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Symposium Report: Findings From The Research Roundtable On The Economic And Community Impact Of Broadband, Edward Feser, John Horrigan, William Lehr Mar 2013

Symposium Report: Findings From The Research Roundtable On The Economic And Community Impact Of Broadband, Edward Feser, John Horrigan, William Lehr

Edward J Feser

In December 2012, a group of experts spanning disciplines and practice in the field of broadband policy met to discuss how the research community can better serve state and local policymakers and other stakeholders. This group of subject matter experts was convened to examine how best to measure the economic impact of state and national broadband deployment and capacity/adoption building efforts. The impetus for the symposium stemmed from the widespread view that there is a deficit of research, standards, and measurements to adequately inform the widely acknowledged view that broadband Internet is a driver of sustainable economic and community development. …


Entrepreneurship Education In The Research-Intensive Entrepreneurial University, Edward Feser Jan 2013

Entrepreneurship Education In The Research-Intensive Entrepreneurial University, Edward Feser

Edward J Feser

Knowledge commercialisation and commodification are important components of universities’ “Third Mission” to contribute to the development of their home regions by strengthening their engagement with the public, private, and third sectors. Entrepreneurship education programmes have tended to develop in parallel to such “entrepreneurial university” initiatives, rather than in intentional alignment with them. This is reflected in the research literature as well, where the analysis of the “entrepreneurial university” and studies of entrepreneurship education have little overlap. This paper examines the evolution of the entrepreneurship education initiative of a single research-intensive institution—the University of Manchester in the United Kingdom—and the ways …


Isserman's Impact: Quasi-Experimental Comparison Group Designs In Regional Research, Edward Feser Jan 2013

Isserman's Impact: Quasi-Experimental Comparison Group Designs In Regional Research, Edward Feser

Edward J Feser

Applications using quasi-experimental comparison group designs in regional science and geography have increased substantially over the last three decades, inspired by the work of Andrew Isserman and colleagues in the 1980s and 1990s, robust literatures on quasi-experimental design in fields like education and psychology, a vast program evaluation literature, observational studies methodology in statistics, and the growing interest in experimental and non-experimental (natural) designs in empirical economics. This paper discusses the state of quasi-experimental comparison group research today, with a primary focus on studies in which regions—Census tracts, counties, cities, metropolitan areas, provinces, or states—are the units of analysis. There …


Regional Industrial Structure And Agglomeration Economies: An Analysis Of Productivity In Three Manufacturing Industries, Joshua Drucker, Edward Feser Jan 2012

Regional Industrial Structure And Agglomeration Economies: An Analysis Of Productivity In Three Manufacturing Industries, Joshua Drucker, Edward Feser

Edward J Feser

We investigate whether a more concentrated regional industrial structure – the dominance of a few large firms in a given industry in a region – limits agglomeration economies and ultimately diminishes the economic performance of firms in that industry, especially small ones. In an application to three industries using establishment-level production functions and a combination of confidential and publicly available data sources, we find a consistently negative and substantial direct productivity effect associated with regional industrial structure concentration and only mixed and relatively weak evidence that agglomeration economies are a mediating factor in that effect.


Collective Choice, Justin Schwartz Jan 2011

Collective Choice, Justin Schwartz

Justin Schwartz

This short nontechnical article reviews the Arrow Impossibility Theorem and its implications for rational democratic decisionmaking. In the 1950s, economist Kenneth J. Arrow proved that no method for producing a unique social choice involving at least three choices and three actors could satisfy four seemingly obvious constraints that are practically constitutive of democratic decisionmaking. Any such method must violate such a constraint and risks leading to disturbingly irrational results such and Condorcet cycling. I explain the theorem in plain, nonmathematical language, and discuss the history, range, and prospects of avoiding what seems like a fundamental theoretical challenge to the possibility …


