Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Mutual Fund Performance, Ladd Kochman, Ravija Badarinathi

Ladd Kochman

No abstract provided.

Diferencias Territoriales En El Retorno A La Educación En Chile: Evidencia Para Las Regiones Del Biobío Y Metropolitana, Genaro Candia, Andres Acuña

Andrés A. Acuña

Banks And Trust In Adam Smith, Maria Paganelli

Maria Pia Paganelli

One can see banking as a mediating institution based on trust. In a small pre-commercial society, trust is personal and credit markets quite limited and based on personal knowledge. In larger commercial societies, credit markets tend to expand, but this is not possible if they are based only on personal trust. This is because of the difficulties of getting to know every customer in a large and impersonal society. Institutional trust needs to supplement personal trust. One trusts a bank and/ or the banking system more than the individual teller in the bank, and the bank trusts credit scoring and …

Whose Money Is It Anyway? Ingroups And Distributive Behavior, David Chavanne, Kevin Mccabe, Maria Paganelli

Maria Pia Paganelli

Price theory is often used to explain reactions to rebates and subsidies that are meant to encourage charitable giving. This paper describes the results of a laboratory experiment that tests standard price theory alongside an alternative perspective based on research on the perceptions and behavior of ingroups. Using a modified dictator game, we find that rebates that decrease the price of giving only increase amounts given when they are exogenously funded by the experimenters. When rebates are funded by members of one’s group, the decreased price of giving does not lead to increased amounts given. The result suggests that the …

The Adam Smith Problem In Reverse: Self-Interest In Adam Smith’S Wealth Of Nations And Theory Of Moral Sentiments, Maria Paganelli

Maria Pia Paganelli

In identifying the tensions between the two treatises that Adam Smith (1723-90) published during his lifetime' - The Theory of Moral Sentiments' (1759) and 'The Wealth of Nations(1776) - 'it can be seen that the first is more favorable to self-interest. The author presents the effects of self-interest under ideal conditions, examines some of the abuses of self-interest, and describes how Smith deals with abuses of self-interest. Smith's first, lesser known treatise paints a picture of self-interest that more closely resembles that portrayed in modern economics: both the individual and society are better off when individuals pursue self-interest. In fact, …

The Power Of The Brics In World Trade And Growth, Analysing The Macroeconomic Impacts Within And Across The Bloc, Ahmed Khalid

Ahmed Khalid

Extract: The BRICS is a composition of five emerging economies: Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. The five countries together represent about 42 per cent of the world's population, over 24 per cent of all land, and about 20 per cent of the world's total GDP, contributing a combined nominal GDP of more than US$14.9 trillion. Over the past decade trade between the BRICS and other regions such as North America, the EU and Japan has surpassed the US$2 trillion mark. Trade within the BRICS countries is growing at an average of 28 per cent per annum, reaching more …

It's Not Yen, Euro Or Koala Bloc: Greenback Is Still Dominant In East Asia, Gulasekaran Rajaguru, Ahmed Khalid, Frank Barbera

Ahmed Khalid

Given the nature of East Asia’s economic structure, interregional exchange rate stability is an essential requirement for regional economic integration. One way to achieve exchange rate stability is for the region to adopt an anchor currency. However, the choice of a potential anchor is an important question for policy planners. This paper examines the role of 5 major currencies as candidates for an anchor currency in the East Asian region. In particular, the paper examines the dynamic linkages between a selected sample of East Asian currencies with each potential anchor currency, the Australian dollar, Japanese yen, euro, US dollar and …

It's Not Yen, Euro Or Koala Bloc: Greenback Is Still Dominant In East Asia, Gulasekaran Rajaguru, Ahmed Khalid, Frank Barbera

