Digital Commons Network^™

Working Paper No. 30, On The Origins Of Laissez-Faire, Thomas Breaden

Working Papers in Economics

This paper traces laissez-faire back to its French roots, and in particular, to its origins as a political philosophy evoking an economic approach. Related to his visit to France in the 1760s and his personal contacts, we suggest that Adam Smith serves as the link between selected French thinkers and what after Smith’s Inquiry would be widely accepted as a quintessentially Anglo-Saxon tradition in economics. Exploring doctrine, we offer linkages between F. Quesnay, A. Turgot, J.J. Rousseau, and Smith’s ideas. Similarities in Smith’s understanding and the French exponents regarding economic activity vis-a- vis a public sector are presented, along with …

The Nasa Glenn Research Center: An Economic Impact Study Fiscal Year 2004, Robert Sadowski

All Maxine Goodman Levin School of Urban Affairs Publications

The John H. Glenn Research Center at Lewis Field (Glenn) is one of 10 National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Centers. Glenn is situated on 350 acres adjacent to Cleveland Hopkins International Airport. Its physical plant includes over 150 buildings that contain a unique collection of world-class test facilities. Glenn also includes the 6,400-acre Plum Brook Station near Sandusky, Ohio, 50 miles west of Cleveland. It specializes in large-scale tests that would be hazardous within the confines of the main campus.

Transforming Our Regional Economy, Ziona Austrian, Ed Morrison, Laszio Kozmon

All Maxine Goodman Levin School of Urban Affairs Publications

This strategic action plan focuses on the future of Cuyahoga County and sets forth a roadmap to build a more prosperous economy. It is not the only road map available to us, and we can certainly improve upon it. But, it is a roadmap that is practical, one that we can begin using today. We have set out initiatives that can and should be implemented.

The Role Of The Mortgage Industry In Economic Development, Kayode Omotosho

Economic and Financial Review

This article examines the role of the mortgage industry in economic development with a view to identifying its problems, challenges and opportunities. Possible areas of assistance from other stakeholders are also highlighted. The article discussed the evolution of mortgage banking and financing in Nigeria and the demand/market for mortgage sector finance services in Nigeria. It estimates that Nigeria needed N50 billion annually to provide an estimate of 8 million housing units in 2000. The article then examines the Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria (FMBN) in the last decade (1990 - 2000) and National Housing Fund (NHF) as well as the …

Review Of Perspectives On The Economics Of Aging. David A. Wise (Ed.). Reviewed By Martin B. Tracy., Martin B. Tracy

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

Book review of David A. Wise (Ed.), Perspectives on the Economics of Aging. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press, 2004. $90.00 hardcover.

Utilization Of Income Tax Credits By Low-Income Individuals, Stacy Dickert-Conlin, Katie Fitzpatrick, Andrew R. Hanson

Economics Faculty Research and Publications

The Internal Revenue Service-a sub-agency that exists to collect revenue-has the task of administering and enforcing a wide array of social policy: from subsidies for college and child care expenses, to creating jobs in depressed areas, and assisting welfare recipients with employment. While these new or expanded credits represent a new paradigm in the delivery of social policy, little is known about who uses these programs and, equally important, who does not use these programs. Understanding utilization is a key to understanding how effective this means of transferring income is and whether we are reaching the targeted populations. This paper …

Job Training That Gets Results: Ten Principles Of Effective Employment Programs, Michael Bernick

Upjohn Press

Bernick shows the types of training programs that work and describes for whom they work. He identifies ways to improve performance among Workforce Investment Act (WIA) contractors while exploring the best uses for state discretionary WIA funds. He also describes what it takes to make an effective career ladder program, how postemployment welfare retention or skill advancement programs can succeed, and the type of training that workers with disabilities must go through to get and retain jobs.

New Mexico Labor Market Review 11-30-2005, New Mexico Department Of Labor

Historic Publications

This issue of the New Mexico Labor Market Review presents October 2005 employment, unemployment, wage, and economic activity data for New Mexico, its counties, and metropolitan areas.

Experiences With "Quality" Labeling Of Food Products, Thomas L. Dobbs

Economics Commentator (1972- 2016)

No abstract provided.

Results On The Bias And Inconsistency Of Ordinary Least Squares For The Linear Probability Model, William C. Horrace, Ronald L. Oaxaca

Economics - All Scholarship

This note formalizes bias and inconsistency results for ordinary least squares (OLS) on the linear probability model and provides sufficient conditions for unbiasedness and consistency to hold. The conditions suggest that a "trimming estimator" may reduce OLS bias.

Social Security Reform: What Are The Options?, Greg Shaw, Susan Swanlund, Tari Renner

Roundtables

Recorded in 2005, this Roundtable set the social security issue in the context of public opinion, strategies of the political parties, and changes in the Medicare program. The goal of the discussion was to help citizens understand the political and economic challenges confronting the efforts to reform social security.

