|
on Urban and Real Estate Economics |
| By: | Satoshi Myojo |
| Abstract: | This study examined the impact of the academic performance of accessible public schools on house prices within school districts utilizing rental housing data in Osaka City. A hedonic analysis based on a regression discontinuity design was conducted by restricting the analysis to houses within a certain distance from the boundaries of junior high school and high school districts. The result demonstrated that the education premium capitalized in the rent is considerably smaller than that found in a previous study that conducted a similar analysis for a rural city in Japan. Furthermore, we also measured changes in the education premium over time, including data before and after the abolition of the school district system. The result indicates that the premium did not decrease but rather increased after the abolition of school districts. This could be due to the announcement effect of the disclosure of the test scores of all public junior high schools around the same time as the abolition of the school district system. In addition, it may also be due to the dysfunctionality of the newly implemented school choice system, in which students are unable to choose a school under the capacity constraint of the school. |
| Date: | 2024–05 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:tcr:wpaper:e207&r= |
| By: | Ales Franc (Department of Economics, Faculty of Business and Economics, Mendel University in Brno, Czech Republic); Sona Kukuckova (Department of Finance, Faculty of Business and Economics, Mendel University in Brno, Czech Republic); Marek Litzman (Department of Economics, Faculty of Business and Economics, Mendel University in Brno, Czech Republic) |
| Abstract: | Time spent commuting plays a significant role in decision-making within the labour market, particularly for job seekers. Investments in road infrastructure have a direct effect on commuting times and thus may also have an effect on the local labour markets. The aim of the article is to evaluate the effect of improvements in infrastructure on regional unemployment. In this paper, we use a unique database that includes data on the time taken to commute from all municipalities in the Czech Republic (n=6237) to their regional centres for every month between March 2014 and December 2022 (106 periods). Overall 1534 changes that met the criteria for a significant change in travelling time were identified. Our results suggest that a one-minute drop in commuting time from the respective municipality to the regional centre is linked to a 0.07 percentage point drop in the unemployment rate one year later, in comparison to the control group. The ratio rises over time, after five years, the same one-minute reduction in commuting time, is then related to a 0.19 percentage point drop in unemployment. Therefore, better infrastructure can help to reduce differences in regional rates of unemployment and can justify infrastructure investments. |
| Keywords: | commuting, unemployment, road infrastructure, OSRM, New Economic Geography, inter-regional disparities, regional development |
| JEL: | H54 R41 J61 |
| Date: | 2024–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:men:wpaper:94_2024&r= |
| By: | Chi-Young Choi; Alexander Chudik; Aaron Smallwood |
| Abstract: | High persistence is a prominent feature of price movements in U.S. housing markets, i.e., house prices grow faster this period if they grew faster last period. This paper provides two additional new insights to the literature on U.S. house price movements. First, there exists a significant time variation in the persistence of house price growth, both at the national and city level. Second, there is considerable heterogeneity in the time-varying persistence across different regions, particularly in areas that were historically less persistent, such as the capital-poor regions in the Midwest and South. This study conducts additional regression analyses to determine the main factor behind the time-varying persistence, with a particular focus on two housing demand factors: extrapolative expectations and credit supply expansion. Our results suggest that the time variation in the persistence of urban house price growth is better aligned with credit supply expansion than with extrapolative expectations. These findings remain robust even when accounting for potential endogeneity and reverse causality concerns. |
| Keywords: | persistence; house prices; time variation; credit supply; expectations; U.S. cities |
| Date: | 2024–05–15 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:fip:feddgw:98241&r= |
| By: | Almeida, Vanda (OECD); Hoffmann, Claire (OECD); Königs, Sebastian (OECD); Moreno-Monroy, Ana Isabel (OECD); Salazar-Lozada, Mauricio (OECD); Terrero-Dávila, Javier (OECD) |
| Abstract: | People's ability to access essential services is key to their labour market and social inclusion. An important dimension of accessibility is physical accessibility, but little cross-country evidence exists on how close people live to the services facilities they need. This paper helps to address this gap, focusing on three types of essential services: Public Employment Services, primary schools and Early Childhood Education and Care. It collects and maps data on the location of these services for a selection of OECD countries and links them with data on population and transport infrastructure. This allows to compute travel times to the nearest service facility and to quantify disparities in accessibility at the regional level. The results highlight substantial inequalities in accessibility of essential services across and within countries. Although large parts of the population can easily reach these services in most countries, some people are relatively underserved. This is particularly the case in non-metropolitan and low-income regions. At the same time, accessibility seems to be associated with the potential demand for these services once accounting for other regional economic and demographic characteristics. |
| Keywords: | geographic inequalities, geospatial disparities, service accessibility, social services, employment services |
| JEL: | H00 I24 J01 O18 R12 |
| Date: | 2024–04 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp16958&r= |
| By: | David Card; Leah Clark; Ciprian Domnisoru; Lowell Taylor |
| Abstract: | A school finance equalization program established in Mississippi in 1920 failed to help many of the state's Black students—an outcome that was typical in the segregated U.S. South (Horace Mann Bond, 1934). In majority-Black school districts, local decision-makers overwhelmingly favored white schools when allotting funds from the state's preexisting per capita fund, and the resulting high expenditures on white students rendered these districts ineligible for the equalization program. Thus, while Black students residing in majority-white districts benefitted from increased spending and standards for Black schools, those in majority-Black districts continued to experience extremely low—and even worsening—school funding. We model the processes that led the so-called equalization policy to create disparities in schooling resources for Black students, and estimate effects on Black children using both a neighboring-counties design and an IV strategy. We find that local educational spending had large impacts on Black enrollment rates, as reported in the 1940 census, with Black educational attainment increasing in marginal spending. Finally, we link the 1940 and 2000 censuses to show that Black children exposed to higher levels of school expenditures had significantly more completed schooling and higher income late in life. |
| Keywords: | School Equalization; Racial Inequality in Schooling Resources; Returns to Education |
| JEL: | I24 I26 |
| Date: | 2024–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cen:wpaper:24-25&r= |
| By: | Pan, Alexandra; Deakin, Elizabeth PhD; Shaheen, Susan PhD |
| Abstract: | Growing poverty in America’s suburbs challenges their image as single-family residential communities for middle class, predominantly white families. Research shows that suburban areas now have the largest share of households under the poverty line. Since these areas have lower density development and lower levels of public transit service compared to urban areas, living in the suburbs may pose accessibility challenges for low-income households, particularly those without a personal vehicle. To explore housing and transportation issues associated with the suburbanization of poverty, we combined U.S. Census data from Contra Costa County, which has the highest rates of suburban poverty in the San Francisco Bay Area, and online and in-person surveys with individuals who earn less than 80% of the Area Median Income (AMI), around $75, 000. This research identifies demographic and external factors that lead low- and moderate-income households to move to suburban areas, accessibility barriers faced by low- and moderate-income suburban households, and how transportation use and transportation and housing costs differ between urban and suburban low-income residents in the Bay Area. |
| Keywords: | Social and Behavioral Sciences |
| Date: | 2024–06–06 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cdl:itsrrp:qt85v1k5ns&r= |
| By: | Card, David (University of California, Berkeley); Clark, Leah (US Census Bureau); Domnisoru, Ciprian (Aalto University); Taylor, Lowell J. (Carnegie Mellon University) |
| Abstract: | A school finance equalization program established in Mississippi in 1920 failed to help many of the state's Black students – an outcome that was typical in the segregated U.S. South (Horace Mann Bond, 1934). In majority-Black school districts, local decision-makers overwhelmingly favored white schools when allotting funds from the state's preexisting per capita fund, and the resulting high expenditures on white students rendered these districts ineligible for the equalization program. Thus, while Black students residing in majority-white districts benefitted from increased spending and standards for Black schools, those in majority-Black districts continued to experience extremely low – and even worsening – school funding. We model the processes that led the so-called equalization policy to create disparities in schooling resources for Black students, and estimate effects on Black children using both a neighboring-counties design and an IV strategy. We find that local educational spending had large impacts on Black enrollment rates, as reported in the 1940 census, with Black educational attainment increasing in marginal spending. Finally, we link the 1940 and 2000 censuses to show that Black children exposed to higher levels of school expenditures had signicantly more completed schooling and higher income late in life. |
| Keywords: | returns to education, racial inequality in schooling resources, school equalization |
| JEL: | I24 I26 |
| Date: | 2024–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp16994&r= |
| By: | Aristide Houndetoungan; Cristelle Kouame; Michael Vlassopoulos |
| Abstract: | Peer influence on effort devoted to some activity is often studied using proxy variables when actual effort is unobserved. For instance, in education, academic effort is often proxied by GPA. We propose an alternative approach that circumvents this approximation. Our framework distinguishes unobserved shocks to GPA that do not affect effort from preference shocks that do affect effort levels. We show that peer effects estimates obtained using our approach can differ significantly from classical estimates (where effort is approximated) if the network includes isolated students. Applying our approach to data on high school students in the United States, we find that peer effect estimates relying on GPA as a proxy for effort are 40% lower than those obtained using our approach. |
| Date: | 2024–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:arx:papers:2405.06850&r= |
| By: | Xiaoxuan Zhang (University of Waikato); John Gibson (University of Waikato) |
| Abstract: | China’s high-speed rail (HSR) has quickly expanded to over 40, 000 km of lines operating and another 10, 000 km under construction. This is over 10-times longer than the networks in long-established HSR countries like France, Germany or Japan. While fewer than 100 county-level units had stations on the HSR network in the first years of operation, the eight years from 2012-19 saw almost 400 more county-level units connect to the HSR network. Effects on local economic activity from this substantial increase in connections to the HSR network remain contested. Some prior studies find either insignificant effects on local economic growth or even negative effects in peripheral regions. In light of this debate, we use spatial econometric models for a panel for almost 2500 county-level units to study effects of connecting to the HSR network. We especially concentrate on the 2012-19 period that has high quality night-time lights data to provide an alternative to GDP as an indicator of growth in local economic activity. Our spatial econometric models allow for spatial lags of the outcomes, of the covariates, and of the errors. We also address potential endogeneity of the HSR networks and connections, using an instrumental variables strategy. Across a range of specifications, we generally find that growth in local economic activity is lower following connection to the HSR network, with this effect especially apparent when using high quality night-time lights data for the 2012-19 period. Hence, expansion of the HSR network may not boost China’s economic growth. |
| Keywords: | High-speed rail; infrastructure; luminosity; spatial spillovers; China |
| JEL: | R12 |
| Date: | 2024–06–05 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:wai:econwp:24/03&r= |
| By: | Soucy, Andre B. |
| Abstract: | Low-income communities of color in formerly redlined neighborhoods face persistent racial disparities and inequities in pollution exposure, access to transportation and safe streets, and inadequate provisions for health, safety, stable housing, clean air, education, and employment. In the process of attempting to remedy such disparities through major transportation infrastructure and access improvements, residents who are intended to benefit from expanded transportation access and options are often placed at increased risk of harmful displacement, gentrification, and environmental injustice impacts. This research project employs a case study of the International Boulevard Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) project in East Oakland, guided by Community Based Participatory Action Research (CBPAR) principles, to investigate specific traffic safety and racialized displacement impacts from the project and considers potential solutions towards protecting residents and preventing harmful byproducts of major transportation projects. In collaboration with a Community Advisory Council (CAC), a quantitative analysis of collisions along the corridor and demographic changes in select East Oakland neighborhoods was conducted. The results show evidence of increased fatality and injury collisions along the corridor at the start of construction of the BRT and after opening of the service as well as continued trends of gentrification and displacement in many East Oakland neighborhoods along the corridor. It is inconclusive with this research if there is a causal link between the BRT project and exacerbated displacement trends in nearby neighborhoods. Further qualitative research is needed to ground-truth and understand more fully the indirect land and housing market impacts of the BRT project. |
