Ioannis Vavouras - Academia.edu (original) (raw)
Papers by Ioannis Vavouras
CRC Press eBooks, Oct 3, 2023
Theoretical Economics Letters, Dec 31, 2022
Springer proceedings in business and economics, 2023
The International Journal of Latest Trends in Finance and Economic Sciences, Jul 25, 2012
ABSTRACT The study considers the determinants of corruption in the 23 Mediterranean and Balkan co... more ABSTRACT The study considers the determinants of corruption in the 23 Mediterranean and Balkan countries where it is widely recognized that this phenomenon is widespread. Starting from the general hypothesis that the extent of corruption in any country is a combination of motives and opportunities, our scope is to examine the most important economic, political and social factors that determine corruption in this region. We accept that motives are determined by the level of human development, while opportunities by the degree of government effectiveness, which in turn is determined by the level of economic development and the existing political system. We show that the level of corruption is affected by the degree of human development, while the degree of government effectiveness affects crucially the level of corruption. On its turn, government effectiveness is mainly determined by the level of economic development and the existing political system. Improving government effectiveness, increasing the levels of human and economic development and establishing a more democratic political system form therefore the pillars of any anticorruption strategies in these countries.
Sustainable development, the basic social, economic and ecological strategy of the late 20th cent... more Sustainable development, the basic social, economic and ecological strategy of the late 20th century at the national and international level, is gradually giving its place to green growth. This change is associated with important socioeconomic adjustments. We argue that although green growth has moved away from the one-dimensional concept of economic growth, by incorporating the environmental dimension, apart from the economic one, at the same time it neglects the social aspect that constitutes the third dimension of sustainable development. Therefore, the widely proposed in recent years green growth strategy could be characterized as a major social drawback.
Open Economies Review
The present study identifies economic, political, and institutional variables that influence the ... more The present study identifies economic, political, and institutional variables that influence the distribution of personal incomes in the Eurozone countries facing severe fiscal imbalances, namely Greece, Italy, Portugal, and Spain. Crucially, this paper is the first to investigate the effect of the corrective arm of the Stability and Growth Pact, the so-called Excessive Deficit Procedure (EDP), on the income distribution of the aforementioned economies, where EDP was imposed over a long time period. The empirical results of this study show that (i) EDP impact depends on the specific mix of policy measures undertaken and that (ii) a high public debt does not reflect the existence of common factors shaping income distribution in the four Southern European economies. The share of labor income in total income, constitutes a significant determinant of income inequality. However, we find that the relationship between labor share and income inequality is also country-specific, depending on the intrinsic characteristics of each individual economic system.
Economies
We consider the impact of the two recent economic crises, one that resulted from the great recess... more We consider the impact of the two recent economic crises, one that resulted from the great recession of 2007–2009 and one following the COVID-19 pandemic, on income inequality and the risk of poverty in Greece. To this end, we also investigate the key macroeconomic variables affecting the Greek income distribution. We find that alternative measures of inequality and relative poverty have deteriorated during the years of crises, implying that the country’s response to economic shocks has been particularly harmful for its more disadvantaged citizens. Regarding the variables affecting the income distribution, we show that income inequality and the risk of poverty increase with growth, implying that the benefits of growth, and burdens of recession, are distributed unequally among members of the Greek society. Moreover, inequality appears to increase with unemployment and decrease with the share of wages and salaries in total income. This finding highlights the importance of labour marke...
Journal of Urban and Regional Analysis
The present study identifies socioeconomic, political, and institutional factors that shape exten... more The present study identifies socioeconomic, political, and institutional factors that shape extensive budget unbalances in four European Mediterranean countries (Portugal, Italy, Greece, and Spain), causing significant deficits and a public debt equal to (or above) 120% of their respective Gross Domestic Product (GDP) at the end of 2020. Regression analysis, run on official statistics, demonstrates that the dynamics of fiscal deficits in these countries are largely heterogeneous. This outcome suggests that the various factors and contexts considered here exert different effects in each country. Political factors played an important role in Greece, being less important in Spain, and having a negligible role in both Italy and Portugal. On the contrary, institutional factors were recognized as particularly important in Greece, Italy, and Portugal. Although important almost everywhere, the magnitude of the impact of economic factors also differed across the four countries.