Gulasekaran Rajaguru

Given the nature of East Asia’s economic structure, interregional exchange rate stability is an essential requirement for regional economic integration. One way to achieve exchange rate stability is for the region to adopt an anchor currency. However, the choice of a potential anchor is an important question for policy planners. This paper examines the role of 5 major currencies as candidates for an anchor currency in the East Asian region. In particular, the paper examines the dynamic linkages between a selected sample of East Asian currencies with each potential anchor currency, the Australian dollar, Japanese yen, euro, US dollar and …

Superstar Cities, Inequality And Housing Policy, S Y Phang

PHANG Sock Yong

Income and wealth inequality have been constantly debated, especially in recent years. Most studies, such as the recent work by Thomas Piketty, compare inequality across countries and over time. National inequality measures, however, mask considerable variations across cities within the same country. A country’s biggest and most economically dynamic cities also tend to have the largest inequality gaps. These cities – what Joseph Gyourko calls “Superstar Cities” – are also distinguished by their high housing prices. Migration in and out of cities limits the extent to which Superstar Cities can use local redistributive policies (including housing policies) to reduce inequality. …

A Review Of Alternative Economic Base Study Methods For Community Economic Development, Jordan Yin

Jordan S. Yin

No abstract provided.

The Community Option In Urban Policy, Jordan Yin, J. Pitt, P Clavel

Jordan S. Yin

No abstract provided.

An Economic Development Strategy For Charlevoix County - A Feasibility Study, Michelle Miller-Adams

Michelle Miller-Adams

Staff of the Upjohn Institute will work with the Charlevoix Community Foundation to study the feasibility of a collaborative economic development strategy for the region. Through stakeholder interviews and a community convening, Institute staff will examine the networks currently in place among leaders in the county's three communities, present to stakeholders the findings of this network analysis along with regional data, and facilitate a community conversation about possible collaborative strategies designed to address the challenges facing Charlevoix County.

Analysis Of Washington High Tech Tax Credit, Kevin Hollenbeck, Timothy Bartik

Timothy J. Bartik

The State of Washington has a credit provision in its Business & Operations tax intended to incentivize research and development expenditures in high tech industries. The indirect goal of the incentive is to generate employment in the state. Upjohn Institute staff members analyzed administrative data from the state to estimate the employment and earnings generating effect of the R & D credit. The administrative data included tax return information merged with quarterly earnings and employment records. Potential endogeneity of the credits and employment were controlled through instrumental variables.

Higher Education, The Health Care Industry, And Metropolitan Regional Economic Development, Timothy Bartik, George Erickcek

Timothy J. Bartik

This project examined the effects of expansions in higher educational institutions and the medical service industry, "eds and meds," on the economic development of a metropolitan area. The authors provided quantitative evidence of the magnitude of economic effects of higher education and medical service industries that occur through the mechanism of providing some export-base demand stimulus to a metropolitan economy. Quantitative evidence on how much higher education institutions can boost a metropolitan economy through increasing the educational attainment of local residents was also included. Other mechanisms by which these two industries may boost a metropolitan economy include increasing local amenities, …

Attracting Capital To Distressed Areas, Timothy Bartik

Timothy J. Bartik

Researchers addressed the topic of attracting capital to distressed urban areas and focused on the extent to which this problem can be solved by increasing labor demand for residents of distressed areas through attracting private investment. This increase in labor demand allows an increase in employment per capita and earnings per capita in residents' home areas. The report analyzed the type and scale of federal policy options that led to the attraction of substantial capital to distressed areas.

Identifying Persistent Regional Economic Distress Due To The Great Recession, Timothy Bartik

Timothy J. Bartik

Upjohn Institute researchers will estimate the extent to which recessions have a persistent effect on per capita income in the most severely affected local areas. If persistent effects are identified, the project will explore which indicators will best identify the local areas that suffer from persistently lower per capita income. Prolonged local distress may rationalize federal policy to assist residents in the identified regions, either individually or regionally. Any such federal policy needs reliable indicators of which regions are most likely to suffer persistent economic distress. Empirical work will be done in two stages: 1) estimate the persistent effects on …

