Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

On The Optimality Of One-Size-Fits-All Contracts: The Limited Liability Case, Felipe Balmaceda Assoc Prof.

Felipe Balmaceda

Strategic Ignorance In Sequential Procurement, Silvana Krasteva, Huseyin Yildirim

Huseyin Yildirim

Imitation In Heterogeneous Populations, Jonas Hedlund, Carlos Oyarzun

Carlos Oyarzun

Response Functions, Carlos Oyarzun, Adam Sanjurjo, Hien Nguyen

Carlos Oyarzun

Crop Residues: The Rest Of The Story, Douglas L. Karlen, Rattan Lal, Ronald F. Follett, John M. Kimble, Jerry L. Hatfield, John A. Miranowski, Cynthia A. Cambardella, Andrew Manale, Robert P. Anex, Charles W. Rice

Douglas L Karlen

Synopsis In the February 15, 2009 issue of ES&T Strand and Benford argued that oceanic deposition of agricultural crop residues was a viable option for net carbon sequestration (43 [4], 1000−1007). In reviewing the calculations and bringing their experience to bear, Karlen et al. argue in this Viewpoint that crop residue oceanic permanent sequestration (CROPS) as envisioned by Strand and Benford will not work. They further propose alternative possibilities in agricultural methods to achieve a net decrease of CO2 emissions.

I Share, Therefore It's Mine, Donald J. Kochan

Donald J. Kochan

Discretionary Policy And Multiple Equilibria In A New Keynesian Model, Volker Hahn

Volker Hahn

Econometrics In The Courtroom, Daniel L. Rubinfeld

Daniel L. Rubinfeld

No abstract provided.

The Integrity Of Financial Analysts: Evidence From Asymmetric Responses To Earnings Surprises, Rui Lu, Wenxuan Hou, Henry Oppenheimer, Ting Zhang

Ting Zhang

This paper investigates the integrity of financial analysts by examining their recommendation responses to large quarterly earnings surprises. Although there is no significant difference in recommendation changes between affiliated and unaffiliated analysts in response to positive earnings surprises, affiliated analysts are more reluctant than unaffiliated analysts to downgrade stock recommendations in response to negative earnings surprises. The evidence implies that conflicts of interest undermine the integrity of financial analysts. We further examine the effects of reputation concern and the Global Research Analyst Settlement as informal and formal mechanisms, on restoring analysts’ integrity. The results show that the positive bias in …

An Analysis Of Risk-Taking Behavior For Public Defined Benefit Pension Plans, Nancy Mohan, Ting Zhang

Ting Zhang

This paper presents the first comprehensive study on the determinants of public pension fund investment risk and reports several new important findings. Unlike private pension plans, public funds undertake more risk if they are underfunded and have lower investment returns in the previous years, consistent with the risk transfer hypothesis. Furthermore, pension funds in states facing fiscal constraints allocate more assets to equity and have higher betas. There also appears to be a herding effect in that CalPERS equity allocation or beta is mimicked by other pension funds. Finally, our results suggest that government accounting standards strongly affect pension fund …

An Analysis Of Risk-Taking Behavior For Public Defined Benefit Pension Plans, Nancy Mohan, Ting Zhang

Nancy Mohan

This paper presents the first comprehensive study on the determinants of public pension fund investment risk and reports several new important findings. Unlike private pension plans, public funds undertake more risk if they are underfunded and have lower investment returns in the previous years, consistent with the risk transfer hypothesis. Furthermore, pension funds in states facing fiscal constraints allocate more assets to equity and have higher betas. There also appears to be a herding effect in that CalPERS equity allocation or beta is mimicked by other pension funds. Finally, our results suggest that government accounting standards strongly affect pension fund …

The Impact Of Institutional Arrangements On Educational Efficiency, Trevor Collier

