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Full-Text Articles in Social and Behavioral Sciences
Affordable Care Act Insurance Coverage Gains In The Midwest: Evidence From The Dependent Coverage Provision, Sarah Herz
Affordable Care Act Insurance Coverage Gains In The Midwest: Evidence From The Dependent Coverage Provision, Sarah Herz
Major Themes in Economics
This paper analyzes how the Affordable Care Act (ACA) Dependent Coverage Provision affected insurance coverage in the Midwestern region. The Dependent Coverage Provision allows individuals ages 19 to 25 to remain as dependents on parental health insurance plans. This provision was implemented to decrease the number of young adults who were uninsured. Using data from the American Community Survey spanning the years 2008-2013 and estimating difference-in-differences models, I test the impact of the policy implementation on health insurance coverage among a sample of Midwestern young adults. Under my preferred specification, which includes two-way fixed effects and controls for observable characteristics, …
Privatizing Social Security: Economic And Social Concerns, Sarah Madsen
Privatizing Social Security: Economic And Social Concerns, Sarah Madsen
Major Themes in Economics
The U.S. Social Security program is in need of reform. One of the most popular solutions to the long-run financing problem is privatization. This paper examines key economic and social concerns about a shift from a public pay-as-you-go system to a privately-funded system. While a privatized system does reduce overall uncertainty and allows for greater returns, its increased risk and high transition costs make it an unreliable strategy.
Designing Promise Programs: Decisions And Effects, Shay Slifka
Designing Promise Programs: Decisions And Effects, Shay Slifka
Major Themes in Economics
Having gained popularity over the past two decades, promise programs are a relatively new policy tool aimed at increasing the number of people who earn two-year and four-year postsecondary educational degrees by providing partial or full financial aid. In contrast to other forms of financial aid for postsecondary education, promise programs guarantee funding to students of a specified geographic area, which is sometimes accompanied by merit or need-based requirements. Promise programs differ in design, vary in result, and potentially cause substitution and migration effects. By analyzing several mature promise programs, I identify three fundamental design decisions that policymakers must consider …
An Economic Analysis Of The Effects Of Streaming On The Music Industry In Response To Criticism From Taylor Swift, Hugh Zehr
Major Themes in Economics
Since its introduction in the early 2010s, music streaming has transformed the industry. Streaming has both fans and critics. One of the most notable critics is superstar Taylor Swift, who has questioned streaming’s ability to adequately compensate those involved in music creation. My analysis acknowledges her critique and looks specifically into how streaming services have affected all participants in the industry. While streaming initially decreased profits in the music industry as a whole, the industry has adjusted and has seen returns from this new model of music consumption. Streaming services increase benefits to all players in the music industry by …
An Analysis Of The Secondary Market For Live Music And Complementary Goods, Trevor Wangsness
An Analysis Of The Secondary Market For Live Music And Complementary Goods, Trevor Wangsness
Major Themes in Economics
Ticket scalpers exist because ticket prices in the primary market are often set below the market equilibrium price. The question is why are prices consistently set too low? One theory says that the desire to sell complementary goods such as concert memorabilia explains why ticket price are set below equilibrium. Technological improvements, however, have rendered that theory obsolete. Economic theory still does not explain why ticket prices are frequently set too low. Perhaps the reason is simply that artists do not want to gouge their fans.
Introduction, Ken Mccormick
Using The Home-Underdog Theory To Test The Efficiency Of The Nfl Sports Gambling Market, Dj Loutsch
Using The Home-Underdog Theory To Test The Efficiency Of The Nfl Sports Gambling Market, Dj Loutsch
Major Themes in Economics
NFL sports gambling markets are efficient if one strategy is not consistently profitable year after year. The analysis in this paper examines the efficient market hypothesis using the home-underdog theory. The data were collected for home-underdogs for the last 10 NFL seasons. Important filters were applied to examine potential variations of the home-underdog theory that may be profitable. There was no variation of the home-underdog theory that was consistently profitable year after year. There were 5 different variations that were profitable in the 10 years, but they were not profitable every year. The results provide evidence that the NFL sports …
Measuring Earnings Through Performance: A Replication Of The Return To Skill Of Pga Tour Golfers, Chase A. Collins
Measuring Earnings Through Performance: A Replication Of The Return To Skill Of Pga Tour Golfers, Chase A. Collins
Major Themes in Economics
The golfers on the Professional Golfers Association (PGA) Tour provide an opportunity to examine the relationship between performance and earnings. Using PGA Tour data from 2010 and the 2018-2019 season, this paper replicates previous studies exploring the returns to skill and changes in return to skill over time of PGA golfers. Average driving distance, average driving accuracy, greens in regulation (GIR), putts per GIR, sand saves, number of events competed in, and two interaction terms are found to be statistically significant. The idea that returns to skills for PGA golfers are changing over time is supported in this paper.
