Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Group-Average Observables As Controls For Sorting On Unobservables When Estimating Group Treatment Effects: The Case Of School And Neighborhood Effects, Joseph G. Altonji, Richard K. Mansfield

Rick Mansfield

We consider the classic problem of estimating group treatment effects when individuals sort based on observed and unobserved characteristics. Using a standard choice model, we show that controlling for group averages of observed individual characteristics potentially absorbs all the across-group variation in unobservable individual characteristics. We use this insight to bound the treatment effect variance of school systems and associated neighborhoods for various outcomes. Across four datasets, our conservative estimates indicate that a 90th versus 10th percentile school system increases high school graduation and college enrollment probabilities by at least 0.047 and 0.11. Other applications include measurement of teacher value-added.

Production, Price, And Inventory Theory, George A. Hay

George A. Hay

This paper is an attempt to derive empirically testable hypotheses regarding the principal determinants of firms' decisions on production, price, and finished goods inventory. The general approach to the problem is that many of the same factors which affect the optimal value for one variable will also influence decisions on the other two, and that a "proper" model must take into account the interdependence of these variables and the simultaneous nature of the decisions involving them. This is in contrast to literature on the theory of inventories (see Paul Darling and Michael Lovell) in which the firm is assumed to …

A General Solution For Linear Decision Rules: An Optimal Dynamic Strategy Applicable Under Uncertainty, George A. Hay, Charles C. Holt

George A. Hay

Linear decision rules for controlling complex systems are often obtained by matrix inversion, but transform methods offer an alternative approach that yields insights into the structure of the decision problem of maximizing expected payoffs under constraints.

Convergence In Models With Bounded Expected Relative Hazard Rates, Carlos Oyarzun, Johannes Ruf

Carlos Oyarzun

We provide a general framework to study stochastic sequences related to an array of models in different literatures, including models of individual learning in economics, learning automata in computer sciences, social learning in marketing, and many others. In this setup, we study the asymptotic properties of a class of stochastic sequences that take values in [0,1] and satisfy a property that we call “bounded expected relative hazard rates.” We provide sufficient conditions for related sequences, which, compared to the original sequence, either move slowly or slow down over time, that yield con- vergence to one with high probability or almost …

Theories And Practices Of Islamic Finance And Exchange Laws: Poverty Of Interest, Ahmed E. Souaiaia

Ahmed E SOUAIAIA

Willingness To Overpay For Insurance And For Consumer Credit: Search And Risk Behavior Under Price Dispersion, Sergey V. Malakhov

Sergey Malakhov

Axiomatic Social Choice Theory, David Randall Jenkins

David Randall Jenkins

Ordered Relations Theory’s two axioms ultimately enable (individual: society) well-being transitivity inasmuch as they impound Social Choice Theory’s impossibility theorem, impossibility-resolving axioms, and all such further regressive impossibility theorems and impossibility-resolving axioms.

Slutsky Equation And Negative Elasticity Of Labor Supply: Behavioral Bias Or Optimal Consumption-Leisure Choice?, Sergey V. Malakhov

Sergey Malakhov

Polluters’ Profits And Political Response: Direct Control Versus Taxes: Comment, Robert S. Main, Charles W. Baird

Robert S. Main

In a recent issue of this Review, James Buchanan and Gordon Tullock (B-T) presented a public choice analysis of the relative merits of direct controls and taxes in externality control. In Section IV of their paper, B-T consider the case of reciprocal external diseconomies of consumption. They ask whether "... persons in this sort of interaction, acting through the political processes of the community, will impose on themselves either a penalty tax or direct regulation" (p. 143). Their analysis is carried out within the context of a two-person model in which each person consumes the same quantity of a good …

The Relation Between Variance And Information Rents In Auctions, Brett Katzman, Julian Reif, Jesse Schwartz

Jesse A. Schwartz

This paper examines the conventional wisdom, expressed in McAfee and McMillan's (1987) widely cited survey paper on auctions, that links increased variance of bidder values to increased information rent. We find that although the conventional wisdom does indeed hold in their (1986) model of a linear contract auction, this relationship is an artifact of that particular model and cannot be generalized. Using Samuelson's (1987) model, which is similar but allows for unobservable costs, we show that increased variance does not always imply increased information rent. Finally, we give the appropriate measure of dispersion (different from variance) that provides the link …

Wage Bargaining Under The National Labor Relations Act, Jesse Schwartz, Quan Wen

Jesse A. Schwartz

Sections 8(a)(3) and 8(a)(5) of the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) prohibit the management of a firm from unilaterally increasing the wage during contract negotiations without the union's approval. We show how the management can strategically increase the wage during negotiations without violating the NLRA. Increasing the wage during negotiations will upset the union's incentive to strike and decrease the union's bargaining power, thereby shrinking the set of equilibrium contracts in the firm's favor. Indeed, as the union becomes more patient, the set of equilibrium wages converges to the best equilibrium outcome to the firm.

