Recent reports from the Swedish Financial supervisory authority and the Swedish competition agency suggest that while bank profitability is high in Sweden, the dominant position of a handful of actors have created a situation where consumers are left displeased. The mortgage market has been highlighted as one of the most concerning markets and yet, gross margins on mortgages are reaching record levels. However, as of recent, two new actors have announced their intention to challenge the incumbent banks by importing a new mortgage financing method from the Netherlands. The financing model is rooted in the creation of a mortgage fund and could have several particularly interesting implications for the Swedish mortgage market. Thus, the purpose of this thesis is to examine mortgage funds and its ability to change current market structures in Sweden. By examining the relationship between return on assets and cost-to-income ratios for Swedish mortgage brokers during 2011-2017, the level of competition on the Swedish mortgage market is estimated and examined in relation to the introduction of mortgage funds. It is found that the introduction of mortgage funds in Sweden have caused a structural shift of the market by altering the value-chain of Swedish mortgages. The conclusion of this study is that mortgage funds, if managed correctly, can be a helpful addition to the Swedish mortgage market by bolstering competition and diversity. / Finansinspektionen och konkurrensverket har nyligen konstaterat en rad problematiska områden gällande den svenska bolånemarknaden. I sina rapporter konstateras det bland annat att den dominanta positionen som storbankerna håller hämmar konkursen och begränsar konsumenternas valmöjligheter. Samtidigt har storbankerna genererat rekordvinster med just bolån som kassako under det senaste året. Emellertid så har ett antal nya nisch aktörer börja dyka upp på marknaden, där vissa använder sig av alternativa finansieringsmetoder som konkurrensfördel. En sådan finansieringsform är bolånefonder där utgivandet av bolån finanserna genom en fond som riktar sig till institutionella investerare. Modellen med bolånefonder är intressant utifrån et flertal perspektiv, inte minst för dess framgångar på den holländska marknaden där det den lyckats öppna bryta upp marknaden. Syftet med denna studie är således att undersöka bolån som finansieringsmetod i Sverige samt dess möjligheter att bryta upp konkurrensen på den svenska bolånemarknaden. Genom att undersöka förhållandet mellan avkastning på eget kapital och kostnadsinkomstförhållande bland svenska bolåneaktörer under 2011–2017 uppskattas konkurrensen på den svenska bolånemarknaden i relation till bolånefonder. Resultaten indikerar att bolånefonder är ett tydligt exempel på ett skifte av värdekedjan för bolån. Vidare så visar studien att bolånefonder under rätt förhållanden kan vara ett positivt tillskott till den svenskan bolånemarknaden genom att öka effektiviteten och främja konkurrensen.

本論文包含二篇與公司財務相關之文章，第一篇文章嘗試在考量總體經濟條件和公司生產力衝擊下，建構一個簡單結構式模型以探討公司之資本結構決策。特別的是，由該模型可得到公司最適負債比率與總體經濟條件衝擊之報酬波動性呈反向關係，惟公司最適負債比率與公司生產力衝擊之報酬波動性呈正向關係。第二篇文章係利用對稱寡占產業均衡模型，以探討產業內經理人薪酬決策之異質性。即使產業內所有公司皆為同質，在模型均衡下存在有些公司會採取激勵性薪酬，而其他公司則不採取激勵性薪酬。該模型預期當市場競爭性增加時，產業內公司經理人薪酬決策會更具異質性。此外，上述二篇文章皆分別以美國製造業資料進行實證，並且實證結果均符合其模型之預期。 / This dissertation proposes two essays about corporate finance. Essay one develops a simple structural model to investigate a firm’s capital structure choices in consideration of macroeconomic conditions and firm-level productivity shocks. The model particularly generates the implication that the optimal debt ratio is negatively correlated to the return volatility of macroeconomic conditions, but positively correlated to that of firm-level productivity. Essay two is contributed to explore the heterogeneity of the compensation decision within the industry by employing a symmetric oligopoly industry equilibrium model. Within the equilibrium some firms will adopt incentive pay while others will not, even though all firms are ex ante identical. The model predicts that there is more heterogeneity in the compensation decision as the intensity of market competition increases. Both of the two essays further provide empirical evidence of the US manufacturing industry to support the model implications.

