Digital Commons Network^™

No. 81: Rethinking The South African Medical Brain Drain Narrative, Jonathan Crush

Southern African Migration Programme

Concerns about the negative impact of the “brain drain” of health professionals from Africa have led to a dominant narrative in which those who migrate are a permanent, and costly, loss to the country of origin and a permanent, and valuable, gain for the country of destination. South Africa is often seen as an archetypal African medical brain drain story. This report finds that, while the traditional permanent-exodus model has a powerful hold and shapes policy responses, it does not adequately capture all forms of migration by South African doctors. Noting that a significant number of physicians have taken up …

The Effect Of Environmental Change On Gdp, Jackson V. Barliant

Writing Across the Curriculum

Climate change is one of the most debated topics of the 21^st century. Not only has it been detrimental to our eco-system, but it is beginning to redefine and reshape society. Can the U.S. economy continue to flourish while acknowledging the necessary steps that need to be taken in regard to combatting climate change? Yes, the inherent change within our environment due to climate change can not only be withstood by our economy, but it presents an opportunity to revolutionize and expand through innovation.

It Is Time To Kill The Economic Theory Of Suicide, Gary N. Smith

Pomona Economics

A seminal paper by Hamermesh and Soss modeled suicide as a rational economic decision based on a comparison of the financial costs and benefits of staying alive. Their model is fundamentally flawed and their prediction that suicide rates increase with age is wrong.

The Paradox Of Big Data, Gary N. Smith

Pomona Economics

Data-mining is often used to discover patterns in Big Data. It is tempting believe that because an unearthed pattern is unusual it must be meaningful, but patterns are inevitable in Big Data and usually meaningless. The paradox of Big Data is that data mining is most seductive when there are a large number of variables, but a large number of variables exacerbates the perils of data mining.

The Association Between Neonatal Death And Facility Birth In Regions Of India, Diane Coffey

Journal Articles

BACKGROUND Reducing neonatal mortality in India is critical to achieving the 2030 Sustainable Development Goal of a global neonatal mortality rate (NNM) of no more than 12 per 1,000. Policy efforts to reduce India's NNM, including a large-scale conditional cash transfer program, have focused on promoting birth in health facilities, rather than at home. Between 2005 and 2015, the percentage of facility births doubled, from 40% to 80%. OBJECTIVE We assess evidence for the hypothesis that facility births reduce NNM by using new data from the National Family Health Survey, 2015-2016. METHODS We analyze the association between neonatal death and …

Automation And Adaptation: Information Technology, Work Practices, And Labor Demand At Three Firms, Spencer J. Rockwell

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The use of information and communication technology to automate routine tasks involves two types of innovation: technological and organizational. Together, improvements in technological capabilities and complementary changes made by firms in the way they organize work and implement work practices constitute the conditions under which machines substitute for or complement human workers. Building on the prevailing model of routine-biased technical change and recent insights into organizational complementarities, I conduct three qualitative case studies in health care and real estate to assess the relationship between technology and firm-level labor demand. Unique combinations of technological innovation, organizational complementarity, and decision-making at each …

Globalization And Social Spending: Lessons For India, Ansh Jain

Honors Program Theses

As developing countries increasingly integrate themselves into the global economy, increased social spending is desirable to protect their vulnerable groups from rapid changes experienced by the economy associated with increased openness. However, while developed nations are largely successful in maintaining and increasing their social spending as a response to globalization, the case with developing countries is usually the opposite. We find that key determinants of this divergence between developing and developed countries stems from factors such as the extent of surplus and informal labor, quality of democracy and democratic institutions, and the power of unions. As India further integrates into …

Air Quality And Asthma Hospitalization: Evidence Of Pm2.5 Concentrations In Pennsylvania Counties, Elham Erfanian, Alan R. Collins

Regional Research Institute Working Papers

According to the World Health Organization, 235 million people around the world currently suffer from asthma, which includes approximately 25 million in the United States. There is substantial epidemiological evidence indicating linkages between outdoor air pollution and asthma symptoms, more specifically between concentrations of particulate matter and asthma. Using county level data for 2001-2014, a spatial panel framework is imposed based upon prevailing wind patterns to investigate the direct and indirect impacts of PM2.5 concentration levels on asthma hospitalization in Pennsylvania. This model controls for population density, precipitation, smoking rate, and population demographic variables. Results show that PM2.5 concentrations as …

Effects Of Sme Access To Capital On Country Economic Performance: Understanding The Differences Between The Developed And The Developing World, William B. Reed

Honors Undergraduate Theses

The intent of this thesis is to explore the effects of small-medium enterprises' (SME) access to capital on country economic performance and examine the differences between the developed world and the developing world. Specifically, two main questions are addressed: whether there are significantly higher barriers-to-entry through a lack of access to credit in developing countries as well as whether SMEs access to credit around the world has changed over time.

