Digital Commons Network^™

Economic Impact Of Expanding The Morgantown Industrial Park, Eric Bowen

Bureau of Business & Economic Research

No abstract provided.

The Impact Of Regional Return On Education On The Self-Selection Of Mexican Immigrants, Warren Chen

CMC Senior Theses

This paper uses the 2010 Mexican Population and Housing Survey to examine the role of regional return to education on migrant selection. The study uses a standard linear regression model to predict the educational attainment of migrants and compares it to the educational attainment of non-migrants in each Mexican State. It finds evidence of negative selection, that less educated Mexican citizens are more likely to migrate to the United States. It also finds little evidence of the impact of regional return to education on migrant selection. The study offers potential explanations for the lack of impact and suggests avenues for …

A Nuanced Look At Gender Interactions On Informal Employment And Income In Argentina And Uruguay, Teagan Knight

CMC Senior Theses

There are many existing studies characterizing the informal sector in Latin America, but the literature fails to fully examine the interactions between gender and disadvantaging factors on the probability of informal employment and its returns to wage. This analysis uses survey data from Argentina (2001) and Uruguay (2006) to examine the heterogeneous effects of number of children under 5, education, minority status, and migrant status on male and female informal employment and income. Being female interacts with number of children under 5 to create no effect on probability of informal employment, in contrast to a significant negative effect for men. …

The Role Of Quality Education In The Economic Development Of Mexico, Betzayra Perez

CMC Senior Theses

Mexico’s education system ranks among the lowest in terms of quality and achievement levels. Given the importance of education for a country’s economic development, it is crucial to understand how improvements in Mexico’s education quality can result in economic growth for the country. This thesis aims to create awareness about how the quality of learning rather than total schooling can result in improving Mexico’s economic development. First, a general literature review provides significant findings of the quality of education, the difference between learning and schooling, and educational equity, and its effects on economic development. Moreover, a detailed overview of the …

Are Cds Auctions The Tail Wagging The Dog? An Empirical Study Of Corporate Bond Return Volatility At The Time Of Default, Jennifer Mace

CMC Senior Theses

Over the past decade, numerous engineered credit events and cases of market participants manipulating bond prices to influence Credit Default Swap (CDS) auction payouts have occurred. These cases have become increasingly common, and the CFTC has stated they may constitute market manipulation and undermine not only the CDS market but also the credit derivative and default markets. Although there is a plethora of news and media coverage on publicized cases, there is no previous empirical research on evidence of these practices. This paper is motivated by the desire to determine if there is indirect evidence of bond price manipulation around …

The Fall Of The 10-K Report: Measuring The Impact Of Accounting Ratios On Financial Performance, Matthew Daruty

CMC Senior Theses

The annual 10-K report has historically been the most important aspect in assessing the position of a publicly held company. However, as the flow of information has increased with the dawn of new technologies, less and less attention has been paid to these audited financial statements. In order to assess if investors are still reacting to the information contained in the annual report, this paper examines the relationship between accounting ratios and stock price in banks traded on United States stock exchanges. By examining accounting ratios instead of simply looking at Earnings Per Share, new information was revealed regarding what …

First Movers In Marijuana: Tourism Boom Or Bust?, Henry Klyce Minervini

CMC Senior Theses

In 2014, Colorado and Washington legalized the cultivation, sale, and consumption of recreational marijuana for anyone over the age of 21. In doing so, the two states presented the first opportunities for marijuana-specific tourism in the United States. Direct benefits of legalization to these first movers, namely tax revenues generated through the sale of marijuana, have been quantified, but the indirect benefits in the tourism sector are as of yet unquantified. Although there is a large body of informal literature and popular media on marijuana tourism, academic study of the subject is scant. Working with a panel composed of 47 …

The Effect Of Neighborhood Crime Rates On Childhood Obesity In Los Angeles County, Lachlan Montgomery

