Economics Commons^™

No. 30: Zimbabwe’S Exodus To Australia, David Lucas, Barbara Edgar

Southern African Migration Programme

This paper focuses on emigration of Zimbabwe-born migrants to Australia, partly because Australia is largely omitted from the important text, Zimbabwe’s Exodus even though it has become an important destination, and partly because the data is better for Australia, and for New Zealand, than for other major destination countries. This profile discusses the characteristics of persons born in Zimbabwe and of Zimbabwean ancestry, by undertaking primary analysis of the 2011 Australian Census using the TableBuilder software of the Australian Bureau of Statistics, together with the settlement reporting facility of the Department of Immigration and Border Protection (DIBP).

Mass Media Consumption In Post-Soviet Kyrgyzstan And Kazakhstan: The View From Below, Barbara Junisbai, Azamat Junisbai, Nicola Ying Fry

Pitzer Faculty Publications and Research

This article examines how ordinary people utilize and assess the information options available to them drawing on original, nationally representative surveys conducted in 2012 in Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan, two regimes characterized by different trajectories since independence. In both countries, television is the main go-to source, while the Internet is used least. Trust in media, however, follows an unexpected pattern. On average, media enjoy higher levels of trust in Kazakhstan than in Kyrgyzstan, despite greater media independence and pluralism in the latter. Ironically, open political competition and media freedom in Kyrgyzstan may have a dampening effect on public trust, while in …

Standardization And The Impacts Of Voluntary Program Participation: Evidence From Environmental Auditing, Mary F. Evans, Lirong Liu, Sarah L. Stafford

CMC Faculty Publications and Research

We explore how limits to our insight about the underlying decision-making structure of firms may affect the conclusions we draw about the likely impacts of participation in voluntary environmental programs. We develop a theoretical model to examine the conditions under which a multi-facility firm chooses to employ a standardized adoption policy for a voluntary program. We test this model empirically using a firm-level dataset on the adoption of a voluntary environmental auditing program and find that, consistent with the theoretical model, a standardized auditing outcome is less likely among firms with more heterogeneous portfolios of facilities. We also examine the …

Modern Capitalism And Food Commoditization: The Limitations Of Industrial Agriculture And The Challenges Of Sustainable Alternatives, Gerardo Patron-Cano

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Agriculture is an essential function of contemporary human life that is bound by nature. Therefore, economic, social, and environmental perspectives must be examined to identify the most sustainable agricultural systems. This thesis argues that agriculture should be divorced from capitalist economic principles regarding specialization, trade, and production scale. Such principles have supported industrialized growing methods, which have been economically, socially, and environmentally unsustainable. In order for agriculture to be sustainable and equitable, food systems need to be de-commoditized and removed from the capitalist market. Policies should target the local control of food systems by empowering communities to subsidize localized production-consumption …

Is The U.S. Missing Out? The Effects Of Parental Leave Benefits On Business, Katharine J. West

Undergraduate Review

The United States has the fewest mandatory parental benefits of all the leading nations in the world. However, it would be economically beneficial to both employers and employees if a more comprehensive leave program were to be offered in the United States. Data from European countries, that do have paid leave programs, shows an increase in the labor force and no economic loss after the mandated policies went into effect. Turnover is quite costly to a firm and studies of paid leave programs show that paid leave is associated with higher retention rates. Firms that have implemented paid leave policies …

Moishe Postone And The Critique Of Traditional Marxism: Helplessness And The Present Moment Of The Great Acceleration, Alexander M. Stoner, Andony Melathopoulos

Book Sections/Chapters

This chapter situates Moishe Postone's critique of traditional Marxism in relation to the present moment of the Great Acceleration. We engage a close reading of Postone reinterpretation of Marx's mature theory of capital with specific focus on the linkage between economic growth and ecological degradation, and how this linkage is necessary connected to social domination in modern capitalist society. Postone's Marxian theory is significant because, as we demonstrate, it allows one to grasp societally induced environmental degradation following WWII in a critical and reflexive manner. The chapter concludes by discussing the growing sense of helplessness that defines the present moment …

Georg Lukács (1885-1971) And The Critique Of Reification: On The Dialectical Genesis Of The Great Acceleration, Alexander M. Stoner, Andony Melathopoulos

Book Sections/Chapters

This chapter situates Lukács' critique of reification (1923) in relation to the emergence of the Great Acceleration. We develop Lukács' critique through the issue of the increasing rationalization of industrial and administrative work in the early twentieth century. In do so, we show how Lukács is able to relocate the continued relevance of Marx's insights with respect to the deeper structure of capitalist society in his consideration of the differential manner in which proletariat and bourgeois class consciousness approach the problem of social contradictions. We then discuss how, for Lukács, the overcoming of reification (or the failure to do so) …

