|
on Urban and Real Estate Economics |
| By: | Morgenroth, Edgar |
| Abstract: | Ireland experienced a recent boom-bust cycle in the housing market. While the housing market in Ireland has been analysed at the national level there has been no research on the relationship between fundamentals and the housing market at the sub-national level. In this paper the spatial distribution of household changes is projected for the period 2011 to 2021 and this is used to consider the impact on housing demand, taking into account the significant overhang of vacant properties. Given the assumptions used the demographic projections indicate that the growth in number of households will be concentrate in and around the large cities and particularly Dublin. Given a smaller vacant stock and the projected growth in conjunction with small number of housing completions implies that the Greater Dublin Region will experience housing shortages. Formal modelling of the change in house prices, the stock of housing and the vacancy rate confirms that fundamental drivers are important in shaping these variables. Importantly, the estimated parameters confirm the emerging shortage of housing in Dublin and predict consequent strong growth in house prices. |
| Keywords: | Regional housing market, house prices, demographic change |
| JEL: | R23 R31 R32 |
| Date: | 2014–07–30 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:57665&r=ure |
| By: | Hiller, Norbert; Lerbsy, Oliver |
| Abstract: | This paper extends existing research on regional quality of life in Germany by newly estimating the role of region-specific (dis-)amenities in the determination of regional housing rents and wages. Different from previous studies, the empirical analysis draws on functional labor market areas recently delineated by Kosfeld and Werner [Raumf Raumordn (2012) 70: 49-64] rather than administrative jurisdictions, circumventing problems of spatial autocorrelation. Consistent with cross-region spatial equilibrium, the results indicate that labor market area heterogeneity in housing rents and wages is closely related to differences in non-market attributes that affect household utility. The results enable the construction of a comprehensive ranking of regional quality of life which can be directly compared to the findings of previous studies. -- |
| Keywords: | Functional labor market areas,Non-market (dis-)amenities,Spatial equilibrium analysis,Quality of Life,Spatial autocorrelation |
| JEL: | R13 R21 R23 |
| Date: | 2014 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:cawmdp:71&r=ure |
| By: | Céline Grislain-Letrémy (INSEE, CREST, Université Paris-Dauphine); Arthur Katossky |
| Abstract: | The willingness of households to pay for prevention against industrial risks can be revealed by real estate markets. By using very rich microdata, we study housing prices in the vicinity of hazardous industries near three important French cities. We show that the impact of hazardous plants on the housing values strongly differs among these three areas, even if the areas all surround chemical and petrochemical industries. We compare the results from both standard parametric and more flexible, semiparametric models of hedonic property. We show that the parametric model might structurally lead to important biases in the estimated value of the impact of hazardous plants on housing values and in the variations of this impact with respect to the distance from the plants |
| Keywords: | hedonic analysis, locally weighted regression, urban housing markets, industrial risk |
| JEL: | C21 Q51 R52 R21 |
| Date: | 2014–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:crs:wpaper:2014-13&r=ure |
| By: | Dirk Dohse; Robert Gold |
| Abstract: | This paper discusses policy implications from the empirical results obtained in the preceding tasks and, in particular, from a survey among city representatives and representatives of migrant organizations in 40 European cities. It argues that cultural diversity is a distinct aspect of migration that must be taken into account when designing policies. Moreover, it pleads for integrating migration and innovation policies to better use the economic potentials linked to migration. In order to achieve this goal, local actors should be incorporated into the design and implementation of (future) integration policies to take adequately into account the regional heterogeneity in diversity effects observed. |
| Keywords: | Regional Development, Urban Development, Cultural Diversity |
| JEL: | M13 O18 R11 |
| Date: | 2014–07 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:feu:wfewop:y:2014:m:7:d:0:i:64&r=ure |
| By: | Sjaak Braster (Erasmus Universiteit Rotterdam); Jaap Dronkers (University Maastricht) |
| Abstract: | This paper address the question whether ethnic diversity in school classes in the context of major cities and metropolises, where children from an early age grew up with the phenomenon of ethnic diversity, has a positive effect on the educational performance of migrant pupils. We use PISA 2006 data with 8,521 immigrant students from 35 origin countries, living in 15 destination countries, and all 72,329 native students in these countries. Native students and students with an immigrant background have been analyzed separately, using a multilevel analysis. We find that the effect of school ethnic diversity outside cities is quite negative on the educational performance of migrant and native pupils. In cities the effect of school ethnic diversity is smaller but still negative for both migrant and native pupils. But in large cities the effect of school ethnic diversity on educational performance is positive for both migrant and native pupils. |
