Emigration, remittances, and the subjective well-being of those staying behind

© 2018, The Author(s). We offer the first global perspective on the well-being consequences of emigration for those staying behind using several subjective well-being measures (evaluations of best possible life, positive affect, stress, and depression). Using the Gallup World Poll data for 114 countries during 2009–2011, we find that having family members abroad is associated with greater evaluative well-being and positive affect, and receiving remittances is linked with further increases in evaluative well-being, especially in poorer contexts—both across and within countries. We also document that having household members abroad is linked with increased stress and depression, which are not offset by remittances. The out-migration of family members appears less traumatic in countries where migration is more common, indicating that people in such contexts might be able to cope better with separation. Overall, subjective well-being measures, which reflect both material and non-material aspects of life, furnish additional insights and a well-rounded picture of the consequences of emigration on migrant family members staying behind relative to standard outcomes employed in the literature, such as the left-behind’s consumption, income, or labor market outcomes

Does emigration reduce corruption?

© 2017, The Author(s). We study the effects of emigration on bribery experience and attitudes towards corruption in the migrants’ countries of origin. Using data from the Gallup Balkan Monitor survey and instrumental variable analysis, we find that having relatives abroad reduces the likelihood of bribing public officials, renders bribe-taking behavior by public officials less acceptable, and reduces the likelihood of being asked for bribes by public officials. Receiving monetary remittances does not change the beneficial effects regarding bribe paying and attitudes toward corruption; however, remittances counteract the beneficial effect on bribe solicitations by public officials. Overall, our findings support the conjecture that migration contributes to the transfer of norms and practices from destination to source countries

Cyber-warranties as a quality signal for information security products

Consumers struggle to distinguish between the quality of different enterprise security products. Evaluating performance is complicated by the stochastic nature of losses. It is recognised that this information asymmetry may lead to a "market for lemons" in which suppliers face no incentive to provide higher quality products. Some security vendors have begun to offer cyber-warranties - voluntary ex-ante obligations to indemnify the customer in the event of a cyber attack - to function as a quality signal. Much like how consumer protection laws are relatively more costly to firms offering low quality products, cyberwarranties are more costly for firms developing low quality enterprise security products. In this paper, we introduce a decision-theoretic model to explore how consumers might use cyber-warranties to increase information when purchasing security products. Our analysis derives four inferences that consumers can make about a security product. We discuss the difficulties customers might face in using these inferences to make real world decisions

RESEARCH ARTICLE Body-size structure of Central Iberian mammal fauna reveals semidesertic conditions during the middle Miocene Global Cooling Event

We developed new quantitative palaeoclimatic inference models based on the body-size structure of mammal faunas from the Old World tropics and applied them to the Somosaguas fossil site (middle Miocene, central Iberian Peninsula). Twenty-six mammal species have been described at this site, including proboscideans, ungulates, carnivores, insectivores, lagomorphs and rodents. Our analyses were based on multivariate and bivariate regression models correlating climatic data and body-size structure of 63 modern mammal assemblages from Sub-Saharan Africa and the Indian subcontinent. The results showed an average temperature of the coldest month higher than 26ÊC for the Somosaguas fossil site, a mean annual thermal amplitude around 10ÊC, a drought length of 10 months, and an annual total precipitation greater than 200 mm per year, which are climate conditions typical of an ecotonal zone between the savanna and desert biomes. These results are congruent with the aridity peaks described over the middle Aragonian of Spain and particularly in the local biozone E, which includes Somosaguas. The aridity increase detected in this biozone is associated with the Middle Miocene Global Cooling Event. The environment of Somosaguas around 14 Ma was similar to the current environment in the Sahel region of North Africa, the Horn of Africa, the boundary area between the Kalahari and the Namib in Southern Africa, south-central Arabia, or eastern Pakistan and northwestern India. The distribution of modern vegetation in these regions follows a complex mosaic of plant communities, dominated by scattered xerophilous shrublands, semidesert grasslands, and vegetation linked to seasonal watercourses and ponds.Peer reviewe

Aptidão física relacionada à saúde em escolares de Jequié, BA, Brasil Health-related physical fitness in students from Jequié, BA, Brazil

