Three essays on spatial spillovers of highway investment and regional growth

The impact of transportation infrastructure on regional employment can be reflected through changes in the accessibility of the region affected. A certain region may benefit from the positive externalities associated with a public works project even though the facilities are located in another region. The extent of these spillovers can be determined by using a measure of proximity to highway infrastructure in a model of employment. The first essay in this dissertation examines the distance decay in employment growth and the spatial spillovers of highway investment in the 411-county Appalachian region. Although distance decay in employment is not evident after applying the appropriate spatial model, I do find evidence of substantial spatial spillovers of employment across the region\u27s counties.;In my second essay, I estimate the spatial spillovers of public capital investment in highways on regional output within a production function framework. This essay presents an elaboration of the spatial model selection and estimation methods. The last section of the paper examines the direction of causality between output and highway capital stock using spatial autoregressive models and finds evidence of causation from highway capital stock to output but not vice versa.;Given the wide economic gaps characterizing Appalachian counties, it is also important to examine whether disparate areas respond differently to the same policy interventions and development stimulus. In my third essay I address this question. The Appalachian Regional Commission divides the 411 regional counties into four major categories: \u27distressed\u27, \u27transitional\u27, \u27competitive\u27, and \u27attainment\u27. This essay applies spatial models that account for spatial interdependence to evaluate the impact of Appalachian highways on economically disparate counties. Using a spatial autoregressive model in a production function framework, I find that distressed counties gain from highways whereas competitive counties actually suffer from a backwash effect that tends to draw productive activity away from these counties into neighboring counties

Determinants of Seat Belt Use: Regression Analysis with FARS Data Corrected for Self-Selection

We develop a methodology to use FARS data as an alternative to NOPUS in estimating seat belt usage. The advantages of using FARS over NOPUS are that (i) FARS is broader because it contains more variables relevant for policy analysis, (ii) FARS allows for easy multivariate regression analysis, and, finally, (iii) FARS data is more cost-effective. Methodology: We apply a binary logit model in our analysis to determine the likelihood of seat belt usage given various occupant, vehicle, and built environment characteristics. Using FARS data, we derive coefficient estimates for categories such as vehicle occupants\u27 age and night time seat belt use that observational surveys like NOPUS cannot easily provide. Results: Our results indicate that policies should focus on passengers (as opposed to drivers), male and young vehicle occupants, and that law enforcement should focus on pick-up trucks, rural roads, and nights. We find evidence that primary seat belt laws are effective. Conclusions: Although this is primarily a methodological paper, we present and discuss our results in the context of public policy so that our findings are relevant for road safety practitioners, researchers, and policymakers

Correcting Sample Selection in FARS Data to Estimate Seatbelt Use

In this paper, we use 2006 FARS data to estimate seatbelt use in the United States. We apply a method to correct the FARS data for sample selection bias introduced by Levitt and Porter (2001), as well as discuss the advantages of using FARS data for seatbelt analysis. Furthermore, based on assumptions of independence for seatbelt choice, we establish a lower and upper bound for seatbelt usage rates, and that once we correct for sample selection bias, the seatbelt usage estimates from the corrected FARS emerge at least as a comparable alternative to NOPUS estimates. This implies that researchers can use corrected FARS to complement NOPUS, thus being able to utilize the rich cross-sectional details available in FARS data to analyze various relevant research questions

Declining Unionization and the Despair of the Working Class

While the effects of labor unions on objective conditions have been extensively studied, little is known about their role in individuals\u27 perceptions of economic circumstances. We investigate whether union density affects the subjective well-being of area residents by exploiting the staggered adoption of right to work laws in the United States through a border-county design. We find that unionization promotes happiness for those of low socioeconomic status, including non-college-educated residents and current or former blue-collar job holders, but has no discernible impact on their high-status counterparts. Of affected residents, workers stand to reap the most benefit. We also find that the favorable effect of unionization is transmitted through the assessment of improved financial situation, personal health, and workplace quality. This finding highlights the role of pecuniary and nonpecuniary benefits (for example, on-the-job safety, work-life balance, interpersonal trust, and workers\u27 autonomy) that unions afford to protect society\u27s most marginalized groups

Declining Unionization and the Despair of the Working Class

While the effects of labor unions on objective conditions have been extensively studied, little is known about their role in individuals’ perceptions of economic circumstances. We investigate whether union density affects the subjective well-being of area residents by exploiting the staggered adoption of right-to-work laws in the United States through a border-county design. We find that unionization promotes happiness for those of low socioeconomic status, including non-college-educated residents and current or former blue-collar job holders, but has no discernible impact on their high-status counterparts. Of affected residents, workers stand to reap the most benefit. We also find that the favorable effect of unionization is transmitted through the assessment of improved financial situation, personal health, and workplace quality. This finding highlights the role of pecuniary and nonpecuniary benefits (for example, on-the-job safety, work-life balance, interpersonal trust, and workers’ autonomy) that unions afford to protect society’s most marginalized groups