| Keywords: | Engineering, Bus rapid transit, construction, traffic crashes, crash rates, corridors, low income groups, displacement, transportation equity, case studies |
| Date: | 2024–05–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cdl:itsrrp:qt4zm0z35z&r= |
| By: | Blazar, David (University of Maryland); Gao, Wenjing (University of Maryland at College Park); Gershenson, Seth (American University); Goings, Ramon (University of Maryland, Baltimore County); Lagos, Francisco (Universidad de Granada) |
| Abstract: | Local teacher recruitment through "grow-your-own" programs is a prominent strategy to address workforce shortages and ensure that incoming teachers resemble, understand, and have strong connections to their communities. We exploit the staggered rollout of the Teacher Academy of Maryland career and technical education certificate program across public high schools, finding that exposed students were more likely to become teachers by 0.6 percentage points (pp), or 47%. Effects are concentrated among White girls (1.4pp/39%) and Black girls (0.7pp/80%). We also identify positive impacts on wages (5% on average/18% for Black girls), countering a prevailing narrative that teaching leaves one worse off financially relative to other labor market opportunities. |
| Keywords: | teaching, high school curricula, college major choice, occupational choice, earnings |
| JEL: | I20 J24 H52 |
| Date: | 2024–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp16983&r= |
| By: | Eduardo Duque; Juan S. Pereyra; Juan Pablo Torres-Martinez |
| Abstract: | The student-optimal stable mechanism (DA), the most popular mechanism in school choice, is the only one that is both stable and strategy-proof. However, when DA is implemented, a student can change the schools of others without changing her own. We show that this drawback is limited: a student cannot change her classmates without modifying her school. We refer to this new property as local non-bossiness. Along with strategy-proofness, it ensures a local notion of group strategy-proofness in which manipulating coalitions are restricted to students in the same school. Furthermore, local non-bossiness plays a crucial role in incentives when students have preferences over their colleagues. As long as students first consider the school to which they are assigned and then their classmates, DA induces the only stable and strategy-proof mechanism in this preference domain. To some extent, this is the maximal domain in which a stable and strategy-proof mechanism exists for any school choice context. |
| Date: | 2024–06 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:udc:wpaper:wp559&r= |
| By: | Hurtado, Agustin; Sakong, Jung |
| Date: | 2024 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:cbscwp:294849&r= |
| By: | Buchholz, Maximilian; Storper, Michael |
| Abstract: | The large labor markets of big prosperous cities offer greater possibilities for workers to gain skills and experience through successively better employment opportunities. This "experience effect" contributes to the higher average wages that are found in big urban areas compared to the economy as a whole. Racial wage inequality is also higher in bigger cities than in the economy on average. We offer an explanation for this pattern, demonstrating that there is substantial racial inequality in the economic returns to work experience acquired in big cities. Using data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth, 1979 we find that each year of big city work experience is worth about one quarter to half as much for Black and Latinx workers as it is for White workers, in terms of hourly wages. One-third of this inequality can be explained by racial disparities in the benefits of high-skill work experience. This research identifies a heretofore unknown source of inequality that is distinctly urban in nature, and expands our knowledge of the challenges to reaching inter-racial wage equality. |
| Date: | 2024–05–18 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:osf:socarx:24cvs&r= |
| By: | James Graham |
| Abstract: | I study a novel institutional feature of Australian housing markets: the widespread use of mortgage offset accounts. These accounts reduce mortgage interest costs and increase the liquidity of mortgage balances. I build a heterogeneous agent life-cycle model of the Australian housing market to study who benefits from these accounts and by how much. Households in middle age, with high incomes, and with more expensive houses are most likely to use offset accounts and derive larger benefits from their use. I show that a social planner could maintain mortgage profitability, improve household welfare, and more evenly distribute benefits by adjusting the price structure of offset accounts. |
| Keywords: | housing, mortgage, offset account, hetereogeneous agents, life-cycle model |
| JEL: | E21 E44 G21 G51 R21 |
| Date: | 2024–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:een:camaaa:2024-35&r= |
| By: | Zhuang, Winnie |
| Abstract: | California boasts nine national parks that are home to a plethora of recreational, cultural, and professional opportunities. It is no surprise that national parks draw in millions of recreational and non-recreational trips from across the country and internationally, however how visitors choose to arrive at these federal lands is a major consideration for land management, policy, and infrastructure decisions. According to the National Park Service’s Visitor Use Statistics, an overwhelming majority of visitors arrive by automobile. Alternative transportation options to national parks in California may increase visitor diversity and encourage the modal shift away from car travel. Additionally, transportation infrastructure has the potential to take up more natural spaces in national parks as population growth and recreational popularity increases in the coming years. Roadway widening, repaving, and other disruptive events can have negative impacts on adjacent ecosystems and communities, as well as contribute to public health issues. In this report, the existing conditions of transit to national parks in California are examined in relation to census tract-level sociodemographic and origin-destination data to reveal the spatial distribution of visitor origins and gaps in national park accessibility. From an equity perspective, findings suggest that median household income is proportional to the network distance between a given trip origin and national park destination, and household vehicle access and race are strongly correlated with national park visitation. By examining the current transit network to national parks, select characteristics of park visitation, and demographics of these visitors, this research aims to reveal opportunities for expanded transit connectivity to California’s national parks. Recommendations are presented to provide guidance to decision makers in the realm of transportation access to recreational spaces. |
| Keywords: | Social and Behavioral Sciences, National parks, accessibility, public transit, transportation equity, travel behavior, demographics |
| Date: | 2024–05–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cdl:itsrrp:qt4vv0h2sp&r= |
| By: | Eliasson, Kent (Swedish Agency for Growth Policy Analysis); Hansson, Pär (Swedish Agency for Growth Policy Analysis); Lindvert, Markus (Swedish Agency for Growth Policy Analysis) |
| Abstract: | In the paper, we break down business sector R&D at an appropriate regional level (functional analysis regions, FA-regions) in Sweden. We describe the variation and development at the regional level. In an econometric analysis, we examine what affects the location and size of enterprise groups’ R&D activities in different FA-regions. We find that enterprise groups concentrate their R&D to the same regions, which are also regions with significant academic R&D (external agglomeration). Moreover, colocation of R&D and manufacturing within an enterprise group in a region (internal agglomeration) appears to be a significant location factor. Last but not least, the local availability of qualified R&D labor is another important localization factor for business sector R&D. Finally, when we compare the results from the econometric analysis with what enterprise groups themselves states as important motives for location, we find that they match quite well. |
| Keywords: | business sector R&D; regional location; external agglomeration; colocation of R&D and production; abundance of qualified labor |
| JEL: | J24 O32 R11 R12 |
| Date: | 2024–05–28 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hhs:oruesi:2024_004&r= |
| By: | Gorgens, Tue (Australian National University); Meng, Xin (Australian National University); Zhao, Guochang (Southwest University of Finance and Economics, Chengdu) |
| Abstract: | Fifty years ago, China sent more than 16 million urban youths aged 16–19 to rural villages to work and they spent between 1 and 10 years there. This is known as the 'sent-down youth' (SDY) program. This paper examines how this internal migration impacted rural economic development in the regions that received a larger number of SDY per capita relative to regions that received less. We find a sizeable and persistent impact of the SDY program on real per capita GDP and nighttime light in the years after the program ended. Surprisingly, although our results confirm that the SDY increased education level of relevant cohorts, the variation in the education level of these cohorts does not seem to contribute directly to rural GDP and nighttime lights. We provide suggestive evidence regarding mechanisms through which the SDY influenced rural economic development. |
| Keywords: | economic development, migration, sent-down youth, China |
| JEL: | O18 J61 R23 N00 |
| Date: | 2024–04 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp16951&r= |
| By: | Enrico Campos de Mira; Wilfredo Fernado Leiva Maldonado |
| Abstract: | This study delves into the dynamics of commercial real estate prices in Brazil, examining the existence of speculative movements from 2012 to 2023. It employs a traditional present value asset pricing model with a uniform discount factor, alongside recognized finance literature bubble tests. These include evaluations for explosive, periodic, multiple explosive, and intrinsic bubbles, enabling the identification of potentially unsustainable price trends if speculative bubbles emerge. Data from the Fipezap survey, provided by the Institute of Economic Research Foundation (FIPE), highlights instances of price exuberance in certain cities and the national index, as revealed by the explosive and multiple bubble tests. Conversely, no evidence of periodic or intrinsic bubbles was observed across the cities studied. |
| Keywords: | real estate, speculative bubbles, Brazilian empirical analyses |
| JEL: | C12 C32 G12 R30 |
| Date: | 2024–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:een:camaaa:2024-29&r= |
| By: | OECD |
| Abstract: | The upsurge in children’s screen time has sparked concerns about its impact on children’s learning, development, and well-being. Three-quarters of students in OECD countries spend more than one hour per weekday browsing social networks and nearly one in three students gets distracted by using digital devices in class. How to protect and equip students to navigate digital environments? This PISA in Focus explores why students rely on devices and how their digital device use relates to their mathematics performance, sense of belonging at school, and how much they become distracted. It highlights the role of education policies that improve students’ digital skills and behaviours and prepare teachers to teach with technology in protecting students from digital distractions at school and beyond, and building their ability to navigate digital environments. |
| Keywords: | Education, Learning |
| Date: | 2024–05–27 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:oec:eduddd:124-en&r= |
| By: | Disa M. Hynsjö; Luca Perdoni |
| Abstract: | This paper proposes a novel empirical strategy to estimate the causal effects of federal “redlining” – the mapping and grading of US neighborhoods by the Home Owners’ Loan Corporation (HOLC). In the late 1930s, a federal agency created color-coded maps to summarize the financial risk of granting mortgages in different neighborhoods, together with forms describing the presence of racial and ethnic minorities as “detrimental”. Our analysis exploits an exogenous population cutoff: only cities above 40, 000 residents were mapped. We employ a difference-in-differences design, comparing areas that received a particular grade with neighborhoods that would have received the same grade if their city had been mapped. The control neighborhoods are defined using a machine learning algorithm trained to draw HOLC-like maps using newly geocoded full-count census records. Our findings support the view that HOLC maps further concentrated economic disadvantage. For the year 1940, we find a substantial reduction in property values and a moderate increase in the share of African American residents in areas with the lowest grade. Such negative effects on property values persisted until the early 1980s. The magnitude of the results is higher in historically African American neighborhoods. The empirical results show that a government-supplied, data-driven information tool can coordinate exclusionary practices and amplify their consequences. |
| Keywords: | Redlining, neighborhoods, discrimination, machine-learning |
| JEL: | J15 R23 N92 N32 |
| Date: | 2024 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ces:ceswps:_11098&r= |
| By: | Kleeman, Michael J. PhD; Wu, Shenglun |
| Abstract: | Lack of a strong reduction in ambient ozone (O3) concentrations during reduced traffic periods associated with COVID-19 calls into question the conventional wisdom that mobile sources dominate air pollution in California. Fossil-fueledmmotor vehicles emit oxides of nitrogen (NOx) and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) that are precursors to O3 formation, but the chemical reaction system that forms O3 is complex. The ratio of NOx/VOCs determines if the O3 formation regime is NOx-limited (reducing NOx reduces O3) or NOx-rich (reducing NOx increases O3). This project developed new methods to directly measure O3 chemistry in the atmosphere and applied them over long-term campaigns in multiple California cities to quantify traffic contributions to O3 formation. A seasonal-cycle was observed of NOx-rich O3 chemistry during cooler months trending toward NOx-limited chemistry in warmer months. Superimposed on this seasonal cycle was a spatial pattern of NOx-rich chemistry in dense urban cores and NOx-limited chemistry in areas downwind of urban cores. Chemistry-based models with source tagging were also developed to better understand these trends. Seasonal changes to biogenic VOC and gasoline evaporative VOC emissions likely explain the seasonal changes in O3 formation chemistry. Reduced traffic emissions in March 2020 did not reduce O3 concentrations because the chemistry was heavily NOx-rich during the spring season. Extended model predictions suggest that similar traffic reductions could have reduced ambient O3 concentrations in small and intermediate cities if they would have occurred in summer months. Traffic reductions alone would not be sufficient to reduce O3 concentrations in the urban cores of larger cities. Reduced emissions from transportation sources can improve air quality in California, but transportation sources no longer exclusively dominate O3 formation. Future emissions controls should be coordinated across multiple sectors (including transportation) to achieve their objectives. |
