In this paper, we analyze the determination of immigration policy in a direct democracy setting. We formulate a model of voting and participation behavior integrating instrumental and expressive motivations. The model is estimated using data drawn from a survey carried out after a vote in...

The aim of this paper is to understand the impact of growth on poverty reduction in a right-skewed income distribution setting. Ex- isting literature focuses on the effect of aggregate growth on the mean income of the poor by means of a regression of the latter on the for- mer. This, however,...

This paper is an empirical study on the work opportunities of people with disability using Italian data collected through a survey carried out by ISTAT in 2004. Our analysis is guided by the conceptual framework of the Capability Approach and investigates the role of conversion factors in the...

Summary This paper proposes a suitable theoretical framework for operationalizing the capability approach using the latent variable methodology. A structural equation model is specified to account for the unobservable and multidimensional aspects characterizing the concept of human development...

Though multivariate GARCH models are widely used in empirical research, their computational aspects still represent a major hurdle, especially when these specifications are introduced in structural models. One such extension namely the simultaneous equations model (SEM) with GARCH errors was...

Any attempt to operationalize the capability approach necessitates an adequate framework for the measurement of the abstract unobservable multidimensional concept that the term 'capability' stands for. One such attempt is the latent variable approach, which considers the different dimensions of...

This paper presents a methodology extension of Deaton's (1990) model for estimating price elasticities, by pooling data from several surveys to improve the inter-cluster variability of unit values which is one of the key elements used inthe derivation of these elasticities. Since the surveys...

In this paper, we analyze the political economy of immigration policy in a direct democracy setting. We formulate a structural model of voting and participation behavior integrating instrumental and expressive motivations. The model is estimated using data drawn from a survey carried out after a...

This paper proposes a system of equations for modelling the volume of bilateral trade in multiple goods for a given set of countries. We postulate a gravity equation for each traded good rather than for the aggregate volume of bilateral trade. Special features of the system are the possibility...