Distributional Effects of Fiscal Consolidation

If public goods and transfers are relatively more valuable to the poor, the elderly poor stand to lose from public debt reduction achieved through spending cuts. When long–term surpluses produced by debt reduction are recycled into higher provision of public goods and transfers, future generations of poor could gain. If future surpluses are recycled through lower labour taxes, working households in the future would be positively affected. The impact of debt reduction on vertical equity is ambiguous, yet inter– rather than intragenerational equity is likely to pose the greatest obstacle to fiscal consolidation. Based on majority voting by self–interested households, debt reduction is unlikely to occur.
JEL classification : D 91; E 62; H 23; H 63     

Household Participation in Formal and Informal Savings Mechanisms: Evidence from Pakistan

Savings are an important determinant of both individual and national wellbeing. Typically, households employ a wide range of mechanisms for saving, including both formal and informal institutions. The choice of savings instrument has important micro- and macroeconomic implications. However, little is known empirically about the patterns of use of these instruments, or the factors affecting household decisions/ abilities to use them. The authors apply household-level data from a nationally representative survey for Pakistan to explore these issues in detail. In particular, they focus on the choice between banks and bisi , an informal saving committee similar in nature to a rotating-savings-and-credit association.     

Food Expenditures Away From Home by Type of Meal

A nonnormal and heteroscedastic double-hurdle model is used to study household expenditures on breakfast, lunch and dinner away from home in the United States. In the 1992–93 period, nearly 40% of households purchased breakfast, and about three quarters of households purchased lunch or dinner in a two-week period. Wife's employment has a positive effect on the probability and level of lunch and dinner expenditures but not on breakfast expenditures. Income effects are all statistically significant and positive. The role of household composition. other demographics and region are also important.     

Implementation of competitive nonlinear pricing: tariffs with inclusive consumption

The paper studies how the optimal nonlinear quantity-payment allocation can be truthfully implemented by optional tariffs in a differentiated goods duopoly. Consumers choose from a menu of tariffs and are subsequently billed according to this. We find that implementation by simple two part tariffs may not be a feasible strategy in a duopoly because the optimal nonlinear tariff exhibits a convexity for lower quantities. We show that the optimal outcome can be implemented if the firms can use two part tariffs with inclusive consumption. The fixed fee includes a free consumption allowance, whereas subsequent consumption is charged according to a steep unit price. That way the firm is able to secure voluntary participation without violating the incentive constraint. The paper shows some examples from the telecommunications industry where firms offer two part tariffs with free call minutes to low demand segments.     

Trade, Entry Barriers, and Home Market Effects

This paper re‐examines the relationship between entry barriers and home market effects and departs from recent work by using returns to scale as a direct measure of entry barriers as opposed to relying on the level of product differentiation as an indirect proxy for barriers to entry. In contrast to earlier work, results of this study do not indicate a significant relationship between home market effects and entry barriers. In addition, examination of trade costs reveals the importance of these costs in the numéraire sector. These two observations are consistent with the theoretical prediction that home market effects are insignificant in the presence of symmetric trade costs across sectors. Consequently, a more direct measure of barriers to entry and an explicit consideration of trade costs indicate that the link between home market effects and barriers to entry is not as strong as predicted by previous work.     

Scenario probability scaling: an eigenvector analysis of elicited scenario odds ratios

If odds ratios elicited from experts (eg via Delphi) are translated into scenario probabilities by nonsymmetric matrix eigenvector analysis, then such problems as inconsistency between individuals' responses can be conveniently analysed, and revised, more consistent responses can be sought.     

Improving Leadership Skills in Physicians: A 6‐Month Retrospective Study

The complex medical environment of today calls for physicians to have an array of leadership skills in addition to a thorough knowledge of their specific practice areas. The American College of Obstetrics and Gynecologists (ACOG) Robert C. Cefalo National Leadership Institute is a 3.5‐day intensive leadership development course targeted to physician leaders. A group of 37 physicians completed the ACOG National Leadership Institute in spring of 2013. At course completion and 6‐month postcourse, participants were asked to complete a retrospective pre‐ and posttest of perceived skill levels in 10 targeted competency areas. Course completion and 6‐month postcourse scores indicated statistically significant improvements in scores on all 10 competency areas, which was supported by a Wilcoxon signed‐rank test of median score difference. Qualitative data gathered at the 6‐month postcourse survey provide examples of how participants had applied their skills. The data presented in the current study suggested that intensive, “short‐burst,” experiential leadership training is an effective approach for leadership skills development in physicians.