| Date: | 2014–07 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:crm:wpaper:1430&r=ure |
| By: | Gabriel M. Ahlfeldt; Stephen J. Redding; Daniel M. Sturm; Nikolaus Wolf |
| Abstract: | This paper develops a quantitative model of internal city structure that features agglomeration and dispersion forces and an arbitrary number of heterogeneous city blocks. The model remains tractable and amenable to empirical analysis because of stochastic shocks to commuting decisions, which yield a gravity equation for commuting flows. To structurally estimate agglomeration and dispersion forces, we use data on thousands of city blocks in Berlin for 1936, 1986 and 2006 and exogenous variation from the city's division and reunification. We estimate substantial and highly localized production and residential externalities. We show that the model with the estimated agglomeration parameters can account both qualitatively and quantitatively for the observed changes in city structure. |
| JEL: | N34 O18 R12 |
| Date: | 2014–07 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:nbr:nberwo:20354&r=ure |
| By: | Alexander Klein; Tim Leunig |
| Abstract: | This paper examines Gibrat’s law in England and Wales between 1801 and 1911 using a unique data set covering the entire settlement size distribution. We find that Gibrat’s law broadly holds even in the face of population doubling every fifty years, an industrial and transport revolution, and the absence of zoning laws to constrain growth. The result is strongest for the later period, and in counties most affected by the industrial revolution. The exception were villages in areas bypassed by the industrial revolution. We argue that agglomeration externalities balanced urban disamenities such as commuting costs and poor living conditions to ensure steady growth of many places, rather than exceptional growth of few. |
| Keywords: | Gibrat’s law; city-size distribution; industrial revolution |
| JEL: | I3 |
| Date: | 2013–09 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ehl:wpaper:58363&r=ure |
| By: | Casey Dougal; Christopher A. Parsons; Sheridan Titman |
| Abstract: | We find that a firm's investment is highly sensitive to the investments of other firms headquartered nearby, even those in very different industries. It also responds to fluctuations in the cash flows and stock prices (q) of local firms outside its sector. These patterns do not appear to reflect exogenous area shocks such as local shocks to labor or real estate values, but rather suggest that local agglomeration economies are important determinants of firm investment and growth. |
| JEL: | G3 G31 R10 R12 |
| Date: | 2014–07 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:nbr:nberwo:20350&r=ure |
| By: | Christian Dustmann (University College London); Francesco Fasani (Queen Mary University) |
| Abstract: | This paper analyses the effect of local crime rates on residents’ mental health. Using longitudinal information on individuals’ mental well-being, we address the problem of sorting and endogenous moving behaviour. We find that crime causes considerable mental distress for residents, mainly driven by property crime. Effects are stronger for females, and mainly related to depression and anxiety. The distress caused by one standard deviation increase in local crime is 2-4 times larger than that caused by a one standard deviation decrease in local employment, and about one seventh of the short-term impact of the 7 July 2005 London Bombings. |
| Keywords: | neighbourhoodeffects,mentalwellbeing,fearofcrime |
| JEL: | I18 K42 R23 |
| Date: | 2014–07 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:crm:wpaper:1428&r=ure |
| By: | Patrizia Ordine; Giuseppe Rose; Daniela Sposato (Dipartimento di Economia, Statistica e Finanza, Università della Calabria) |
| Abstract: | This paper provides a comprehensive analysis of the effect of early school entry on educational outcomes using standardized test score data on Italian pupils. The empirical procedure is designed to disentangle the effect of regular entry (Gift of Time) from possible unobserved confounding factors (Family Gift) affecting both enrollment decision and schooling outcome. We tackle the issue of selection on unobservables by using a Regression Discontinuity Design so that exogenous age thresholds are used to compare children with similar age but different educational choices. Our estimates suggest that anticipated school entry may generate severe penalties in test scores which persist during primary school. Our fi?ndings have policy implications for parents, which struggle with the question of whether they should send their children to school as soon as they are eligible, and for governments, which can change cutoff birth date for ?first enrollment into school. |
| Keywords: | Age at school entry, primary school, standardized test scores |
| JEL: | I20 H52 |
| Date: | 2014–07 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:clb:wpaper:201408&r=ure |
| By: | Dougherty, Shaun; Joshua Goodman; Darryl Hill; Erica Litke; Lindsay Page |
