Economics Commons^™

Part 4: The Economic Impact Of Norfolk International Airport, Dragas Center For Economic Analysis And Policy, Old Dominion University

State of the Region Reports: Hampton Roads

Airports such as Norfolk International Airport (ORF) serve as economic engines connecting cities and regions to other localities and generate economic activity that would not otherwise occur in their absence. ORF set a record for commercial service passengers in 2019 before witnessing a dramatic fall in traffic in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Arrivals and departures quickly recovered, and ORF set a new passenger traffic record in 2024. This chapter explores the economic impact of ORF on the economy of Virginia.

Part 5: Silver Tsunami For The Third Sector, Dragas Center For Economic Analysis And Policy, Old Dominion University

State of the Region Reports: Hampton Roads

Affordable housing is only one of several societal stressors predicted to have nationwide impacts in conjunction with what has been dubbed the “Silver Tsunami,” a significant demographic shift occurring in the United States. According to Pew Research, every day, 10,000 members of the baby boomer generation—born between 1946 and 1964—reach retirement age. The implications of this demographic shift will impact every facet of life in Hampton Roads. This chapter explores how an aging population impacts nonprofits in Hampton Roads.

Part 6: Reflections On The State Of The Region Report, Dragas Center For Economic Analysis And Policy, Old Dominion University, James V. Koch

State of the Region Reports: Hampton Roads

In this chapter, Dr. James V. Koch, founding Director of the Dragas Center for Economic Analysis and Policy, reflects on the first 25 years of the State of the Region: Hampton Roads report. Dr. Koch provides insights on where the report has impacted the region. He also asks what the future may hold for the report.

Driving Sustainability: Tax Policy, Esg, And Electric Vehicle Incentives, Raquel Alexander, James G. Lawson, Curtis M. Nicholls, Vernan Rivera

Working Papers

No abstract provided.

Postsecondary Enrollment Demand-Gap Estimation Model: Projecting The Postsecondary Demand-Gap For California By 2035, Manish Ranjan Shrivastav

CGU Theses & Dissertations

The postsecondary education system in California has been under the pressure of expansion by the means of opening a new campus for several years. The Legislative Analyst’s Office has been recommending whether to open new campus or not as a part of its mandate. In 1990, it recommended opening up of one campus of CSU, however, its projections grossly underestimated the future demand. In 2017, the LAO in its report recommended that given the demand projections there is no need for a new campus. The study commissioned by the Chancellor’s office of California State University also made the same recommendation. …

Three Essays On Consumption And Information, Jin Xu

CGU Theses & Dissertations

This dissertation uses theoretical, empirical, and experimental methods to investigate how environmental constraints and psychological mechanisms shape individual consumption and information preference. Chapter 1 explores the impact of COVID-19 lockdown policies on alcohol and tobacco use in the United States. Using data from the 2020 wave of the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) and exploiting the exogenous variation in initial lockdown orders across states, we estimate the impact of stay-at-home orders on drinking and smoking behaviors for adults in the United States. Combining the propensity score matching method with the difference-in-differences identification strategy, we find that, at least in …

The Us Unconventional Monetary Policy And International Capital Flows To Emerging Market Economies, Tianyuan Zhang

CGU Theses & Dissertations

This dissertation investigates the spillover effects of US monetary policy on international capital inflows to emerging market economies (EMEs) from 2003Q1 to 2019Q4, with a focus on quantitative easing (QE) and its normalization phases, including both tapering and quantitative tightening (QT). Using a panel data model with fixed effects, this dissertation finds that the spillover effects of US monetary policy during the QE period have a more pronounced effect on EME capital inflows than do those during the normalization period, where the effects are relatively muted. Second, decomposing the normalization phase into tapering and QT periods reveals that the impact …

The Economics Of Crime: Exploring The Impact Of Psychedelics, Gun Liability Insurance, And Zero-Bail Policies On Crime, Victor Olu Kilanko

CGU Theses & Dissertations

This dissertation investigates the intersection of public health and criminal justice by empirically evaluating the effects of three distinct policy reforms: psychedelic decriminalization, firearm liability mandates, and zero cash bail, on crime outcomes in California. It aims to inform evidence-based policymaking by leveraging quasi-experimental methods to identify the causal impact of each intervention. A growing number of U.S. jurisdictions have decriminalized psychedelic substances, and there are attendant theoretical expectations that such reforms could promote desistance from crime through the rehabilitative potential of psychedelics. This study examines the causal impact of psychedelic decriminalization on violent and property crime rates using monthly …