Efectos Regionales Del Libre Comercio: El Caso Del Noreste De México, Gaspare Genna, Edgardo Ayala Gaytán, Joana Chapa Cantú, María De Lourdes Treviño Villarreal

Departmental Papers (PS)

This work documents trade and productivity flows between Northeastern Mexico, US States, and Canadian provinces. It quantifies the effect of NAFTA on exports, investment foreign direct and total productivity of Northeastern Mexico and, through the combination of a general equilibrium model and time series techniques, analyzes the effects of structural change generated by the NAFTA on value added, employment and welfare.

Humankind In Civilization’S Extended Order: A Tragedy, The First Part, Bart J. Wilson

ESI Publications

This article is a short, scientific story of the labyrinthian human career, of humankind’s place in the natural order of the world, and of the evolution of moral rules and rule following that make the extended order of civilization possible. Drawing upon work in anthropology, biology, and linguistics, I weave a science-based narrative of how Homo sapiens came to be the only primate to convert enemy aliens into trading friends. It is a Goethean story of the human condition that postulates the common origins of and modern tension between Pleistocene and Anthropocene morality. It is also a Hayekian story of …

Further Towards A Theory Of The Emergence Of Property, Bart J. Wilson

ESI Publications

This article explores the emergence of property as a moral convention. To understand this process I make use of several laboratory experiments on property in its nascence. These experiments illustrate how a rule of property arises from our knowledge of what is morally right, and not vice versa. I also argue that while the ultimate end of property is our interest in using things, the proximate end of property is not losing them, i.e., the end of a rule of property is to secure from morally unfounded harm.

Effects Of Extension Services On The Technical Efficiency Of Rice Farmers In Albay, 2014-2015, Bm Bathan

Journal of Economics, Management and Agricultural Development

Through the Farmers Information and Technology Services (FITS) program, extension services in the form of trainings and seminars, and education and communication materials were provided to rice farmers in Albay. Using farm-level input-output data covering the wet season of 2014 and the socio-economic and farm-specific characteristics of randomly sampled 30 farmer beneficiaries and 30 non-beneficiaries, a stochastic production function and technical inefficiency model were estimated. Results of the study reveal that beneficiaries have higher input utilization, yield and technical efficiency than non-beneficiaries. Furthermore, the amount of seed and fertilizer significantly and positively affects the yield of rice. In addition, the …

Economic Impacts Of Smallholder Oil Palm (Elaeis Guineensis Jacq.) Plantations On Peatlands In Indonesia, Roberto F. Ranola Jr., Asa Jose Sajise

Journal of Economics, Management and Agricultural Development

Oil palm smallholders on peatlands have contributed significantly to economic development in rural areas by augmenting income and reducing poverty. However, these plantations also cause adverse environmental impacts such as carbon emission, haze and peat fires, deforestation, water supply disruption and biodiversity loss. The objective of the study is to determine the economic impacts of developing smallholder oil palm plantations on peatlands in Siak District Riau Province, Indonesia. Cochran sampling technique was employed to select the respondents. Cost benefit analysis was used to determine the economic impacts of the smallholder oil palm plantations. Results reveal that the development of 94,726 …

A Framework For Non-Drastic Innovation With Product Differentiation, Jeremy Jay Jackson, Jason Smith

Economics and Finance Faculty Publications

We model non-drastic technological innovation in a duopoly model with differentiated products. We derive profit functions for both firms which depend on only one variable, the technological gap. As our model derives product demands directly from agent utility we are able to fully describe the welfare effects of innovation. We show that the welfare improvements from innovation come not only as firms accrue higher profits, by charging consumers higher prices, but also as consumers enjoy higher quality products.

Numerical Simulations Of Competition In Quantities, Devon Haskell Gorry, John Gilbert

Economics and Finance Faculty Publications

We present a series of numerical simulation models built in Excel that can be used to explore the properties of various models of strategic competition in quantities and their economic implications. The resources incorporate both tabular and graphical data presentation formats and are built in such a way that they provide instant or ‘live’ feedback on the consequences of changes in the economic system. We discuss the theory behind the models, how they can be implemented as numerical simulations in Excel, and ways in which the simulations can be used to enhance student understanding of the material.

Nova Southeastern University 2015 Annual Report, Nova Southeastern University

NSU Annual Reports

No abstract provided.

