Aleksander Aristovnik

Factors Influencing Employee Satisfaction in the Police Service: The Case of Slovenia

Purpose – The paper has two purposes – first, to examine the dimensionality of employee satisfaction and, second, to identify the impact of the groups of factors on employee satisfaction. Design/methodology/approach – The measurement of satisfaction of all employees in the Slovenian Police based on the comprehensive on-line questionnaire. Factor analysis was used to formulate the facets of satisfaction. Multiple linear regression analysis was performed to identify the predictors of three facets of employee satisfaction. Findings – Three facets of employee satisfaction were determined and the influence of three types of factors (demographic, job-related and organizational-support-related factors) on them was investigated. The results show that the worst assessed facet was salary and security, whereas no significant differences were found between two other facets, namely relationships and leadership, and tasks and working conditions. The three factors influenced employee satisfaction with different levels o...

The Impact of ICT on Educational Performance and its Efficiency In Selected EU and OECD Countries: A Non-Parametric Analysis

The purpose of the paper is to review some previous researches examining ICT efficiency and the impact of ICT on educational output/outcome as well as different conceptual and methodological issues related to performance measurement. Moreover, a definition, measurements and the empirical application of a model measuring the efficiency of ICT use and its impact at national levels will be considered. For this purpose, the Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) technique is presented and then applied to selected EU-27 and OECD countries. The empirical results show that the efficiency of ICT, when taking educational outputs/outcomes into consideration, differs significantly across the great majority of EU and OECD countries. The analysis of the varying levels of (output-oriented) efficiency (under the VRSTE framework) shows that Finland, Norway, Belgium and Korea are the most efficient countries in terms of their ICT sectors. Finally, the analysis finds evidence that most of the countries under consideration hold great potential for increased efficiency in ICT and for improving their educational outputs and outcomes.

The Relative Efficiency of Education and R&D Expenditures in the New EU Member States

The paper attempts to measure relative efficiency in utilizing public education and R&D expenditures in the new EU member states in comparison to the selected EU (plus Croatia) and OECD countries. As resources allocated to education and R&D sector are significantly limited, a special emphasis should be given to their efficient use regarding the institutional and legal constraints. By applying non-parametric methodology, i.e. Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA), a relative efficiency is defined as the deviation from the efficiency frontier which represents the maximum output/outcome attainable from each input level. An analysis of (output-oriented) efficiency measures shows that among the new EU member states Hungary, Estonia and Slovenia seem to be good benchmark countries in the field of primary, secondary and tertiary education, respectively. On the other hand, Cyprus and again Hungary dominate in the field of R&D sector, even if for different reasons. The empirical results also suggest that, in general, new EU member states show relatively high efficiency in tertiary education, while lag well behind in the R&D efficiency measures.

Short-Term Determinants of Current Account Deficits: Evidence from Eastern Europe and the Former Soviet Union

This paper tests the short-term empirical link between current account deficits and a broad set of economic variables proposed by the theoretical and empirical literature for the emerging economies of Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union. The empirical results of a modern (dynamic) panel data econometric analysis of countries in Central and Eastern Europe, Southern and Eastern Europe, and the Commonwealth of Independent States from 1992 to 2003 are chiefly consistent with theoretical and previous empirical analyses, indicating that there is a moderate level of persisting current account deficits beyond what can be explained by the behavior of its determinants. Economic growth has a negative effect on the current account balance, implying that the domestic growth rate is associated with a larger increase in domestic investment than savings. The stages of development hypothesis can be confirmed, as poorer countries in the region reveal higher current account deficits. A current account balance deterioration is likely to accompany shocks in public budget rates, confirming the validity of the twin deficit hypothesis in the region. The results also indicate the partial effect of demographic factors, as well as the strong influence of the growth rate of EU-15 countries on external imbalances. Finally, appreciation of the real exchange rate and a worsening of the terms of trade are generating deteriorations in the current account deficits of the transition region.

The Determinants & Excessiveness of Current Account Deficits in Eastern Europe & the Former Soviet Union

The article investigates the main factors of current account deficits in order to assess the potential excessiveness of current account deficits in selected countries of Eastern Europe and former Soviet Union. According to the simulated benchmark calculated on the basis of selected determinants (in period 1992-2003), the results confirm that the actual current account balances are generally close to their estimated levels in the 2000-2003 period in the transition region. This notion is in line with the intertemporal approach to the current account balance, suggesting that higher external deficits are a natural outcome when permanent domestic output exceeds the current one and when current investments and government consumption exceed their permanent levels. Hence, the results suggest that most countries in Eastern Europe and former Soviet Union are justified in running relatively high current account deficits.