| Keywords: | Engineering, Air quality, nitrogen oxides, ozone, vehicle emissions, traffic volume |
| Date: | 2023–12–01 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cdl:itsdav:qt0sk24033&r= |
| By: | Batabyal, Amitrajeet; Higano, Yoshiro; Nijkamp, Peter |
| Abstract: | There are no book length treatments of spatial spillovers that provide theoretical and empirical analyses of this topic within different regions in the continent of Asia. As such, the primary objective of this book is to provide expansive studies of spatial spillovers and their salience by focusing on several regions in Asia. Following this introductory chapter, which comprises Part I of the book, there are eleven chapters and each of these chapters discusses a particular research question or questions about spatial spillovers in Asia. For ease of comprehension, we have divided the present volume containing twelve chapters into four parts. Part II of this book focuses on theoretical approaches to studying spatial spillovers and this part consists of three chapters. Part III concentrates on agriculture and the environment and this part of the book consists of two chapters. Finally, part IV provides a variety of regional perspectives on spatial spillovers in Asia. |
| Keywords: | Asia, Economic Development, Economic Growth, Region, Spatial Spillover |
| JEL: | Q10 R11 R50 |
| Date: | 2024–05–06 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:120901&r= |
| By: | Philip N. Jefferson |
| Date: | 2024–05–20 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:fip:fedgsq:98260&r= |
| By: | Chen, Angie |
| Abstract: | As jurisdictions update their High Injury Networks, discrepancies between the initial and updated HINs are to be expected. However, this lack of stability and consistency can negatively impact the prioritization of limited resources. In order to mitigate known issues with crash data underreporting and statistical biases, I examined strategies for utilizing data on underlying roadway characteristics to augment traditional collision analysis. Using the City of Oakland as a case study city, I assessed the stability of the pedestrian High Injury Network across two consecutive five-year periods (2012-2016 and 2017-2021), created with the same methodology. I found that the two HINs identified similar segments, particularly along arterials, but were less consistent in identifying the segments’ start and end points due to variation in crash data. I propose a methodology for finalizing High Injury Network extents based on segment characteristics (number of lanes, posted speed limit, and functional classification), and intersection characteristics (traffic signal presence and estimated pedestrian volumes). Applied to the Oakland case study, this approach results in a High Injury Network that is more stable over time, more focused (fewer street miles), and captures a higher percentage of fatal and severe crashes. This approach has the potential to smooth over inconsistencies in crash reporting, reduce the frequency of network updates needed, and shift High Injury Networks from being reactive to more proactive. |
| Keywords: | Social and Behavioral Sciences, Traffic safety, safe systems, high risk locations, crash data, arterial highways, case studies |
| Date: | 2024–05–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cdl:itsrrp:qt2pn189p3&r= |
| By: | Charly Porcher; Eduardo Morales; Thomas Fujiwara |
| Abstract: | We investigate the role of information frictions in migration. We develop novel moment inequalities to estimate worker preferences while allowing for unobserved worker-specific information sets, migration costs, and location-specific amenities and prices. Using data on internal migration in Brazil, we find that common estimation procedures underestimate the importance of expected wages in migration choices, and that workers face substantial and heterogeneous information frictions. Model specification tests indicate that workers living in regions with higher internet access and larger populations have more precise wage information, and that information precision decreases with distance. Our estimated model predicts that information frictions play a quantitatively important role in reducing migration flows and worker welfare, and limit the welfare gains from reductions in migration costs. |
| JEL: | F10 J61 R23 |
| Date: | 2024–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:nbr:nberwo:32413&r= |
| By: | Cuttner, Allison K.; Hübert, Ryan (University of California, Davis); Montagnes, Brendan Pablo |
| Abstract: | Public meetings to consider new housing proposals often feature visible and vocal opposition from neighboring residents, creating a perception that these meetings impede the growth of the housing supply contributing to inequality. We analyze a model where residents can legally challenge a developer’s housing proposal. A public meeting serves as a critical tool for developers to identify potential litigants, enabling them to adjust proposals and avoid legal action. Interestingly, developers prefer meetings dominated by opponents since it is easier to identify potentially litigious neighbors. Contrary to common belief, our findings suggest that public meetings dominated by NIMBY opponents can increase housing supply by fostering com- promise projects. This challenges the prevailing conventional wisdom that unrepresentative meetings significantly restrict housing development. Our analysis instead focuses attention on the threat of litigation as the key driver of the undersupply of housing. |
| Date: | 2024–05–15 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:osf:osfxxx:gfbva&r= |
| By: | Robert Collinson; Anthony A. DeFusco; John Eric Humphries; Benjamin J. Keys; David C. Phillips; Vincent Reina; Patrick S. Turner; Winnie van Dijk |
| Abstract: | The COVID-19 pandemic saw an unprecedented expansion of federal emergency rental assistance (ERA). Using applications to ERA lotteries in four cities linked to survey and administrative data, we assess its impacts on housing stability, financial security, and mental health. We find that assistance increased rent payment modestly and improved mental health. However, in contrast to pre-pandemic studies of similar assistance programs, we find limited effects on financial or housing stability. Several pieces of suggestive evidence indicate this discrepancy is likely due to macroeconomic conditions, including expanded government support and rental market slackness, rather than ERA generosity or targeting. |
| JEL: | H00 I38 J01 R38 |
| Date: | 2024–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:nbr:nberwo:32463&r= |
| By: | Ouassim Manout (LAET - Laboratoire Aménagement Économie Transports - UL2 - Université Lumière - Lyon 2 - ENTPE - École Nationale des Travaux Publics de l'État - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique); Azise-Oumar Diallo (LAET - Laboratoire Aménagement Économie Transports - UL2 - Université Lumière - Lyon 2 - ENTPE - École Nationale des Travaux Publics de l'État - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique) |
| Abstract: | Autonomous vehicles will be one of the most disruptive technologies of the automative industry. Their wider implications on society are expected to be considerable, even if these implications are still under debate. Meanwhile, various stakeholders, including cities and tech companies, are launching different AV pilot projects to test and help boost the technology readiness level. This research assesses some of the impacts of three AV mobility scenarios: private, shared, and pooled AVs in Lyon, France. An agent-based simulation framework is used (MATSim). Results suggest that AV services can reshuffle existing transportation dynamics by attracting a significant share of travel demand, especially from public transport and walking. If not regulated, these services can produce substantial excess travel distances and increase energy consumption and emissions of the transportation system. In this regard, pooled robotaxis are the least impactful introduction scenario of AVs compared to non-pooled robotaxis or private AVs. |
| Keywords: | Autonomous vehicle, Shared autonomous vehicle, Pooled autonomous vehicle, Robotaxi, Impact, Agent-based model |
| Date: | 2023–06–14 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hal:journl:hal-04570546&r= |
| By: | Nilsson, Pia (Department of Economics, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Uppsala, Sweden.); Johansson, Eleanor (Department of Economics, The Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Uppsala, Sweden.); Larsson, Johan P (Department of Land Economy, University of Cambridge, UK.); Naldi, Lucia (Centre for Family Business and Entrepreneurship CeFEO, Jönköping University, Jönköping Sweden.); Westlund, Hans (Department of Urban and Regional Studies, Royal Institute of Technology, Stockholm, Sweden.) |
| Abstract: | We investigate how the lockdown-induced exposure to remote work affected the likelihood of switching to longer commutes using a longitudinal full-population register of Swedish employees. Employees with little experience of long distance commuting were more likely to start commuting longer if they had occupations with high potential for remote work. Examining heterogeneity across sectors, this is especially evident among high-skilled workers in sectors with both high and low pre-existing shares of remote work and longer commutes. Our findings are important for understanding regional expansion and spatial extensions of labour markets in a world where more work can be done remotely. |
| Keywords: | Labour mobility; Commuting distance; Remote work: Knowledge-intensive sectors; Covid-19 |
| JEL: | J24 J61 R10 R30 |
| Date: | 2024–05–23 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hhs:cesisp:0498&r= |
| By: | Radu Barza; Edward L. Glaeser; César A. Hidalgo; Martina Viarengo |
| Abstract: | Are developing-world cities engines of opportunities for low-wage earners? In this study, we track a cohort of young low-income workers in Brazil for thirteen years to explore the contribution of factors such as industrial structure and skill segregation on upward income mobility. We find that cities in the south of Brazil are more effective engines of upward mobility than cities in the north and that these differences appear to be primarily related to the exposure of unskilled workers to skilled co-workers, which in turn reflects industry composition and complexity. Our results suggest that the positive effects of urbanization depend on the skilled and unskilled working together, a form of integration that is more prevalent in the cities of southern Brazil than in northern cities. This segregation, which can decline with specialization and the division of labor, may hinder the ability of Brazil's northern cities to offer more opportunities for escaping poverty. |
| JEL: | D63 I24 N90 N96 O10 O11 O18 O43 R10 R23 |
| Date: | 2024–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:nbr:nberwo:32426&r= |
| By: | Mark Bryan (Department of Economics, University of Sheffield, Sheffield S1 4DT, UK); Andrew Bryce (Department of Economics, University of Sheffield, Sheffield S1 4DT, UK); Jennifer Roberts (Department of Economics, University of Sheffield, Sheffield S1 4DT, UK); Cristina Sechel (Department of Economics, University of Sheffield, Sheffield S1 4DT, UK) |
| Abstract: | The UK is one of the most spatially unequal countries in the developed world, and there is a long recognised need to ‘level up’ the economy. A strong case can be made to suggest that disabled people are particularly disadvantaged when living in a ‘left behind’ area and hence have the most to gain from levelling up. The disability employment gap, that is the difference between the employment rates of non-disabled people and disabled people, was 31 percentage points (pp) in Great Britain as a whole between 2014 and 2019 but ranged from 17pp to 43pp at local (ITL3) level. Using novel decomposition techniques we find that the key drivers of this spatial variation, each explaining similar shares, are local population characteristics and economic structure, including the level and nature of labour demand in geographical areas and the industry composition of the area. However, spatial variation in healthcare capacity, social capital, employer policies towards disability and the stringency of statutory welfare provision do not appear to have an effect on the gap. Our results suggest that locally adapted policies to narrow the gap may be more effective than a one-size-fits-all approach. |
| Keywords: | disability employment gap, spatial inequalities |
| JEL: | I14 J14 R12 |
| Date: | 2024–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:shf:wpaper:2024002&r= |
| By: | Marcel Smolka |
| Abstract: | We investigate the effect of immigration on consumer prices in Spain between 1997 and 2013. Using variation across provinces, we first document a positive correlation between consumer prices and the share of migrants in the population. However, controlling for regional supply and demand shocks, and addressing endogeneity through an instrumental variables approach, we show that immigration has actually reduced consumer prices in Spain. An increase in the share of migrants by 10 percentage points reduces (CPI-weighted) consumer prices by approx. 1.25 percent. We show that the effect materializes around the years of the 2008 financial crisis, and that it is concentrated among non-tradable goods and services. Focusing on individual products, we find that some of those products that rely most heavily on migrant labor have been subject to considerable price reductions, while we find no such effects for those products that make intensive use of native labor. Finally, we find that it is immigration from outside Western Europe that led to a reduction in consumer prices, while the effect of immigration from Western Europe is zero. Overall, our results paint a complex picture of the effects of immigration on consumer prices. They support the idea that immigration can reduce consumer prices through both supply-side and demand-side channels. |
| Keywords: | immigration, consumer prices, Spain |
| JEL: | F22 J61 |
| Date: | 2024 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ces:ceswps:_11097&r= |
| By: | Miriam Gensowski (Rockwool Foundation); Rasmus Landersø (Rockwool Foundation Research Unit); Philip Dale (University of New Mexico, Albuquerque); Anders Højen (Aarhus University); Laura Justice (Ohio State University); Dorthe Bleses (Aarhus University) |
| Abstract: | This paper studies the interaction between parental and public inputs in children’s skill formation. We perform a longer-run follow-up study of a randomized controlled trial that increased preschool quality and initially improved skills significantly for children of all backgrounds. There is, however, complete fade-out for children with highly educated parents. Given positive long-run effects for children with low-educated parents, the treatment reduces child skill gaps across parents’ education by 46%. We show that the heterogeneous treatment effects are a result of differences in parents’ responses in terms of investments, reacting to school quality later in childhood. There is also evidence of cross-productivity between reading and math skills and socio-emotional development. |
