Political Economy Commons^™

Digital Government Maturity Dan Kapasitas Fiskal Dalam Penyerapan Anggaran Daerah Di Indonesia, Winda Chelsea Meisari, Siti Fatimah

Jurnal Administrasi Bisnis Terapan

This study examines the determinants of budget absorption within Indonesian provincial governments by assessing the impact of digital government maturity and regional fiscal capacity. Digital maturity is operationalized using the Electronic-Based Government System (SPBE) index, while fiscal capacity is proxied by the Natural Logarithm of Local Genuine Revenue (Ln_PAD). Adopting a quantitative approach with a cross-sectional design encompassing 38 provinces in 2024, the data were evaluated through multiple linear regression analysis. The empirical findings demonstrate that neither digital maturity (p-value = 0.966) nor fiscal capacity (p-value = 0.774) exhibits a statistically significant relationship with budget absorption, both partially and simultaneously …

Selective Contagion: Sovereign Credit Integration And Heterogeneous Shock Transmission In Emerging Equity And Derivative Markets, Fabiana Araujo Rincón

Economics Undergraduate Senior Theses

Contagion in Latin America is real but selective: the direction of spillover depends on whether a country is integrated more strongly into global or regional markets. Using a stacked event study across 90 manually identified shocks from 2001 to 2026, I estimate regional contagion and its determinants across credit, currency, equity, and derivative markets. Contagion travels through sovereign credit, not currency, and through economic, not political, shocks. Political shocks, despite their larger domestic impact, stay locally contained. The direction of spillover turns on shock origin: shocks from large, globally integrated economies depress their peers, while shocks from smaller, regionally focused …

Fiscal And Monetary Policies For Inclusive Growth In Developing And Emerging Markets, Collins Anosike

Journal of Global Awareness

The study examined the effects of monetary and fiscal policies in attaining inclusive growth for some developing countries and emerging markets. The study selected 20 countries and grouped them into group one and group two. The study is unique because it captures a broader range of countries compared to previous studies and shows their effect on economic growth. We use panel data and employ OLS regression and Johansen cointegration. We examine how each variable, general government expenditure, gross national expenditure, total revenue, official exchange rate, broad money, and deposit interest rate, affects the dependent variable (real GDP) from 1980 to …

Notes From The Editor, Jay Nathan

Journal of Global Awareness

No abstract provided.

Letter From The Editor, Jay Nathan

Journal of Global Awareness

No abstract provided.

Undertaking Short-Term Finance Transactions In Brazil - An Historic And Modern Look At The Brazilian Economy And Associated Risks, Shawn M. D'Aversa

Student Research

The following report discusses the risks and construction of a hypothetical short-term trade finance transaction involving the five parties: Citibank N.A., Caterpillar Inc. (CAT), Banco Do Brasil, Paracatu Gold Mine and EXIM Bank. Fair warning: this is a long paper for a short-term transaction.

For the deal, Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) has approached Citibank N.A. in New York regarding a financing transaction for five 797F-400 short-ton haul trucks. The trucks are worth $5mn each, including the costs of training and spare parts, for a total of $25mn. Put simply, the trucks are beasts for mining. They will then be shipped to …

Gender And Grades: The Gap In How Men And Women Fear Economic Collapse, Riley O'Connor

Student Scholar Symposium Abstracts and Posters

Due to prescribed gender roles in society and wage gaps, historically, women have had to rely on spouses and family for economic survival. Now, with access to higher education and increased salaries, their economic fears are shifting. In this paper I analyze the extent of the gender gap in the fear of economic and financial collapse of Americans. Using the Chapman Survey of American Fear, an original data set surveying the degree to which American adults fear incidents collected in spring of 2025, men and women of the same education fear economic collapse differently, signifying men fear economic collapse less …

Converting The Social Security Trust Fund Into A Sovereign Wealth Fund: A Proposal To Secure The Future, Keanu Moore

Dartmouth College Master’s Theses

This thesis proposes the conversion of the Social Security Trust Fund into a sovereign wealth fund (SWF), paired with the phased creation of a mandatory retirement savings system for all working-age Americans. In response to forecasts projecting Trust Fund depletion by 2034, the proposed portfolio shift would diversify assets beyond U.S. Treasuries into global equities, real estate, alternatives, and fixed income, with the goal of enhancing long-term returns while remaining passively managed. While this reform would extend the Fund’s solvency, it is not, on its own, a permanent fix. To ensure structural sustainability beyond the exhaustion date, the thesis proposes …

Art Pricing And Anti-Corruption Campaigns: Evidence From Repeat Sales Of Chinese Paintings, Yihan Wang

Dissertations and Theses Collection (Open Access)