A Proposal For One “Super” Independent Accountability Mechanism, Daniel D. Bradlow

Perspectives

This essay will discuss how the MDBs- for example, the World Bank Group, the African, Asian, and Inter-American Development Banks, and more recently the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, and the New Development Bank – are dealing with the issue of accountability. It will argue that, although the MDBs have been leaders in promoting international organizational accountability, their mechanisms of accountability are not keeping up with the evolution in their operations. In the interests of promoting new and creative thinking about these issues, it will also make an ambitious proposal for how the MDBs jointly …

Making Finance Relevant By Applying Corporate Finance To Personal Finance: The Case Of Leverage

Journal of Economics and Finance Education

This paper is based on the idea that Finance can be made more relevant to students by applying lessons learned in Corporate Finance to the Personal Finance of students. To demonstrate this, the paper introduces a unique example of Operating Leverage and Financial Leverage; and provides examples in which these Corporate Finance concepts are applied to the Personal Finance of students. The basic premise of this paper is that students learn better if the abstract concepts are made relevant to them, i.e., if the instructor relates the abstract concepts to the personal experience of students. This paper implies that there …

Truth, Reconciliation, And Neoliberalism: Remembering And Forgetting Pinochet’S Chile, Aimee Leigh Gallagher

History - Master of Arts in Teaching

I. Synthesis Essay………………..................4

III. Primary Documents and Headnotes.....26

IV. Textbook Critique……………….............36

V. Textbook Entry…………………………....42

Behavioral Finance: The Influence Cognitive Dissonance Has On Investors, Noah A. Adams

A with Honors Projects

The aim of this literature review is to understand the relation between the Cognitive Dissonance Theory and investor decision-making. Under the Investor Rationality Theory, investors are perceived to act in their best interest financially after gathering all available information on their investment. Behavioral Finance on the other hand is the study of psychological biases and emotions and how they influence investors, causing them to act rather irrationally and consequentially creating an irrational market.

How Auditor Competence Shapes Independence Of Thought, Tom J. Frye, Eddie Thomas

Academic Affairs

Our study aims to identify how the impact that the voluntary transmission of information between independent parties has on each person's ability to perform a task. We construct a simple laboratory experiment that tasks human subjects to estimate answers to a series of puzzles, earning compensation based on their accuracy. Before the final fourth repetition, there is a brief period where subjects are randomly matched with an anonymous discussion partner and may discuss their estimation procedures. We also vary the ability of subjects to see immediate feedback on their results between sessions. We find that subjects who rated the quality …

Rethinking Retained Earnings In The Additional Funds Needed Formula, James E. Larsen

Finance and Financial Services Faculty Publication

This paper critically re-evaluates the traditional application of the Additional Funds Needed formula by analyzing alternate interpretations of retained earnings. It illustrates how definitional shifts influence capital forecasts with a more nuanced approach to financial modeling in growth scenarios. The approach emphasizes numerical clarity, policy realism, and adaptability for financial planning. The paper challenges conventional AFN usage by embedding definitional flexibility and temporal awareness, offering decision-makers clearer visibility into funding sensitivity. It reframes AFN as a dynamic planning tool rather than a static formula, with implications for forecasting, policy-setting, and strategic finance.

Introducing Justice And Rights To Students Of Economics, Mark D. White

Publications and Research

Most economics instruction is focused on outcomes, whether evaluated in terms of individual or collective welfare or well-being. This is consistent with economics’ roots in classical utilitarianism, and no consideration is usually given to the process by which these results obtain, which is a deontological concern of right and wrong. This can seem odd to economics students, especially in the context of trade-offs in which one party is benefited at the expense of another, or aggregate welfare is maximized while some individuals are harmed, with no consideration in either of rights, desert, or justice. This chapter argues for the importance …

The Causes And Impact Of Evictions In Southern Nevada, Mohit Pande

Student Research

As the Southern Nevada region continues to quickly grow, evictions have become a structural feature of the region’s rental market. The region has one of the highest eviction filing rates in the country and this trend has continued to increase in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic. This paper examines the availability of market-rate affordable housing and the expansion of subsidized affordable housing to understand how the local housing conditions contribute to the number of evictions in Southern Nevada. Additionally, the paper studies local legal processes, such as the summary eviction system and habitability procedures, to understand the relationship between …

