Testing the assumption of independence between variables is a crucial aspect of spatial data analysis. However, the literature is limited and somewhat confusing. To our knowledge, we can mention only the bivariate generalization of Moran’s statistic. This test suffers from several...

Testing for the assumption of independence between spatial variables is an important first step in spatial conometrics. Usually the researchers use the bivariate generalization of the Moran’s statistic, specifying a spatial matrix a priori. This test is applicable only to detect linear...

The purpose of this paper is to show the capacity of a new non-parametric test based on symbolic entropy and symbolic dynamics to deal with the detection of linear and non-linear spatial causality. The good performance of the new test in detecting spatial causality and causal weighting matrix is...

This paper presents a collection of spatial econometrics tools to detect global and local spatial dependence. These tools are used to analyze the spatial structure of the unemployment rate in Argentina in Census 2001 and 2010. Detailed study enables identification and comparison of persistent...

In spatial econometrics, it is customary to specify a weighting matrix, the so-called W matrix. The decision is important because the choice of W matrix determines the rest of the analysis. However, the procedure is not well defined and, usually, reflects the priors of the user. In the paper, we...

The surge of government debt during the post-global financial crisis and the ongoing euro zone sovereign debt crisis has begun raising concerns whether government debt levels have hit the tipping points. This study offers to contribute in the following ways: First, we find out whether the...

The dynamics of government debt and economic growth, once a subject of interest mostly to very few macroeconomists is suddenly of immense attention for many researchers in the backdrop of Euro zone sovereign debt crisis and Reinhart & Rogoff’s related research. This study investigates the...