Seeing The Whole Elephant: A Comprehensive Framework For Analyzing Resource-For-Infrastructure Contracts As Intended By The Parties, Dunia P. Zongwe

Southern African Journal of Policy and Development

The current state of scientific knowledge on resource-for-infrastructure (R4I) contracting is unclear and based on inadequate empirical grounds. As a result, it is not easy to tell a R4I contract apart from other forms of international business transactions, let alone describe it in a comprehensive, accurate and meaningful way. Such state of affairs is concerning given the dramatic transformative impact of R4I contracts. This article sheds light on R4I contracts and proposes a broad framework for analyzing these multibillion-dollar deals. It looks to the contracting parties’ intentions – as expressly set out in the texts of contractual and official documents …

Sovereignty And Democracy In Ethiopia: A Reflection On Gebru Asrat's Book, Asayehgn Desta

Collected Faculty Scholarship

Over the past forty years, we have been hearing and reading a lot about the Tigrai People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) which dismantled the inhuman and atrocious Military dictatorship that ruled Ethiopia from 1974 to 1991. It was not only highly skilled in military operations but was visionary. The impression that was widely circulated was that when the TPLF came to power it would protect Ethiopia’s sovereignty, adhere to the rules of law and ensure that equity and social justice would prevail , and above all democracy would be the norm of Ethiopian society.

Contrary to these assertions, Gebru Asrat (hereafter …

2015-6 An Economic Approach To Generalizing Findings From Regression-Discontinuity Designs, Nirav Mehta

Centre for Human Capital and Productivity. CHCP Working Papers

No abstract provided.

2015-5 Explaining The Evolution Of Educational Attainment In The U.S., Rui Castro, Daniele Coen-Pirani

Centre for Human Capital and Productivity. CHCP Working Papers

No abstract provided.

2015-4 Social Interactions, Mechanisms, And Equilibrium: Evidence From A Model Of Study Time And Academic Achievement, Tim Conley, Nirav Mehta, Ralph Stinebrickner, Todd R. Stinebrickner

Centre for Human Capital and Productivity. CHCP Working Papers

No abstract provided.

2015-3 Correlation, Consumption, Confusion, Or Constraints: Why Do Poor Children Perform So Poorly?, Elizabeth M. Caucutt, Lance J. Lochner, Youngmin Park

Centre for Human Capital and Productivity. CHCP Working Papers

No abstract provided.

2015-2 The Returns To Schooling In Rural China: Evidence From The Cultural Revolution Education Expansion, Terry Sicular, Juan Yang

Centre for Human Capital and Productivity. CHCP Working Papers

No abstract provided.

2015-1 Separating State Dependence, Experience, And Heterogeneity In A Model Of Youth Crime And Education, Maria Antonella Mancino, Salvador Navarro, David A. Rivers

Centre for Human Capital and Productivity. CHCP Working Papers

No abstract provided.

2015-3 Retail Price Differences Across U.S. And Canadian Cities During The Interwar Period, Chris Hajzler, James C. Macgee

Economic Policy Research Institute. EPRI Working Papers

No abstract provided.

2015-2 A Cge Framework For Modelling The Economics Of Flooding And Recovery In A Major Urban Area, Aaron B. Gertz, James B. Davies

Economic Policy Research Institute. EPRI Working Papers

No abstract provided.

2015-1 The Interactive Evolution Of Economic Ideas And Experience - The Case Of Canadian Inflation Targeting, David Laidler

Economic Policy Research Institute. EPRI Working Papers

No abstract provided.

2015-3 Choice-Set Forms Are Dual To Outcome-Set Forms, Peter A. Streufert

Department of Economics Research Reports

No abstract provided.

2015-2 Concisely Specifying Choices In An Outcome-Set Form, Peter A. Streufert

Department of Economics Research Reports

No abstract provided.

2015-1 Specifying Nodes As Sets Of Choices, Peter A. Streufert

Department of Economics Research Reports

No abstract provided.

Oil, Corruption And Foreign Direct Investment, Luisa Melo, Michael A. Quinn

Economics Faculty Publications

This paper addresses how oil changes the corruption-foreign direct investment relationship. With the advantage of our panel data set, we are able to account for issues of endogeneity in the causality between foreign direct investment and corruption. We find that corruption has a negative impact on attracting foreign direct investment but this is mitigated based on the amount of oil the receiving country produces. Foreign direct investment inflows are found to reduce corruption in countries, but not if the receiving country is a major oil producer. Results show that poor countries without oil may be using institutional corruption to attract …