CMC Senior Theses

This thesis examines the effect of neighborhood crime rates on childhood obesity in Los Angeles County over a five-year period 2012-2016. Using yearly pooled cross-sectional geocoded data from the University of Southern California (USC) Price Center for Social Innovation Neighborhood Data for Social Change (NDSC) interactive platform, I run multiple ordinary least squares regressions using different measures of crime to determine if neighborhoods with higher crime rates influence the unhealthy percentage of 5^th, 7^th, and 9^thgrade public school students. I hypothesize that crime influences obesity, violent crime has a stronger correlation than property crime, …

All Recessions Are Not Equal: The Effect Of Sectoral Shifts On Unemployment Using Regional Data, Eamon Gallagher

CMC Senior Theses

This thesis investigates the effect that variation in employment between industries has had on the depth of recession faced by Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs) in the United States. This analysis is limited to the previous two national recessions. I use regression analysis to find that increases in variation in employment has a significant effect on the maximum increase in unemployment rate in MSAs after controlling for relevant MSA characteristics. In this framework I also find that increases in education could mitigate the negative effects of this variation. I include several other measures of depth of recession including the fall in …

Do Economic Linkages Through Fdi Lead To Institutional Change? Assessing Outcomes In Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan And Kyrgyzstan, Rachel Vanderhill, Sandra F. Joireman, Roza Tulepbayeva

Political Science Faculty Publications

Foreign direct investment (FDI) can deliver benefits beyond the provision of capital, such as efficiency gains. We argue that the theorised positive effects of economic linkage are reduced when linkages are based on natural resources. Domestic elite coalitions supporting reform are also weaker in countries with extensive natural resources. Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan have high-value natural resources and significant FDI, making them most likely cases for reform. Kyrgyzstan is a contrasting case as it has few natural resources. We find that the institutional reforms we would anticipate because of linkages have not occurred and those that exist are often cosmetic.

Effects Of Agricultural Loans In Developing Countries – Benin Case Study, Nicaise S. M. Sagbo

Theses and Dissertations--Agricultural Economics

Limited access to financial services is known as a major constraint to agricultural development (FAO, 2002). Farmers need liquidity to face agricultural expenses throughout the production cycle but mainly at the beginning. Mainstream financial institutions are reluctant to serve the agricultural sector for several reasons. First, they consider the sector to be highly risky with low performance. Also, agricultural activities depend on the weather, they take place in remote rural areas, and commodities prices are volatile. All these aspects make it hard for standard banks to reach their profit goals when lending to farmers. Since microfinance was conceived, it has …

Utilizing Large Scale Datasets To Evaluate Aspects Of A Sustainable Bioeconomy, Gwanseon Kim

Theses and Dissertations--Agricultural Economics

This dissertation combines large scale datasets to evaluate crop prediction, land values, and consumption of a crop being considered to advance a sustainable bioeconomy. In chapter 2, we propose a novel application of the multinomial logit (MNL) model to estimate the conditional transition probabilities of crop choice for the state of Kentucky. Utilizing the recovered transition probabilities the forecast distributions of total acreages for alfalfa, corn, soybeans, tobacco, and wheat produced in the state from 2010 to 2015 can be recovered. The Cropland Data Layer is merged with the Common Land Unit dataset to allow for the identification of crop …

Essays On Health Economics Using Big Data, Samane Zarebanadkoki

Theses and Dissertations--Agricultural Economics

This dissertation consists of three essays addressing different topics in health economics. In the first essay, we perform a systematic review of peer-reviewed articles examining consumer preference for the main electronic cigarette (e-cigarette) attributes namely flavor, nicotine strength, and type. The search resulted in a pool of 12,933 articles; 66 articles met the inclusion criteria for this review. Current literature suggests consumers preferred flavored e-cigarettes, and such preference varies with age groups and smoking status. Consumer preference for nicotine strength and types depend on smoking status, e-cigarette use history, and gender. Adolescents consider flavor the most important factor trying e-cigarettes …

Labor Market Effects Of U.S. Sick Pay Mandates, Nicolas R. Ziebarth, Stefan Pichler

Employment Research Newsletter

No abstract provided.

