Distance related variables typically vary in a cross-section dimension but less so in a time dimension across cities, regions, or countries. The enlargement of the EU or the introduction of the euro, however, can be looked upon as integration shocks that are informative of the consequences of...

This paper shows that Tabellini’s recent claim to have provided evidence that culture has a causal effect on economic development is unjustified. Tabellini’s claim is based on an instrumental variables analysis in which two instruments are used to identify the supposed causal effect. One of...

This paper looks at whether immigration can mitigate the Dutch disease effects associated with booms in natural resource sectors. We first derive predicted changes in the size of the non-tradable sector from a small general-equilibrium model à la Obstfeld-Rogoff, supplemented by a resource...

This research considers how preferences for location-specific attributes might constrain migration destination choices. In particular, if, at any given time, most people are consuming their desired location-specific attributes, then unwillingness to give up these attributes may influence the...

This study develops a five-equation simultaneous system in a partial lag-adjustment growth-equilibrium framework. It improved previous models in the growth-equilibrium tradition by explicitly modeling local government and regional income in the growth process. It also explicitly modeled gross...

Venture capital has been identified by many as a vital element in the rapid economic growth of certain regions. The lack of access to capital, especially equity capital, has been identified as a major constraint to the economic growth of rural areas (i.e., venture capital access, as a...

Knowing more precisely how zoning affects housing value would allow policy-makers to improve long-term policy decisions. Previous studies have concluded that local zoning regulations affect residential option value. These studies, however, do not specify the magnitude of the effect for varying...

The study used Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) to examine community attributes of rural counties in West Virginia using variables determining quality of life. This analysis was done to understand the value of the social and economic characteristics associated with different communities as...

This research considers how preferences for location-specific attributes might constrain migration destination choices. In particular, if, at any given time, most people are consuming their desired location-specific attributes, then unwillingness to give up these attributes may influence the...

Despite their worldwide adoption by policy makers as the Holy Grail for entrepreneurship and business development, the effectiveness of business incubation programs remain elusive, primarily plagued by untenable evaluation methods. This paper develops an in-depth analysis on those methodological...