A transcript of this discussion is available at the download link above and to the right of this page.

November 2005, Syracuse Department Of Economics

Economics - All Scholarship

No abstract provided.

City Of Fort Hancock, Texas Zoning Ordinance Model

IPED Technical Reports

This document entitled “City of Fort Hancock, Texas Zoning Ordinance Model” was based on the state-of-the-art zoning rewrite for the city of Socorro in December 2001 by the Graduate Students of CIERP 5304, Plan Implementation – Elise Bright., Associate Professor of the School of Urban and Public Affairs. This document’s use has been designed to provide decision makers a guidance tool.

Borderplex Economic Outlook: 2005-2007, Thomas M. Fullerton Jr.

Border Region Modeling Project

No abstract provided.

New Mexico Labor Market Review 10-31-2005, New Mexico Department Of Labor

Historic Publications

The New Mexico Labor Market Review is a monthly publication presenting statistical data and analysis on labor market conditions throughout New Mexico. Issues examine statewide and regional trends in employment, unemployment, labor force estimates, industry activity, wages, occupational demand, and related economic conditions, often accompanied by feature articles on topics affecting the state’s economy. This issue covers September 2005.

Backgrounding Cattle In 2005, Jack Davis, Matthew A. Diersen

Economics Commentator (1972- 2016)

No abstract provided.

Poverty And Fertility In The American South, Leonard M. Lopoo

University of Kentucky Center for Poverty Research Discussion Paper Series

This project first reports descriptive evidence of the characteristics of mothers in the American South and compares them to mothers in other regions of the country. Women in the South (and West) tend to have their children at younger ages than those in the Midwest and Northeast. Mothers in the South (and West) also have much lower levels of education and are more likely to be African American or Hispanic compared to women in the Midwest and Northeast. Next, this paper attempts to link the characteristics of the mothers in the American South to the high rates of poverty there. …

Ranking Inequality: Applications Of Multivariate Subset Selection, William C. Horrace, Joseph T. Marchand, Timothy M. Smeeding

Economics - All Scholarship

Inequality measures are often presented in the form of a rank ordering to highlight their relative magnitudes. However, a rank ordering may produce misleading inference, because the inequality measures themselves are statistical estimators with different standard errors, and because a rank ordering necessarily implies multiple comparisons across all measures. Within this setting, if differences between several inequality measures are simultaneously and statistically insignificant, the interpretation of the ranking is changed. This study uses a multivariate subset selection procedure to make simultaneous distinctions across inequality measures at a pre-specified confidence level. Three applications of this procedure are explored using country-level data …

The Road To Recovery: Economic And Social Development In Srebrenica, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Erinn Lachner

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Srebrenica, Bosnia-Herzegovina is recreating itself. This municipality, located in the Republic of Srpska, is the setting of the 1995 genocide, which murdered 8,000 Muslim men and boys. Destroyed by the war, this municipality is rebuilding its economy, infrastructure and civil society from scratch. Srebrenica has made a large amount of progress in the past ten years, with the help of international and local donors. These donors have contributed millions of dollars to the effort. However, Srebrenica still faces many obstacles, namely, high unemployment, lack of physical infrastructure and poor attention to social welfare. While slow, progress is made everyday in …

The Role Of Malagasy Women In Community Development: Analyzing The Potential For The Creation Of A Women’S Association For Alternative Livelihoods In Ifaty, Amanda Fencl

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Integrated Conservation and development projects (ICDPs) have increased in number worldwide as conservation organizations have to come to terms with the importance of involving and addressing the needs of local human populations to order to achieve their conservation goals. Madagascar’s unique biodiversity, environmental degradation, and plaguing poverty has made ICDPs crucial in achieving national goals of tripling the area of natural heritage conserved and poverty reduction through socially, economically, and ecologically sustainable development. In order to understand how such sustainable development can be achieved, it is essential to spend time enhancing one’s understanding of the local mentality and worldview. On …

Ranking Inequality: Applications Of Multivariate Subset Selection, William C. Horrace, Joseph T. Marchand, Timothy M. Smeeding

Center for Policy Research

Inequality measures are often presented in the form of a rank ordering to highlight their relative magnitudes. However, a rank ordering may produce misleading inference, because the inequality measures themselves are statistical estimators with different standard errors, and because a rank ordering necessarily implies multiple comparisons across all measures. Within this setting, if differences between several inequality measures are simultaneously and statistically insignificant, the interpretation of the ranking is changed. This study uses a multivariate subset selection procedure to make simultaneous distinctions across inequality measures at a pre-specified confidence level. Three applications of this procedure are explored using country-level data …

Changes In Student Attitudes Toward The Market System And The Introductory Microeconomics Course, Charles Breeden, Noreen Lephardt

Economics Faculty Research and Publications

No abstract provided.