Springer proceedings in business and economics, 2022
Regional Statistics
We study the existence, magnitude, and determinants of political budget cycles in Greece over the... more We study the existence, magnitude, and determinants of political budget cycles in Greece over the past 40 years. We find that the Greek economy has been characterised by extensive electorally-motivated cycles, which are not typical of a developed country. However, we show that the corrective fiscal measures imposed by the European institutions in the face of the Greek debt crisis suppressed these pre-electoral fiscal policy manipulations. In particular, the imposition of the Excessive Deficit Procedure of the Stability and Growth Pact reduced the ability of domestic politicians to increase public deficits to the point where it eliminated, albeit only marginally, political budget cycles.
University of Newcastle, 2013
University of the Aegean, 2017
Economies
Building on the well-established relationship between economic dynamics and political processes, ... more Building on the well-established relationship between economic dynamics and political processes, we focus on the most important element of the political process, namely, general (or national) elections, and look into their effects on public finance and total economic output. In this vein, the present study has three objectives: (i) to investigate political budget cycles in Greece during the period known as the ‘Third Hellenic Republic’ (in Greek, ‘Metapolitefsi’, hereafter THR) since 1974; (ii) to assess whether national elections affect total economic activity in a stabilizing or destabilizing way; and (iii) to examine the possible effects of the external sector of the economy on the budget balance. The empirical findings of our analysis document how the Greek economy was characterized by sharp political budget cycles in correspondence with the THR, exerting a destabilizing effect on the total output of the economy. Performances of the external sector of the economy have significan...
Social Cohesion and Development, 2016
Sustainable development, the basic social, economic and ecological strategy of the late 20th cent... more Sustainable development, the basic social, economic and ecological strategy of the late 20th century at the national and international level, is gradually giving its place to green growth. This change is associated with important socioeconomic adjustments. We argue that although green growth has moved away from the one-dimensional concept of economic growth, by incorporating the environmental dimension, apart from the economic one, at the same time it neglects the social aspect that constitutes the third dimension of sustainable development. Therefore, the widely proposed in recent years green growth strategy could be characterized as a major social drawback.
Mediterranean Quarterly, 2012
In this essay we provide an account of the corruption phenomenon in the Balkan and Arab counties ... more In this essay we provide an account of the corruption phenomenon in the Balkan and Arab counties of the Mediterranean Sea. Our analysis focuses on the impacts that the political system and the level of economic development have. We believe that these factors are of critical importance for the extent of corruption in the region, given the fact that the region's countries are characterized by a lack of homogeneity in the degree of development and the extent of democratic institutions. The relation between political conduct and corruption has been thoroughly examined. Overall, corruption is considered to be both a symptom of and a cause for the malfunctioning of democratic institutions. 1 According to the mainstream view, political development and, especially, democracy prove restrictive for the proliferation of corruption-especially political corruption 2-because of the competition they set as a precondition for the acquisition of political office, which in turn presupposes widespread popular participation. 3 In a
Annals of Public and Cooperative Economics, 1995
I n this paper we look at the most successful enterprises in the social sector, the enterprises t... more I n this paper we look at the most successful enterprises in the social sector, the enterprises that have been growing steadily for decades and whose assets today exceed 250 million ECUs. However, they are also facing the need for further expansion and for more and new capital. They must also compete with the capitalistic firms who draw millions of ECUs from the stock exchange. I n short, these companies are being told that they can get all the money they need but they must first abandon all the elements that give them their social character.
Copyright: © 2013 Rontos K, et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of ... more Copyright: © 2013 Rontos K, et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. The scope of this paper is to examine the main economic, social and political dimensions of development world-wide. More specifically, our analysis focuses on the study of the links between the levels of income per capita, the lev-el of perceived corruption, the degree of human development, the extent of government effectiveness and the quality of the political system as the main variables describing the level of overall development in a country. As we expected, we find that all these factors are very important determinants of the scale of overall development, since combinations of these factors according to their values determine clusters of countries with different patterns of overall develop-ment. As a result, an ...
The International Journal of Latest Trends in Finance and Economic Sciences, 2016
In this study sectoral specialization of European Union countries and regions in the current peri... more In this study sectoral specialization of European Union countries and regions in the current period of crisis is analyzed. As a result, groups of countries shall emerge based on which the real developmental archetypes of European space will be shaped. The distinction does not lie on the traditional axis (of favored) North – (less favored) South, but mainly, on the under configuration axis (of favored) West – (less favored) East. As a result, the regions of Europe that specialize in dynamic sectors of economic activity shall be located. These regions demonstrate comparative advantages, which give rise to export capacities as well. Moreover the intertemporal analysis of indicators shall exhibit the great contribution of sectoral composition in relation to the general socioeconomic basis along with the structural characteristics of countries and regions, which are fundamental for the developmental process.