Electric Commuter Rail Access In Residential Communities: A Hedonic Analysis Case Study Of Nonmarket Value Creation, Catherine A. Sunding

Scripps Senior Theses

This study quantifies the price impact on houses of a new electric commuter rail line outside of Denver, Colorado. I find a negative price impact corresponding to increased accessibility and proximity of homes to the rail stations due to the negative externalities associated with the track. I also discover an even larger negative price impact of the rail stations in the years before the stations opened to the public, indicating possible endogeneity in the location of the rail line. I attempt to account for this endogeneity using instrumental variable analysis due to a limitation of house pricing data before 2016.

Classification Of Ghost Job Listings: A Two Step Bert Approach, Caleb Mathison

Senior Honors Theses and Projects

Ghost jobs are advertised positions where companies have no intent to hire which create significant frustration for job seekers. This study explores how to automatically detect these fake listings using public data. Analyzing 849 LinkedIn job postings, I developed a two-step detection method. First, I calculated a ghost job score based on warning signs like listing duration and vague descriptions. Second, I used a BERT neural network to analyze the text patterns. The results demonstrate that machine learning can identify deceptive hiring practices, offering a new way to measure labor market inefficiencies.

Your Attention Is For Sale, Sam Nova

Emerging Writers

There has been an undeniable trend of shortening attention span length within the last decade. The shift has made many people anxious to point fingers at potential factors which may be partial causes. Despite the common claims that the change is inadvertently caused by technology, shorter content online, or any other unintentional factor; the change is engineered and intentional. There is profit to be made for big social media companies from the purposeful shortening of attention spans amongst the public. Through harmful design philosophy which puts profit over public health, social media companies have designed their platforms to be addictive …

A Different Risk-Return Relationship, Aydin Selim Oksoy, Matthew R. Farrell, Shaomin Li

Management Faculty Publications

We challenge the widely accepted premise that the valuation of an early-stage firm is simply the capital invested (USD) divided by the equity received (%). Instead, we argue that this calculation determines the break-even point for the investor; for example, investing USD 1.0 in exchange for a 10% equity sets a firm-level free cash flow target of USD 10.0, resulting in a 0% return for the investor. The design of our study is that of a descriptive analysis of the phenomenon, based on three assumptions: that angel investing is a two-issue negotiation, that negotiation positions are communicated sequentially from capital …

Economic Inequality And Civil War In Yugoslavia: An Economic Historiography Of Civil War, Farah Swellam

The Undergraduate Research Journal

The reasons for the emergence of ethnic violence are a much-debated and controversial topic. It remains relevant in a world with increasingly heterogeneous nation-states. This article investigates the causes of ethnic violence in Yugoslavia by analyzing the history of the republic from its post-WWII formation to the beginning of its breakup in 1991. The paper uses a qualitative examination of the causes and consequences of economic and political policies to understand the mechanisms by which ethnic heterogeneity is transmitted into violence. It argues that economic inequality is a necessary underlying variable to explain the outbreak of ethnic violence and civil …

How The Expansion Of The Egyptian Tech Sector Can Attract Foreign Investment, Mohamed Hany Eldeib

The Undergraduate Research Journal

Egypt’s growing tech sector presents a significant opportunity to attract foreign direct investment (FDI), foster economic growth, and address critical challenges such as unemployment and skill gaps. This research examines how expanding the tech sector and implementing key policy reforms can position Egypt as an attractive hub for technology and innovation. Drawing on Paul Romer’s Endogenous Growth Theory—which underscores the role of innovation, human capital, and knowledge spillovers in driving sustained economic growth—this study explores how these elements, combined with investments in infrastructure and workforce development, contribute to Egypt’s competitiveness. Comparative insights from countries such as Vietnam and India further …

Green Cities Conference Proceedings-2025, Minoo Tehrani

Business Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

2025 State Of The Commonwealth Report, Vinod Agarwal, Josh Andrews, Andrea Barcenas, Jamie Boex, Leora Friedman, James V. Koch, Angela Kwao, Feng Lian, Anna Makhorkina, Melody Nguyen, Terry Parker, Mohamed Rahoui, Ashley Russ, Samia Tabassum, Jay Walker, Robert M. Mcnab

State of the Commonwealth Reports

This is Old Dominion University’s 11th annual State of the Commonwealth 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, its president, Brian Hemphill, Ph.D., the Board of Visitors, the Strome College of Business or the generous donors who support the activities of the Dragas Center for Economic Analysis and Policy.