My dissertation investigates the impact of China’s anti-corruption campaign on the pricing of traditional Chinese paintings, leveraging a unique dataset of repeat sales transactions. Since the 1990s, China’s art market has experienced explosive growth, becoming the world’s largest by 2011. However, this market is characterized by extreme opacity, facilitating elegant bribery (“ya hui” in Chinese), where artworks serve as vehicles for implicit corruption through inflated auctions or disguised gifts to officials. The launch of the "Eight-point Regulation" in December 2012 marked a significant intensification of anti-corruption efforts, raising the critical question of how such political shocks affect asset pricing in …

The Tcja And Shareholder Payouts, Carson T. Bloom

CMC Senior Theses

Abstract

The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) provided corporations an estimated $233 billion in tax savings, yet relatively little is known about how firms allocated this cash windfall. This study examines whether growth and mature firms differed in whether they used these tax savings to distribute dividends and repurchase shares. Using panel data on publicly traded North American firms from 2016–2019, I classify firms as either growth or mature based on their cash-flow patterns and estimate the effects of the TCJA on their behavior using a difference-in-differences design.

The results indicate that mature firms increased shareholder payouts significantly more …

How Operational And Disclosure Complexity Shapes The Conglomerate Discount, Feng Dong, John A. Doukas, Son Wilson, Rongyao Zhang

Finance Faculty Publications

This study examines how firm operational diversification and disclosure complexity jointly drive the conglomerate discount. We disentangle disclosure complexity, which is determined by managerially influenced financial transparency, from accounting complexity, which is a direct informational consequence of operational complexity. We find that operational diversification is consistently associated with significant conglomerate discounts, while disclosure complexity independently reduces firm value and amplifies the magnitude of the discount when diversification is high. These findings suggest that transparent disclosures can mitigate valuation costs, offering important implications for managers seeking effective communication, investors assessing complex firms, and policymakers aiming to enhance disclosure quality and market …

Central Bank Crisis Interventions: A Review Of The Recent Literature On Potential Costs, Patrick Aldridge, David A. Cimon, Rishi Vala

Journal of Financial Crises

Central banks may engage in large-scale lending and asset purchases to stabilize financial markets and implement monetary policy during crises. The ability of these actions to restore financial market functioning is well documented; however, they come with costs. We provide a literature review of the costs associated with these post-Global Financial Crisis central bank actions, without commenting on the net benefits they provide. We find support for the premise that crisis actions may negatively impact market liquidity, distort asset prices, increase rent-seeking and inefficient uses of the liquidity provided by the central bank, create international spillovers, and create distortions in …

Investigating The Relationship Between Noun Classes And Plant Folk Taxonomy In Chasu Language Of Kilimanjaro Region In Tanzania, Peter Rabson Mziray

Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences

The current study investigates the relationship between noun classes and plant folk taxonomy in Chasu (G 22). The study focuses on two objectives: the first objective is to describe the plant folk taxonomy in Chasu and the second objective is to determine the relationship between noun classes and plant folk taxonomy in Chasu. Data were collected from rural villages in Same and Mwanga districts by using free listing, field interviews (jungle-walk-and-identify), and written texts containing Chasu plant names. The findings reveal that Chasu folk taxonomy reflects different ethnobotanical categories; including a unique beginner which is mmea/mimea ‘plant(s)’, and three life …

Constructing A State: Canals And The Transformation Of The Economy, Politics, And Finance In Nineteenth-Century New York, Youwei Xing

All Dissertations

This dissertation consists of three essays in economic history, unified by a focus on one of America's earliest transportation infrastructures, the canal system, in nineteenth-century New York. Each chapter explores a different aspect of the state's transformation: its economy, politics, and finance, each of which helped construct New York as the Empire State.

The first chapter studies the economic impact of canals on economic modernization from three aspects: sectoral transition, urbanization, and banking development. Contrary to much of the modern literature finds transportation infrastructure leads to decentralization, I find the opposite-evidence of centralization. Specially: (1) canal towns experienced a transition …

The Benefits To New York State Of The Local Roads Program, Theresa Lagasse

Applied Economics Theses

ABSTRACT:

This paper explores the history of the Cornell Local Roads Program and how it helps to satisfy Cornell’s land grant mission as an extension program. Then the paper will look at the programs impact both directly and indirectly on the economy of New York State, via its role in improving local road infrastructure and providing highway departments with trainings and technical support.

The focus of the paper examines the four primary components of the Local Roads Program at Cornell, including workshops, research initiatives, technical assistance, and the Local Roads library, each of which contributes to better road management and …

The Influence Of Political Uncertainty On Financial Markets During U.S. Elections: A Comprehensive Analysis, Ryan Hale

Finance Undergraduate Honors Theses

This thesis examines the impact of U.S. presidential elections on financial market performance, focusing on volatility, investor behavior, and market returns. Political uncertainty during election years often triggers market fluctuations, influencing investor confidence, policy expectations, and sector-specific reactions. By analyzing historical election-year data, this study identifies consistent patterns of increased volatility, shifts in investor sentiment, and post-election market stabilization. Findings suggest that while short-term uncertainty affects market behavior, long-term investment strategies should prioritize broader economic trends over election-driven fluctuations. These insights provide practical guidance for investors navigating politically uncertain environments.