Pew Project, Timothy Bartik

Timothy J. Bartik

This project has three components. Component 1 is a model for use by state governments in evaluating the cost-effectiveness of economic development incentives. This model will be designed to be implemented via a spreadsheet, and will have supporting documentation explaining its research basis. Component 2 is estimates of marginal tax rates for different types of businesses in various states and cities. These marginal tax rates will incorporate both regular provisions of the tax code, as well as various economic development incentives. Component 3 is estimates of detailed industry employment at the county level for all U.S. counties. This will be …

The Impact Of State And Local Taxes On Growth Using Improved Tax Measures, Timothy Bartik

Timothy J. Bartik

In collaboration with Alan Peters and Peter Fisher of the University of Iowa, this research project provided important new evidence on a long-standing controversy in academic and public policy circles: whether tax incentives are a cost-effective means of stimulating state economic growth. The research used a superior measure of the crucial explanatory variable—state and local taxes on business—and tested the sensitivity of the results to the kind of tax measure used. This project refocused scholarly debate on replicable findings about the impact of state and local business taxes on economic growth. The results were disseminated to the economic development policy …

Employment Impacts Of Environmental Regulation, Timothy Bartik

Timothy J. Bartik

This research paper addressed the issue of evaluating and improving potential links between employment impacts of environmental regulation and benefit-cost analysis. The research examined labor market conditions that would justify relaxing the full employment assumption within benefit-cost analysis. This information may be influential to the opportunity cost of unemployed labor and addresses the measurement of influential variables. The research was presented at two workshops in Washington, D.C.: a “planning” workshop in Spring 2012 and a “presentation” workshop in Fall 2012.

A Database For Measuring Industrial And Occupational Strengths And Potential In Michigan’S Economic Regions, Timothy Bartik, George Erickcek

Timothy J. Bartik

Researchers developed a database that included analysis of each of Michigan's economic region's industrial strengths and potential strengths in different "export-base industries." The MERIOD (Michigan Economic Region Industrial and Occupational Development) database surveyed specialized industries and high-growth industries in each of the fifteen metro areas. It identified export-based industries to the six-digit NAICS level and explored recent growth trends in these industries in both the Michigan metro area and at the national level. These data and analyses provided MEDC (Michigan Economic Development Corporation) and regional economic developers in Michigan with insight into potential industry targets for better informed policy decisions.

Michigan Competitiveness For Economic Development Report, Timothy Bartik, George Erickcek

Timothy J. Bartik

Institute staff evaluated Michigan's competitiveness for economic development compared to the nation and nearby states. The report analyzed several aspects of Michigan's competitiveness including: tax competitiveness, Michigan's growth and industry mix, Michigan's competitiveness in human capital, and the competitiveness of Michigan's metropolitan areas. The report also included an executive summary targeted to a broader audience

Things Fall Apart: Dictatorships, Development, And Democracy In Africa, Berhanu Nega, Geoff Schneider

Geoffrey E Schneider

Recent events in Africa provide evidence of the failure of dictatorships to meet the needs of citizens and serve to debunk a number of development theory assumptions: that democratization is culturally determined, that democratization will follow economic development, and that dictatorships tend to produce durable, stable development. Therefore, the attempt to achieve development without democratization is risky and potentially very costly. We argue that dictatorship in Africa serves a function akin to Myrdal's backwash effects, thwarting economic progress in a cumulative and circular way, and that democratization must become a necessary criterion of engagement with African countries.