本研究旨在探討公司治理與動態資本結構之間的關係，以及產品市場競爭對此關係的影響。 第一篇文章探討公司治理品質如何影響動態資本結構。本篇文章同時考慮負債的「接管防禦」與「懲罰」效果，對最適資本結構調整速度的影響。我們的實證結果發現，雖然低負債(underlevered)和高負債(overlevered)公司，皆呈現公司治理品質愈差，調整速度愈慢的結果，但原因並不相同。以低負債且弱治理的公司來說，因負債所扮演的懲罰角色帶來的成本，高於使用負債作為接管防禦工具所帶來的利益，因此公司傾向減少負債的使用，並以較緩慢的速度朝向目標資本結構調整。但就高負債弱治理的公司而言，因面臨較嚴重的接管威脅，為了驅逐潛在的掠奪者，公司選擇增加負債的使用，而不願調降其負債水準至目標值，因此也降低了資本結構的調整速度。 第二篇文章主要探討產品市場競爭在公司治理品質與動態資本結構關係中所扮演的角色。文獻中已有許多研究探討市場競爭對經理人的怠惰行為的影響。然而，到目前為止，仍然沒有文獻研究產品市場競爭程度的高低如何影響公司治理與資本結構調整速度之間的關係。我們的文章因此補足目前研究文獻不足之處。實證結果顯示，公司在競爭的狀態下，更願意以追求股東財富極大化為其目標，此舉也因此提升公司資本結構朝向最適目標值調整的速度。除此之外，我們的實證結果亦發現在一個高度市場競爭的環境下，弱治理與強治理公司之間調整速度的差距會縮小。 / This study contains two essays on the relationship between corporate governance on capital structure dynamics, and how production market competition affects this relation. Essay 1: Corporate Governance and the Dynamics of Capital Structure: New Evidences The effects of corporate governance on optimal capital structure choices have been well documented, though without offering empirical evidence about the impact of corporate governance quality on the adjustment speed toward an optimal capital structure. This study simultaneously considers two effects of debt originating from agency theory—the takeover defense and the disciplinary effects of debt—on the speed of adjustment to the optimal capital structure. Corporate governance has a distinct effect on the speed of capital structure adjustment: weak governance firms that are underlevered tend to adjust slowly to the optimal capital structure, because the costs of the disciplinary role of debt outweigh the benefits of using debt as a takeover defense tool. Although, overlevered weak governance firms also adjust slowly, they do so because they are reluctant to decrease their leverage toward the target level to deter potential raiders, especially if they face a serious takeover threat. Therefore, this study finds that both overlevered and underlevered firms with weak governance adjust slowly toward their target debt levels, though with different motivations. Essay 2: Corporate Governance, Product Market Competition, and Dynamic Capital Structure The importance of product market competition for analyzing managerial slack or the impact of corporate governance on capital structure decision has been widely discussed. However, prior studies pay little attention to center on the impact of market competition on the relationship between corporate governance quality and capital structure dynamics. This paper thus fills this gap in the literature. Our study finds that competition makes firms with weak governance have stronger incentive to maximize shareholders’ wealth and thus increase their adjustment speed toward their target leverage. Moreover, the difference in the adjustment speeds between weak and strong governance firms become smaller when firms operate in highly competitive industries.

設備供應商在顯示器產業的市場競爭與策略: 以應用材料為例 / Flat panel display (FPD) is one of the most booming industries in the past decade. It shows everywhere in our life, such as TV, smartphone, laptop, car display, and public display. In the FPD plants, the manufacturing equipment is the critical portion to determine the performance of the production lines. Equipment suppliers combine advanced technologies into mass production tools, and eventually boost the innovation of information technology. In this thesis we will discuss about the market of display industry and the equipment market, followed by analysis of the strategy of equipment suppliers. We will use Applied Materials as the case, to see what their strategy to keep the leading position in the competitive market for over 20 years.