CRC Press eBooks, Oct 3, 2023
Theoretical Economics Letters, Dec 31, 2022
Springer proceedings in business and economics, 2023
The International Journal of Latest Trends in Finance and Economic Sciences, Jul 25, 2012
ABSTRACT The study considers the determinants of corruption in the 23 Mediterranean and Balkan co... more ABSTRACT The study considers the determinants of corruption in the 23 Mediterranean and Balkan countries where it is widely recognized that this phenomenon is widespread. Starting from the general hypothesis that the extent of corruption in any country is a combination of motives and opportunities, our scope is to examine the most important economic, political and social factors that determine corruption in this region. We accept that motives are determined by the level of human development, while opportunities by the degree of government effectiveness, which in turn is determined by the level of economic development and the existing political system. We show that the level of corruption is affected by the degree of human development, while the degree of government effectiveness affects crucially the level of corruption. On its turn, government effectiveness is mainly determined by the level of economic development and the existing political system. Improving government effectiveness, increasing the levels of human and economic development and establishing a more democratic political system form therefore the pillars of any anticorruption strategies in these countries.
Sustainable development, the basic social, economic and ecological strategy of the late 20th cent... more Sustainable development, the basic social, economic and ecological strategy of the late 20th century at the national and international level, is gradually giving its place to green growth. This change is associated with important socioeconomic adjustments. We argue that although green growth has moved away from the one-dimensional concept of economic growth, by incorporating the environmental dimension, apart from the economic one, at the same time it neglects the social aspect that constitutes the third dimension of sustainable development. Therefore, the widely proposed in recent years green growth strategy could be characterized as a major social drawback.
Open Economies Review
The present study identifies economic, political, and institutional variables that influence the ... more The present study identifies economic, political, and institutional variables that influence the distribution of personal incomes in the Eurozone countries facing severe fiscal imbalances, namely Greece, Italy, Portugal, and Spain. Crucially, this paper is the first to investigate the effect of the corrective arm of the Stability and Growth Pact, the so-called Excessive Deficit Procedure (EDP), on the income distribution of the aforementioned economies, where EDP was imposed over a long time period. The empirical results of this study show that (i) EDP impact depends on the specific mix of policy measures undertaken and that (ii) a high public debt does not reflect the existence of common factors shaping income distribution in the four Southern European economies. The share of labor income in total income, constitutes a significant determinant of income inequality. However, we find that the relationship between labor share and income inequality is also country-specific, depending on the intrinsic characteristics of each individual economic system.
Economies
We consider the impact of the two recent economic crises, one that resulted from the great recess... more We consider the impact of the two recent economic crises, one that resulted from the great recession of 2007–2009 and one following the COVID-19 pandemic, on income inequality and the risk of poverty in Greece. To this end, we also investigate the key macroeconomic variables affecting the Greek income distribution. We find that alternative measures of inequality and relative poverty have deteriorated during the years of crises, implying that the country’s response to economic shocks has been particularly harmful for its more disadvantaged citizens. Regarding the variables affecting the income distribution, we show that income inequality and the risk of poverty increase with growth, implying that the benefits of growth, and burdens of recession, are distributed unequally among members of the Greek society. Moreover, inequality appears to increase with unemployment and decrease with the share of wages and salaries in total income. This finding highlights the importance of labour marke...
Journal of Urban and Regional Analysis
The present study identifies socioeconomic, political, and institutional factors that shape exten... more The present study identifies socioeconomic, political, and institutional factors that shape extensive budget unbalances in four European Mediterranean countries (Portugal, Italy, Greece, and Spain), causing significant deficits and a public debt equal to (or above) 120% of their respective Gross Domestic Product (GDP) at the end of 2020. Regression analysis, run on official statistics, demonstrates that the dynamics of fiscal deficits in these countries are largely heterogeneous. This outcome suggests that the various factors and contexts considered here exert different effects in each country. Political factors played an important role in Greece, being less important in Spain, and having a negligible role in both Italy and Portugal. On the contrary, institutional factors were recognized as particularly important in Greece, Italy, and Portugal. Although important almost everywhere, the magnitude of the impact of economic factors also differed across the four countries.
