Purpose: The position of women and their participation in political life are among the key issues in global gender equality debates. This paper examines the relationship between female representation in local politics and budget credibility in Slovenia and Croatia, addressing whether greater female involvement enhances budget transparency and accountability at the local level. Methodology: The share of female council members is expressed as the percentage of all councillors, while the presence of a female mayor is represented by a dummy variable equal to one if the mayor is female, and zero otherwise. Budget credibility is assessed by budget deviations, calculated as the absolute difference between planned and actual total expenditures divided by planned total expenditures. Cluster analysis was conducted for all 212 Slovenian urban municipalities and municipalities and 556 Croatian cities and municipalities for the year 2023. Results: The analysis reveals a negative relationship between the share of female councillors and total expenditure deviations. Local governments with a greater proportion of women in representative bodies tend to have higher budget credibility, indicating improved budget credibility associated with greater female representation. Conclusion: Enhancing female representation in local councils promotes higher budget credibility, offering important policy implications for gender equality and fiscal governance in Slovenia and Croatia. These findings underscore the value of women’s political participation in strengthening local financial management.
Purpose: This article examines the budget credibility of local governments (LGs) in two neighbouring EU countries, Slovenia and Croatia. It analyses eight economic determinants of budget deviations (BDs), defined as the difference between planned and actual budget revenues and expenditures, expressed as a proportion of planned amounts. In doing so, the study addresses an important gap in the literature by providing the first systematic empirical assessment of the economic factors shaping local budget credibility in Central and Eastern Europe, with implications for both fiscal policy and local public finance. Methodology: The analysis is based on a dynamic panel data model estimated using the system GMM approach and covers all 768 LGs in Slovenia and Croatia over the period 2016–2023. The sample comprises 128 cities and 428 municipalities in Croatia, and 12 cities and 200 municipalities in Slovenia. The empirical framework also incorporates local electoral cycles, including one election prior to and two elections during the observation period in both countries, in order to capture more fully the interaction between political and economic influences on local budgeting practices. Findings: The findings indicate that Croatian LGs display significantly greater BDs than Slovenian LGs. They also show that current BDs are strongly shaped by their lagged values, pointing to a high degree of persistence in budget credibility outcomes. In Croatia, larger population size is associated with lower BDs in total revenues and capital expenditures. In Slovenia, lower BDs are linked to lower unemployment, higher ownsource revenues, and greater reliance on government or EU grants. Overall, the results point to meaningful cross-country differences in the way socio-economic and fiscal factors affect local budget credibility, highlighting the need for context-sensitive approaches to fiscal management. Originality: This study makes an original contribution to the literature by combining comprehensive coverage of local governments with advanced econometric analysis to identify the economic determinants of local budget credibility. It also provides a basis for the development of harmonised tools for assessing budget credibility, with practical relevance for improving fiscal transparency, accountability, and sustainable local governance across EU countries. The findings may assist policymakers and fiscal managers in strengthening budget planning and execution, thereby contributing to more effective public service delivery and greater financial stability.
The purpose of this study was to examine the role of internal communication satisfaction dimensions in shaping employee readiness for change in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Croatia. Although internal communication is important for employee readiness for change, there is still little empirical evidence showing how the flow of information within organizations relates to that readiness. To address this gap, the study observed internal communication satisfaction through its eight dimensions and tested their associations with readiness for change, while accounting for information overload and work demands as information processing constraints, and perceived quality of change communication as a potential mediator. The resulting model was tested using 32 hypotheses, based on survey data from 454 employees in Croatian SMEs. Direct and moderating effects were examined using regression-based analyses. Mediation effects were evaluated with structural equation modelling. The results showed that three internal communication dimensions were significantly related to employee readiness for change: satisfaction with information about the organization, communication in meetings and communication climate. Other dimensions did not show significant associations. Moderation roles of information overload and work demands were confirmed for several dimensions, while mediating effects were not confirmed. The findings offer theoretical and practical contributions.
Purpose-This study explores how perceived quality of life in a destination-specifically environmental and social dimensions-is related to destination brand loyalty and brand value. The local population plays a key role in shaping and sustaining a strong destination brand through their lived experiences. Methodology/Design/Approach-A survey was conducted from December 2023 to February 2024 with 217 residents from two tourist destinations in Split-Dalmatia County. Destination brand equity was assessed through brand loyalty and brand value, while quality of life was measured via environmental and social factors. The analysis also considered demographic differences based on gender, education level, and location. Findings-Both environmental and social quality of life are significantly and positively related to destination brand loyalty and brand value. Gender differences emerged with environmental quality relating to loyalty among females more strongly than males. Educational background and location also moderated perceptions of brand value. Originality of the research-Set against the backdrop of rising tourism pressure and overtourism, this study offers new insights into how residents' quality of life is related to destination branding. By examining micro-locations, it emphasizes the importance of context and demographic variation in shaping brand perception, offering a more resident-centered perspective to destination management.
Rad istražuje povezanost emisija stakleničkih plinova i dohotka po stanovniku u 27 zemalja članica Europske unije u razdoblju od 1995. do 2023. godine primjenom hipoteze okolišne Kuznetsove krivulje (EKC). Primjenom kvadratnih, kubnih i dinamičkih panel-modela analizirane su agregatne i sektorske emisije u razvijenijim i manje razvijenim zemljama članicama. Rezultati upućuju na strukturne razlike među skupinama zemalja. Obrnuta U-krivulja potvrđena je u ukupnim emisijama, sektoru zgradarstva i izgaranju goriva u razvijenijim zemljama, dok manje razvijene zemlje uglavnom bilježe rastuće i konveksne obrasce kretanja emisija i dohotka. Smanjenje emisija ponajprije je povezano s vremenskim učincima i javnim politikama, a ne isključivo s rastom dohotka. Povećanje udjela obnovljivih izvora energije i smanjenje energetskog intenziteta dodatno pridonose smanjenju emisija, potvrđujući važnost tehnološke tranzicije i regulatorne potpore u tranzicijskim gospodarstvima.