Using a sample of 46 countries and grouping them two different ways (developed vs developing and free-market vs non-free-market), I find a negative correlation between the SMEs access to capital …

Essays On The Economics Of The National Basketball Association (N.B.A.): Testing For Inefficiencies In The N.B.A. Labor Market, Samuel S. Lee

CGU Theses & Dissertations

This dissertation is comprised of three economic essays, that each examine the labor market for players in the National Basketball Association (N.B.A.). Neoclassical economics often incorporate models that assume individuals are utility-maximizing agents who behave rationally. However, many studies in the field of behavioral economics have found evidence of irrational decision making, both within laboratory environments as well as in natural settings. The objective of this paper is to provide additional research to this growing body of literature by using empirical data collected from the N.B.A. to conduct quasi-field experiments. Although some may question their generalizability, one of the main …

Monthly Spending Dynamics Of The Elderly Following A Health Shock: Evidence From Singapore, Terence C. Cheng, Jing Li, Rhema Vaithianathan

Research Collection School Of Economics

We use novel longitudinal data from 19 monthly waves of the Singapore Life Panel to examine the short-term dynamics of the effects health shocks have on household health and non-health spending and income by the elderly. The health shocks we study are the occurrence of new major conditions such as cancer, heart problems, and minor conditions (e.g. diabetes, and hypertension). Our empirical strategy exploits unanticipated changes in health status through the diagnosis of new health conditions, combined with an individual fixed effect framework. We find that major shocks have large and persistent effects while minor shocks have small and mainly …

Keeping College Pricey: The Bootlegger And Baptist Story Of Higher Education Accreditation, Mary Watson Smith, Joshua C. Hall

Economics Faculty Working Papers Series

Since the passage of the Veterans Readjustment Act of 1952, private accrediting agencies have held the purse strings to all federal student aid. Today, six regional accrediting agencies and ten national accrediting agencies act as the gatekeepers of these federal monies. No college or university can access federal funds without receiving the imprimatur of one of these recognized accrediting agencies. Proponents of the current system of accreditation argue that the framework presently in place ultimately benefits both students and the public at large by fulfilling quality assurance and information signaling functions. Applying Yandle’s “Baptists and Bootleggers” model, we examine whether …

Modeling Genomes To Phenomes To Populations In A Changing Climate: The Need For Collaborative Networks, Nika Galic, Allyson G. Hindle, John P. Delong, Karen Watanabe, Valery Forbes, C. Loren Buck

School of Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

Condensed Abstract

Climate is changing globally and its impacts can arise at different levels of biological organization; yet, cross-level consequences of climate change are still poorly understood. Designing effective environmental management and adaptation plans requires implementation of mechanistic models that span the biological hierarchy. Because biological systems are inherently complex and dynamic in nature, dealing with complexities efficiently necessitates simplification of systems or approximation of relevant processes, but there is little consensus on mathematical approaches to scale from genes to populations. Here we present an effort that aims to bring together groups that often do not interact, but that are …

Measurement Of Childhood Poverty In The United States And Its Enduring Influences, Zi Yang

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

This paper measures childhood poverty in the United States and classifies it into three degrees based on different durations – persistent poverty, chronic transient poverty, and non-chronic transient poverty – using the Panel Study of Income Dynamics (PSID) data and actual poverty thresholds in the United States. Then I examine the enduring influences of different types of childhood poverty on future performance, including academic achievement, income, and criminal behavior, utilizing OLS and logistic models as well as Mincer wage functions. The regression results show that childhood poverty has a negative impact on schooling years and earnings. Living in poverty increases …

A Mobile Solution To Drug Prescription And Dispensation With Privacy Protection For Developing Economies, Kingsley C. Nwosu

Journal for the Advancement of Developing Economies

It is unarguable that many countries within the developing economies have not been able to reap many of the benefits from the innovations in Computer and Information Technologies (CIT) as they pertain to the advances in healthcare delivery systems. The contributing factors to the problems in these countries are multifaceted, such as, ethnic, cultural, environmental, governance, and infrastructural. To address these problems, current efforts have focused mostly on the issues of disease control and management. However, insufficient attention has been given to the concomitant problems of medication (drug / prescription) management especially as they relate to information management between patients, …

All For One Or Each For Her Own: Do Polygamous Families Share And Share Alike?, Kristin Mammen

Journal for the Advancement of Developing Economies

This paper examines whether the mother’s rank (whether she is a senior or junior wife) in polygamous households in Côte d’Ivoire injects favoritism that could lead to differential investment in children (based on mother’s rank), a concern that could cause an inefficient allocation of household resources. The hypothesis is that the younger is a junior wife relative to the senior wife, the greater favoritism she will receive from the husband, and the better her children will fare. This question is analyzed employing Ordinary Least Squares on a Living Standards Measurement Survey microdataset collected by the World Bank. An interesting pattern …