| Abstract: | School districts across the country have struggled to increase the proportion of students taking�algebra by 8th grade, thought to be an important milestone on the pathway to college�preparedness. We highlight key features of a research collaboration between the Wake County�Public School System and Harvard University that have enabled investigation of one such effort�to solve this problem. In 2010, the district began assigning middle school students to accelerated�math coursework leading to 8th grade algebra on the basis of a clearly defined measured of prior�academic skill. We document two important facts. First, use of this new rule greatly reduced the�relationship between course assignment and student factors such as income and race while�increasing the relationship between course assignment and academic skill. Second, using a�regression discontinuity analytic strategy, we show that the assignment rule had strong impacts�on the fraction of students on track to complete algebra by 8th grade. Students placed in�accelerated math were exposed to higher-skilled peers but larger class sizes. We describe future�plans for assessing impacts on achievement and high school course-taking outcomes. |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:qsh:wpaper:175236&r=ure |
| By: | Ozlem Akin; José Garcia Montalvo; Jaume Garcia Villar; José-Luis Peydró; Josep M. Raya |
| Abstract: | We analyze the determinants of real estate and credit bubbles using a unique borrower-lender matched dataset on mortgage loans in Spain. The dataset contain real estate credit and price conditions (loan principal and spread, and the appraisal and market price) at the mortgage level, matched with borrower characteristics (such as income, labor status and contract) and the lender identity, over the last credit boom and bust. We find that lending standards are softer in the boom than in the bust. Moreover, despite some adjustment in lending conditions in the good times depending on borrower risk, the results suggest too soft lending standards and excessive risk-taking in the boom. For example, mortgage spreads for non-employed are identical to employed borrowers during the boom. Banks with worse corporate governance problems soften even more the standards. Finally, we analyze the mechanism by which banks could increase the supply of mortgage loans despite of regulatory restrictions on LTVs. The evidence is consistent with banks encouraging real estate appraisal firms to introduce an upward bias in appraisal prices (29%), to meet loan-to-value regulatory thresholds (40% of mortgages are just bunched on these limits), thus building-up the credit and the real estate bubble. |
| Keywords: | Lending standards; credit supply; excessive risk-taking; bank incentives; conflicts of interest; moral hazard; prudential policy; financial crises; real estate bubble. |
| JEL: | G01 G21 G28 |
| Date: | 2014–07 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:upf:upfgen:1430&r=ure |
| By: | MORITA Tadashi; YAMAMOTO Kazuhiro |
| Abstract: | In this study, we construct an interregional trade model that includes endogenous fertility rates. The presented model shows that the agglomeration of manufacturing firms in a large region causes fertility rates to become lower than that in a small region. The agglomeration of firms in a region lowers the price of manufactured goods relative to child rearing costs, which reduces fertility rates. We also find that a decrease in transportation costs results in the agglomeration of manufacturing firms, which lowers fertility rates in both large and small regions. We then extend our two-region model to a multi-region model and find that the number of manufacturing firms in larger regions is always greater than that in smaller regions. Therefore, fertility rates in larger regions are always lower than in smaller regions. |
| Date: | 2014–07 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:eti:dpaper:14045&r=ure |
| By: | E. Otranto; M. Mucciardi; P. Bertuccelli |
| Abstract: | The recent literature on time series has developed a lot of models for the analysis of the dynamic conditional correlation, involving the same variable observed in different locations; very often, in this framework, the consideration of the spatial interactions are omitted. We propose to extend a time-varying conditional correlation model (following an ARMA dynamics) to include the spatial effects, with a specification depending on the local spatial interactions. The spatial part is based on a fixed symmetric weight matrix, called Gaussian Kernel Matrix (GKM), but its effect will vary along the time depending on the degree of time correlation in a certain period. We show the theoretical aspects, with the support of simulation experiments, and apply this methodology to two space-time data sets, in a demographic and a financial framework respectively. |
| Keywords: | space-time correlation, time-varying correlation, weight matrix, gaussian kernel |
| JEL: | C13 C33 J13 |
| Date: | 2014 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cns:cnscwp:201406&r=ure |
| By: | Uwe Dulleck; Juliana Silva-Goncalves; Benno Torgler |
