Business Commons^™

Research Report: Well-Being, Heather Akin, Cheryl A. Burkhart-Kriesel, Mary Emery, Katelyn Larson, Bradley Lubben, L. J. Mcelravy, Rebecca J. Vogt

Nebraska Rural Poll

This year, rural Nebraskans are more pessimistic about their current situation than they’ve been since this study began. The proportion believing they are worse off than they were five years ago was 33 percent, up from 27 percent last year and 21 percent in 2022. This is the highest level across all years of the study. This increase in pessimism was matched with a sharp decrease in optimism. This year, just over one-third (36%) of rural Nebraskans believe they are better off compared to five years ago, down from 45 percent last year.

This trend continued when looking to the …

Leavers And Movers: Turnover Of Music Teachers In Nebraska, Christian G. Schuerman

Glenn Korff School of Music: Dissertations, Theses, Student Creative Work, and Performances

The purpose of this study was to determine if the rates of music teachers leaving the teaching profession and changing schools were significantly different than those of teachers of other content areas in the state of Nebraska. This study used data from the previous nine years of the Nebraska Department of Education’s Education Directory in order to find results for the entire population. Results indicated that music teachers leave the profession at similar rates as teachers of other content areas, but move schools at significantly higher rates.

Advisor: Robert H. Woody

Linking Risk Preference, Women’S Empowerment, Farm Investment And Household Well-Being, Samuel Olusesi Olumide

Department of Agricultural Economics: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

A nuanced understanding of intra-household dynamics can inform the design of more effective empowerment and agricultural investment policies. By integrating household risk preferences and empowerment dynamics, this work offers valuable insights into the complex mechanisms driving household welfare and provides a framework for future interventions to promote gender equality and economic development in rural settings. This thesis addresses three core hypotheses: first, that the spouses of risk-seeking male heads are more likely to be disempowered compared to those of risk-averse male heads; second, that households with risk-seeking male heads and disempowered spouses are likely to invest more in farming activities; …

Reviving Trade Justice: How Arbitration Is Saving Wto Dispute Resolution (For Now), Christine Mcdaniel

Yeutter Institute International Trade Policy Review

Yeutter Institute Non-Resident Fellow Christine McDaniel provides her thoughts about how arbitration is saving World Trade Organization dispute resolution for the time being. She suggests that the dispute mechanism and the appeal process are not fully functioning, although a temporary solution has emerged, namely, arbitration and a speedy appeals process. She covers recent cases and options facing WTO members who have a complaint.

Nebraska Monthly Economic Indicators: July 26, 2024, Eric Thompson

Leading Economic Indicator Reports

The Leading Economic Indicator-Nebraska rose by 0.58% in June 2024. The increase in the leading indicator, designed to predict economic growth six months into the future, implies that the Nebraska economy will grow through the end of 2024. There was an increase in manufacturing hours worked in June, as Nebraska continues to benefit from strong demand for food products and as U.S. manufacturing activity continues to improve. Business expectations remained positive. Respondents to the June Survey of Nebraska Business reported plans to increase sales and employment over the next six months. Airline passenger counts and building permits for single-family homes …

Nebraska Monthly Economic Indicators: July 26, 2024

Bureau of Business Research Publications

Nebraska Monthly Economic Indicators: July 26, 2024, Bureau of Business Research, University of Nebraska-Lincoln.

Summary

The Leading Economic Indicator-Nebraska rose by 0.58% in June 2024. The increase in the leading indicator, designed to predict economic growth six months into the future, implies that the Nebraska economy will grow through the end of 2024. There was an increase in manufacturing hours worked in June, as Nebraska continues to benefit from strong demand for food products and as U.S. manufacturing activity continues to improve. Business expectations remained positive. Respondents to the June Survey of Nebraska Business reported plans to increase sales and …