TQM in public administration organisations: an application of data envelopment analysis in the police service

Performance measurement is an increasingly important and ever more frequently monitored measure of excellence in public sector organisations. For this purpose, public sector organisations employ excellence models such as the European Foundation for Quality Management model, Common Assessment Framework (CAF), Business Scorecard, etc. With the support of European Institute for Public Administration and the national organisations responsible for the development of quality/excellence, many European public administration organisations, including the Slovenian Police Service, use the CAF model as a basis for developing and improving both the enablers and results of their operations. In this respect, the main purpose of the paper is to present and apply a non-parametric methodology for measuring police performance results. The analysis shows that the data envelopment analysis scores and the rankings vary significantly across the police stations. In general, most police stations in the country could attain better results by fully implementing the enablers suggested by the CAF model. Consequently, the empirical results of the paper can serve as a guide for police management when further investigating how to enhance the performance results of police stations.

Measuring relative efficiency of secondary education in selected EU and OECD countries: the case of Slovenia and Croatia

This article continues on a number of previous studies by other scientists in investigating secondary education efficiency by applying a non-parametric methodology. In this respect, the purpose of the article is to review some previous studies on measuring the efficiency of public (secondary) education sector as well as some conceptual and methodological issues of a non-parametric approach. Most importantly, the Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) technique is presented and then applied to a wide range of EU and OECD countries, including Slovenia and Croatia, to evaluate the technical efficiency of secondary education. The empirical results show that technical efficiency in secondary education varies significantly across the great majority of EU and OECD countries. Both Slovenia and Croatia show a relatively high level of technical inefficiency in their secondary education as they respectively only rank in the third and fourth quartiles among selected countries. Therefore, rationalising public secondary education spending is strongly recommended with possible redirecting of some excessive resources to the tertiary education sector.

Performance measurement of police forces at the local level: A non-parametric mathematical programming approach

The paper attempts to measure the relative efficiency of police activities in the Slovenian police at the local level. As the state allocates a relatively large amount of budget funding to police operations and more than one-quarter of public employees is employed in the police, the efficient use of limited public funds is even more important. In particular, a three-stage Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) technique is presented and then applied to measure the relative efficiency of police-work-related data for selected police units at the local level (i.e., police stations (PSs)) in 2010 with additional controlling for external (environmental) factors. The results of the DEA empirical analysis reveal that approximately 80% of the observed PSs are inefficient relative to their peers. More detailed analysis also shows that, in general, PSs with more than 50 posts occupied are on average less efficient. To some extent, the differences in efficiency scores are a consequence of external factors which the management of police stations cannot influence, yet they are even more a result of better governance and organized and police work. Thus, the presented methodology and obtained efficiency results can be a valuable tool in the hands of police management when deciding how to optimally allocate the limited public resources.

Short- and Medium-Term Determinants of Current Account Balances in Middle East and North Africa Countries

The main aim of the paper is to examine the short- and medium-term empirical link between current account balances and a broad set of (economic) variables proposed by theoretical and empirical literature. The paper focuses on the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), an economically diverse region, which has so far mainly been neglected in such empirical analyzes. For this purpose, a (dynamic) panel-regression technique is used to characterize the properties of current account variations across selected MENA economies in the 1971-2005 period. The results, which are generally consistent with theoretical and previous empirical analyses, indicate that higher (domestic and foreign) investment, government expenditure and foreign interest rates have a negative effect on the current account balance. On the other hand, a more open economy, higher oil prices and domestic economic growth generate an improvement in the external balance, whereas the latter implies that the domestic growth rate is associated with a larger increase in domestic savings than investment. Finally, the results show a relatively high persistency of current accounts and reject the validity of the stages of development hypothesis as poorer countries in the region reveal a higher current account surplus (or lower deficit).

Job Satisfaction of Older Workers as a Factor of Promoting Labour Market Participation in the EU: The Case of Slovenia

This paper deals with the study of older workers’ job satisfaction as a factor that, combined with other personal and job-related factors, can significantly influence the decision to postpone retirement when this decision is in the hands of an individual. Starting from the fact that the employment rate of older workers in Slovenia in 2011 was the lowest in the EU, the article aims to establish the level of older workers’ job satisfaction in Slovenia compared to the EU, analyse its dimensions, its specifics related to age, gender, sector of economic activities and type of profession, as well as ascertain what determines it the most. A statistical analysis of the results of the Fifth European Working Conditions Survey of 2010 reveals that Slovenia ranks 15th among the EU member states in terms of older workers’ job satisfaction, thus lagging behind the EU average. While Slovenian older workers, the same as their European counterparts, are most satisfied with doing useful work and the least with their prospects for career advancement, a comparison with other EU member states shows that they are relatively dissatisfied with working conditions, salary and adequacy of the motivation to give one’s best performance, and relatively satisfied with doing useful work and with their colleagues. The analysis also shows that the level of older workers’ job satisfaction in Slovenia is determined most by their satisfaction with the adequacy of the motivation to give one’s best performance.