Economics Commons^™

The Effects Of The 1933 Bank Holiday And The Emergency Banking Act Of 1933 On The Systematic Risks Of Various Industries, James E. Ingram

CMC Senior Theses

Utilizing the industry portfolio classifications that Fama and French provide in their data library, I analyze the specific effects that the 1933 Bank Holiday has on various industries. My empirical results go beyond what Silber (2009) determines to be significantly positive abnormal market returns on March 15, 1933, which is the day after the Bank Holiday and the largest ever one-day increase in the stock market. I use the CAPM and the Fama-French 3-factor Model to find significant systematic risk decreases after the Bank Holiday in the Coal and Transportation industries, as well as systematic risk increases in Consumer Goods …

Paying For Performance At The Plate: An Investigation Of Variable Pay Systems In Major League Baseball, Mitchell S. Bremermann

CMC Senior Theses

Previous empirical research on variable pay systems have suggested that possible gains can come from paying for performance, but highlight the difficulty firms face in measuring performance. Using contracts signed in Major League Baseball’s free agent market, I find that over the 2010-2014 period, teams utilized variable pay schemes with players that were more productive or signaled greater risk, either in their contract terms or via overspecialization. However, not all forms of risk signaling were correlated with greater use of performance incentives, including age and proxies for injury history. These findings have significant implications for labor practices more broadly, as …

Bitcoin: Implications For The Developing World, Makari Krause

CMC Senior Theses

Bitcoin has become notorious as the first cryptocurrency to gain widespread media attention, however, despite its many benefits over the existing financial system it remains a volatile fringe currency. This thesis examines the validity of bitcoin as a currency and whether it can play a role in circumventing extractive economic and political institutions in developing countries. The analysis compares bitcoin usage to the level of financial openness, the inflation rate, and the percentage of the population with a bank account in 21 different countries. The correlation is found to be both statistically and economically significant for all of these variables, …

The Economics Of Hosting The Olympic Games: The Miscalculation Of Cost-Benefit Analyses And Why Cities Continue To Bid, Zachary E. Mobilian

CMC Senior Theses

The Olympic Games have become one of the world’s largest and most popular sporting events. With its massive scale, the costs that come with hosting the Games are elevating to unprecedented levels, leaving host cities with massive financial debt. So why do cities continue to bid for the rights to host the Games? In this paper I will attempt to answer this question by providing an overview of the bidding process and the economic impact of the Games and I will argue that the costs of hosting the Olympics are often underestimated while the benefits are greatly overestimated. I will …

Who Will Be The First To Buy Autonomous Vehicles? An Application Of Everett Rogers’ Diffusion Of Innovations Theory, Reilly Jackson Umberger

CMC Senior Theses

Autonomous, otherwise known as self-driving, vehicles represent the future of transportation. Vehicles that drive themselves offer far reaching benefits from increased leisure and productivity for individuals to significant improvements in congestion and infrastructure for governments. The autonomous car will radically change the way we look at transportation, and they are right around the corner. However, the question remains: are we ready? Are we, as a society, ready to hand over the steering the wheel and trust autonomous vehicles with our safety? This paper predicts how the autonomous car will spread through society by analyzing and applying the product qualities and …

Craft Beer Expansion In The United States, Alex J. Herrera

CMC Senior Theses

For centuries the world’s biggest breweries, including Anheuser-Busch InBev and MillerCoors, have been producing America’s favorite beers like Budweiser and Coors Light. However, more recently smaller, craft breweries have seen significant expansion as a growing number of Americans are drinking craft beers. How has this recent trend affected the beer market in the United States? More specifically, how has the recent success of craft breweries affected Anheuser-Busch InBev and MillerCoors? I examine the economic factors that have led to craft beer’s success in a highly competitive market, and further, how this success has impacted Anheuser-Busch InBev and MillerCoors. My study …

"And The Winner Is..." Predicting Presidential Elections, Amanda Lin

CMC Senior Theses

This paper establishes a model to forecast the Presidential election outcomes, particularly the 2016 United States Presidential Election by analyzing two distinctive approaches: predicting election wins through voting function, and using approval ratings as proxy for votes. I examine and replicate previous models for vote share of the Democratic Party and of the government for elections from 1948 to 2012. Then, I construct a model for approval ratings based on economic and non-economic variables. My findings have direct implications for forecasting elections and the political business cycle.