House Prices In The Measurement Of Inflation: An Application Using Irish Data, Róisín O'Sullivan

Economics: Faculty Publications

This paper illustrates the impact on Irish inflation of including a house-price series with the current components of the harmonised index of consumer prices (HICP). We construct a dynamic factor index of inflation that weights the individual price series according to the strength of their signal about the common trend in prices. As the relatively noisy house-price series attracts a weight of only 3 per cent in the index, the inclusion of house prices in this way does not hugely alter the recent pattern of inflation for Ireland, despite house prices exhibiting much stronger growth on average than the current …

Unintended Consequences Of Property Tax Relief: New York's Star Program, Tae Ho Eom, William Duncombe, John Yinger

Center for Policy Research

New York’s School Tax Relief Program, STAR, provides state-funded property tax relief for homeowners. Like a matching grant, STAR changes the price of public services, thereby altering the incentives of voters and school officials and leading to unintended consequences. Using data for New York State school districts before and after STAR was implemented, we find that STAR resulted in small increases in student performance along with significant decreases in the efficiency with which this performance is delivered and significant increases in school spending and property tax rates. These tax-rate increases magnify existing inequities in New York State’s education finance system.

Social Interactions In Labor Supply, Andrew Grodner, Thomas J. Kniesner

Center for Policy Research

Our research examines the effect of interdependence on estimation and interpretation of earnings/labor supply equations. We consider the cases of (1) a positive spillover from others’ labor supplied and (2) a need for conformity with others’ labor supplied. Qualitative and quantitative comparative statics results with a Stone-Geary utility function demonstrate how spillover effects increase labor supply uniformly. Alternatively, conformity effects move labor supplied toward the mean of the reference group so that, in the limit, labor supply becomes perfectly inelastic at the reference group average. When there are un-modeled exogenous social interactions, conventional wage elasticities are still relatively well estimated …

The State, The Market, Economic Growth And Poverty In China, John A. Donaldson

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

The People’s Republic of China is often cited as an unprecedented success story as far as rural poverty is concerned. Despite recent reports of sometimes violent protests in rural areas over illicit land seizures and pollution, since implementing reforms in 1978, China has seen rural poverty rates fall from xxx to yyy, as economic growth increased zzz on average each year, according to World Bank estimates. Some have ascribed liberal policy prescriptions based on open markets and pro-market government policies as are largely responsible, even as they forwent expensive, large-scale mass welfare programs. Starting with their initial round of fundamental …

Determinants Of Job Turnover Intentions: Evidence From Singapore, Xiaolin Xing, Zhenlin Yang

Research Collection School Of Economics

This paper explores both observable and unobservable variables that would affect employed workers’ decisions on job change. We find that age, job satisfaction, satisfaction with working environment or job security, and firm size are among the major factors determining workers’ intentions of job-to-job mobility. Younger workers and workers in smaller firms are more likely to look for other jobs. We also find that men are more likely to consider a change in job than women, but when “actually looking for another job” is concerned, men and women do not differ. Furthermore, monthly income and working sector contribute significantly to looking …

The Role Of Tibetan Buddhism And Culture In Sustainable Development (A Case Study Of Yubeng Village), Frazer Lanier

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

During a lecture by Li Bo, of CBIK (the Center for Biodiversity and Indigenous Knowledge a Chinese NGO), I was given a glimpse into the role that culture plays within poverty alleviation and environmental conservation. While poverty alleviation aims to develop community economies, this goal is usually seen as being in conflict with environmental conservation because it requires the use of environmental resources. This is a common misperception. According to Gou Jing’s article Gateway between Culture and Nature， “man’s touch bestows nature with culture” (Guo Jing 12). The interaction between nature and humans is the foundation for culture and the …

Coral Reef Tourism And Conservation In Bocas Del Toro: An Analysis Of Ecotourism And Its Tour Guide-Based Components, Rebecca Kayes

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Tourism of the coral reefs in Bocas del Toro is an important economic activity but also potentially harmful to the environment, creating an ecologically and economically unsustainable situation and doubts that the region engages in “ecotourism.” Coral reef tourism was analyzed with a specific emphasis on tours, tour guides, tourist motivations, tourist education and conservation-related activities. Research methods included participant observation in the tourism world in Bocas, interviews with guides, tourists and community members, and a tourist survey. Though local popular opinion disagrees, data collected shows tourism in Bocas does not emphasize reefs or reef conservation, a potentially catastrophic situation …

New Mexico Labor Market Review 09-30-2005, New Mexico Department Of Labor

Historic Publications

The New Mexico Labor Market Review is a monthly publication presenting statistical data and analysis on labor market conditions throughout New Mexico. Issues examine statewide and regional trends in employment, unemployment, labor force estimates, industry activity, wages, occupational demand, and related economic conditions, often accompanied by feature articles on topics affecting the state’s economy. This issue covers August 2005.