Economics Commons^™

Part 6: Low Glamour, But Large Economic Impact: The Aau Junior Olympics, Regional Studies Institute, Old Dominion University

State of the Region Reports: Hampton Roads

National amateur athletic events Hampton Roads hosts have flown under the radar insofar as their economic impact is concerned, but their impact is greater than that of local professional and collegiate teams, and virtually every city in the region benefits. The 2006 AAU Junior Olympics alone had an incremental economic impact of $50 million, primarily generated by visitors from outside of the region.

Part 7: Is Hampton Roads Receiving It's "Fair" Share From The Commonwealth?, Regional Studies Institute, Old Dominion University

State of the Region Reports: Hampton Roads

All things considered, the region has a case to make when it argues that it receives less than its “fair” share of state government spending. The geographic distribution of expenditures is particularly disadvantageous to Hampton Roads in the areas of K-12 education and car tax reimbursements, but less so in transportation and higher education.

Internal Increasing Returns To Scale And Economic Growth, John A. List, Haiwen Zhou

Economics Faculty Publications

This study develops a model of endogenous growth based on increasing returns due to firms' technology choices. Particular attention is paid to the implications of these choices, combined with the substitution of capital for labor, on economic growth in a general equilibrium model in which the R&D sector produces machines to be used for the sector producing final goods. We show that incorporating oligopolistic competition in the sector producing finals goods into a general equilibrium model with endogenous technology choice is tractable, and we explore the equilibrium path analytically. The model illustrates a novel manner in which sustained per capita …

Two Essays On Lead-Lag Patterns Between Trading Volume And Stock Return In China Stock Markets, Xiaotian Zhu

Theses and Dissertations in Business Administration

This dissertation systematically investigate the lead-lag relations between the trading volume and stock return patterns in China A share and B share markets through two streams of behavioral postulations. In the first part, we summarize all the potential lead-lag patterns between trading volume and stock returns and link them to the corresponding behavioral explanations. In particular, Lee and Swaminathan's (2000) Momentum Life Cycle theory best explains the strong negative relations between lagged trading volume and subsequent return in China A share market. The strong positive relations between lagged market return and subsequent trading volume found in both China's B share …

Real Estate Mutual Funds: A Style Analysis, Crystal Lin, Kenneth Yung

Finance Faculty Publications

We find that the characteristics of real estate related securities are different from those of the general common equities. To help investors understand better the products offered by real estate mutual funds, we develop style descriptors that are specifically created for real estate related securities. Among the universe of real estate securities, we find real estate funds tilt toward large stocks and favor growth moderately over value. Growth managers outperform value mangers in this sector by 1.51% to 2.30% per year. However, there is evidence of shifts in the investment style among the funds. Our results help investors in evaluating …

Webfestschrift For Wealth Bondage [External Link], (Blog) The Happy Tutor

Reconstruction: Studies in Contemporary Culture

No abstract provided.

The State Of The Region: Hampton Roads 2006, James V. Koch, Vinod Agarwal, Adrianne Barrett, David Basco, John R. Broderick, Chris Colburn, Vicky Curtis, Steve Daniel, Susan Hughes, Marshall Hutto, Elizabeth Janik, Mark Koch, Feng Lian, Terry Lindvall, Sharon Lomax, Janet Molinaro, John A. Sokolowski, Ray White, Gilbert Yochum

Economics Faculty Books

This is Old Dominion University's seventh annual State of the Region report. While it represents the work of many people connected in various ways to the university, the report does not constitute an official viewpoint of Old Dominion, or it's president, Roseann Runte.

The report maintains the goal of stimulating thought and discussion that ultimately will make Hampton Roads an even better place to live. We are proud of our region's many successes, but realize that it is possible to improve our performance. In order to do so, we must have accurate information about "where we are" and a sound …

Nicaragua's Survival: Choices In A Neoliberal World, Stanley G. Hash Jr.

