Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

The Impact Of Us Political Pressure On The Rmb Exchange Rate, Wenjie Zhang

LUX: A Journal of Transdisciplinary Writing and Research from Claremont Graduate University

The US-China game of Renminbi (RMB)/US Dollar exchange rate has aroused increasing attention recently. From the US perspective, appreciation of RMB exchange rate could reduce the US-China trade deficit, boost the US economy and thus lower the unemployment rate (Cheng and Zhang, 2012). Therefore it is crucial for the US government to figure out whether there is an influence from US political pressure on RMB flexibility and the most effective way to accelerate the appreciation of RMB exchange rate. Aminian et al (2008) believed that US political pressure may be one of the causes for the appreciation of RMB exchange …

Agency Decision-Making For Climate Change: Cost-Benefit Analysis, The Precautionary Principle, And The Bounds Of Rationality, Laura Carr

Pomona Senior Theses

Climate change tests the limits of human understanding of complexity and uncertainty. It challenges assumptions about our presumed power of control over this planet. This paper examines the theory of how governmental executive branch agencies make regulation decisions about climate change using the decision-making methodologies of cost-benefit analysis and the precautionary principle, and as influenced by perceptions of the bounds of human rationality and ability to deal with risk and uncertainty.

Social Entrepreneurship: The Ideal Business For Humanity And The Economy, Maya D. Horgan

Pomona Senior Theses

This essay argues that social entrepreneurship is the most efficient means to generate lasting social change and permanently reduce poverty. Using the support of scholarly research, interviews with experts in the field, and my own qualitative observations, I conclude that traditional aid models that are economically dependent on outside funding, as well as those that simply provide monetary and product contributions in order to sustain the poor or marginalized communities they serve are inherently structured in a way that prevents them from resolving social ills. Despite the influx of aid organizations over past decades, chronic poverty and other serious social …

A Policymaker's Guide To Feed-In Tariffs: Encouraging A Responsible Transition To Renewable Electricity In California, Roland P. Thayer

Pomona Senior Theses

The feed-in tariff is a flexible, yet effective mechanism in promoting the proliferation of renewable electricity in California. The tariff creates a stable investment environment that protects both the utilities and the renewable electricity generators. Not only does the system foster capacity growth, but also technological advancement to the point where renewable electricity can compete in the market without assistance. From an environmental standpoint, the feed-in tariff contributes significantly towards achieving the emissions reduction goals set forth by AB32 without causing harmful increases to electricity prices.

The feed-in tariff model has been used in countries all over the world and …

Tobin In Europe: A Case For The Financial Transaction Tax, Stephanie I. Schneider

Claremont-UC Undergraduate Research Conference on the European Union

No abstract provided.

“La Generación Ni Ni” And The Exodus Of Spanish Youth, Stephanie Lester

Claremont-UC Undergraduate Research Conference on the European Union

No abstract provided.

When Europe Hits Home: How Europeanization Triggers The Conflict Of Capitalism In The German System Of Corporate Control, Alexander El Alaoui

Claremont-UC Undergraduate Research Conference on the European Union

No abstract provided.

Cohesion Policy Of The European Union: Facilitated By Supranational Institutions And Regional Autonomy Or Hindered By National Sovereignty?, Caitlin Daw

Claremont-UC Undergraduate Research Conference on the European Union

No abstract provided.

The Economic Crisis And Esdp: Friends Or Foes?, Amelia Adams

Claremont-UC Undergraduate Research Conference on the European Union

No abstract provided.

