The R/s statistic, used for many years in hydrology, is increasingly employed in economics, although deficiencies in knowledge about its exact distribution have inhibited progress. Harrison and Treacy (1997) described some applications where R/s arises as a test statistic and they derived close...

The paper examines the properties of a generalised mean of simple utilities each displaying risk aversion, that is, with first derivative positive and second derivative negative. It shows the mean is itself a valid utility function and argues that simple component utilities, each of which may...

In 1994 over 18 per cent of Irish households possessed a free electricity allowance. This creates complications in using the 1994-95 Household Budget Survey to estimate an Engel curve for electricity expenditure. Ignoring the allowances leads to biased estimates of elasticities and distorts...

Probit residuals need not sum to zero in general. However, if explanatory variables are qualitative the sum can be shown to be zero for many models. Indeed this remains true for binary dependent variable models other than Probit and Logit. Even if some explanatory variables are quantitative,...

There are relatively few known demand systems that are theoretically satisfactory and practically implementable. This paper considers the possibility of deriving more complex demand systems from simpler known ones by considering sums and products of the component indirect utility functions, an...

Evaluations of programmes — for example, labour market interventions such as employment schemes and training courses — usually involve comparison of the performance of a treatment group (recipients of the programme) with a control group (non-recipients) as regards some response (gaining...

The idea that probability distribution functions could provide appropriate mathematical forms for utility functions representing risk aversion is of respectable antiquity. But the relatively few examples that have appeared in the economics literature have displayed quite restrictive risk...

When “income” in a system of demand equations is defined as total expenditure, actual expenditure on any commodity must lie between zero and income, or equivalently, budget shares must lie between zero and one. But models for expenditures or shares are often the sum of deterministic...

This paper reviews the international literature on house price indices, looking at the basic methodologies employed, the variables chosen for the indices and the functional forms used. Ideas are sought for future improvements to an Irish index and tentative assessments are made of how Irish...