Wage Negotiation Under Good Faith Bargaining, Jesse Schwartz, Quan Wen

Jesse A. Schwartz

We study the wage negotiation model of Haller and Holden (1990) and Fernandez and Glazer (1991) under the "Good Faith Bargaining" (GFB) rule, where a party may not demand more than it has previously demanded. The GFB rule significantly restricts feasible strategies, but at the same time, makes the game non-stationary and the analysis complicated. We introduce a state-dependent backward induction that generalizes Shaked and Sutton (1984) to characterize the equilibrium payoffs. We find that the GFB rule eliminates the union's credibility to strike. Without the strikes, the union's strategic opportunities during disagreement disappear, so that there is a unique …

Equazione Di Slutsky “Nelle Loro Mani”: Il Centenario “Sulla Teoria Del Bilancio Del Consumatore”, Sergey V. Malakhov

Sergey Malakhov

The paper presents the illustrative classroom application of the Slutsky equation to the consumption-leisure choice.

An Analysis Of The Linkage Between Inflation Rate, Foreign Debt, Unemployment And Economic Growth In Sudan, Yagoub Elryah Dr.

Yagoub Elryah (PhD)

After secession of South Sudan, Sudan economy was decline due to losing of oil revenue. The government introduced the austerity measures and fault to recover the economy. The inflation was risen, the unemployment increased among Sudanese. The aim of this article was to analyze the relationship between inflation, unemployment, external debt and economic growth in Sudan. We considered Unit root technique (Augmented Dickey – Fuller Test) to find out long run equilibrium among using time series between 1980 and 2013. We show that all two public debts and unemployment have a direct and significant influence on economic growth. It was …

Ius Primae Noctis. Las Instituciones Como Causa De La Riqueza De Las Naciones, Francisco Carlos Ruiz Diaz

Francisco Carlos Ruiz Diaz

El secreto mejor guardado por los economistas es su ignorancia sobre la verdadera causa de la riqueza de las naciones. Adam Smith sostuvo que la riqueza de las naciones era resultado de una organización industrial basada en la división del trabajo. Robert Solow afirma que el aumento de la producción es consecuencia de una variable misteriosa y caprichosa llamada "progreso técnico". Algunos economistas, por su parte, afirman que el progreso es consecuencia de una mayor acumulación de capital físico (maquinarias, edificios, vehículos de transporte, etc) y capital humano (aprendiza laboral y educación formal). Sin embargo, estudios recientes demuestran que todos …

The Bedridden Queen Money!, John Samuel Cyrus Mr

John Samuel Cyrus Mr

During the past few decades, macro-economic activities had been rallied around glamorous industrial and technology oriented service sectors. Recent recession that began in 2008 is still continuing and the little improvement in 2009 was nothing but the fluctuation in the ICU monitor, which was connected to the bedridden queen Money. Many nations GDP growth rate has been continually falling and unemployment rates are continually rising. The American economy is in a complete mess, no remedies are found yet for European economic sovereign debt crisis, and the Asian economy fast fading due to India’s low GDP and the slide in Rupee; …

A Note On Absolutely Expedient Learning Rules, Carlos Oyarzun

Carlos Oyarzun

I provide a full characterization of the set of absolutely expedient learning rules introduced in Börgers, Morales, and Sarin (2004) [“Expedient and monotone learning rules,” Econometrica, 72, 383–405]. The expected change in the expected payoff can be written as a quadratic form on the vector of relative expected payoffs of the strategies. This permits use of standard linear algebra arguments to provide a characterization in terms of the matrix defining this quadratic form.