Clusters And Strategy In Regional Economic Development, Edward Feser Dec 2009

Clusters And Strategy In Regional Economic Development, Edward Feser

Edward J Feser

Many economic development practitioners view cluster theory and analysis as constituting a general approach to strategy making in economic development, which may lead them to prioritize policy and planning interventions that cannot address the actual development challenges in their cities and regions. This paper discusses the distinction between strategy formation and strategic planning, where the latter is the programming of development strategies that are identified through a blend of experience, intuition, and analysis. Cluster theories and analytical tools can provide useful informational inputs into a strategy making effort and they can also be helpful for programming specific interventions (i.e., strategic …


Ergonomics: Safety Or Wellness Issue, William C. Mcpeck Apr 2009

Ergonomics: Safety Or Wellness Issue, William C. Mcpeck

William C. McPeck

This is an article I wrote for the worksite wellness newsletter of a local health related non-profit.


Book Review 22 Liberation From The Lie: Cutting The Roots Of Fear Once And For All, William C. Mcpeck Apr 2009

Book Review 22 Liberation From The Lie: Cutting The Roots Of Fear Once And For All, William C. Mcpeck

William C. McPeck

This is my personal review of Liberation From the Lie: Cutting the Roots of Fear Once and for All by Eric Gross, BookSurge Publishing, 2009.


Book Review 21 The Immunity To Change By Robert Kegan And Lisa Laskow Lahey, William C. Mcpeck Mar 2009

Book Review 21 The Immunity To Change By Robert Kegan And Lisa Laskow Lahey, William C. Mcpeck

William C. McPeck

This is my personal review of Immunity to Change: How to Overcome It and Unlock the Potential in Yourself and Your Organization (Leadership for the Common Good) by Robert Kegan and Lisa Laskow Lahey,


Book Review 20 - The Tazie Effect By Heather Whittaker, William C. Mcpeck Mar 2009

Book Review 20 - The Tazie Effect By Heather Whittaker, William C. Mcpeck

William C. McPeck

This is my personal review of the book, The Tazie Effect by Healther Whittaker, published in March 2009, by Penn-Tech Professionals.


Application Of Positive Psychology Research Findings At The Worksite, William C. Mcpeck Feb 2009

Application Of Positive Psychology Research Findings At The Worksite, William C. Mcpeck

William C. McPeck

This presentation examined three issues: 1. The elements that make up positive psychology 2. The challenges associated with applying research findings 3. Examples of how several elements of positive psychology might be applied at the worksite


Worksite Wellness And The 10 Essential Public Health Services, William C. Mcpeck Feb 2009

Worksite Wellness And The 10 Essential Public Health Services, William C. Mcpeck

William C. McPeck

This white paper examines how the 10 Essential Public Health Services being promoted by the CDC relate to worksite wellness.


Maine's Aging Workforce: Calamity Or Opportunity?, William C. Mcpeck Jan 2009

Maine's Aging Workforce: Calamity Or Opportunity?, William C. Mcpeck

William C. McPeck

This presentation explored the issues associated with Maine's aging workforce and offered strategies to employers to help them address many of the issues.


Book Review 17 Me, Myself, And Why? The Secrets To Navigating Change By Lisa A. Mininni, William C. Mcpeck Oct 2008

Book Review 17 Me, Myself, And Why? The Secrets To Navigating Change By Lisa A. Mininni, William C. Mcpeck

William C. McPeck

This is my personal review of Me, Myself, and Why? The Secrets to Navigating Change by Lisa A. Mininni which was published in 2007 by PM Publishing.


Book Review 16 Wellness Leadership: Creating Supportive Environments For Healthier And More Productive Employees By Judd Allen, Ph.D., William C. Mcpeck Aug 2008

Book Review 16 Wellness Leadership: Creating Supportive Environments For Healthier And More Productive Employees By Judd Allen, Ph.D., William C. Mcpeck

William C. McPeck

This is my personal review of Wellness Leadership: Creating supportive environments for healthier and more productive employees by Judd Allen, Ph.D. which was published in 2008 by Healthycultures.com.


Book Review 13 The Art Of Happiness: A Handbook For Living By The Dalai Lama And Howard C. Cutler, M.D., William C. Mcpeck Jun 2008

Book Review 13 The Art Of Happiness: A Handbook For Living By The Dalai Lama And Howard C. Cutler, M.D., William C. Mcpeck

William C. McPeck

This is my personal review of The Art of Happiness: A Handbook for Living by The Dalai Lama and Howard C. Cutler, M.D. and published by Riverhead Hardcover in 1998.


