发展经济的过程中,出现产业发展重工化和高碳化、能源供应短缺、粮食安全难以保障、城乡差距扩大以及城市规模不合理等问题。针对这些问题,江西省应从加强能源储备、发展低碳产业、保护农用耕地、缩小城乡差距等方面,积极实施有效的政策措施,以确保能源供应安全和粮食安全,并推动城镇化朝着绿色、低碳、城乡协调的方向发展,为江西省的低碳城乡一体化发展提供有力保障。     

农村集体建设用地集约利用面临的挑战与对策——以渝东北11区县为例

渝东北地区作为重庆市“一圈两翼”发展战略的重要组成部分,具有三峡库区的特殊性,该地区农村集体建设用地的集约利用将更加有效地显化农村土地资产、保护库区生态环境。基于此本文对渝东北地区丰都、忠县、垫江、梁平、万州、开县、云阳、奉节、巫山、巫溪、城口等11个区县展开实地调研,并综合运用问卷调查、专家咨询和文献资料等方法,解析了该地区“宅基地置换城镇住房保障”、“城乡建设用地增减挂钩”等多种土地集约利用创新模式,以及产权管理模糊、规划管理薄弱等面临的挑战,最后从完善农村集体建设用地产权、统筹城乡建设用地规划管理2个方面论述了农村集体建设用地集约利用的对策建议。     

Does Shale Energy Development Mean More Crime? The Case of the Bakken Oil Boom

The rise and fall of shale oil production in recent years have led to tremendous economic growth and challenges to shale communities in the U.S. In this study, we attempt to address the inconsistent results in previous studies and shed light on the relationship between rural crimes and shale oil development at the Bakken using county‐level data for Montana and North Dakota from 2000 through 2014. Our results indicated statistically significant evidence of increased aggravated assaults, burglaries, larcenies, and motor vehicle thefts in shale‐oil producing counties during the boom. However, the regression results suggest that the rise in certain violent crime, such as murder, rape, and robbery, is not statistically attributable to the shale oil boom or oil activity, but to increased population in the two states. The crime effect of the boom also grew larger especially after 2008. The results point to some evidence of social disruption in rural communities undergoing rapid shale oil development. More importantly, the Bakken's crime experience also suggests a number of critical needs for shale energy regions nationwide.     

Spatial Patterns in the Economic Development of the Mountain West

ABSTRACT Many counties in the mountainous areas of the western U.S. are experiencing rapid growth in population and income, even though extractive industries that served historically as their primary economic base are in decline. The purpose of this paper is to establish statistically the spatial determinants of population, employment, and income densities in 86 rural mountain counties and any changes in those determinants between 1985 and 1994. The results of this analysis indicate that densities are oriented to regional metropolitan centers and critical amenities such as ski areas, national parks, and universities or colleges. Negatively sloped density gradients with respect to distance from regional metropolitan centers suggest that the densities of settlement patterns beyond metropolitan boundaries are analogous to those within metropolitan areas relative to urban centers. In short, a tension apparently exists in locational choice; residents of the Mountain West desire to live near the beauties and amenities of the mountain landscape but do not want to entirely sever their urban ties. Because amenities are the primary attraction of mountain counties rather than employment in locationally dependent industries, at least some migrants must have relatively footloose forms of income.     

A micro‐level data analysis of household energy demand in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa,Pakistan: An application of linear approximate almost ideal demand system

This study examines energy choice, consumption pattern and household energy expenditure in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK) using the Linear Approximate Almost Ideal Demand System (LA‐AIDS). The study used micro‐level data to estimate the price and expenditure elasticities by employing (SUR) methodology. Empirical findings showed that energy choice, consumption patterns, and demand are different for urban‐rural households in the province. Each household living in KPK spent 1838.81 Rupees (9.92%) on energy purchases out of its total average monthly expenditure of Rs. 18,542.79. Compared to urban households, households living in rural areas spend more on energy consumption in a proportionate manner. The expenditure elasticities estimated for all energy sources are positive and statistically significant. Furthermore, the result showed that expenditure elasticities estimated for urban and rural households are less than one, suggesting that all the sources of energy are necessities. Natural gas and electricity are the main energy sources for urban households, while firewood and electricity are key energy sources for rural households in the province. The study suggested that rural households need to switch from conventional energy sources to modern and renewable energy sources, which would reduce the cost of energy use.     

河南省城乡居民消费结构的比较分析

为缩小城乡居民消费结构差距,提高城乡居民消费水平和消费质量,本研究基于城乡视角,利用1993—2013 年间《河南省统计年鉴》数据,首先分析河南省城乡居民消费结构的变动情况及其差异,然后应用ELES模型,对城乡居民消费结构进行了静态分析。结果表明：1993—2013 年间河南省城乡居民食品、衣着、居住、家庭设备、医疗保健、交通通信、文教娱乐、杂项八大类消费品中,城镇居民消费水平明显高于农村居民,结构变化明显,城镇居民的消费结构优于农村居民,城镇居民整体消费欲望强于农村居民。受收入水平的影响,城乡居民消费结构中食品支出仍居于重要位置。农村居民各类需求的收入弹性均小于城镇居民,映射出农村居民低水平消费的基本态势。住房成为农村居民高度关注的重大消费项目,依然为生存型消费;而城镇居民较为关注的是交通通信、杂项和家庭设备,属于发展型与享受型消费。受消费品价格的影响,城镇居民杂项支出与农村居民居住支出变化较为剧烈,城乡居民消费次序存在一定的差异。因此,提升居民购买力、引导购买意愿、优化购买环境是缩小河南省城乡居民消费结构差异的主要路径。     

Poverty and Local Governments: Economic Development and Community Service Provision in an Era of Decentralization

Social scientists have given substantial attention to poverty across U.S. localities. However, most work views localities through the lens of population aggregates, not as units of government. Few poverty researchers question whether governments of poorer localities have the capacity to engage in economic development and service activities that might improve community well‐being. This issue is increasingly important as responsibilities for growth and redistribution are decentralized to local governments that vary dramatically in resources. Do poorer communities have less activist local governments? Are they more likely to be engaged in a race to the bottom, focusing on business attraction activities but neglecting services for families and working people? We bring together two distinct literatures, critical research on decentralization and research on local development efforts, that provide contrasting views about the penalty of poverty. Data are from a unique, national survey of county governments measuring activity across two time points. The most consistent determinants of activity are local government capacity, devolutionary pressures, and inertia or past use of strategies. Net of these factors, levels and changes in poverty do not significantly impact government activity. There is no evidence the nations' poorest counties are racing to the bottom. Findings challenge views that poverty is a systematic structural barrier to pursuing innovative economic development policies and suggest that even poorer communities can take steps to build local capacity, resources, and networks that expand programs for local businesses and low‐wage people.