ผลกระทบของภาษีความหวานต่อราคา : กรณีศึกษาเครื่องดื่มในประเทศไทย, ธนัชพร ทิพย์กาญจนกุล

Chulalongkorn University Theses and Dissertations (Chula ETD)

งานวิจัยนี้มีวัตถุประสงค์เพื่อศึกษาผลกระทบของภาษีความหวานต่อราคาเครื่องดื่ม ผ่านการวิเคราะห์การเปลี่ยนแปลงของราคาและภาระภาษีที่ถูกส่งผ่านไปยังผู้บริโภค โดยใช้ข้อมูลราคาขายปลีกของเครื่องดื่มจากกระทรวงพานิชย์ ในช่วงเวลาก่อนและหลังการเก็บภาษีความหวานรอบที่สอง 6 เดือน ซึ่งงานวิจัยนี้จะใช้วิธี difference-in-differences ในการวิเคราะห์ข้อมูล โดยมีกลุ่มทดลองคือเครื่องดื่มที่มีน้ำตาล ซึ่งกลุ่มทดลองข้างต้นนี้จะถูกแบ่งเป็นกลุ่มย่อยตามปริมาณน้ำตาลที่มีในเครื่องดื่มนั้น ๆ ได้แก่กลุ่มเครื่องดื่มที่มีปริมาณน้ำตาลสูงมาก สูง ปานกลาง ต่ำ และต่ำมาก ตามลำดับ และทำการเทียบเครื่องดื่มกลุ่มทดลองแต่ละกลุ่มกับน้ำดื่มที่เป็นกลุ่มควบคุม ผลพบว่าในภาพรวมของราคาเครื่องดื่มที่ถูกเก็บภาษีมีการปรับตัวสูงขึ้น คิดเป็นประมาณ 0.227 บาท/100 มิลลิลิตร อย่างมีนัยสำคัญทางสถิติที่ระดับ 0.01 โดยเครื่องดื่มที่มีปริมาณน้ำตาลปานกลางมีการเปลี่ยนแปลงของราคามากที่สุด รองลงมาคือเครื่องดื่มที่มีปริมาณน้ำตาลต่ำ และเครื่องดื่มที่มีปริมาณน้ำตาลต่ำมากตามลำดับ ส่วนเครื่องดื่มที่มีปริมาณน้ำตาลสูงและสูงมากไม่พบการเปลี่ยนแปลงของราคา และพบว่าในภาพรวมของเครื่องดื่มที่ถูกเก็บภาษีทั้งหมดมีการผลักภาระไปยังผู้บริโภคประมาณ 854% โดยเครื่องดื่มที่มีการผลักภาระภาษีไปยังผู้บริโภคมากที่สุดคือเครื่องดื่มที่มีปริมาณน้ำตาลต่ำมาก รองลงมาคือเครื่องเครื่องดื่มที่มีปริมาณน้ำตาลต่ำ และเครื่องดื่มที่มีปริมาณน้ำตาลปานกลางตามลำดับ ส่วนเครื่องดื่มที่มีปริมาณน้ำตาลสูงและสูงมากไม่พบการผลักภาระภาษีไปยังผู้บริโภค

What Drives Merger Waves? A Study Of The Seven Historical Merger Waves In The U.S., Katherine Ching

Scripps Senior Theses

Historically, merger and acquisition (or M&A) activity has occurred in cyclical patterns, forming what are known as “merger waves.” To date, there have been a total of seven waves. Though it is widely acknowledged that merger waves exist, there is no consensus on what drives these waves. Through both qualitative and quantitative analysis, this paper aims to determine the causes of merger waves and looks at those causes through two different lenses: the neoclassical view, which states that economic shocks cause merger waves, and the behavioral view, which states that increases in merger activity are due to managerial behavior and …

