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An Analysis Of The 2014 Medicaid Expansion On New York And California's Maternal Mortality Rate, Reshanna Jagroo

Honors Undergraduate Theses

This thesis seeks to investigate the 2014 Medicaid expansion’s effect on maternal mortality rates for New York and California. The CDC reported in 2019 that maternal mortality rates have been increasing. These findings are concerning for mothers and are a problem for developed nations like the United States with improved healthcare. Furthermore, women of color are disproportionately affected relative to white women. Previous research has indicated that healthcare expansions positively affect decreasing death rates among pregnant women.

In this study, I investigate how increased access to healthcare through the 2014 Medicaid expansion under the Affordable Care Act affects maternal mortality …

Effects Of The Covid-19 Pandemic On Gambling Behavior And Revenues: A Multi-State Analysis, Xiaoling W. Sundberg

Honors Undergraduate Theses

This thesis examines the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on individual gambling behavior by testing whether ticket sales and revenues in the multi-state parimutuel PowerBall and MegaMillions lotteries decreased or increased between the pre-COVID and COVID periods in Florida, Texas, and Colorado. Two competing hypotheses are investigated. First, gambling activity may have decreased during COVID either due to increased risk-aversion induced by the pandemic, negative changes in household income from the loss of employment, or a combination of the two. Second, gambling activity may have increased during COVID either due to increased willingness to take risks, substitution of income previously …

The Effect Of Technological Advancements On Interactions In The Agricultural Commodities Market, Savannah B. Armas

Honors Undergraduate Theses

The objective of this research is to find, if and how, real and financial technological advancements influence interactions in the agricultural commodities market. Statistical testing was conducted to identify potential correlation and any positive linear relationships in the price data between agricultural commodities and their complementary agricultural chemical producers. Testing if higher trade volumes in this industry result from higher technology usage were initiated by identifying shared linear growth between general index volumes and agricultural commodities, alongside their chemical complement stock volumes. The scientific development of chemical engineering mirrors financial technologies influencing trader behavior as a significant contributor to agricultural …

The Evolution Of Racial And Ethnic Disparities In Health Outcomes, Megan T. Hoang

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Health disparities between different racial/ethnic groups in the United States are substantial. When reviewed across an extensive body of literature, these disparities have been demonstrated to persist even when socioeconomic status, geographic region, health conditions, treatment methods, and patient access-related variables are controlled. This ultimately leads to higher mortality rates among minority patients, making disparities in health a highly prevalent issue. However, the literature suggests that while racial and ethnic disparities in health have been widely examined, research documenting the evolution of these changes over time is lacking. This motivates the research questions: (1) How has the impact of racial …

Choice Of Accounting Major Amongst Minority Students As A Function Of Socioeconomic Status, Sara Mohammed

Honors Undergraduate Theses

I tested the relationship between self-efficacy and socioeconomic status and how the combination can affect major choices in African American students. I used the social cognitive career theory and process mediation models to analyze the results of different variables. At the University of Central Florida, the participants were 1200 students in the introduction to financial accounting course. They completed a survey that measured various social barriers, social supports, and self-efficacy. Implications of future research in the context of accounting fields are discussed.

Worker Cooperatives And Globalization: A Case Study Of Fagor Electrodométicos Utilizing Game Theory, Bradley C. Williams

Honors Undergraduate Theses

The internationally recognized and flagship worker cooperative Fagor Electrodomésticos was founded in 1956 and was heralded as a success story before declaring bankruptcy in 2013. In this thesis, I examine the existing literature regarding worker cooperatives and provide historical background on Fagor Electrodomésticos. I then focus on one of the factors credited by the literature as contributing to its failure and other worker cooperatives broadly, the internal decision-making process. To analyze the role of the internal decision-making process I develop a game-theoretic model that sheds light on the dynamics of this process. This model contains three actors each of whom …

The Effect Of Flooding On Inequality In Developing Countries: A Qualitative Analysis, Eva Gregory

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Global warming continues to have a negative effect on the environment and, by extension, the economy. Incidence of natural disasters are increasing because of climate change, with flooding being one of the most common and costly types of disaster. Studies on the effect of floods on the economy have revealed that flooding increases the amount of income inequality. However, there is not a unified, qualitative analysis of the reasons for the post-flood increase in inequality. This thesis examines multiple different flood events in several developing countries to answer how flooding affects inequality in developing countries. It produces a synthesized analysis …