| Abstract: | This article introduces the Fogs Artie program that attempts to close the gap in educational attainment between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians, and provides an evaluation of its effectiveness. The program is of special interest as it uses in-kind incentives conditional on achievement of a specific target for academic grades, behaviour and attendance, coupled with information sessions on the importance of educational achievement. In 2012, all Indigenous students enrolled in 21 high schools in Queensland were invited to take part in the program. Using a differences-in-differences strategy, we find that the program improved behavioural and academic grades and reduced the number of unexplained absences for female students, but not for male students. In contrast, the program improved scores on a standardized national assessment test for male students. Moreover, we find that the program is only effective for students from intact families. |
| Keywords: | Education; Incentives; Indigenous; Program Evaluation; Policy |
| JEL: | I24 I25 I28 |
| Date: | 2014–07 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cra:wpaper:2014-13&r=ure |
| By: | Christopher A. Parsons; Johan Sulaeman; Sheridan Titman |
| Abstract: | We find that a firm’s tendency to engage in financial misconduct increases with the misconduct rates of neighboring firms. This appears to be caused by peer effects, rather than exogenous shocks like regional variation in enforcement. Effects are stronger among firms of comparable size, and among CEOs of similar age. Moreover, local waves of financial misconduct correspond with local waves of non-financial corruption, such as political fraud. |
| JEL: | G0 K42 M41 R0 |
| Date: | 2014–07 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:nbr:nberwo:20347&r=ure |
| By: | Juhász, Mattias; Tamás Mátrai; Gergely Gál |
| Abstract: | In the last three decades the level of motorization has increased a lot in Budapest, so the well-known urban congestion effect became relevant in the capital of Hungary (ca. 30 years after western European cities). Since 2007, which was a peak in terms of traffic volumes the idea of the congestion charging scheme has become more and more popular among transport professionals and general public. The purpose of a possible measure could be quite complex: a combination of revenue generation, influence travel behaviour and environmental goals. As there were different legal, territorial and fiscal alternatives to achieve the goals, a widespread, detailed feasibility analysis needed in order to assess the expected effects and to choose the most efficient version. Therefore the research question was that is it suggested to introduce a congestion charging scheme in Budapest and if yes, than how the system should work? The research methodology was a conventional feasibility assessment with a multi-criteria analysis (MCA) of the theoretical alternatives, transport modeling, cost-benefit and cost-efficiency analyses. The aim of this paper is to present the results of these assessments. Through the analysis of expected transport, environmental, economic and social effects a few proposed alternatives have been selected. This case-study presents how complex a decision-making process can be which involve so many conflicting interests. It provides an insight to the main challenges and it shows through the results that what lessons can be learnt and adopted to other cities with similar issues. |
| Date: | 2014 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:sit:wpaper:14_02&r=ure |
| By: | Sebastian Galiani (University of Maryland); Paul Gertler (UC Berkeley); Ryan Cooper (J-PAL); Sebastian Martinez (Inter-American Development Bank); Adam Ross (Bill & Melinda Gates); Raimundo Undurraga (New York University) |
| Abstract: | This paper provides empirical evidence on the causal effects that upgrading slum dwellings has on the living conditions of the extremely poor. In particular, we study the impact of providing better houses in situ to slum dwellers in El Salvador, Mexico and Uruguay. We experimentally evaluate the impact of a housing project run by the NGO TECHO which provides basic pre-fabricated houses to members of extremely poor population groups in Latin America. The main objective of the program is to improve household well-being. Our findings show that better houses have a positive effect on overall housing conditions and general well-being: treated households are happier with their quality of life. In two countries, we also document improvements in children’s health; in El Salvador, slum dwellers also feel that they are safer. We do not find this result, however, in the other two experimental samples. There are no other noticeable robust effects on the possession of durable goods or in terms of labor outcomes. Our results are robust in terms of both internal and external validity because they are derived from similar experiments in three different Latin American countries. |
| JEL: | I12 I31 J13 O15 O18 |
| Date: | 2014–07 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:dls:wpaper:0165&r=ure |
| By: | Piotr Rosik; Marcin Stepniak; Musial-Malagó, Monika |
