Rent control according to Seinfeld

More than 30 years after its premiere, Seinfeld continues its run as a seminally popular television show. On October 1, 2021, five-year streaming rights to the show were purchased by Netflix for $500 million. Set in New York City, where rent control laws have a long history, several episodes of the show consider the trials of apartment living, including shortages, tastes for discrimination by sellers, bribery, search costs, and quality degradation. Seinfeld also illustrates the informal process through which rent-controlled apartments are advertised (e.g., less advertising under rent control shortage). This paper argues that popular media can be used as an effective pedagogical tool in learning. This paper analyzes four episodes of Seinfeld to help students identify and differentiate the very real costs of rent control. The paper also guides students to appreciate the difficulty in crafting a policy that is free of unintended consequences.     

Walk the talk: ESG mutual fund voting on shareholder proposals

Review of Accounting Studies - We document that U.S. mutual funds with investment objectives designated as “Sustainable Investment Overall” by Morningstar (ESG funds) are more likely...     

Impact of hurricanes on US insurance stocks

This paper analyzes the impact of hurricanes on insurance stock returns in the United States. The objective is to assess the reaction of insurance stock prices caused by hurricanes using an extensive data sample consisting of the costliest hurricanes since 2004. We aim to understand the insurance stock price reactions and provide possible explanations for the observed results. The main outcome is a negative abnormal return for all examined time windows. Analyses of impact factors show that high-category hurricanes have more negative abnormal returns in comparison to low-category hurricanes. The latter category is even positively correlated with the cumulative abnormal return. The regression model indicates a statistically significant negative correlation between the cumulative abnormal return and the damage caused by the hurricane.     

Does venture capital investment enhance corporate innovation? Evidence from Korea

We examine whether venture capital (VC) investment enhances corporate innovation in Korea. Using a matched sample of 802 firms from 1998 to 2012, we find that after the first round of VC investment, VC-backed firms are more innovative than non-VC-backed firms. Our results suggest that the positive influence of VC investment largely comes from the ability of VC firms to reduce information asymmetry between investors and ventures: VC funds managed by independent venture capitalists significantly enhance corporate innovation, whereas those managed by governmental venture capitalists do not. Furthermore, this positive influence becomes more pronounced where there is greater information asymmetry. Finally, we show that funds with profit-based compensation structures are more likely to encourage corporate innovation than those with fee-based compensation structures.     

Attitudes toward protecting endangered species: The impact of perceived physical attractiveness of animals and political ideology

The current research examined how the perceived physical attractiveness (by humans) of an endangered species, the Dead Leaf Butterfly (Kallima inachus), political orientation, and political ideology impacted participants' attitudes toward supporting and protecting a species. Three experiments were conducted where the physical attractiveness of the Dead Leaf Butterfly was manipulated. Two of the experiments used a representative American sample, while one of the experiments used a Polish sample. In all three studies: (1) Participants rated the Dead Leaf Butterfly as more physically attractive when its wings were open and displayed a black apex, an orange discal band, and a deep blue base than when its wings were closed and resembled a dried leaf with dark veins; and (2) those who scored high in humanitarianism-egalitarianism provided more support for protection from harm for the Dead Leaf Butterfly compared to those who scored low in humanitarianism-egalitarianism. Only in the studies where Americans participated did we find (1) those who were politically liberal indicated more support for the Dead Leaf Butterfly regardless of physical attractiveness as compared to those who were politically conservative, and (2) those who scored low in right-wing authoritarianism provided more support for protection from harm for the Dead Leaf Butterfly compared to those who scored high in right-wing authoritarianism. The differences observed between the American and Polish samples suggest that environmental attitudes are more polarized in the United States compared to Poland. These studies advance our knowledge of how attitudes toward animals are affected by the polarization of political attitudes toward the environment and provide insight for marketers when creating marketing strategies and designing appropriate messaging.     

The community impact of school-shootings on stress-related emergency department visits

School-shootings can enormously impact U.S. gun policy, but very little is known about the community mental health impact of school-shootings. We used difference-in-differences and event study analyses to compare stress-related ED visits in zip-codes within 5 miles (exposed) and in zip-codes 10–15 miles from (control) school-shootings before and after school-shootings using data from California, 2005–2011. School-shootings and fatal school-shootings were associated with annual increases of 0.7 and 1.5 stress-related ED visits per 1000 people, increases of 7% and 14%, respectively, compared to pre-shooting utilization. These previously unmeasured costs of school-shootings reinforce calls to prevent gun violence, especially in schools.     

The price effects of greening vacant lots: How neighborhood attributes matter

We identify the effects of greening vacant lots on nearby housing prices and show how neighborhood attributes matter to these outcomes. Using data from a longstanding program in Philadelphia, we find that prices for houses within 1,000 feet of a greened vacant lot rise by about 4%, consistent with the literature, with the effect size increasing over time. Using the extensive data available in Philadelphia, we show how these effects vary by the attributes of the neighborhood in which they occur, with larger effects in areas with a high share of vacant land and higher-than-average median household incomes, with peak responses estimated at 19% and 15%, respectively. We demonstrate the importance of sample selection bias adjustment for identification of the effect of vacant lot greening.