Determinants of choice of migration destination

Internal migration plays an important role in moderating regional differences in well-being. This paper analyzes migrants'choice of destination, using Census and Living Standard Surveys data from Nepal. The paper examines how the choice of a migration destination is influenced by income differentials, distance, population density, social proximity, and amenities. The study finds population density and social proximity to have a strong significant effect: migrants move primarily to high population density areas where many people share their language and ethnic background. Better access to amenities is significant as well. Differentials in expected income and consumption expenditures across districts are found to be relatively less important in determining migration destination choice as their effects are smaller in magnitude than those of other determinants. The results of the study suggest that an improvement in amenities (such as the availability of paved roads) at the origin could slow down out-migration substantially.Population Policies,Economic Theory&Research,Transport Economics Policy&Planning,,Inequality

The spatial division of labor in Nepal

the authors examine how economic activity and market participation are distributed across space. Applying a nonparametric von Thunen model to Nepalese data, the authors uncover a strong spatial divisionof labor. Nonfarm employment is concentrated in and around cities, while agricultural wage employment dominates villages located further away. Vegetables are produced near urban centers. Paddy and commercial crops are more important at intermediate distances. Isolated villages revert to self-subsistence. The findings of the study are consistent with the von Thunen model of concentric specialization, corrected to account for city size. Spatial division of labor is closely related to factor endowments and household characteristics, especially at the local level.Environmental Economics&Policies,Housing&Human Habitats,Urban Housing and Land Settlements,Agricultural Knowledge&Information Systems,National Urban Development Policies&Strategies,Environmental Economics&Policies,Housing&Human Habitats,Urban Housing and Land Settlements,National Urban Development Policies&Strategies,Crops&Crop Management Systems

British Colonial Institutions and Economic Development in India

We explore the impact of British colonial institutions on the economic development of India. In some regions, the British colonial government assigned property rights in land and taxes to landlords whereas in others it assigned them directly to cultivators or non-landlords. Although Banerjee and Iyer (2005) find that agricultural productivity of non-landlord areas diverged and out-performed relative to landlord areas after 1965 with the advent of the Green Revolution, we find evidence of superior economic performance of non-landlord regions in both the pre- and the post-independence periods. We believe that landlord and non-landlord regions diverged because their differing property rights institutions led to differences in incentives for development.

Estimating Import Demand Function in Developing Countries: A Structural Econometric Approach with Applications to India and Sri Lanka

Due to the unavailability of time series data on domestic market clearing price of imports, the estimation ofnotional price and income elasticities of aggregate import demand remains a daunting task for a large number of developing countries. This paper develops a structural econometric model of a two goods representative agent economy that incorporates a binding foreign exchange constraint at the administered prices of imports. A theoretically consistent parameterization of the ‘virtual relative price’ of imports circumvents the data problem, and thus enables the estimation of income and price responses by cointegration approach. The price and income elasticity estimates for India and Sri Lanka, in contrast to the extant literature, have correct signs, high statistical significance, and plausible magnitudes.Import Demand, Foreign Exchange Rationing, Virtual price, India, Sri Lanka, Cointegration

The extent of the market and stages of agricultural specialization

This paper provides empirical evidence of nonlinearity in the relationship between crop specialization in a village economy and the extent of the market (size of the urban market) relevant for the village. The results suggest that the portfolio of crops in a village economy becomes more diversified initially as the extent of the market increases. However, after the market size reaches a threshold, the production structure becomes specialized again. This evidence on the stages of agricultural diversification is consistent with the stages of diversification identified in the recent literature for the economy as a whole and also for the manufacturing sector. The evidence highlights the importance of improving farmers'access to markets through investment in transport infrastructure and removal of barriers to trading.Transport Economics Policy&Planning,Markets and Market Access,Political Economy,Debt Markets,Crops&Crop Management Systems

Maladaptive cognitive appraisals in children with high-functioning autism : associations with fear, anxiety and theory of mind

Despite the well-documented success of cognitive restructuring techniques in the treatment of anxiety disorders, there is still little clarity on which cognitions underpin fear and anxiety in children with high-functioning spectrum disorders (HFASD). This study examined whether certain cognitive appraisals, known to be associated with fear and anxiety in non-HFASD groups, may help explain these emotions in children with HFASD. It also investigated relations between these cognitive appraisals and theory-of-mind (TOM). Using a vignette approach, appraisals, fear and anxiety were assessed in 22 children with HFASD and 22 typically developing (TD) children. The two groups differed significantly on all four appraisal types. Anxiety was negatively correlated with future expectancy and positively with problem-focused coping potential in the HFASD group, but was not correlated with appraisals in the TD group. Emotion-focused coping potential was the only appraisal correlated with fear in the HFASD group and only self-accountability in the TD group. Linear regression analysis found appraisals of emotion-focused coping potential, problem-focused coping potential and future expectancy to be significant predictors of TOM ability in the HFASD group. These findings indicate that specific, problematic patterns of appraisal may characterise children with HFASD