| Keywords: | public investment, school quality |
| JEL: | I24 I28 I21 J24 |
| Date: | 2024–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hka:wpaper:2024-011&r= |
| By: | Amy Phillips; Dimitra Plastara; Ahmed Z. Khan; Frank Canters |
| Abstract: | Access to urban green space (UGS) is associated with a number of physical and social benefits. Recognizing the importance of UGS access for people's wellbeing, several methods have been proposed to model UGS accessibility and highlight areas underserviced by UGS. However, existing methodologies have several limitations. Models often make use of universal, normative maximum travel distances, which may not reflect the distances people actually travel to reach UGS they regularly visit. Additionally, many of these analyses do not consider UGS quality, which will largely influence use and experience of these spaces and may act as a pull factor affecting the distance people are willing to travel to visit a UGS. Those methods that do integrate quality often rely on proxies, such as size or number of amenities, and fail to consider perceived quality. To address these limitations, we propose a methodology that integrates user perception and the actual distance people are prepared to travel into a quality-accessibility (QA) analysis applied at the building block scale. Information on travel distance and quality are gathered from a public participation GIS survey conducted in the Brussels Capital Region. The results of the analysis highlight inequalities in access to specific, essential UGS experiences throughout the region. Insights provided by this analysis can help planners prioritize interventions to improve access to experiences provided by UGS in parts of the city where interventions are most needed. |
| Keywords: | Environmental justice; Green space equity; PPGIS; Urban green space accessibility; Urban green space quality; Urban green spaces |
| Date: | 2023–12 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ulb:ulbeco:2013/371425&r= |
| By: | Marinho Bertanha; Margaux Luflade; Ismael Mourifié |
| Abstract: | A growing number of central authorities use assignment mechanisms to allocate students to schools in a way that reflects student preferences and school priorities. However, most real-world mechanisms incentivize students to strategically misreport their preferences. In this paper, we provide an approach for identifying the causal effects of school assignment on future outcomes that accounts for strategic misreporting. Misreporting may invalidate existing point-identification approaches, and we derive sharp bounds for causal effects that are robust to strategic behavior. Our approach applies to any mechanism as long as there exist placement scores and cutoffs that characterize that mechanism’s allocation rule. We use data from a deferred acceptance mechanism that assigns students to more than 1, 000 university–major combinations in Chile. Matching theory predicts that students’ behavior in Chile should be strategic because they can list only up to eight options, and we find empirical evidence consistent with such behavior. Our bounds are informative enough to reveal significant heterogeneity in graduation success with respect to preferences and school assignment. |
| JEL: | C01 C12 C21 C26 |
| Date: | 2024–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:nbr:nberwo:32434&r= |
| By: | Janine Albiez; Maurizio Strazzeri; Stefan C. Wolter |
| Abstract: | We examine the association between the personality trait grit and post-compulsory educational choices and trajectories using a large survey linked to administrative student register data. Exploiting cross sectional variation in students’ self-reported grit in the last year of compulsory school, we find that an increase in students’ grit is associated with a higher likelihood to start a vocational education instead of a general education. This association is robust to the inclusion of cognitive skill measures and a comprehensive set of other students’ background characteristics. Moreover, using novel data on skill requirements of around 240 vocational training occupations, we find that grittier vocational education students sort into math-intensive training occupations. Similarly, students in general education with more grit select themselves more often into the math-intensive track. Finally, we do not find evidence that students with a higher grit have lower dropout rates in post-compulsory education. |
| Keywords: | non-cognitive skills, personality traits, grit, educational choices |
| JEL: | D01 I20 |
| Date: | 2024 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ces:ceswps:_11088&r= |
| By: | Gupta, Mallika |
| Abstract: | Amidst increasing investments in cycling infrastructure in California, trends continue to demonstrate that women from low-income communities of color are underrepresented as cyclists. I argue that prevailing bicycle justice movements have neglected the intersectional needs of women from Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) communities by centering the ‘white, lycra-clad male’ and his commute needs within organized bicycling advocacy. Further, contemporary bicycle planning does little to investigate the barriers and joys related to cycling, as they are experienced by these women. This article draws from nine in-depth interviews with women of color in Oakland, California, to identify the racial and gendered barriers that influence the decision to cycle and whether only the construction of cycling infrastructure is enough to overcome these social barriers. Findings suggest that the fear of traffic injuries, coupled with the perceived and actual risk of victimization, sexual harassment, and racial violence discourage women of color from cycling. The concerns are further exacerbated by systemic failures of the city, including housing unaffordability, increasing income inequality, and the politics of gentrification. This suggests that bicycling planning must address more complex social factors besides infrastructural ones, create more opportunities for women of color to be included in bicycle planning and advocacy spaces, and help destigmatize cycling by increasing the visibility of BIPOC women as cyclists. I conclude this article by offering suggestions for practitioners and policymakers that might help reduce social barriers to cycling for women of color. |
| Keywords: | Social and Behavioral Sciences, Transportation equity, bicycling, gender, people of color, low income groups, bicycle travel, advocacy groups |
| Date: | 2024–05–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cdl:itsrrp:qt0jw0n66r&r= |
| By: | Saheel A. Chodavadia; Sari Pekkala Kerr; William R. Kerr; Louis J. Maiden |
| Abstract: | Immigrants contribute disproportionately to entrepreneurship in many countries, accounting for a quarter of new employer businesses in the US. We review recent research on the measurement of immigrant entrepreneurship, the traits of immigrant founders, their economic impact, and policy levers. We provide updated statistics on the share of US entrepreneurs who are immigrants. We utilize the Annual Business Survey to quantify the greater rates of patenting and innovation in immigrant-founded firms. This higher propensity towards innovation is only partly explained by differences in education levels and fields of study. We conclude with avenues for future research. |
| JEL: | F22 F6 J15 J61 L26 M13 O15 O3 R23 |
| Date: | 2024–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:nbr:nberwo:32400&r= |
| By: | Tang, Cheng Keat; Gibbons, Stephen |
| Abstract: | Overhead electrical power lines and pylons have long raised concerns regarding the effects of electromagnetic fields on health, noise pollution and the visual impact on rural landscapes. These issues are once again salient because of the need for new lines to connect sources of renewable energy to the grid. In this study we provide new evidence on the cost implied by these externalities, as revealed in house prices. We use a spatial difference-in-difference approach that compares price changes in neighbourhoods that are close to overhead power-lines, before and after they are constructed, with price changes in comparable neighbourhoods further away. Our findings suggest that the construction of new overhead pylons reduces prices by 3.9% for properties up to 1500 meters away, suggesting the impacts extend further than previously estimated. |
| Keywords: | externalities; overhead power lines; pylons; house prices; revealed preferences; Centre for Economic Performance |
| JEL: | R32 Q48 Q51 |
| Date: | 2024–05–03 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ehl:lserod:122635&r= |
| By: | SOSTERO Matteo; BISELLO Martina; FERNANDEZ MACIAS Enrique (European Commission - JRC) |
| Abstract: | Following the sudden expansion of telework across the EU during the COVID-19 pandemic, this study reveals a widespread increase in the prevalence of work from home across EU countries, regions, and territorial typologies. While telework rates have slightly receded from their peak at the height of COVID-19 restrictions, they remain markedly higher than pre-pandemic levels nearly everywhere in the EU, reflecting a lasting shift in work practices. Despite this common trend, stark disparities persist, especially between urban and rural areas, between capital regions and the rest, but also across countries. Regional analysis of the EU Labour Force Survey underscores the critical role of regional occupational structures in explaining differences in the local prevalence of telework. The findings show that technical teleworkability, as determined by occupational tasks, has become an even more significant predictor of the regional prevalence of telework after the pandemic. The study also challenges some common assumptions about rural internet connectivity, which has improved remarkably since before the pandemic, and which may now matter relatively less than regional occupational structure as a driver of telework. Our research also suggests that both the extent and frequency of telework matter for regional development, highlighting the nuanced policy trade-offs to promoting telework for sustainability and regional equity in a post-pandemic landscape. |
| Keywords: | Telework, occupations, division of labour, regional employment |
| Date: | 2024–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ipt:laedte:202402&r= |
| By: | Clara Turner; Jeff Allen; Karen Chapple; Sarah A. Smith (University of Toronto) |
| Abstract: | This paper assesses the potential effects of housing development on regional greenhouse gas emissions in Ontario’s Greater Golden Horseshoe. Using models of different development scenarios based on household vehicle kilometres travelled and energy use, we evaluate the impacts of different forms of new housing production on greenhouse gas reduction targets and suggest housing and land use best practices and policy approaches. We model core scenarios of development from 2023 to 2030 that reflect current debates on housing development and land use planning in the region that include Build as Usual (on-going intensification); All-Sprawl (under recent policy changes); and four alternatives: Business as Usual, Moderate, Limited, and No Sprawl. Our findings suggest that aggressive intensification would reduce greenhouse gas emissions by as much as 26 percent, with particularly significant and compounding effects to be expected over the long term. We conclude that progressive land use planning and other mechanisms by the provincial, regional, and municipal orders of government that reduce the emissions generated by buildings, preserve open space that provides critical carbon sequestration, and reduce vehicle miles travelled, should be aggressively strengthened to build on progress made under the Province’s Growth Plan for the Greater Golden Horseshoe. |
| Keywords: | intensification, sprawl, land use planning, climate change, greenhouse gas emissions, Canada, ghg, greater golden horseshoe, ontario |
| JEL: | R52 R58 Q58 |
| Date: | 2024–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:mfg:wpaper:67&r= |
| By: | Dai, Li (Hunan University); Martins, Pedro S. (Universidade Nova de Lisboa) |
| Abstract: | China hosts the world's largest secondary education sector: more than 14 million adolescents enrol in secondary academic or vocational schools every year. Despite the large literature on returns to education, little evidence exists as to how these two streams compare in the country. Using 2013 China Household Income Project data, we estimate the returns to secondary vocational education both at the mean and along the conditional wage distribution. We use instrumental variables based on the considerable variation in education provision across cities and years (and a 1995 policy reform). We find that vocational education generates a large wage premium (up to 54%), especially for those of lower earnings potential. Our findings indicate that vocational education can be a good option for those who do not wish to enter tertiary education, especially the less well-off. |
| Keywords: | returns to education, vocational education, heterogeneity, instrumental variable quantile regression, China |
| JEL: | I26 I25 J24 J31 C36 |
| Date: | 2024–04 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp16957&r= |
| By: | Intan Hamdan-Livramento; Gregory D. Graff; Alica Daly |
| Abstract: | This paper illustrates successful policies and incentives that build on local innovation capabilities across three agricultural innovation hubs at different income levels and across different geographical regions. It makes the case for how countries highly complex innovation ecosystems, which refer to the diversity and sophistication of local innovators and the types of innovation they produce, tend to have more opportunities to shift their technological path to the frontier. The paper focuses on three agricultural hubs across different income levels and geography to illustrate how smart policies that focus on building local capabilities can help countries diversify and create their own agricultural technological paths. These hubs include: São Paulo in Brazil, Nairobi in Kenya and Colorado in the United States of America. |
| Keywords: | Agriculture, Innovation complexity, Technologies, Intellectual property |
| JEL: | O25 O31 O33 O30 O11 O14 |
| Date: | 2024–04 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:wip:wpaper:82&r= |
| By: | Hanqiao Zhang; Joy D. Xiuyao Yang |
| Abstract: | The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted traditional academic collaboration patterns, prompting a unique opportunity to analyze the influence of peer effects and coauthorship dynamics on research output. Using a novel dataset, this paper endeavors to make a first cut at investigating the role of peer effects on the productivity of economics scholars, measured by the number of publications, in both pre-pandemic and pandemic times. Results show that peer effect is significant for the pre-pandemic time but not for the pandemic time. The findings contribute to our understanding of how research collaboration influences knowledge production and may help guide policies aimed at fostering collaboration and enhancing research productivity in the academic community. |
