Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Market Concentration And Political Outcomes, Xueyan Cao

Economics Honors Projects

U.S. industries have become more consolidated over the past decades. This trend has raised concerns regarding its impact on society. This paper delves into the connection between market concentration and political outcomes. By integrating lobbying data from the Center for Responsive Politics with industry-wide economic data from 2003 to 2019, I utilize several multivariate models to investigate the link between concentration and lobbying expenditures at the aggregate U.S. industry level. I also conduct three representative industry case studies: commercial banks, airlines, and general merchandise stores. The results are mixed. While there is a negative association between market concentration and lobbying …

The Effect Of The Minimum Wage On Crime, Abbie Natkin

Economics Honors Projects

Evidence shows that education, labor market conditions for ex-offenders, and wages influence crime rates. The relationship between wages and crime specifically, has interesting potential policy implications, especially in arguments for increasing the minimum wage. Economists speculate that increasing the minimum wage may help reduce crime by increasing wages and thus increasing the opportunity cost of committing crime, making it riskier and less necessary for people to supplement their incomes through illegal avenues. Using crime data from the FBI’s Uniform Crime Reports and minimum wage data from Vaghul & Zipperer (2016), I employ a two-way fixed effects framework to analyze the …

The Effect Of The China Shock On The 2016 And 2020 Us Presidential Elections, Yike Zhou

Economics Honors Projects

Trade liberalization in 2000 opened up the door for increased trade between China and the US, favoring Chinese manufacturers. This period is often referred to as the "China shock" (Autor, 2013). This paper utilizes data collected from the MIT election lab, FRED, and David Dorn's published data to investigate the effect of the China import shock in the early 2000s on the most recent two US presidential elections. Our analysis, which employs commuting zone-level data, reveals that regions more adversely affected by the China shock were more likely to vote for the Republican Party, while regions that suffered less harm …

The Giannis Effect: How Celebrities Impact Prejudice In Their Communities, Mason Bosley

Economics Honors Projects

This paper examines the effect Giannis Antetokounmpo, a Greek-Nigerian NBA player for the Milwaukee Bucks, has had on bias towards immigrants and Black people in Milwaukee and in Wisconsin as a whole. This work is based on the breakthrough 2021 study from Alrababa’h et al., which found that Liverpool FC’s signing of star Muslim footballer Mohamed Salah dramatically reduced public instances of islamophobia in Liverpool. Using Synthetic Control (SC) and Synthetic Difference in Difference (SDID) frameworks, I implement two methods of analysis to examine Giannis’s influence: an examination of Anti-Black and Anti-Immigrant hate crimes in the US, and analysis of …

Zooming Out: A Retrospective Analysis Of Nontraditional Learning Modes' Effect On High School Graduation And Dropout During The 2020-2021 Covid-19 School Year, Jonah F. Klein-Collins

Economics Honors Projects

This paper examines the impact of nontraditional learning modes, such as online education, on high school graduation and dropout rates during the 2020-2021 Covid-19 school year. Using school-level data from the Illinois Report Card for 2012-2021, a difference-in-differences framework is used to estimate the average treatment effect of two groups: schools that used virtual learning modes for only part of the year and those that used it for nearly the entire year. The study reveals that virtual learning had a negligible effect on four-year graduation rates. However, schools that used virtual learning for only part of the year witnessed a …

How Do Right-To-Work (Rtw) Laws Impact Workplace Safety?, Ryan D. Dodds

Economics Honors Projects

Ryan Dodds

How do right-to-work (RTW) laws impact workplace safety?

RTW laws allow employees covered by a union who are not union members to choose not to pay union dues. These laws weaken unions and decrease unionization. This study explores the impact of right-to-work (RTW) laws on workplace safety using a two-way fixed effects and a difference-in-differences approach, focusing on the five right-to-work laws passed by states in the 2010s.