Three Essays In Food Security And The U.S. Sugar Program, Jacob Michels

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

Chapter one devises an approach to adjust estimates of the number of food insecure for changes in sedentarism over time. Existing methodologies are biased upwards and date back several decades. We build a household model utilizing a Stone-Geary utility function, which rationalizes households shifting their labor decisions towards sedentary activities. Our comparative statics examine the impacts of changes in the productivities of sedentary types, as opposed to my physically demanding types, of activities and also their returns. Our empirical approach is informed by our theoretical model and comparative statics, in which we construct a unique pseudo-panel dataset. Sitting time serves …

Ideas For Estate And Transition Planning: Gifting Ownership, Jessica J. Groskopf

Cornhusker Economics

For many farm and ranch families, bringing children or grandchildren into the operation is the ultimate goal. Successfully bringing additional family members into the operation may require some creativity as all parties need to maintain a viable standard of living. This article is part of a series that will highlight ideas and tactics for bringing another family member into the operation. If this is the first article you are seeing in this series, I would encourage you to go back to the for background and additional guidance.

A strategy that is gaining popularity is the gifting of shares or a …

Effect Of Beef Heifer Development Systems Utilizing Corn Residue And Late Summer Planted Cover Crops On Growth, Reproductive Performance, And Economics, Hannah F. Speer, Robert A. Cushman, Harvey Freetly, Jay Parsons, Jessica Windh, M. E. Drewnoski

Department of Agricultural Economics: Faculty Publications

The objective of this study was to evaluate growth and reproductive performance of heifers developed using 3 different winter systems in the midwestern U.S. Spring-born heifers (n = 1,156; 214 d of age; SD ± 17 d) were used in a 3-yr study to evaluate performance in winter development systems, which utilized cover crop (CC) and corn residue grazing. Heifers were assigned to 1 of 3 treatments: grazing corn residue with 0.77 kg/d dried distillers grains (CD) or 1.69 kg/d wheat midds (CW) supplementation followed by a grower ration in the drylot, or grazing late summer planted oat-brassica CC followed …

Annual Forage Insurance Program Performance, Jay Parsons

Cornhusker Economics

In 2014, the Annual Forage Insurance Program (AFIP) was offered for the first time by the USDA – Risk Management Agency (RMA) as a pilot program for the states of Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Texas. It was expanded to include Colorado in 2016 and New Mexico in 2017. This year marks the 10-year anniversary of the program, and the goal of this article is to provide a summary of where the program is and how it is being used. We will focus specific attention on Nebraska but also provide an overview of the national picture.

The …

The Growth Of Ethanol In Brazil: Sugarcane, Corn, And A Few Other Things, Fabio Mattos

Cornhusker Economics

Although we can expect more ethanol produced from corn in the coming years, it is unclear whether it will keep expanding at the same pace as in recent years or how much it will contribute to total ethanol production.

One point to keep an eye on is the typical dynamics of markets. If supply and demand conditions and price movements make corn-ethanol more profitable, ethanol plants in Brazil will keep increasing their production. If it makes more economic sense to produce corn-ethanol (as it happened recently), they will use more corn to produce ethanol.

Supply and demand conditions for ethanol, …

Nebraska Monthly Economic Indicators: July 3, 2024, Eric Thompson

Leading Economic Indicator Reports

The Leading Economic Indicator-Nebraska rose by 0.26% in May 2024. The increase in the leading indicator, designed to predict economic growth six months into the future, implies that the Nebraska economy will grow through the end of 2024. There was an increase in manufacturing hours worked in May, as Nebraska continues to benefit from strong demand for food products. Business expectations remained positive. Respondents to the May Survey of Nebraska Business reported plans to increase sales and employment over the next six months.

Nebraska Monthly Economic Indicators: July 3, 2024, Eric Thompson

Leading Economic Indicator Reports

The Leading Economic Indicator-Nebraska rose by 0.26% in May 2024. The increase in the leading indicator, designed to predict economic growth six months into the future, implies that the Nebraska economy will grow through the end of 2024. There was an increase in manufacturing hours worked in May, as Nebraska continues to benefit from strong demand for food products. Business expectations remained positive. Respondents to the May Survey of Nebraska Business reported plans to increase sales and employment over the next six months.