The Existence Of State Dependence And Switching Costs In The Transition From Myspace To Facebook, Taryn M. Ohashi

Scripps Senior Theses

In this paper, I examine the existence and roles of state dependence and switching costs in the mass transition from MySpace to Facebook during the 2007-2008 time period. Using a dataset that compiles individual browsing behavior and a discrete multinomial logit model, I find precise, yet extremely small amounts of state dependence for users of only MySpace, of only Facebook, and users of both MySpace and Facebook. Positive state dependence directly implies the existence of switching costs for each firm. While there is an abundance of literature regarding switching costs in the brick and mortar setting with tangible products and …

Designing Affordable Housing For Adaptability: Principles, Practices, & Application, Micaela R. Danko

Pitzer Senior Theses

While environmental and economic sustainability have been driving factors in the movement towards a more resilient built environment, social sustainability is a factor that has received significantly less attention over the years. Federal support for low-income housing has fallen drastically, and the deficit of available, adequate, affordable homes continues to grow. In this thesis, I explore one way that architects can design affordable housing that is intrinsically sustainable. In the past, subsidized low-income housing has been built as if to provide a short-term solution—as if poverty and lack of affordable housing is a short-term problem. However, I argue that adaptable …

'Clean Energy' At What Cost?, Rachel E. Conrad

Pitzer Senior Theses

Ecuador was ‘refounded’ at the turn of the 21^st century, with the articulation of progressive and inclusive ideals in a new Constitution. Social movements and leftist intellectuals in Ecuador have expressed that president Rafael Correa has failed to uphold the 2008 Constitution’s goals and values. President Correa and his Alianza PAIS government have utilized the rhetoric of the revolutionary ideals articulated in the Constitution, but in practice, they have continued to implement the status quo Western development model, and a large part of their development strategy involves ‘neo-extractive’ activities. Hydroelectric energy production is contributing to the ‘neo-extractive’ development model …

Towards Re-Thinking Ecology: Investigating The Influence Of Behavioral Economics On Ecological Thought, Ned Weidner

LUX: A Journal of Transdisciplinary Writing and Research from Claremont Graduate University

The current mainstream ecological discourse among environmental activists seems to be focused on changing the current paradigm of ecological thinking towards one focused primarily on sustainability through a deeper connection with the Earth. Often these activists argue this deeper connection with the Earth is best achieved through a paradigmatic change in thinking. It is the argument of this paper that those who champion a paradigmatic shift in thinking towards sustainability need to re-think their plan of action for creating a sustainable relationship with the Earth’s environment because changing society’s way of viewing ecological matters as a way to create a …

A Statistical Analysis Of Public Sector Corruption And Economic Growth, Kaycea Campbell

LUX: A Journal of Transdisciplinary Writing and Research from Claremont Graduate University

This study reports on the results of a statistical analysis in which the relationship between the independent variable of corruption, as measured by the World Bank, and the dependent variable of economic growth, as measured by percentage of GDP growth per year, was examined. The purpose of this study is to apply empirical methods to the debate on corruption and growth, in which neoclassical theory predicts that corruption retards growth but in which other models, such as Lewis growth and the Kuznets Curve, suggest that corruption may actually speed up growth in underdeveloped countries. The main finding of the study …

Steam...Now!, John Eger

The STEAM Journal

With America slowly awakening to the need to turn out creative and innovative workers who can join the 21^st century (its already 2012) workplace -- because they have the new thinking skills --we have to change the current emphasis on STEM, for Science, Technology, Engineering and Math to STEAM, by insuring that the whole brain is nurtured through the arts: thus STEAM.

The Vicious Cycle: Fundraising And Perceived Viability In U.S. Presidential Primaries, Cameron A. Shelton, James J. Feigenbaum

CMC Faculty Publications and Research

Scholars of presidential primaries have long posited a dynamic positive feedback loop between fundraising and electoral success. Yet existing work on both directions of this feedback remains inconclusive and is often explicitly cross-sectional, ignoring the dynamic aspect of the hypothesis. Pairing high-frequency FEC data on contributions and expenditures with Iowa Electronic Markets data on perceived probability of victory, we examine the bidirectional feedback between contributions and viability. We find robust, significant positive feedback in both directions. This might suggest multiple equilibria: a candidate initially anointed as the front-runner able to sustain such status solely by the fundraising advantage conferred despite …

Linkage Politics And The Persistence Of National Policy Autonomy In Emerging Powers: Patents, Profits, And Patients In The Context Of Trips Compliance, Aseema Sinha, Tricia Olsen