A Theory Of Poverty: Legal Immobility, Sara Sternberg Greene

Faculty Scholarship

The puzzle of why the cycle of poverty persists and upward class mobility is so difficult for the poor has long captivated scholars and the public alike. Yet with all of the attention that has been paid to poverty, the crucial role of the law, particularly state and local law, in perpetuating poverty is largely ignored. This Article offers a new theory of poverty, one that introduces the concept of legal immobility. Legal immobility considers the cumulative effects of state and local laws as a mechanism through which poverty is perpetuated and upward mobility is stunted. The Article provides an …

Reducing Survey Hypothetical Bias Through Revealed Behavior Priming: A Case Of Student Preference For Beef Served By University Dining, Gaby De Nascimento Mandlhate

Theses and Dissertations--Agricultural Economics

Economists are still searching for methods to reduce/eliminate Hypothetical Bias (HB). Different methods have been previously applied some with success and others without. In this study, we aimed to further test the cognitive dissonance approach (CD) through a learning design method to estimate the WTP for five beef attributes: Non-quality, Kentucky Proud, Appalachian, Grass Fed and a mix of 25% Non-quality and 75% Kentucky Proud, using a one and one half bounded model. To test the CD, 881 participants from the University of Kentucky, were randomly assigned to a real/hypothetical market for a battery recycling project at first and afterwards …

Economic Impact Of Ethanol Biorefineries In The U.S. Midwest From 2001 To 2015: A Quasi-Experimental Approach, Scott W. Hall

Theses and Dissertations--Agricultural Economics

The objective of this dissertation is to analyze the economic impact of newly operational ethanol biorefineries on rural counties in the U.S. Midwest region for the period 2001 to 2015 using a quasi-experimental approach. Rapid growth in the ethanol industry expanded the number of ethanol plants located in the U.S. Midwest from 54 in 2001 to 173 in 2015. Out of the counties with 119 new ethanol biorefineries, 97 counties met the general treatment criteria defined in this dissertation, but only 56 of those counties qualified for the rural treatment criteria. Counties with ethanol biorefineries that qualified for treatment were …

Nebraska Farm Real Estate Market Highlights 2018-2019, Jim Jansen, Jeffrey Stokes

Extension Farm and Ranch Management News

Introduction

The Nebraska Farm Real Estate Market Highlights 2018-2019 report represents the 41st edition to the annual series. These reports provide an important insight on agricultural land market dynamics for stakeholders across Nebraska. In today’s market, where market transactions exceeding a million dollars are the norm, objective market information and analysis is more critical than ever. The focus of the report continues to provide unbiased information on agricultural land values and rental rates so industry participants can make educated and informed decisions.

This year, the February 2019 survey of nearly 125 expert-panel members from across the state provided current information …

Ambulance Service Ownership And Management: How It Affects Quality Of Service Delivery For Medicare Patients, Sookti Chaudhary, Kenneth R. Troske, Suzanne Troske, Alison Davis

Institute for the Study of Free Enterprise Working Papers

This study investigates how ownership and/or management affects ambulance services across the United States. We investigate whether ambulance quality, measured by patient transportation time, varies by organization type. We estimate the effect of ownership structure on response time variables using data from the National EMS Information System (NEMSIS) for the years 2010–2015, the most comprehensive data set on emergency medical services. Focusing on ground transportation (as opposed to air and water transportation) and on Medicare-eligible (age 65 years and older) patients, we find that, on average, ambulance services owned by fire departments respond faster than those managed by other types …

Alcohol And Marijuana: Substitutes Or Complements And A Deeper Evaluation Of Marijuana Prohibition, Nicholas Andrew Brown

Honors Program Theses

This paper first looks to determine whether alcohol and marijuana are substitutes or complements. This economic relationship between alcohol and marijuana could influence policy decisions regarding marijuana’s legal status in the United States. My method is a meta study and evaluates the current literature on alcohol and marijuana’s economic connection. I find that more empirical research is needed before we can definitively say whether alcohol and marijuana are substitutes or complements. Second, the paper compares the prohibitions of alcohol and marijuana and gives reasons why the United States should learn from its experience during alcohol prohibition and legalize marijuana

Geographic Determinants Of Infant Health: The Impact Of Sports Facility Construction Projects, Brad Humphreys, Jane Ruseski

Economics Faculty Working Papers Series

A large body of research examines determinants of infant health outcomes but little examines geographic variation generated by exogenous economic shocks. Linking birth data from the CDC Natality files to counties building new facilities from 1995-2002, we find that sports facility construction projects generate local negative externalities. Infants born during facility construction periods have lower birth weights than infants born in comparable counties where no new facility opened. Maternal prenatal health visits also fall in the post-facility-opening period. Mechanisms for this impact include local airborne particulate matter and reduced provision of government services affecting prenatal health.