Small Business Risk In The Context Of A Pandemic: A Simulation, Ashlyn Sperry

Honors Undergraduate Theses

In this thesis, I consider the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on small businesses, as they are acutely at risk due to the lack of implicit government insurance that would be available to larger corporations. I will discuss insurance's characteristics using the basic theory of insurance, analyze pandemic insurance's viability in the private market, and critique alternative solutions. While the theory suggests that pandemics are not insurable in the private market, I will perform specific analysis to determine if this is the case or not. Using a simulation of the economic landscape firms face, business owners with varying levels of …

Stock Returns By Sector And Industries In A Year Into The Covid-19 Pandemic, Simon Alvin A. Casas

Honors Undergraduate Theses

In the COVID-19 stock market industries reacted and were affected in different ways. This paper will use Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) codes to look at how sectors and selected industries fared after a whole year in a pandemic. This will be accomplished by comparing 2019 stock returns to 2020 stock returns with a t-test and estimating the effect of COVID-19 positive case and death increases using a pooled OLS regression. All SIC sectors A-J were analyzed as well as 18 selected industries such as food stores, real estate, oil and gas extraction, health services, and communications. Results show a significant …

A Comparative Analysis Of The Price Of Insulin In Canada And The United States, Kimia Z. Badakhshan

Honors Undergraduate Theses

There's frequent discourse regarding the rising cost of insulin in the US. Insulin is a drug that over 7 million people rely on for survival, and it has tripled in cost over the last decade. The pricing regulation of the drug is dependent on multiple stakeholders, including wholesalers, pharmacy benefit managers, and manufacturing companies. Due to the lack of governmental intervention in the process of pharmaceutical cost regulation in the US, data on the price negotiations and the rebate system between these entities is unavailable in public records, making it difficult to determine a primary cause as the root of …

Risk Preference Stability In The Aftermath Of Natural And Human-Influenced Catastrophes: A Meta-Analysis, James R. Bailey

Honors Undergraduate Theses

We estimate the impact of natural and human-influenced catastrophes on individual risk preferences. Using the meta-analysis process with random-effects models, we examine the significance of the effect of different catastrophes on individual risk preferences. As natural and human-influenced catastrophes have become more frequent a number of studies have evaluated their effects on risk attitudes. In this thesis a meta-analysis is performed from the results in these recent studies, allowing for comparisons across catastrophes and against results from laboratory experiments. In evaluating the change in risk-taking behavior amongst affected populations it may better inform relief efforts and policy decisions. Overall, subjects …

Underpricing In The Fintech Industry Compared To Non-Fintech Ipos, Kelsey A. Goss

Honors Undergraduate Theses

In this thesis, I investigate the amount of underpricing in FinTech companies compared to non-FinTech companies. Both data sets contain thirty companies spanning from 1993 to 2018. Each FinTech company is matched to a non-FinTech company by year and comparatively similar revenue. Prior research explores underpricing on different industries, but it hasn’t yet explored underpricing in the FinTech segment. The variables considered in this paper are offer price, close price, shares offered, number of banks involved, fees per share, and money left on the table. I find some evidence that the average amount of underpricing in both dollars and by …

Hedge Fund Investment In Initial Coin Offerings (Icos), Adam B. Wing

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Initial Coin Offerings (ICOs) came into worldwide attention in 2018, when over $11.6 billion flowed through them. The CME Group launched Bitcoin futures contracts in December 2017, giving large funds their first regulated exposure to digital assets. As digital assets move towards the mainstream of finance, institutional investors have followed. This study comparatively analyzes Hedge Fund investment in digital assets against that of other institutional investment firm types (Private Equity and Venture Capital) by analyzing their crypto holdings and rebuilding an equally weighted portfolio for each fund. Under these conditions, the study succeeds in finding significant differences between hedge fund …

Partial Adjustment Of Self-Reported Alcohol Consumption In The National Health And Nutrition Examination Survey: A Zero Inefficiency Stochastic Frontier Analysis, Isabella A. Yerby

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Alcohol consumption is likely underreported in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. The problem, common among most self-reported data, stems from social desirability bias. As a result of this bias, the true level of alcohol consumption, specifically heavy episodic drinking, or binge drinking, is undercounted. By applying zero inefficiency stochastic frontier analysis, we adjust for the inefficiency caused by survey participants underreporting their alcohol consumption. This paper serves to partially correct the estimates of heavy episodic drinking and to serve as an example that stochastic frontier analysis can be used outside of its standard application to correct underreported and …

Governments' Adoption Of Native Cryptocurrency: A Case Study Of Iran, Russia, And Venezuela, Rose Mahdavieh