Springer proceedings in business and economics, 2022
Regional Statistics
We study the existence, magnitude, and determinants of political budget cycles in Greece over the... more We study the existence, magnitude, and determinants of political budget cycles in Greece over the past 40 years. We find that the Greek economy has been characterised by extensive electorally-motivated cycles, which are not typical of a developed country. However, we show that the corrective fiscal measures imposed by the European institutions in the face of the Greek debt crisis suppressed these pre-electoral fiscal policy manipulations. In particular, the imposition of the Excessive Deficit Procedure of the Stability and Growth Pact reduced the ability of domestic politicians to increase public deficits to the point where it eliminated, albeit only marginally, political budget cycles.
University of Newcastle, 2013
University of the Aegean, 2017
Economies
Building on the well-established relationship between economic dynamics and political processes, ... more Building on the well-established relationship between economic dynamics and political processes, we focus on the most important element of the political process, namely, general (or national) elections, and look into their effects on public finance and total economic output. In this vein, the present study has three objectives: (i) to investigate political budget cycles in Greece during the period known as the ‘Third Hellenic Republic’ (in Greek, ‘Metapolitefsi’, hereafter THR) since 1974; (ii) to assess whether national elections affect total economic activity in a stabilizing or destabilizing way; and (iii) to examine the possible effects of the external sector of the economy on the budget balance. The empirical findings of our analysis document how the Greek economy was characterized by sharp political budget cycles in correspondence with the THR, exerting a destabilizing effect on the total output of the economy. Performances of the external sector of the economy have significan...
Social Cohesion and Development, 2016
Sustainable development, the basic social, economic and ecological strategy of the late 20th cent... more Sustainable development, the basic social, economic and ecological strategy of the late 20th century at the national and international level, is gradually giving its place to green growth. This change is associated with important socioeconomic adjustments. We argue that although green growth has moved away from the one-dimensional concept of economic growth, by incorporating the environmental dimension, apart from the economic one, at the same time it neglects the social aspect that constitutes the third dimension of sustainable development. Therefore, the widely proposed in recent years green growth strategy could be characterized as a major social drawback.
Mediterranean Quarterly, 2012
In this essay we provide an account of the corruption phenomenon in the Balkan and Arab counties ... more In this essay we provide an account of the corruption phenomenon in the Balkan and Arab counties of the Mediterranean Sea. Our analysis focuses on the impacts that the political system and the level of economic development have. We believe that these factors are of critical importance for the extent of corruption in the region, given the fact that the region's countries are characterized by a lack of homogeneity in the degree of development and the extent of democratic institutions. The relation between political conduct and corruption has been thoroughly examined. Overall, corruption is considered to be both a symptom of and a cause for the malfunctioning of democratic institutions. 1 According to the mainstream view, political development and, especially, democracy prove restrictive for the proliferation of corruption-especially political corruption 2-because of the competition they set as a precondition for the acquisition of political office, which in turn presupposes widespread popular participation. 3 In a
Annals of Public and Cooperative Economics, 1995
I n this paper we look at the most successful enterprises in the social sector, the enterprises t... more I n this paper we look at the most successful enterprises in the social sector, the enterprises that have been growing steadily for decades and whose assets today exceed 250 million ECUs. However, they are also facing the need for further expansion and for more and new capital. They must also compete with the capitalistic firms who draw millions of ECUs from the stock exchange. I n short, these companies are being told that they can get all the money they need but they must first abandon all the elements that give them their social character.
Copyright: © 2013 Rontos K, et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of ... more Copyright: © 2013 Rontos K, et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. The scope of this paper is to examine the main economic, social and political dimensions of development world-wide. More specifically, our analysis focuses on the study of the links between the levels of income per capita, the lev-el of perceived corruption, the degree of human development, the extent of government effectiveness and the quality of the political system as the main variables describing the level of overall development in a country. As we expected, we find that all these factors are very important determinants of the scale of overall development, since combinations of these factors according to their values determine clusters of countries with different patterns of overall develop-ment. As a result, an ...
The International Journal of Latest Trends in Finance and Economic Sciences, 2016
In this study sectoral specialization of European Union countries and regions in the current peri... more In this study sectoral specialization of European Union countries and regions in the current period of crisis is analyzed. As a result, groups of countries shall emerge based on which the real developmental archetypes of European space will be shaped. The distinction does not lie on the traditional axis (of favored) North – (less favored) South, but mainly, on the under configuration axis (of favored) West – (less favored) East. As a result, the regions of Europe that specialize in dynamic sectors of economic activity shall be located. These regions demonstrate comparative advantages, which give rise to export capacities as well. Moreover the intertemporal analysis of indicators shall exhibit the great contribution of sectoral composition in relation to the general socioeconomic basis along with the structural characteristics of countries and regions, which are fundamental for the developmental process.