For my two-way fixed effects analysis, I construct a panel dataset from 2007-2019 using yearly state-level data from BLS for all 50 states with available data. My outcome variables are …

Collateralizing Ideas: Intangibles In The Credit Market, Paige Stevenson

Economics Honors Projects

Intangible capital comprises an increasing share of total capital assets, and its non-physical nature makes it more difficult to evaluate and secure as collateral for loans. I extend the model of intangible capital presented in McGrattan and Prescott (2010) to include a collateralized credit market in which firms can obtain debt proportional to their capital assets. I consider different cases for the relative collateral value of intangibles under a credit constraint subject to exogenous shocks. For greater collateralizability of intangible assets, the model predicts a stronger negative relationship between intangible investment and credit availability and more stable interest rates. However, …

Did K-12 School Closure And Reopening Policies In Response To Covid-19 Enlarge The Gender Employment Gap?, Xinyi Wang

Economics Honors Projects

The COVID-19 pandemic hits female workers the most. This impact on the United States’s labor market can be attributed to the limited availability of childcare and schooling options (Stefania and Jiyeon, 2021). With limited resources for childcare and schooling, parents, especially mothers, had to exit the labor force or reduce working hours to stay at home and take care of their children. My study will contribute to understanding the effect of the child penalty, especially under the COVID-19 pandemic and study the impact of school closure and reopening policies. Using data from the Current Population Survey (CPS) combined with school …

An Application Of Prospect Theory: The Effect Of Trailing At Halftime On Winning Nfl Games, Kian R. Sohrabi

Economics Honors Projects

Trailing in sports is associated with losing, but can trailing operate as a powerful motivator that leads to winning? Based on research by Berger and Pope (2011), this study applies Prospect Theory and loss aversion to football to test if trailing by a small margin can motivate success. This relationship is analyzed based on teams’ point differentials at halftime since halftime operates as a salient reference point and a time for teams to regroup and strategize. Analysis of over 12,000 NFL games found no significant effect of trailing at halftime on the likelihood of winning. That is, there is little …

How Does The Crowd Affect Home Field Advantage? Evidence From Covid Affected Seasons In The Top 5 European Soccer Leagues., Alexander Hopkins

Economics Honors Projects

It is well documented that home field advantage is a significant determinant of team success. The specific mechanism of this advantage is difficult to identify. Is it players’ superior knowledge of the home field, the convenience of not having to travel, or the cheering fans of the home crowd? Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, there was no direct way to isolate the crowd's effects on home field advantage. Due to the pandemic, the top five European soccer leagues barred fans from their stadiums. The pandemic created a quasi-natural experiment to study a crowd's effects on the match outcome and refereeing. …

Gendered Labor Market Outcomes During Covid-19: Evidence From Early Withdrawal Of Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation, Nicholas Di

Economics Honors Projects

Despite their importance in the social safety net, Unemployment Insurance (UI) benefits are expected to increase unemployment duration. I find that males, on average, face a greater drop in unemployment than females when (UI) is no longer offered in their respective state. Male’s unemployment rate dropped more by a magnitude of 0.7 percent compared to female’s which consists of about 11.5 percent of male unemployment during UI. Females who were married, were in lower family income brackets, or had children saw smaller changes in unemployment when UI programs were exhausted.

King Behind Colonial Curtains: Kasilag And The Making Of Filipino National Culture, Paul Gabriel L. Cosme

International Studies Honors Projects

Filipino National Artist Lucrecia “King” Kasilag sought to preserve folk cultures and melded these with her Western training to produce works—scholarly, pedagogical, and compositional—that shaped national music and culture. This thesis is a critical biography that combines perspectives from postcolonial studies, political economy, and musicology to highlight forces that shaped Kasilag’s life while illustrating her successes and shortcomings on national culture. Through this biography, I argue, Filipino national culture must originate from intersectional struggles and negotiation among elites and masses; that this culture is about both resistance and acceptance—a national culture that is syncretic and quintessentially dynamic.

Did The Clean Air Act Improve Environmental Justice Disparities?, Jared Jageler

Economics Honors Projects

This paper analyzes the differential impacts of the 1990 Clean Air Act Amendments (CAAA) on the racial pollution exposure gap, also known as the Environmental Justice (EJ) gap. Using recently developed, Census tract-level satellite data of PM2.5 pollution, I test whether CAAA non-attainment status and resulting State Implementation Plans decreased pollution in high-percentage Black and Hispanic areas more than in non-high percentage Black and Hispanic tracts. My results confirm that the CAAA reduced overall pollution concentrations in the U.S. and decreased the absolute level of the Environmental Justice gap. A heterogeneity analysis provides evidence that the results are primarily driven …

Demand Shock Along The Supply Chain: The Bullwhip Effect Of Covid-19 In Chinese Exports, Kaichong Zhang

