Spatiotemporal Modeling of Asian Citrus Canker Risks: Implications for Insurance and Indemnification Fund Models

Asiatic citrus canker is a disease that poses a significant hazard to commercial citrus production. This article examines spatiotemporal models of the risks of citrus canker transmission. Models evaluate risks and are used to price annual contracts, which would pay producers a prespecified indemnity in the event that their grove is found to be infected with canker. Implications for risk management policy are discussed.     

‘Adopt a Hypothetical Pup’: A Count Data Approach to the Valuation of Wildlife

The willingness to pay (WTP) for a coyote conservation program is estimated using a novel payment-vehicle, based on how many ‚problem’ coyotes respondents would be willing to sponsor for a year. This hypothetical scenario mimics an increasingly popular type of actual market. Data from a phone survey conducted in Prince Edward Island are analyzed using count data models that consider different processes explaining zero responses and the level of positive responses. This is particularly important in the case of coyotes, often regarded as an economic bad. Estimates of WTP per coyote per year around $18–$22 and annual WTP per contributor of about $46–$57 are obtained.      

零膨胀损失次数回归模型及其应用

在许多情况下,损失次数数据一方面具有零膨胀特点,另一方面尾部较长,存在过离散特征。此时,通常的损失次数模型（如泊松回归）将不能很好地拟合实际损失数据。本文对零膨胀泊松回归、零膨胀负二项回归、零膨胀广义泊松回归和零膨胀泊松—逆高斯回归的模型构造和参数估计进行讨论,并用这些模型对一组实际损失数据进行了拟合。结果表明,当实际数据存在零膨胀特点时,零膨胀回归模型可以显著改善对实际损失数据的拟合效果。     

Passing the “Torches of Freedom”: Smoking Behaviors of Women in Nepal

Globally, men constitute a larger percentage of smokers than women, but the rate of women smokers is growing. Smoking is a feminist issue: there are unique consequences for women's health, well-being, and agency. Recently passed anti-smoking legislation in Nepal, which has the highest rate of women smokers in South Asia, omits gender-conscious recommendations, potentially diminishing the impact of the legislation on women's lives. Relying on the 2001, 2006, and 2011 waves of the Nepal Demographic and Health Survey, this paper expands the dialogue around women's smoking and places it at the forefront of research on women's health issues. The results indicate that for women in Nepal, formal education and visiting a health facility mitigate smoking behaviors, whereas being employed and living in certain regions promotes smoking behaviors. The aim is for this and the ensuing inquiries to change government anti-smoking legislation in order to improve women's health.     

融资约束与我国企业对外直接投资——基于浙江省微观企业数据的实证研究

企业对外直接投资是我国当前重要的外向经济发展战略,因此探明其影响因素对于深化对外开放具有重要意义。文章在此背景下从微观企业角度研究融资约束如何影响企业对外直接投资,构建理论框架阐明融资约束的提升会制约劳动密集型企业的对外直接投资决策,但是会逆向促进资本密集型企业的对外直接投资决策;在此基础上,通过匹配《中国工业企业数据库》和《中国境外投资企业（机构）名录》中的浙江省企业数据在微观上验证了理论推论。进一步地,分样本数据回归表明国有企业、外资企业和重工业企业对外直接投资不受融资约束制约,而非国有企业、非外资企业和轻工业企业对外直接投资受融资约束影响明显。此外,文章通过零膨胀回归和排序数据回归发现较低（高）的融资约束增加了劳动（资本）密集型企业的对外直接投资项目数并加快其投资决策时间,与对外直接投资倾向的影响机制一致。     

A closer look at the determinants of international migration: decomposing cultural distance

Using a modified gravity model and three measures of cultural distance, we employ the zero-inflated negative binomial estimation technique to examine the impact of cultural distance on international migration flows. We confirm the finding of prior studies that there exists a negative relationship between composite measures of cultural distance and immigrant flows. Extending the literature, we decompose our composite cultural distance measures into their component dimensions to examine potential variability in the influences of individual dimensions on international migration. We find the cultural dimensions that reflect individualism, uncertainty avoidance, and perceived gender roles are typically more influential in determining immigrant flows than are other cultural dimensions.