"I Voted": Examining The Impact Of Compulsory Voting On Voter Turnout, Nina A. Kamath

CMC Senior Theses

Over the past few decades, falling voter turnout rates have induced governments to adopt compulsory voting laws, in order to mitigate issues such as the socioeconomic voter gap and to bring a broader spectrum of voters into the fold. This paper presents evidence that the introduction of mandatory voting laws increases voter turnout rates by 13 points within a particular country through an entity- and time-fixed effect panel model. Moreover, it includes a discussion of the implications of adopting mandatory voting policies within the United States, finding that compelling citizens to vote would have increased participation rates to over 90 …

A Critical Examination Of Oil Wealth Management Strategies And Their Effects On Economic Growth In The Gulf Cooperation Council Countries, Caroline J. Belmont

CMC Senior Theses

Despite their natural resources, the countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council (Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar, and Oman) have failed to live up to their economic potential, primarily due to their dependence on a revenue source with volatile prices and political significance in an unstable region. This thesis argues that the best way to convert oil wealth into consistent long term growth is through diversification, both by investing in foreign assets and by growing domestic sectors that are independent from oil and gas prices. The research further investigates the primary tool these countries have used to …

Relationships Within The Family Tree: Roots Of Recidivism, Madison Gebhard

CMC Senior Theses

This paper seeks to examine the correlation between family relations and habitual criminal activity. Building on previous research analyzing the power and influence of positive family environments on criminal behavior, I studied the effect of parent-child relationships as determinants of adult recidivism. My results corresponded with previous studies and implied a direct correlation between positive relationships and recidivism reduction. Furthermore, my findings support the research illustrating the effect of a person's family criminal history, level of education, and socioeconomic status on criminal behavior, which may ultimately have an effect on these influential ties between parents and children.

Empowerment And Subjective And Emotional Well-Being In South Africa, Erik Kappelman

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

No abstract provided.

Bayesian Spatial Bivariate Panel Probit Estimation, Badi Baltagi, Peter H. Egger, Michaela Kesina

Center for Policy Research

This paper formulates and analyzes Bayesian model variants for the analysis of systems of spatial panel data with binary dependent variables. The paper focuses on cases where latent variables of cross-sectional units in an equation of the system contemporaneously depend on the values of the same and, eventually, other latent variables of other cross-sectional units. Moreover, the paper discusses cases where time-invariant effects are exogenous versus endogenous. Such models may have numerous applications in industrial economics, public economics, or international economics. The paper illustrates that the performance of Bayesian estimation methods for such models is supportive of their use with …

Individual Attitudes Toward The Impact Of Multinational Corporations On Domestic Businesses: How Important Are Individual Characteristics And Country-Level Traits?, Joseph P. Daniels, Miao Grace Wang, M.C. Sunny Wong

Economics Faculty Research and Publications

We study the importance of individual characteristics and national factors influencing individual attitudes towards the impact of multinational corporations on local businesses. Our sample includes more than 40 000 respondents in 29 countries from the 2003 National Identity Survey conducted by the International Social Survey Programme. We find that individual demographic factors and socioeconomic status, such as gender, age, income and education, are strong predictors of their attitudes. For example, income and education are positively associated with favourable attitudes towards the impact of multinational corporations (MNCs) on local businesses while age is negatively associated with individual attitudes towards MNCs. In …

Solidifying Segregation Or Promoting Diversity? School Closure And Rezoning In An Urban District, Thomas J. Shields

Jepson School of Leadership Studies articles, book chapters and other publications

Purpose: Layered with myriad considerations, school closure and rezoning processes in urban school systems are politically fraught with the potential for damaging consequences. This article explores the politics and impacts of a closure and rezoning process in Richmond, Virginia, through the lens of themes applicable to urban school systems and students across the nation. These include the intersection of closure and rezoning with growing White reinvestment in urban school systems, as well as the importance of focusing on diversity and equity during a time of intense pressure to close schools.