Book Review 15 The Future Of Management By Bill Breen And Gary Hamel, William C. Mcpeck Jun 2008

Book Review 15 The Future Of Management By Bill Breen And Gary Hamel, William C. Mcpeck

William C. McPeck

This is my personal review of The Future of Management by Bill Breen and Gary Hamel, published by Harvard Business School Press in 2007.


Book Review 14 The Art Of Happiness At Work By The Dalai Lama And Howard C. Cutler, M.D., William C. Mcpeck Jun 2008

Book Review 14 The Art Of Happiness At Work By The Dalai Lama And Howard C. Cutler, M.D., William C. Mcpeck

William C. McPeck

This is my personal review of The Art of Happiness at Work by The Dalai Lama and Howard C. Cutler, M.D., published by Riverhead Trade in 2004.


Book Review 11 Driven By Wellth: The 7 Essentials For Healthy, Sustainable Results In 21st Century Business & Leadership By Julie Maloney, William C. Mcpeck May 2008

Book Review 11 Driven By Wellth: The 7 Essentials For Healthy, Sustainable Results In 21st Century Business & Leadership By Julie Maloney, William C. Mcpeck

William C. McPeck

This is my personal review of Driven by Wellth: The 7 Essentials for Healthy, Sustainable Results in 21st Century Business & Leadership by Julie Maloney and published by Wellth Productions in 2004.


Book Review 10 Upping The Downside: 64 Strategies For Creating Professional Resilience By Design (Resilience By Design, Volume 2) By Mike R. Jay, William C. Mcpeck May 2008

Book Review 10 Upping The Downside: 64 Strategies For Creating Professional Resilience By Design (Resilience By Design, Volume 2) By Mike R. Jay, William C. Mcpeck

William C. McPeck

This is my personal review of Upping the Downside: 64 Strategies for Creating Professional Resilience By Design (Resilience By Design, Volume 2) by Mike R. Jay and published by LeadU Press in 2008.


Book Review 9 Talent On Demand: Managing Talent In An Age Of Uncertainty By Pater Cappelli, William C. Mcpeck May 2008

Book Review 9 Talent On Demand: Managing Talent In An Age Of Uncertainty By Pater Cappelli, William C. Mcpeck

William C. McPeck

This is my personal review of Talent on Demand: Managing Talent in an Age of Uncertainty by Pater Cappelli and published by Harvard Business School Press in 2008.


Book Review 8 Inspired Marketing!: The Astonishing Fun New Way To Create More Profits For Your Business By Following Your Heart By Joe Vitale And Craig Perrine, William C. Mcpeck Apr 2008

Book Review 8 Inspired Marketing!: The Astonishing Fun New Way To Create More Profits For Your Business By Following Your Heart By Joe Vitale And Craig Perrine, William C. Mcpeck

William C. McPeck

This is my personal review of Inspired Marketing! The Astonishing Fun New Way to Create More Profits for Your Business by Following Your Heart by Joe Vitale and Craig Perrine and published by Wiley in 2008.


Book Review 7 The Seven Lost Secrets Of Success: Million Dollar Ideas Of Bruce Barton, America's Forgotten Genius By Joe Vitale, William C. Mcpeck Apr 2008

Book Review 7 The Seven Lost Secrets Of Success: Million Dollar Ideas Of Bruce Barton, America's Forgotten Genius By Joe Vitale, William C. Mcpeck

William C. McPeck

This is my personal review of The Seven Lost Secrets of Success: Million Dollar Ideas of Bruce Barton, America's Forgotten Genius by Joe Vitale and published by Wiley in 2007.


Book Review 6 Stop Whining, Start Living By Laura Schlessinger, William C. Mcpeck Mar 2008

Book Review 6 Stop Whining, Start Living By Laura Schlessinger, William C. Mcpeck

William C. McPeck

This is my personal review of Stop Whining, Start Living by Laura Schlessinger and published by Harper in 2008.