Nebraska Monthly Economic Indicators: July 3, 2024

Bureau of Business Research Publications

Nebraska Monthly Economic Indicators: July 3, 2024, Bureau of Business Research, University of Nebraska-Lincoln.

Summary

The Leading Economic Indicator-Nebraska rose by 0.26% in May 2024. The increase in the leading indicator, designed to predict economic growth six months into the future, implies that the Nebraska economy will grow through the end of 2024. There was an increase in manufacturing hours worked in May, as Nebraska continues to benefit from strong demand for food products. Business expectations remained positive. Respondents to the May Survey of Nebraska Business reported plans to increase sales and employment over the next six months.

Exploring Producers' Willingness To Pay For Ecosystem Services: Three Essays On Soil Health, Location Preferences, And Cover Crop Adoption, Kaouter Essakkat

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

This dissertation comprises three essays: one assessing Midwest producers' willingness-to-pay (WTP) for soil health-enhancing ecosystem services (ES), another examining the impact of policy implementation locations on WTP, and a third identifying factors influencing producers' adoption of cover crops (CC).

The first essay pioneers the understanding of agricultural producers’ valuation of soil health-associated ES amid growing concerns of soil degradation due to agricultural intensification. Using a discrete choice experiment, this study assesses producers’ WTP for a policy that incentivizes ES provision, specifically improved water quality, carbon sequestration, and enhanced crop yield. Surveying producers across Iowa, Kansas, and Nebraska, our results show …

Exploring Gen Z’S Identity Formation And Its Influence On Consumption Of Pop Culture And Entertainment Merchandise, Melisa Annette Spilinek

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

Fandoms have grown in size and influence, becoming a complex and dynamic cultural phenomenon that richly impacts the consumption of media and consumer behavior. The capitalistic United States with its diverse and media-savvy population, is a prime destination to study fan studies, particularly among young adults who are a crucial component of fandom influence.

The internet has grown to be a major component of the fan experience, an integral part of fandom culture. Online communities provide avenues for Generation Z to connect with others who share similar struggles, challenges, and interests, highlighting the importance of digital platofrms on the evolution …

2024 Nebraska Agricultural Custom Rates With Statewide Survey Summary, Glennis Mcclure

Cornhusker Economics

The 2024 University of Nebraska-Lincoln Custom Rates Survey indicates that rate increases are the norm since the latest survey was completed in 2022. Table 1 provides a summary and percentage change for several common custom operations from 2022 to 2024. Custom field operations such as drilling and planting show increases in 2024 from seven to twenty-seven percent and harvesting rates for various crops indicate state average rate increases from fourteen to twenty-three percent, with the irrigated corn harvest now at $47.84 per acre for the state average. Other custom services, such as spraying for weed control using a self-propelled sprayer, …

Nebraska Farm Real Estate Market Highlights 2023-2024, Jim Jansen, Jeff Stokes

Nebraska Farm Real Estate Reports

For the fifth consecutive year, the all-land average value in Nebraska rose for the year ending February 1, 2024, averaging approximately 5% higher than the prior year. Figure 2 summarizes these figures and trends along with the percent changes over the preceding year’s all-land average for the eight districts in the state.

The statewide all-land average value for the year ending February 1, 2024, averaged $4,015 per acre, or about a 5% ($180 per acre) increase from the prior year’s value of $3,835 per acre. Rates of increase were the highest in the North and Northeast Districts, as these areas …

Utilizing Extreme Value Theory To Uncover Yield Distributions From Farm And County Level Historical Corn Yields, Gerald H. Van Tassell

Department of Agricultural Economics: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Yield risk represents a major portion of the financial risk facing corn producers and is found in the left tail of the yield distribution. Traditional methods for generating yield distributions fall into two categories: parametric and non-parametric. The shape and behavior of the tail of parametric yield distributions are determined by distributional assumptions. Non-parametric distributions fail to account for the possibility of as yet unseen extreme events, often referred to as “Black Swans”. Extreme Value Theory (EVT) rectifies these issues by providing an empirical, parametric estimate of the risk of extreme events, regardless of the underlying distribution of corn yields. …