Research Methods/Approach: Drawing on the case of Richmond, Virginia, we …

The Great Chain Of Being: Manifesto On The Problem Of Agency In Science Communication, Carolyn R. Miller, Lynda Walsh, James Wynn, Ashley Rose Kelly, Kenneth C. Walker, William J. White, Emily Winderman, Bonnie Tucker

School of Economics and Business Administration Faculty Works

This manifesto presents positions arrived at after a day-long symposium on agency in science communication at the National Communication Association Annual Meeting in Las Vegas, NV, November 18, 2015. During morning sessions, participants in the Association for the Rhetoric of Science, Technology, and Medicine preconference presented individual research on agency in response to a call to articulate key problems that must be solved in the next five years to better understand and support rhetorical agency in massively automated and mediated science communication situations in a world-risk context. In the afternoon, participants convened in discussion groups around four topoi that emerged …

An Investigation Of The Nexus Between Poverty And The Informal Sector In Developing Economies: A Case Study Of Nigeria, Omotara Adeeko

Masters Theses

This paper examines the relationship between poverty and the informal sector in Nigeria. In order to achieve this objective both primary and secondary sources of data mostly spanning from 1980 to 2014 are utilized. The methodology follows three stages. First, the Granger causality test is performed to determine the direction of causality. Using that information, a baseline model, along with several variants, is built on the next stage. Lastly, a robustness check is completed to ensure that the results do not exhibit severe spuriousness problems.

Granger causality tests indicate that the informal sector causes poverty. Overall, nine models including some …

This Is Outrageous!: Understanding Consumer Anger And Brand Reputation On Social Media, Kimberly Legocki, Kristen Walker

School of Economics and Business Administration Faculty Works

No abstract provided.

Dairy, Democracy, & Pr: A Political Economic Analysis Of Associated Milk Producers, Inc. 1988-1989, Anna L. Percival

Masters Theses

This paper, using a political economic approach, explores the communication techniques used during a second-wave of consolidation in the dairy industry in the 1980s. After providing a historical context of the dairy industry and its connections with federal policy, this paper follows the story of a large dairy cooperative: Association Milk Producers, Inc. (AMPI) and how it influenced public policy and consumption through interconnected dairy organizations like the National Milk Producers Federation and by using a political action committee. This paper provides an example of Carey's (1997) treetops propaganda by way of the powerful political action committee C-TAPE and the …

Wintertime For Deceptive Advertising?, Jonathan Zinman, Eric Zitzewitz

Dartmouth Scholarship

Casual empiricism suggests that deceptive advertising about product quality is prevalent, and several classes of theories explore its causes and consequences. We provide unusually sharp empirical evidence on its extent, mechanics, and dynamics. Ski resorts self-report substantially more natural snowfall than comparable government sources. The difference is more pronounced on weekends, despite third-party evidence that snowfall is uniform throughout the week—as one would expect given plausibly greater returns to exaggeration on weekends. Exaggeration is greater for resorts that plausibly reap greater benefits from it: those with expert terrain and those not offering money back guarantees. (JEL D83, L15, L83, M37, …

التمايز السلوكي لدى القادة ودوره في التماثل التنظيمي للحد من سلوك العمل المنحرف (دراسة تحليلية في الكلية الاسلامية الجامعة), فاضل راضي غباش الغزالي

Muthanna Journal of Administrative and Economics Sciences

المستخلص تهدف الدراسة الحالية الى إيضاح الدور الذي يمارسه التمايز السلوكي في بلورة التماثل التنظيمي للحد من سلوك العمل المنحرف . وقد جمعت بيانات الدراسة من آراء منتسبي الكلية الاسلامية الجامعة في القادسية وقد بلغ عدد الذين ابدوا آرائهم (55) فرداً ما بين موظف وتدريسي وقائد ادري . تم اختبار فرضيات الدراسة التي تدور حول علاقات الارتباط والتأثير المباشر وغير المباشر بين متغيرات الدراسة . اثبتت نتائج الدراسة صحة اغلب الفرضيات والتي اصيغ بصددها مجموعة من التوصيات التي يمكن الاستفادة منها في تطوير واقع التعليم العالي في العراق بشكل عام وفي المنظمة المبحوثه بشكل خاص .