Can Doing Good Reduce Risk? Corporate Social Responsibility And Risk For Firms In Controversial Industries, Emily Iehl
Can Doing Good Reduce Risk? Corporate Social Responsibility And Risk For Firms In Controversial Industries, Emily Iehl
Major Themes in Economics
A firm’s main goal is to add firm value. There are many ways to do this: increase sales, advertise, change management, and, possibly, doing good for the environment, employees, and others. The latter approach is often called corporate social responsibility. This paper tests to see if corporate social responsibility will reduce risk for a firm. There are two hypotheses created by Jo and Na (2012): the risk reduction hypothesis and the window-dressing hypothesis. Jo and Na conclude that corporate social responsibility in controversial firms can help reduce firm risk. However, my results do not show that.
Introduction, Ken Mccormick
Non-Linear Autoregressive Distributed Lag Model Approach And The J-Curve Phenomenon: China And Her Major Trading Partners, Alex Hunter
Major Themes in Economics
Following Bahmani-Oskooee and Fariditavana (2016), I use the non-linear autoregressive distributed lag model approach of Shin et al. (2013) to examine the J-curve phenomenon for the Chinese economy. Most recent studies have used methods such as the linear autoregressive distributed lag model approach of Pesaran et al. (2001) which assumes a linear relationship between the exchange rate and the trade balance. I argue that lack of support for the J-curve effect could be due to assuming that effects of exchange rate changes are symmetric. Using a linear autoregressive distributed lag model approach, I am able to find support for the …
Valuation Multiples: Identifying Undervalued Stocks From 1987 To 2017, Luke Muller
Valuation Multiples: Identifying Undervalued Stocks From 1987 To 2017, Luke Muller
Major Themes in Economics
This research reports the absolute returns and alpha generated by hypothetical portfolios arranged by six commonly used valuation multiples from 1987 to 2017. I find the best returns are offered by the Sales/TEV multiple while the FCF/TEV multiple generates the most Fama-French Three-Factor alpha. My results contradict two prior claims by Fama and French: 1. any valuation multiple is as good as another and 2. book value-to-market value is the preferred measure for identifying undervalued companies. I also examine the performance of each valuation multiple for small, mid, and large-cap companies and find that smaller stocks offer greater investment returns …
Maternal Mortality In The U.S., Christine Shipley
Maternal Mortality In The U.S., Christine Shipley
Major Themes in Economics
While the global maternal mortality ratio has decreased, the U.S. maternal mortality ratio has increased over recent decades. The U.S. has the worst maternal mortality ratio among developed countries. This paper examines potential explanations for the increase in the U.S. maternal mortality ratio, including problems in how the data are reported, medical intervention, and poverty. Potential remedies for issues are discussed. I conclude that even though all three factors have likely contributed to the rise in the maternal mortality ratio, the total effect of the factors is not clearly known and most likely does not fully explain the rise in …
The Effects Of Relative Wages And Border Enforcement On Illegal Immigration, Aaron Iehl
The Effects Of Relative Wages And Border Enforcement On Illegal Immigration, Aaron Iehl
Major Themes in Economics
The flow of illegal immigrants into the United States cannot be accurately measured because any successful illegal immigrations will not be detected. This paper uses an apprehensions function developed by Hanson and Spilimbergo (1999) to estimate a lower bound for illegal immigration. An OLS regression model is employed to examine the effect of relative wages and border enforcement on the number of apprehensions at the U.S.-Mexico border from 1999-2017. These results are compared with findings from Hanson and Spilimbergo (1999) who studied apprehensions from 1976-1995.
Determinants Of Box Office Performance: Return Of The Regressions, Griffin Scott
Determinants Of Box Office Performance: Return Of The Regressions, Griffin Scott
Major Themes in Economics
Brewer, Kelley, and Jozefowicz (2009) used data from the late 1990s to the early 2000’s in order to determine what made a movie a success at the box office. I replicate their study using data from 2014 to 2018. Ex ante, production budget, critical reviews, horror and comedy movies were all significant at the one percent level. Ex post, the same variables plus number of screens, summer and holiday release, star power, and word-of-mouth were significant at the one percent level.