O objetivo do estudo foi analisar a interação entre o dinamismo econômico e a qualidade do emprego, observando esse fenômeno a partir do caso do setor de telecomunicações, no Brasil. O estudo propõe uma reflexão sobre a qualidade do emprego nas atividades de telecomunicações, que, no Brasil, passaram por recente processo de privatização, caracterizando um novo cenário empresarial, marcado por inovações tecnológicas, expansão comercial e competição de mercado. Foi elaborado um modelo de análise para avaliar a qualidade do emprego com base na estrutura ocupacional do mercado de trabalho, diferente de outros modelos concorrentes, que se debruçam sobre categorias como “emprego típico” e “trabalho decente”. O setor de telecomunicações inclui tanto atividades econômicas amplamente voltadas para estratégias de inovação e formação de vantagens competitivas como atividades de suporte, mais restritas à operação, implantação e manutenção do mercado, fato que se desdobra na composição dos respectivos mercados de trabalho. Constatou-se que o desempenho da qualidade do emprego é função da estruturação setorial. A melhora no nível de qualidade do emprego está bastante vinculada à natureza, à experiência tecnológica e ao ambiente econômico de cada ramo produtivo. Foi observado que a qualidade do emprego melhora na medida em que as atividades econômicas se encontram mais próximas aos processos de inovação, competição de mercado e liberalização comercial, mesmo que as mesmas componham um único setor. Confirmou-se a suspeita de que nas atividades econômicas constituídas por empresas que não inovam internamente ou inovam pouco e que não competem diretamente no mercado das telecomunicações (implantação, comércio e teleatendimento), o trabalho caracteriza-se por ser padronizado, promovendo atividades laborais empobrecidas, apresentando situação menos vantajosa de qualidade do emprego. Nas atividades com maior capacidade de inovação e que competem diretamente no mercado de telecomunicações (telefonia fixa e telefonia móvel em um primeiro nível, e em um segundo plano serviços de rede, televisão por cabo e fabricação), o trabalho caracteriza-se por ser menos estruturado, promovendo maior recorrência de atividades laborais enriquecidas, maior remuneração e escolarização dos empregados e apresentando, portanto, situação melhor de qualidade do emprego. A análise da situação do emprego na atividade de telecomunicações baseia-se nos dados disponíveis na Relação Anual de Informações Sociais (RAIS) do Ministério do Trabalho e Emprego do Brasil (MTE). / The aim of this study was to analyze the interaction between economic dynamism and quality of employment based on the case of telecommunications industry in Brazil. This study proposes a reflection about the quality of employment in the activities of telecommunications that recently underwent a privatization process in Brazil, characterizing a new business scenery, marked by technological innovations, commercial expansion and market competition. We created an analysis model to evaluate the quality of employment which is based on the occupational structure of the labor market, unlike other competing models that focus on categories such as, “typical job” and “decent work”. The telecommunications industry comprises not only economic activities largely turned to innovation strategies and the shaping of competitive advantages but also support activities restricted to market operation, deployment and maintenance. These aspects affect the composition of labor markets. We found that the quality of employment results from the industry framework. Improvements in the quality of employment are strongly related to the nature of each production field, its technological experience and economic environment. We saw that the quality of employment improves as economic activities get closer to innovation processes, market competition, and trade liberalization, even if they are all part of the same industry. Suspicions were confirmed that in those economic activities consisting of companies that neither innovate or hardly innovate nor compete directly in the telecommunications market (deployment, trade, and telemarketing), work is standardized, and labor activities are of a poor nature, which then results in lower quality of employment. In activities with greater ability to innovate and that compete directly in the telecommunications market (wireline and wireless on a first level and, on a second level, network service, cable television, and manufacturing), work is less structured, thus promoting enriched labor activities, hight remuneration and employees‟ education, and resulting in higher quality of employment. The analysis of the situation of employment in the activity of telecommunications is based on the data available in the Annual Report of Social Information (in portuguese, RAIS) of Ministry of Labor and Employment of Brazil (in portuguese, MTE).

