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Essentializing Labor Before, During, And After The Coronavirus Pandemic, Deepa Das Acevedo

Faculty Articles

In the era of COVID-19, the term essential labor has become part of our daily lexicon. Between March and May 2020, essential labor was not just the only kind of paid labor occurring across most of the United States; it was also, many argued, the only thing preventing utter economic and humanitarian collapse. As a result of this sudden significance, legal scholars, workers’ advocates, and politicians have scrambled to articulate exactly what makes essential labor “essential.” Some commentators have also argued that the rise of essential labor as a conceptual category disrupts—or should disrupt—longstanding patterns in the way the nation …

Environmental Governance For Whom? Examining The Political, Institutional, Fiscal, And Legal Determinants Of State Environmental Agency Budget Policy In The Us, Andrew R. Duggan

Theses and Dissertations

Budgets are a prospective tool of governance, and appropriations are a planning vehicle reflecting: bureaucracies’ values, complex interactions, collective preferences, political influences, and available resources. Research spanning 30 years finds that environmental pollution is a key determinant of environmental budgets in the US, though myriad factors, actors, and subsystems are important to consider. Due to federalism and devolution of responsibilities and authorities, environmental governance falls largely to the states. While the dynamics that shape state environmental budget policy have received scholarly interest, theoretically-driven examinations of environmental appropriations remain limited within the public budgeting and environmental policy literature.

Using panel data …

Refocusing Loyalty Programs In The Era Of Big Data: A Societal Lens Paradigm, Valeria Stourm, Scott A. Neslin, Eric T. Bradlow, Els Breugelmans, So Yeon Chun, Pedro Gardete, P. K. Kannan, Praveen Kopalle, Young-Hoon Park, David Restrepo Amariles, Raphael Thomadsen, Yuping Liu-Thompkins, Rajkumar Venkatesan

Marketing Faculty Publications

Big data and technological change have enabled loyalty programs to become more prevalent and complex. How these developments influence society has been overlooked, both in academic research and in practice. We argue why this issue is important and propose a framework to refocus loyalty programs in the era of big data through a societal lens. We focus on three aspects of the societal lens-inequality, privacy, and sustainability. We discuss how loyalty programs in the big data era impact each of these societal factors, and then illustrate how, by adopting this societal lens paradigm, researchers and practitioners can generate insights and …

Systemic Review Of Personal Finance Articles In Family And Consumer Sciences Journals, Lorna Saboe-Wounded Head

Consumer Sciences Faculty Publications

The purpose of this article is to report the results of a systematic review of personal finance articles published from 2009 to 2019 in seven family and consumer sciences journals. Articles included in the review addressed personal finance topics. The qualitative analysis examined categorizations and themes. Published most often were articles on the topics of financial education, financial literacy, and investing/saving. Research articles were predominately on the topic of financial literacy, programs were most often on the topic of financial education. A limited number of articles reported on research results or program impact for minority groups.

Benefits From Laguna Lake: Perspective Of Small Fisher Households, Rosalina Palanca-Tan

Economics Department Faculty Publications

Fishing is considered to be the most important among the many uses of Laguna Lake, the largest lake in the Philippines and second largest in Southeast Asia. Using primary data gathered through focus group discussions, key informant interviews, and a household survey together with secondary data on revenue and cost estimates for aquaculture and catch fisheries, this paper discusses the lake___s role in the economic life of two fishing communities located along the shoreline. The study, which uses a microscopic lens to look at issues from the perspective of small fisher households instead of from that of policymakers and non-government …

Adoption Of Pasture Management Practices In Rondônia, Brazil: Social Media As An Informational Influence, Cassandra Sevigny

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

The welfare of rural households depends on income from agricultural production. The adoption of new agricultural practices can improve farmer welfare by increasing yield and/or lowering production costs, but farmers do not always adopt beneficial practices. I examine whether social media use influences pasture management practices among smallholder cattle farmers in Rondônia, Brazil. This Amazonian state is heavily deforested for use as farmland, especially pasture for beef and dairy cattle. Traditional pasture management degrades soil over time, requiring pasture productivity interventions or deforestation for new land. Nontraditional practices can reduce degradation. Agricultural technology adoption literature explores the influence of risk, …

Tuition Resets: An Economic Analysis, Claire Mendelson

Honors Theses

American higher education today is defined by rising tuition and decreasing enrollment. As higher education institutions prepare for a looming enrollment crisis, tuition resets – when colleges or universities decrease their sticker price of tuition – are becoming a newly popular strategy. Although much research has been done regarding the economics of higher education and what influences tuition, no quantitative research study has been done on tuition resets. This research study contributes to the existing literature by quantitatively testing the effect of a tuition reset on an institution’s financial health, as measured by net tuition revenue from students and undergraduate …