دور التمكين الإداري في تعزيز الابتكار التنظيمي, حميد سالم الكعبي

Muthanna Journal of Administrative and Economics Sciences

المستخلص تتناول الدراسة الحالية اختبار دور التمكين الإداري في تعزيز الابتكار التنظيمي لعينة مكونة من (118) فرداً ، وكان مجتمع الدراسة كلية الرافدين الجامعة . وقد استخدم الباحث التكرارات ، والنسب المئوية ، والوسط الحسابي ، وتحليل الانحدار البسيط في تحليل فرضيات الدراسة . وقد أثبتت معظم نتائج الدراسة صحة الفرضيات التي تم افتراضها وخلصت الدراسة إلى مجموعة من الاستنتاجات والتوصيات ، ومن أهم تلك الاستنتاجات (يتعزز الابتكار التنظيمي من خلال التمكين الإداري في ظل بيئة الإعمال سريعة التغيير ، والذي أصبح الابتكار جوهرياً من اجل البقاء ، ولان بقاء المنظمة لا يمكن إن يتحقق إلا من خلال مجموعة من …

خارطة تدفق القيمة: كمدخل لمواجهة الهدر دراسة حاله في المعهد التقني/ الديوانية, طاهر حميد عباس

Muthanna Journal of Administrative and Economics Sciences

تتطلع هذه الدراسة إلى توظيف خارطة نشاط العملية بأنَّها أحد أهم أدوات خارطة تدفق القيمة في إعادة تصميم الخدمة في البيئة التعليمية ، وقد تم اختيار المعهد التقني/ الديوانية كونه أحد المؤسسات العلمية الراعية للعلم وتقدم أفرادها بما يسهم في تقديم أفضل الخدمات التي يتطلعون اليها وبذل الجهود من أجل الوصول إلى ميزة تنافسية تنعكس من خلال إزالة الهدر بجميع أنواعه الذي يجعل من وقت انتظار طالب الخدمة عبئاً من الناحيتين المعنوية والمادية. تتمثل مشكلة الدراسة في كثرة وطول الاجراءات لإنجاز معاملة احتساب شهادة ماجستير ومنح القدم واللقب العلمي لمستحقيها ما أدى الى زيادة وقت الانتظار، ما أنعكس سلباً على …

The Relationship Between Healthcare Spending And Gross Domestic Product: A Study From A Sample Of African Countries, Steven Harrington Addo

Wayne State University Dissertations

In this essay I estimate the elasticity of total healthcare expenditures with respect to gross domestic product. I also address the stationary properties of total healthcare expenditures and gross domestic product, and whether these measures are cointegrated. The empirical exercise uses a sample of African countries so that the estimates can be compared to those that have been made using data on OECD countries. To address the issue of possible endogeneity of GDP in the healthcare expenditure equation, I assume that total healthcare expenditures and gross domestic product are simultaneously determined, and using structural equations, I identify instrumental variables for …

Essays On Healthy Aging From The Perspective Of A Health Production Function, Nasim Baghban Ferdows

Wayne State University Dissertations

This dissertation examines the determinants of healthy aging among older adults using Grossman’s framework of a health production function. Healthy aging is produced using a variety of inputs, including some determined in early life, such as health and socioeconomic status as a child, others determined in young adulthood, such as education, others determined in mid-life, such as household wealth, and still others determined in later-life, such as current health habits. A production function for healthy aging is estimated using nationally representative data from the 2010 Health and Retirement Study on non-institutionalized seniors, and positing a simultaneous equations mediation model, recognizing …

