Population growth,age structure,and age-specific productivity

Motivated by empirical evidence that fluctuations in age structure affect relative wages across age groups, this paper asks whether there is a steady-state age distribution that maximizes the lifetime wages of a representative worker. The paper proves the surprising result that in a pure labor economy with any constant returns technology, a uniform age distribution minimizes lifetime wages. Skewed age distributions, generated by either positive or negative population growth rates, generate unambiguously higher lifetime wages than a stationary population, in spite of possible reductions in per capita output in every period. The presence of non-labor factors complicates, but does not necessarily reverse, this result. The paper relates the beneficial effects of higher rates of population growth on lifetime wages in a pure labor economy with imperfect substitutability across age groups to the benefits of population growth that appear in overlapping-generation consumption loan models with intergenerational transfers.A previous version of this paper was presented at the Economic Demography Workshop at the 1988 meetings of the Population Association of America. Helpful comments from Mark Berger, Theodore Bergstrom, Ronald Lee, Hal Varian, and Robert Willis are acknowledged.     

Business Cycles,Medicaid Generosity,and Birth Outcomes

Birth outcomes influence many aspects of later life health and wellbeing, making healthcare access during pregnancy a policy priority. Low-income mothers often depend on Medicaid, for which eligibility is determined by their income relative to state eligibility thresholds. The prevalence of adverse birth outcomes is known to exhibit cyclical variation, due in part to changes in the composition of women giving birth in response to changing economic conditions. However, cyclical variation in adverse birth outcomes also varies with respect to Medicaid eligibility thresholds. Our analysis uses birth-records data for 2000 through 2013, aggregated into 173,936 county-by-quarter observations and linked to county-level unemployment rates and state-level parental Medicaid thresholds. Using fixed-effects negative binomial models, we examine the role of Medicaid generosity in influencing birth outcomes across business cycles. We test for interactions between Medicaid and unemployment, hypothesizing that the negative effects of recessions are worse where Medicaid thresholds are more restrictive. We find that higher Medicaid generosity dampens the negative effects of recessions on birth outcomes. The extent to which Medicaid interacts with unemployment also varies according to the age and race composition of mothers; in particular, Black mothers are both most affected by unemployment and most responsive to Medicaid generosity. Given current concerns about racial gaps in both infant and maternal mortality, our findings suggest that Medicaid may be an important feature of a strategy to close gaps in the prevalence of adverse birth outcomes across racial groups, especially during bust years.     

The US productivity slowdown, the baby boom, and management quality

This paper examines the relationship between the entry of the baby boom into the workforce and the productivity slowdown. Lucas (Bell J Econ 9(2):508–523, 1978) shows how management quality plays a role in determining output. The baby boom’s entry into the workforce resulted in more managers from smaller, pre-baby boom cohorts. These marginal managers were necessarily of lower quality, leading to a drop in total factor productivity. As the boomers aged, this effect was reversed. A calibrated model of managers, workers, and firms suggests that the management effects of the baby boom may explain roughly 20% of the observed productivity slowdown and resurgence.     

Working parents and total factor productivity growth

Since 1963, changes in the family composition of the US labor force explain more than half of the variability in US total factor productivity growth. Using the Current Population Survey Annual Social and Economic Supplement, we document the rise of two (and single) working-parent families in the USA. We augment a standard growth-accounting equation to differentiate between parental and nonparental labor inputs and find that accounting for the parental composition of the labor force explains roughly 50 % of total factor productivity growth, the productivity slowdown of the 1970s, and the productivity rise of the 1990s. The parental composition of the workforce also helps to explain labor productivity differences across US states while controlling for differences in the age and gender profile of workers across states does not.     