Made available in DSpace on 2009-11-18T19:01:01Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 Previous issue date: 2004 / A indústria brasileira de gás liquefeito de petróleo, GLP, tem sido alvo freqüente, nos últimos anos, da atenção de órgãos reguladores, mídia e público em geral. Muitas têm sido as especulações a respeito de seu padrão de conduta publicados na imprensa, variando desde práticas predatórias até a formação disciplinada de cartel. A presente pesquisa, baseada em depoimentos de executivos da indústria e no acesso a dados das firmas dessa indústria tomado públicos - dados financeiros e operacionais - explora qual seja, afinal, o padrão de competição desse oligopólio. O estudo parte da Teoria da Estrutura de Capital aplicada para decisões de competição e mercado - preços e quantidades a ofertar para constatar que, dadas suas escolhas de estrutura de capital, as firmas esta indústria específica simplesmente adotam um padrão tradicional de arrefecimento da competição a partir de sua dívida. A dívida, nesta indústria, é utilizada para a criação de barreiras de entrada. Ainda assim, casos de acirramento da competição e de concentração de mercado foram encontrados, indicando que não haja uma disciplina formal de conduta por parte de suas firmas as quais devem, eventualmente, encontrar dificuldades - ou falta de interesse - na convivência em um mercado em fase de transformação. / The Brazilian industry of liquefied petroleum gas, LPG, has been calling, in the late years, the attention of the media, regulatory agencies and the general publico Many speculations have emerged, in the press, over its pattems of behaviour, which have been ranging from predatory practices up to a formal cartel operating under collusion. The present research, based in statements from industry executives as well as in data publicly disclosed by those firms - financiaI and operational ones - explores what their competitive behaviour would be, after alI. The study starts from the Theory of Capital Structure applied to product market competition decisions - output and price decisions - to realize that, given their capital structure choices, the firms within that particular industry simply adopt a classical behaviour of sofier competition. Debt, in this industry, has the role of an entry barrier. Even though, cases of tougher competition have been found, indicating the lack of a formal discipline among its members which ones, eventually, may find it very difficult - or of no interest - to coexist together in a fast changing industrial environment.

O objetivo do estudo foi analisar a interação entre o dinamismo econômico e a qualidade do emprego, observando esse fenômeno a partir do caso do setor de telecomunicações, no Brasil. O estudo propõe uma reflexão sobre a qualidade do emprego nas atividades de telecomunicações, que, no Brasil, passaram por recente processo de privatização, caracterizando um novo cenário empresarial, marcado por inovações tecnológicas, expansão comercial e competição de mercado. Foi elaborado um modelo de análise para avaliar a qualidade do emprego com base na estrutura ocupacional do mercado de trabalho, diferente de outros modelos concorrentes, que se debruçam sobre categorias como “emprego típico” e “trabalho decente”. O setor de telecomunicações inclui tanto atividades econômicas amplamente voltadas para estratégias de inovação e formação de vantagens competitivas como atividades de suporte, mais restritas à operação, implantação e manutenção do mercado, fato que se desdobra na composição dos respectivos mercados de trabalho. Constatou-se que o desempenho da qualidade do emprego é função da estruturação setorial. A melhora no nível de qualidade do emprego está bastante vinculada à natureza, à experiência tecnológica e ao ambiente econômico de cada ramo produtivo. Foi observado que a qualidade do emprego melhora na medida em que as atividades econômicas se encontram mais próximas aos processos de inovação, competição de mercado e liberalização comercial, mesmo que as mesmas componham um único setor. Confirmou-se a suspeita de que nas atividades econômicas constituídas por empresas que não inovam internamente ou inovam pouco e que não competem diretamente no mercado das telecomunicações (implantação, comércio e teleatendimento), o trabalho caracteriza-se por ser padronizado, promovendo atividades laborais empobrecidas, apresentando situação menos vantajosa de qualidade do emprego. Nas atividades com maior capacidade de inovação e que competem diretamente no mercado de telecomunicações (telefonia fixa e telefonia móvel em um primeiro nível, e em um segundo plano serviços de rede, televisão por cabo e fabricação), o trabalho caracteriza-se por ser menos estruturado, promovendo maior recorrência de atividades laborais enriquecidas, maior remuneração e escolarização dos empregados e apresentando, portanto, situação melhor de qualidade do emprego. A análise da situação do emprego na atividade de telecomunicações baseia-se nos dados disponíveis na Relação Anual de Informações Sociais (RAIS) do Ministério do Trabalho e Emprego do Brasil (MTE). / The aim of this study was to analyze the interaction between economic dynamism and quality of employment based on the case of telecommunications industry in Brazil. This study proposes a reflection about the quality of employment in the activities of telecommunications that recently underwent a privatization process in Brazil, characterizing a new business scenery, marked by technological innovations, commercial expansion and market competition. We created an analysis model to evaluate the quality of employment which is based on the occupational structure of the labor market, unlike other competing models that focus on categories such as, “typical job” and “decent work”. The telecommunications industry comprises not only economic activities largely turned to innovation strategies and the shaping of competitive advantages but also support activities restricted to market operation, deployment and maintenance. These aspects affect the composition of labor markets. We found that the quality of employment results from the industry framework. Improvements in the quality of employment are strongly related to the nature of each production field, its technological experience and economic environment. We saw that the quality of employment improves as economic activities get closer to innovation processes, market competition, and trade liberalization, even if they are all part of the same industry. Suspicions were confirmed that in those economic activities consisting of companies that neither innovate or hardly innovate nor compete directly in the telecommunications market (deployment, trade, and telemarketing), work is standardized, and labor activities are of a poor nature, which then results in lower quality of employment. In activities with greater ability to innovate and that compete directly in the telecommunications market (wireline and wireless on a first level and, on a second level, network service, cable television, and manufacturing), work is less structured, thus promoting enriched labor activities, hight remuneration and employees‟ education, and resulting in higher quality of employment. The analysis of the situation of employment in the activity of telecommunications is based on the data available in the Annual Report of Social Information (in portuguese, RAIS) of Ministry of Labor and Employment of Brazil (in portuguese, MTE).

