Template-Type: ReDIF-Article 1.0 Author-Name: Arkadiusz Kijek Author-Workplace-Name: Department of Statistics and Econometrics, Faculty of Economics, Maria Curie-Sklodowska University, Lublin, Poland Author-Name: Tomasz Kijek Author-Workplace-Name: Department of Microeconomics and Applied Economics, Faculty of Economics, Maria Curie-Sklodowska University, Lublin, Poland Author-Name: Anna Nowak Author-Workplace-Name: Department of Economics and Agribusiness, Faculty of Agrobioengineering, University of Life Sciences in Lublin, Lublin, Poland Title: Club convergence of labour productivity in agriculture: Evidence from EU countries Abstract: This paper studies club convergence in relation to labour productivity in the agriculture industry of 28 European Union countries for the period 2005 to 2018. The countries were divided into three groups which were homogeneous in terms of level of development in the agricultural sector. The presence of convergence in the groups of countries was verified by using a panel-data model of conditional β-convergence. Then, convergence processes were investigated within clubs of countries. Convergence processes took place in the groups of countries with low and medium levels of labour productivity. In the club of countries where labour productivity was high, opposite processes (i.e. divergence) were observed. Keywords: agricultural sector, convergence processes, European Union, panel model, productivity Journal: Agricultural Economics Pages: 391-401 Volume: 66 Issue: 9 Year: 2020 DOI: 10.17221/178/2020-AGRICECON File-URL: http://agricecon.agriculturejournals.cz/doi/10.17221/178/2020-AGRICECON.html File-Format: text/html X-File-Ref: http://agriculturejournals.cz/RePEc/caa/references/age-202009-0001.txt Handle: RePEc:caa:jnlage:v:66:y:2020:i:9:id:178-2020-AGRICECON Template-Type: ReDIF-Article 1.0 Author-Name: Nadežda Jankelová Author-Workplace-Name: Department of Management, Faculty of Business Management, University of Economics in Bratislava, Bratislava, Slovakia Author-Name: Zuzana Joniaková Author-Workplace-Name: Department of Management, Faculty of Business Management, University of Economics in Bratislava, Bratislava, Slovakia Author-Name: Anita Romanová Author-Workplace-Name: Department of Information Management, Faculty of Business Management, University of Economics in Bratislava, Bratislava, Slovakia Author-Name: Katarína Remeňová Author-Workplace-Name: Department of Management, Faculty of Business Management, University of Economics in Bratislava, Bratislava, Slovakia Title: Motivational factors and job satisfaction of employees in agriculture in the context of performance of agricultural companies in Slovakia Abstract: The aim of our research is to identify how the effectiveness of motivation and job satisfaction of employees contribute to the success of agricultural companies in Slovakia. The research sample consists of 757 employees in agricultural companies in Slovakia. Baron and Kenny's mediation model and regression ANCOVA (analysis of covariance) were also used. The hypothesis that the dependence of the business performance on the effectiveness of motivation of the employees is mediated by their job satisfaction has been confirmed. An important finding is that the direct relationship between the business performance of agricultural companies and the effectiveness of employee motivation is not significant. However, the variable that transmits this effect, respectively mediates the impact of the effectiveness of employee motivation on business performance, is the job satisfaction of employees. A significant relationship between the effectiveness of motivation was found mainly among financial motivators, which points to the problematic nature of this motivational setting. Significant influencing factors include age, education and job position. As the effectiveness of financial motivation and satisfaction was highest in these groups, it is possible to start applying new trends in employee remuneration to other groups that have not shown such a connection to such a significant extent. Keywords: agricultural company, effectiveness of motivation, performance of company, work satisfaction Journal: Agricultural Economics Pages: 402-412 Volume: 66 Issue: 9 Year: 2020 DOI: 10.17221/220/2020-AGRICECON File-URL: http://agricecon.agriculturejournals.cz/doi/10.17221/220/2020-AGRICECON.html File-Format: text/html X-File-Ref: http://agriculturejournals.cz/RePEc/caa/references/age-202009-0002.txt Handle: RePEc:caa:jnlage:v:66:y:2020:i:9:id:220-2020-AGRICECON Template-Type: ReDIF-Article 1.0 Author-Name: