Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Unraveling The Nexus: Social Spending, Development, And Breaking The Cycle Of Poverty, Yasmin Shehata

Theses and Dissertations

This study examines the role of development, as indicated by the Human Development Index (HDI), in shaping the connection between social public spending on health, education, and social protection and poverty in terms of the poverty headcount ratio at $3.65/day (2017 PPP). Empirical analysis is used to this end, employing a panel dataset of 68 countries at varied stages of development over the period 1995-2021. The empirical model is estimated using the Fixed Effects Two-stage Least Squares (2SLS). It is also re-estimated using the Instrumental Variable Generalized Method of Moments (IV-GMM) and Limited Information Maximum Likelihood (LIML) to test the …

The Effect Of Fiscal And Monetary Policy On Public Debt In Egypt, Malak Mohamed

Theses and Dissertations

The thesis aims to examine the effect of monetary policies and fiscal policies on public debt in Egypt during the period from 2006 until 2021. Egypt is witnessing aggravated levels of debt, with limited fiscal and monetary space. Therefore, the objective of the paper is to analyze the effect of discount rates, inflation rates, subsidies, taxes and economic growth on debt-to-GDP in Egypt using a VAR model with an extended test of Impulse Response Function. The results suggest that a positive shock in government expenditures initially decreases public debt but leads to a fluctuating increase in the debt-to-GDP ratio in …

Policy Frameworks And Citizens’ Use Of Fintech Solutions: The Pros And Cons In Egypt, Salma Al-Mohamady

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis provides a comprehensive analysis of the significant influence of financial technology (FinTech) on the banking industry, consumer finance, and economic growth. It specifically concentrates on the swiftly changing FinTech environment in Egypt. The study investigates the impact of incorporating advanced technologies on worldwide financial practices, which has significantly transformed traditional banking models and facilitated the emergence of inventive financial services. The transition is clearly apparent in Egypt, where the expansion of FinTech has been driven by advances in regulations, adaptation to technology, and a population that is becoming more comfortable with digital solutions.

Using a combination of quantitative …

Trade Liberalization With Brics: A Cge Model Of Egypt, Kareem Ashraf

Theses and Dissertations

This paper presents an ex-ante impact assessment of a hypothetical FTA between Egypt and the BRICS from an Egyptian economy-wide and sectorial perspectives, with a granular look into manufacturing. The chosen methodology is a static SAM-based Computable General Equilibrium model calibrated to Egypt’s 2018-2019 Social Accounting Matrix (SAM). With respect to existing literature, the paper uniquely stands in considering an Egypt-BRICS FTA with a granular assessment of manufacturing subsectors and in running a simulation of Egypt’s trade liberalization with the wider BRICS alliance, including the accession of Saudi Arabia, UAE, Ethiopia, and Iran, which joined the bloc along with Egypt …

Covid-19 And Labor Shortage In France: Exploring The Contribution Of Tunisian Migrant Workers In Bridging The Labor Shortage, Sana Gasmi

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis employed a qualitative approach, combining both desk research and in-depth interviews with 11 participants: nine Tunisian migrant workers and two Tunisian migrant experts. The thesis examined labor shortage in France during the pandemic and the extent to which Tunisian migrant workers managed to bridge the labor shortage relying on the Segmented Labor market theory which was originally developed by Piore (1979), and the two concepts: System Effects and Systemic Resilience. Findings indicate that the COVID-19 pandemic unveiled several weaknesses in the French labor market system including the acute labor shortage. Faced by labor shortage, France turned to migrant …

Fiscal Administration Versus Fiscal Policy: An Investigation Into The Determinants Of The Real Tax Revenues From Consumption Tax In Egypt, Nariman Zahran

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis highlights the importance of fiscal administration relative to fiscal policies. It presents a broad view of the developments in both fields and tests their effects on real revenues from consumption tax in Egypt from fiscal year 2002 till 2023. It initially explains the proxies used for fiscal administration: the size of the tax base and the collection lag. The major fiscal policy change in Egypt was shifting from sales tax to Value-Added Tax (VAT) during fiscal year 2016/17. The effects of fiscal administration and fiscal policy on real tax revenues will be assessed using the Autoregressive Distributed Lag …

Budget Capping Health Care: Its Impact On Health, Susan Chen

Theses and Dissertations

The goal of a budget cap on healthcare is to constrain total healthcare expenditure without compromising quality. This paper examines the impacts of budget capping on health and behavioral health outcomes, exploiting the completed Maryland All-Payer Model and the ongoing, extensional Maryland Total Cost of Care model, both of which capped healthcare budgets in Maryland. I use data from 2011-2021 surveys of the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance system and generalized difference-in-difference regression models to find that budget capping improves health and behavioral health outcomes with a greater favorable effect during the Maryland Total Cost of Care model.