| Abstract: | The main goal of the paper is to present the results of the potential accessibility model, which enables simulations of changes of accessibility in Poland to be performed due to the opening of the model to the international dimension. The most important conclusions from the analysis of potential accessibility are as follows. The spatial distribution of potential accessibility depends most upon the value of the beta parameter appearing in the exponential distance decay function and upon the spatial scale (national vs. international variant of the analysis). The opening up of the potential model to the entire European continent significantly changes the image of accessibility in Poland, in particular when long trips are taken into account. For shorter trips the areas located along the German border benefit, mainly owing to the proximity of Berlin, yet the highest accessibility still remains in Warsaw and Upper Silesia (as in the national variant). For longer trips the areas with the best accessibility are Lower Silesia (south-western part of Poland), along with the areas bordering Germany and the Czech Republic. The accessibility level decreases in a north-easterly direction. Railway accessibility changes to a much smaller extent when the model is opened to the European dimension. The results of the study may find application in planning analyses, in strategies, in relation to cohesion, regional and transport policies, and also in the transboundary context. |
| Date: | 2014 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:sit:wpaper:14_03&r=ure |
| By: | Stephen Roper (Warwick University Business School); James H. Love (Aston University Business School); Ying Zhou (Aston University Business School) |
| Abstract: | In this paper we develop a framework to identify those elements of firms’ knowledge context which are important for innovation, and the mechanisms through which that knowledge impacts on firms’ innovation performance. We make four main contributions to the existing literature. First, our characterisation of knowledge context provides the basis for a more specific identification of which elements of firms’ knowledge environment are important for innovation, discriminating between spatial, industrial and network influences. Second, we reflect the role of innovation ambition in shaping firms’ knowledge search strategies. Third, we differentiate between firms’ interactive and non-interactive knowledge search activities and recognise that these may be complemented by unanticipated and serendipitous knowledge spillovers. Finally, we introduce the notion of encoding capacity to reflect firms’ internal ability to assimilate and apply external knowledge. Our framework provides an integrating mechanism for existing empirical studies, suggests a number of new research directions related to the determinants of innovation performance and the heterogeneity of innovation outcomes. |
| Keywords: | Knowledge, innovation, spatial, industry, learning |
| Date: | 2014–06–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:enr:rpaper:0020&r=ure |
| By: | Sarit Cohen Goldner (Bar-Ilan University); Gil S. Epstein (Bar Ilan University) |
| Abstract: | We focus on high school dropout rate among male and female immigrant children. We consider the relationship between the dropout rate and age of arrival of the immigrants. Using repeated cross sectional data from the Israeli Labor Force Surveys of 1996-2011 we show that the share of high school dropouts among immigrant children who arrived from the Former Soviet Union during 1989-1994 is at least as double than among natives in the same age group. Further, we show that among immigrant youth there is a monotonic negative relation between age at arrival and the share of high school dropouts. To understand our results we present a theoretical framework that links between age at arrival in the host country, language proficiency, quality of education and wages. |
| Keywords: | Immigrants, age at arrival, high-school dropouts |
| JEL: | I21 J24 J61 |
| Date: | 2014–08 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:crm:wpaper:1431&r=ure |
| By: | Leppälä, Samuli (Cardiff Business School) |
| Abstract: | There is substantial empirical evidence that innovation is geographically concentrated. Unlike what is generally assumed, however, it is not clear that localised knowledge spillovers provide a theoretically valid explanation for this. Studying spillovers of cost-reducing technology between Cournot oligopolists we show that 1) localised knowledge spillovers of any level do encourage agglomeration, but 2) whether this leads to higher levels of effective R&D depends on the type and level of knowledge spillovers, the number of firms, and the industry's R&D efficiency. |
| Keywords: | knowledge spillovers; agglomeration economies; innovation; location |
| JEL: | O33 R32 L13 |
| Date: | 2014–07 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cdf:wpaper:2014/10&r=ure |
| By: | Sean Lewis-Faupel; Yusuf Neggers; Benjamin A. Olken; Rohini Pande |
| Abstract: | Poorly functioning, and often corrupt, public procurement procedures are widely faulted for the low quality of infrastructure provision in developing countries. Can electronic procurement (e-procurement), which reduces both the cost of acquiring tender information and personal interaction between bidders and procurement officials, ameliorate these problems? In this paper we develop a unique micro-dataset on public works procurement from two fast-growing economies, India and Indonesia, and use regional and time variation in the adoption of e-procurement across both countries to examine its impact. We find no evidence that e-procurement reduces prices paid by the government, but do find that it is associated with quality improvements. In India, where we observe an independent measure of construction quality, e-procurement improves the average road quality, and in Indonesia, e-procurement reduces delays in completion of public works projects. Bidding data suggests that an important channel of influence is selection -- regions with e-procurement have a broader distribution of winners, with (better) winning bidders more likely to come from outside the region where the work takes place. On net, the results suggest that e-procurement facilitates entry from higher quality contractors. |