Women Auto Know: Automotive knowledge,auto activism,and women's online car advice

Although women influence nearly 85 percent of new car sales, their experience at automotive dealerships differs significantly from that of men. Not only are women subject to sexist and patronizing behavior from automotive personnel, but they also often wind up paying considerably more for a vehicle than a male customer. In the past two decades, the Internet has evolved as a significant source of automotive information and advice. While the majority of car advice websites offer guidance to the general public, a handful address the automotive concerns of the female driver. These sites are significant not only for the information they make accessible to female visitors, but for what women gain—as drivers, consumers, and political actors—by reading them. This paper examines four popular websites that cater specifically to the woman driver. Calling upon feminist epistemologies, it demonstrates how such online locations empower women to become more informed drivers and consumers through the accumulation and distribution of women's automotive knowledge. Not only does this automotive knowledge aid women as negotiators, but it also provides them with the tools necessary to radically transform the hostile auto dealership culture, ultimately benefiting all in the market for an automobile.     

How performance related pay affects productivity and employment

This paper uses information from a panel of Dutch firms to investigate the labor productivity effects of performance related pay (PRP). We find that PRP increases productivity at the firm level with 9% and employment growth with 5%.     

Attitudes, perceptions, and knowledge of pre-service teachers regarding the educational isolation of sexual minority youth

Sexual minority youth (Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgendered, and Questioning youth) must function in a society that condones homophobia. Rendered invisible through the stigma attached to their identification as sexual minorities, they are conveniently forgotten by the institutions charged with facilitating their education. Results from a research study conducted by Sears (1991), indicated that teachers often expressed that they should be more proactive and supportive and committed to the welfare of all of their students. However, the realities of their professional intervention and support were negligible. The purpose of this research study was to examine the personal beliefs of pre-service educators from the Midwest about homosexuality, and how these attitudes and feelings are actualized in the schools. Findings suggest that the results of the current sample had little variation from the sample reported by Sears. While Black pre-service educators as well as early childhood pre-service educators obtained higher mean scores on both attitudinal measures (Attitudes Toward Homosexuality and Index of Homophobia), race was the only variable which proved to be statistically significant. Implications for future research are also discussed as a result of this study.     

Poverty in Sub-Saharan Africa: The Role of Business Regulations,Policies and Institutions

Social Indicators Research - The study investigates the impact of business regulations, policies and institutions on welfare in Sub-Saharan Africa. The HDI and GDP per capita are used as measures...     

Workers, workers’ productivity and the dependency ratio in Germany: analysis with implications for social policy

Retirement is an inevitable rite of passage. Retirees draw income from savings, pensions, and perhaps benefits from state welfare systems. Their economically productive years behind them, older workers become an important component in an interesting social indicator—the dependency ratio, (D _r). The D _r measures not only the social significance the elderly have in society, but also the potential economic burden placed on productive workers. Problems may arise that ratchet up the dependency ratio and create important policy dilemmas. In Germany, a larger and increasing D _r points toward future social problems. The dependency ratio is an aggregate measure that masks a considerable amount of variation. Two issues related to the dependency ratio have not been addressed at length. The dependency ratio is related to the labor force via the denominator; it might be important to recognize that certain segments of the labor force are disproportionately burdened. Identifying those segments of workers can better inform decision makers about what policies to implement in addressing the dilemmas reflected in a high dependency ratio. The dependency ratio is also related to worker productivity—the greater the worker productivity, the less of an issue is the dependency ratio, regardless of its size. At bottom, the issue is whether those in the labor force are able to support the retired population. This paper examines the relationships between workers, productivity, and the dependency ratio. It concludes by providing some policy recommendations.     

Family planning: knowledge, attitude and practice of childbearing women in rural areas]

Knowledge, attitude, and practice (KAP) of family planning techniques, is seen as potentially a very effective means for promoting the fundamental principles, objectives, and practices of family planning. In September 1983, a 2-part survey was conducted in the northeast rural area of Hubei province, China, to learn how much local women knew about birth control techniques, devices, available information, and services, as well as personal attitudes and apprehensions toward family planning. The data, based on the ages and educational backgrounds of the surveyed women, are analyzed. The 2nd part of the survey measured the difference in attitudes between women and men regarding the desired number and sex of offspring. While 99% of the surveyed women supported family planning, many expressed a strong desire to learn more about family planning, particularly as related to government policies.     

