A child health production function estimated from longitudinal data. Cebu Study Team

Collaborating researchers used a multi equation model to analyze 3080 mother-infant pairs living on the island of Cebu in the central Philippines and to estimate a child health production function. The econometric methods used eliminated obstacles such as heterogeneity and endogeneity of significant explanatory factors. They also maximized the longitudinal quality of the data. The results showed that morbidity in 1 period reduced infant weight in following periods. For example, diarrhea and febrile respiratory infection reduced growth in the time period following the illnesses. Further effects of some contributing factors were great near birth not diminished with age. For example, breast feeding promoted growth and protected against infection, especially diarrhea and febrile respiratory infection, more substantially near birth than it did later. Further, in urban areas, preventive health care positively affected growth independently of its indirect influence on reducing respiratory infection. Yet it had little effect on diarrhea. Diarrhea had a strong adverse effect on growth. Exposure of the infant to enteric pathogens had the greatest influence on production of diarrhea. In urban areas, exposure included water supply contamination, exposure to feces, a more pathogenic diet, and community crowding. In rural areas, however, exposure included community crowding and increased rainfall which presumably washed feces into the water supply. Household crowding in both urban and rural areas and irritation from smoke in urban areas only tended to bring about febrile respiratory infection.     

An empirical investigation of monetary effects on private consumption expenditures in Austria

This paper presents an econometric investigation of monetary effects on private consumption expenditures in Austria. It tries to add the empirical aspect to the theoretical problem of the relationship between monetary and real sector of an economy.Patinkins theory of the real balance effect provides the link between theoretical and empirical aspects. Taking into consideration further assumptions on aggregation, dynamics and problems of definition of variables, consumption functions of different aggregation levels are specified. Including effects of interest rates and credits one arrives at a first assessment of monetary effects on private consumption expenditures as found from single equation estimates. Significant credit and wealth effects are obtained. Later, systems of equations are estimated and used to investigate real—monetary sector interaction. They allow also a dynamic analysis.In presenting the sequence of microeconomic foundations, further assumptions and macroeconomic functions and systems built upon, it is thought to clarify the connection to traditional theory of real—monetary sectors relationship. It might also give an idea about the resulting problems for meaningful empirical research in this area.

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Zusammenfassung Diese Arbeit beschäftigt sich mit der ökonometrischen Untersuchung monetärer Effekte auf private Konsumausgaben in Österreich. Es wird damit versucht, dem theoretischen Problem der Beziehungen zwischen monetärem und realem Sektor der Wirtschaft einen empirischen Aspekt, der die österreichischen Verhältnisse betrifft, zur Seite zu stellen. Das Bindeglied zwischen Theorie und Empirie stelltPatinkins Theorie des Realkasseneffektes dar, die unter Zuhilfenahme weiterer Annahmen über Aggregation, Definitionen und Dynamik zur Spezifikation von aggregierten und disaggregierten Konsumfunktionen führt. Ergänzt durch Zins- und Krediteffekte läßt sich an Hand von Einzelgleichungen eine erste Einschätzung monetärer Wirkungen auf den privaten Konsum und seine Komponenten durchführen. Es können signifikante Kredit- und Vermögenseffekte festgestellt werden. In diesem Zusammenhang wird auch die Hypothese überprüft, ob die Grenzneigungen zum Konsum aus dem verfügbaren Realeinkommen und aus dem Realfinanzvermögen gleich sind, wie dies durch die Annahme eines kurzfristigen Planungshorizontes impliziert wird.Um die Interaktion von realem und monetärem Sektor zu analysieren, wird ein Gleichungs-system formuliert und geschätzt. Daraus lassen sich Unterschiede zu Einzelgleichungsergebnissen aufzeigen. Mittels alternativer Spezifikation der Konsumgleichungen und der Gleichung des monetären Sektors können Vermögens-, Kredit- und Zinseffekte auch im dynamischen Zusammenhang untersucht werden.Die Aufeinanderfolge von mikroökonomischen Grundlagen, weiterer Annahmen, makroökonomischen Funktionen und schließlich Systemen, soll den Zusammenhang zur traditionellen Theorie der Beziehungen zwischen Geld- und Realsektor verdeutlichen und auf die daraus entstehenden Probleme für eine adäquate empirische Untersuchung hinweisen.

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A preliminary version of this paper was presented at the Winter Meeting of the Econometric Society at Sindelfingen (January 9–11, 1978). It constitutes a condensed version of a project on Money and Private Consumption conducted at the Institute of Econometrics, TU—Vienna, under Prof.G. Tintner. The author is indebted to Prof. Tintner for helpful comments and to Dipl. Ing.R. Rieder for assisting in the computations and providing computer programs. The project was supported financially by the Jubiläusmfonds of the Austrian National Bank.     

EFFECT OF GROUPING OF DATA ON THE DIVERGENCE BETWEEN LASPEYRES AND PAASCHE FORMS OF QUANTUM INDEXES*

Historical data for the manufacturing industry in the United States and United Kingdom are quoted, showing in most cases divergences between Laspeyres and Paasche forms of the quantum index that are by no means negligible. When the Paasche index for two of the series is recalculated with quantity indicators for industries instead of for products, the divergence is greatly reduced, and when quantity indicators for industry groups are substituted it almost disappears. This raises some questions about the practices of econometricians and statisticians, which are discussed. In a mathematical appendix by E. R. Coleman it is suggested that the grouping effect referred to does not depend on the particular way in which the data are grouped in most quantum indexes.