| JEL: | H57 O12 O53 |
| Date: | 2014–07 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:nbr:nberwo:20344&r=ure |
| By: | Fairlie, Robert |
| Abstract: | Administrative data from a large and diverse community college are used to examine if underrepresented minority students benefit from taking courses with underrepresented minority instructors. To identify racial interactions we estimate models that include both student and classroom fixed effects and focus on students with limited choice in courses. We find that the performance gap in terms of class dropout rates and grade performance between white and underrepresented minority students falls by 20 to 50 percent when taught by an underrepresented minority instructor. We also find these interactions affect longer term outcomes such as subsequent course selection, retention, and degree completion. |
| Keywords: | Social and Behavioral Sciences, minority, college, community college, affirmative action, diversity |
| Date: | 2014–08–06 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cdl:ucscec:qt1pd995t5&r=ure |
| By: | Diewert, Erwin; Shimizu, Chihiro |
| Abstract: | The paper studies the problems associated with the construction of price indexes for commercial properties that could be used in the System of National Accounts. Property price indexes are required for the stocks of commercial properties in the Balance Sheets of the country and related price indexes for the land and structure components of a commercial property are required in the Balance Sheet accounts of the country for the calculation of the Multifactor Productivity of the Commercial Property Industry. The paper uses a variant of the builder’s model that has been used to construct Residential Property Price Indexes. Geometric depreciation rates are estimated for commercial offices in Tokyo using assessment data for REITs. The problems associated with the decomposition of asset value into land and structure components are addressed. The problems associated with depreciating capital expenditures on buildings and with measuring the loss of asset value due to early retirement of the structure are also addressed. |
| Keywords: | Commercial property price indexes, System of National Accounts, Balance Sheets, methods of depreciation, land and structure price indexes, demolition |
| JEL: | C2 C23 C43 D12 E31 R21 |
| Date: | 2014–07–14 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ubc:bricol:erwin_diewert-2014-34&r=ure |
| By: | Tim Friehe (University of Bonn); Thomas J. Miceli (University of Connecticut) |
| Abstract: | This paper explores the advantages of focusing law enforcement on some locations when offenders can choose locations. The substitutability of different crimes from the offender's perspective is established as the key variable determining whether asymmetric enforcement is socially desirable. When it is easy for offenders to substitute crimes, focused law enforcement can be preferable only when the act imposes more harm in one location than in another (e.g., speeding in a residential or industrial area). |
| Keywords: | crime, deterrence, focused enforcement, allocation of police |
| JEL: | K42 |
| Date: | 2014–07 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:uct:uconnp:2014-15&r=ure |
| By: | Bergantino, Angela Stefania; Capozza, Claudia |
| Date: | 2014 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:sit:wpaper:14_01&r=ure |
| By: | Munasib, Abdul; Rickman, Dan S. |
| Abstract: | The dramatic increase in oil and gas production from shale formations has led to intense interest in its impact on local area economies. Exploration, drilling and extraction are associated with direct increases in employment and income in the energy industry, but little is known about the impacts on other parts of local economies. Increased energy sector employment and income can have positive spillover effects through increased purchases of intermediate goods and induced local spending. Negative spillover effects can occur through rising local factor and goods prices and adverse effects on the local area quality of life. Therefore, this paper examines the net economic impacts of oil and gas production from shale formations for key shale oil and gas producing areas in Arkansas, North Dakota and Pennsylvania. The synthetic control method (Abadie and Gardeazabal 2003; Abadie et al., 2010) is used to establish a baseline projection for the local economies in the absence of increased energy development, allowing for estimation of the net regional economic effects of increased shale oil and gas production. |
| Keywords: | Shale gas; Shale oil; Synthetic control method |
| JEL: | Q33 R11 |
| Date: | 2014–07–27 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:57681&r=ure |
| By: | Debra A. Strong; Diane Paulsell; Russell Cole; Sarah A. Avellar; Angela V. D'Angelo; Juliette Henke; Rosalind E. Keith |
| Keywords: | Regional Partnership Grant, Cross-Site Report, Family Support |
| JEL: | I |
| Date: | 2014–05–30 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:mpr:mprres:8162&r=ure |
| By: | Eleonora Patacchini (Cornell University, EIEF and CEPR); Edoardo Rainone (Banca d'Italia and Università di Roma "La Sapienza") |
