Is Transport Safety More Valuable in the Air?

Using a contingent valuation survey, people's willingness to pay for a given risk reduction is found to be much larger, consistently more than two times as large, when traveling by air compared to by taxi. Follow-up questions revealed that an important reason for this discrepancy is that many experience a higher mental suffering from flying, and that they are willing to pay to reduce this suffering. It was also consistently found that people are willing to pay more for a certain risk reduction if the original price was higher. Policy implications are discussed.     

Quality of life among unemployed and employed people in northern Sweden. Are there any differences?

This study analysed self-assessed quality of life (QoL), using a QoL questionnaire (H?rnquist's QLcs) covering the life spheres, somatic health, mental well-being, cognitive ability, social and family life, activity, financial situation, meaning in life and a global score "entire life", in 487 unemployed subjects and 2917 employed subjects aged 25-64, in a population-based cross-sectional study in northern Sweden. In line with previous findings, results showed that unemployed people exhibited poorer QoL. Unemployed women scored higher in existential life domains than unemployed men did. Unemployed men were worst off in terms of general life situation. Employed respondents benefited in QoL by a university/college education, while unemployed respondents with a university/college education did not. Close social relations and money reserve were associated with higher QoL generally. It was concluded that further research is needed to differentiate various aspects of QoL and unemployment, and to compare with other samples.     

How does cultural capital affect educational performance: Signals or skills?

In this paper, we test two mechanisms through which cultural capital might affect educational performance: (a) teachers misinterpreting cultural capital as signals of academic brilliance and (b) cultural capital fostering skills in children that enhance educational performance. We analyse data from the ECLS-K and ECLS-K:2011 from the United States and focus on three aspects of children’s cultural capital: participation in performing arts, reading interest and participation in athletics and clubs. We find that (1) none of the three aspects of cultural capital that we consider affects teachers’ evaluations of children’s academic skills; (2) reading interest has a direct positive effect on educational performance; and (3) the direct effect of reading interest on educational performance does not depend on schooling context. Our results provide little support for the hypothesis that cultural capital operates via signals about academic brilliance. Instead, they suggest that cultural capital fosters skills in children that enhance educational performance. We discuss the theoretical implications of our findings.     

WHY MERGERS REDUCE PROFITS AND RAISE SHARE PRICES–A THEORY OF PREEMPTIVE MERGERS

We provide a possible explanation for the empirical puzzle that mergers often reduce profits, but raise share prices. If being an “insider” is better than being an “outsider”, firms may merge to preempt their partner merging with a rival. The insiders' stock market value is increased, since the risk of becoming an outsider is eliminated. These results are derived in an endogenous‐merger model, predicting the conditions under which mergers occur, when they occur, and how the surplus is shared. (JEL: L13, L41, G34, C78)     

UNTANGLING A COMPLEX MEDIA SYSTEM

This article provides empirical insights into how one online service – Twitter – was used for political purposes during three separate election campaigns in Sweden, Denmark and Norway, specifically how Twitter users, with hyperlinks, connect with other channels for political communication. Methodologically, the study employs three large sets of data on Twitter use tagged as relevant for each of the election campaigns, covering a one-month period. The approach allows for an untangling of the complex interconnections between novel online services, mainstream media, official political party websites, public information, individual blogs and social network sites. By moving beyond a study merely of the type of websites linked to, to also include classification of the actors publishing the content linked to, the article provides insights into the actual use by politicians, interest groups as well as grassroots activists of diverse Web genres.     

Settlement policies and the economic success of immigrants

Many countries use settlement policies to direct the inflow of immigrants away from immigrant dense areas. We evaluate a reform of Swedish immigration policy that featured the dispersion of refugee immigrants, but also a change in the approach to labor market integration. We focus on how immigrants fared because of the policy. The evaluation indicates that immigrants experienced substantial long run losses. The bulk of the effect stems from a common component that affected immigrants regardless of location. We interpret the common component as being related to a shift in policy focus, from labor market assimilation to income support.All correspondence to Per-Anders Edin. We thank two anonymous referees, Magnus Löfström, seminar participants at the Institute for Labour Market Policy Evaluation (IFAU), Uppsala University, Stockholm University, the Swedish Institute for Social Research (SOFI), the Research Institute of Industrial Economics (IUI), and the CEPR conference on Marginal Labour Markets in Metropolitan Areas for valuable comments and Lisa Fredriksson for expert data assistance. We are also grateful to Sven Hjelmskog, Roland Jansson, Stig Kattilakoski, Christina Lindblom, Anders Nilsson, Kristina Sterne, and Lena Axelsson of the Immigration Board, and Anna Gralberg of the Ministry of Culture, who generously found time to answer our questions. This research has been partly financed through a grant from the Swedish Council for Work Life Research (RALF). Responsible editor: Christoph M. Schmidt.     

Shifts in attitudes and labor market discrimination: Swedish experiences after 9-11

We present longitudinal survey data suggesting that the terrorist attacks in the USA on September 11, 2001, changed attitudes toward certain minorities in Sweden. This finding is consistent with results in previous studies. To investigate whether this change in attitudes also affected the labor market situation of these minorities, we study unemployment exit around 9-11 using detailed data on the entire Swedish working-age population. Contrary to what may be expected from many theories of labor market discrimination, the time pattern of exits and entries for different ethnic groups, as well as difference-in-differences analyses, shows no sign of increased discrimination toward these minorities. A possible explanation for this result is that employers act rationally in their hiring decisions and do not respond to changes in attitudes toward immigrants as a group.

Virtues of SIN: can intensified public efforts help disadvantaged immigrants?

The labor market integration of immigrants is a top political priority throughout the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries. Social and fiscal gains, as well as sustained future labor supply make governments search for effective policies to increase employment among the mostly disadvantaged. The author studies SIN, a Swedish pilot workplace introduction program targeting these groups, using very detailed individual data and allowing for effects through several channels. The results show increased transitions from unemployment to work experience schemes and improved future employment probabilities for those who entered these schemes. A rough calculation suggests that each job year created cost about Euro 30,000.