Economics Commons^™

Changing Legislative Voting Behavior As Evidence Of Vote Buying, Taft Foster, Dr. Eric Eide

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Within the economic and political science literatures, a variety of theoretical models have been developed which attempt to describe the role of campaign contributions in the political process. These models can be separated into two groups, those which employ the assumption that campaign contributions can purchase legislative votes and those which do not. Proponents of this assumption, known as vote buying, argue that legislators reward special interest groups for their campaign contributions by voting on laws in a way that will benefit the contributor. Though widespread, the use of this assumption remains controversial despite many attempts by researchers to examine …

The Hidden Stem Economy: The Surprising Diversity Of Jobs Requiring Science, Technology, Engineering, And Math Knowledge, Jonathan Rothwell

Brookings Scholar Lecture Series

Policy and businesses leaders have argued that there is a shortage of highly educated workers in professional occupations related to science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM). Critics have countered that Ph.D scientists often face a difficult academic labor market and do not necessarily earn higher wages than other professionals. Yet, both sides of the STEM debate have been relying on an ill-defined definition of STEM work. Using a detailed survey of worker knowledge requirements, this research project redefines STEM jobs based on the level of knowledge required in STEM fields to perform occupations. The results uncover two facts previously unrecognized …

An Economist's View Of The Commerce Clause, John H. Beck

Economics Faculty Scholarship

In the course of this lecture, I will review how the courts have interpreted the commerce clause. I will also express an opinion – what might be called a “strict interpretation” – about how the commerce clause ought to be interpreted from a legal standpoint, although as an economist I have no professional expertise to do so. However, as an economist I do have expertise in analyzing what economists refer to as “market failures,” situations in which free markets may fail to achieve a theoretical ideal allocation of resources and government intervention may lead to a better outcome. Economists have …

Economics Behind Orchestra Dispute: Slouching Toward The Lake Wobegon Symphony, Louis D. Johnston

Economics Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Asking The Wrong Question, Michael Hemesath

Administration Publications

No abstract provided.

Technical Appendix: Economic Impact Of Commercial Fisheries On Local County Economies From Catch In California National Marine Sanctuaries 2010, 2011 And 2012, Vernon R. Leeworthy, Desiree Jerome, Kelsey Schueler

Working Papers

This report documents the data and methods of estimation used in estimating the economic impact of commercial fishing catch from all four National Marine Sanctuaries in California on local county economies in terms of harvest revenue received by fishermen and the associated economic impacts, including multiplier impacts, on total output, value added, income and the number of full- and part-time jobs.

This report is part of a series of reports meeting the priorities in the “Office of National Marine Sanctuaries (ONMS) West Coast Region Socioeconomic Plan FY 2013 – FY 2014” and “national program priorities” on establishing the connection between …

Output Growth And Unexpected Government Expenditures, Diego Escobari, Andre V. Mollick

School of Economics and Finance Faculty Publications

This paper takes into account the dynamic feedback between government expenditures and output in a model that separates the effects of expected and unexpected government expenditures on output. We allow for standard determinants based on Solow's growth model, as well as financial globalization and trade openness measures for a sample of 56 industrial and emerging market economies over the 1970-2004 period. We find that unanticipated government expenditures have negative and significant effects on output growth, with higher effects in developed economies. Along with savings responses, we interpret these results based on how fiscal policy reacts to business cycles. Anticipated government …

Evaluate The Effect Of Imf’S Longer-Term Concessional Lending Programs On Growth In The Development Background Of Sub-Saharan Region, Guanyi Yang

Undergraduate Economic Review

Despite different voices from critics, the IMF has put development at the center of its policies. This paper tries to separate the effect of SAF, ESAF, PRGF, and ECF on growth empirically. Selecting a sample of 44 countries in the Sub-Saharan region from 1986 to 2011, it analyzes whether the IMF’s longer-term structural adjustment programs influences economic growth in participating countries. Consistent with previous studies, this research shows that SAF and ESAF have statistically insignificant impact on growth in the short term and long term. PRGF and ECF, on the other hand, are found to have a large and strong …

A Study Of Self-Employment Trends, Bengte Evenson, Dr. Mark H. Showalter

Journal of Undergraduate Research

The implications of current trends in self-employment are not well understood because the relevant literature is simply not well developed. A good portion of the current literature on self-employment can be found in the Small Business Journal, a recently established publication with a sociological focus. Economic publications on self-employment are much more scarce and tend to be mixtures of observation and preliminary analyzation. A major hindrance to the development of this literature is that there are few standards to guide it. Even the basic definition of self-employment is still debated. For example, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) does …

U. S. Presidential Races And Their Affect On Stock Portfolios, Matthew Downs, Dr. Steven Thorley

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Many factors influence the trading prices of securities listed on the New York Stock Exchange. Politicians, both Democratic and Republican, decide on an array of policies and tax laws that have a substantial affect on all areas of the market. In addition to this, as the economist John Maynard Keynes correctly predicted, government policies such as spending can have an enormous impact on the welfare of the economy.