Blaming The Ref: Understanding The Effect Of Unexpected Emotional Cues On Family Violence, Alexander J. Cardazzi, Brad R. Humphreys, Bryan Mccannon, Zachary Rodriguez

Economics Faculty Working Papers Series

Domestic violence generates long-term effects on offenders, victims, and other household members. Insight into triggers of family violence can inform policy and improve services aimed at reducing abusive behavior. We investigate potential domestic violence triggers by analyzing unexpected losses in National Basketball Association games. The literature identifies increasing in-home violence after unexpected losses in the National Football League. Combining information on referee accuracy and fatigue, we develop a unique identification strategy to explore the impact of human error on family violence following unexpected losses. Results indicate that as referees are more accurate (more rested) in unexpected losses, family violence decreases, …

The Weaponization Of Poverty: An Investigation Into United States Military Recruitment Practices In High Schools Of Low-Income Communities In The Inland Empire, Michael Springer-Gould

Pitzer Senior Theses

Military recruitment in the United States is a highly contentious subject that has yielded a multitude of prior research across a variety of academic concentrations. To further the conversation, I narrow my focus to Southern California’s Inland Empire (IE) to explore practices of military recruitment in high schools that serve students in low-income communities. I begin with a general overview of life and labor in the Inland Empire before moving into prior research on military recruitment. My empirical research consists of five in-depth interviews documenting the lived experiences of individuals hailing from and attending high school in low-income communities of …

A Comparative Analysis Of The Price Of Insulin In Canada And The United States, Kimia Z. Badakhshan

Honors Undergraduate Theses

There's frequent discourse regarding the rising cost of insulin in the US. Insulin is a drug that over 7 million people rely on for survival, and it has tripled in cost over the last decade. The pricing regulation of the drug is dependent on multiple stakeholders, including wholesalers, pharmacy benefit managers, and manufacturing companies. Due to the lack of governmental intervention in the process of pharmaceutical cost regulation in the US, data on the price negotiations and the rebate system between these entities is unavailable in public records, making it difficult to determine a primary cause as the root of …

Sustainable Operations, Industry Performance, And Environmental Sustainability: A Case Study On U.S. Marine Fisheries And Pacific Bluefin Tuna, Kalyn Chapman

Undergraduate Research Awards

When thinking of the numerous industries we have across the United States, the environmental impacts created from their unsustainable operations is not always at the forefront of our thoughts. The fact that negative impacts on our environment can also create problems for our economy is often overlooked as well. The damaging impact marine fisheries in the United States have on our environment, and the cost it creates for the fishing industry, is a good example of this cycle between sustainable (or unsustainable) operations and productivity.

In this paper we ask the following: Has the implementation of sustainable practices in U.S. …

The Analytics Of Vulnerable Populations In Brazil, Fernanda M. Araujo Maciel

2020

Conditional Cash Transfer (CCT) programs became a popular measure to alleviate poverty in Latin American countries. The Brazilian CCT program, called Bolsa Família, is the largest social welfare program in the country, covering a quarter of all Brazilian households. The objective of the program is to reduce poverty and malnutrition, while providing low-income families access to public services, such as health, education, and social assistance. Since the program is based on conditions of maintaining health and schooling for children, my dissertation comprises two studies that examine the impact of Bolsa Família on educational outcomes and unhealthy behaviors of its participants. …

Three Essays On Trade, Environment, And Health, Sookti Chaudhary

Theses and Dissertations--Economics

My dissertation consists of three essays on trade, environment and health. The first essay empirically evaluates domestic facilities' environmental response to Chinese import competition in the United States (US) manufacturing sector from 2000 to 2010. Using facility-level data on chemical emissions and employing an instrumental variables approach, the paper finds that industry/regional exposure to increased import competition had very little impact on the environmental decisions of domestic facilities.

The second essay empirically explores a possible link between the environmental justice efforts during the Obama administration and the change in environmental inequity by examining the change in US facilities' underlying environmental …

Three Essays On The Economics Of Education Expansion, Xiaozhou Ding

Theses and Dissertations--Economics

My dissertation consists of three essays that study the unintended consequences of education policies. The first two essays examine the impact of higher education expansion in China on household saving rate and individual migration rate. The third essay looks into the impact of a school redistricting plan and the construction a new school on housing prices in Fayette County, Kentucky.

