Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons™

Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

SelectedWorks

Selected Works

Discipline
Keyword
Publication Year
Publication
File Type

Articles 31 - 60 of 9926

Full-Text Articles in Social and Behavioral Sciences

A Unified Model Of Adaptive Learning In Normal Form Games, Naoki Funai Feb 2016

A Unified Model Of Adaptive Learning In Normal Form Games, Naoki Funai

Naoki Funai

We investigate an adaptive learning model which nests several existing learning models such as payoff assessment learning, valuation learning, stochastic fictitious play learning, experience-weighted attraction learning and delta learning with indirect payoff information in normal form games. In this paper, we consider adaptive players each of whom (i) assigns payoff assessments to his own actions, (ii) chooses an action which has the highest assessment with some perturbations, and (iii) updates the assessments using observed payoffs, which may include payoffs from unchosen actions, in each period. Utilising the asynchronous stochastic approximation method introduced by Tsitsiklis (1994), we provide conditions under which …

Go to article

Comparing The Effects Of Direct And Indirect Learning Strategies On Iranian Efl Learners' Vocabulary Learning, Ali Taghinezhad Feb 2016

Comparing The Effects Of Direct And Indirect Learning Strategies On Iranian Efl Learners' Vocabulary Learning, Ali Taghinezhad

Ali Taghinezhad

Vocabulary is vital to English language teaching since without a sufficient knowledge ofvocabulary students are not able to understand others or to express their ideas. Therefore,several indirect and direct strategies have been proposed to improve vocabulary learning.Whether indirect or direct strategies can contribute more to vocabulary learning has been asignificant issue. Therefore, this study aimed at investigating the influence of indirect anddirect learning strategies on the vocabulary learning of Iranian EFL learners. To this end,ninety upper-intermediate students were selected from two English language institutes inShiraz, Iran. Students were divided into two experimental groups. One experimental group(A) received vocabulary instruction using …

Go to article

Allotment In First-Price Auctions: An Experimental Investigation, Luca Corazzini, Stefano Galavotti, Paola Valbonesi, Rupert Sausgruber Jan 2016

Allotment In First-Price Auctions: An Experimental Investigation, Luca Corazzini, Stefano Galavotti, Paola Valbonesi, Rupert Sausgruber

Paola Valbonesi

We experimentally study the effects of allotment - the division of an item into homogeneousunits - in independent private value auctions. We compare a bundling first-priceauction with two equivalent treatments where allotment is implemented: a two-unit discriminatoryauction and two simultaneous single-unit first-price auctions. We find thatallotment in the form of a discriminatory auction generates a loss of efficiency with respectto bundling. In the allotment treatments, we observe large and persistent bid spread, andthe discriminatory auction is less efficient than simultaneous auctions. We provide a unified interpretation of our results that is based on both a non-equilibrium response to thecoordination problem …

Go to article

Scholarly Communication And Research Libraries, Adrian K. Ho Jan 2016

Scholarly Communication And Research Libraries, Adrian K. Ho

Adrian K. Ho

This presentation provides an overview of the scholarly communication ecosystem as well as two major forces that affect it. It wraps up with a discussion of the evolving roles of research libraries.

Go to article

Quantile Regression With Nonadditive Fixed Effects, David Powell Jan 2016

Quantile Regression With Nonadditive Fixed Effects, David Powell

David Powell

This paper introduces a quantile regression estimator for panel data (QRPD) with nonadditive fixed effects, maintaining the nonseparable disturbance term commonly associated with quantile estimation. QRPD estimates the impact of exogenous or endogenous treatment variables on the outcome distribution using ``within" variation in the treatment variables or instruments for identification purposes. Most quantile panel data estimators include additive fixed effects which separates the disturbance term and assumes the parameters vary based only on the time-varying components of the disturbance term. QRPD is consistent for small T and straightforward to implement. The nonadditive fixed effects are never estimated or even specified. …

Go to article

Optimal Health Insurance And The Distortionary Effects Of The Tax Subsidy, David Powell Jan 2016

Optimal Health Insurance And The Distortionary Effects Of The Tax Subsidy, David Powell

