Bequests as a heir "disciple device."

This paper develops a model ofinter vivos gifts and bequests in a setting of moral hazard and adverse selection. Altruistic parents do not perfectly know how much effort their children make to earn their living, nor do they know their true level of ability.Inter vivos gifts take place prior to the realization of the children's earnings whereas at the moment of bequests, parents do observe them. We show that an optimal transfer policy generally uses a mix ofinter vivos gifts — deemed as more efficient — and bequests — deemed as more redistributive.We are thankful to Allessandro Cigno, Jacques Cremer, Claude d Aspremont and anonymous referees for their comments.Responsible editor: Alessandro Cigno     

The health status of elderly people and the new direction of health services

The projected increase of people in Japan aged 75 years and older in the years to come implies the increase of the disabled elderly. Thus, the core of societal preparation for the aging of the population is generally considered to be the expansion of services for the disabled elderly. However, gerontological studies on the health status of the elderly conducted in Japan show that the prevalence of disability is quite low and even decreasing. Relative to the services for the disabled elderly, preventive services for the healthy elderly have long been overlooked. In 1994, the Metropolitan Tokyo Government organized a task force to develop a new health education program as the preventive health service for the healthy urban elderly. A preliminary plan outlining the health education program--consisting of propagation with a booklet, on-the-job training of practitioners, and development of new curricula and teaching materials--was proposed by the authors for discussion within the task force. Although the inquiry has just begun and the plan is still nascent, it seems adequate to fit the needs for preventive health services in the near future.     

From Ellis Island to LAX: immigrant prospects in the American city

"This article seeks to bring the ?urban' back into immigration research. Each immigrant receiving area has its own particular group of newcomers, and the economic and political structures of the immigrant receiving areas are also distinctive. Those structures are not all determining, as immigrant trajectories are shaped by the interaction between distinctive urban institutions and the specific characteristics of the relevant ethnic groups. But in the last analysis, the urban context makes a difference, as this study shows by examining the leading [U.S.] immigrant destinations--New York and Los Angeles."     

Second generation decline? Children of immigrants,past and present--a reconsideration

"Is the contemporary second generation on the road to the upward mobility and assimilation that in retrospect characterized the second generation of earlier immigrations? Or are the American economic context and the racial origins of today's immigration likely to result in a much less favorable future for the contemporary second generation? While several recent papers have argued for the latter position, we suspect they are too pessimistic. We briefly review the second generation upward mobility in the past and then turn to the crucial comparisons between past and present."     

Rethinking assimilation theory for a new era of immigration

"We argue that assimilation theory has not lost its utility for the study of contemporary immigration to the United States. In making our case, we review critically the canonical account of assimilation provided by Milton Gordon and others; we refer to Shibutani and Kwan's theory of ethnic stratification to suggest some directions to take in reformulating assimilation theory. We also examine some of the arguments frequently made to distinguish between the earlier mass immigration of Europeans and the immigration of the contemporary era and find them to be inconclusive. Finally, we sift through some of the evidence about the socioeconomic and residential assimilation of recent immigrant groups. Though the record is clearly mixed, we find evidence consistent with the view that assimilation is taking place, albeit unevenly."     

Nevada gaming: revenues and taxes (1945-95)

In 1931, Nevada legalized casino gambling, an act which allowed its gaming industry to develop. Because many jurisdictions outside Nevada are now embracing legalized gambling as a path to a brighter economic future and because this proliferation presents Nevada with new challenges and opportunities, it is a good time to review the Nevada experience. Here, the focus is on gaming revenues and gaming tax collections during the 1945–95 period. We find that the growth rate of Nevada's gaming industry has slowed over time, with the relative importance of gaming in the Nevada economy peaking in the late 1970's. The Nevada economy has since been gradually diversifying, something which will increasingly pressure Nevadans to look for government revenue sources other than gaming if current levels of government services are to be maintained.     

Prevalence of gambling among Minnesota public school students in 1992 and 1995

The purposes of this study were to examine the prevalence of gambling among youth, compare rates of gambling between 1992 and 1995, and determine what levels of gambling frequency may be considered common and uncommon. The two samples included 122,700 Minnesota public school students in the 6th, 9th, and 12th grades in 1992; and 75,900 9th and 12th grade students in 1995. Students were administered the Minnesota Student Survey, a 126-item, anonymous, self-administered, paper-and-pencil questionnaire that inquires about multiple content domains, including gambling behaviors. The same questionnaire, with minor revisions to the gambling items, was administered in both 1992 and 1995 to students in their classrooms by the Minnesota Department of Education. There were slight decreases in overall gambling rates from 1992 to 1995. The majority of students gambled at least once during the past year. However, most did not play any game on a weekly/daily rate and did not report any problems associated with their gambling. Gender, grade, and race effects were found for gambling frequency. Boys gambled more often than girls, and 9th and 12th grade students gambled more often than 6th grade students. Asian American and White students reported lower rates of gambling frequency than Mexican/Latin American, African American, and American Indian students. From a statistical standpoint (i.e., beyond the 97.7 percentile), it may be considered in the uncommon range for girls to play two or more games at a weekly/daily rate, and for boys to play four or more games at a weekly/daily rate. Variables associated with gambling frequency included antisocial behavior, gender, and alcohol use frequency. Although the finding that gambling did not increase from 1992 to 1995 is encouraging, this is the first generation of youth to be exposed to widespread accessability to gambling venues and gambling advertising and it will be important to continue monitoring the prevalence of youth gambling.     

Correlates of honor ratings in a clinical clerkship employing a faculty forum evaluation system

5he purpose of this study was to determine whether or not suspected variables affected a surgery clerk's chances of being awarded an honor rating. Findings indicated a significant relationship between a student receiving an honor rating and his or her preceptor's predetermined level of student advocacy, the number of completed patient interview and physical examination write-ups, and final examination scores. There was no significant relationship found between honor ratings and the preceptor's status, the sequence in which the student was discussed or the length of time spent discussing the student at the final evaluation meeting, or the number of clinical faculty present at the meeting. These results lend support to the faculty forum evaluation approach, but suggest a need for further scrutiny of some influencing variables to ensure all students are fairly considered and honor ratings judiciously awarded.