An individual demand function is said to satisfy the finite basis property when its set of Engel curves has a finite spanning subset. In the present letter we discuss why this property underlies the theory of exact aggregation

This letter explores some global properties of the Gorman class of demand functions. We find that generalizing the homothetic preferences case to non-homotheticity gives rise to an unexpected global problem. In particular, interaction of the bounded budget share condition with either Slutsky...

We address two problems in this paper: i) What restrictions, if any, need to be imposed on the vector of aggregates in order that the aggregate demand functional form representation be nontrivial, economically interesting and have the generalized Gorman form as its only solution. ii) What...

This paper analyzes the labor supply decision of a single economic agent within the expected utility framework. Two formulations of the problem are considered: pure income uncertainty and wage rate uncertainty. In each case, the effects on the labor supply decision of changes in both expected...

Social scientists are continually confronted with the problem of formulating models which describe how individuals make choices among alternative courses of action with uncertain consequences.Economists have developed a class of models which seem to deal particularly well with problems of this...

In this paper we study the relationship between costs, input prices and activity levels in a sample of medium sized, city police departments for the years 1968, 69, 71 and 73. Our focus is on determining the functional structure of law enforcement production technology

In this note we correct several misunderstandings which have arisen since publication of our earlier paper “Law Enforcement Agencies as Multiproduct firms: An Econometric Investigation of Production Costs.” These misconceptions arise regularly in empirical applications of economic theory to...

For decades, statistical methods, many based upon the “general linear model,” have been used to do estimation and test hypotheses in the social and natural sciences, in medicine, and in the private sector. These tools have become increasingly sophisticated and are often paired with powerful...

In this paper we construct four rather broad classes of theoretical models of criminal behavior and analyze the properties of each class. Our focus is on the testable hypotheses which arise from each class

This paper contrasts some of the differences in criminal choice model building as done by sociologists and as done by economists. Discussed are methodological differences, statistical differences (how causality is accounted for) and conceptual differences (the meaning and testing of the...