L’objectif de cette thèse est d’étudier le rôle que joue la concurrence sur le marché des biens et services dans la prise des décisions ainsi que sur la valeur de la firme. En particulier, elle met l’accent sur l’impact de la pression concurrentielle sur le choix de la source de la dette, l’efficience des décisions d’investissement dans le capital humain, et le coût des fonds propres. Cette thèse est organisée en trois essais.Dans un premier essai, nous nous intéressons à l’effet de la concurrence sur le marché des biens et services sur la prise des décisions de financement, et particulièrement le choix de la source de la dette. À partir d’un échantillon de 3 831 entreprises américaines cotées au cours de la période 2001-2013 et en utilisant une nouvelle mesure de concurrence reflétant les menaces concurrentielles qui pèsent sur les entreprises, nous constatons que les entreprises faisant face à une concurrence accrue ont moins tendance à recourir à la dette bancaire. Ce résultat soutient l’hypothèse que la concurrence joue un rôle de gouvernance efficace qui, par conséquent, peut être substitutif à la fonction de surveillance et de contrôle des prêteurs bancaires. De plus, nos résultats montrent que l’impact négatif de la concurrence sur le recours à la dette bancaire est plus important pour les entreprises qui sont plus susceptibles d’être sensibles à la pression disciplinaire exercée par le marché, particulièrement les entreprises exposées à la pression concurrentielles et les entreprises ayant de sévères contraintes financières.Le deuxième essai examine l’impact de la concurrence sur le marché des biens et services sur l’efficience des décisions d’investissement des entreprises, et particulièrement l’investissement dans le capital humain, un sujet qui a été largement ignoré par les recherches antérieures. L’analyse empirique se base sur un échantillon de 18 957 observations durant la période 1998-2001. Les résultats montrent que l’intensification de la concurrence sur le marché des biens et services est négativement liée à l’efficience de l’investissement dans le capital humain. De plus, nous constatons que ce lien est plus important pour les entreprises risquées ainsi que les entreprises ayant des coûts importants associés à l’investissement dans le capital humain. Dans l’ensemble, nos résultats suggèrent que la concurrence sur le marché des biens et services augmente le risque de défaut des entreprises qui, par conséquent, réduisent leurs activités d’investissement, conduisant à un problème de sous-investissement dans le capital humain.Dans le troisième essai, nous examinons si la concurrence sur le marché des biens et services pourrait influencer la valeur de l’entreprise à travers son impact sur le taux de rentabilité exigé par les actionnaires, ou le coût des fonds propres. L’utilisation d’un large échantillon d’entreprises américaines cotées en bourse durant la période 1998-2013 montre que la concurrence sur le marché des biens et services a un effet négatif sur le taux de rentabilité exigé par les actionnaires. Les analyses additionnelles ont montré que cet effet négatif est particulièrement significatif dans les entreprises qui souffrent principalement d’une mauvaise gouvernance. Ce résultat suggère que la concurrence joue un rôle de gouvernance qui permet de discipliner le comportement discrétionnaire des dirigeants, notamment en les incitant à fournir plus d’effort pour protéger leur entreprise contre le risque de faillite. Par conséquent, ce rôle de gouvernance améliore les attentes des investisseurs à l’égard des perspectives futures de l’entreprise et réduit ainsi le taux de rentabilité exigé ou le coût des fonds propres. / This dissertation investigates the effect of product market competition on corporate decisions and firm valuation. It is a collection of three essays. The first one examines the role of competition in driving the choice of debt source. Using a large sample of U.S. listed firms over the period 2001-2013, we show that product market competitive pressure is negatively associated with bank debt financing. This result is consistent with the view that competition plays an effective governance role that disciplines managers, and hence substitutes for the need to bank strict monitoring. In further analysis, we also show that the negative impact of competition on bank debt financing is stronger for firms with a higher exposure to competition and tighter financial constraints as they are more sensitive to external market discipline.The second essay explores whether product market competition matters for investment decisions, and more specifically labor investment decisions. To test our research hypotheses, we consider a large sample of U.S. listed firms over the 1998-2013 period and provide strong evidence that product market competitive pressure distorts labor investment efficiency. This result highlights the risk-increasing effect of competition. To the extent that firms in competitive industries have lower profit margins and higher bankruptcy risk, they are more willing to under-invest in labor in order to reduce