Honors Undergraduate Theses

The emergence of digital currency is becoming prevalent in the age of globalization – specifically, cryptocurrencies. Cryptocurrencies and blockchain are two recently discovered concepts currently being explored by researchers and developers. Cryptocurrency is a subset of digital currency that encompasses revolutionary technology, shifting political and economic spheres in nation-states. Certain governments are more prone to the adoption of cryptocurrencies and three comparative case study countries, Iran, Russia, and Venezuela, have shared attributes that result in adoption. Observed factors that result in the adoption of cryptocurrencies include corruption, GDP level, economic volatility, and Western sanctions. These factors will be applied in …

A Model Of Low-Risk Piracy, Amil Camilo

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Heterogeneous consumers make the decision to buy a durable good or to download a replica, and a monopolist chooses to price and protect their intellectual property in the form of an authentication cost. An optimal price and authentication cost is derived, and shown to be higher than the efficient outcome for a uniform distribution of consumers. The optimal selection of price and protection are shown to be commensurate with his authenticating technology, and the searching ability of consumers. As an extension, a layout for a monopolist problem where consumers have different searching abilities is shown to be indistinct from a …

The Effect Of Corporate Social Responsibility On Firm Value And Performance, Jennifer E. Maxey

Honors Undergraduate Theses

In this thesis, I test the effects of corporate social responsibility (CSR) on firm valuation and performance from the financial crisis of 2007 to year 2013. Prior research on CSR suggests that CSR is related to firm performance, but the results have not been consistent. My study focuses on the time period following the crisis since trust between firms and stakeholders may be more important following a negative shock. The components of CSR are broken out into environmental, human rights, diversity, community impact, employee relations, product, and corporate governance. I find evidence that at least some measures of firm performance …

Chinese Economic Development And Its Global Implications, Robert T. Hill

Honors Undergraduate Theses

While Chinese economic development is often at the forefront of conversations by scholars shaping economic policy, further investigation into the state of China's economy has left a gap in research. Through analyzing the 13th Five Year Plan (FYP) and looking specifically at the effect it will have on unemployment, international trade, overcapacity rates, and the Belt and Road Initiative, the goal of this research is to understand if China will be able to obtain sustained economic growth. In order to achieve this, this research employs a qualitative discourse analysis, focusing on pre-existing works that discuss Chinese economic development. It will …

Effects Of Sme Access To Capital On Country Economic Performance: Understanding The Differences Between The Developed And The Developing World, William B. Reed

Honors Undergraduate Theses

The intent of this thesis is to explore the effects of small-medium enterprises' (SME) access to capital on country economic performance and examine the differences between the developed world and the developing world. Specifically, two main questions are addressed: whether there are significantly higher barriers-to-entry through a lack of access to credit in developing countries as well as whether SMEs access to credit around the world has changed over time.

Using a sample of 46 countries and grouping them two different ways (developed vs developing and free-market vs non-free-market), I find a negative correlation between the SMEs access to capital …

It Takes A Village To Raise Water Quality: The Effects Of Residential Voluntary Taxation Mechanisms On Lake Water Quality In Orange County, Florida, Andrew P. Hutchens

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Achieving environmental standards with efficient and cost-effective economic systems is a subject whose importance is increasing in conjunction with growing technological innovation and urbanization. This project contributes to the subject's literature by empirically examining the effects of a voluntary taxation mechanism on the water quality of designated lakes in Orange County, Florida. One of two taxing district types is voluntarily formed by lakefront or near-lakefront property owners: a Municipal Service Taxing District (MSTU), wherein participants pay an ad valorem tax based on property values, or a Municipal Service Benefit Unit (MSBU), wherein participants pay an equal flat rate tax independent …

Recruit Quality And College Football Team Performance In The Cfp Era, Jordan Aaron Izenwasser

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Recruiting is a major component of college football. Teams compete for recruits since the quality of a recruiting class contributes to on-field success. Previous studies have investigated the relationship between recruit quality and on-field performance and have found that a positive relationship exists. This thesis contributes to the literature by empirically examining how recruit quality affects team performance in the College Football Playoff (CFP) era using various measures of success. Panel data econometric models are used to determine the effect of recruits between schools, as well as within both conferences and schools on team performance. It also considers the validity …

The Effect Of Unemployment On Democratic Warfare, Andres Rakower

Honors Undergraduate Theses

This study was done to see the effects of a war on the economy and the internal politics of the United States. In selecting the engagement, we would study we agreed the Iraq War would be aided by a large amount of sampling of public opinion that was more nuanced than in previous wars. The Iraq War was a very complicated war, as it was controversial from the beginning and became a political issue while continuing to be a war fought by Americans abroad. Based on the literature, there were many starting effects and assumptions that were accounted for such …

Changing Traditions: Examining The Factors That Determine The Probability Of Bidding To Host The Olympic Games Over Time, Jessie R. Dickens