Our work seeks to contribute to the conversation about how Virginia can foster growth across the Commonwealth without glossing over the challenges we face. We want to encourage difficult conversations to …

Part 2: The State Of Virginia's Go Virginia Regions, Dragas Center For Economic Analysis And Policy, Old Dominion University

State of the Commonwealth Reports

In this chapter, we discuss the economic performance of the nine GO Virginia regions relative to the state and nation. We examine a number of measures of economic performance: population, employment, jobs, wages, personal income, and establishments. Each of these measures is available on a more frequent basis than Gross Domestic Product (GDP), providing a more current picture of the economic activity in each GO Virginia region. In aggregate, these data allow us to construct a clearer picture of the health of Virginia’s regional economies.

Part 4: Is It Better To Give Than Receive? Exploring The Distributional Dimension Of Virginia's Budget, Dragas Center For Economic Analysis And Policy, Old Dominion University

State of the Commonwealth Reports

This chapter focuses on the distribution of intergovernmental finances in Virginia. Specifically, it analyzes the distribution of state-level public resources in the Commonwealth of Virginia that takes place as a result of state-to-local intergovernmental transfers. The analysis suggests that, as a result of the manner in which state revenues are collected and allocated back to localities, some Virginians contribute significantly more to the Commonwealth budget in taxes than they receive back in local benefits, while other state residents receive more in benefits than they pay in taxes.

Fair Play Or Financial Power? Examining The Competitive Impact Of Foreign Investment In European Football, Emma M. Fogg

Scripps Senior Theses

Football is not only the most popular sport in Europe but also fundamental to driving local and international economies due to the heavy influence fans have on driving ticket sales, team merchandise purchases and media rights. In the last twenty years, it has become increasingly popular for wealthy capital groups or businessmen from outside Europe to buy clubs and give teams a large influx of capital. Fans and players alike have grown worried that this type of new ownership will change the football world for the worse because teams with foreign investment can outspend their opponents for the best players. …

Where Purpose Meets Profit: The Impact Of Firm Size On The Relationship Between Esg Performance And Corporate Financial Performance On Firms In The Technology Industry, Riya Hariharan

Scripps Senior Theses

This study evaluates the impact of firm size on the relationship between ESG performance and corporate financial performance of firms within the technology industry. Specifically, this study uses OLS analysis to assess the relationship between ESG, measured using Morningstar Sustainalytics ESG risk scores, and return on assets, using firm market cap as a proxy for firm size. Data was compiled into an original dataset consisting of 254 firms. Results were significant, finding that increasing ESG practices in small and medium firms increases ROA. These findings highlight the economic value of social responsibility efforts in technology firms, particularly in small and …

Essays On The Effectiveness Of Diversion Programs In The United States Criminal Justice System, Tairy Ayon

CGU Theses & Dissertations

The United States criminal justice system is at a transformative time, with growing public support for reforms that prioritize rehabilitation over punishment. In response to this shift, prosecutor-led diversion programs are being introduced in areas where they were previously absent and expanded with increased resources in regions already established across the United States. This dissertation measures the effectiveness of these programs in three ways and uses data from six diverse U.S. jurisdictions. In the first chapter, I focus on how age-based eligibility criteria shape participation in diversion programs and its effectiveness in reducing recidivism. To do this, I examine data …

The International Transracial Adoption Effect: Measuring The Well-Being Of Korean Adoptees Vs. Non-Adopted Korean Americans, Grace H. Jones

Honors Theses

In this study, I examine the differences in well-being and long-term outcomes between adopted and non-adopted Korean Americans. The vast majority of adopted Korean Americans are placed with white, heterosexual couples, positioning them in a unique position in American society. While they are raised in white families and often disconnected from Korean culture, they are still perceived and treated as Asian by society. Scholars refer to this tension as the transracial adoptee paradox. This study explores how that paradox affects both economic and non-economic outcomes. The analysis finds that adopted Koreans tend to earn higher incomes than their non-adopted peers, …