Graduate Program in International Studies Theses & Dissertations

In January 1990 the Nicaraguan electorate chose to abandon the failing Sandinista Revolution in favor of the economic neoliberal rubric. However, since 1990 Nicaragua's economy has been stagnant. Today it is one of the four poorest states in Latin America having been one of the wealthiest before 1975.

The purpose of this work is to explain Nicaragua's poor performance since 1990. The hypothesis is that domestic independent variables are central to recovery and are the underlying causes of Nicaragua's failure to fully recover.

The abuses of the Somozas' ancien régime before the 1979 revolution are well documented; less well documented …

Part 1: Hampton Roads Forecast: The Economic Winds Begin To Blow, Regional Studies Institute, Old Dominion University

State of the Region Reports: Hampton Roads

Our regional economy has slowed down to the national average after five superb years of growth fueled by defense expenditures. Defense expenditures are decelerating, the Ford plant is closing and the Base Realignment and Closure process will soon be under way.

Front Matter: The State Of The Region: Hampton Roads 2006, Regional Studies Institute, Old Dominion University

State of the Region Reports: Hampton Roads

Cover, front matter, table of contents, and other materials for the 2006 The State of the Region report authored by the Regional Studies Institute at Old Dominion University

Part 2: The North Carolina Connection: Hampton Roads South Of The Border?, Regional Studies Institute, Old Dominion University

State of the Region Reports: Hampton Roads

Currituck County, N.C., already is considered part of the Hampton Roads Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA). Four other counties (Camden, Gates, Perquimans, Pasquotank) lie just south of our region, but only Gates is sufficiently connected to Hampton Roads to be added in the future.

Part 5: The Play's The Thing: Theatres And Performing Arts Companies In Hampton Roads, Regional Studies Institute, Old Dominion University

State of the Region Reports: Hampton Roads

The region is plenti-fully endowed with an impressive variety of theaters and performing arts companies. We critique their diverse work, which provides Hampton Roads with vital cultural and economic benefits.

Part 3: Tunnel Vision: Traffic Congestion In Hampton Roads, Regional Studies Institute, Old Dominion University

State of the Region Reports: Hampton Roads

Traffic congestion already is bad in the region; we estimate the cost in 2006 to be $473 million, or $296 per person. If nothing is done to alleviate the situation, this cost will grow to $1.07 billion, or $608 per person in 2015. Our simulations also predict the speed of automobile commuters going through the Hampton Roads Bridge-Tunnel will fall to 7.2 mph in 2015.

Part 4: It's Not Easy Being Green: Open Space And Parks In Hampton Roads, Regional Studies Institute, Old Dominion University

State of the Region Reports: Hampton Roads

Open space and parks are unevenly distributed across our region. Virginia Beach has done a particularly good job in promoting parks and green space. Still, open space is disappearing at a very rapid rate. Either we preserve such space now, or it may disappear forever.

Part 6: The Youth Of Hampton Roads: Pride Or Problem, Regional Studies Institute, Old Dominion University

State of the Region Reports: Hampton Roads

By several measures, our region’s youth are not doing so well. Particularly problematic are the high percentages of youth who live in poverty and babies born to very young mothers. It is easy to track the societal problems that result.

Part 7: Beach Replenishment: Who Benefits, Who Pays, Who Should Pay?, Regional Studies Institute, Old Dominion University

State of the Region Reports: Hampton Roads

Replenishing the region’s beaches with sand is critical to their attractiveness. More than $100 million has been spent on beach replenishment in Virginia Beach over the past decade, with the federal government paying about two-thirds. We find that beach replenishment pays off handsomely for Virginia Beach, but also that the city probably should pay a larger share of the cost.