| Date: | 2024–04 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:arx:papers:2404.18980&r= |
| By: | Pfnür, Andreas; Wagner, Benjamin |
| Abstract: | The German real estate and construction industry is facing a transformation, triggered by fundamental changes in technology, the economy and society. The purpose of this paper is to explore how these changes exert pressure to adapt on existing business models, while also offering opportunities for their further development. A model that attributes the transformation of the real estate industry to megatrends, specific structural change drivers, business models and the interaction of the groups of players in the value creation system is developed. The model is tested empirically by a survey. Structural equation modelling is used to measure the impact of various determinants of transformation and the relevance of adaptation strategies to the different groups of players. As a result, the study explains three impact mechanisms of the transformation in the real estate industry. The transformation originates from the occupiers, who need more flexible space and are focusing on holistic solutions that are not provided by the real estate industry. Service providers are striving to increase the efficiency of their traditional processes, rather than evolving new business models or services. The investors recognise the increasing importance of the occupiers but they are rarely pursuing the resulting strategies. Property developers recognise these requirements: their adaptation strategies most strongly question their previous business. For practitioners, the results point out the opportunities and risks of transformation and help to illustrate the need for change. For academicians, the results indicate a way to explain and measure the transformation of a value creation system. |
| Date: | 2024–04–30 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:dar:wpaper:144706&r= |
| By: | Ciaschi, Matías (CEDLAS-UNLP); Fajardo-Gonzalez, Johanna (UNDP); Viollaz, Mariana (CEDLAS-UNLP) |
| Abstract: | This study analyzes the adjustment in time allocation to school support activities by mothers and fathers during the pandemic across 22 Latin American and Caribbean countries, exploring the repercussions on labor market outcomes and children's learning losses. Our analysis reveals that mothers experienced a disproportionate increase in time dedicated to children's educational support compared to fathers, particularly when mothers could work from home. The results suggest that these effects were more pronounced in countries with stringent school closure measures and limited access to in-person instruction. Even as mobility restrictions eased and schools reopened, the additional responsibilities taken on by mothers remained above pre-pandemic levels. Mothers also significantly increased the time spent on non-educational childcare, though to a lesser extent than educational support. We also show evidence indicating a decline in maternal labor force participation and a rise in flexible labor arrangements as mothers allocated more hours to child-related duties. Our study also provides descriptive evidence that children's learning losses were less severe in countries where the gender disparity in pandemic-related school support was greater. |
| Keywords: | time use, childcare, labor, COVID-19, Latin America |
| JEL: | I1 J13 J21 |
| Date: | 2024–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp16985&r= |
| By: | Adema, Joop (University of Munich); Aksoy, Cevat Giray (European Bank for Reconstruction and Development); Giesing, Yvonne (Ifo Institute for Economic Research); Poutvaara, Panu (University of Munich) |
| Abstract: | What is the causal effect of conflict on refugees' return and integration? To answer this question, we launched a panel survey of Ukrainian refugees across Europe in June 2022 and combined it with geocoded conflict data. Most refugees plan to return, and initial return intentions strongly predict actual return. Those who initially plan to settle outside Ukraine integrate faster. Increased conflict intensity in the home municipality discourages return there, but not to Ukraine as a whole. It also has no effect on the likelihood of working. Liberation of the home district increases return, while increased pessimism about the outcome of the war reduces return intentions. |
| Keywords: | conflict, Ukraine, migration, refugees, return migration, integration |
| JEL: | D74 F22 J15 J24 |
| Date: | 2024–04 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp16962&r= |
| By: | Tiznado-Aitken, Ignacio; Farber, Steven |
| Abstract: | While urban regions continue to grow, much of the urbanization that is occurring is better described as suburbanization. This is generating and will continue to generate immense pressure on our social and environmental systems. To address these challenges and exploit specific suburban opportunities, cities globally require a complete understanding of the complexity of how human and environmental systems are uniquely intertwined within suburban contexts. The Suburban Mobilities (SuMo) cluster at the University of Toronto Scarborough (UTSC) aims to address these academic and policy challenges, generating transformative, interdisciplinary, partnered research about suburban contexts that will allow communities to solve holistic transportation challenges facing the suburbanized world in the 21st century. Among the multiple projects developed within the SuMo cluster, one highlight is the design of a multidimensional survey in Scarborough, an eastern suburb of Toronto, Canada. Multiple transportation, land use, pricing and census data sources have allowed us to characterize this area to date, and we wondered what information would be helpful to collect in a survey to fill data gaps that will enable a better and deeper characterization of transportation’s impacts on quality of life of people living in Scarborough. This article details the particularities of the Scarborough context, as well as the design process, sampling strategy, representativeness, main descriptive results, and ongoing work using the survey. Finally, a reduced and aggregated survey version is available for the general public with respective documentation for ease of use. |
| Date: | 2024–05–15 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:osf:osfxxx:s5jxh&r= |
| By: | Milad Abbasiharofteh; Tom Broekel; Lars Mewes; |
| Abstract: | This paper examines how geographical proximity affected interregional co-patenting links in various technologies in the USA from 1836 to 2010. We classify technologies by their complexity and test whether that moderates the impact of distance on collaboration. Contrary to the ‘death of distance’ hypothesis, distance still matters for knowledge creation and exchange. Moreover, we show that the role of complexity has changed over time. However, this pattern reversed by the late 20th century, with collaborations in complex technologies becoming more resilient to distance than those in simpler technologies. However, this pattern reversed by the late 20th century, with collaborations in complex technologies becoming more resilient to distance than those in simpler technologies. |
| Keywords: | network evolution, interregional collaboration, geographical proximity, technological complexity |
| JEL: | O33 R12 N70 L14 |
| Date: | 2024–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:egu:wpaper:2414&r= |
| By: | Adriana Kugler |
| Date: | 2024–05–17 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:fip:fedgsq:98256&r= |
| By: | Patrice Pieretti (DEM, Université du Luxembourg); Giuseppe Pulina (Banque Centrale du Luxembourg); Andreas Sintos (DEM, Université du Luxembourg); Skerdilajda Zanaj (DEM, Université du Luxembourg) |
| Abstract: | In this paper, we model migration patterns as the outcome of strategic public policies adopted by competing jurisdictions. We assume that two economies, distinguished by different technological levels, host a continuum of mobile individuals with varying skill levels. To maximize their net revenues, governments compete for mobile workers by taxing wages and providing a public good that enhances firm productivity (public input). We show that the most skilled workers migrate to the technologically advanced economy. However, by offering lower taxes or more public inputs, the less technologically developed country can retain part of its skilled labor force and attract skilled workers from abroad, albeit not the most qualified. As a result, a two-way migration pattern emerges, driven by governments’ strategic policy choices. Finally, the introduction of heterogeneity in population size does not significantly alter the results. |
| Keywords: | Bilateral migration; Tax competition; Heterogeneous skills; Technological gap; Policy competition. |
| JEL: | H20 H30 H54 H87 F22 F60 |
| Date: | 2024 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:luc:wpaper:24-04&r= |
| By: | Bachtal, Yassien Nico |
| Abstract: | The world of work, particularly the physical organization of work, is undergoing a profound transformation process. The causes of this transformation process are technological innovations, organizational changes, and the increasing pluralization of employee requirements. Even though this transformation process of the physical organization of work began several years ago, the COVID-19 pandemic has significantly increased its speed. As a measure to contain the COVID-19 pandemic, working from home enabled office workers worldwide to gain experience with this workplace. Work from home describes regular working from home, which is made possible using information and communication technologies. This gives employees a direct comparison between working in the office and working from home and allows them to choose their place of work more purposefully depending on their work activities. The widespread introduction of work from home influences life and work on several levels. At an individual level, the question arises as to which employees are generally suitable for working from home. At the level of the working environment, there needs to be more knowledge about the extent to which work from home influences the digital equipment of residential properties. Furthermore, it remains unclear how the interaction between the employee (person) and the working environment (environment) in work from home affects individual work success (fit). This dissertation explores these research questions with the help of a total of five research articles. The first article classifies work from home in a hybrid working environment and uses an international comparison between the United States and Germany. Hybrid working is defined by the distribution of working hours between the office, work from home, and third places of work, and describes a combination of these places of work. The article shows that WFH is a high priority for many employees in a hybrid working environment. While working hours in the office are almost identical in both countries at around one-third, it is clear that third places of work (e.g., coworking spaces) are more important for employees in the United States than Germany. The article shows that this divergence is primarily cultural. Overall, this article shows that employees internationally attach great importance to WFH in a hybrid working environment. The second article addresses the importance of work from home in a hybrid work environment and examines in a preliminary study which aspects enable successful work from home. The results of the article show correlative relationships between spatial, personal, and work-related characteristics on the one hand, and satisfaction and productivity on the other. Consequently, successful work at home is only possible if all three dimensions are met. This article indicates that only around 25 % of employees who can work from home are successful there. The third research article takes up the results of the second study. The aim is to take a closer look at these 25 % of employees who successfully work from home. The results make it clear that more experienced employees who live in well-equipped residential properties and have a high degree of work autonomy can work successfully from home. Career starters, who often live in properties that are not suitable for work from home, are less successful in working from home. The fourth article is specifically dedicated to examining the influence of real estate characteristics on satisfaction and productivity in work from home. Furthermore, the relative importance of real estate characteristics is compared with organizational and socio-psychological characteristics. It is shown that real estate characteristics highly influence satisfaction and productivity in work from home. Compared to organizational and socio-psychological characteristics, real estate characteristics are the most important. The fifth research article delves into the factors that impact the purchase intention of smart homes, shedding light on the heightened inclination towards technology, notably spurred by the COVID-19 pandemic and the surge in remote work. This study investigates the intricate interplay between these aspects, unravelling the nuanced role that the increased affinity for technology, especially in the context of the widespread shift to remote work, plays in shaping consumer attitudes toward smart home adoption. The social environment primarily influences the intention to buy smart homes. However, the results also make it clear that the increased affinity for technology improves attitudes toward such residential properties, leading to a higher purchase intention. With these findings, this dissertation expands research on work from home. Work from home offers potential for both companies and society. At the same time, the dissertation also shows the risks associated with working from home. These potentials can only be realized by taking an individual view of an organization’s workforce and combining the office, work from home, and third places. The dissertation offers a theoretical-conceptual classification in the current state of research and supported by the results, provides implications for practice to meet the challenges in the transformation process of the physical organization of work. |
| Date: | 2024–05–08 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:dar:wpaper:144916&r= |
| By: | David Arnold; Will S. Dobbie; Peter Hull |
| Abstract: | We develop new quasi-experimental tools to understand algorithmic discrimination and build non-discriminatory algorithms when the outcome of interest is only selectively observed. These tools are applied in the context of pretrial bail decisions, where conventional algorithmic predictions are generated using only the misconduct outcomes of released defendants. We first show that algorithmic discrimination arises in such settings when the available algorithmic inputs are systematically different for white and Black defendants with the same objective misconduct potential. We then show how algorithmic discrimination can be eliminated by measuring and purging these conditional input disparities. Leveraging the quasi-random assignment of bail judges in New York City, we find that our new algorithms not only eliminate algorithmic discrimination but also generate more accurate predictions by correcting for the selective observability of misconduct outcomes. |
| JEL: | C26 J15 K42 |