Economics Honors Projects

This study investigates the bullwhip effect of Covid-19 on global supply chains from the Chinese perspective. The bullwhip effect refers to the amplification of demand shock along the supply chain, and my baseline estimates show that a $1\%$ increase in foreign new cases (a proxy for foreign demand shock) reduces exports of downstream products and that of upstream industries by $2.1\%$ and $4.5\%$ respectively. The estimates also suggest that whether industries are concentrated or not generates ambiguous effects on exports that vary from different empirical specifications. In addition, a heterogeneity analysis suggests that the bullwhip effect is stronger in regional …

The Power Of Information: Information, Leak Notices, And Water Conservation In Edina, Mn, Federico Chung

Economics Honors Projects

This paper provides evidence on the effects of information provision on households’ water use. I use quarterly household consumption data from a utility in Minnesota to test the effect of a new residential water billing system on households’ water consumption. The updated billing format was possible as the utility transitioned to an automated meter reading (AMR) system. I also study impacts of another source of improved information provision from AMR adoption, faster high-water consumption notices. I find mixed evidence of the impact of personalized information on households’ water use. Households respond to high-consumption notices by significantly reducing consumption, even relative …

The Effect Of Racial Covenants On Modern Day Foreclosures: Evidence From Hennepin County, Hannah R. Whipple

Economics Honors Projects

Between 2006 and 2015, approximately 16.2 million homes entered foreclosure, directly affecting nearly one in six American households (Hall et al., 2015). Yet, the consequences of foreclosure were not distributed evenly amongst all Americans. The foreclosure rate for Black Americans was 11%, compared to 6% for white people during the Great Recession (Hwang et al., 2015). Previous studies point to residential segregation as a driver of the disproportionate consequences of the crisis borne by minority communities. In Hennepin County, racial covenants were the first mechanized form of residential segregation. Written into property deeds, racial covenants prevented anyone who was not …

Colonial Legacies And Institutional Legitimacy: Explaining Variation In State-Level Informal Economy Size, Makayla Barker

Political Science Honors Projects

Abstract: Why are some states’ economies more formal than others? This question has critical significance for policy-makers who endeavor to tap into the reservoir of tax revenue and entrepreneurship that informal economies contain. More importantly, large informal economies inhibit public good provision and perpetuate the impoverishment, marginaliza- tion, and political instability of select communities. Despite major variation in the size of informal economies across states, most scholarship on the informal economy concentrates only on the causes and consequences of the phenomenon, while neglecting to address its variation. This thesis builds on a canon of scholarship surrounding colonial legacies, new- institutional …

Time To Play: The Relationship Between Time Spent Playing And Educational Outcomes In Peru, Jasmine Davidson

Economics Honors Projects

Every day, children around the world are playing. There has been plenty of research on the importance of different kinds of play, but very little on the importance of the quantity of play. Understanding the relationship between educational outcomes and the amount of time spent playing would allow parents to better structure their children’s time and would settle the debate between psychologists and economists on whether play has inherent value for a child’s future outcomes. I focus on Peru because conducting this research in a developing country context broadens the current research mostly focused on high-income countries. Using child-level, longitudinal …

How Does An Increase In The Minimum Wage Affect High School Enrollment?, Esther Swehla

Economics Honors Projects

In this paper, I explore how the probability of a student being in different combinations of enrolled/not enrolled and employed/unemployed/not in the labor force is affected by an increase in the minimum wage. I use binomial logistic regression, and experiment with both state and county level of observation and fixed effects. I also use year fixed effects. I find that when either the nominal or real minimum wage increases, the probability of a student being employed and enrolled increases, while the probability of being in any of the other groups decreases. However, these changes are not substantial. I determine that …

The Impact Of Immigrants’ Entries On Destination Countries’ Economies, Qingyu Zhu

Economics Honors Projects

Whether immigration brings benefit or harm has always been controversial. In this paper, I develop a Real Business Cycle model with a search-based labor market to examine how an unexpected influx of immigrants impacts destination economies. I divide households and firms into two types, namely natives and immigrants, and conduct a general equilibrium analysis. The simulated results suggest that even though natives face a temporary rise in unemployment after the shock, recovery occurs quickly, and levels of aggregate output and consumption become higher.