The Influence Of Flavor On The Abuse Liability Of A Heated Tobacco Product And Its Feasibility As A Menthol Cigarette Substitute, Augustus White

Theses and Dissertations

Heated Tobacco Products (HTPs) purport to expose people that use cigarettes to fewer of the harmful or potentially harmful constituents of tobacco while still delivering reinforcing amounts of nicotine (Auer, Concha-Lozano et al., 2017). An exemplar of the HTP class, IQOS, and its three varieties of “HeatSticks” have been authorized by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as “Modified Risk Tobacco Products” (MRTP). However, as the FDA is planning to ban menthol as a characterizing flavor in cigarettes, questions remain regarding whether characterizing flavors should be permitted in HTPs (FDA, 2022e). New evidence regarding HTP abuse liability (i.e., the likelihood …

Insights Into The Challenges Posed By Climate Change And Land Competition To Brazil’S Midwest Pulpwood Market, Roberto Hajime Sant Anna Kimura

Theses and Dissertations

I investigated the effect of climate change in one of the few expanding markets in the world in Brazil. In the last decades the demand for pulpwood increased from zero to 11 million tons, leading to an expansion of 700 thousand hectares of Eucalyptus plantation. In 2024, a new mill will start operating increasing the consumption of wood fiber by 8.2 million tons (+49%). I used mathematical programming to investigate how different scenarios of productivity and land will affect the market. My results showed that around 946,000 hectares (+124%) of additional timberland will be necessary in the upcoming decades. The …

Regional Economic Impacts Of Enterococcus-Related Beach Closures In Mississippi, Jessica Lynn Browne

Theses and Dissertations

High levels of Enterococcus are the most frequent reason for beach closures on the Mississippi Gulf Coast and can be made worse by human activities. When beaches close, tourism can decrease, affecting sales. This study aims to 1) analyze the regional economic impact of beach closures at the county level, 2) show empirically how serious the impact of high levels of Enterococcus are compared to other causes of beach closures, and 3) discuss the policy implications for regional economies linked to beach closures. I use a response function approach with beach closure and county-level monthly gross taxable sales data. Results …

Valuation Of Oyster Reef Restoration Along The Gulf Coast, Freedom Enyetornye

Theses and Dissertations

The objective of this study is to estimate the willingness to pay of U.S. Gulf Coast residents to support oyster reef restoration. The Gulf Coast is the leading commercial oyster- producing region in the United States, accounting for approximately 46% of the total commercial oyster harvest in 2021. My benefit estimates were based on data obtained from a contingent valuation survey of 6,475 Gulf Coast respondents. I estimated the willingness to pay (WTP) for oyster reef restoration using interval regression and Turnbull lower-bound methods. The estimated mean WTP value is in the range of $142 and $436 per household. The …

Skilled Workers’ Mobility And Attrition: The Case Of Florida Emergency Medicine Physicians, Vassina Hassane Meite

Theses and Dissertations

Emergency medicine (EM) physicians constitute the front line of healthcare providers. They work swiftly to address critical situations, diagnose illnesses, and stabilize patients. Amidst a growing need and shortage of EM physicians, this longitudinal descriptive study captures EM physicians’ preferences for practice locations by studying Florida EM physicians’ relocation patterns between 2006 and 2020. Esti- mates from a Cox Proportional-Hazards model and fixed effects logistic regressions suggest that wage amenities are not a strong determinant of relocation over time. Physician attrition and relocation are instead more saliently affected by high work volumes within the EM physician’s primary work location.

Shifting Frontiers Economic Consequences Of The Polish Partitions, Andrew J. Fox

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis uses spatial regression discontinuity design to examine the impacts of historical border changes on economic development in modern Poland. Positive effects on institutions and infrastructure are found in the Austro-Hungarian zone of the Polish partition, while the Prussian zone suffer negative consequences due to 20th-century destruction and post-war expulsions.

Two Essays On Credit Risk Correlation, Theophilus Teye Osah

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation comprises two essays on credit risk correlation. In the first essay, we provide robust empirical evidence that lenders charge higher loan spreads to borrowers with higher credit risk correlation. This effect is concentrated in investment grade firms, driven by tightening lending conditions, and more pronounced for firms with higher rollover risk. Furthermore, banks whose borrowers have higher average credit risk correlation, have greater default risk themselves. In the second paper, we find that a trading strategy that buys high- and sells low-credit risk correlation stocks generates significant risk-adjusted expected return of about 121 bps per annum. Cross-sectional regressions …

Revisiting The Exchange Rate Pass- Through To Domestic Prices In Egypt, Ahmed Abdelhamid