| Date: | 2024–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:nbr:nberwo:32403&r= |
| By: | Angerer, Silvia; Brosch, Hanna (Technical University of Munich); Glätzle-Rützler, Daniela (University of Innsbruck); Lergetporer, Philipp (Technical University of Munich); Rittmannsberger, Thomas (Technical University of Munich) |
| Abstract: | We present representative evidence of discrimination against migrants through an incentivized choice experiment with over 2, 000 participants. Decision makers allocate a fixed endowment between two receivers. To measure discrimination, we randomly vary receivers' migration background and other attributes, including education, gender, and age. We find that discrimination against migrants by the general population is both widespread and substantial. Our causal moderation analysis shows that migrants with higher education and female migrants experience significantly less discrimination. Discrimination is more pronounced among decision makers who are male, non-migrants, have right-wing political preferences, and live in regions with lower migrant shares. |
| Keywords: | discrimination, representative sample, migration, experiment |
| JEL: | C91 C93 J15 D90 |
| Date: | 2024–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp16984&r= |
| By: | Andrew F. Haughwout; Donggyu Lee; Daniel Mangrum; Belicia Rodriguez; Joelle Scally; Wilbert Van der Klaauw |
| Abstract: | The end of the Great Recession marked the beginning of the longest economic expansion in U.S. history. The Great Recession, with its dramatic housing bust, led to a wave of home foreclosures as overleveraged borrowers found themselves unable to meet their payment obligations. In early 2009, the New York Fed’s Research Group launched the Consumer Credit Panel (CCP), a foundational data set of the Center for Microeconomic Data, to monitor the financial health of Americans as the economy recovered. The CCP, which is based on anonymized credit report data from Equifax, gives us an opportunity to track individuals during the period leading to the foreclosure, observe when a flag is added to their credit report and then—years later—removed. Here, we examine the longer-term impact of a foreclosure on borrowers’ credit scores and borrowing experiences: do they return to borrowing, or shy away from credit use and homeownership after their earlier bad experience? |
| Keywords: | Consumer Credit Panel (CCP); household finance; foreclosure; housing |
| JEL: | G5 |
| Date: | 2024–05–08 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:fip:fednls:98210&r= |
| By: | António Afonso; José Alves; João Tovar Jalles; Sofia Monteiro |
| Abstract: | This paper explores the nuanced relationship between fiscal decentralization and fiscal sustainability. Employing panel data analyses, it scrutinizes how decentralization influences fiscal discipline across different governmental levels. Results for 185 countries show that while tax decentralization often hampers the degree of fiscal responsiveness, potentially due to misaligned local and national objectives and loss of scale efficiency, spending decentralization can enhance fiscal outcomes by promoting efficient resource allocation. These findings are contextualized within a broad range of economic and political environments, highlighting that the impacts of decentralization are contingent upon local capacities and overarching governance frameworks. Hence, we contribute to the understanding of fiscal policies’ complexity in decentralized systems and offer significant policy insights for fiscal sustainability in varied administrative contexts. |
| Keywords: | panel data analysis; fiscal sustainability; decentralization; fiscal rules; political cycles; time-varying coefficients. |
| JEL: | H11 H77 H72 H73 E62 C23 |
| Date: | 2024–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ise:remwps:wp03242024&r= |
| By: | Nils Breitmar; Matthew C. Harding; Hanqiao Zhang |
| Abstract: | Despite the earlier claim of "Death of Distance", recent studies revealed that geographical proximity still greatly influences link formation in online social networks. However, it is unclear how physical distances are intertwined with users' online behaviors in a virtual world. We study the role of spatial dependence on a global online social network with a dyadic Logit model. Results show country-specific patterns for distance effect on probabilities to build connections. Effects are stronger when the possibility for two people to meet in person exists. Relative to weak ties, dependence on proximity is looser for strong social ties. |
| Date: | 2024–04 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:arx:papers:2404.18979&r= |
| By: | Manz, Florian; Müller, Birgit; Schiereck, Dirk |
| Abstract: | Recent empirical evidence raises doubt about the ability of financial market participants to generate information efficient valuations for capital market instruments whose cash flows are related to residual claims and dependent on real estate income. We contribute to this literature with the examination of value implications of non-performing loan (NPL) divestitures in the banking industry during the period 2012–2018. In a first step, we provide descriptive statistics of the European NPL market, which lacks transparency and publicly available basic information on portfolio size and components. We then analyze wealth effects of distressed loan sale announcements for a uniquely large transaction database with 317 NPL deals, which is largely driven by real estate collateral. Our results show positive stock market reactions for vendor banks following NPL divestitures that tend to be driven by real estate collateral and a size effect. |
| Date: | 2024–04–30 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:dar:wpaper:144672&r= |
| By: | Vitor Melo; Liam Sigaud; Elijah Neilson; Markus Bjoerkheim |
| Abstract: | Certificate-of-need (CON) laws require that healthcare providers receive approval from a state board before offering additional services in a given community. Proponents of CON laws claim that these laws are needed to prevent the oversupply of healthcare services in urban areas and to increase access in rural areas, which are predominantly underserved. Yet, the policy could lower rural access if used by incumbents to limit entry from competitors. We explore the repeal of these regulations in five U.S. states to offer the first estimate of the causal effects of CON laws on rural and urban healthcare access. We find that repealing CON laws causes a substantial increase in hospitals in both rural and urban areas. We also find that the repeal leads to fewer beds and smaller hospitals on average, suggesting an increase in entry and competition in both rural and urban areas. |
| Date: | 2024–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:arx:papers:2405.08168&r= |
| By: | Jeronimo Carballo; Richard K. Mansfield; Charles Adam Pfander |
| Abstract: | Multi-establishment firms account for around 60% of U.S. workers' primary employers, providing ample opportunity for workers to change their work location without changing their employer. Using U.S. matched employer-employee data, this paper analyzes workers' access to and use of such between-establishment job transitions, and estimates the effect on workers' earnings growth of greater access, as measured by proximity of employment at other within-firm establishments. While establishment transitions are not perfectly observed, we estimate that within-firm establishment transitions account for 7.8% percent of all job transitions and 18.2% of transitions originating from the largest firms. Using variation in worker's establishment locations within their firms' establishment network, we show that having a greater share of the firm's jobs in nearby establishments generates meaningful increases in workers' earnings: a worker at the 90th percentile of earnings gains from more proximate within-firm job opportunities can expect to enjoy 2% higher average earnings over the following five years than a worker at the 10th percentile with the same baseline earnings. |
| JEL: | E24 J62 M51 |
| Date: | 2024–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:nbr:nberwo:32420&r= |
| By: | Jinwon Kim (Department of Economics, Sogang University, Seoul, Korea); Jucheol Moon (Department of Computer Engineering & Computer Science, California State University, Long Beach); Dongyun Yang (Department of Economics, The University of Texas, Austin) |
| Abstract: | This paper quanti_es the optimal Pigouvian congestion tolls imposed on California freeway users and the associated welfare gains by estimating the technological supply relationship of roads and the time-cost elasticity of demand using novel identi_cation strategies and big data. Based on our estimates, we suggest that the optimal congestion tolls are around 10-16 cents per vehicle mile under moderate congestion and 25-114 cents under severe congestion, with the amounts varying by freeway depending on road capacity and tra_c demand size. We calculate that the welfare bene_ts from the tolling are typically around USD 20 per lane-mile of road and hour. Under a plausible scenario, the optimal tolls charged on congested freeways in California yield annual aggregate bene_ts of up to USD 1.8 billion. |
| Keywords: | Pigouvian tax, congestion externality, California freeway, quasi experiment, instrumental variable, big data |
| JEL: | R41 H23 Q59 |
| Date: | 2024 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:sgo:wpaper:2402&r= |
| By: | Harris, Donna (University of Oxford); Borcan, Oana (University of East Anglia); Serra, Danila (Texas A&M University); Telli, Henry (International Growth Centre (IGC)); Schettini, Bruno (Federal Revenue of Brazil); Dercon, Stefan (University of Oxford) |
| Abstract: | We examine the impact of ethics and integrity training on police officers in Ghana through a randomized field experiment. The program, informed by theoretical work on the role of identity and motivation in organizations, aimed to re-activate intrinsic motivations to serve the public, and to create a new shared identity of "Agent of Change." Data generated by an endline survey conducted 20 months post training, show that the program positively affected officers' values and beliefs regarding on-the-job unethical behavior and improved their attitudes toward citizens. The training also lowered officers' propensity to behave unethically, as measured by an incentivized cheating game conducted at endline. District-level administrative data for a subsample of districts are consistent with a significant impact of the program on officers' field behavior in the short-run. |
| Keywords: | ethics training, traffic police, experiment |
| JEL: | H76 K42 M53 D73 |
| Date: | 2024–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp17006&r= |
| By: | Abdulla, Kanat; Mourelatos, Evangelos |
| Abstract: | In this study, we investigate the employers' attitude towards Russian migrants in Kazakhstan's labor market. We conduct a field experiment by sending over 1600 fictitious job applications to real job openings posted on one of the largest job search portals in the country. The job applicants included a local Kazakh, a local Russian, a migrant from Kyrgyzstan, and a migrant from Russia. We found significant differences in employment outcomes across ethnic groups in the selected occupations. Specifically, Russian migrants were significantly less likely to receive an interview invitation. Interestingly, sympathy towards Russian applicants was weakest for occupations located more than 830 km from the Russian borders and those requiring high-skilled workers. Our findings provide evidence for less favorable attitudes towards migrant workers from Russia during the Russia-Ukraine conflict. |
| Keywords: | discrimination, labour market, migrant workers, field experiment |
| JEL: | C93 J71 J78 J64 |
| Date: | 2024 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:glodps:1438&r= |
| By: | Christoph Albert; Paula Bustos; Jacopo Ponticelli |
| Abstract: | Climate change is expected to reduce agricultural productivity in developing countries. Classic international trade and geography models predict that the optimal adaptation response is a reallocation of capital and labor from agriculture towards sectors and regions gaining comparative advantage. In this paper, we provide evidence on the effects of recent changes in climate in Brazil to understand to what extent factor market frictions constrain this reallocation process. We document that persistent increases in dryness do not generate capital reallocation but a sharp reduction in credit to all sectors in both drying areas and financially integrated regions. In additionn, dryness generates a large reduction in agricultural employment. Workers staying in drying regions reallocate towards manufacturing but climate migrants are allocated to small firms outside of manufacturing in destination regions. The evidence suggests that frictions in the interbank market and spatial labor market frictions constrain the reallocation process from agriculture to manufacturing. |
| Keywords: | droughts, SPEI, Brazil, migration, financial integration |
| JEL: | O1 Q54 O16 J61 |
| Date: | 2024–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:upf:upfgen:1887&r= |
| By: | Antea Barišić; Mahdi Ghodsi (The Vienna Institute for International Economic Studies, wiiw); Alireza Sabouniha (The Vienna Institute for International Economic Studies, wiiw); Robert Stehrer (The Vienna Institute for International Economic Studies, wiiw) |
| Abstract: | This paper analyses the determinants of outward migration decisions while focusing on CESEE countries and using data from the OeNB Euro Survey conducted by the Oesterrichische Nationalbank (OeNB), a data source that has yet to be exploited at the individual level. Applying a two-stage Heckman procedure, we identify the determinants of the intention to migrate, including age, gender, ties at home, household characteristics and income. In the second stage, we analyse the characteristics of those who expressed a desire to migrate and investigate the determinants of the choice of the respective destination, distinguishing between EU15, EU-CEE and extra-EU countries. The insights in this paper might help to inform fact-based migration and public policies in addition to laying some groundwork for further research (a) concerning the impact of new technologies and demographic trends on the intentions to migrate as well as (b) establishing a firmer link between the intention to migrate and actual migration. |
| Keywords: | migration drivers, migration aspirations/desires, destination decision, choice model |
| JEL: | F22 O15 |
| Date: | 2024–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:wii:wpaper:247&r= |
| By: | Alpes, Maybritt Jill |