An Inaugural Forum On Epidemiological Modeling For Public Health Stakeholders In Arizona, Joseph R. Mihalijevic, Carmenlita Chief, Mehreen Malik, Kayode Oshinubi, Eck Doerry, Esma Gel, Crystal Hepp, Tim Lant, Sanjay Mehrotra, Samantha Sabo

Department of Supply Chain Management and Analytics: Faculty Publications

Epidemiological models—which help us understand and forecast the spread of infectious disease—can be valuable tools for public health. However, barriers exist that can make it difficult to employ epidemiological models routinely within the repertoire of public health planning. These barriers include technical challenges associated with constructing the models, challenges in obtaining appropriate data for model parameterization, and problems with clear communication of modeling outputs and uncertainty. To learn about the unique barriers and opportunities within the state of Arizona, we gathered a diverse set of 48 public health stakeholders for a day-and-a-half forum. Our research group was motivated specifically by …

Economic Research On Ethanol Feed-Use Coproducts: A Review, Synthesis, And Path Forward, Elliott James Dennis, Daniel Gertner, Galen E. Erickson

Department of Agricultural Economics: Faculty Publications

During the mid-2000s to the early 2010s, the domestic ethanol industry witnessed substantial growth, with ethanol coproducts emerging as vital elements for plant profitability and livestock feeding. Initially serving as supplementary revenue streams, coproducts from ethanol production have evolved into diverse value-added offerings, bolstering revenue streams, and sustaining profit margins. This study reviews existing economic research on ethanol coproducts, detailing methodologies, product focus, and research locations. Initially gathering 972 articles from 9 databases, 110 articles were synthesized. We find that most studies primarily examined the growth and future of the ethanol industry with a limited focus on specific coproducts. Feed-use …

Nebraska Monthly Economic Indicators: May 22, 2024, Eric Thompson

Leading Economic Indicator Reports

The Leading Economic Indicator-Nebraska rose by 0.42% in April 2024. The increase in the leading indicator, which is designed to predict economic growth six months into the future, implies that the Nebraska economy will grow through the 4th quarter of 2024. There was an increase in manufacturing hours worked in April, as the state and national manufacturing industry continued to strengthen. There was also a drop in initial claims for unemployment insurance, indicating that the labor market remains strong. Lastly, business expectations remained strong in April. Respondents to the April Survey of Nebraska Business reported plans to increase sales and …

Nebraska Monthly Economic Indicators: May 22, 2024, Eric Thompson

Leading Economic Indicator Reports

The Leading Economic Indicator-Nebraska rose by 0.42% in April 2024. The increase in the leading indicator, which is designed to predict economic growth six months into the future, implies that the Nebraska economy will grow through the 4th quarter of 2024. There was an increase in manufacturing hours worked in April, as the state and national manufacturing industry continued to strengthen. There was also a drop in initial claims for unemployment insurance, indicating that the labor market remains strong. Lastly, business expectations remained strong in April. Respondents to the April Survey of Nebraska Business reported plans to increase sales and …

Nebraska Monthly Economic Indicators: May 22, 2024

Bureau of Business Research Publications

Nebraska Monthly Economic Indicators, May 22, 2024, Bureau of Business Research, University of Nebraska-Lincoln.

Summary

The Leading Economic Indicator-Nebraska rose by 0.42% in April 2024. The increase in the leading indicator, which is designed to predict economic growth six months into the future, implies that the Nebraska economy will grow through the 4th quarter of 2024. There was an increase in manufacturing hours worked in April, as the state and national manufacturing industry continued to strengthen. There was also a drop in initial claims for unemployment insurance, indicating that the labor market remains strong. Lastly, business expectations remained strong in …

Sentinel Surveillance Of Sars-Cov-2 Rates And Equity Impacts Using Labor And Delivery Patients In Phoenix, Arizona, Caitlyn J. Linehan, Trisalyn Nelson, Celeste V. Bailey, Esma Gel, Dean V. Coonrod, Cheryl K. Roth