David Powell

The tax exclusion of health insurance premiums represents the largest source of tax expenditures in the United States while reducing the after-tax price of insurance for the majority of households. This paper develops a model of optimal health insurance in the presence of a tax-deductible premium as well as considering the implications of the Affordable Care Act's ``Cadillac tax." While there is a long literature discussing the possible consequences of subsidizing health insurance through the tax code, we have little evidence about how the tax subsidy distorts the optimal cost-sharing schedule for a household. This paper provides theoretical and empirical …

Go to article

Debt Dilution And Sovereign Default Risk, Juan Carlos Hatchondo, Leonardo Martinez, Cesar Sosa Padilla Jan 2016

Debt Dilution And Sovereign Default Risk, Juan Carlos Hatchondo, Leonardo Martinez, Cesar Sosa Padilla

Leonardo Martinez

No abstract provided.

Go to article

Fiscal Rules And The Sovereign Default Premium, Juan Carlos Hatchondo, Leonardo Martinez, Francisco Roch Jan 2016

Fiscal Rules And The Sovereign Default Premium, Juan Carlos Hatchondo, Leonardo Martinez, Francisco Roch

Leonardo Martinez

No abstract provided.

Go to article

Intellectual Property Protection And The Industrial Composition Of Multinational Activity, Olena Ivus, Walter Park, Kamal Saggi Jan 2016

Intellectual Property Protection And The Industrial Composition Of Multinational Activity, Olena Ivus, Walter Park, Kamal Saggi

Olena Ivus

In a North-South model with endogenous FDI, we examine the impact of Southern IPR protection on the mode and industry composition of international technology transfer. A novel feature of the model is that, due to technological reasons, industries differ with respect to their susceptibility to imitation. In equilibrium, licensing occurs in industries where the risk of imitation is low and FDI where it is of intermediate magnitude. Stronger IPRs in the South (i) alter the industrial composition of multinational activity towards licensing at the expense of FDI, (ii) reduce local imitation, (iii) increase licensing and, to a lesser extent, FDI.

Go to article

An Estimated Open-Economy Dsge Model With Search-And-Matching Frictions: The Case Of Hungary, Istvan Konya, Zoltán Jakab Jan 2016

An Estimated Open-Economy Dsge Model With Search-And-Matching Frictions: The Case Of Hungary, Istvan Konya, Zoltán Jakab

Istvan Konya

This paper builds and estimates a mediumscale, small open economy DSGE model augmented with search-and-matching frictions in the labor market, and different wage setting behavior in new and existing jobs. The model is estimated using Hungarian data between 2001-2008. We find that: (i) the inclusion of matching frictions significantly improves the model’s empirical fit; (ii) the extent of new hires wage rigidity is quantitatively important for keymacro variables; (iii) labor market shocks do not play an important role in inflation dynamics, but the structure of the labor market influences the monetary transmission mechanism.

Go to article

Uniform Service, Uniform Productivity? Regional Efficiency Of The Imperial German Postal, Telegraph, And Telephone Service., Florian Ploeckl Jan 2016

Uniform Service, Uniform Productivity? Regional Efficiency Of The Imperial German Postal, Telegraph, And Telephone Service., Florian Ploeckl

Florian Ploeckl

Using the regional productivity of the Reichspost, the postal service of the German Empire, I investigate whether a public monopolist operates with uniform regional productivity. Using data envelopment analysis efficiency scores, we derive the relative productivity of the post,telegraph,andtelephonesectorsfrom1891to1908.Resultsshow a fairly stable system with substantial raw productivity differences between postal districts, and that the expansion of the service offset technological productivity increases for the mail service.

Go to article

Holes In The Dike: The Global Savings Glut, U.S. House Prices And The Long Shadow Of Banking Deregulation, Mathias Hoffmann, Iryna Stewen Jan 2016

Holes In The Dike: The Global Savings Glut, U.S. House Prices And The Long Shadow Of Banking Deregulation, Mathias Hoffmann, Iryna Stewen

Mathias Hoffmann

We show how capital inflows into and financial deregulation within the United States interacted in driving the recent boom and bust in U.S. housing prices. Interstate banking deregulation during the 1980s cast a long shadow: in states that opened their banking markets to out-of-state banks earlier, house prices were more sensitive to aggregate U.S. capital inflows during 1990-2012. Capital inflows relaxed the value-at-risk constraints of geographically diversified (‘integrated’) U.S. banks more than those of local banks. Therefore, integrated banks absorbed a larger share of capital inflows and expanded mortgage lending more. This drove up housing prices.