Is College The New High School? Evidence From Vacancy Postings, Brad Hershbein

Brad J. Hershbein

Do firms demand more skilled workers in a slack labor market? We use a new database of job vacancy postings, containing a near-universe of electronic posts in U.S. metro areas, collected by the firm Burning Glass over the period 2010-2013. We find evidence of upskilling – firms demanding more skilled workers – when the local unemployment rate is higher, i.e., in places where the recovery following the Great Recession was slower. Our estimates imply that firms demand three-quarters of a year more schooling on average in a large recession compared to a boom. We find that at least two-thirds of …

Independent Audit Of The State's Evaluation Of The Training Benefits Program, Kevin Hollenbeck

Kevin Hollenbeck

Washington's Joint Legislative Audit and Review Committee (JLARC) has been charged by the state legislature to oversee the state's Employment Security Department's evaluation of the Training Benefits program, which is a program to encourage recipients of unemployment compensation to enroll in formal education and training. Staff members from the Upjohn Institute will consult with the individuals conducting the evaluation in the initial design phase of the ESD evaluation, and then will track progress of it, and finally will audit the results.

Evaluation Of Battle Creek Careers, Kevin Hollenbeck

Kevin Hollenbeck

Battle Creek CAREERS is an employer resource network (ERN) that operated between 2008 and 2010. This network created a consortium of businesses that provided job retention services, work supports, and training opportunities for entry-level employees, many of whom were receiving public assistance. Upjohn Institute staff members prepared an assessment of this program's accomplishments during that time period. The report presented conclusions about the life cycle experience of the Battle Creek CAREERS program including its initiation, implementation, operation, and wind-down.

Unemployment Insurance Usage By Disabled Individuals, Kevin Hollenbeck

Kevin Hollenbeck

Using administrative data from the State of Washington, the study cross-walked Unemployment Insurance (UI) benefit data with information on enrollment in other programs that may have identified participants as having a disability, such as vocational rehabilitation or Workforce Investment Act (WIA) programs in which individuals self-reported disability status. By cross-walking the data to Vocational Rehabilitation and WIA, the profile that was developed provided a sense of what portion of a state’s long-term unemployed may have had a disability.

Evaluation Of Massachusetts Workforce Training Fund, Kevin Hollenbeck

Kevin Hollenbeck

The Massachusetts Workforce Training Fund (WTF), funded by employer contribution (surcharge) of 0.075% of its unemployment insurance taxable wage base, provides training grants and technical assistance to organizations located in the state. The purposes of these activities are to impart or upgrade knowledge and skills of Massachusetts’ workers so that they and their employing firms can compete in the world economy. This study provided 10 case studies of firms who have received a training grant. The case studies combined qualitative and quantitative data analytical techniques to provide evidence about the net impact and return on investment of the training grant …

Workforce Development Programs In Indiana: A Return On Investment Study, Kevin Hollenbeck

Kevin Hollenbeck

Institute staff conducted a study that estimated the net impacts of workforce development programs in Indiana on employment, earnings, and receipt of unemployment compensation. The study estimated the return on investment of the workforce development programs to individual participants and to the state. Researchers deployed a quasi-experimental approach. Individuals served by programs were statistically matched to individuals who encountered the Job Service during the same period. The statistical match controlled for demographic characteristics and prior labor market experience. Outcome variables including earnings, employment, and unemployment compensation came from administrative data.

Employer Incentives To Participate In An Employer Resource Network, Kevin Hollenbeck

Kevin Hollenbeck

Employer Resource Networks (ERNs) are self-funded private sector partnerships intended to facilitate the retention and productivity of employees. The partnerships employ or subcontract for a social service agency case manager who will help employees manage day-to-day emergency situations by referring them to appropriate agencies, by providing small amounts of emergency funding, by helping them traverse the public assistance system, or by other means. In some cases, ERNs provide general training. In this project, Upjohn Institute staff members interviewed employers who are participating in an ERN and developed and disseminated a Policy Brief intended mainly to inform other employers about the …

When Less Is More: The Benefit Of Limits On Executive Pay, Peter Cebon, Benjamin Hermalin

Peter Cebon

We derive conditions under which limits on executive compensation can enhance efficiency and benefit shareholders (but not executives). Having their hands tied in the future allows a board of directors to credibly enter into relational contracts with executives that are more efficient than performance-contingent contracts. This has implications for the ideal composition of the board. The analysis also offers insights into the political economy of executive-compensation reform.