What Works For Whom In Public Employment Policy?, Christopher J. O'Leary, Randall W. Eberts, Kevin Hollenbeck

Reports

No abstract provided.

By Choice Or By Chance? Why Is Nevada Last In Federal Funding And What Can Be Done About It?, Tracy M. Gordon

Brookings Scholar Lecture Series

The federal government spends more than $600 billion or 17 percent of its budget each year on grants to states and localities. Nevada consistently ranks at the bottom among states in its allocation of federal dollars per capita. This presentation will examine the reasons for Nevada’s “donor state” status including state demographics, federal funding formulas, and state policy decisions. It will focus especially on Medicaid, the largest federal grant program, and Governor Brian Sandoval’s recent decision to participate in the program expansion scheduled for 2014 under the Affordable Care Act. The presentation will also discuss reasons for intergovernmental grants and …

Factors Explaining Obesity In The Midwest: Evidence From Data, Josh Matti, Hansol Kim

Undergraduate Economic Review

This paper attempts to determine the factors explaining obesity in the Midwest by using standard OLS multiple regression analysis and cross-sectional data. We examine independent variables related to built environment and determine effects on obesity. This study finds that some factors influencing calories consumed, such as percent of restaurants that are fast food, are consistent with the prior literature. However, other factors, such as the number of fast food restaurants per 1000 people, yield surprising results. The results of this study suggest that obesity is a multifaceted issue that is not close to being fully explained.

Patterns Of Senescence In Human Cardiovascular Fitness: Vo2 Max In Subsistence And Industrialized Populations, Anne C. Pisor, Michael Gurven, Aaron D. Blackwell, Hillard Kaplan, Gandhi Yetish

ESI Publications

Objectives—This study explores whether cardiovascular fitness levels and senescent decline are similar in the Tsimane of Bolivia and Canadians, as well as other subsistence and industrialized populations. Among Tsimane, we examine whether morbidity predicts lower levels and faster decline of cardiovascular fitness, or whether their lifestyle (e.g., high physical activity) promotes high levels and slow decline. Alternatively, high activity levels and morbidity might counterbalance such that Tsimane fitness levels and decline are similar to those in industrialized populations.

Methods—Maximal oxygen uptake (VO2max) was estimated using a step test heart rate method for 701 participants. We compared these estimates …

Adverse Selection In The Market For Health Insurance, Jonathan Hall, Dr. Mark Showalter

Journal of Undergraduate Research

The presence and severity of adverse selection in the market for health insurance has profound implications for public policy. Adverse selection occurs when individuals who are higher risk than observationally equivalent individuals purchase more insurance. Adverse selection can be used to argue in favor of nationalized health care, and at the same time suggests it that regulation simply makes problems worse. Due to the importance of this question, researchers from a wide variety of fields—public health, economics, insurance, law, human resources and medicine, to name a few—have contributed to the literature on adverse selection. Unfortunately, most researchers seldom cross disciplinary …

Censored Regression With Flexible Distributions, Randall Lewis, Dr. James Mcdonald

Journal of Undergraduate Research

In the field of economics, the estimation of causal relationships is fundamental. The economist formulates a model or mechanism through which human behavior affects outcomes. Then, by using real-world data, economists can estimate these relationships. For example, one simple relationship that has been a subject of study is the causal effect of education on income. Whereas in other fields correlation is typically the object of interest, in economics, the actual quantitative effect on outcomes of changing a causal variable, such as years of education, is of interest.

The Economics Of Childhood Obesity, Stephen Done, Dr. Eric Eide

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Over the past three decades, there has been a significant increase in the percentage of obese persons in the United States. Among adults, rates have more than doubled, while nearly tripling for children over the same period (Anderson, Butcher, & Levine, 2003). Now the second leading cause of death in the United States, obesity contributes to heart disease, stroke, high blood pressure, diabetes, depression, and many types of cancers (Rashad, Grossman, & Chou, 2005). Economic costs, in the form of health care and lost productivity, amounted to $12.7 billion in 1994 alone (Tomson, Edelsburg, Kinsey, & Oster, 1998). It is …

Ronald Coase: An Economist Who Changed The World, Michael Hemesath

Administration Publications

No abstract provided.