In the first essay, I utilize the large national expansion on higher education in China which exogenously increase the enrollment of college students, to estimate the induced change in the expected college probability and how it affects saving rates for …

Indeks Komposit Pembangunan Infrastruktur Provinsi-Provinsi Di Indonesia, Royhan Faradis, Uswatun Nurul Afifah

Jurnal Ekonomi dan Pembangunan Indonesia

Infrastructure development is absolutely necessary to improve Indonesia’s economic growth which carries the principles of pro-poor, pro growth, and pro-jobs. However, the conditions of each region are different so that these objectives are always accompanied by inequality in development outcomes. This study maps areas that experience inequality into a composite index using factor analysis. This composite index was built based on the development of methods by the OECD. The results showed that Indeks Pembangunan Infrastruktur (IPI) was a valid measure. Seven provinces are categorized as inadequate located in Kalimantan and eastern Indonesia. The seven provinces have infrastructure and health and …

The Impact Of Income On Nutrition: A Case Study Of Northern Mozambique, Hunter Swanigan, Lawton Lanier Nalley

Discovery, The Student Journal of Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences

In 2017, Mozambique ranked as one of the least developed countries in the world by measures of health, education, and income. With a minimal annual income, purchasing adequate food to meet recommended levels of nutrients for a healthy diet is difficult, leaving 40% of the country undernourished. This study analyzed what foods are available during the dry months (hungry season) of May through October in the Nampula province of Mozambique to determine if it is possible to meet recommended levels of nutrients from purchasing and growing food. Three different levels of income were used to determine what percentage of the …

Consumer Choice Of Counterfeits Or Generic Products: The Case Of Egypt, Mostafa Aboelsoud, Kenzy Seireg

Economics

The counterfeiting market is increasing at an alarming rate because consumers are often unwilling to pay for brand names. This study investigates the factors that influence consumers’ preferences toward counterfeit and generic products by studying Egyptian consumers. By surveying a sample of 271 consumers, our study concluded that demographic variables, perceived risk, and prior experience are insignificant factors in choosing counterfeits or generics, while price, taste and preferences, quality, the price of related products, subjective norms, and expected prices are variables that significantly affect consumer preferences and demand. The research concludes that consumers who care about the quality, expected prices, …

The Value Of Carbon Sequestration In The Developing World: Making The Economic Case For Tree Planting In Laos, Vongdalone Vongsikeo

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

Tree plantations in developing countries are mostly driven by private sectors, mainly to increase forest cover and meet the timber demand. However, research studies on tree plantations in Laos, for instance, show that despite high profitability tree farmers and private companies face many challenges such as low timber quality, low timber selling price and slow plantation expansion. These challenges could be the result of slow policy improvement processes or the lack of basis on the justification of government intervention. This study uses a policy decision tool - a cost-benefit analysis to evaluate social costs and social benefits from private tree …

Home Rule, Local Autonomy, And Municipal Government Behavior, Xin Chen

Theses and Dissertations--Public Policy and Administration

This dissertation focuses on relationships between state and local governments. Of particular interest in this project is how the shift of power from the state to local governments changes local governments’ performance. This dissertation is comprised of four chapters. The first chapter briefly introduces the motivation and organization of the dissertation. The second chapter reviews the three state-imposed fiscal institutions—home rule, debt limitations, and tax and expenditure limitations, across states. While previous studies have looked at specific institutions, few studies have comprehensively reviewed the status of those institutions across states. This chapter attempts to fill this gap by comprehensively scrutinizing …

New York State Economic Status Of Regions And Development Programs, Michael J. Wasylenko

Center for Policy Research

No abstract provided.

Do Foster Care Agencies Discriminate Against Gay Couples? Evidence From A Correspondence Study, Mattie Mackenzie-Oiu, David Schwegman, Leonard M. Lopoo

Center for Policy Research

There has been considerable recent debate regarding proposed policies that would allow foster care administrators to discriminate on the basis of the sexual orientation of the foster parent. To date, however, we know very little about the level of discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation in the foster care system. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first empirical investigation to ask whether foster care agencies, the public and nonprofit firms that facilitate foster care placements, respond similarly to emails sent by fictitious same-sex and heterosexual couples who inquire about becoming foster parents. Our results suggest that …

A Case Study Of Pana Coffee Company Limited On Coffee Production Analysis, Paninee Jongwutiwes

Chulalongkorn University Theses and Dissertations (Chula ETD)

Pana Coffee Group is a Thai organic coffee manufacturer in Chiang Mai, the northern part of Thailand. Organic Sustainable Value Chain is what they adhere. They handle the organic supply chain from upstream to downstream. They grow seedlings to saplings. They plant the saplings at own lands where the altitude, temperature, and humidity suit well without using any chemical substances, for instance, herbicides, pesticides, and fertilizers. They harvest the coffee once the coffee fruits are ripe. They have the mill which is fully-equipped with cutting-edge and environmental friendly machines to produce organic coffee that is supreme in quality. They also …

Why Do Thais Choose To Do Flexible Job? A Case Study Of Grabfood, Chayada Khiannok

Chulalongkorn University Theses and Dissertations (Chula ETD)