labor costs and avoid further earnings declines. In addition, our cross-sectional tests show that the negative impact of competition on labor investment efficiency is intensified for firms with a higher exposure to competition, tighter financial constraints, and higher labor unionization rates.The third essay further investigates the implications of product market competition by examining its impact on the cost of equity capital which is viewed as one of the key considerations for managers in their investment and financing decisions. We employ a large panel of U.S. listed firms from 1998 to 2013 and find that firms facing intense competitive pressure have a lower cost of equity financing. Additionally, we show that the role of competition in reducing equity financing costs is more pronounced for firms with a higher exposure to competition and firms with poorer governance quality. Taken together, our findings suggest that product market competition serves as an external disciplinary mechanism that improves investors’ beliefs in the stock market, hence leading to a lower cost of equity capital.

O objetivo do estudo foi analisar a interação entre o dinamismo econômico e a qualidade do emprego, observando esse fenômeno a partir do caso do setor de telecomunicações, no Brasil. O estudo propõe uma reflexão sobre a qualidade do emprego nas atividades de telecomunicações, que, no Brasil, passaram por recente processo de privatização, caracterizando um novo cenário empresarial, marcado por inovações tecnológicas, expansão comercial e competição de mercado. Foi elaborado um modelo de análise para avaliar a qualidade do emprego com base na estrutura ocupacional do mercado de trabalho, diferente de outros modelos concorrentes, que se debruçam sobre categorias como “emprego típico” e “trabalho decente”. O setor de telecomunicações inclui tanto atividades econômicas amplamente voltadas para estratégias de inovação e formação de vantagens competitivas como atividades de suporte, mais restritas à operação, implantação e manutenção do mercado, fato que se desdobra na composição dos respectivos mercados de trabalho. Constatou-se que o desempenho da qualidade do emprego é função da estruturação setorial. A melhora no nível de qualidade do emprego está bastante vinculada à natureza, à experiência tecnológica e ao ambiente econômico de cada ramo produtivo. Foi observado que a qualidade do emprego melhora na medida em que as atividades econômicas se encontram mais próximas aos processos de inovação, competição de mercado e liberalização comercial, mesmo que as mesmas componham um único setor. Confirmou-se a suspeita de que nas atividades econômicas constituídas por empresas que não inovam internamente ou inovam pouco e que não competem diretamente no mercado das telecomunicações (implantação, comércio e teleatendimento), o trabalho caracteriza-se por ser padronizado, promovendo atividades laborais empobrecidas, apresentando situação menos vantajosa de qualidade do emprego. Nas atividades com maior capacidade de inovação e que competem diretamente no mercado de telecomunicações (telefonia fixa e telefonia móvel em um primeiro nível, e em um segundo plano serviços de rede, televisão por cabo e fabricação), o trabalho caracteriza-se por ser menos estruturado, promovendo maior recorrência de atividades laborais enriquecidas, maior remuneração e escolarização dos empregados e apresentando, portanto, situação melhor de qualidade do emprego. A análise da situação do emprego na atividade de telecomunicações baseia-se nos dados disponíveis na Relação Anual de Informações Sociais (RAIS) do Ministério do Trabalho e Emprego do Brasil (MTE). / The aim of this study was to analyze the interaction between economic dynamism and quality of employment based on the case of telecommunications industry in Brazil. This study proposes a reflection about the quality of employment in the activities of telecommunications that recently underwent a privatization process in Brazil, characterizing a new business scenery, marked by technological innovations, commercial expansion and market competition. We created an analysis model to evaluate the quality of employment which is based on the occupational structure of the labor market, unlike other competing models that focus on categories such as, “typical job” and “decent work”. The telecommunications industry comprises not only economic activities largely turned to innovation strategies and the shaping of competitive advantages but also support activities restricted to market operation, deployment and maintenance. These aspects affect the composition of labor markets. We found that the quality of employment results from the industry framework. Improvements in the quality of employment are strongly related to the nature of each production field, its technological experience and economic environment. We saw that the quality of employment improves as economic activities get closer to innovation processes, market competition, and trade liberalization, even if they are all part of the same industry. Suspicions were confirmed that in those economic