Why Is The U.S. Labor Force Declining And Struggling?, Louis D. Johnston

Economics Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Optimal Income Tax For China, Shuanglin Lin, Chengjian Li, Jinlu Li

Hong Kong Economic Association Biennial Workshop

No abstract provided.

Tax Reform And Democratic Reform In Hong Kong, Richard Simmons

Hong Kong Economic Association Biennial Workshop

No abstract provided.

Hong Kong Tax Regime: Where Do We Go From Here?, Yvonne Law

Hong Kong Economic Association Biennial Workshop

No abstract provided.

Tax Policy In Denmark (And Eu), Jens Holger Helbo Hansen

Hong Kong Economic Association Biennial Workshop

No abstract provided.

Tax On Capital Income, Yong Wang, Wai Hong Ho

Hong Kong Economic Association Biennial Workshop

No abstract provided.

Tax Reform: Postitive Directions For A Better World, Lok Sang Ho

Hong Kong Economic Association Biennial Workshop

No abstract provided.

The Effects Of Air Pollution On Endothelial Function: An Extended Literature Review, Douglas L. Rodermund, Dr. Clive Arden Pope

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Exposure to elevated concentrations of ambient particulate matter (PM) has been implicated as a risk factor for cardiovascular disease and mortality. Repeated long-term exposure to PM contributes to pulmonary and systemic oxidative stress, inflammation, atherosclerosis and increased risk of ischemic heart disease and death.1 Short-term elevated PM exposures and related inflammation may also contribute to acute complications of atherosclerosis by increasing the risk of atherosclerotic plaque rupture, acceleration of acute ischemic events and endothelial dysfunction. The endothelium is a layer of thin flat cells lining the interior surface of blood vessels and is directly involved with regulation of vascular processes. …

Family Matters: Income Distribution Effects Of Changing Family Structure; Honors Thesis, Julia Delong, Dr. Clayne Pope

Journal of Undergraduate Research

One of the more profound and far-reaching social transformations America went through in the latter half of the twentieth century was the growing replacement of married households by single (never married) and divorced households. While the sociological consequences of this transformation are generally debated, we seldom consider the economic consequences. In my honors thesis I established a connection between the changes in household structure in the United States during the period 1960 – 2000 and the simultaneous increase in income inequality.

Endothelial Dysfunction And Short-Term Exposure To Fine Particulate Pollution From Coal Combustion: Data Collection And Analysis, Matthew Gee, Dr. C. Arden Pope Iii

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Exposure to elevated concentrations of ambient particulate matter (PM) has been implicated as a risk factor for cardiovascular disease and mortality. Short-term elevated PM exposures and related inflammation may contribute to acute complications of atherosclerosis by accelerating the progression of atherosclerosis, and triggering plaque rupture. Empirical evidence (Brook et al. 2002) suggests that endothelial dysfunction promoted by systemic inflammation related to PM exposure may lie at the heart of the problem. Our experiment examines the effect of short-term exposure to elevated PM levels on endothelial function using a non-invasive procedure called peripheral arterial tonometry (PAT). Using the Endo-PAT 2000 (Itamar …

Generalized Qualitative Response Models, Brad Larsen, Dr. James Mcdonald

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Qualitative response (QR) models are used by economists, biometricians, epidemiologists, statisticians, and others to estimate the effect of certain variables on a binary (“yes” or “no”) response. For example, economists use QR models to answer the question, “What factors influence a woman’s decision to work? For years, biometricians have used QR models to answer questions such as, “What drug dosage will help a patient survive?”, or, more recently, “What level of magnetic radiation will result in childhood leukemia?” By answering these questions, QR models provide policy-makers, businesses, doctors, and others with valuable information for making decisions.

An Analysis Of The Impact Of Higher Education On Likelihood Of Employment In Armenia, Christopher Palmer, Dr. Frank Mcintyre

Journal of Undergraduate Research

This paper employs microdata from the 2001 Armenian National Census to consider how varying levels of higher education affect the likelihood that an individual is employed in Armenia. The analysis concludes that the effect of incomplete undergraduate education on employment status is not statistically different from the effect of terminating one’s education after graduating high school. I consider several theoretical improvements on the standard probit and logit models using an instrumental variables approach and flexible distributions. Armenia is an interesting case study of economic contrasts. While Armenia’s double-digit economic growth suggests that it is adapting to the new market economy, …