| Abstract: | The article examines how academics can mobilize their epistemic resources to engage with justice claims able to challenge border violence. Many migration scholars would like to find ways to mobilize their knowledge to resist migrants’ human rights violations. Despite increased focus on research impact, border violence is only increasing. On the one hand, policy makers do not act on scholarly recommendations that are highly critical, but not necessarily actionable. On the other hand, when scholarly recommendations are actionable, legal and policy changes do not necessarily result in meaningful improvements for refugees’ and other migrants’ dignity. As a result, there is a dichotomy between applied research that is not critical and critical research that is not actionable. Against this backdrop, this article explores how migration researchers can reclaim the meaning of impact and smuggle critique into the term. The article is based on auto-biographical explorations of what it means for an anthropologist to produce knowledge on migration from within law faculties and as policy officer and research consultant for human and refugee rights organizations. Based on this material, the article argues that migration scholars who seek justice should not produce more evidence, but rather take law seriously as a knowledge practice. The article develops three design principles for migration scholars who seek to resist in the short- and medium-term migration laws and policies that violate human right principles. First, build knowledge alliances with justice actors. Second, theorize knowledge needs in justice claims. Third, broker the validity of truth claims. |
| Date: | 2024–05–10 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:osf:socarx:mzy8h&r= |
| By: | Evan Herrnstadt; Jared Jageler |
| Abstract: | This working paper provides an estimate of the potential damage avoided from spending by governments and homeowners on property-level flood risk adaptations, primarily buyouts and elevations. The literature on that topic offers some estimates, but they are difficult to compare and apply across contexts because they analyze different adaptation measures, cover different geographic scopes, and use different modeling approaches. To provide a set of internally consistent estimates, therefore, we develop a nationwide framework using inland and coastal residential properties that |
| JEL: | H84 Q54 Q58 |
| Date: | 2024–05–28 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cbo:wpaper:58168&r= |
| By: | Fraske, Tim; Weiser, Annika; Schrapel, Maximilian; Schippl, Jens; Lang, Daniel J.; Vinel, Alexey |
| Abstract: | This systematic literature review inquires into the role of socio-technical experiments for autonomous driving and their potential to shape mobility transitions towards sustainability. As an emerging technology in an early stage of transition, AVs are increasingly being tested in different spatial contexts with diverse actor constellations in order to enhance the technology further. This article critically examines the added value of these experiments, how they affect the scaling-up of autonomous driving, and highlights key themes that researchers and practitioners should consider when designing experiments. The most striking aspect of our sample is the lack of continuous participatory methods, as well as weak linkages to the transition literature. We conclude with central findings that emerged as future research avenues for the topic, such as the need to overcome projectification in the design process of the experiments, a more nuanced perspective on sustainability issues and place-related factors, and implications for local governance. |
| Keywords: | sustainability transitions, mobility, autonomous vehicles, socio-technical system |
| JEL: | C93 O33 Q56 R00 |
| Date: | 2024 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:esprep:295246&r= |
| By: | Duff, Cameron; Johnson, Guy; Blunden, Hazel; Horton, Ella; Nygaard, Andi |
| Abstract: | This research examines the organisational and resource implications of transitioning from ‘output-based’ to ‘outcomes-based’ funding arrangements for providing social housing in Australia. It explores relevant housing policy contexts, reviewing opportunities and key policy barriers for this reform goal. With outcomes-based service models, organisational funding arrangements are tied to specific service outcomes (such as better health or employment outcomes) rather than discrete service volumes (such as number of clients served). To work properly, outcomes-based funding requires ongoing accurate measurements and evaluation of the effectiveness of welfare interventions. While there is widespread agreement among stakeholders—policy makers, service providers and consumers—that a shift from an output-based to an outcome-oriented housing assistance and support system makes sense, there are concerns about the best way to measure outcomes that take into account the complex differences among social housing tenants, and the recognition that when outcome measurement is done poorly, it can have a damaging impact on both service users and service providers. The research strongly recommends government do more to standardise outcomes measures. There are broader national health and social care services datasets that could be used to drive this standardisation of performance benchmarks and measures, such as the existing data analytics and evaluation capabilities of organisations like the Australian Bureau of Statistics or the Australian Institute for Health and Welfare. In addition, establishing a National Housing Outcomes Clearinghouse could support the development of standardised outcomes tools, methods and approaches, clarifying what outcomes agencies are responsible for, while also supporting the dissemination of key outcomes findings to drive service improvements across the sector. |
| Date: | 2024–05–15 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:osf:socarx:7jdgm&r= |
| By: | Giovanis, Eleftherios; Akdede, Sacit Hadi; Ozdamar, Oznur |
| Abstract: | Political tensions linked with immigration flows have sparked and stimulated the debate about migration and the integration of migrants to host societies. We aim to examine the participation of Syrian forced migrants in socio-cultural activities in Turkey and compare the frequency of participation with Turkish respondents. The second aim is to study the influence of participation in socio-cultural activities on subjective well-being (SWB). An interesting finding is that Syrians report higher SWB levels than Turkish respondents. Moreover, the study shows that integration and social inclusion should not be attributed solely to immigrants but should also rely on the efforts of the recipient societies since financial constraints and income disparities may potentially make it more difficult for migrants’ socio-cultural participation. It is critical to explore the role of socio-cultural participation in SWB because of the belief that this facility promotes social inclusion, building more cohesive communities, which in turn improves well-being. |
| Keywords: | Cinema and Theatrical Plays; First-Generation Immigrants; Social and Cultural Participation; Subjective Well-Being; Syrian Migrants |
| JEL: | Z10 |
| Date: | 2024 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:120906&r= |
| By: | Yusuke Narita (Yale University); Chiaki Moriguchi; Mari Tanaka |
| Abstract: | What happens if selective colleges change their admission policies? We study this question by analyzing the worldÕs first implementation of nationally centralized meritocratic admissions in the early twentieth century. We find a persistent meritocracy-equity tradeoff. Compared to the decentralized system, the centralized system admitted more high-achievers and produced more occupational elites (such as top income earners) decades later in the labor market. This gain came at a distributional cost, however. Meritocratic centralization also increased the number of urban-born elites relative to rural-born ones, undermining equal access to higher education and career advancement. |
| Date: | 2024–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cwl:cwldpp:2390&r= |
| By: | Antea Barišić; Mahdi Ghodsi (The Vienna Institute for International Economic Studies, wiiw); Michael Landesmann (The Vienna Institute for International Economic Studies, wiiw); Alireza Sabouniha (The Vienna Institute for International Economic Studies, wiiw); Robert Stehrer (The Vienna Institute for International Economic Studies, wiiw) |
| Abstract: | In this note, we study the relationship between the use of new technologies (e.g. robots and various ICT assets), labour demand and migration patterns. The adoption of new technologies might change the demand for labour in various ways, which in turn will have an impact on skill composition and wage levels of different types of workers. We report the main results from a study that first analyses the impact of robot adoption on wages by sector and skills. Second, we study the impact of robot adoption in manufacturing industries on the attraction of migrants while controlling for other factors in the labour demand function. This is followed by an analysis of push and pull factors of bilateral migration that focuses on the impact of relative automation gaps across countries. Finally, using the OeNB Euro Survey, we examine determinants of the intention to migrate and the role of income differentials between the countries of origin and destination. |
| Keywords: | Migration, migrant jobs, wages, employment, novel technologies, adoption of robots, digitalisation, European labour markets, Central Eastern European countries |
| JEL: | F22 F66 J61 J24 J20 O33 |
| Date: | 2024–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:wii:pnotes:pn:77&r= |
| By: | Anonymous; Emmanuel Orkoh; Anirudh Tagat |
| Abstract: | This summarizes the evaluations of the paper: "The Benefits and Costs of Guest Worker Programs: Experimental Evidence from the India-UAE Migration Corridor". These evaluations can be found below. Evaluation Summary and Metrics: 'The Benefits and Costs of Guest Worker Programs: Experimental Evidence from the India-UAE Migration Corridor' for The Unjournal. Evaluators: Anonymous for sharing with authors |
| Date: | 2024–04–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:bjn:evalua:guest&r= |
| By: | Francis Bloch (Universite´ Paris 1 and Paris School of Economics); Bhaskar Dutta (Ashoka University); Marcin Dziubi´nski (Institute of Informatics, University of Warsaw) |
| Abstract: | We propose and study a model of strategic network design and exploration where the hider, subject to a budget constraint restricting the number of links, chooses a connected network and the location of an object. Meanwhile, the seeker, not observing the network and the location of the object, chooses a network exploration strategy starting at a fixed node in the network. The network exploration follows the expanding search paradigm of Alpern and Lidbetter (2013). We obtain a Nash equilibrium and characterize equilibrium payoffs in the case of linking budget allowing for trees only. We also give an upper bound on the expected number of steps needed to find the hider for the case where the linking budget allows for at most one cycle in the network. |
| Keywords: | Network exploration; networks; Strategic hiding |
| Date: | 2024–04–12 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ash:wpaper:112&r= |
| By: | Heuser, Katie L. |
| Abstract: | Robotaxi services, or rideshare operated by autonomous vehicles, present an opportunity for independent and convenient transportation for people with disabilities. The proliferation of robotaxis in California has been met with mixed reactions from the disability community. To better understand perceptions of and expectations for robotaxis, this report uses semi-structured interviews with representatives from disability advocacy organizations. For many people with disabilities, especially for people with intellectual, developmental, and/or physical disabilities, robotaxis are inaccessible. Given the intricacies of accommodating a wide audience, not all interviewees were confident that robotaxi design and programming will be inclusive. Some interviewees trusted that autonomous vehicle companies will independently pursue accessibility features in their robotaxis. Other interviewees regarded statewide accessibility standards as essential to ensure accessibility. Overall, interviewees shared that people with disabilities want to be included in the process of designing, testing, and regulating robotaxis. Implications for accessible robotaxi governance in California is presented, with an emphasis on wheelchair access, considering impact on public transportation service, and centering people with disabilities. Interviewees also discussed ideal accommodations that would allow a broad audience to request a ride, board the robotaxi, communicate with the operation system, and exit the vehicle. These findings may be useful to AV companies as they consider how robotaxis can accommodate people with a variety of disabilities. |
| Keywords: | Arts and Humanities, Social and Behavioral Sciences, Taxis, autonomous vehicles, persons with disabilities, interviews, human factors |
| Date: | 2024–05–01 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cdl:itsrrp:qt3pp8k71h&r= |
| By: | Victor Hernandez Martinez |
| Abstract: | This paper tests the existence of capital-skill complementarity in the manufacturing sector using quasi-experimental increases in the relative price of low-skill labor induced by the US shale boom. I find that in response to the shale boom, local manufacturing firms decreased their relative usage of low-skill labor while increasing their capital expenditures. These endogenous changes in the input mix allowed manufacturers to maintain the value added despite the increase in the price of low-skill labor, avoiding the potential short-term crowding-out effects of the natural resource boom. Combined with the findings of previous work, my results indicate that the degree of skill substitutable with capital in manufacturing has increased over the last several decades. |
| Keywords: | capital-skill complementarity; manufacturing; fracking; natural resources; labor markets |
| JEL: | E22 E24 O13 J24 |
| Date: | 2024–05–30 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:fip:fedcwq:98308&r= |
| By: | Enea Baselgia; Isabel Z. Martínez |
| Abstract: | We use a novel rich-list data set to estimate the sensitivity of the location choice of superrich foreigners to a special tax regime, under which wealthy foreigners are taxed on their living expenses, rather than their true income and wealth. We are the first to evaluate this controversial Swiss policy, and show that when some Swiss cantons abolished this practice, their stock of super-rich foreigners dropped by 43% as a consequence. We find no response for the Swiss super-rich, who were unaffected by the policy change. |
| Keywords: | super-rich, location-choice, tax mobility, expenditure-based taxation, preferential taxation, tax competition |
| JEL: | H24 H71 H73 R23 |
| Date: | 2024 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ces:ceswps:_11093&r= |
| By: | Minot, Nicholas; Hossain, Shahadat; Kabir, Razin; Dorosh, Paul A.; Rashid, Shahidur |