Go to article

Eco 112 - Economia Brasileira, Eloi Martins Senhoras Jan 2016

Eco 112 - Economia Brasileira, Eloi Martins Senhoras

Elói Martins Senhoras

No abstract provided.

Go to article

The Economics Of Retail Markets For New And Used Cars, Charles Murry, Henry S. Schneider Jan 2016

The Economics Of Retail Markets For New And Used Cars, Charles Murry, Henry S. Schneider

Henry S Schneider

In this chapter we describe the institutions and economics of new- and used-car retailing. Our aim is to provide a resource for researchers interested in the automobile market. We focus on three categories of economic concepts relevant to car retailing: dealership location choice, including agglomeration, entry, and exit; determinants of car pricing; and information, which is central to the used-car market but also affects the new-car market. We also provide a primer on the institutions of car retailing and a reference on data sources for researchers interested in empirical work involving cars.

Go to article

Limited Rationality And Convergence To Equilibrium Play, Kristen Cooper, Henry S. Schneider, Michael Waldman Jan 2016

Limited Rationality And Convergence To Equilibrium Play, Kristen Cooper, Henry S. Schneider, Michael Waldman

Henry S Schneider

The psychology and behavioral economics literatures show that real world decision making at the individual level is frequently inconsistent with the rational actor model. An important question is therefore the extent to which a proportion of agents who make mistakes affects market level outcomes. Previous theoretical and experimental research showed that market level outcomes are less likely to match the rational actor model in settings characterized by strategic complementarity and more likely in settings characterized by strategic substitutability. We extend this research both theoretically and experimentally by introducing important real world complications – specifically, periodic shocks to the payoff structure …

Go to article

Beautiful Lemons: Adverse Selection In Durable-Goods Markets With Sorting, Jonathan R. Peterson, Henry S. Schneider Jan 2016

Beautiful Lemons: Adverse Selection In Durable-Goods Markets With Sorting, Jonathan R. Peterson, Henry S. Schneider

Henry S Schneider

We document a basic characteristic of adverse selection in secondhand markets for durable goods: goods with higher observed quality may have more adverse selection and hence lower unobserved quality. We provide a simple theoretical model to demonstrate this result, which is a consequence of the interaction of sorting between drivers over observed quality and adverse selection over unobserved quality. We then offer empirical support using data on secondhand prices and repair rates of used cars from the Consumer Expenditure Survey, and discuss a number of implications for everyday advertising and consumer questions.

Go to article

Nonstandard Bidder Behavior In Real-World Auctions, Joseph U. Podwol, Henry S. Schneider Jan 2016

Nonstandard Bidder Behavior In Real-World Auctions, Joseph U. Podwol, Henry S. Schneider

Henry S Schneider

Empirical work on auctions has found that bidders deviate from standard behavior in important ways. We investigate a range of these behaviors, including nonrational herding, auction fever, quasi-endowment effect, and escalation of commitment. Our innovations are to more completely control for unobservables by using new data from a field experiment on eBay, and by accounting for censoring of bids below the starting price. Consistent with standard auction theory and in contrast to the predictions of the nonstandard behaviors, we find that auction starting price has no effect on bidder willingness to pay in a private-values setting. We conclude that there …

Go to article

The Price Of Unobservability: Moral Hazard And Limited Liability, Felipe Balmaceda Assoc Prof. Jan 2016

The Price Of Unobservability: Moral Hazard And Limited Liability, Felipe Balmaceda Assoc Prof.

Felipe Balmaceda

This article studies a principal-agent problem with discrete outcome and effort space. The principal and the agent are risk neutral and the latter is subject to limited liability. For a given monitoring technology, we consider the maximum possible ratio between the first best social welfare to the social welfare arising from the principal's optimal pay-for-performance contract (the price of unobservability). Our main results provide tight bounds for this price. Key parameters to these bounds are number of possible efforts, the likelihood ratio evaluated at the highest outcome, and the ratio between costs of the highest and the lowest efforts. The …

