AN EXPERIMENTAL STUDY OF KIN AND ETHNIC FAVORITISM

Ethnic and kinship ties have long been viewed as potential catalysts for favoritism, and hence corruption. In experiments conducted in three countries, we recruit siblings, coethnics and strangers and vary the relationship(s) between the players of a game to observe how kin and ethnic ties influence the willingness of two players to benefit one another at the expense of a third party. We see universal sibling favoritism, but ethnic favoritism, and favoritism toward other in-group members (friends) varies. We argue this may be driven in part by kinship institutions, since favoritism is more common in societies with denser kin networks. ( JEL D9, C9, D73, J12)     

When is a family a family? Evidence from survey data and implications for family policy

This article examines the correspondence between common assumptions about the American family and actual patterns. The assessment is based on national data on individuals, households, and families. Findings indicate that the coresident nuclear model should be considereda model rather thanthe model of family. Past as well as current marital ties need to be considered in defining “family,” and divorce rather than death should be the expected cause of losing the main breadwinner in the family, except among elderly women. Parent-child ties to either young or adult children often span separate households. Coresidents can include individuals other than nuclear family members, and change rather than stability is the modal pattern in living arrangements. Rather than shaping concepts of the family from a single mold, policy makers and researchers are better advised to recognize the diversity and fluidity in family and household structures. Her major research interests include economics of the family, intergenerational transmission, intergenerational transfers, labor economics, and poverty and welfare. She received her Ph.D. in Economics from the University of Michigan in 1977.     

Towards “cognitively complex” problem‐solving: Six models of public service reform

This article proposes “cognitively complex problem‐solving” as a refinement of the recent problem‐solving approach to public service reform, and as an addition to existing political and institutional explanations for the frequent failure of reform. It substantiates the new problem‐solving model by identifying and selectively reviewing six models of reform that have been practised in developing countries over the past half‐century: public administration, decentralization, pay and employment reform, New Public Management, integrity and corruption reforms and “bottom‐up” reforms. A short case study of Myanmar is presented to illustrate the problem‐solving approach in practice.     

THE WELFARE IMPACT OF TRADE LIBERALIZATION

This paper analyzes the distributional welfare impact of trade liberalization reforms on heterogeneous households. We develop a static applied general equilibrium model, and using a Social Accounting Matrix and Household Expenditure Survey, we calibrate it to match Slovenian data. We simulate the case of Slovenia joining the EU and quantify its welfare impact on households that differ in terms of age, income, and education. Additionally, we compare this benchmark case with two alternative scenarios: (1) a free trade agreement between Slovenia and the EU and (2) a custom union arrangement where tariff revenues are rebated proportionally to the households. We find that while trade liberalization leads to falling consumer prices, increased production in the export sectors, and aggregate welfare gains, the differentiated welfare impacts across heterogeneous households vary in their degrees. (JEL D58, F14, F15)     

Between reforms and birth rates: Germany, Japan, and family policy discourse

This paper examines the development of employment-oriented family policy in Germany and Japan, two countries united by conservative welfare legacies and very low birthrates, through a close analysis of discourse. Why have recent reforms in Germany moved well beyond those in Japan despite remarkably similar “human capital” discourses? The relative strength of interpretative patterns—in this case, discursive patterns that successfully frame family policy reform as an economic imperative—and the role of employers are identified as critical explanatory factors. Further comparative attention is called to the role of the state as a guarantor of new family policy entitlements.     

Assessing the Effect of Welfare Reforms on Public Assistance Caseloads in Four Ohio Counties

Abstract

The implementation of welfare reform at the local level is critical to assessing the effects of structural reforms initiated since the passage of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunities Reconciliation Act of 1996. Wide variations in the activities undertaken in response to national welfare reform have hindered efforts to understand the factors that have contributed to the success of welfare reform apparent in caseload reductions. This paper reviews Community Human Service Plans in four Ohio counties and examines their trends in caseloads. Two strategies emerge: “job attachment” and “human capital development.” These differences in local implementation can be related to caseload trends.     

Foreign aid and the rule of law: Institutional diffusion versus legal reach

This paper examines the role of bilateral foreign aid in supporting the diffusion and enactment of common models and institutions of the rule of law among aid-recipient low- and middle-income countries. We ask whether aid targeted at security-sector reform and the rule of law influences the adoption of constitutional and legal reforms over time (institutional diffusion), and whether aid also supports more effective implementation of the rule of law, writ large (legal reach). We use event history and fixed-effects panel regression models to examine a sample of 154 countries between 1995 and 2013 to answer these questions. Our findings suggest that aid does increase the likelihood of adopting several rule of law reforms, but its effect on increasing the depth or quality of rule of law over time within countries is much less substantial. These findings suggest that though aid may play a role in supporting the diffusion of models contributing to state isomorphism among countries, it is less effective at increasing the pervasiveness and quality of such model’s implementation. This discrepancy between the effectiveness of bilateral aid in promoting law on the books versus law in action in aid recipient countries calls into question the current approach to rule of law reforms.     