Can Uber And Lyft Save Public Transit?, Emily Zheng

Pomona Senior Theses

I examine whether Uber and Lyft are currently complements or substitutes of public transit, and how partnerships between cities and ride sharing companies can increase their complementary relationship and solve parking and mobility issues. The results suggest that transportation network companies (TNCs) like Uber and Lyft do not have a statistically significant effect on public transit ridership overall, but are complements of public transit for certain populations. Policies that give discounts for TNC rides taken to and from transit stops help solve the first mile / last mile problem, which consequently help increase transit ridership.

It Takes A Village To Raise Water Quality: The Effects Of Residential Voluntary Taxation Mechanisms On Lake Water Quality In Orange County, Florida, Andrew P. Hutchens

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Achieving environmental standards with efficient and cost-effective economic systems is a subject whose importance is increasing in conjunction with growing technological innovation and urbanization. This project contributes to the subject's literature by empirically examining the effects of a voluntary taxation mechanism on the water quality of designated lakes in Orange County, Florida. One of two taxing district types is voluntarily formed by lakefront or near-lakefront property owners: a Municipal Service Taxing District (MSTU), wherein participants pay an ad valorem tax based on property values, or a Municipal Service Benefit Unit (MSBU), wherein participants pay an equal flat rate tax independent …

Through The Eyes Of Locals: A Changing Climate In Bolivia, Jacob D. Rex

Undergraduate Theses, Professional Papers, and Capstone Artifacts

Deforestation and Agricultural Land-Use Change in Bolivia as a Function of Socio-Economic Realities.

This research combines semi-structured interviews of key informants and local participants, as well as field observations, which were conducted between January and April of 2019 in the Departments of Santa Cruz & Chuquisaca.

Price Discrimination On Complementary Goods: Evidence From The Men's Shaving Razor Market, Zheng Yang

Theses and Dissertations--Economics

This dissertation analyzes the men's razor market to examine whether a monopolist can implement price discrimination for the complementary goods. I estimate a demand system for razors using the random coefficient logit model with market level sales data from the Nielsen Store Scanner dataset and individual demographic data from the March CPS. The estimated parameters are used to construct price-cost markups. By comparing the markups of different products, I find evidence that Gillette uses a two-part tariff strategy. This conclusion can be generalized as that of a monopolist setting the prices of tie-in products consistent with a two-part tariff.

Essays On Child Well-Being And The Social Safety Net, Cody N. Vaughn

Theses and Dissertations--Economics

This dissertation consists of three essays examining the role of two particular social safety net programs, the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), on the well-being of children from disadvantaged households. While the impact of these programs on the adults and parents of the household have been studied extensively, less is known about their effect on children. This is true for both their immediate impact on child well-being and any long-run impacts on children who grow up under these programs. Given the demonstrated importance of child well-being on later life adult outcomes, …

The Impact Of Medicare Part D On Mortality And Financial Stability, Katherine Toran

Theses and Dissertations--Economics

Using the Health and Retirement Study Panel core files from 1996 to 2014, I analyze how Medicare Part D impacted access to prescription drug coverage by various demographic factors such as race, gender, and income. In Chapter 1, I find the highest take-up rates for those who were white, female, and with higher incomes. However, increases in coverage were high across the board, such that Medicare Part D also improved drug insurance coverage for those who were black, male, and with lower income. Thus, although Medicare Part D did increase prescription drug insurance coverage for seniors across the board, I …

Mortgage Loans And Financial Security Among Middle-Aged And Older Americans, Qun Zhang