| Abstract: | Rice plays a central role in the diet in Bangladesh and as a source of income for farmers. Although Bangladesh has largely liberalized international trade in rice, it maintains a public food distribution system to stablize prices, distributing an average of 2 million tons of rice per year at a cost of almost US$ 800 million per year. This study explores whether alternative policies could achieve similar stabilization at a lower cost. It uses a stochastic spatial-equilibrium model of rice markets to simulate monthly prices in eight regions of the country. Stochastic shocks are used to simulate fluctuations in regional production, replicating historical patterns at the region-season level, as well as inter-regional correlation in production shocks. It also simulates fluctuation in world rice prices, mimicking the mean, variance, and serial correlation of historical wholesale prices of rice in Delhi. Public procurement and distribution follow historic averages by month and region. Private storage is represented by a simplified version of rational expectations models, in which net storage is a non-linear function of availability in the previous month. One set of simulations tests alternative levels of distribution, finding that cutting distribution to 1 million tons would have minimal effects on the level of rice price stability. Another set of simulations tested different import tariff levels, including the baseline rate of 25%1. We find that lower tariffs result in both lower rice prices and less price instability, as world rice prices tend to be more stable than local prices. Simulating a buffer stock with different price bands shows that a narrow band can achieve high price stability but at a high fiscal cost. A 20 T/kg (USD 0.26/kg) price band generates similar price stabilization at a lower cost compared to current policy. However, it is difficult to set the “right†purchase and sale price, and many simulations result in exhausting reserves or reaching warehouse capacity. An adaptive buffer stock, in which the price is adjusted as the stock runs too low or too high, solves some of these problems. In general, the study finds that current procurement and distribution patterns do not match well with the regional and monthly patterns of surplus and deficit, possibly reflecting multiple and conflicting goals of the public food distribution system. |
| Keywords: | equilibrium; price stabilization; stochastic models; rice; tariffs, Asia; Southern Asia; Bangladesh |
| Date: | 2024 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:fpr:ifprid:2252&r= |
| By: | Amanda Y. Agan; Andrew Garin; Dmitri K. Koustas; Alexandre Mas; Crystal Yang |
| Abstract: | We investigate whether removing a previously-obtained criminal record improves employment outcomes. We estimate the causal impact of criminal record remediation laws that have been widely enacted with the goal of improving employment opportunities for millions of individuals with records. We find consistent evidence that removing an existing record does not improve labor market outcomes, on average. A notable exception is participation in gig work through online platforms, which often screen workers based on their records but not their employment histories. The evidence is consistent with records initially scarring labor market trajectories in a way that is difficult to undo later. |
| JEL: | J0 K0 |
| Date: | 2024–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:nbr:nberwo:32394&r= |
| By: | Juan José Merino (El Colegio de México); Edwin Muñoz-Rodríguez (El Colegio de México) |
| Abstract: | We offer a first approach to the demand and supply structure of Airbnb in Mexico City using a unique panel dataset of daily listings and rentals on the platform. We find descriptive evidence of a large sector of professional hosts. We estimate various models of demand accommodating price endogeneity and taste heterogeneity, as well as a supply model under the assumption of Bertrand-Nash's competition. We consistently find that professional hosts have lower marginal costs than nonprofessional hosts. We also find that overall price-cost margins are high regardless hosts' professionalization status, and slightly higher in the case of professional ones. Finally, motivated by a worldwide regulatory trend, we investigate counterfactually the effect of producer and consumer ad valorem taxes that discriminate between types of hosts. |
| Keywords: | Sharing economy, structural econometrics, peer-to-peer markets, market structure, professionalization |
| JEL: | C59 L11 L83 L86 Z31 |
| Date: | 2024–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:emx:ceedoc:2024-01&r= |
| By: | Bocar A. Ba; Meghna Baskar; Rei Mariman |
| Abstract: | While police brutality has sparked demands to scale back policing, public constituencies still have limited knowledge about policing alternatives. In survey experiments, we provide information about dontcallthepolice.com—a database of police alternatives—and police violence statistics and evaluate their impact on respondents’ stated likelihood of calling the police. We find information about police alternatives increases the likelihood of relying on police in violent scenarios but significantly reduces it in scenarios for which police alternatives exist. These findings hold across political affiliations, suggesting broad support for limiting police involvement to violent crises and investing in police alternatives for nonviolent situations. In a follow-up survey six months later, individuals informed about police alternatives were 12 percentage points more likely to recall that the newly available 988 government hotline is available for suicidal crises, a result highlighting the enduring effectiveness of targeted educational interventions. Our study shows that providing information on existing 911 alternatives results in increased demand for these police substitutes in non-violent situations both in the short and long run. |
| JEL: | H10 K0 P0 |
| Date: | 2024–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:nbr:nberwo:32418&r= |
| By: | Syring, Kenneth |
| Abstract: | This review investigates the relationship between right-wing authoritarianism (RWA) and social dominance orientation (SDO) in the context of extremist movements fueled by disinformation and the rise of authoritarian political support in the United States, with a particular focus on the implications for American law enforcement. The author proposes that comprehensive civics education, incorporating both civic literacy and service-learning as its pillars, could serve as an effective intervention in mitigating the development of RWA and SDO traits within law enforcement, ultimately reinforcing the rule of law, improving police-community relations, and strengthening public trust in government institutions. By examining the potential impact of such an education in reducing susceptibility to disinformation and support for extremist politics, this review highlights the importance of promoting democratic values and offers a foundation for potential policy frameworks to implement these interventions. |
| Date: | 2024–05–10 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:osf:socarx:baz27&r= |
| By: | Tomohiro Hirano; Joseph E. Stiglitz |
| Abstract: | This paper presents a model that studies the impact of credit expansions arising from increases in collateral values or lower interest rate policies on long-run productivity and economic growth in a two-sector endogenous growth economy, with the driver of growth lying in one sector (manufacturing) but not in the other (real estate). We show that it is not so much aggregate credit expansion that matters for long-run productivity and economic growth but sectoral credit expansions. Credit expansions associated mainly with relaxation of real estate financing (capital investment financing) will be productivity-and growth-retarding (enhancing). Without financial regulations, low interest rates and more expansionary monetary policy may so encourage land speculation using leverage that productive capital investment and economic growth are decreased. Unlike in standard macroeconomic models, in ours, the equilibrium price of land will be finite even if the safe rate of interest is less than the rate of output growth. |
| Date: | 2024–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:arx:papers:2405.05901&r= |
| By: | Benito Arruñada; Lucas López-Manuel |
| Abstract: | By refining the moral code and enforcing it through the new 'mendicant' orders, the Church of the 13th century laid the cognitive, interpersonal, and institutional groundwork for large-scale cooperation based on one-shot transactions between strangers. However, net outcomes at these three levels stem from opposite-sign effects coherent with the specialization of specific branches within the Church: while exposure to Dominicans had positive effects on traits favoring impersonal exchange, consistent with their emphasis on rationality, exposure to Franciscans had negative effects, related to their emotionality, and favoring personal exchange. Moreover, the effects of exposure to the secular clergy were insignificant. Our causal identification relies on refuting multiple confounders, comparing second-generation migrants, and leveraging withincountry differences in mendicants'exposure in Europe and Mesoamerica. |
| Keywords: | cultural change, values, institutions, Religion, Catholic Church, persistence, Late Middle Ages |
| JEL: | O10 Z12 Z13 |
| Date: | 2024–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:bge:wpaper:1447&r= |
| By: | Paul Hufe (University of Bristol) |
| Abstract: | Converging labor market opportunities of men and women have altered the economic incentives for how families invest monetary and time resources into the skill development of their children. In this paper, I study the causal impact of changes in the parental wage gap (PWG)—defined as the relative difference in potential wages of mothers and fathers—on children’s socio-emotional skills. I leverage administrative and survey data from Germany to create exogenous between-sibling variation in the PWG through a shift-share design. I find that decreases in the PWG do not affect children’s socio-emotional development as measured by their Big Five personality traits and externalizing/internalizing behaviors. This null effect can be rationalized by the offsetting effects of the PWG on monetary investments, i.e., more disposable household income that is increasingly controlled by mothers, and time investments, i.e., a substitution from in-home maternal care to informal childcare. |
| Keywords: | gender gap, skill development, parental investments |
| JEL: | J13 J16 J22 J24 |
| Date: | 2024–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hka:wpaper:2024-010&r= |
| By: | Yifan Zhang |
| Abstract: | Political and advertising campaigns increasingly exploit social networks to spread information and persuade people. This paper studies a persuasion model to examine whether such a strategy is better than simply sending public signals. Receivers in the model have heterogeneous priors and will pass on a signal if they are persuaded by it. I show that a risk neutral or risk loving sender prefers to use public signals, unless more sceptical receivers are sufficiently more connected in the social network. A risk averse sender may prefer to exploit the network. These results still hold when networks exhibit homophily. |
| Date: | 2024–04 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:arx:papers:2404.18965&r= |
| By: | S\'andor Juh\'asz; Zolt\'an Elekes; Vir\'ag Ily\'es; Frank Neffke |
| Abstract: | Strong local clusters help firms compete on global markets. One explanation for this is that firms benefit from locating close to their suppliers and customers. However, the emergence of global supply chains shows that physical proximity is not necessarily a prerequisite to successfully manage customer-supplier relations anymore. This raises the question when firms need to colocate in value chains and when they can coordinate over longer distances. We hypothesize that one important aspect is the extent to which supply chain partners exchange not just goods but also know-how. To test this, we build on an expanding literature that studies the drivers of industrial coagglomeration to analyze when supply chain connections lead firms to colocation. We exploit detailed micro-data for the Hungarian economy between 2015 and 2017, linking firm registries, employer-employee matched data and firm-to-firm transaction data from value-added tax records. This allows us to observe colocation, labor flows and value chain connections at the level of firms, as well as construct aggregated coagglomeration patterns, skill relatedness and input-output connections between pairs of industries. We show that supply chains are more likely to support coagglomeration when the industries involved are also skill related. That is, input-output and labor market channels reinforce each other, but supplier connections only matter for colocation when industries have similar labor requirements, suggesting that they employ similar types of know-how. We corroborate this finding by analyzing the interactions between firms, showing that supplier relations are more geographically constrained between companies that operate in skill related industries. |
| Date: | 2024–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:arx:papers:2405.07071&r= |
| By: | Mara P. Squicciarini; Gianandrea Lanzara; Sara Lazzaroni; Paolo Masella |
| Abstract: | This paper studies the impact of a shock, the phylloxera crisis in 19th-century France, on assimilation policies towards the native population of French Algeria. In particular, assembling a novel dataset on French MPs and their parliamentary speeches, we find that MPs coming from areas hit harder by the phylloxera, were more likely to: i) use keywords related to the impact of phylloxera and wine production; ii) express greater interest and support towards policies aimed at educating the native population. The latter pattern becomes visible approximately ten years after the phylloxera crisis, consistent with the view that organizing production requires time. |
| Keywords: | assimilation, minorities, education, 19th-century France |
| JEL: | J15 Z10 I25 |
| Date: | 2024 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:baf:cbafwp:cbafwp24221&r= |
| By: | Bottasso, Anna (CIRIEC); Cerruti, Gianluca (University of Genoa); Conti, Maurizio (University of Genoa); Santagata, Marta (University of Genova) |
| Abstract: | In this study we evaluate the role that Mediterranean Medieval trade with Africa and the Middle-East still plays today in Italian politics by shaping the attitudes towards migrants of individuals that live close to Medieval ports. Trade connections between Medieval ports and Muslim Africa and Middle East might have indeed favoured the emergence of cultural traits that helped the interaction with foreigners from different cultures, ethnicity and religion a few centuries before with respect to other areas of the country. We use a representative survey of young individuals (aged 20-35) to show that, conditionally on a rich set of geographic, historic, economic and individual controls, people living close to a Medieval port are less likely to think that migrants make Italy an unsafe place as well as to report right-wing voting attitudes. Moreover, we also find, in those areas, a lower probability of xenophobic attacks during the spike of refugees from Siria of 2015. Interestingly, right-wing parties started to attract less votes near Medieval ports only when immigration had become a very salient issue. Similarly, we find a lower probability of Jewish deportations close to Medieval ports during the Nazi occupation, the only period in Italian contemporary history when a minority group was explicitly targeted by the government. This in turn suggests that some deep-rooted cultural traits, although not observed and not clearly at work in society, can become visible when the right historical and political circumstances take place. |
| Keywords: | political ideology, immigration, cultural transmission, medieval trade sea routes, Roman road network |
| JEL: | D72 N70 N90 O10 O12 P48 |
| Date: | 2024–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp16996&r= |