Technological Unemployment In The United States: A State-Level Analysis, Courtney Krousie
Technological Unemployment In The United States: A State-Level Analysis, Courtney Krousie
Major Themes in Economics
This paper aims to analyze the relationship between technological change and unemployment across the United States. Building on previous research, I run a two-stage least- squares regression that links technological change to unemployment. Technological change is proxied with commercially-supplied research and development expenditures. I acquire data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics on unemployment rates and data from the National Science Foundation on research and development expenditures from 2002-2013 for each state. Control variables include GDP, the minimum wage, education expenditures, violent crime and property crime rates, union coverage, unemployment benefits, and poverty rates. I find evidence that technological change …
Introduction, Ken Mccormick
Identifying The Risk Factors For Food Insecurity In The United States, Destiny Leitz
Identifying The Risk Factors For Food Insecurity In The United States, Destiny Leitz
Major Themes in Economics
Food insecurity is widespread in America and has both humanitarian and economic consequences. The purpose of this study is to identify the risk factors associated with food insecurity so that state officials can tailor assistance programs to benefit those most in need. A logistic regression model is employed using data from the 2016 Food Security Supplement to the Current Population Survey. The results provide evidence that food insecurity is negatively associated with income, education, home ownership, and age; it is positively associated with unemployment, disability, and a state’s tax burden. Other influences include ethnicity, citizenship status, and participation in nutrition …
Should Division I College Athletes Receive Compensation In Excess Of Their Scholarships?, Trey Kilburg
Should Division I College Athletes Receive Compensation In Excess Of Their Scholarships?, Trey Kilburg
Major Themes in Economics
This paper examines the amateurism debate that has surrounded collegiate athletics since their inception in the 1800’s. The NCAA brings in enormous revenue from Bowl Games and “March Madness” without paying the student-athletes who help generate them. Large disparities in budgets and profits among Division I conferences and different sports make it almost impossible for the NCAA to create a system that would fairly compensate all student-athletes based on productivity. I conclude that student-athletes should be able to accept endorsements deals that allow them to monetize their value without costing students or colleges additional money.
Gentrification In Polk County, Iowa, Danielle Massey
Gentrification In Polk County, Iowa, Danielle Massey
Major Themes in Economics
This paper measures the extent of gentrification in Polk County, Iowa from 2000 to 2016. It also looks at the factors that may have contributed to that gentrification. Five of the 77 census tracts in Polk County show high levels of gentrification. Seven other tracts show moderate levels. I find that factors positively correlated with gentrification in Polk County include proximity to an historic district, proximity to a park or open space, and the percentage of total housing units that receive Low-Income Housing tax credits. Thus, the paper provides support for demand-side theories of gentrification.
Introduction, Ken Mccormick
The Return Of The Machinery Question: Is It Different This Time?, Kaleb Luse
The Return Of The Machinery Question: Is It Different This Time?, Kaleb Luse
Major Themes in Economics
Recent advances in artificial intelligence have the potential to seriously affect labor markets. Some believe that artificial intelligence will be the end of work for humans. Others believe that artificial intelligence is like any other technological innovation from the past and will create just as many jobs as it destroys. I conclude that while artificial intelligence can bring about many of the benefits of technological change seen in history, it drastically differs from innovations in the past and will result in massive unemployment. To ensure that everyone benefits from this huge step forward, policies need to be developed to accommodate …
An Analysis Of The Causal Relationship Between Transportation And Gdp: A Time-Series Approach For The United States, Arijan Alagic
An Analysis Of The Causal Relationship Between Transportation And Gdp: A Time-Series Approach For The United States, Arijan Alagic
Major Themes in Economics
Time-series analysis using monthly data from January 2000 to December 2015 is used to investigate the relationship between transportation and real GDP, controlling for the price of diesel, the amount of money invested in infrastructure, the inflation rate, and the real effective exchange rate. Transportation is proxied with the freight Transportation Services Index. Using Granger-causality, I find that changes in transportation Granger cause changes in real GDP, but not vice versa. It is a one-directional relationship where past values of transportation lead changes in real GDP.
Determinants Of Ipo Underpricing: Tech Vs Non-Tech Industries, Jordan Beck
Determinants Of Ipo Underpricing: Tech Vs Non-Tech Industries, Jordan Beck
Major Themes in Economics
Do firms in the tech industry experience higher levels of underpricing when going public as opposed to firms not in the tech industry? This research uses a linear regression model to analyze the determinants of underpricing in the initial public offering market. The model indicates that underpricing is influenced by the offer price, underwriter quality, and the size of the firm as a measure of risk. This analysis does not find evidence of higher levels of underpricing in the tech industry. Further research could analyze the levels of underpricing over time as an industry matures.
The Gender Pay Gap In College Basketball: Is Discrimination The Driving Factor?, Melissa Ament
The Gender Pay Gap In College Basketball: Is Discrimination The Driving Factor?, Melissa Ament
Major Themes in Economics
A survey of the current literature reveals two main schools of thought regarding the pay gap between coaches in men’s versus women’s NCAA Division I college basketball. The academic literature argues gender discrimination is not the source of the pay gap, while the popular press argues the pay gap is due in part to gender discrimination. A review and analysis of the existing literature finds discrimination is not the source of the pay gap between men’s and women’s college basketball coaches.