Theses and Dissertations--Family Sciences

Mortgage loan debt is prevalent among middle-aged and older Americans. With higher average outstanding balances, many people are unlikely to pay off their mortgage debt by retirement. Meanwhile, as people age, health shocks are more likely to occur. Medical expenses may compete with mortgage payments and relate to financial insecurity in later years. In order to alleviate financial strain during times of financial hardship, senior homeowners may find reverse mortgage the solution they are looking for. Targeting American adults age 50 and older, this dissertation investigates mortgage loan debt and financial security using panel data from the Health and Retirement …

The Anonymity Heuristic: How Surnames Stop Identifying People When They Become Trademarks, Russell W. Jacobs

Dickinson Law Review (2017-Present)

This Article explores the following question central to trademark law: if a homograph has both a surname and a trademark interpretation will consumers consider those interpretations as intrinsically overlapping or the surname and trademark as completely separate and unrelated words? While trademark jurisprudence typically has approached this question from a legal perspective or with assumptions about consumer behavior, this Article builds on the Law and Behavioral Science approach to legal scholarship by drawing from the fields of psychology, linguistics, economics, anthropology, sociology, and marketing.

The Article concludes that consumers will regard the two interpretations as separate and unrelated, processing surname …

The Changing Nature Of Work, Leadership, And Organizational Culture In Future Ready Organizations, Saloni Dhir

CMC Senior Theses

Abstract

The relationship between individual and organizational performance is a key challenge for leaders in modern organizations, especially with the current disruption in technology and innovation. This thesis is a literature review and compilation of the relevant empirical evidence on various processes of industrial groups and organizational characteristics such as the changing nature of work, leadership, and company culture in detail. I investigate the complex challenges that millennials and organizations are facing in the current VUCA work environment as well as their potential responses to these changes. I map out the evolution of the concept of work and compare changes …

The Effectiveness Of Collaboration Within Supply Chain Management: A Case Study Of Adidas Group, Daniel Carr

CMC Senior Theses

For a multi-national company like Adidas, supply chain management is one of the most crucial aspects of business operations. Products cannot be sold unless Adidas’s supply chain is well-managed and efficient, and public perception of a brand/company is critical to success.

This case study analyzes the effectiveness of Adidas's distinct “collaborative approach” to supply chain management, which is characterized by not only monitoring and auditing suppliers, but also training them to make Adidas’s standards their own and approaching suppliers with the intention of building long-term relationships where the suppliers can become self-sufficient.

This study reviews the structure of Adidas's supply …

Leveraging Trade Agreements To Reduce Greenhouse Gas Emissions In Accordance With The Paris Agreement, Sam Becker

CMC Senior Theses

Climate change is the most obvious and pressing impairment of the biological, physical, and chemical systems. To help mitigate this unprecedented problem, I present heads of state, policymakers, and members of civil society with a set of new provisions that they can include in their trade agreements to drive emissions reduction from countries inside and outside of their trade agreements, maintain their ability to compete in an increasingly globalized world, and comply with international trading rules. Ultimately, I seek to demonstrate the untapped potential for leveraging trade agreements to reduce emissions in the midst of an international system that lacks …

Alleviating Poverty In Sub-Saharan Africa, Owen Dubeck

CMC Senior Theses

While most of the world has been able to dramatically reduce extreme poverty rates, Sub-Saharan Africa has failed to do so and is the only region in the world with more people living in extreme poverty than thirty years ago. This thesis will develop a policy framework for alleviating poverty by drawing from countries that are performing surprisingly well and poorly in the region. The thesis concludes with an analysis of whether education, health, or agricultural sectors should be receiving more or less funding based on expected rates of return and the feasibility of policy successes.

Is An Open-Floor Office Plan The Right Decision For Your Company? An Analysis Of Traditional Office V. Open-Floor Office Environments, Marc Kirchner

Honors College Theses

No abstract provided.

Voting Behavior Among Young Adults: An Analysis Of Youth Voters And How Behavioral Economic Concepts Can Be Applied To Increase Young Voter Turnout, Heather Hall

Honors College Theses

No abstract provided.