This study is to examine why Thai people want to do flexible job by studying GrabFood as case study. Data in the study was collected from online survey which were directly responded by GrabFood workers and I use binary logistic to estimate results. The result found that preference for flexibility is the key factor workers are likely to do freelance. The result of this study is similar to other related studies in that flexibility is an important factor people go on freelance. Therefore, it can be concluded that increase in value of flexibility is a major reason for people to …

Determinants Of Tax Morale Using Structural Equation Model (Sem), Raymond S. Pacaldo, Rodiel C. Ferrer

DLSU Business & Economics Review

This paper analyzes the impact of tax enforcement, trust in government, and demographic characteristics on the tax morale of firms in the Philippines. From the database of Business Environment and Enterprise Performance Survey (BEEPS), 864 firms were taken and analyzed using partial least squares on the structural equation of modeling (PLS-SEM). In the analysis, only trust in government, organizational form, and firm location provided a significant impact to tax morale. Thus, firms pay taxes religiously when the government acts trustworthily. On the other hand, sole proprietorship and Metro Manila firms exhibited lower tax morale as compared to corporations and outside …

An Empirical Analysis Of The Leading Determinants Behind The Opioid Epidemic The 50 States, Sydney Levine

Empirical Economic Bulletin, An Undergraduate Journal

This paper investigates the determining factors influencing the opioid epidemic in each of the 50 states of the United States of America. The opioid epidemic is a rising concern throughout the nation and has been associated with economic conditions. The health crisis poses additional threats to the labor market and the overall economy. This study looks at the age adjusted opioid death rate per 100,000 people as the dependent variable and how unemployment rate, the labor force participation rate, ESOOS funding, the number of hospitals, Median household income, the GINI index, adults reporting poor mental health status, individuals reporting past …

Partisan Polarization And Resistance To Elite Messages: Results From Survey Experiments On Social Distancing, Syon Bhanot, D. J. Hopkins

Economics Faculty Works

COVID-19 compelled government officials in the U.S. and elsewhere to institute social distancing policies, shuttering much of the economy. At a time of low trust and high polarization, Americans may only support such disruptive policies when recommended by same-party politicians. A related concern is that some may resist advice from “elite” sources such as government officials or public health experts. We test these possibilities using novel data from two online surveys with embedded experiments conducted with approximately 2,000 Pennsylvania residents each, in spring 2020 (Study 1 in April and Study 2 in May-June). We uncover partisan differences in views on …

The Study Of Parental Educational Investment In Left-Behind Children In China, Zilin (Kelley) Zhong

Honors Papers

This paper studies the effect of lengths of separation between parents and child on the amount of tuition paid for children in China, using the China Family Panel Survey data from 2010, 2012 and 2014. It also studies the factors that affect tuition for rural left-behind children in China such as children's preferences for education, children's characteristics, parents' reasons to give birth, and teacher attributes, with provinces and year fixed effects. I found that mothers or fathers who live with their children for 2 to 4 months in the past year pay statistically significantly more tuition than fathers or mothers …

The Aca's Dependent Coverage Mandate: An Investigation Of Its Effects On Mortality With Regard To Race, Jack W. Derwin

Honors Papers

I add to literature investigating the effects of the Affordable Care Act’s (ACA) dependent coverage mandate (DCM). I examine how the mandate, which increased health insurance coverage for 19 to 25 year-olds, impacted short-run mortality rates for the affected age group. Unlike previous research, I examine if and how young adult mortality was affected differentially by race. I use data from the CDC’s “WONDER” database to conduct difference-in-difference analysis to assess the effects of the policy change on mortality. I find that the DCM had a significant negative impact on mortality rates for the affected age group as a whole, …

The Timing Of Childbirth: Does The Age Of First-Time Mothers Affect The Parental Gender Earnings Gap?, Anna Graves

CMC Senior Theses

This paper assesses the impact the timing of first birth may have on the parental gender wage gap. Using data from the 2014 Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP), I use a pooled, cross-sectional sample of full-time parents in the United States labor force to examine the relationship between earnings and age at first birth for mothers and fathers and any relative difference that arises between the two. My findings indicate the presence of a parental gender wage gap, and that the timing of first birth can significantly impact parental wages. In addition, my results suggest that the timing …

Fast Poisson Estimation With High-Dimensional Fixed Effects, Sergio Correia, Paulo Guimarães, Thomas Zylkin

Economics Faculty Publications

In this paper we present ppmlhdfe, a new Stata command for estimation of (pseudo) Poisson regression models with multiple high-dimensional fixed effects (HDFE). Estimation is implemented using a modified version of the iteratively reweighted least-squares (IRLS) algorithm that allows for fast estimation in the presence of HDFE. Because the code is built around the reghdfe package, it has similar syntax, supports many of the same functionalities, and benefits from reghdfe’s fast convergence properties for computing high-dimensional least squares problems. Performance is further enhanced by some new techniques we introduce for accelerating HDFE-IRLS estimation specifically ppmlhdfe also implements a novel and …