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on Economic Geography |
| By: | Luisa Alamá-Sabater (Department of Economics and IIDL, Universitat Jaume I, Castellón, Spain); Maite Alguacil (Department of Economics and IEI, Universitat Jaume I, Castellón, Spain); Joan Serafí Bernat-Martí (Department of Economics, Universitat Jaume I, Castellón, Spain) |
| Abstract: | Traditionally, Spain has been a destination for people coming from rich European countries. However, at the end of the last century, the pattern of these immigrant flows changed. The Spanish economic growth model, based on the construction industry, attracted large numbers of immigrants motivated by employment opportunities rather than by the climate conditions. In this article, we analyze the determinants that lead immigrants to move to a particular Spanish province, considering the economic and geographical differences across alternative destinations. We study this question empirically through the estimation of account models for panel data, covering the period 1998-2011. Our findings confirm the initial hypothesis that agglomeration and congestion economic forces play an important role in explaining the location decision of immigrant flows in Spanish provinces. They also reveal the importance of other regional factors, such as the productive structure of the territory, the labor market situation and the urban nature of the region. This result holds even after controlling for the specific, fixed or random, province factors. |
| Keywords: | migration flows, networks effects; migration flows, networks effects, account models |
| JEL: | R23 F22 C25 |
| Date: | 2014 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:jau:wpaper:2014/07&r=geo |
| By: | Berck, Peter (Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics and Policy); Tano, Sofia (Department of Economics, Umeå School of Business and Economics); Westerlund, Olle (Department of Economics, Umeå School of Business and Economics) |
| Abstract: | Migration rates are highest among young adults, especially students, and their location choices affect the regional distribution of human capital, growth and local public sector budgets. Using Swedish register data on young adults, the choice of whether to enroll in education and the choice of location are estimated jointly. The results indicate a systematic selection into investment in further education based on school grades and associated preferences for locations with higher per capita tax bases. For students, the estimates indicate lower preferences for locations with higher shares of older people. The importance of family networks for the choice of location is confirmed. |
| Keywords: | Agglomeration; human capital; local public sector; location choice |
| JEL: | J24 J61 R23 |
| Date: | 2014–02–26 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hhs:umnees:0878&r=geo |
| By: | Tano, Sofia (Department of Economics, Umeå School of Business and Economics) |
| Abstract: | The spatial distribution of human capital plays a fundamental role for regional differences in economic growth and welfare. This paper examines how individual ability indicated by the grade point average (GPA), from comprehensive school, affects the probability of migration among young university graduates in Sweden. Using detailed micro data available from the Swedish population registers, the study examines two cohorts of individuals who enrol in tertiary education. The results indicate that individual abilities reflected by the GPA are strongly influential when it comes to completing a university degree and for the migration decision after graduation. Moreover, there is a positive relationship between the GPA and the choice of migrating from regions with a relatively low tax base and a relatively small share of highly educated people in the population. Analogously, individuals with a high GPA tend to stay at a higher rate in more flourishing regions. |
| Keywords: | Bivariate probit; individual ability; migration; regional clustering; university graduates |
| JEL: | I23 J24 R23 |
| Date: | 2014–02–26 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hhs:umnees:0879&r=geo |
| By: | Huang, Haifang (University of Alberta, Department of Economics); Humphreys, Brad (West Virginia University); Zhou, Li (University of Alberta, Department of Economics) |
| Abstract: | Access to legal gambling has expanded in Canada. Casinos can generate both positive and negative local impacts. We analyze the effect of new urban Canadian casinos on nearby neighborhoods in terms of population growth and composition, and housing market outcomes based on more than 40 urban casinos opened in Canada between 1986 and 2007. We define neighborhoods based on spatial proximity, and analyze impacts on changes in census tract profiles. We find no evidence that casino openings affect population growth or population composition by age, gender and martial status, or home ownership rates, and evidence that casino openings reduced unemployment in surrounding areas, and are correlated with faster growth in household income. We also find evidence of negative effects on changes in housing values and rents despite the faster income growth. The findings suggest a double-edged nature to casino openings: positive for employment and income growth but negative for residential amenities. |
| Keywords: | casino; economic impact; amenities; employment |
| JEL: | L83 R23 R31 |
| Date: | 2014–02–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ris:albaec:2014_002&r=geo |
| By: | Hou, Feng |