The People's Ledger: Reform Or Revolution?, Kostantinos R. Grigoras

Applied Economics Theses

The ramifications of the 2007-08 financial crisis, the later Covid-19 pandemic, and the technological developments surrounding cryptocurrencies and digital ledgers have led to increasingly explicit political views on banking apart from dominant mainstream economic narratives. As such, a widening range of authors from varying perspectives have sought to contribute a “programmatic vision” to the set of changes they assert as necessary in the current financial system. Saule T. Omarova’s (2021) controversial article, “The People’s Ledger: How to Democratize Money and Finance the Economy,” and the resulting political reaction to its goal of advancing such a programmatic vision in order to …

Forgive Me Not? Racial And Institutional Disparities In The Paycheck Protection Program Loan Forgiveness, Vladimir Kotomin, Wyatt Frere, Ruby Morr

Faculty Publications – Finance, Insurance, and Law

Existing research establishes that minority borrowers, particularly Black small business owners, faced significant challenges in accessing funds from the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), especially in its early stages. We find that institutional and racial disparities persist during the PPP loan forgiveness stage. Controlling for various loan- and borrower-level characteristics, we demonstrate that relationship lenders – community banks, credit unions, and farm credit institutions – are associated with higher rates of PPP loan forgiveness. In contrast, automated lenders – fintechs and fintech banks – exhibit the lowest forgiveness rates. Black borrowers experience the poorest outcomes, except for loans issued by non-depository …

Drivers And Barriers To Financial Transparency In Georgia’S Local Governments, Min S. Kim

The Guardianship Journal

This study investigates the determinants of financial transparency in local governments, specifically measured by the availability of financial documents on official websites. Hypotheses were developed to examine the relationships between financial transparency and three categories of influencing factors: community environmental characteristics, governance structures, and financial conditions. Using empirical analysis on a sample of 159 counties in Georgia, the findings reveal varying levels of support for the proposed hypotheses. Key determinants of financial transparency include population size, median household income, and the size of the board of commissioners. Conversely, financial condition factors were not found to significantly influence financial transparency. These …

A Red Awakening: An Analysis Of China’S Quest For Global Dominance Through Economic Alternative Warfare Methods, Sarah Beddingfield

Senior Honors Theses

In the 2023 annual meeting of China’s parliament, Chinese President Xi made it clear to his political leaders and the world that he was preparing for war. This should come as no surprise after analysis of China's grand strategy points clearly to the intent to surpass the U.S. as the premier global superpower in all respects. China has been building towards this goal for years through untraditional methods of warfare, forcing the national security community to reevaluate its own strategy and assess the Chinese threat through a different lens. This thesis seeks to address one specific area in which China …

U.S. Government Agency Podcasts, Bert Chapman

Libraries Faculty and Staff Presentations

Presents podcasts from U.S. Government agencies which can be discovered through the U.S. Government Publishing Office's Catalog of Government Publications. Agencies whose podcasts are presented include the National Institutes of Health, U.S. Peace Corps, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Government Accountability Office (GAO), National Park Service, Department of Justice, Federal Reserve System, and U.S. Naval War College.

Cost Of Capital And Climate Risk In The Indonesian Bonds Market, Maulana Harris Harris Muhajir

Bulletin of Monetary Economics and Banking

This study analyzes the impact of climate risk, cost of capital, and macroeconomic variables on the Indonesian bond market, focusing on non-ESG aware and ESG-aware bonds. Using a regression analysis, we found that the cost of capital has a significant negative effect on bond yields, highlighting the importance of policymakers focusing on initiatives that can lower the cost of capital for investors. Inflation rate was also found to have a significant positive effect on non-ESG aware bonds, which is a unique feature of the Indonesian bond market. We found that ESG-aware bond yields were negatively significant, indicating that investors are …

Essays On Real Estate, Flood Risk, And Political Sentiment, John P. Orellana

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This dissertation consists of three chapters that investigate how climate change, flood risk, and political sentiment influence outcomes in housing markets.

Chapter 1: This chapter offers a brief review and discussion of several recent and seminal papers at the intersection of flood risk, climate change, and real estate, as well as a critique on some of the literature on the effects of sea-level rise on housing outcomes.