CMC Faculty Publications and Research

The Trade Related Intellectual Property Agreement (TRIPS) has had a profound effect on industrialization and innovation, as well as access to medicines in cases of public health crisis such as HIV/AIDS. However, compliance with TRIPS has varied in developing countries, despite heightened international pressure. For instance, Brazil has pursued a coherent approach to its HIV/AIDS health crisis, while India has failed to take care of its HIV patients despite late compliance with the TRIPS agreement and the presence of business firms that produce the generic medicines for HIV/AIDS. This article suggests that divergence in TRIPS compliance is the result of …

“Damning The Dams”: A Study Of Cost Benefit Analysis In Large Dams Through The Lens Of India's Sardar Sarovar Project, Evelyn Wong

Scripps Senior Theses

This thesis examines the evaluation of the economic, environmental and social effects of dams, and lessons learned from previous dams. It then focuses on cost benefit analysis as a decision-making tool pre-project for evaluating the potential gains and losses of building a dam; and as a framework for evaluating dams in operation. It reviews the basic assumptions required for a legitimate cost benefit analysis, and the inherent limitations of this method. It uses the Sardar Sarovar dam as a case study for the use and abuse of cost benefit analysis in decision-making, interstate politics, propaganda and activism. It also illustrates …

Water Governance In Bolivia: Policy Options For Pro-Poor Infrastructure Reform, Daniel M. Maxwell

CMC Senior Theses

As the case with most countries across Latin America, unprecedented migration to urban areas has strained city infrastructure systems. More particularly, the region faces a pressing crisis of water security, where rapid urbanization has outpaced water sector development. This thesis addresses the water infrastructure reform in El Alto and La Paz, Bolivia, focusing on strategies to better promote water access for the peri-urban poor. The research investigates the level of progressivity of water service expansion and pricing regimes: in other words, does the present model of water distribution positively improve the lives of the poorest groups? By investigating these social …

State Level Earned Income Tax Credit’S Effects On Race And Age: An Effective Poverty Reduction Policy, Anthony J. Barone

CMC Senior Theses

In this paper, I analyze the effectiveness of state level Earned Income Tax Credit programs on improving of poverty levels. I conducted this analysis for the years 1991 through 2011 using a panel data model with fixed effects. The main independent variables of interest were the state and federal EITC rates, minimum wage, gross state product, population, and unemployment all by state. I determined increases to the state EITC rates provided only a slight decrease to both the overall white below-poverty population and the corresponding white childhood population under 18, while both the overall and the under-18 black population for …

An Empirical Analysis Of Differences In Environmental Transparency Across Firms, Sean Robert Smith

CMC Senior Theses

In recent years, many firms have voluntarily taken actions to gradually increase the transparency of their corporate social responsibility (CSR) efforts. Using data on a sample of U.S. firms, this paper empirically examines the factors that encourage firms to choose different levels of CSR transparency. This adds to the previous literature that has focused only on the binary decision to engage or not to engage in CSR, as opposed to the extent and comprehensiveness of voluntary CSR reporting. Environmental transparency data are collected from the Roberts Environmental Center (REC) at Claremont McKenna College, while data for firm characteristics and toxic …

Choking Under Pressure On The Pga Tour, Madison Friedman

CMC Senior Theses

The productivity of individuals can be altered by cognitive environmental factors such as those that induce psychological pressure. The goal of this analysis is to determine the extent to which a selection of variables influences an individual’s perception of pressure and its subsequent effect on productivity. To do so, the performance of golfers under pressure on the PGA TOUR was proxied using the scrambling percentage statistic. Two regressions, one using data from players who were cut at the end of the second round and the other using data from players who were not cut at the end of the second …

Nfl Betting Market: Using Adjusted Statistics To Test Market Efficiency And Build A Betting Model, James P. Donnelly

CMC Senior Theses

The use of statistical analysis has been prevalent in the sports gambling industry for years. More recently, we have seen the emergence of "adjusted statistics", a more sophisticated way to examine each play and each result (further explanation below). And while adjusted statistics have become commonplace for professional and recreational bettors alike, little research has been done to justify their use. In this paper the effectiveness of this data is tested on the most heavily wagered sport in the world – the National Football League (NFL). The results are studied with two central questions in mind: Does the market account …

The Indian Premier League: What Are The Factors That Determine Player Value?, Damini Y. Marwaha

CMC Senior Theses

This paper examines and tries to estimate the importance of various characteristics that go into attributing specific dollar values to cricketers. The auction process employed in the Indian Premier League enables one to associate players with specific monetary values and this paper uses various performance criteria to assess what the key variables are towards creating a highly valued cricket player. This paper finds that various batting statistics are of significance in addition to the age and nationality of players.

