2010-05-08 papers

on Unemployment, Inequality and Poverty

Issue of 2010‒05‒08
two papers chosen by

Modern Models of Monopsony in Labor Markets: A Brief Survey By Ashenfelter, Orley; Farber, Henry; Ransom, Michael R.
Sexual Risk Taking among Young Adults in Cape Town - Effects of Expected Health and Income By Bezabih, Mintewab; Mannberg, Andréa; Visser, Martine

Modern Models of Monopsony in Labor Markets: A Brief Survey

By:	Ashenfelter, Orley (Princeton University); Farber, Henry (Princeton University); Ransom, Michael R. (Brigham Young University)
Abstract:	This brief survey contains a review of several new empirical papers that attempt to measure the extent of monopsony in labor markets. As noted originally by Joan Robinson, monopsonistic exploitation represents the gap between the value of a worker's marginal product and the worker's wage, and it represents both a distortion in the allocation of resources and an income transfer away from workers. The evidence surveyed from a fairly broad range of labor markets suggests that monopsony may be far more pervasive than is sometimes suggested.
Keywords:	monopsony, imperfect labor markets
JEL:	J31
Date:	2010–04
URL:	http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp4915&r=ltv

Sexual Risk Taking among Young Adults in Cape Town - Effects of Expected Health and Income

By:	Bezabih, Mintewab (University of Portsmouth); Mannberg, Andréa (Department of Economics, Umeå University); Visser, Martine (University of Cape Town)
Abstract:	This paper empirically assesses links between expectations of future health and income on sexual risk taking on a sample of young adults in Cape Town, South Africa. An important contribution of the paper lies in combining a wide range of variables measuring risky sexual behavior such that the maximum information possible is extracted from, and adequate weights are attached to each measure, as opposed to previous studies that are based on individual measures or arbitrary aggregations. The findings indicate that expected income and health and future uncertainty are significant determinants of current patterns of sexual risk taking. From a policy perspective, the results suggest that reducing poverty and improving social insurance as well as reducing the taboo related to talking about HIV may constitute important issues to be addressed.
Keywords:	HIV/AIDS; Health risk; Risk aversion
JEL:	D81 D84 D91 I10
Date:	2010–04–30
URL:	http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hhs:umnees:0804&r=ltv

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