Morris Altman

University of Dundee · School of Business

I model how labour rights, providing workers and management with effective voice, combined with full employment contributes to a dynamic, more productive and efficient market economy. Contrary to the ‘mainstream’ view adhered to by both conventional and many ‘heterodox’ economists, that an empowered labour force negatively impacts the economy, I ar...

How to cite this article: Altman, M. (2021). The power of cooperatives: Converting monopolists into self-regulating and efficient organisations. Journal of Cooperative Studies, 54(3), 23-32 This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License subject to a six-month embargo after the article is published...

This construction boom was heavily subsidized by the dominion government of Canada. François-Albert Angers forcefully and eloquently argued that the dominion government discriminated against Quebec in terms of railway construction and aid for economic development.

From available in the Canadian censuses, we construct some of the most detailed historical estimates for the industrialized world for occupational structure and the gender pay gap from 1900 to 1930. Our findings suggest that pay inequality in Canada diminished over the period under study, although the rate of pay received by women remained substant...

Albert Faucher and Maurice Lamontagne argued in their classic 1953 article, “History of Industrial Development,” that Quebec’s relative distance from sources of coal and iron ore retarded its industrial development from the 1860s to 1911 in comparison with that of Ontario. Quebec was able to acquire these resources only at a higher cost than was On...

For the first time, estimates of real gross domestic product, per capita GDP, and growth rates for early Canada or New France are constructed for the 1695–1739. This is made possible by the fairly comprehensive and accurate censuses, particularly from 1680 to 1739 period. These estimates challenge the view that early Canada’s economy was stagnant a...

The impact of labor market segmentation on gender pay inequality is investigated through the example of the feminization of clerical work in Canada in the 1900–1930 period. We find that female clerical workers were paid well above what they could earn in other sectors, although they were consistently paid less than male clerical workers, albeit the...

A crucial finding of this chapter is that French Canadian farmers typically earned a lower agricultural income than did their non-French Canadian counterparts irrespective of the system of land tenure. Their income was further reduced by the tax imposed on them by the seigneurial system of land tenure. They were characterized by a much poorer produ...

This paper argues that per capita manufacturing output was greater in Ontario than in Quebec by 1910 and that this differential increased from 1870 to 1910. Furthermore, this paper challenges the view that Ontario’s advantage in per capita output was a product of its population growing at a slower pace than Quebec’s.

The staple theory is a subset of the export-led growth hypothesis, designed to explain the growth and economic development of resource rich economies. It is a theory that has been misunderstood and is seen to be at odds with the stylized facts of economic growth and development as well as with mainstream neoclassical wisdom. This chapter presents a...

This article presents a case study of the historical causes of interregional differentials in labour productivity which played, and still continue to play, an important role in explaining interregional and international differences in the amount of goods and services available per person.

The contemporary view of Canadian manufacturing growth and development during the post-Confederation/pre-First World War era has been shaped by the work of Gordon Bertram, who constructed estimates of constant dollar gross manufacturing output from which he derived annual growth rates.

This book is a product of my thinking and writing about some challenging questions in Canadian economic history which have implications for our understanding of important issues related to economic development, institutions, gender and power. This book is also a narrative about the implications of the careful and considered construction of data set...

Newly developed data sets reveal that the seigneurial system of land tenure modified the distribution of income in early Canada or New France. This changed the structure of demand, and thus the pattern of investment, probably reducing total output of the colony from what it otherwise might have been. This contravenes the romantic narrative that pri...

A new Canadian nominal GNP series has been recently constructed for the 1870–1926 period by M.C. Urquhart (1986) in association with Alan Green, M.C. McInnis, Thomas Rymes, Alasdair Sinclair, and Marion Steel. Urquhart deflates this series largely with a cost of living index to generate a new real GNP series for the 1870–1926 period.

The first set of hours of work estimates constructed for Canada and its regions for the 1880–1930 period is presented in this chapter. These estimates suggest a trend decline in hours of work, especially following First World War. In addition, these estimates suggest that the decline in hours of work came at no or little cost in terms of real weekl...

I model how community embeddedness and consumer voice can incentivize firms to be more ethical and socially responsible. Building on x-efficiency theory, I also make the case that being more ethical and socially responsible does not imply higher average costs and lower profits as assumed by conventional economic theory. Moreover, being more ethical...