Making Happiness In West Egg And Simburbia: An Inquiry Into Consumption In The Great Gatsby And The Sims, Shawn Thomson

Reconstruction: Studies in Contemporary Culture

[First two paragraphs]

At the end of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby, Nick Carraway reflects of his journey to the East: “this has been a story of the West” (184). Nick never explains exactly how this is the case, particularly odd since all the action takes place between Manhattan and Long Island. Nick’s hesitant explanation for this puzzling conclusion lies in the western origin of the central characters of the novel and their inability to adapt “to Eastern Life” (184). But the characters seem a part of, if not overshadowed by, the riotous world of West Egg. Only …

The Postmodern Hoard: Rates Of Exchange In Role-Playing Games, Carlos Hernandez

Reconstruction: Studies in Contemporary Culture

What makes Dungeons & Dragons (D&D) unique among games is the way it merges storytelling with game mechanics. Before the invention of D&D, both acting/narrative-based games and strategy-based war games that made use of fantasy-genre elements existed, but the way D&D integrates both elements invented a whole new category of game, one in which the immersive draw of a plot proves just as important as good tactics or luck of the dice. This chapter explores the relationship between the qualitative and quantitative aspects of D&D. Specifically, it argues that the rules of the game provide quantitative corollaries to aspects of …

Building Core Competencies In A Turbulent Environment: An Exploratory Study Of Firm Resources And Capabilities In Chinese Transitional Economy, Justin Tan, Shaomin Li, Weian Li

Management Faculty Publications

The impact of firm resources and capabilities on performance among Chinese enterprises has been subject of anecdotal speculation due to its significant implications for organizational researchers as well as practitioners. Yet empirical evidence has been very limited. In this research, set in the People's Republic of China, we examine firm resources and capabilities and their impact on firm performance among Chinese enterprises. Using large sample of 12,047 Chinese firms from 1991 to 1992, we found that most of the firm specific resources and capabilities examined in this study have a positive impact on performance. We discussed the implications for organizational …

Intra-Firm Specialization, Income Distribution, And International Trade, Haiwen Zhou

Economics Faculty Publications

The impact of international trade on a firm’s degree of specialization and income distribution is studied in a general equilibrium framework in which firms engage in oligopolistic competition. International trade increases a firm’s degree of specialization, but the number of goods a country produces may not change. Trade may lower the welfare of the scarce factor of production. Sufficient conditions for a country’s welfare to increase with trade are provided.

The Politics And Economics Of Health: A Cross-National Comparison Of Civic Engagement And Health Status, Suzanne J. Wood

School of Public Service Theses & Dissertations

Over the past two decades, various structural modifications associated with the provision of national health and its systems have been undertaken. The preponderance of liberalization experiences have occurred in the absence of epidemiological, political, or social considerations associated with adoption and implementation. Often, financial and political manipulation by international organizations and powerful foreign governments has served as the impetus for fundamental shifts leading to an asymmetrical distribution of resources by population density, geography, and along various socio-cultural boundaries. Consequently, structural adjustments have resulted in unpredictable and divergent outcomes with regard to health status. The question of whether or not health …

Divergent Opinions And Value Stock Performance, John A. Doukas

Finance Faculty Publications

Those who believe that capital markets—that is, markets for stocks and bonds—operate efficiently and asset prices fully reflect all publicly available information are engaged in an ongoing debate about the exact interpretation of the “value premium” with those who reject this view. Value premium refers to the superior returns generated by the purchase of value stocks relative to growth, or glamour, stocks. Rationalists, the group believing in market efficiency, argue that because value stocks are fundamentally riskier than growth stocks, the value premium is compensation for bearing risk. Behavioralists, the group arguing that market asset prices don’t reflect all publicly …

The State Of The Region: Hampton Roads 2005, James V. Koch, Vinod Agarwal, John R. Broderick, Edward Card, Chris Colburn, Vicky Curtis, Steve Daniel, Susan Hughes, Kristine Karlsen, Feng Lian, Sharon Lomax, Linda Mcgreevy, Janet Molinaro, Kenneth Plum, Qian Sun, Gilbert Yochum

Economics Faculty Books

This is Old Dominion University's Sixth Annual State of the Region Report. While it represents the work of many people connected in various ways to the university, the report does not constitute an official viewpoint of Old Dominion, or it's president, Roseann Runte.