On Building Clusters Versus Leveraging Synergies In The Design Of Innovation Policy For Developing Economies, Edward J. Feser Jan 2008

On Building Clusters Versus Leveraging Synergies In The Design Of Innovation Policy For Developing Economies, Edward J. Feser

Edward J Feser

This paper argues there are two broad ways policymakers might use industry cluster concepts to inform the design of regional innovation policy. The first, and clearly dominant approach, is to view identified technology-based clusters as targets for growth strategies, i.e., to nurture the growth of selected groups of innovative industries and research strengths in a limited set of regions as a means of increasing levels of innovation economy-wide (termed the cluster building approach). The second is to use cluster ideas to reorient development strategies so that they leverage synergies among businesses and non-market institutions, thus improving innovation rates (termed the …


Globalization, Regional Economic Policy And Research, Edward Feser Jan 2007

Globalization, Regional Economic Policy And Research, Edward Feser

Edward J Feser

This paper considers two questions. First, are there unique implications of growing global economic integration for development planning and policy making at the city and regional level? Key issues include whether globalization is appreciably different today than it used to be and whether it means anything more, from the perspective of a given city or region, than heightened competition for resident industries and related challenges of more rapid macro-regional structural change and adjustment. Second, what kinds of spatial empirical research and model building would be most valuable to regional policy makers faced with designing programs and making specific allocative investment …


U.S. Regional Economic Fragmentation & Integration: Selected Empirical Evidence And Implications, Edward J. Feser, Geoffrey Hewings Jan 2007

U.S. Regional Economic Fragmentation & Integration: Selected Empirical Evidence And Implications, Edward J. Feser, Geoffrey Hewings

Edward J Feser

The emergence of ten U.S. megaregions—increasingly contiguous spaces of high density development and population capturing a high share of U.S. economic activity—raises the question of appropriate scales for local, state and federal policy and how regional planning as a practice can adapt to an extended and, in some cases, almost continuous economic integration over space (RPA, 2006). Notions of cities as functional economic areas, more or less distinct spaces that operate as independent economic units, are less and less tenable as the basis for planning and policy making. At the same time, the megaregion phenomenon does not necessarily imply that …


Encouraging Broadband Deployment From The Bottom Up, Edward J. Feser Jan 2007

Encouraging Broadband Deployment From The Bottom Up, Edward J. Feser

Edward J Feser

State governments that have elected to make investments to increase the availability of affordable broadband service in rural areas and low income urban neighborhoods should organize their efforts around a strategy that encourages and leverages locally-driven initiatives, rather than follow a top-down approach that seeks to identify and close all broadband service gaps in a comprehensive fashion. A bottom-up approach to state broadband policy has three major advantages. First, it is a conservative policy response in an economic arena in which the appropriate role of the public sector is highly contested and in which private sector deployment is proceeding rapidly, …


Maine State Government's Worksite Wellness Program, William C. Mcpeck Feb 2006

Maine State Government's Worksite Wellness Program, William C. Mcpeck

William C. McPeck

This is an unpublished report I wrote for Maine Governor John Baldacci to share with the National Governor's Association. The report reflects the history and current initiatives of Maine State Government's employee wellness program.


Harnessing Growth Spillovers For Rural Development: The Effects Of Regional Spatial Structure, Edward Feser, Andrew Isserman Jan 2006

Harnessing Growth Spillovers For Rural Development: The Effects Of Regional Spatial Structure, Edward Feser, Andrew Isserman

Edward J Feser

Many rural development strategies seek to leverage urban to-rural growth spillovers. This paper concludes that their success depends on the spatial structure surrounding the target rural counties. We develop a county-level spatial growth model to identify the positive spread and negative backwash effects of urban to rural spillovers in the lower 48 states over the 1990-2000 period. Instead of the conventional, fallacious substitution of metropolitan and nonmetropolitan for urban and rural, we consider the urban and rural character of each county. Mostcounties have both urban and rural populations, and we classify each as urban, mixed urban, or rural depending on …