Can we obtain realistic parameter estimates for the ‘protection for sale’ model?

Abstract.  In the Grossman and Helpman (1994) model of endogenous trade protection, sectoral lobbies try to influence an incumbent government that maximizes a weighted sum of political contributions and aggregate welfare. We empirically investigate this model using U.S. and Turkish data. Our specification is more tightly tied to theory than those in existing studies. Additionally, we assume all specific‐factor owners to be organized into different lobbies. These changes, validated by hypothesis tests, yield more realistic parameter estimates of the government's concern for aggregate welfare and of the fraction of population organized into lobbies.     

The maximum entropy median in the presence of an outlier

When a random sample of size n from a standard normal population is contaminated by a normal outlier with either a different mean or a different variance, the maximum entropy median outperforms the sample median in terms of squared-error loss. The only exception is when n=3 and the outlier mean or variance is sufficiently different.     

Estimating a continuous time portfolio selection model: An application with UK data

An empirical assessment of a continuous time portfolio selection model is studied for the UK economy between 1970 and 1996. The estimates obtained from this study are both statistically significant and consistent with the model's predictions. The estimate of risk aversion parameter refers to low risk aversion which is consistent with the optimal risky asset holding parameter. Furthermore, the estimated parameters of the asset pricing relationship are also found to be consistent with the historical values of the stock prices. First version received: February 1998/final version received: March 1999     

STRATEGIC INTERACTION AND CATCHING UP

In this study, we prove that the strategic interaction among agents differing in initial wealth levels leads the poor to be able to catch up with the rich, which is not the case for the standard Ramsey model where the initial wealth differences perpetuate. Extending the analysis to account for relative wealth concern and the adjustment cost of consumption, the strategic interaction among agents is shown to affect not only the distribution of wealth in the long run but also the transitional dynamics substantially. In particular, we show that structurally very simple frameworks may lead to limit cycles thanks to the strategic interaction among agents in the economy.     

The selection bias in court records: settlement and trial in eighteenth‐century Ottoman Kastamonu

Court records are used extensively in historical research. Preserved as summaries of daily legal proceedings, they give historians a unique opportunity to access information about the names, characteristics, and socio‐economic status of individuals and the laws, local customs, and legal institutions of societies. Although researchers have noted various limitations of these records, the problem of selection bias has not been systematically studied. Since litigants would probably settle disputes in which one side is likely to be a clear winner, the cases that go to trial are more likely to be the difficult and uncertain ones that comprise a non‐random subset of all disputes. This article presents a study of selection bias in Ottoman courts in the town of Kastamonu in northern Anatolia, from the late seventeenth and the eighteenth centuries. Disputes are categorized by type and the distribution of court participants is studied according to composition, gender, and socio‐religious status. A regression analysis is run to determine the factors affecting the likelihood of cases being tried in court. The results indicate that the cases that ended up in court were selected systematically. If the selection bias is ignored, research based on Ottoman court records may be seriously flawed in its ability to yield general conclusions.     

Level of access and infrastructure investment in network industries

In this paper, we study how the terms of access to an incumbent’s infrastructure (i.e., the level of access and price) affect an entrant’s incentives to build its own infrastructure. Setting a high level of access (e.g., a resale arrangement), which requires relatively small up-front investment for entry, accelerates market entry, but at the same time delays the deployment of the entrant’s infrastructure. This is also true for a lower access price. We show that the socially optimal access price can vary non-monotonically with the level of access. We also study the case where access is provided at two different levels, and show that access provision at multiple levels can delay infrastructure building. Finally, we modify our baseline model to allow for experience and/or market share acquisition via access-based entry, and show that high levels of access may accelerate facility-based entry.     

Gender,generation and sustainable consumption: Exploring the behaviour of consumers from Izmir,Turkey

This study investigates the relationship between consumers’ sustainable consumption behaviour and both gender and generation‐related individual differences in a sample of Turkish consumers. A total of 393 participants from different generations and gender took part in the study. To measure sustainable consumption behaviour, we used four‐dimensional sustainable consumption behaviour scale. The results showed that generation is associated with unneeded consumption as a dimension of sustainable consumption behaviour. Consumers who are Baby Boomers found to have the highest level of unneeded consumption behaviour while Gen‐Zers have fewest. Additionally, data supported the association between gender and sustainable consumption behaviour. Women showed a higher level of sustainable consumption behaviour both in overall behaviour and tendency to reuse products. Taken together, the findings suggest that gender and generation of consumers can differentiate sustainable consumption behaviour. The implications of these findings, as well as the limitations and future directions, are also discussed.     

Local Labor Supply Responses to Immigration

How natives adjust is central to an understanding of the impact of immigration in destination countries. Using detailed labor force data for Malaysia for 1990–2010, we provide estimates of native responses to immigration on multiple extensive margins and rare evidence for a developing country. Instrumental variable estimates show that increased immigration to a state causes substantial internal inward migration, consistent with the fact that immigration increases the demand for native workers. Relocating Malaysian workers are accompanied by their spouses (three‐quarters of whom are housewives) and children who attend school. We find that these effects are concentrated among middle‐ and lower‐skilled Malaysians.     

机构投资者参与治理决策的影响因素分析——基于上市公司的视角

为了改善我国上市公司治理,提高上市公司的绩效并促进股票市场的健康发展,政府监管部门出台了一系列促进机构投资者发展的政策和措施。机构投资者得到了巨大的发展。但是,机构投资者的发展对改善上市公司治理的作用受到质疑。本文分析了机构投资者参与公司治理的动机,并根据这一动机从上市公司的角度分析了影响机构投资者参与公司治理决策的因素。