Go to article

"Giving" In To Social Pressure, Alvaro J. Name-Correa, Huseyin Yildirim Jan 2016

"Giving" In To Social Pressure, Alvaro J. Name-Correa, Huseyin Yildirim

Huseyin Yildirim

We develop a theory of charitable giving in which donors feel social pressure from adirect solicitation. We show that equilibrium donations are concentrated around a socialnorm. Despite a higher level of the public good, relatively poor and/or low altruism giversfare worse under social pressure and would avoid the solicitor at a cost. Aggregate donorwelfare improves to the extent that the added social motive alleviates the underprovision ofthe public good; however, overprovision may result. Our theory therefore predicts a lighthandedregulation for charitable solicitations, which is consistent with their exemption fromthe popular Do Not Call list in the U.S. We further show …

Go to article

Household Income Uncertainties Over Three Decades, James Feigenbaum, Geng Li Jan 2016

Household Income Uncertainties Over Three Decades, James Feigenbaum, Geng Li

Geng Li

No abstract provided.

Go to article

Articulation And Acoustics Of Kannada Affricates: A Case Of Geminate /ʧ/, Alexei Kochetov, N. Sreedevi Jan 2016

Articulation And Acoustics Of Kannada Affricates: A Case Of Geminate /ʧ/, Alexei Kochetov, N. Sreedevi

Alexei Kochetov

Affricates have been observed to be problematic in phonological acquisition and disordered speech across languages, due to their relatively complex spatial and temporal articulatory patterns. Remediation of difficulties in the production of affricates requires understanding of how these sounds are typically produced. This study presents the first systematic articulatory and acoustic investigation of voiceless geminate affricate /ʧ/ in Kannada (a Dravidian language), compared to the palatal glide and the voiceless dental stop. Ultrasound data from 10 normal speakers from Mysore, India revealed that /ʧ/ is produced with the tongue shape intermediate between the palatal glide and the dental stop, and …

Go to article

The Effects Of Immigration On Household Services, Labour Supply And Fertility, Agnese Romiti Jan 2016

The Effects Of Immigration On Household Services, Labour Supply And Fertility, Agnese Romiti

Agnese Romiti

Fertility and female labour force participation are no longer negatively correlated in developed countries. Recently, the role of immigration has been put forward as a driving factor among others. Increased immigration affects supply and prices of household services, which are relevant for fertility and employment decisions. This paper analyses the effect of immigration on labour supply and fertility of native women in the UK, with a focus on the role of immigration on household services. Adopting an instrumental variable approach based on the country-specific past distribution of immigrants at regional level, I find that immigration increases female labour supply, without …

Go to article

The Effect Of The U.S. Biofuels Mandate On Poverty In India, Ujjayant N. Chakravorty, Marie-Helene Hubert, Beyza Ural Marchand Jan 2016

The Effect Of The U.S. Biofuels Mandate On Poverty In India, Ujjayant N. Chakravorty, Marie-Helene Hubert, Beyza Ural Marchand

Ujjayant Chakravorty

More than 40% of US grain is now used for energy and this share is expected to rise under the current Renewable Fuels Mandate (RFS). There are no studies of the global distributional consequences of this purely domestic policy. Using micro-level survey data, we trace the effect of the RFS on world food prices and their impact on household level consumption and wage impacts in India. We first develop a partial equilibrium model to estimate the effect of the RFS on the price of selected food commodities - rice, wheat, corn, sugar and meat and dairy, which together provide almost …

Go to article

Investment In Relationship-Specific Assets: Does Finance Matter?, Martin Strieborny, Madina Kukenova Jan 2016

Investment In Relationship-Specific Assets: Does Finance Matter?, Martin Strieborny, Madina Kukenova

Martin Strieborny

Banks (but not stock markets) promote economic growth by facilitating relationship-specific investment between buyers and suppliers of intermediate goods. Combined insights from literature on signaling role of banks and on relationship-specific investment motivate this economic channel: A supplier is reluctant to undertake relationship-specific investment as she cannot observe financial stability and planning horizon of buyer. Banks can mitigate this information asymmetry. Empirical results from 28 industries in 90 countries confirm that industries dependent on relationship-specific investment from their suppliers grow disproportionately faster in countries with a well-developed banking sector. The channel works via increased entry of new firms and higher …