Building on Tomer’s insights on the determinants of unhealthy eating and obesity, we extend the important price-based model of “rational” consumer choice with healthy living determinants such as food and exercise. We argue that variables such as the quality of information, information literacy, access to healthy foods, and safe and affordable space...

Beauty has been used as a fast and frugal heuristic, and therefore an important determinant of choice, as highlighted in research by Hamermesh. In a world of asymmetric information, beauty represents a proxy for objective characteristics or an object of desire, according to an individual’s preferences. A correlate of beauty, sexiness, has been used...

Labour market theory underlies much of economic analysis with implications for theory and policy. I argue that conventional approaches to the labour market as well as more modern approaches represented by aspects of behavioural labour economics and Keynesian economics are often decontextualized from how individuals actually behave and the instituti...

There is a deep and well-regarded tradition in applied economic research and in other social sciences to assign causality to correlation analysis and statistical significance. I critique the application of correlation analysis, unsubstantiated with empirical backing of prior assumptions, as the core analytical measure for causation. Moreover, this...

It is well documented that academics and practitioners focus on statistical significance (typically represented by P tests) and statistical hypothesis testing to determine if their non-statistical analytical hypothesis is correct or likely to be correct. Moreover, statistical significance is relied upon to determine which variables should be used i...

In the conventional economic wisdom, the notion of unique equilibria that are efficient and Pareto optimal dominates the modelling discourse. Hebert Simon proposed an alternative analytical framework where the notion of multiple and sustainable equilibria is critical. Multiple equilibrium is the crucial stylized fact of economic life that requires...

The perspective of modern macroeconomic theory, be it new classical or old and new Keynesian, is that unemployment can be reduced only if real wages are cut. The modern Keynesians, basing themselves upon the microfoundations of efficiency wage theory, argue that real wages cannot and will not be cut by firms for efficiency wage reasons. This genera...

Critical facets of the behavioural model of the firm and of economic agency within the workplace was developed by Harvey Leibenstein through his articulation of efficiency wage and x-efficiency theory. In these theories it is assumed that effort is a discretionary variable and that output need be maximized at some ideal level. If effort is discreti...

I discuss some key issues raised by behavioural economics for better understanding the working of the labour market through the decisions made by employees and employers. Amongst the key points addressed in this chapter are: (i) a revised modelling of the labour supply curve, with a specific focus on the target income approach, (ii) elaborating on...

A common thread running through behavioural economics is that many economic outcomes are inconsistent with the predictions of conventional economic theory. This documented inconsistency opens the door wide open to various alternative models of human decision making and their determinants. And, behavioural economics afford us with sometimes quite di...

In contrast with the conventional perspective on choice behaviour, a model of preference formation is developed of rational or intelligent utility maximizing agents wherein they can possess preferences that are objectively suboptimal from both an individual and social perspective. In other words, one should not assume consumer sovereignty as a give...

This chapter presents a modelling narrative on rational choice or smart behaviour from a bounded rationality perspective, building in part on the pioneering work of Herbert Simon and Harvey Leibenstein. I argue that smart or rational individuals can behave inefficiently at both the micro or macro (social) level in both the realm of production and c...

This chapter summarizes different methodological approaches to financial literacy with implications for better understanding decision making in this domain and with implications for public policy. Conventional economics predicts no substantive improvement to financial literacy flowing from improvements to financial literacy. The errors and biases a...

Summarising some of the key findings of this book, it is argued that it is important to acknowledge that the Asia Pacific region is much to heterogeneous to make that case that specific Asian Pacific values exist. Therefore such values could not be the driving force underlying differences in co-operatives across Asian Pacific regions and countries....

This chapter examines the hypothesis that core cooperative principles, as articulated in the International Cooperative Alliance (ICA) principles, represent necessary conditions for the efficient, effective, and sustainable operation and growth of a cooperative and, more generally, of cooperatives. Conventional economic theory would suggest that suc...

Conventional theory assumes that economic agents perform at optimal levels of efficiency by definition and this is achieved when individuals behave in a particular fashion. Moreover, neoclassical production theory masks the process by which optimal output can be achieved. I argue that economic theory should be revised to incorporate some key findin...

Conclusion of Executive Summary This project focused on developing and enhancing the evidence base of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander student participation and success in Australian higher education, with special attention paid to business-related education in Australian business schools. The systematic participation and success gaps between...