A Theory Of Outsourced Fundraising: Why Dollars Turn Into "Pennies For Charity", Zdravko Paskalev, Huseyin Yildirim

Huseyin Yildirim

Charities frequently rely on professional solicitors whose commissions exceed half of total donations. To rationalize this practice, we propose a principal-agent model in which the charity optimally offers a higher commission to a more "efficient" solicitor, raising the price of giving significantly. Outsourcing is, therefore, profitable for the charity only if giving is very price-inelastic. This, however, clashes with empirical evidence. We show that paid solicitations can benefit the charity if: (1) donors are unaware; (2) donors have intense "warm-glow" preferences; or (3) the charity worries mostly about watchdog ratings. Unable to regulate fundraiser contracts due to freedom of speech, …

A Note On Monitoring Costs And Voter Fraud, Philip E. Graves, Robert L. Sexton, Gary Galles

PHILIP E GRAVES

Election fraud can threaten democracy if many ineligible people are allowed to vote. The usual policy prescription is to increase monitoring cost. However, this is very costly. This paper proposes a more cost effective strategy: substitute tougher and consistent statutes across states against voter fraud.

Productive Complements: Too Often Neglected In The Principles Course?, Gary Galles, Philip E. Graves, Robert L. Sexton

PHILIP E GRAVES

Many great economic thinkers, including Alfred Marshall and William Stanley Jevons discussed the importance of joint production, or productive complements, and there are important applications. Yet many students today could complete an economics major and never be introduced to this important concept.

Essays On Economic Analysis Of Competition Law: Theory And Practice (Ph.D. Dissertation Defence), Dr. Danilo Samà

Dr. Danilo Samà

Essays on economic analysis of competition law: theory and practice
Author:Dr Danilo Samà (LUISS “Guido Carli” University, Law & Economics LAB)
Abstract:The Ph.D. dissertation, submitted to LUISS “Guido Carli” University of Rome in fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Economic Analysis of Competition Law (XXV cicle), is the result of a scientific research in the field of the economic analysis of competition law developed through academic experiences at the Erasmus Rotterdam University in the Netherlands, the Ghent University in Belgium, the University of Hamburg in Germany and the Toulouse School of Economics in …

Economy Of Mutuality: Merging Financial And Social Sustainability

kjackson@fordham.edu

The article posits the concept of economy of mutuality as an intellectual mediation space for shifts in emphasis between market and social structures within economic theory and practice. Economy of mutuality, it is contended, provides an alternative frame of reference to the dichotomy of market economy and social economy, for inquiry about what business is for and what values it presupposes and creates. The article centers around the objective of gaining a broadened understanding of business so as to include not just market economy, but social enterprise and social economy. In pursuit of this objective, a range of various archetypes …

Grading Standards And Education Quality, Raphael Boleslavsky, Christopher Cotton

Raphael Boleslavsky

We consider a game in which schools compete to place graduates by investing in education quality and by choosing grading policies. In equilibrium, schools strategically adopt grading policies that do not perfectly reveal graduate ability to evaluators (including employers and graduate schools). We compare equilibrium outcomes when schools grade strategically to equilibrium outcomes when evaluators perfectly observe graduate ability. With strategic grading, grades are less informative, and evaluators rely less on grades and more on a school's quality when assessing graduates. Consequently, under strategic grading, schools have greater incentive to invest in quality, and this can improve evaluator welfare.

Intransitivity Shown By An Assignment Problem, Lester G. Telser

Lester G Telser

A Volatility-Based Theory Of Fiscal Union Desirability, Jaime Luque, Massimo Morelli, José Tavares

Jaime P. Luque

Wages, Local Amenities And The Rise Of The Multi-Skilled City, Jaime Luque

Jaime P. Luque

Economic Change And Evolutionary Perspectives., Mario Pianta

Mario Pianta

Economic studies with an evolutionary perspective have put the process of change at the centre of the analysis - replacing equilibrium views of economic activity – and have generally focused on the two mechanisms of variety generation – provided by innovation - and selection – provided by market processes, leading to a prevalence of microeconomic investigations. Recent developments in evolutionary biology have emphasised the equally important role of cooperation; cooperative economic behaviour is, in fact, as important as market competition for understanding macroeconomic processes, the role of institutions and public policies, opening up new directions for research. This interdisciplinary discussion …

Presentazione, Mario Pianta

Mario Pianta

The Mask Of Virtue: Theories Of Aretaic Legislation In A Public Choice Perspective, Donald J. Kochan

Donald J. Kochan

Time To Abandon Group Thinking In Economics, Sergio Da Silva

Sergio Da Silva

Group thinking is the notion that natural selection favors what is good for the group or the species, not for the individual. Most mainstream evolutionary biology rejects this idea and natural selection is viewed as working on the individual’s genes to promote their own survival and reproduction. Here I show through a couple of examples how group thinking also pervades economics. I argue that the reason for the mistake relies on the fact that economics fails to ground itself in the underlying knowledge provided by biology. Then I suggest how economics can aspire more than being applied logic and turn …