AESTHETIC RULES IN WOMEN'S APPAREL: EMPIRICAL FACT OR FANTASY

Aesthetic rules derived from ancient Greece abound in college textbooks used in modern apparel design and selection courses. This study attempted to evaluate these aesthetic rules empirically. Based on measurements of six persistent features (skirt length, waist length, décolletage length, skirt width, waist width, décolletage width) of women's evening apparel from 1926 to 1980, the distribution of frequencies for each dress dimension was not uniform but demonstrated a preferred value or region. Likewise, not all physically possible values for the dyadic relationships were uniformly observed. Findings of this study indicated that considerable latitude was demonstrated by designers in their interpretations of aesthetic rules. Yet an underlying order emerged. Some of this order can be attributed to existing design principles, but in several cases the sheer magnitude of the discrepancy between what is taught as good design and empirical reality suggests that certain aesthetic rules may need to be rephrased.     

Ownership Structure,Deregulation, and Bank Risk Taking

This paper investigates the relationship between bank ownership structure and risk taking. It is hypothesized that stockholder controlled banks have incentives to take higher risk than managerially controlled banks and that these differences in risk become more pronounced in periods of deregulation. In support of this hypothesis, we show that stockholder controlled banks exhibit significantly higher risk taking behavior than managerially controlled banks during the 1979–1982 period of relative deregulation.     

CAN RECREATION VALUES FOR A LAKE CONSTITUTE A MARKET FOR BANKED AGRICULTURAL WATER?

This paper presents estimates of the recreational use value to prevent the loss of a western lake threatened by diversions of upstream waters that supply it. The recreation demand model used to estimate recreation-related values is the popular repeated nested multinomial logit model. The model is specified to allow an individual to choose when to visit various sites during the season, because site choice is likely to be influenced by water levels that change over the course of the season. The values are compared to agricultural values in order to assess whether the potential recreation demand side of a market for a water bank exists.     

The Often‐Forgotten Nonfuneral Consumer Grief for the Grieving

Consumer protection advocates and resulting government regulation of the death care industry tend to focus on the most obvious problems, those caused by deceptive sales practices of funeral service providers. However, a spotlight on the funeral’s large expenses overshadows the myriad of other consumption activities that heirs must undertake. Survivors must navigate confusing complex situations for which they are unprepared, at a time when grief increases their vulnerability.     

Correlates of marital satisfaction in a Manitoba low income sample

Marital satisfaction in a low-income sample in the province of Manitoba in Canada was investigated in this study. The sample consisted of 505 couples who took part in Manitoba's low-income experiment in 1974. Using a single measure of marital satisfaction, both husbands and wives reported high satisfaction. Using multiple regression analysis to examine correlates of marital satisfaction, it was found that the best predictors for couples were companionship, money management and husband's occupation. The best predictors for wives' marital satisfaction were companionship and husband's occupation, and the best predictors for husbands' marital satisfaction were companionship and money management.     

Treasury Safety,Liquidity, and Money Premium Dynamics: Evidence from Debt Limit Impasses

Treasury securities enjoy a “money premium” because they are ultra-safe and liquid. However, during debt limit impasses, the safety and liquidity of Treasury securities temporarily deteriorate, eroding the money premium. Using past impasses, we find the money premium eroded by roughly six basis points across all Treasury securities and up to 50 basis points for the shortest maturities at the greatest risk of a delayed principal payment. Safety and liquidity each accounted for about half of the erosion. The deterioration of safety and liquidity also appears to interact, consistent with theories of default-driven liquidity risk and the information sensitivity of debt.