The current optimum population models found in economic literature define static optimum population used in forming policy i.e. at a given instant what should be the optimum number of people in a (closed) economy. We believe that although this definition is useful, it is very limiting as far as...

Keeping public finances on a sustainable foundation while the population ages is clearly a problem in Finland, as in many other western countries. The shrinking of the working-age population, ageing of the labour force, and growth in the number of very old persons form a difficult combination...

The current research emphasis on institutions as key determinants of economic performance, rather than on resources and resource productivity, has uncovered important questions for further research. For example, if institutions are central to economic performance, then what explains observed...

Institutions either promote or constrain economic performance, but which parts of institutions advance or restrict performance, and why do economies sharing similar institutions sometimes perform differently? This paper is a modest attempt at addressing a small part of these questions. It...

This paper investigates several factors that may be important for improving Mâori outcomes, and the extent to which their importance varies by iwi. Specifically, it examines the extent to which controlling for differences in characteristics of the European population and the populations of...

Many studies show that individuals from ethnic minority groups receive low levels of job-related training, raising the question of whether lower expected wage benefits contribute to this lack of training. In this paper, unit record data are used to examine the effect of job- related training on...

This paper introduces a psychological notion of categorization into economics and derives its implications for economic decision making. We show, using a tractable model of social cognition, that a decision maker in (efficiently) assigning past experiences to categories, will sort experiences of...

Emerging evidence shows a strong correlation between institutions and economic growth, and explains the recent research shift from focus on resources and resource productivity to institutions as determinants of economic growth. The positive correlation is read by some as indication that...

The present paper reports a study on the socio-economic determinants of completed fertility in Mexico. Special attention is given to how socio- economic factors such as religion and ethnic group affect the likelihood of transition from low to high order parities. This methodological approach...

This paper reports findings from a study of changes in Mâori income levels and income dispersion between 1997 and 2003. Data from Statistics New Zealand’s Income Survey are used to describe and evaluate the main changes in the Mâori income distribution in this period, which was marked by...