Trevor Collier

Per-pupil expenditures on education in the United States have grown immensely in recent decades, yet student achievement has been stagnant. An abundance of research has sought to solve this enigma, much of it centered on the incentive structure facing administrators. Some recent papers use TIMSS data to analyze the relationship between institutional arrangements—that typically do not vary within a single country—and student achievement. Similarly, we utilize TIMSS 1999 to determine if there is an indirect relationship between institutional arrangements and student achievement, via a relationship with school efficiency. Our results show that the specified link between institutional arrangements and student …

Teacher Qualifications And Student Achievement: A Panel Data Of Analysis, Trevor Collier

Trevor Collier

Recent academic research suggests that teacher quality plays an important role in student achievement: however, empirical research on the efficacy of policies requiring teachers to obtain certain degrees is inconclusive, particularly in elementary education. This paper models a panel data production function with fixed effects using the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study (ECLS-K) to asses the relationship between different undergraduate and graduate majors and elementary student test scores. Specifcally, we aim to discern if there is a difference in teacher efficacy within the different education related majors (e.g. early childhood education and elementary education) and between education and non-education related majors.

Tobin, James, Tony Caporale

Tony Caporale

James Tobin was born in Champaign, Illinois, in 1918. He received his bachelor's degree in 1939 and his master's degree in 1940, both from Harvard. Following naval service during the years 1942-6, he returned to his graduate studies and received his PhD from Harvard in 1947. In 1950, he joined the economics department at Yale University, and he has largely remained at Yale and has been identified with this institution throughout his career. He twice directed the Cowles Foundation for Research in Economics, first from 1955 to 1961, and then from 1964 to 1965. He also served for two years, …

Deny, Deny, Deny, Michael Lewyn

Michael E Lewyn

Economic Forecasting, Impact Analysis And Regional Planning With A Focus On The Illawarra, Ashkan Masouman

Ashkan Masouman

Purpose – This thesis investigates the Illawarra economy and presents three approaches to conducting policy impact analysis and economic forecasting. The primary focus of the policy analysis and economic forecasting is measuring the changes that occur in regional output, income and employment as a result of different policies and economic activities. This thesis analyses the structural shifts and economic transitions that have taken place in the regional economy over the past two decades to determine the direction of the economy and analyse impacts of different policies and economic activities on the regional economy. Methodology – There are five methodologies extended …

Private Value Determinations And The Potential Effect On The Future Of Research And Development, Amy L. Landers

Amy L. Landers

Although the promise of an emerging patent market is thought to provide future benefits to invention, innovation, and the public, this essay examines the possibility that the aggregate influence of this activity could instead destabilize patent values in a manner that mirrors the "bubble" phenomenon that occurred in certain markets in the past. To the extent that this occurs, this would destabilize the patent system and might have negative consequences for the future of investment in research, development and innovation.

How Default Probability Affects Returns On Loans, Lester G. Telser

Lester G Telser

Even the simplest kind of default as an independent random event poses difficulties. The correct formulas for the nominal return on a default free loan and the revisions to apply for a loan that may default follow from 2 assumptions. 1. A good now is better than a good later because survival from now to later is not sure. 2. Private loans occur only if the probability of default does not exceed an upper bound set by the reciprocal of the nominal return on a default free loan. This upper bound makes sense if and only if the nominal interest …

The Piketty Observation Against The Institutional Background: How Natural Is This Natural Tendency And What Can We Do About It?, Karl Widerquist

Karl Widerquist

The Actual Economy Versus A Fictional Economy, Lester G. Telser

Lester G Telser

This note describes some practical problems of the actual economy ignored by the standard theory

An Economist's Analysis Of The Voting Paradox, Lester G. Telser

Lester G Telser

It has been said that democracy is the worst form of government except all the others that have been tried. The best argument against democracy is a five-minute conversation with the average voter. Winston Churchill

A Rationale For Meeting Quotas Asymmetrically, J. Patrick Meister, Robert S. Main

Robert S. Main

Under certain conditions, otherwise identical, competing firms may find it jointly preferable to face differing degrees of trade barriers on individual products rather than symmetric trade barriers. The key is the ability to reduce marginal production cost via research and development. The economic significance of this insight is that there could be a role for a market for quota allotments. This insight also has applications to Voluntary Export Restraints in which a priori symmetric, restricted firms may prefer to have individual production levels allocated asymmetrically. This indicates the need for detailed studies of how quotas are met by individual firms. …