Theses and Dissertations

Exchange rate pass-through (ERPT) refers to the extent to which the movements in the exchange rate influence domestic prices. This study revisits the exchange rate pass-through in Egypt using quarter data from 2006 to 2022. The study employs a Structural Vector Autoregression (SVAR) model to estimate the degree of ERPT. The findings suggest that ERPT in Egypt is incomplete, meaning that changes in the exchange rate do not fully pass through to consumer prices. The study also investigates the role of the money supply in absorbing the shocks in the nominal exchange rate. The study has important implications for policymakers …

Self-Employment Industry Selection: An Evaluation Of Wealth And Demographics On Industry Choice In The U.S., Samuel Ramirez

Theses and Dissertations

This paper evaluates the impact of financial resources and demographics on industry choice by self-employed business owners. I use a multinomial logistic regression to estimate the probability of having a business in a particular industry. The results suggest that entry into industries are hampered by financial constraints and social barriers.

Does Low-Income Housing Change Neighborhoods? Evidence From The Low Income Housing Tax Credit Program, Maria Dikler

Theses and Dissertations

This paper examines how LIHTC developments affect a census tract's characteristics. The results indicate that tracts with LIHTC developments have increased education, poverty, diversity, renters, and multi-family buildings. These tracts also have decreased household incomes and rents. However, the study reveals no significant effects on labor force participation or employment.

The Effect Of Google Fiber On Incumbents' Average Broadband Speed, Erick J. Solis

Theses and Dissertations

Broadband speeds have important effects on firms and households. Using data from the FCC ``Form 477" database, the Census Planning database, and Google's solicitation to communities interested in high-speed internet (Google Fiber RFI), I estimate the effect of Google Fiber rollout on internet download speeds offered by incumbent firms to consumers. I implement a difference-in-difference approach using census Metropolitan Statistical Areas as my definition of a broadband market. My approach captures both the direct and spillover effects of Google Fiber rollout. My findings show that average incumbents’ speed is 20 percent higher in markets where Google Fiber entered; the results …

Stock Splits And Corporate Peer Effects, Albert J. Saad

Theses and Dissertations

We find that a company’s decision to execute a stock split is affected by the number of stock splits carried out by its peers. Through the use of a broad peer group construction methodology, we also reveal the presence of asymmetric effects with regard to companies of different market capitalization size. In the periods of 1983–1996 and 1997–2009 we find that firms are more likely to split their stock if more of their peers have recently done so. However, in the period of 2010–2019 we see that the opposite is true. These results provide further evidence on social learning from …

The Effects Of Lower Speed Limits On Fatalities And Serious Injuries, Naufa Nuha

Theses and Dissertations

Responding to concerns about road safety, New York City passed a law called Vision Zero in 2014 that progressively decreased all local road speed limits to 25 miles per hour. This was in an effort to increase road safety from collisions. Starting a year prior to Vision Zero, the city started lowering speed limits in certain high-risk roads. I use data on accidents from New York City Open Data to examine the effect of reducing speed limits in Manhattan. The analysis exploits the implementation of lower speed limits on some roads prior to 2014 that provides a quasi-experimental design. Estimates …

Heterogeneous Effects In The Prospects Of Upward Mobility Hypothesis: The Roles Of Risk And Political Beliefs., Nathaniel Badalov

Theses and Dissertations

I test for heterogenous effects in the Prospects of Upward Mobility (POUM) hypothesis framework. This framework suggests that individuals who are poorer than average but expect to become richer than average support less redistribution. Using a survey of households in primarily transition economies - Life in Transition Survey (LiTS2) and ordered logistic regression, I test whether the POUM effect is influenced by the riskiness of the individual's environment or political beliefs. The results suggest that the POUM effect holds independent of the riskiness of the environment but is conditional on political beliefs. The prospects of upward mobility decrease redistributive support …

Lobbying – A Financial Perspective, Sean Byrne

Theses and Dissertations

U.S. based bank holding companies (BHCs) exert influence at every step in the legislative process where financial regulatory reforms are enacted into law, such as the Dodd-Frank Act, to promulgation of regulations. In Chapter II, we maintain that BHCs, upon facing salient regulation, lobby regulators to have their opinions heard with the goal of favorable regulatory change and to increase non-traditional revenues. We undertook a novel collection of political and financial data from 2003 to 2018, matching 180 pairs of parsed proposed and final regulations. BHCs that participated in commenting on proposed rules are highly successful at having their views …

Business Cycles, Exchange Rates, And Commodity Prices In Transition Economies, Salome Giorgadze