Family Formation and Close Social Ties Within Religious Congregations

The study of family and religion has yet to elaborate on the social ties that connect these two important and changing institutions. Specifically, how does family formation (i.e., marriage and childrearing) impact social ties to religious communities? Using longitudinal data from the Portraits of American Life Study (2006–2012) and fixed effects regression models that control for time‐stable heterogeneity (N = 1,314), this study tests the effects of marriage and childrearing on changes in close congregational social ties. Fixed effects estimates suggest that marriage actually decreases close social ties to religious congregations, whereas rearing children within marital unions increases them. Thus, it is children, not marriage per se, that actually integrates married couples into religious communities. These contrasting effects tend to be the strongest among young adults, but they weaken with age as well as marital duration.     

THE COMPOSITION OF GOVERNMENT EXPENDITURE: ECONOMIC CONDITIONS AND PREFERENCES

This paper examines the question of why the composition of government expenditure differs among democratic countries and to what extent it may be explained by differences in economic conditions or preferences. A simple overlapping generations model, which allows for a range of relevant factors, is constructed to examine the division of expenditure on public goods and a transfer payment under majority voting. The model yields a closed‐form solution for the majority choice of the expenditure ratio. An empirical examination suggests that income inequalities play a minor role while different preferences for public goods reflecting cultural differences across countries may play an important role in accounting for the substantial variations in expenditure patterns. (JEL D72, H41, H53, H11)     

A GAME THEORETIC ANALYSIS OF VOLUNTARY EUTHANASIA AND PHYSICIAN ASSISTED SUICIDE

In countries/states where voluntary euthanasia (VE) or physician-assisted suicide (PAS) is legal, the patient's decision about whether to request VE or PAS heavily relies on the information others provide. We use the tools of microeconomic theory to study how communication between the patient, his family and his physician influences the patient's decision. We argue that families have considerable power over the patient and that the amount of information that is transmitted from physician to patient might be severely diminished as a result of legalizing VE or PAS. We discuss our main results in the context of the ongoing normative debate over the legalization of VE and PAS. (JEL D8, I12)     

POLICY VARIATION,LABOR SUPPLY ELASTICITIES,AND A STRUCTURAL MODEL OF RETIREMENT

This paper exploits a combination of policy variation from multiple pension reforms in Austria and administrative data from the Austrian Social Security Database. Using the policy changes for identification, we estimate social security wealth and accrual elasticities in individuals' retirement decisions. Next, we use these elasticities to estimate a dynamic programming model of retirement decisions. Finally, we use the estimated model to examine the labor supply and welfare consequences of potential social security reforms. (JEL J26, H55)     

Parental Behavior and the Quality of Adolescent Friendships: A Social‐Contextual Perspective

On the basis of an evolving social‐contextual perspective, the authors predicted and found that socioeconomic advantage in terms of income and parental education promotes supportive and inhibits hostile parental behaviors toward an adolescent child (N= 221). These parental behaviors predicted similar actions by the child toward a close friend 4 years later. In turn adolescent supportiveness promoted close friendship ties, whereas hostility diminished the quality of friendships. The results support the notion that, to a significant degree, the quality of family interactions: (a) arises from the social context surrounding the family, (b) is transmitted across generations, and (c) has a demonstrable impact on the quality of adolescents' social ties outside the family.     

COMMODITY TAXATION IN WELFARE STATES

Unemployment is a central policy issue in countries with a “generous” welfare system that is hard to reform. This paper addresses why these countries tend to adopt high commodity tax rates in the optimal taxation context. We explore the role of commodity taxation in alleviating moral hazard and hence involuntary unemployment and then provide supportive evidence from a quantitative analysis. Unlike the usual full employment models, at the heart of this paper is a new dimension of distortion, the “between‐states” (employment state vs. unemployment state) consumption choice distortion, which can be dealt with by a certain optimal combination of commodity and income taxation. Our results therefore offer an explanation for the widely observed coexistence of direct and indirect taxation. (JEL D61, D81, H21)     

Place of Origin,Types of Ties,and Support Networks in Mexico–U.S. Migration*

Previous studies explored how urban or rural place of origin influences the source of social capital. There remains a need to consider how the place of origin affects the type of ties—family, friends, or paisanos (countrymen)—with those who provide support to migrants. We use data from the Mexican Migration Project (MMP128) and perform multinomial logistic regression models to predict who (among family, friends, or paisanos) provides lodging to first‐time undocumented male migrants from Mexico, taking into account the size of their place of origin. We find that paisanos are important in providing lodging to those from rural areas, and family members are more likely to assist those from urban settings. Paisanos are more likely to help at the beginning of the migratory flow of the community (rural or urban), and family members to do so once the flow has matured. Also, paisanos are more likely to help those in rural areas during more difficult times, such as after the enactment of the North American Free Trade Agreement. We suggest that paisanos fulfill a role similar to that in Granovetter's (1973) concept of the strength of weak ties in which they act as substitutes for other ties (such as to friends and family) to provide social capital, making the first‐time undocumented migration possible.     