Contribution Of Education And Innovation To Productivity Among Mexican Regions: A Dynamic Panel Data Analysis, Vicente German-Soto, Luis Gutiérrez Flores

Vicente German-Soto

Interaction Of Equilibrium Selection Criteria: Round Numbers As Focal Points In Treasury Auctions, David Goldreich, Hanna Halaburda

Hanna Halaburda

In games with multiple equilibria, different equilibrium selection criteria have been proposed. Payoff-based equilibrium selection criteria include payoff dominance and risk dominance, whereas focal points based on salient features are non-payoff based criteria. This paper examines how the presence of a cultural focal point interacts with payoff-based selection criteria. Empirically, we consider pay-as-bid Treasury bill auctions in which multiple equilibria arise (specifically a stag hunt game). We find that market-clearing bids (submitted as discount rates) more frequently end in a round number of 0 and less frequently end with a 9 than would otherwise be expected. In contrast, the frequency …

The Value Capture Model: A Strategic Management Review, Michael D. Ryall, Joshua Gans

Michael D Ryall

This paper provides the first review of recent work that uses cooperative game theory to deepen our understanding of persistent performance heterogeneity among firms. Since its initiation in 1996, this stream has grown considerably. The work it contains is notable on several dimensions, including its mathematical foundation, its aggregate cohesion, its interplay between theory and empirical work, the subtlety of its insights, and its potential for idea migration from strategy to other disciplines. Here, we: provide a careful discussion of the theory; review the key theoretical findings; highlight a number of insights that both challenge and clarify the conventional wisdom; …

The Role Of Trade In Amplifying Crime, Catherine De Fontenay

Catherine de Fontenay

There is enormous variation in crime rates across countries, greater than differences in income or inequality would suggest. There are currently no explanations for this magnitude of variation. We show that much of this variation can be explained using trade flows. We add a “Crime” sector to a traditional two-sector two-input Heckscher-Ohlin model. Under autarky, countries have the same crime rate, but free trade is found to increase crime in the resource-rich country and to reduce crime in the labor-rich country by an equal amount. The negative externality from increased crime can be strong enough to cancel out the gains …

Non Profit Suppliers Of Higher Education: Corollaries, Lester G. Telser

Lester G Telser

The American Association for the Advancement of Science bills Harvard University $26,675 for a one year subscription to their weekly publication Science. That anon profit suppliers of higher education is willing to pay such amounts far above the true incremental cost of supplying it with such publications is a corollary of the economic explanation of their behavior. Nonprofit Organizations JEL L30

Digital Storage In The Computer Age And The Irish Potato Famine, Lester G. Telser

Lester G Telser

Free Economy! On 3628800 Alternatives Of And To Capitalism, Steffen Roth

Prof. Dr. Dr. Steffen Roth

Even the sharpest problem focus cannot help but sharpen the problem. Thus, the key to our understanding of alternatives to capitalism and alternative forms of capitalism is not in the ongoing problematization of the dominance of the economic principle. Rather, the question addressed in the present form theoretical argument is about which distinctions we need to draw in order to be able to observe capitalism. Answering this question, we show that the form capitalism can only be unfolded in the medium of functional differentiation. In resituating the economy as only one out of ten function systems, we demonstrate that both …

Economics-Based Environmentalism In The Fourth Generation Of Environmental Law, Donald J. Kochan

Donald J. Kochan

Environmental protection and economic concerns are not mutually exclusive. This article explores some of the issues of economic analysis that might arise as we approach the fourth generation of environmental law. It explains ways that economic analysis can be employed to generate the best environmental rules, including measures under what this article terms as "economics-based environmentalism." Economics-based environmentalism contends that the advantages of using economic principles within a “polycentric toolbox” of environmental law come from the benefits available in private ordering, markets, property rights, liability regimes and incentives structures that will better protect the environment than alternatives like state-based interventionist, …