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on Unemployment, Inequality and Poverty |
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Issue of 2010‒06‒11
seven papers chosen by |
| By: | Nicholas Rohde; Kam Ki Tang; Prasada Rao (School of Economics, The University of Queensland) |
| Abstract: | In this paper we analyze income inequality and mobility using the first six waves of the HILDA (Household Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia) panel survey. The mobility of Australian incomes is measured and our evidence suggests that domestic wages and salaries are slightly less mobile than incomes in some other developed countries. This mobility is investigated in greater detail and it is found that much of the intertemporal variation occurs in the middle and lower end of the income distribution. Lastly we recognize that the mobility of an individual’s income may be used as a measure of economic insecurity and we present measures of permanent income inequality that account for this phenomenon. We find that permanent income inequality increases substantially when adjustments to account for aversion to volatility are performed. |
| Date: | 2010 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:qld:uq2004:407&r=ltv |
| By: | Woojin Kang (Economics, School of Social Sciences, University of Manchester, UK); Katsushi S. Imai (Economics, School of Social Sciences, University of Manchester, UK and Research Institute for Economics & Business Administration (RIEB), Kobe University) |
| Abstract: | This study explores the effects of Vietnam's transition on the welfare of different ethnic groups in rural Vietnam. It draws on three rounds of household surveys, VHLSS 2002, 2004 and 2006. It is first observed that the pace of poverty reduction for minorities surpassed the majority over the period 2002 to 2006, although poor people were still concentrated in the minority groups. Secondly, the disparity of living standards has been widening. In particular, inequality in both the majority and minority increased over the periods. Thirdly, the study shows that the pure effect of economic growth on poverty is estimated to have been greater if inequality remained constant. It is noted that the impacts of economic growth vary depending on which ethnic group a household belongs to. Finally, it is also confirmed from regression decompositions of within inequality that the main driver of inequality is not identical among different ethnic groups. Given the diversity across ethnic groups, we can conclude that the governmental policy aiming at equal access to infrastructure and more equal distribution of assets, such as land, for ethnic minority groups would lead to more equal distribution of consumption and poverty reduction of those groups. Also, consideration of local needs of each ethnic minority group would be necessary in designing and implementing public policies given the heterogeneous socio-economic circumstances surrounding each ethnic minority group. |
| Keywords: | Vietnam, Ethnic minority, Growth, Poverty, Inequality, Decomposition |
| JEL: | C21 I32 P36 |
| Date: | 2010–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:kob:dpaper:dp2010-18&r=ltv |
| By: | Rachel Margolis; Mikko Myrskylä (Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany) |
| Abstract: | The literature on fertility and happiness has neglected comparative analysis. We investigate the fertility-happiness association using data for 86 countries. We find that globally, happiness decreases with the number of children. This association, however, is strongly modified by individual and contextual factors. Most importantly, we find that the association between happiness and fertility evolves from negative to neutral to positive above age 40, and is strongest among those who are likely to benefit most from upward intergenerational transfers. In addition, analyses by welfare regime show that the negative fertility-happiness association for younger adults is weakest in countries with high public support for families, and the positive association above age 40 is strongest in countries where old-age support depends mostly on the family. Overall these results suggest that children are a long-term investment in well-being, and highlight the importance of the life-cycle stage and contextual factors in explaining the happiness-fertility association. |
| JEL: | J1 Z0 |
| Date: | 2010–06 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:dem:wpaper:wp-2010-025&r=ltv |
| By: | Ana Rute Cardoso; Paulo Guimarães; Klaus F. Zimmermann |
| Abstract: | Given the recent efforts in several countries to reorganize the research institutional setting to improve research productivity, our analysis addresses the following questions: To which extent has the recent awareness over international quality standards in economics around the world been reflected in research performance? How have individual countries fared? Do research quantity and quality indicators tell us the same story? We concentrate on trends taking place since the beginning of the 1990s and rely on a very comprehensive database of scientific journals, to provide a cross-country comparison of the evolution of research in economics. Our findings indicate that Europe is catching-up with the US but, in terms of influential research, the US maintains a dominant position. The main continental European countries, Germany, France, Italy and Spain, experienced some of the largest growth rates in economic scientific output. Other European countries, namely the UK, Norway, the Netherlands, Denmark, and Sweden, have shown remarkable progress in per capita output. Collaborative research seems to be a key factor explaining the relative success of some European countries, in particular when it comes to publishing in top journals, attained predominantly through international collaborations. |
| Keywords: | research performance; publications; rankings; Europe; North-America; US |
| JEL: | A10 I20 |
| Date: | 2010–06–02 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:aub:autbar:832.10&r=ltv |
| By: | Alpízar, Francisco (Environment for Development Center for Central America, CATIE); Martinsson, Peter (Department of Economics, School of Business, Economics and Law, Göteborg University) |
| Abstract: | We conducted a field experiment in a protected area to explore the effects of conformity to a social reference versus a comparable, but imposed, suggested donation. As observed before, we see visitors conforming to the changing social reference. On the other hand, the treatment in which we suggested a donation resulted in lower shares of visitors donating, compared to the social reference treatment, and lower conditional donations even compared to the control. We concluded that visitors look at their peers as a reference to conform to, but partially reject being confronted with an imposed suggestion on how to behave.<p> |
| Keywords: | Conformity; donation; field experiment |
| JEL: | C93 D10 D60 Q50 |
| Date: | 2010–06–02 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hhs:gunwpe:0452&r=ltv |
| By: | Özcan, Gülay (Dept. of Economics, Stockholm University) |
| Abstract: | This paper explores sector differences in how the gender wage gap varies across the wage distribution and the role of occupational segregation in explaining this variation for Sweden. Results indicate that the phenomenon known as the glass ceiling, i.e. larger gender wage differentials at the high end of the wage distribution is stronger in the public sector than the private. This difference is found to be due to occupational segregation and, to a large extent, pre-market educational choices. Most of the top/bottom differences within the public sector stem from the county level and is due to gender segregation between few occupations. These results indicate that the mechanisms behind the glass ceiling, and observed sector differences are attributable to occupational segregation by gender. |
| Keywords: | Glass Ceiling; Gender Wage Gap; Sector Differentials |
| JEL: | J16 J24 J31 J71 |
| Date: | 2010–05–31 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hhs:sunrpe:2010_0009&r=ltv |
| By: | Lea Cassar; Bruno S. Frey |
| Abstract: | This paper suggests that institutional factors which reward social networks at the expenses of productivity can play an important role in explaining brain drain. The effects of social networks on brain drain are analyzed in a decision theory framework with asymmetric information. We distinguish between the role of insidership and personal connections. The larger the cost of being an outsider, the smaller is the number and the average ability of researchers working in the domestic job market. Personal connections partly compensate for this effect by attracting highly connected researchers back. However, starting from a world with no distortions, personal connections also increase brain drain. |
| Keywords: | Brain drain, social networks, institutions, asymmetric information, Italian academia |
| JEL: | D82 F22 I20 J24 J44 |
| Date: | 2010–06 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zur:iewwpx:489&r=ltv |