Chapter 2: FEMA flood maps serve two functions: they signal risk to homeowners and mandate insurance take-up. How these information and risk transfer mechanisms affect homeowner relocation decisions remains unknown. Combining real estate …

Lobbying – A Financial Perspective, Sean Byrne

Theses and Dissertations

U.S. based bank holding companies (BHCs) exert influence at every step in the legislative process where financial regulatory reforms are enacted into law, such as the Dodd-Frank Act, to promulgation of regulations. In Chapter II, we maintain that BHCs, upon facing salient regulation, lobby regulators to have their opinions heard with the goal of favorable regulatory change and to increase non-traditional revenues. We undertook a novel collection of political and financial data from 2003 to 2018, matching 180 pairs of parsed proposed and final regulations. BHCs that participated in commenting on proposed rules are highly successful at having their views …

U.S. Implementation Of Total Loss Absorbing Capacity And Long Term Debt Standards, Sarabeth Mcclain

Senior Honors Projects

In the fallout of the 2008 Global Financial Crisis, governments were tasked in aiding banks that were bloated by troubled assets and deeply integrated into financial markets, effectively described as “Too Big To Fail.” Moving forward following the crisis, governments were obligated to rebuild a system that would prevent the need for financial industry bailouts at such a massive scale and scope. One specific regulation introduced at the international level posed a set of regulations requiring that banks hold specific amounts of equity and debt instruments earmarked to absorb future financial losses, allowing for either continued function or limited resolution …

A Qualitative Study On The Financial Education Of Young Black Men, Sue M. May

University of the Pacific Theses and Dissertations

Financial literacy awareness is low among young adults, and financial literacy among Black college students is significantly lower than in other groups (Singh, 2018). However, there is little to no research on why financial literacy is so low among young Black men between 18 and 25. Few studies specifically show how financial literacy and decision-making may be related to their family economics and socialization for young Black men. Using Critical Race Theory and Family Financial Socialization theoretical frameworks, this dissertation project examined a sample of seven young self-identified Black men ages 24 to 25 years old in Northern California Bay …

Unwilling Gamblers And Loaded Dice: Considering Recession And Crisis As A Natural Effect Of Financial Capitalism, Darlene N. Moorman

The Downtown Review: An Interdisciplinary Journal Written and Peer-Reviewed by Mandel Honors College Students at Cleveland State University

Under financial capitalism, ordinary people are increasingly becoming 'unwilling gamblers' of a risky and unstable system. This paper explores the social and institutional change behind the neoliberal movement and considers how the politics and policies of neoliberalism have contributed to a certain environment of financial instability. Looking at the changing nature of the economy, the rapid expansion of the financial sector, and the persisting issue of moral hazard underlying risky and speculative behaviors among other items, reveals a financial system in which recessions and crises can be considered a natural, although not inevitable, effect.

Southeast Asia & The Hidden Green Revolution: A Study On Foreign Direct Investment In Eco-Investments In Asean, Ravi Chailertborisuth

Undergraduate Honors Theses

This paper aims to find: To what extent foreign direct investment is fueling the renewable energy transition in ASEAN. The year 1966 saw the founding of ASEAN, the Association for Southeast Asian Nations. The five founding member nations were: Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand. Over time, this group of nations grew to include nations such as: Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, Brunei, and Myanmar. The IGO (inter-governmental organization) aims to foster “economic, social, cultural, technical, educational and other fields” (ASEAN). The IGO is successful, allowing capital to flow cross-borders with more ease, and encourage economic corporation across all nations. Since …

Political Connections, Informational Asymmetry, And The Efficient Resolution Of Financial Distress, Madhav S. Aney, Sanjay Banerji

Research Collection School Of Economics

We show that securities issued by a distressed firm, often through exchange offers, providethe most efficient resolution of financial restructuring. Information asymmetry between thefirm-bank coalition and small bondholders gives rise to other forms of distress resolutionsuch as refinancing, public workout, and the inefficiency of liquidation. We find that politicallobbying by the firm-bank amplifies these inefficiencies and inhibits the development of privatemarket for distressed securities. Cross-country evidence is consistent with this and indicatesthat improved creditor rights, and information facilitating credit bureaus interact in reducingthe likelihood of inefficient distress resolution.

The Euro And Bumps In The Road: Historical Patterns Of Nonresident Holdings In Eurozone Bonds, 1980–2018, Michael H. Scarlatos

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

A developed bond market which attracts nonresident investors both enables and reflects a host currency’s transition from domestic to international status. My analysis of historical private nonresident holdings of Eurozone portfolio debt securities spanning the euro’s 1999 creation and its subsequent 2008 crisis reveals diverging patterns.

This analysis, complemented by coefficient stability tests, discovers that the conversion of national currencies to the euro was reflected by a pickup in nonresident holdings of bonds issued by countries adopting the euro, especially those of the periphery (Portugal, Ireland, Italy and Spain) relative to the core (Germany, Austria, Belgium, Finland, France, and the …