Trade liberalization and wage inequality: Evidence from Korea

This paper investigates the heterogeneous income distribution effects of trade liberalization using Korean survey data from years of 2000–2015. Following the Stolper-Samuelson theorem most of previous research studying the effects of trade liberalization on wage differences focus on workers’ characteristics (e.g., skilled or unskilled) while heterogeneity within the same worker group has not been yet substantially investigated. To fill this gap, this paper provides empirical evidence of wage inequality across firms within the same group of workers caused by trade liberalization, potentially implied in the new-new trade models with firm heterogeneity. Employing a difference-in-differences (DID) specification, we find that the wages of unskilled workers in Korea have increased since its FTAs with more advanced countries, such as members of EU and the US, came into effect, while the effects on the wages of skilled workers are negative but not statistically significant. We also show that wage effects are heterogeneous across firms within unskilled and skilled worker groups, while the positive effects are statistically significant and largest for unskilled workers in medium-large sized firms. These findings are in line with both traditional and new-new trade models.     

Understanding how heterogeneous agents affect Principal's returns: Perspectives from short-termism and Bayesian learning

We consider a general framework of optimal contract design under the heterogeneity and short-termism of agents. Our research shows that the optimal contract must weigh the agent's information rent, incentive cost, and benefit to overcome the contract's adverse selection and moral hazards. Agents with higher moral levels were more likely to choose higher effort and lower manipulation. Simultaneously, the principal offers lower incentives and receives more significant payoff. We also extend our model to investigate the benefits of Bayesian learning. Furthermore, we compare the principal's returns in general and learning models and find that the learning contract can bring more profit to the principal.     

Impacts of Low-Cost Land Certification on Investment and Productivity

New land reforms are again high on the policy agenda and low-cost, propoor reforms are being tested in poor countries. This article assesses the investment and productivity impacts of the recent low-cost land certification implemented in the Tigray region of Ethiopia, using a unique household and farm-plot-level panel data set, with data from before and up to eight years after the reform. Alternative econometric methods were used to test and control for endogeneity of certification and for unobserved household heterogeneity. Significant positive impacts were found, including effects on the maintenance of soil conservation structures, investment in trees, and land productivity.     

Assessing the welfare effects of congestion charges in a real world setting

The standard textbook analysis shows that drivers as a group lose from congestion charges. However, it omits taste heterogeneity, shorter travel times far out in the larger network arising from less blocking back of upstream links and the possibility for drivers to reschedule. Taking account of these factors, using a dynamic scheduling model with heterogeneous users we find that all three add significantly to the benefit of the Stockholm congestion charges and that drivers as a group benefit from these charges even without recycling of revenues. This paper also provides an update on the consumer benefits of the Stockholm charges.     

Choice modelling with search and sort data from an interactive choice experiment

We present a highly structured, online, interactive choice environment containing a large number of alternatives, a search tool that eliminates alternatives that fail specified criteria, and a sort tool. A conceptual framework is developed that links tool usage and preference heterogeneity, and tested in the context of long-haul flight choice. Individuals who sort on price are more price sensitive; individuals who search on certain attributes have a greater marginal (dis)utility for that attribute; and individuals who perform certain non-price searches have a lesser price disutility. The method shows promise as a means for providing a richer picture of preference heterogeneity.     

Tradable travel credits for congestion management with heterogeneous users

This paper carries on the recent work of Yang and Wang (2011) on tradable credit schemes by considering heterogeneous users with different value of time (VOT). Given a tradable credit scheme, the user equilibrium (UE) and market equilibrium (ME) conditions with heterogeneous users are formulated into a variational inequalities (VI) problem. Sufficient conditions for uniqueness of the aggregate UE link flows and then the ME credit price are established. Appropriate tradable credit schemes are developed to decentralize system optimal and Pareto-improving network flow patterns. Extension is made to the elastic demand case.     

高管团队异质性、CEO权力与企业成本粘性的实证分析

企业成本粘性正成为实证会计领域一个重要关注的话题,过高的企业成本粘性不利于企业价值极大化。以我国上市公司为样本,对高管特质、CEO权力与成本粘性间的关系进行实证分析。研究发现：团队年龄异质性、教育水平异质性、任期异质性会显著增加企业成本,但专业背景异质性有利于降低企业成本;在考虑CEO权力后,CEO权力的扩大有利于协调高管团队意见,降低成本;其在与高管特质四大因素交互后,团队年龄异质性、教育水平异质性、任期异质性、专业背景异质性受到了削弱或强化。要降低企业的成本粘性,应多注意团队成员的年龄差异、高管的受教育水平、任期以及团队的专业背景;同时也要重视对CEO的赋权,除重视与考察其个人履历与能力外,还应通过契约的方式赋予其管理企业更合适的权力。     

PERSONALITY TRAITS AND THE PERCEPTION OF MACROECONOMIC INDICATORS: SURVEY EVIDENCE

I examine the determinants of both perceived inflation and unemployment in one single survey and include Big Five traits in the analysis. This is the first survey on this topic in Germany. My sample consists of 1771 students from different fields and levels. Using PhD students’ estimates as a reference, I create categories for underestimation and overestimation of both variables. Multinomial logit regressions show that females overestimate both variables. Education and news consumption reduce misestimation. A higher level of Neuroticism is related with a higher probability to overestimate unemployment. Overstating (understating) one indicator is associated with overstating (understating) the other.     

人口老龄化影响居民消费水平的地区异质性分析——来自省际面板数据的经验证据

文章在全国各地区人口与消费统计数据的基础上,将人口老龄化作为影响因素引入消费函数面板模型中,实证判断各地区人口老龄化与居民消费的显著影响关系,得到结论：地区老年抚养比的增长,均会引起大部分地区平均消费倾向的下降,根据影响程度不同,各地区大致可分为三大类：老龄化严重影响居民消费、老龄化显著影响居民消费以及影响不大地区。文章给出了相应的解释,并得出启示：面对老年社会到来这个现实,要想人口老龄化不成为抑制消费的重要因素．需要大力发展社会经济,加强居民的社会保障,提高居民收入,为人口进入老年行列提供强大的经济后盾。     

Location choices under strategic interactions

We explore a fundamental aspect of firms' location choices largely overlooked in the literature: strategic interaction. We formalize the notion that strategic interaction renders collocation less appealing by fostering competition, which erodes firms' profits. Strategic interaction also impacts location choices across time. Specifically, because firms learn by doing in markets, location choices are shaped by two novel effects: entrenchment benefits from entering early in a market and improving capabilities relative to rivals, and opportunity costs from postponing entry to other markets where rivals enter and learn. When learning is local, firms collocate more: rivals are preempted from improving relative capabilities in higher‐value markets. However, when learning is global, firms collocate less: they can transfer capabilities from lower‐value to higher‐value markets, blocking rivals from achieving entrenchment benefits. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.