Selection Effect In Medigap Insurance Market With Multi-Dimensional Private Information, Yang Liu

Wayne State University Dissertations

Theoretical models of insurance suggest that when individuals have private information about their risk type alone, insurance coverage will be adversely selected by those riskier individuals due to asymmetric information. In this study we investigate whether individuals have private information of their risk type and riskier individuals are indeed more likely to choose health insurance in the context of Medigap insurance market in the United States where government intervention reinforces information asymmetry. Medigap is supplemental private insurance that optional to those who have Medicare Part A and Part B and it is used to cover some of the cost sharing …

Pengaruh Harga Bensin Terhadap Kecelakaan Lalu Lintas Di Indonesia, Eny Kusdarwati, Djoni Hartono

Jurnal Ekonomi dan Pembangunan Indonesia

Traffic accident ranks the ninth largest of the cause of death in Indonesia. The most of researches studying Indonesia on traffic accidents were only blaming on human, motor vehicles, and environment as main culprits, not incorporating economic factors into the models. This study aims to analyze the impact of real gasoline prices on traffic accident in Indonesia and the factors of influence them. This research employs time series data from 1970 to 2013 with OLS analysis world crude oil prices as instrument variable. The estimator results show that real price of gasoline and the policy of usage of motorcycle light …

Uji Empiris Mekanisme Transmisi Kebijakan Moneter: Interest Rate Pass-Through Sektor Perbankan Indonesia, Buddi Wibowo, Eduardo Lazuardi

Jurnal Ekonomi dan Pembangunan Indonesia

Robust measurement of interest rates speed of adjustment to monetary policy changes is very important to obtain a comprehensive understanding on the monetary transmission process and the effectiveness of monetary policy. The speed of adjustment are determined by number of frictions that interfere with the transmission of monetary policy. We measure Indonesia interest rate pass-through which have distinct characteristics in terms of banking competition, segmented banking market and concentrated structure. Interest rate pass-through is measured by using Vector Error Correction Model (VECM) and Mean Adjusted Lags (MAL). This paper shows the interest rate adjustment did take a relatively long time.

You Are What You (Can) Eat: Cultivating Resistance Through Food, Justice, And Gardens On The South Side Of Chicago, Ida B. Kassa

Pomona Senior Theses

Though food is widely recognized as a basic necessity for humanity, disparate access to it highlights whose bodies, environments, health, nutrition, and utter existence has mattered most in American society—and whose has mattered the least. Through interviews with residents of the South Side of Chicago about the alternative food pathway they’ve forged for themselves, we learn that food becomes much more than just sustenance. Interviewees describe our present day food system as undeniably rooted in a history of enslavement and exploitation of Black and Brown bodies; they regard food justice work by communities of color as an important source of …

How Much Versus Who: Which Social Norms Information Is More Effective?, Andrew G. Meyer, Guanyi Yang

Economics Faculty Research and Publications

We conduct an experiment to investigate how different types of information about social norms affect individuals’ stated contributions to a specific pro-environment program, a student ‘green fee’, in the context of a referendum. Compared to students that receive no information about peer contributions, on average, students that receive information about the dollar value range of contributions at peer institutions contribute less while students that learn about the high percentage of students voting ‘yes’ on green fee programs at peer institutions contribute more. The results are economically significant as the absolute values of both effects represent approximately 25% of average contributions. …

Review Of Economics Imperialism Versus Multidisciplinarity, John B. Davis

Economics Faculty Research and Publications

This paper examines the implications of Chicago School economist Edward Lazear’s 2000 defense of economics imperialism using standard trade theory. It associates that defense with interdisciplinarity or the idea that the sciences are relatively autonomous, but treats this defense as a mask for a more conventional imperialist strategy of promoting Chicago School neoclassicism. Lazear’s argument actually created a dilemma for Chicago regarding how it could espouse interdisciplinarity while operating in a contrary way. I argue that the solution to this dilemma was for neoclassicism to rebuild economics imperialism around neoclassicism as a theory that sees the world in its own …