Go to article

Religious Origins Of Democracy & Dictatorship, Theocharis Grigoriadis Jan 2016

Religious Origins Of Democracy & Dictatorship, Theocharis Grigoriadis

Theocharis Grigoriadis

Weber considered the Protestant work ethic the foundation of modern capitalism. I extend Weber’s theory by arguing that states with predominantly Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, and Muslim populations have had a stronger inclination toward underdevelopment and dictatorship than states with Protestant or Jewish majorities. This is the case because their respective religious collectives (monastery, tariqa) promote the hierarchical provision of common goods at the expense of market incentives. I define the aforementioned three religions as collectivist, in contrast to Protestantism and Judaism, which I define as individualist. I provide a historical overview that designates the Jewish kibbutz as the collective …

Go to article

Legislative Professionalization: Travelling Theories To Brazilian Local-Level Legislatures (Statistical Appendix), Patrick Silva Dec 2015

Legislative Professionalization: Travelling Theories To Brazilian Local-Level Legislatures (Statistical Appendix), Patrick Silva

Patrick Silva

No abstract provided.

Go to article

Geographic Variation In The Implementation Of Public Health Services: Organizational, Economic, And Network Determinants, Glen P. Mays Dec 2015

Geographic Variation In The Implementation Of Public Health Services: Organizational, Economic, And Network Determinants, Glen P. Mays

Glen Mays

An expanding body of research-tested public health interventions exist to prevent disease and injury and promote health on a population-wide basis, such as those profiled in the CDC’s Guide to Community Prevention Services, but adoption and implementation of these strategies vary widely across states and communities. Public health services are delivered through diffuse constellations of governmental agencies and their private-sector and community-based counterparts using implementation mechanisms that are poorly understood. The studies in this panel examine how organizational, economic, and inter-organizational network characteristics influence the implementation of public health services across states and communities.

Go to article

Inter-Organizational Network Effects On Public Health Service Implementation, Outcomes, And Disparities Across U.S. Communities, Glen P. Mays Dec 2015

Inter-Organizational Network Effects On Public Health Service Implementation, Outcomes, And Disparities Across U.S. Communities, Glen P. Mays

Glen Mays

Background: The Affordable Care Act created new incentives for hospitals, insurers, public health agencies, and others to contribute to disease prevention and health promotion activities, potentially changing inter-organizational relationships and expanding implementation of strategies that improve population health. This study uses data from the 1998-2014 National Longitudinal Survey of Public Health Systems to examine: (1) the extent and nature of change in inter-organizational contributions to public health activities; (2) whether network changes attenuate or exacerbate disparities in public health implementation across communities; and (3) how network changes affect preventable mortality and resource use.Methods: We follow a longitudinal cohort of 360 …

Go to article

Analyzing Interpersonal Metafunction Through Mood And Modality In Kaine Agary’S Yellow-Yellow From Critical Discourse And Womanist Perspective, Léonard A. Koussouhon, Ashani M. Dossoumou Dec 2015

Analyzing Interpersonal Metafunction Through Mood And Modality In Kaine Agary’S Yellow-Yellow From Critical Discourse And Womanist Perspective, Léonard A. Koussouhon, Ashani M. Dossoumou

Bahram Kazemian

The aim of this paper is to analyze mood, epistemic and deontic modality patterns in an extract culled from Yellow-Yellow (2006) by one of the Nigerian new millennium female writer, Kaine Agary. The findings data revealed by the interpersonal meaning analysis are discussed against the backdrop of critical discourse analysis and womanist theory. The discussion contended that, despite the blend of monologic and dialogic organization of the novel, Kaine Agary has tried to portray the sociological schisms making up the daily life of young girls in the oil-resourced region of Nigeria. More importantly, the authoress has shown women’s determination and …

Go to article

Exploring The Transformative Potential Of The E3+3 Joint Comprehensive Plan Of Action With Iran For Improving The Iranian Economy And Its Reintegration Into The Global System, Mohammad Reza Farzanegan Dec 2015

Exploring The Transformative Potential Of The E3+3 Joint Comprehensive Plan Of Action With Iran For Improving The Iranian Economy And Its Reintegration Into The Global System, Mohammad Reza Farzanegan

Prof. Dr. Mohammad Reza Farzanegan

This is background note for my presentation at the Peace Research Institute Frankfurt.

Go to article

First Prev Next Last