The Effects Of Conflict On Household Agricultural Investment In Nigeria, Harrison Mitchell

Economics Honors Projects

While the negative effects of conflict on health and education are well established, studies identifying the effects of conflict on household agricultural investment are sparser. I combine a household panel dataset from Nigeria’s Living Standards Measurement Survey - Integrated Surveys on Agriculture (LSMS-ISA) with detailed data on conflict events from the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data (ACLED). Using an event studies framework, these data allow me to estimate the effects of conflict on a variety of household agricultural decisions. I find evidence that conflict involving Fulani pastoralists reduces a household’s cattle holdings in the following season. Additionally, I find …

Box Office Showdown: How Does Movie Market Saturation Affect First Weekend Box Office Revenues?, Matthew Steele

Economics Honors Projects

The scheduling of release dates for feature films is among the most important decisions that movie studios make in the life cycle of a movie. While the economic literature on the movie industry has largely focused on modeling the box office success of a movie based on its own characteristics—star power, critical reception, and trailer data—there is a dearth of literature concerning the way that competition from within the industry affects box office revenues. This article primarily uses a propensity score matching model to fill a gap in the literature, establishing causal relationships between different forms of competition and first …

The Gretzky Externality: An Analysis Of The Superstar Effect And Age Curves In The National Hockey League, Jed P. Buchholz

Economics Honors Projects

No abstract provided.

Disruptive Innovation: The Rise Of The Knowledge-Sharing Market In China, Yaqing Lan

International Studies Honors Projects

Innovation is a major subject of international political economy, but mainstream discussions focus on scientific research and development and detach innovation development from their social contexts. In response to this view, this project reveals the importance of cultural and social factors in influencing innovation development by examining the rise of the knowledge-sharing market (KSM) -- a social-network-site-based economy in China. It suggests the KSM is a disruptive innovation not only because it is pioneered by a latecomer in the global innovation market, China, but also because its emergence from the changing Chinese consumer demands disrupts the mainstream thinking of innovation.

Does Family Size Negatively Affect Child Health Outcomes In The United States?, Ji Sue Song

Economics Honors Projects

This paper explores the relationship between family size and child health outcomes in the United States. More specifically, it attempts to determine if the number of siblings has a causal effect on child health. Becker’s Quantity-Quality tradeoff suggests that more children (quantity) results to unhealthier children (quality). The main estimation strategy is the use of instrumental variables, for family size and health outcomes can be jointly determined by parental characteristics unseen and unaccounted for. In addition, a sub-analysis on families below the poverty line is conducted to see the additional effect of another child under more constricted circumstances. Lastly, the …

Do Business Cycles Make Babies? The Effect Of Business Cycle Fluctuations On Fertility, Nicoletta Peters

Economics Honors Projects

Economic models often treat fertility as both constant and exogenous, while neither assumption is true. In this paper, I develop a Real Business Cycle model to analyze the impact of business cycle fluctuations on household fertility decisions. I incorporate a fertility decision into a search-based labor market and conduct a general equilibrium analysis of the effects of business cycles. The simulated results show that households increase their fertility during positive economic times, and reduce fertility as unemployment rises.

Food Deserts Or Food Desserts? An Examination Of Whether Food Deserts Matter, James Spector-Bishop

Economics Honors Projects

No abstract provided.

How Deep Is Your Love? Loss Aversion In Dating Markets, Genevieve Gregorich

Economics Honors Projects

No abstract provided.

Testing Option B+: Measuring The Impact Of Perceived Clinic Access On Human Capital Investment In Malawi, Annalivia J. Robinson

Economics Honors Projects

From 1985 to the current day, the HIV/AIDS epidemic has been responsible for increasing mortality and morbidity rates amongst Malawi citizens. In addition to causing negative health and economic shocks to adults living with HIV/AIDS, this virus reduces capital available for families' educational investments. Providing subsidized antiretroviral treatment (ART) has potential consequences for human capital investment and economic growth. Using data from 2010 and 2015/16 Demographic Health Surveys for Malawi, I estimate the effect of increased ART services and perceived access changes on educational outcomes of children living in HIV+ homes. I find that children belonging to households with an …

Does Agglomeration Account For Process Innovation In Vietnamese Small And Medium Enterprises?, Van Anh Le

Economics Honors Projects

Although small and medium enterprises (SMEs) play a crucial role in the Vietnamese economy, this sector’s growth is hindered by low level of technology and innovation. This paper uses firm-level panel data to examine whether process innovation activities in SMEs are influenced by their industrial environments. It measures the effects that agglomeration, the geographic concentration of firms within the same locality, has on firms’ total outputs and their propensity to introduce new technology. Using a logistic model with firm fixed-effects, I find that agglomeration decreases outputs of informal firms and the likelihood of new technology introduction in all firms. However, …