Theses and Dissertations

My dissertation studies macroeconomic connectedness in the transition economies through the business cycle and exchange rate channels and the downside risk relationship between commodity prices and exchange rates of developing economies. My first two chapters focus on the transition economies of the Commonwealth of Independent States, the CIS, a group of former Soviet republics, and my third chapter considers other developing countries too. The first chapter examines macroeconomic connectedness in the CIS region through business cycle synchronization. I investigate the role of the global factor and the CIS factor in evolution of business cycles in the CIS countries by applying …

Three Essays In Health Economics, Sezen Ozcan Onal

Theses and Dissertations

In the first chapter of my dissertation, I examine the effects of the Affordable Care Act Medicaidexpansion on the labor supply decisions of older workers. To investigate this, I employ a triple-differences (DDD) methodology, utilizing variations in individuals’ health insurance status and the expansion choices made by states. The results of my analysis shows that with Medicaid expansion, insured workers without retirement health insurance (RHI) decreased full-time work by 7.06 percentage points relative to those with RHI and those without any employer-sponsored coverage at all. Among those no longer working full-time, 82 percent transitioned to complete retirement. Moving on to …

Macroeconomic Determinants Of Stock Market Development In Sample African Economies, Ehab Ayoub

Theses and Dissertations

This research paper studies the relationship between macroeconomic determinants as independent variables and different measures of stock market development as dependent variables across selected emerging economies in Africa for the period of 2002 to 2021, with a quarterly frequency using time series analysis. The independent variables used are Core Inflation, Deposit Rate, Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), FX Rate against USD, Domestic Credit, Gross Domestic Product (Real GDP), Exports, Imports, External Debt, and Foreign Reserves. We use these variables as our main determinants of measuring economic growth. With regards to stock market development, we use four proxy measures as our benchmark, …

Analysis Of The Economic Impact Of A Green Bank In South Carolina, Eric Luther Baxley

Theses and Dissertations

Green banks are an innovative financial tool for climate-conscious economic development. Green banks sustainably facilitate the expansion of renewable energy and disaster-resistant infrastructure by strategically allocating and growing an initial endowment of funds. This paper explores how a hypothetical green bank could operate in South Carolina and models the potential economic impacts a green bank could have on the state’s economy.

On Income Inequality And Poverty In Egypt: Is Prosperity Immoral?, Mohamed Karim Lotfy Abdelkhalek

Theses and Dissertations

There are varying perspectives on, and divergent solutions to, the phenomena of income inequality and poverty. There seems to be polarizing views on both of these sensitive topics. One side of the argument believes income inequality should in itself be mitigated through redistribution measures, while the other argues that this should not be the focus of policy makers, as it deters them from facing the more pressing issue facing society – which is absolute poverty. The relationship between income inequality, poverty, and citizen well-being in Egypt is one that warrants further research, and this paper aims to fill this lacuna. …

The Effects Of The Social Security Amendments Of 1983 On Employment Status, Alcohol Consumption, And Depression, Adam J. Delgenio

Theses and Dissertations

Nearly four decades ago, Congress passed the Social Security Amendments of 1983. The changes were significant, and they pressured people to delay retirement. In this thesis, I use individual-level data from the Annual and Social Economic Supplement of the Current Population Survey and the Health Retirement Study to analyze the effects of the amendments. The amendments affect individuals at the same age, but across different years. Year of birth determines treatment by the amendments. I control for year of birth and age effects in a difference-in-difference model and interact treatment with age to identify the effects of the amendments on …

Effects Of The Raising The Minimum Legal Purchasing Age For Tobacco On Cigarette, Cocaine And Inhalant Consumption, Ahmed Adil

Theses and Dissertations

Over the past few years, several states have passed laws that increase the minimum legal purchasing age (MLPA) for tobacco from 18 to 21 years. This study examines the impact of statewide MLPA laws on youth tobacco consumption. Using data from the 2009-2019 Youth Risky Behavior Surveys (YRBS) and a difference-in-differences approach, I find that the enactment of MLPA laws is associated with a decrease in tobacco usage among adolescents. I also find that MLPA laws have important spillover effects to other youth risky behaviors. MLPA law adoption is associated with a reduction in cocaine use and inhalant abuse.

An Econometric Model Of The Us Government Yield Curve Levels And Dynamics, Katerina Yiasoumi

Theses and Dissertations

The yield curve is the graph of the relationship of the nominal yield to maturity (ytm) on bonds of a similar asset class to different bond maturities at a point in time. Yield curves exist for every sector of the fixed income asset class, e.g., corporate, municipal, emerging markets, high yield, etc. not only for the United States, but for all bond markets worldwide. This research uses graphical techniques, descriptive statistics, correlation, as well as linear and non-linear regression to model each of nine treasury bills, notes, and bond ytms along the US Government bond maturity spectrum. The result is …