The outbreak of coronavirus disease in China: Risk perceptions,knowledge, and information sources among prenatal and postnatal women

BackgroundThe COVID-19 pandemic has created anxiety among members of the public, including all women over the childbirth continuum, who are considered to be at a greater risk of contracting most infectious diseases. Understanding the perspectives of health care consumers on COVID-19 will play a crucial role in the development of effective risk communication strategies. This study aimed to examine COVID-19-related risk perceptions, knowledge, and information sources among prenatal and postnatal Chinese women during the initial phase of the COVID-19 pandemic.MethodsA cross-sectional survey design was adopted, and a four-section online questionnaire was used to collect data. Using a social media platform, the online survey was administered to 161 participants during the outbreak of COVID-19 in Nanjing, China, in February 2020.ResultsThe participants perceived their risk of contracting and dying from COVID-19 to be lower than their risk of contracting influenza, however many of them were worried that they might contract COVID-19. The participants demonstrated adequate knowledge about COVID-19. The three major sources from which they obtained information about COVID-19 were doctors, nurses/midwives, and the television, and they placed a high level of confidence in these sources. There was no significant relationship between the perceived risk of contracting COVID-19 and knowledge about this disease.ConclusionThe present findings offer valuable insights to healthcare professionals, including midwives, who serve on the frontline and provide care to pregnant women. Although the participants were adequately knowledgeable about COVID-19, they had misunderstood some of the recommendations of the World Health Organisation.     

A mixed methods study: Midlife African American women’s knowledge,beliefs, and barriers to well-woman visit,flu vaccine,and mammogram use

ABSTRACT

African American women (AAW) are particularly at risk for deleterious health outcomes that might be mitigated through increased preventive care use. A mixed methods study that examined relationships between knowledge of, beliefs about, and barriers to well-woman visits, flu vaccines, and mammograms was conducted with midlife AAW who participated in an online survey (n = 124) and in-depth interviews (n = 19). Findings showed that greater knowledge of preventive service recommendations and positive patient-provider relationships were associated with greater preventive service use. Flu vaccines were significantly underused. Study implications inform strategies to increase preventive care utilization among AAW and increase capacities to improve health disparities.     

Intertwined therapeutic mobilities: knowledge,plants, healers on the move between Laos and the U.S.

ABSTRACT

We investigate the notion of therapeutic mobilities through the case study of transnational health care practices and medicinal flows within the Hmong diaspora between Laos and the U.S. Drawing upon narratives of traditional healers, pickers, and plant sellers, as well as a collection of postal registers, we highlight how therapeutic mobilities follow the routes of migration and organize the practices of healing among Hmong in receiving countries, particularly in the U.S. Through the different and multidirectional aspects of therapeutic mobilities, we illustrate how transnational healing touches upon questions of cultural identity within the Hmong diaspora. Therapeutic mobilities not only involve border-crossing, they also strengthen existing bonds within the Hmong diaspora. Similarly, herbal treatments not only achieve a therapeutic function, they also represent a range of meanings and values for patients. We explore the fabric of therapeutic mobilities through the prism of translocality and medical pluralism.     

Earth,the Business of the Future: From Ego Energy to Eco Energy

Just as we have a turn around manager to save a failing business organization, so it is held, we need a turn around perspective to retrieve the Earth from being in a deficit position. Hence the paradoxical emphasis upon the Earth as the business of the future. Two important distinctions are offered which together provide a new frame of reference for bonding the human and the Earth. The initiating event for the first distinction was a business conference whose purpose was to explore the emerging domain of ego energy. In a parallel way, it is proposed we explore the yet to be discovered domain of eco energy. With eco energy we open our narrowed human window to cosmic perception. With cosmic perception, the energy of the universe can flow through us. The second distinction is between looking at and seeing. Looking at refers to treating our world as a collection of objects. As a collection of objects the Earth can be processed as a series of business transactions. With seeing we relate to our world as a communion of subjects. Such seeing offers transforming power for the human and the Earth to engage in the dialogue of powerful listening and speaking on both individual and planetary scale. These two sets of distinctions are sounded like echo chambers against ten ecologically guiding statements. These ten guiding statements become a reality-testing, experiential framework. Such a turn around perspective offers a different vision to be operationalized in our individual, community, and business lives. Then we can see clearly and respond with eco energy to the Earth, the business of the future!