Patterns of conduct of Argentine SMEs with respect to ICT investments

Various authors have concluded that there are different groupings that make it possible to explain the differences between companies in terms of their size, composition of capital or the degree of their evolution in terms of ICT and that within medium and small companies there are special dynamics that are necessary understand. This work is focused on this type of firms and a mixed methodology has been used to obtain data, which included the preparation of a field work supported by consultations with relevant personalities from academia, industry and consulting services in the area. It is proposed to draw an empirical scheme of the SME sector in Argentina, and results are presented in relation to the investment and adoption of ICT in these type of firms.

Patterns of conduct of Argentine SMEs with respect to ICT investments

Various authors have concluded that there are different groupings that make it possible to explain the differences between companies in terms of their size, composition of capital or the degree of their evolution in terms of ICT and that within medium and small companies there are special dynamics that are necessary understand. This work is focused on this type of firms and a mixed methodology has been used to obtain data, which included the preparation of a field work supported by consultations with relevant personalities from academia, industry and consulting services in the area. It is proposed to draw an empirical scheme of the SME sector in Argentina, and results are presented in relation to the investment and adoption of ICT in these type of firms.

The Algorithmic University: On-Line Education, Learning Management Systems, and the Struggle over Academic Labor

The use of on-line education (OLE) to deliver higher education using learning management systems (LMS) has received growing critical attention for its reliance on precarious faculty, high dropout and failure rates, and as a form of privatization. While these critiques are well grounded, they overlook the role of OLE as a strategy for rationalizing teaching and deskilling academic labor in order to produce more self-disciplined precarious “platform” workers who can labor remotely under the control of algorithmic management. To recompose the power of academic workers, new tactics, strategies, and objectives based on an analysis of the new technical composition of capital in higher education are needed.

Test of Descriptive Power of Capital Structure Theories in Auto Ancillary Industry in India

More than the past fifty years after the contribution by Modigliani and Miller's to the literature of capital structure, many economists in the field of finance have been intensely contributed to this concept. Various principles such as Agency Theory, Principle of Pecking Order, Signaling Theory and Theory of Trade off have been invented by various authors in the concept of capital structure. This study undertaken to know to the extent the theories of capital structure are applied in Indian industries especially in Auto Ancillary sector. The changes in today’s financial markets after liberalization have certainly made an impact on the composition of capital of corporate units. Hence the present research concentrates on post liberalization period to observe the descriptive power of the principles of capital structure.

Monocausalidade e teoria da crise: uma resposta a David Harvey

Michael Roberts oferece uma crítica abrangente a Harvey e argumenta que Marx nunca abandonou a lei da queda tendencial da taxa de lucro como uma explicação relevante para as crises. Ele nunca voltou à teoria simplesmente porque estava satisfeito com ela. Ao invés de desenvolver a teoria, tentou descobrir como usá-la para explicar a natureza cíclica do capitalismo bem como sua natureza transitória. Roberts defende que os pressupostos da lei são realistas e podem ser reduzidos a apenas dois: que a força de trabalho é a única fonte de valor e que a acumulação de capital leva ao aumento da composição orgânica do capital. O autor se opõe à visão de que cada crise tenha uma origem diferente e “conjuntural”. A natureza recorrente das crises capitalistas implica que tenham uma causa comum.ABSTRACTMichael Roberts offers a comprehensive critique of Harvey and argues that Marx never abandoned the TRPF as a relevant explanation of crises. He never went back to the theory in his later years simply because he was satisfied with it. Rather than developing the theory he tried to figure out how to use it to explain the cyclical nature of capitalism as well as its transitory nature. Roberts contends that Marx’s assumptions for the TRPF are realistic and can be reduced to just two: labor power is the only source of value, and capital accumulation leads the organic composition of capital to rise. He argues against the view that each crisis has a different or ‘conjunctural’ origin. The recurrent nature of capitalist crises implies that they must have a common cause. Tradução: Cássio Arruda Boechat ([email protected])

Teoria da crise e a queda da taxa de lucro

David Harvey apresenta uma crítica à importância dada à lei da queda tendencial da taxa de lucro, sugerindo que Marx derivou a “lei” de pressupostos “draconianos” e que Engels foi bem mais entusiasta dela do que Marx, que nunca voltou adiante à teoria apesar de sua evidente incompletude. Portanto, ele argumenta, não deveríamos levar suas conclusões teóricas muito longe. Em sua visão, Marx concebeu as crises como erupções momentâneas e violentas que resolviam as contradições existentes, que podem ser consideradas oportunidades para a reconstrução capitalista ao invés de um sinal do fim eminente do capitalismo. Harvey defende que a taxa de lucro pode ser estabilizada por uma variedade de fatores como uma desvalorização do capital constante devido à mudança tecnológica, a monopolização ou a aceleração do tempo de rotação tanto na produção como na circulação. Ele argumenta, ainda, que um aumento da produtividade que não seja associado a perdas de emprego não reduziria a produção de mais-valia. Ademais, uma queda nas taxas de lucro pode resultar de muitos outros motivos além do aumento da composição orgânica do capital. ABSTRACTDavid Harvey’s article argues against the importance given to the law of the tendency of the rate of profit to fall (TRPF), suggesting that Marx derived the “law” under “draconian” assumptions and that Engels was far more enthusiastic about it than Marx, who never went back to the theory later in his life despite its evident incompleteness. Therefore, he argues, we should not take his theoretical conclusions too far. In his view, Marx perceived crises as momentary and violent eruptions that resolve the existing contradictions which can be considered as opportunities of capitalist reconstruction rather than a sign of the imminent end of capitalism. Harvey argues that the rate of profit can be stabilized by a variety of factors such as a devaluation of the existing constant capital due to technical change, monopolization, or accelerating turnover times in both production and circulation. He argues, moreover, that a productivity increase that is not associated with job losses would not reduce surplus value production. Moreover, a fall in profit rates could result from a number of reasons rather than an increase in the organic composition of capital. Tradução: Cássio Arruda Boechat ([email protected])

A "Primeira Versão" da Teoria da Crise de Marx: a queda da massa de mais-valia social e o limite interno absoluto do capital

Marx's theory of crisis is usually associated with the law of the tendential fall in the rate of profit presented in volume three of Capital. According to Marx, the rising organic composition of capital - the fact that variable capital grows in absolute terms, but falls relatively because of the faster growth of constant capital - results in the fall of the general rate of profit, which undermines the reproduction of capital. In this article I will argue that: i) there is a "first version" of Marx's theory of crisis, outlined especially in the Grundrisse, which ascribes the secular crisis of the capitalist economy to the absolute decline of living labour and, therefore, to the falling mass of socially produced surplus-value; ii) only this "first version" of the theory of crisis allows the absolute internal limit of capital to be deduced consistently.