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The Effect Of Remote Work On Firm Level Productivity, Katherine Fullowan

Gettysburg Economic Review

This paper investigates the impact of remote work on firm-level productivity. To observe this trend, we develop a theoretical model to understand how an economy performs. We consider the economy as a collection of firms in an attempt to maximize profit. By observing a firms profit function, we are able to derive their productivity by maximizing a representative firm’s profit function. For simplicity purposes, this study treats labor as the only factor of production to focus solely on how changes in the number of remote workers impact productivity. We ultimately find that productivity increases when the number of remote workers …

Intrinsic Unrealism: The Ineffectiveness Of Neoclassical Economic Models, Robert N. Meyer

Gettysburg Economic Review

The idea of equilibrium and the usefulness of the neoclassical models that employ it are questionable due to the unrealistic built-in assumptions that they utilize, which have androcentric biases and fail to consider the open-endedness of human choice. This essay will replace the idea that neoclassical economic models are effective and that realism does not matter in the field of economics. It will rely on historical and contemporary sources in the areas of Philosophy, Sociology, Politics, and of course, Economics to explain why these unrealistic and androcentric assumptions nullify the usefulness of the neoclassical models that employ them. The essay …

Economic Development And Female Labor Force Participation In The Middle East And North Africa: A Test Of The U-Shape Hypothesis, Kelsey A. Chapman

Gettysburg Economic Review

This paper investigates the relationship between economic development and female labor force participation in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). Using a panel data set of 20 countries in the region for the period of 1990-2012, I develop an econometric model that tests the U-shape hypothesis. This study builds upon previous literature examining the U-shape hypothesis in time series studies for developing countries, and cross-country studies. The results of this paper suggest that there is a U-shaped relationship between economic growth and female labor force participation rates. The MENA region’s low female labor force participation rates can be explained …

The Gettysburg Economic Review, Volume 8, Spring 2015

Gettysburg Economic Review

No abstract provided.

Do Living Wages Alter The Effect Of The Minimum Wage On Income Inequality?, Benjamin S. Litwin

Gettysburg Economic Review

Anker (2006) proposed a new methodology for calculating the living wage in countries around the world. By looking at OECD nations between 2000-2010, we look to see if countries with a national minimum wage higher than this living wage value see a notable difference in the effect of the minimum wage on income inequality. Our results show that countries with the minimum wage higher than the living wage value do see lower inequality, although there is a key value of the minimum wage, at which countries start to see disemployment effects that increase inequality.

On The Orthodox Nature Of Heterodox Income Distribution Theory, Ross A. Nichols

Gettysburg Economic Review

The goal of this paper is to show that orthodox and heterodox theories of personal income distribution developed in the mid-twentieth century are effectively identical, despite their claims to the contrary. While segmented labor market theory contends that neoclassical theories of personal income distribution, such as human capital theory, ignore the impact of social institutions on the labor market, human capital theory actually implicitly incorporates them. Social institutions are, therefore, just as important in the orthodox approach to personal income distribution. Yet, while this is the case, the heterodox perspective is valuable because of the stress it places on social …

Front Matter

Gettysburg Economic Review

No abstract provided.

The Trend Of The Gender Wage Gap Over The Business Cycle, Nicholas J. Finio

Gettysburg Economic Review

Even after the close of the first decade of the 21st century, there is still significant gender bias in labor market composition and compensation. As the events of the last two years have proven, even drastic efforts of monetary and fiscal policy have not tamed the business cycle. Previous research has reached no definite conclusions on the effect of business cycle trends on the gender wage gap. Over the period from 1979:1 to 2009:3, it is found that increases in the growth rate of GDP yield decreases in women‘s earnings relative to men‘s, and it is also found that increases …

The Gettysburg Economic Review, Volume 4, Spring 2010

Gettysburg Economic Review

No abstract provided.

A Look At Women And Abortion In The United States, Denitsa D. Koleva, Kristina V. Marinova, Robyn A. Byrne

Gettysburg Economic Review

The issue of abortion is defined by ethical questions and, often, controversial views. This paper argues the importance of a coherent and enhanced effort to study the quantitative relationship between women’s characteristics and the average number of abortions in the United States. It specifically looks at the average number of previous abortions and socioeconomic and demographic characteristics, as this relationship has not been explored before in the existing literature. We expect to establish a correlation between the average number of previous abortions and characteristics such as age, marital status, income and highest degree of education completed. An empirical model is …

A Current Microeconometric Assessment Of The Racial Wage Gap In The United States, David H. Krisch

Gettysburg Economic Review

Minority groups in the United States promoted affirmative action legislation in the 1960s during the civil rights movement to help ease the inequalities suffered in their economic history. Many labor economists have sought since this time to study the effects of race, gender, and the effect of income – how it has changed and if the gap has closed. Existing literature uses many different econometric models to show how the effects of race, gender, age, occupation, educational attainment, and geographic location on an individual comparative basis. This paper will examine the effects of all of these variables jointly using an …

The Gettysburg Economic Review, Volume 2, Spring 2008

Gettysburg Economic Review

No abstract provided.

The Effects Of Intermarriage On The Earnings Of Female Immigrants In The United States, Milena V. Nikolova

Gettysburg Economic Review

This paper investigates the effects of intermarriage on the earnings of female immigrants in the United States. The main empirical question asked is whether immigrant females married to US-born spouses have higher earnings than those of immigrant females married to other immigrants. Using 1970 and 1870 samples of IPUMS data, I estimate an earnings equation through OLS. I also correct for the labor force selection bias using the Heckman procedure. I finally take into account the endogeneity of intermarriage and apply a twostage least squares (2SLS) estimation procedure. I find that there is a positive marriage premium among immigrant females …

The Genetic, Social, & Behavioral Factors That Motivate Parents To Abuse Their Children, Bradley M. Garner

Gettysburg Economic Review

This paper examines the influence of economic, genetic, behavioral, and social factors on the parental choice to abuse one’s child. I derive a choice model for the parents based on McFadden’s (1974) conditional logit model. Within society, the parent or parents not only bear the responsibility for their child’s well being, but also for ensuring the child will grow up to be an educated, productive member of society. Through the examination of individual parent and child behavior patterns, as well as numerous social and economic factors from the Physical Violence in American Families Survey of 1985, I show that after …

The Effects Of Maternal Welfare Receipt On Children’S Development, Nikolay O. Doskov

Gettysburg Economic Review

Over the past 25 years, welfare and other public policies for families living below the poverty line have developed a primary objective of promoting parents’ self-sufficiency. The Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA), passed in 1996, was a milestone in this effort, limiting the number of years that families can receive federal cash welfare assistance and requiring most of them to participate in work-related activities to be eligible for such assistance. This new emphasis on work was one of the main reasons for the dramatic decline in welfare dependency during the late 1990s. The new legislation, however, also …

The Effects Of Sexual Orientation On Earnings, Tsz-Ying Yeung

Gettysburg Economic Review

Gay and lesbian topics have received much media attention in recent years. Debates have revolved around issues such as gay marriage, adoption rights, and the legal relationship of children born to a homosexual couple with their nonbiological second parent. Corporations have started to provide partner benefits to gay and lesbian employees. Many companies today have added the words “sexual orientation” to their equal rights hiring policies. Nevertheless, discrimination against homosexual people in the workplace is still widely perceived to exist.

In this paper, I address the question, does earnings discrimination against homosexual and bisexual workers exist in the U.S. labor …

The Gettysburg Economic Review, Volume 1, Spring 2006

Gettysburg Economic Review

No abstract provided.