Department of Supply Chain Management and Analytics: Faculty Publications

Proactive management of SARS-CoV-2 requires timely and complete population data to track the evolution of the virus and identify at risk populations. However, many cases are asymptomatic and are not easily discovered through traditional testing efforts. Sentinel surveillance can be used to estimate the prevalence of infections for geographical areas but requires identification of sentinels who are representative of the larger population. Our goal is to evaluate applicability of a population of labor and delivery patients for sentinel surveillance system for monitoring the prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 infection. We tested 5307 labor and delivery patients from two hospitals in Phoenix, Arizona, …

Netflix, Inc. Strategic Audit, John Kinney

Honors Program: Senior Projects (Public)

Netflix, Inc. is a large publicly traded multinational corporation within the Streaming entertainment industry. Founded in 1997, Netflix started as a mail-based DVD rental service. Soon switching from a per-rental fee model to the subscription model they still use today. In the late 2000s the company began offering the ability to stream content directly from home and have now grown to become the most successful streaming company in the world. This report will provide an overview of Netflix’s background, its position in the industry landscape, and its ability to sustain a competitive edge. Using both Porter's Five Forces and PESTEL …

Health Prompts Affect Consideration Of Health But Not Intertemporal Preferences While Promoting Healthier Food Choices, Olivier Tuyizere, Christopher Gustafson, Devin J. Rose

Department of Agricultural Economics: Faculty Publications

Diet-related diseases impact populations across the globe. While intertemporal preferences—a fundamental preference for the distribution of benefits across time—have been used to explain low-quality food choices, the recent literature proposes another cause: inattention to the future implications (or opportunity costs) of the options faced. Food choices tend to become habitual to conserve cognitive resources, rather than carefully modeling future health impacts. Both low discount rates for future benefits and attention to future health impacts predict healthier decisions. While intertemporal preferences are stable, attention may provide an opportunity to intervene in the decision process to promote healthier decisions. In this study, …

The North Central Extension Risk Management Education Center, Part I: Helps Producers Manage Risks, Christine Lockert, Sheila Aikanathan Johnson, Bradley D. Lubben

Cornhusker Economics

Established in 2001, the North Central Extension Risk Management Education Center (NCERMEC) has a long history of supporting risk management education programs serving producers in the region. Located at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln Agricultural Economics Department, the Center is one of four regional Extension Risk Management Education (ERME) Centers located throughout the country. ERME is funded through USDA’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) and was authorized by the Agricultural Risk Protection Act of 2000. The fundamental purpose of the ERME program is to educate producers to manage risk and position their farm or ranch for future growth and …

The Economic Impacts Of Social Activism And Corporate Social Responsibility On Food Fraud, Anubrata Deka, Amalia Yiannaka, Konstantinos Giannakas

Department of Agricultural Economics: Faculty Publications

The study examines the relationship between the corporate social responsibility (CSR) investments of a food firm, an activist’s incentive to target the firm to uncover and deter fraudulent behavior, and the firm’s incentive to commit food fraud. Specifically, we develop a game theoretic model to analyze the strategic interaction between a food firm that decides whether to provide a credence food attribute and whether to misrepresent the quality of its product, and an activist who decides whether to monitor the firm and launch a campaign to uncover and remove false/misleading quality claims. We further examine the effect of CSR and …

Rivian Automotive Strategic Audit, Bruno Salles

Honors Program: Senior Projects (Public)

This thesis provides a comprehensive analysis of Rivian Automotive, a pioneering electric vehicle (EV) manufacturer, focusing on its background, performance, challenges, and future outlook. Founded in 2009 by Robert "RJ" Scaringe, Rivian embarked on a mission to revolutionize the automotive industry with its innovative EV offerings, driven by a commitment to performance, utility, and sustainability. The company's journey from inception to its Initial Public Offering (IPO) in 2021 and subsequent challenges amid the global semiconductor chip shortage and market dynamics are examined. A detailed PESTEL analysis evaluates the political, economic, social, technological, environmental, and legal factors influencing Rivian's operations and …