O objetivo deste estudo foi analisar a aptidão física relacionada à saúde (AFRS) em escolares de Jequié, BA, Brasil. Para tanto, a AFRS de 182 meninos e 160 meninas (sete a 12 anos), escolares da rede pública de ensino, foi avaliada mediante a aplicação dos testes motores corrida/caminhada de nove minutos (indicador de resistência cardiorrespiratória), abdominal modificado em um minuto (indicador de força e resistência abdominal), sentar-e-alcançar (indicador de flexibilidade). O somatório das espessuras das dobras cutâneas tricipital e subescapular foi utilizado como indicador de gordura corporal. Os resultados encontrados indicaram maior prevalência de meninos e meninas abaixo (19% e 49%, respectivamente) do que acima (3% e 1%, respectivamente) dos critérios estabelecidos pela AAHPERD (1988) para indicadores de gordura corporal. Por outro lado, somente 51% dos meninos e 58% das meninas no sentar-e-alcançar; 11% e 7%, respectivamente, no abdominal modificado em um minuto, e 15% e 14%, respectivamente, na corrida/caminhada de nove minutos alcançaram os critérios estabelecidos. Portanto, os resultados sugerem que programas efetivos de intervenção parecem necessários para a promoção de mudanças no estado nutricional e na atividade física habitual de escolares de Jequié.<br>The aim of this study was to analyze the health-related physical fitness (HRPF) in students from Jequié, BA, Brazil. Therefore, the HRPF of 182 boys and 160 girls aged 7-12 years, students from public schools, was assessed by the application of 9-minute-run/walk (indicator of cardiorespiratory capacity), modified in one minute abdominal (indicator of abdominal strength and endurance), sit-and-reach (indicator of flexibility) motor tests. The sum of the triciptal and subscapular skinfolds thickness was used as indicator of body fat. The results found indicated higher prevalence of boys and girls below (19% and 49%, respectively) than above (3% and 1%, respectively) the criteria established by the AAHPERD (1988) for indicators of body fat. Conversely, only 51% of the boys and 58% of the girls in the sit-and-reach; 11% and 7%, respectively, in the modified in one minute abdominal; and 15% and 14%, respectively, in the 9-minute-run/walk reached the established criteria. Thus, the results suggest that effective intervention programs seem necessary for the promotion of alterations in the nutritional status as well as habitual physical activity of students from Jequié

Composição corporal em crianças de sete a 10 anos de idade, de alto nível socioeconômico Body composition in seven-to-ten-year old children of high socioeconomic status

O objetivo deste estudo foi analisar a composição corporal de crianças de sete a 10 anos de idade, de alto nível socioeconômico. Para tanto, 511 crianças (274 meninos e 237 meninas) foram submetidas a medidas antropométricas de massa corporal, estatura e espessuras de dobras cutâneas tricipital (TR) e subescapular (SE). Com base nessas informações, foram determinados: gordura corporal relativa (% Gordura), massa corporal magra (MCM), distribuição da gordura corporal (DGC) e o somatório da espessura das dobras cutâneas TR e SE (&#931;EDC). Anova two-way foi utilizada para as comparações entre os sexos e os diferentes grupos etários, seguida pelo teste post hoc de Scheffé quando P < 0,05. Para a classificação das crianças, de acordo com as categorias de adiposidade corporal, foi utilizada distribuição de freqüência. O teste de comparação entre proporções foi adotado para verificar as diferenças entre os sexos, em cada categoria (P < 0,05). Diferenças significantes entre os sexos (P < 0,05) foram verificadas na dobra TR (meninas > meninos) e na MCM (meninos > meninas). Efeito significante da idade foi identificado em todas as variáveis analisadas, exceto na DGC, com os valores mais elevados sendo encontrados no grupo etário de 10 anos. Um percentual elevado, tanto de meninos quanto de meninas, apresentou índice de adiposidade alto, com superioridade para os meninos (28% vs. 14%, P < 0,01). Por outro lado, um contingente maior de meninas apresentou concentrações de gordura corporal relativa abaixo dos pontos de corte desejáveis (15% vs. 3%, P < 0,01). Os valores de adiposidade corporal encontrados no presente estudo sugerem que um percentual elevado de crianças, de ambos os sexos, já apresenta importantes fatores de risco à saúde, em idades precoces.<br>The objective of this study was to analyze the body composition of seven to 10 year-old children of high socioeconomic status. Therefore, 511 children (274 boys and 237 girls) were submitted to body mass, height and triceps (TR) and subscapular (SE) skinfolds thickness anthropometric measurement. Based on this information, the following topics were determined: relative body fat (% Fat), lean body mass (LBM), body fat distribution (BFD) and sum of the thickness of the TR and SE skinfolds (£TSF). Two-way ANOVA was used for comparisons between gender and the different age groups, followed by the Scheffé post hoc test when P < 0.05. For the children classification according to the categories of body adiposity, frequency distribution was used. A test of comparison between ratios was adopted to verify the differences between gender in each category (P < 0.05). Significant differences between gender (P < 0.05) were verified in TR skinfold (girls > boys) and in LBM (boys > girls). Significant age effect was identified in all analyzed variables, except for DBF, with the highest values having been found in the 10 year-old group. A high percentage both for boys and girls presented high adiposity index, with superiority for boys (28% vs. 14%, P < 0.01). On the other hand, a larger number of girls presented relative body fat concentrations below the desirable cutting points (15% vs. 3%, P < 0.01). The values of body adiposity found in the present study suggest that a high percentage of children from both gender already present important health risk factors at early ages