How Many Barack Obamas Does It Take: An Analysis Of The Effect Of Charter Schools On Real Estate And Crime, Aananditaa Kakkar

CMC Senior Theses

This study looks at the relationship between charter school presence and neighborhood quality in Los Angeles. Using data from the Los Angeles Department of Education, Zillow Real Estate, and the Los Angeles Sheriff, this paper attempts to find whether changes in charter presence influence the price of surrounding real estate or the occurrence of serious and petty crimes. The results find that charter schools tend to be associated with a decrease in home sale prices. The results on crime imply that crime increases upon the opening of charter schools, however they are statistically insignificant.

Explaining The “Explained”: An Examination Of The Gender-Based Education Gap In India And Its Impact On The Wage Gap, Kanupriya Rungta

CMC Senior Theses

Analysis of the National Sample Survey Data from 2011-2012 shows that a gender-based education gap exists. Women are more likely than men to be illiterate. Some parents continue to view household duties as more important than education in the case of girls, causing some to drop out in primary and middle school, which leads to lower experience accumulation. However, females are almost equally as likely as males to be enrolled in school, and an equal proportion of males and females earn higher education degrees. More importantly, the difference in resource allocation seems to be minimal. Although education has a strong, …

The Residential Real-Estate Industry In India: Investigating Evidence For An Asset Bubble, Nikhita Narendran

CMC Senior Theses

The objective of this thesis is to examine the differences in residential property prices across different cities in India. Soaring prices have led to increasingly unaffordable property prices in large metropolitan cities. As a result, there has been academic discourse about the existence of a housing bubble in recent years. In the past, empirical research has focused on national level trends due to a lack of city-level data. I investigate the city-fixed effects on growth in house prices across fifteen different cities. Although different empirical models suggest different conclusions about these effects, point estimates suggest above-normal growth in house prices …

Unemployment Rates During The Not-So-Great Recovery: How Much Is Structural Versus Cyclical?, Nicole Appleton

CMC Senior Theses

This paper presents evidence that the majority of the high post-recession unemployment rates is the result of an increase in the natural rate, rather than cyclical deviations from it. Moreover, I discuss the likely causes of the recent increases in the natural rate. Since most of the theorized causes of increases appear transitory in nature, I expect that the natural rate will soon decline, followed closely by a decrease in actual unemployment rates.

The Declining Natural Fish Stock: A Proposed Solution To Public Fear And Perceptions Of Genetically Modified Fish, Morgan Beltz

CMC Senior Theses

The global fish population is declining. Aquaculture production is saturated and the global fish stock is operating at an unsustainable level. Genetically modified (GM) fish is a potential solution to relieve the natural fish stock, if the FDA grants the approval. The global fish population is harmed by environmental conditions and the inability for fish to adapt to changing conditions and human interactions. Genetic modification is a growing technology that has the ability to alleviate the fishing industry by modifying fish to grow faster, be disease tolerant, eat plant-based food, and be more nutritious. However, the approval process has been …

An Examination Of The Interest Rate Sensitivity Of Business Development Company (Bdc) Stock Returns, Timothy Park

CMC Senior Theses

This paper examines the interest rate sensitivity of Business Development Companies (BDCs). The results of this study are intended to lend insight to investors about the viability and timing of investments in BDCs during the business cycle. Similar to previous research that has examined interest rate sensitivity of financial companies, this paper employs a two-factor market model to see whether BDCs are responsive to changes in short, medium, and long-term interest rates. My particular interest in BDCs is motivated by their unique asset-liability structure and requirements, as well as their high dividend payouts. Monthly data is drawn from the period …