Although its new management is doing well, the firm is again protected from the risk of unwanted takeover, with all that can mean for dampening incentives and innovation.
It may also explain why Spain was the worst performer in western Europe, and why Latin America was the worst-performing region: Spanish's role as an international language in a big region dampens incentives to learn English.
In addition, the powerful lobbies of the coal and oil businesses, along with the inertia in the congress to pass a national climate change bill further dampens incentives for these industries to invest in natural gas, despite its various attractive qualities.
Some consumer groups worry that it will reduce competition in the lucrative telecommunication sector, dampening incentives for innovation and possibly pushing up consumer prices.
This dampens incentives to preferentially enroll low-risk patients with predictably lower health care expenses.
But risk adjustment, by compensating insurers for the incremental cost of chronically ill patients, dampens incentives for prevention [ 82].
Obama, Conard says, is "going to dampen the incentives".
On March 5th EU finance ministers decided that European bankers' bonuses should be capped at a maximum of one times their base salary, rising to two times if shareholders explicitly agree.The declared aim of the bonus cap, which was the brainchild of the European Parliament, is to dampen the incentives for reckless risk-taking that in the past led to bank bail-outs and costs to the taxpayer.
For current beneficiaries, the fear of losing benefits may dampen any incentives to return to work.
