Psychic costs and factor price equalization

There has been some perplexity among economists over the failure of interregional wage differentials to approach zero over time in an economy characterized by labor mobility. Johnson [7], and Sjaastad [14] , among others, have hypothesized declining wage differentials among regions and have puzzled over contrary empirical results. It has generally been assumed that labor will flow toward regions paying the highest wage rate. This equilibrating framework has dominated economic thought on this problem area and has directed research along narrow market-oriented lines. The hypothesis of this paper is that nonmarket considerations, specifically psychic costs, are a major force in preventing a market-directed flow of human resources. Moreover, "nonoptimal" allocation of human resources results from differences in workers' perceptions of utility between various regions. We will first review the literature in this area and then present an empirical analysis of demographic characteristics suggesting the magnitude of the psychic factor

Bringing Agriculture into the GATT: Tariffication and Rebalancing

International Relations/Trade,

Mechanical characterization of two thermoplastic composites fabricated by automated tow placement

AS4/PEEK towpreg and IM7/Radel 8320 slit tape were used to make flat panels by automated tow placement. The panels were tested in notched and un-notched tension, notched and un-notched compression and compression after impact (CAI) at room temperature and under hot/wet conditions (notched and un-notched compression and CAI only). The properties were compared with AS4/PEEK tape laminate properties found in the literature. The tow placed AS4/PEEK material was stronger in tension but weaker in compression than the AS4/PEEK tape laminates. The tow placed AS4/PEEK was stronger but less stiff than the tow placed IM7/Radel 8320 in all compression tests. The IM7/Radel performed better in all other mechanical tests. The IM7/Radel outperformed the AS4/PEEK in all CAI tests

Rush to Judgment: The STI-Treatment Trials and HIV in Sub-Saharan Africa

Introduction: The extraordinarily high incidence of HIV in sub-Saharan Africa led to the search for cofactor infections that could explain the high rates of transmission in the region. Genital inflammation and lesions caused by sexually transmitted infections (STIs) were a probable mechanism, and numerous observational studies indicated several STI cofactors. Nine out of the ten randomized controlled trials (RCTs), however, failed to demonstrate that treating STIs could lower HIV incidence. We evaluate all 10 trials to determine if their design permits the conclusion, widely believed, that STI treatment is ineffective in reducing HIV incidence. Discussion: Examination of the trials reveals critical methodological problems sufficient to account for statistically insignificant outcomes in nine of the ten trials. Shortcomings of the trials include weak exposure contrast, confounding, non-differential misclassification, contamination and effect modification, all of which consistently bias the results toward the null. In any future STI-HIV trial, ethical considerations will again require weak exposure contrast. The complexity posed by HIV transmission in the genital microbial environment means that any future STI-HIV trial will face confounding, non-differential misclassification and effect modification. As a result, it is unlikely that additional trials would be able to answer the question of whether STI control reduces HIV incidence. Conclusions: Shortcomings in published RCTs render invalid the conclusion that treating STIs and other cofactor infections is ineffective in HIV prevention. Meta-analyses of observational studies conclude that STIs can raise HIV transmission efficiency two- to fourfold. Health policy is always implemented under uncertainty. Given the known benefits of STI control, the irreparable harm from not treating STIs and the likely decline in HIV incidence resulting from STI control, it is appropriate to expand STI control programmes and to use funds earmarked for HIV prevention to finance those programmes

Why do Mothers Breastfeed Girls Less Than Boys? Evidence and Implications for Child Health in India.” Quarterly

Abstract Breastfeeding is negatively correlated with future fertility because nursing temporarily reduces fecundity and because mothers usually wean upon becoming pregnant again. We model breastfeeding under son-biased fertility preferences and show that breastfeeding duration increases with birth order, especially near target family size; is lowest for daughters and children without older brothers because their parents try again for a son; and exhibits the largest gender gap near target family size, when gender is most predictive of subsequent fertility. Data from India confirm each prediction. Moreover, child survival exhibits similar patterns, especially in settings where the alternatives to breastmilk are unsanitary

Liberalization, globalization and the dynamics of democracy in India

In the closing decades of the twentieth century there has been an almost complete intellectual triumph of the twin principles of marketization (understood here as referring to the liberalization of domestic markets and freer international mobility of goods, services, financial capital and perhaps, more arguably, labour) and democratization . A paradigm shift of this extent and magnitude would not have occurred in the absence of some broad consensus among policymakers and (sections of) intellectuals around the globe on the desirability of such a change. There seems to be a two-fold causal nexus between marketization and democracy. The first is more direct, stemming from the fact of both systems sharing certain values and attitudes in common. But there is also a second more indirect chain from marketization to democracy, which is predicated via three sub-chains (i) from marketization to growth, (ii) from growth to overall material development welfare and (iii) from material development to social welfare and democracy. We examine each of these sub-links in detail with a view to obtaining a greater understanding of the hypothesized role of free markets in promoting democracies. In the later part of the paper we examine the socio-economic outcomes governing the quality of democracy in a specifically Indian context