Becker stands out as a Godfather of conventional economics because of his reliance on prices, income, and rationality as a means of analysing and predicting choice behaviour. He also accepts, for modelling purposes, the assumption that individuals make decisions after considering the consequences of these decisions. Hence, there can't be any regret...

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to measure the size of New Zealand’s co-operative sector, in terms of its direct contribution to output and employment as well as its indirect impact. This adds to the construction of a rigorous representation of the global co-operative economy. Design/methodology/approach The findings here are based on data de...

One of the early key empirical findings of the happiness literature is that at higher levels of per capita real income there appears to be diminishing returns to income at least with regards to marginal changes in ‘happiness’ measured by various survey instruments. Although these results have been recently challenged, these earlier findings and the...

Focusing on consumer co-operatives, I test the conventional economic worldview that relative price is a main determinants of consumer behaviour using survey instruments in a classroom setting. I examine the role which non-economic variables such as 'warm glow' might play in determining demand. My findings challenge the narrow economic worldview tha...

In the conventional economic wisdom, the notion of unique equilibria that are efficient and Pareto optimal dominates the modeling discourse. Hebert Simon proposed an alternative analytical framework where the notion of multiple and sustainable equilibria is critical. Multiple equilibrium is the crucial stylized fact of economic life that requires b...

A critical point made by behavioral economists from a wide set of methodological perspectives is that individuals typically do not make decisions that are consistent with conventional economic theoretical norms of rational behavior. This is true of those building on the errors and biases, or heuristics and biases, approach derived from the research...

Cooperatives represent an alternative to large-scale corporate farms as well as to independent unaffiliated small private farms. This article presents a comparative modeling narrative on cooperative organizational forms’ potential impact on equitable rural development. This speaks to issues of both increasing the size of the economic pie and how th...

Elaborates on how economic psychology facilitates a better and more complete understanding of issues related to sports economics. This is the case especially for sports teams and individual-based sports.

This chapter provides a critical review of behavioral economic approaches to decision making with a focus on the thinking processes of investors. It discusses the bounded rationality approach to decision making as compared to the errors and biases approach for better understanding decision-making processes and outcomes. The former focuses on the im...

I discuss some key issues raised by behavioral economics for better understanding the working of the labor market. Amongst the key points in this paper are: (i) a revised modeling of the labor supply curve, with a specific focus on the target income approach (ii) elaborating on the importance of effort variability for understanding labor supply, in...

For the past three decades, neoclassical doctrine has dominated economic theory and policy. The balance of power has shifted to protect private interests, resulting in unprecedented damage to the environment and society, with no solution in sight as more austerity and less government continues to be posited as the answer to the oncoming waves of cr...

In this article, a model of path dependency is developed, grounded in behavioral economics (x-efficiency/efficiency wage theory), where it becomes possible and reasonable to expect a multiplicity of equilibrium solutions to identical economic problems and for the dominant solution to be sub-optimal and inefficient. Unlike in the pioneering work on...

Standard neoclassical theory argues that an economy is negatively affected by increased labor rights and power since it is assumed that economic agents are always x-efficient; performing at the height of efficiency. However, a behavioral model of the firm suggests that more rights and power, with its positive impact on labor standards, need not pro...

Harvey Leibenstein was the first to introduce the revolutionary concept of X-efficiency and its counterpart X-inefficiency. X-inefficiency exists when firms and economies do not work as hard or as well as they could. X-inefficiency is caused by an organisational structure which does not promote cooperation among its members. Therefore the organisat...

Details a behavioral theory of economic welfare that overlaps and extends the global theoretical framework contained in Pareto Optimality, with significant public policy implications. The essence of this framework is contained in Adam Smith’s the Wealth of Nations where it is argued that the economic welfare of society cannot be augmented if the ma...

The extent to which market conditions effects workers' abilities to influence their conditions of work, including wages, has been much considered by many economists in the last three centuries. The conventional economic view has been that conditions of work are largely determined by the forces of demand and supply. Under these conditions workers' p...

Neoclassical theory predicts that economies will converge towards similar levels of real per capita gross domestic product, at least in the long run, through the process of interregional and international trade, and factor mobility. However, while there is evidence of conversion among the more developed countries of the world, between the First and...

Williamson's analysis of the corporation examines the rationale for the existence of, and changes in the size of, the firm in the market environment. While the price mechanism is considered the most efficient means of coordinating transactions, there are transaction costs associated with the discovery of the relevant prices and in negotiating separ...