activities consisting of companies that neither innovate or hardly innovate nor compete directly in the telecommunications market (deployment, trade, and telemarketing), work is standardized, and labor activities are of a poor nature, which then results in lower quality of employment. In activities with greater ability to innovate and that compete directly in the telecommunications market (wireline and wireless on a first level and, on a second level, network service, cable television, and manufacturing), work is less structured, thus promoting enriched labor activities, hight remuneration and employees‟ education, and resulting in higher quality of employment. The analysis of the situation of employment in the activity of telecommunications is based on the data available in the Annual Report of Social Information (in portuguese, RAIS) of Ministry of Labor and Employment of Brazil (in portuguese, MTE).

For decades, economic theories have been mostly based on rational choices made by selfish individuals to maximize their utility, while sociology spent a lot of efforts describing the environment of individuals and explaining how this environment shapes theirs decisions. However, the last thirty years have seen many sociological concepts appear in the economic literature. For example, behavioral economics introduces things such as envy or altruism in economic theories. Other notions such as social capital, social norms, trust or community became more and more present in economic papers. The objective of this new strand of literature is to engage into sort of socioeconomic approach and to shed some light on interpersonal relationships. This thesis belongs to this socioeconomic approach, and tries to explore new aspects of various concepts. The two first papers are theoretical. In the first one, we explore the negative side of social capital, which has not been studied extensively, by investigating the effect of a norm on consumers when moving is costly. In the second one, we introduce a sociological concept, namely social identity, in a classic economic model in order to show how social interactions modifies its results, and hence, the importance of taking such interpersonal relationships into account. The third and final paper is an empirical case study of social capital in Belgium, an exercise that has not been done before, with the objective of comparing the level of social capital between the various regions of the country. <p><p>In the first paper, The Tyranny of Social Norms on Individual Behavior, we study the negative effect of the existence of a norm and moving cost inside a community. Because of deviation cost (such as social shame or peer pressure for example), consumers inside a given community may not reach their ideal consumption, that is the consumption they would have without social constraint. On the other hand, moving to another community may be too expensive (in terms of social assets needed to be part of the new community). Hence, agents may get stuck in their community, being forced to consume something they do not want to. One example of such behavior is the underinvestment in education in some neighborhood. We show that such equilibria are possible and that they may be socially suboptimal equilibria as well as Pareto inferior equilibria. We also show that state intervention can correct those “bad” equilibria by operating transfers between agents in order to lower the moving cost.<p><p>In the second paper, Social Identity, Advertising and Market Competition, we use a particular approach of a sociological concept, namely Social Identity, which focuses on the fact that people want to signal who they are to others. We assume that this is done by choosing a specific consumption (think of fashion market for example). We show that under this assumption, the classical result of Bertrand Price Competition does not hold anymore, and that prices and profits are positive, meaning that social identity creates market power for firms. Moreover, if the number of goods is limited, groups will be formed, and there will be multiple equilibria, each one corresponding to a particular partition of the consumers. We then add the possibility for firms to use advertising. This allows consumers to have a coordination tool, but increases also market powers for firms. We investigate the various equilibria that arise and their impact in term of welfare.<p><p>In the third paper, Social Capital in Belgium, we construct an index of social capital using the European Social Survey, and we show that this index can be decomposed in three aspects: Trust, Social Activities and Social Network. We then study whether there is a difference in social capital between Belgium’s regions or not. We show that indeed, such difference exists, even when controlling for socioeconomic variables. In a third part, we investigate whether the level of social capital is higher or lower in Belgium than in other European countries, and we analyze European regional differences in term of social capital.<p> / Doctorat en Sciences économiques et de gestion / info:eu-repo/semantics/nonPublished