Structures and processes: land,families, and gender relations

The author points to the existence of a striking similarity in some of the effects of land reform upon gender relations and women's family positions. This is so despite the variation in land reform processes and in the cultures in which they occur. Family and kinship patterns both affect, and are affected by, land reform. This two-way relationship is examined, with particular attention given to the author's study of northeastern Zimbabwean Resettlement Areas, conducted during the mid-1980s, and Agarwal's 1994 study of women and land rights in South Asia. Sections discuss the effects of land reform; family formation, family relationships, and land; family and land in South Asia; reforms which disadvantage women; benefits for women of land reform; and the Zimbabwean case study.     

Identity Versus Identification: How LGBTQ Parents Identify Their Children on Census Surveys

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) individuals often rely on conceptions of family that fall outside of heteronormative definitions regarding blood or legal ties. As a consequence, there is a greater potential for conflict between family identities and identification options on survey instruments. Drawing on interviews with 100 LGBTQ parents, the authors examined conflicts between identity and identification faced by LGBTQ parents who must describe their parent–child relationships on census surveys. They found that in cases where parents lack biological or legal ties or where the legal relationship is established after the parent–child relationship (e.g., with second‐parent adoption), parents often rely on alternative definitions of family when completing surveys. When navigating identification options, participants consider the survey intent and structure, heteronormative legal and biological frameworks of family, and emotional kinship ties. The findings suggest the need for researchers to consider the heterogeneity within each category of parent–child relationship captured on surveys.     

Long-Term Care Crisis in The Netherlands and Migration of Live-in Care Workers: Transnational Trajectories,Coping Strategies and Motivation Mixes

The crisis of the welfare state has generated a powerful pulling effect for contemporary intra-European migration flows. This article focuses on the migration of live-in care workers from Central and East European countries to the Netherlands, following the Dutch care reform. It explores the motivations and strategies of live-in migrant carers (LIMC) engaging in transnational mobility, aiming to understand how their agency is structured in multiple contexts. I am especially interested in transnational coping strategies and in how migrants pursue specific motivation mixes combining need and self-realization. The article draws on in-depth interviews with LIMC workers, triangulated with data from LIMC providers, family carers and other stakeholders. Participants use the LIMC jobs to cope with home and host country constraints, reconcile work and private life, and keep family ties. Continuous mobility is a strategic choice, which makes tough working conditions bearable and enables the achievement of long-term goals.     

DETERRENCE,PREEMPTION, AND PANIC: A COMMON‐ENEMY PROBLEM OF TERRORISM

A game‐theoretic analysis of terrorism examines interactions between a terrorist organization and multiple target countries. It considers both preemption and deterrence as counter‐terrorist policies. Damage from terror includes material costs and resultant fear. Fear effects lead to different equilibria and implications for counter‐terrorism policies. The model identifies conditions under which greater preemption may be the rational response to an increase in terrorism, that is, it analyzes the merit of the dictum “offense is the best defense.” It also examines the characteristics of cooperative behavior among target countries in dealing with the threat of terrorism. (JEL C72, D74, F52, F53, H41)     

A cross‐cultural test of the work‐family interface in 48 countries

This study tests a cross‐cultural model of the work‐family interface. Using multigroup structural equation modeling with IBM survey responses from 48 countries (N= 25,380), results show that the same work‐family interface model that fits the data globally also fits the data in a four‐group model composed of culturally related groups of countries, as well as a two‐group gender model. This supports a transportable rather than a culturally specific or gender‐specific work‐family interface model: notably, job flexibility related to reduced work‐family conflict, reduced family‐work conflict, and enhanced work‐family fit. Work‐family fit related to increased job satisfaction. Findings suggest that investment by multinational companies in job flexibility initiatives may represent a dual‐agenda way to benefit men, women, and businesses in diverse cultures.     

RENT‐SEEKING AND CAPITAL ACCUMULATION

A general model incorporating rent‐seeking activities in the standard neoclassical model of capital accumulation is presented. The welfare of the representative agent is negatively affected by the efficiency of rent‐seeking activities. Although intuitive, this result is not obvious because long‐run income can be positively affected by more efficient rent‐seeking activities. The model is used to provide explanations for some recent experiences in developing countries, including the relative poor performance of economies that experience a move to a more decentralized system and the observed path of total factor productivity (TFP) in countries like Ireland and Venezuela. (JEL D23, D74, O40, O41, O47)