The report maintains the goal of stimulating thought and discussion that ultimately will make Hampton Roads an even better place to live. We are proud of our region's many successes, but realize that it is possible to improve our performance. In order to do so, we must have accurate information about "where we are" and a sound …

The Impact Of Trade Liberalization On Growth, Unemployment, And Poverty In Bangladesh, Maha Z. Mirza

Graduate Program in International Studies Theses & Dissertations

Trade liberalization has been one of the major policy components of the governments of the developing countries in the recent decades. Bangladesh as many other developing nations, has adopted different measures of trade reform policies as an element of International Monetary Fund's (IMF) Structural Adjustment Program (SAP), as well as to be an integral part of the world wide trend of globalization. Such policy measures include the reduction/rationalization of tariff rate, simplification of import and export trade procedures, relaxation of restrictive trade policies, and reform of financial and monetary policies. Even though, the trade reform measures were anticipated to increase …

The Effects Of Local And Global Risk Factors On Industry Stock Returns: Across Country Analysis, Mahdy Farag Elhossiny

Theses and Dissertations in Business Administration

This dissertation studies the local and global sources of risk and industries stock returns across national equity markets. We examine several local and global economic risk factors and ask whether and to what extent these risk factors can explain the variation in the industries' stock returns of five countries, namely Canada, Germany, Japan, the U.K., and the U.S. Specifically, the main objective of this dissertation is to find answers for three main questions: First, whether and to what extent do returns on local industries respond to changes in local macroeconomic risk factors? Second, whether and to what extent do returns …

Socioeconomic Attainments Of Africans Versus African-Americans In The United States, Azeb Berhane

Sociology & Criminal Justice Theses & Dissertations

Using data from the Integrated Public Use Microdata Series (IPUMS) of the 2000 U.S. census, the socioeconomic attainments of African immigrants was compared to African Americans in the United States. This comparison was made within the context of assimilation perspective, human capital perspective, and the family investment model. Consistent with previous research findings, the current study found that African immigrants have higher educational attainments than African-Americans in the United States. However, when breaking down the African group by country of birth, African-Americans were found to have higher educational attainments than a few African countries. Generally, the results reveal that African …

Front Matter: The State Of The Region: Hampton Roads 2005, Regional Studies Institute, Old Dominion University

State of the Region Reports: Hampton Roads

Cover, front matter, table of contents, and other materials for the 2005 The State of the Region report authored by the Regional Studies Institute at Old Dominion University

Part 2: Is There A Housing Price Bubble In Hampton Roads?, Regional Studies Institute, Old Dominion University

State of the Region Reports: Hampton Roads

While housing prices increased 40 percent in Hampton Roads (after inflation) during the past decade, most of this increase can be attributed to improved eco-nomic fundamentals such as lower interest rates, increased incomes, Department of Defense housing incentives and more cautious building policies by area developers. Hence, we do not have the kind of housing price bubble that currently exists in cities such as San Diego, San Francisco and Boston, and the state of Florida. We may face some future price adjustments, but they are not likely to be wrenching.

Part 1: The Hampton Roads Economy Midway Through The Decade, Regional Studies Institute, Old Dominion University

State of the Region Reports: Hampton Roads

Our regional economy continues to perform better than the Commonwealth of Virginia and the nation. The 2000-2004 time period is the best five year time period our region has experienced since 1969. Employment increased four times as rapidly as national employ-ment and we experienced significant job growth in scientific, technical and information technology occupations—-something that has largely eluded us in the past. Defense expenditures increasingly dominate the region’s economy and account for about 75 percent of all recent growth. However, the BRAC process could throw a huge wrench into this prosperity. If all BRAC recommendations, including the closure of Oceana, …

Part 3: Richard Florida And The Creative Classes Of Hampton Roads, Regional Studies Institute, Old Dominion University

State of the Region Reports: Hampton Roads

Professor Florida argues that highly mobile, creative individuals are the kingpins of modern economic growth. They are especially attracted to regions that offer diverse demographics, cultural opportunities, living styles and residential areas, as well as a tolerance of the uncommon. Hampton Roads does not fare well when measured against several of Florida’s variables. However, we test his hypotheses empirically and find they have only limited validity.