| Abstract: | An emerging area of subjective well-being (SWB) research is centered on the differences in the levels of SWB both across countries and among geographic regions within a country. The consideration of geographic differences would extend our knowledge about the determinants of SWB from "internal" factors of personality traits and individuals' socio-demographic characteristics to "external factors" embedded in individuals' environments. An issue with important theoretical and policy implications is whether the income of others in the same geographic area is associated with individuals' SWB. The association could be positive if people benefit from the improved resources, amenities, and social capital in high-income areas. The association could also be negative if people tend to emulate the lifestyles of their more affluent neighbours. Related empirical studies so far have not come to a consensus on this question. The present study attempts to contribute to this issue in two significant ways. First, this study examines whether the effect of the average income in a geographic area (locality income) on SWB is sensitive to the scale of geographic units. With a very large sample of survey respondents nested within three hierarchical levels of geographic areas, this study provides reliable estimates of the association of SWB with average incomes in immediate neighbourhoods (defined as "census dissemination areas"), local communities ("census tracts"), and municipalities ("census subdivisions"). Second, this study examines how the choice of control variables influences the estimated effect of locality income. By considering the effects of individual demographic and socioeconomic characteristics, self-evaluated general health, and area-level attributes in a sequential manner, it is possible to discuss the likely mechanisms through which locality income is related to individuals' SWB. |
| Keywords: | Health, Income, pensions, spending and wealth, Mental health and well-being, Household, family and personal income |
| Date: | 2014–02–20 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:stc:stcp3e:2014357e&r=geo |
| By: | Françoise Lemoine; Grégoire Mayo; Sandra Poncet; Deniz Ünal |
| Abstract: | Since the mid-2000s, the center of gravity of China's economic growth has shifted from the coastline to the inland and the gap in GDP per capita between the two areas has narrowed. This macroeconomic catch-up reflects, with a time lag, the convergence process which has been at work in manufacturing industry since the end of the 1990s and suggests that China is becoming increasingly integrated in terms of technological level. This pattern is in line with a process whereby the inland catches up the labor productivity level of the coast thanks to the transfer of technology and capital from these most advanced regions. |
| Keywords: | China;Regional inequality;Manufacturing industry;Convergence;Growth |
| JEL: | O14 O25 O53 R12 |
| Date: | 2014–02 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cii:cepidt:2014-04&r=geo |
| By: | Zhuang, Juzhong (Asian Development Bank Institute); Kanbur, Ravi (Asian Development Bank Institute); Rhee, Changyong (Asian Development Bank Institute) |
| Abstract: | This paper looks at the recent trends of rising inequality in developing Asia, asks why inequality matters, examines the driving forces of rising inequality, and proposes policy options for tackling high and rising inequality. Technological change, globalization, and market-oriented reform have driven Asia’s rapid growth, but have also had significant distributional consequences. These factors have favored owners of capital over labor, skilled over unskilled workers, and urban and coastal areas over rural and inland regions. Furthermore, unequal access to opportunity, caused by institutional weaknesses and social exclusion, has compounded the impacts of these forces. All these combined have led to a falling share of labor income in national income, increasing premiums on human capital, and growing spatial disparity—all contributing to rising inequality. The three drivers of rising inequality cannot and should not be blocked, because they are the same forces that drive productivity and income growth. This paper outlines a number of policy options for Asian policy makers to consider in addressing rising inequality. These options, aiming to equalize opportunities and, thereby, reduce inequality, include efficient fiscal measures that reduce inequality in human capital, policies that work toward increasing the number and quality of jobs, interventions that narrow spatial disparity, and reforms that strengthen governance, level the playing field, and eliminate social exclusion. |
| Keywords: | growth; globalization; inequality; governance |
| JEL: | D63 O15 O53 |
| Date: | 2014–02–21 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ris:adbiwp:0463&r=geo |
| By: | Fabrizio Antonioli (Dipartimento di Economia Istituzioni Territorio, Facoltà di Economia, Università degli Studi di Ferrara.); Simone Borghesi (Università degli Studi di Siena, Facoltà di Scienze Politiche.); Massimiliano Mazzanti (Departiment of Economics, Università di Ferrara (italy).) |
| Abstract: | The adoption and diffusion of environmental innovations (EIs) is crucial to greening the economy and achieving win-win environmental – economic gains. A large and increasing literature has focused on the levers underlying EIs that are external to the firm, such as stakeholder’s pressure and policy pressure. Little attention, however, has been devoted so far to the possible role of local spatial spillovers. The latter can be very relevant since growth depends on strong idiosyncratic regional factors – such asagglomeration economies - that must be integrated with the challenges posed by global markets. To overcome this drawback of the existing literature, we analyse here a rich dataset that covers the innovative activities and economic performances of firms in the Emilia-Romagna Region in Italy, a manufacturing district-rich area. We analyse firms’ performances through a two-step procedure. First, we look at the relevance of spatial levers, namely whether the agglomeration of EIs induces EIs in a given firm. Second, we test whether EIs have significantly increased firms’ economic performances. As to the importance of spatial levers, the role of agglomeration turns out to be fairly local in nature:we find that spillovers are significantly inducing innovation within municipal boundaries, which is coherent with the district-based Marshallian economies of north- eastern Italy. Regarding economic performances, firms' productivity is positively related to EI adoption; in particular,firms that adopt EIs and organizational change show a better economic performance.Our findings suggest that EIscanbe a key source of growth for regional systems, particularly when spurred by local spillovers, and an important way outof the ongoing crisis. |
| Keywords: | environmental innovations, firm economic performances, local spillovers, manufacturing, agglomeration |
| JEL: | O38 Q55 |
| Date: | 2014–02 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:srt:wpaper:0414&r=geo |