Yiming He Author-Workplace-Name: School of National Agricultural Institution and Development, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, China Author-Name: Thomas M. Fullerton Author-Workplace-Name: Department of Economics and Finance, University of Texas at El Paso, El Paso, USA Title: The economic analysis of instrument variables estimation in dynamic optimal models with an application to the water consumption Abstract: This study examines one of the most important issues in water economic research, namely, the nexus between water consumption and economic growth. Water consumption is determined by the intersection of endogenous growth function and water consumption function, neither function can be consistently identified by comparing average quantities of water consumed at different values of observed real per capita output. The contribution of this study is an investigation of the endogenous nexus between economic output and water consumption. Water consumption function is derived using an optimal dynamic equilibrium model. Two instrument variable models are proposed with real per capita economic output specified as a function of institutional reform and urbanization, which are used to examine the nexus among water consumption, reform, urbanization, and economic growth in Guangzhou, China. Keywords: agricultural population urbanization, China, generalized method of moments, endogenous economic Journal: Agricultural Economics Pages: 413-423 Volume: 66 Issue: 9 Year: 2020 DOI: 10.17221/270/2020-AGRICECON File-URL: http://agricecon.agriculturejournals.cz/doi/10.17221/270/2020-AGRICECON.html File-Format: text/html X-File-Ref: http://agriculturejournals.cz/RePEc/caa/references/age-202009-0003.txt Handle: RePEc:caa:jnlage:v:66:y:2020:i:9:id:270-2020-AGRICECON Template-Type: ReDIF-Article 1.0 Author-Name: Yuan Fang Author-Workplace-Name: Digital Rural Research Institute, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing, Jiangsu, China Author-Name: Yahong Fan Author-Workplace-Name: Digital Rural Research Institute, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing, Jiangsu, China Author-Name: Dehong Yu Author-Workplace-Name: Digital Rural Research Institute, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing, Jiangsu, China Author-Name: Jing Shen Author-Workplace-Name: Digital Rural Research Institute, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing, Jiangsu, China Author-Name: Wankun Jiang Author-Workplace-Name: Digital Rural Research Institute, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing, Jiangsu, China Author-Name: Degui Yu Title: Impact of farmers' benefits linking stability on cloud farm platform of company to farmer model Abstract: China has formed a new C2F (company-to-farmer) model of internet and agriculture. How to build a sustainable linkage of the C2F platform is important for promoting agricultural industrialization. Based on the cognition theory and internet thinking, we characterized the linkage mechanism and stability framework of the C2F regarding default proportion, benefits fairness and benefits gap. Using the logistic regression method, we constructed the impact effect model of benefit links stability based on the farmers' characteristics, platform cognition and social environment. We found that in the C2F, optimizing farmers' age structure (17.93%, impact effect), increasing farmers' income level (16.79%), as well as improving farmers' education level (14.33%), policy support (11.35%), platform service quantity (9.82%), market volatility (9.11%), platform transaction transparency (9.07%), farmers' risk tolerance (7.93%), and platform technical guidance effect (3.67%) had a significant impact on reducing default proportion (28.13%) and benefits gap (36.55%), thus heightening benefits fairness (35.32%). The research suggested, we should promote the sustainability of C2F by improving the farmers' digital ability and platform function, developing innovative linkage mechanisms between companies and farmers, strengthening government guidance, and protecting the policy environment. Keywords: agricultural consortium, classification logistics, farmers' cognition, internet platform, relative effect function Journal: Agricultural Economics Pages: 424-433 Volume: 66 Issue: 9 Year: 2020 DOI: 10.17221/68/2020-AGRICECON File-URL: http://agricecon.agriculturejournals.cz/doi/10.17221/68/2020-AGRICECON.html File-Format: text/html X-File-Ref: http://agriculturejournals.cz/RePEc/caa/references/age-202009-0004.txt Handle: RePEc:caa:jnlage:v:66:y:2020:i:9:id:68-2020-AGRICECON