| Abstract: | This paper studies the importance of social interactions for the adoption of financial products. We exploit a unique dataset of friendships among United States students and a novel estimation strategy that accounts for possibly endogenous network formation. We find that not all social contacts are equally important: only those with a long-lasting relationship influence financial decisions. Moreover, the correlation in agents' behavior only arises among long-lasting ties in cohesive network structures. This evidence is consistent with an important role of trust in financial decisions. Repeated interactions generate trust among agents, which in turn aggregate in tightly knit groups. When agents have to decide whether or not to adopt a financial instrument they face a risk and might place greater value on information coming from agents they trust. These results can help to understand the growing importance of face-to-face social contacts for financial decisions. |
| Date: | 2014 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:eie:wpaper:1404&r=ure |
| By: | Anna-Elisabeth Thum; Miroslav Beblavy |
| Abstract: | This paper examines the relationship between social capital and adult learning. We test this association empirically using measures of various types of social capital and adult learning based on the German Socioeconomic Panel. We use predetermined measures of social capital to exclude social skills or friends encountered during the adult education class. Fixed e¤ects for latent underlying factors such as deep personality traits and instrumental variables account for changing personality traits. We …find that most of our social capital measures have a signi…cant and positive impact on the probabilities for investing in various types of adult learning. The size of the effect varies across the different measures between increasing the probability of participating in adult learning by 0.04% to increasing the probability by 17%. We find evidence that acquaintances are more likely to increase participation in adult learning than friends. |
| Keywords: | social capital, lifelong learning, informal learning, trust, reciprocity, sociability |
| Date: | 2014 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:diw:diwsop:diw_sp673&r=ure |
| By: | Chong, Terence Tai Leung; Ding, Haoyuan; Park, Sung Y |
| Abstract: | The causality between the real estate and stock markets of China remains a mystery in the literature. This paper investigates the non-linear causal relationship between real estate property and stock returns in China from the perspective of conditional quantiles. The results of the quantile causality test suggest a significant causal relationship between these two markets, especially in the tail quantile. |
| Keywords: | Property return; Stock return; Causality; Quantile regression. |
| JEL: | C22 O18 R31 |
| Date: | 2014–07 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:57774&r=ure |
| By: | Mitsukuni Nishida (The Johns Hopkins Carey Business School); Marc Remer (Economic Analysis Group, U.S. Department of Justice) |
| Abstract: | Information frictions play a key role in a wide array of economic environments and are frequently incorporated into formal models as search costs. Yet, as search costs are typically unobserved, little empirical work investigates the determinants of the distribution of consumer search costs and the implications for policy. This paper explores the sources of heterogeneity in consumer search costs and how this heterogeneity and market structure shape firms' equilibrium pricing and consumers' search behavior in retail gasoline markets. We estimate the distribution of consumer search costs using price data for a large number of geographically isolated markets across the United States. The results demonstrate that the distribution of consumer search costs varies significantly across geographic markets and that market and population characteristics, such as household income, explain some of the variation. Policy counterfactuals suggest that the shape of the consumer search cost distribution has important implications for both government policy and firms' strategic pricing behavior. The experiments reveal that (1) the search cost distribution needs to be sufficiently heterogeneous to generate equilibrium price dispersion, and (2) the market-level expected price paid decreases in the number of firms, but consumers with high search costs may be worse off from an increased number of firms. |
| Date: | 2014–07 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:doj:eagpap:201402&r=ure |
| By: | Leilanie Basilio. Thomas K. Bauer; Anica Kramer |
| Abstract: | This paper investigates the transferability of human capital across countries and the contribution of imperfect human capital portability to the explanation of the immigrant-native wage gap. Using data for West Germany, our results reveal that, overall, education and in particular labor market experience accumulated in the home countries of the immigrants receive signifiantly lower returns than human capital obtained in Germany. We further find evidence for heterogeneity in the returns to human capital of immigrants across countries. Finally, imperfect human capital transferability appears to be a major factor in explaining the wage differential between natives and immigrants. |
| Keywords: | Human Capital, Rate of Return, Immigration, Assimilation |
| JEL: | J61 J31 J24 |
| Date: | 2014 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:diw:diwsop:diw_sp671&r=ure |