Honors Undergraduate Theses

In September 2017, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) announced that, for the first time in its history, it would award the hosting of two different Olympic Games at the same time, giving the 2024 and 2028 Summer Olympic Games to Paris and Los Angeles respectively. As a result, the question is raised as to why the IOC broke tradition in its host city selection process. The break of tradition is presumably due to a lack of candidates to host the 2028 Summer Olympics. With prior host cities reporting astronomical costs and high debt balances associated with hosting, many cities have …

Sexual Harassment, Public Transportation, And Labor Market Outcomes For Women: Case Study Of Lahore, Pakistan, Rachel A. Wilder

Honors Undergraduate Theses

This thesis investigates an understudied question in the economics literature: how does sexual harassment experienced in and around public transportation affect labor market outcomes for women? Previous research suggests that access to public transport can improve labor market outcomes and that women's use of public transportation is sometimes limited by their experience of sexual harassment. It follows that when harassment is particularly widespread or severe – as is the case in much of South Asia – it may lead women who depend on public transportation for travel to make different labor market choices or not to work at all. If …

The Effects Of Emerging Technology On Healthcare And The Difficulties Of Integration, Skyler J. Pavlish-Carpenter

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Background: Disruptive technology describes technology that is significantly more advanced than previous iterations, such as: 3D printing, genetic manipulation, stem cell research, innovative surgical procedures, and computer-based charting software. These technologies often require extensive overhauls to implement into older systems and must overcome many difficult financial and societal complications before they can be widely used. In a field like healthcare that makes frequent advancements, these difficulties can mean that the technology will not be utilized to its full potential or implemented at all.

Objective: To determine the inhibiting factors that prevent disruptive technology from being implemented in conventional healthcare.

Methods: …

The Effects Of An Increasing Federal Minimum Wage On Federal Unemployment And Job Automation Levels, Kiana Krayeski

Honors Undergraduate Theses

The industrial revolution was the start of increasing technological advancements that are continuing to grow today. Technology improves accuracy, efficiency and is more productive in comparison to human labor as it does not require breaks and cannot violate any labor laws. With many innovations available today, firms have more options to choose from and can select the relatively cheaper solution. The push for a fifteen-dollar minimum wage affects the firm's options, and the use of technology might increasingly become the more viable choice. This study took data from the years 1993 to 2016 and created two regressions using the unemployment …

Corruption: Brazil's Everlasting Parasite, Patricia Vilhena

Honors Undergraduate Theses

The purpose of this thesis is to explore corruption in Brazil, how it has endured for so such a long period, and the effects it has in the country. Understanding the history of Brazil, how the government was established, and how the branches operate is crucial to comprehend the rooting causes of the Brazilian corruption. The focus is not just about what corruption is and the effects it has on education, economy, and infrastructure, but also on the factors that contributed to its expansion and the circumstances that allowed it to sustain until today. Brazil is a country known for …

How Has The Valuation Of Technology Ipos Changed Since The Dot-Com Bubble?, Andrew Rush

Honors Undergraduate Theses

In my paper, I extended Aggarwal, Bhagat and Rangan’s “The Impact of Fundamentals on IPO Valuation”. I examine IPO valuations over three time periods: 2002-2006, 2007-2011 and 2012-2016. In these time periods, I analyze the first day returns these firms experience along with testing the significance of four variables on their valuations: Total Assets, Previous Year’s Sales, Previous Year’s R&D Expense, and Sales-to-Assets Multiple. The results point to a shift in valuation tactics from valuing in line with investors’ expectations in the early years to undervaluing them in more recent years. Also, Sales and R&D have statistical significance for firm’s …

The Colonial Legacies Of Trade Agreements With The European Union, Mia R. Warshofsky

Honors Undergraduate Theses

As European colonialism was the dominant system of long-distance governance and resource appropriation for centuries, its economic legacies are diverse albeit understated. The existing research looks mainly at the effects of colonialism on a former colony's internal development. This study broadens that scope, looking at which factors are correlated with the presence or absence of a trade agreement with the European Union as well as the number of restrictions to free trade within them. This was carried out through four large-n regressions. The first compared current former- and non-colony trading partners. The second narrowed the scope by comparing only former …

Does Lowering The Interest Rate Stimulate Economic Growth? An Analysis Of Current Macroeconomic Policy, Tomas Araujo

Honors Undergraduate Theses

The effectiveness of monetary policy moving forward from the subprime mortgage crisis has come into question by academics and economists from around the world. The unconventional monetary policy tools implemented have left central banks in a tough spot in terms of an exit from these policies in an environment where economic growth and inflation targets still have not been reached ten years after the onset of the recession. One of the main criticisms by economists is the prolonged easy monetary policy implemented by central banks, which have left interest rates at near zero levels since the recession and are just …