This paper studies information blockages and the asymmetric release of information in a security market with fixed setup costs of trading. In this setting, 'sidelined' investors may delay trading until price movements validate their private signals. Trading thereby internally generates the...

This paper models how imperfect memory affects the optimal continuity of policies. We examine the choices of a player (individual or firm) who observes previous actions but cannot remember the rationale for these actions. In a stable environment, the player optimally responds to memory loss with...

We present an analysis of the economic, political and social factors that underlay the Apollo program, one of the most exceptional and costly projects ever undertaken by the United States in peacetime that culminated in 1969 with the first human steps on the Moon. This study suggests that the...

We investigate the determinants of European banking market integration with a focus on the potentially limiting role of cultural and political factors. Employing a unique data set of European cross-border loans and deposits, the study uses various gravity models that are augmented by societal...

The historical experience of Mexican Americans from 1848 till the present period provides a rich understanding of this large and growing segment of the U.S. population, and suggests several useful public policy lessons. These lessons can help us design appropriate policies to create a more...

Several papers study the effect of trust by using the answer to the World Values Survey (WVS) question quot;Generally speaking, would you say that most people can be trusted or that you can't be too careful in dealing with people?quot; to measure the level of trust. Glaeser et al. (2000)...

We study the effect of media coverage on corporate governance by focusing on Russia in the period 1999-2002. This setting offers us three ideal conditions for such a study: plenty of corporate governance violations, no alternative mechanisms to address them, and the presence of an investment...

Economists have been reluctant to rely on culture as a possible determinant of economic phenomena. The notion of culture is so broad and the channels through which it can enter the economic discourse so vague that it is difficult to design testable hypotheses. In this paper we show this does...

This paper employs a new data set from art auctions to examine the relationship between auctioneer presale price estimates and the long-term performance of artworks. While auction houses typically made no price estimates before 1973, they started providing high- and low-price estimates for all...

Following the intensification of Mamp;As in banking in South Eastern Europe during the past decade, the study engages into analysing the most recent motives behind this wave. This study reviews motives in bank Mamp;A as seen by both parties involved. There is exposed the consideration of other...