Chinese Economic Development And Its Global Implications, Robert T. Hill

Honors Undergraduate Theses

While Chinese economic development is often at the forefront of conversations by scholars shaping economic policy, further investigation into the state of China's economy has left a gap in research. Through analyzing the 13th Five Year Plan (FYP) and looking specifically at the effect it will have on unemployment, international trade, overcapacity rates, and the Belt and Road Initiative, the goal of this research is to understand if China will be able to obtain sustained economic growth. In order to achieve this, this research employs a qualitative discourse analysis, focusing on pre-existing works that discuss Chinese economic development. It will …

Nssr Discussion Group 2-2019, Anwar Shaikh Phd

Archives of Anwar Shaikh

This collection includes,

• Shaikh, A., PhD. (2019, February 5). NSSR discussion group “MarxWorks” [Handwritten notes]. Unpublished manuscript notes.

• Shaikh, A., PhD. (2019, January 29). Trends in retirement wealth inequality using Health and Retirement Study (HRS) data [Manuscript draft with sidebar editorial comments by Tony Webb]. Unpublished manuscript draft.

The Explosion Development Of Chinese Contemporary Art Market From 2000 To 2015, Yaning Wang

MA Theses

After Chinese Culture Revolution, the brand new chapter was approaching which opened for the modern Chinese art history; Chinese contemporary art has been deepened understanding by the art market. In the context of an emerging market, art is as much a matter of cultural economy as socio-politics. Thus the thesis will focus on the challenges facing the market and how tradition and economics providing the framework for the sustainability of art market. It will present a historical overview of emergence of Chinese contemporary art the period of 2000 to 2015 and expose the unbreakable bind between the development of its …

Political Connectedness, Firm Performance And Corporate Risk Taking: Are Emerging Markets Different?, Augustine Tarkom

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Existing literature exploring the effect of politically connected firms on their performance and risk-taking seems to offer decisive results for the emerging and the developed market. However, from professionals and anecdotal evidence, both markets do not exhibit similar characteristics. Considering these characteristics, instability of the government, lack thereof of adequate governance structure, I revisit the topic. This study comprises 27 advanced and 20 emerging economies for the years 1992 through 2016. I find that sound political environment drives risk-taking in advanced markets, while political connections drive corporate risk-taking in emerging markets. I also find that political institutions and political connections …

Building A Good Jobs Economy, Dani Rodrik, Charles F. Sabel

Faculty Scholarship

Conventional models are failing throughout the world. In the developed world, the welfare state-compensation model has been in retrenchment for some time, and the drawbacks of the neoliberal conception that has superseded it are increasingly evident. Yet there is no compelling alternative on offer. In the developing world, the conventional, tried-and-tested model of industrialization has run out of steam. In both sets of societies a combination of technological and economic forces (in particular, globalization) is creating or exacerbating productive/technological dualism, with a segment of advanced production in metropolitan areas that thrives on the uncertainty generated by the knowledge economy co-existing …

Access To Higher Education, Job Mismatch, And Wage Penalties In Thailand, Palita Saripan

Chulalongkorn University Theses and Dissertations (Chula ETD)

This study considers whether close proximity to higher education institutions increases the probability of earning a bachelor’s degree, overeducation, and horizontal mismatch between degree and occupation. Using data from the 2015 and 2016 Labor Force Survey of the National Statistical Office of Thailand, and jobs data from the Ministry of Labor, we find that individuals living in provinces with research or Rajabhat universities are more likely to earn a bachelor’s degree, but does not increase the probability of being overeducated for their job. In addition, we find larger overeducation penalties in provinces with universities. Finally, qualitative analysis shows that demand …

Patient Preference And Cost-Effectiveness Analysis Of Colorectal Cancer Screening And Treatment, Pochamana Phisalprapa

Chulalongkorn University Theses and Dissertations (Chula ETD)

Background/Aims: Colorectal cancer (CRC) screening and treatment have been reported to be cost-effective in many high-income countries. However, there was no such study in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). This study aimed to assess the factors determine individuals’ preferences and cost-effectiveness of CRC screening and treatment. Methods: This study consists of three parts. The first part focused on the factors determine individuals’ preferences for CRC screening using discrete choice experiment and multinomial logit model. The second part investigated the cost-effectiveness and budget impact analyses of CRC screening comparing between annual fecal immunochemical test (FIT) and colonoscopy every 10 years. The …