This study empirically explores the following issue: Does corruption fuel conspicuous consumption? It examines the existence and magnitude of any potential corruption-effect on conspicuous consumption expenditure. Regression analyses of an unbalanced panel data for 20 OECD countries between 2004...

We consider an economy (e.g., Chile 1973-83 or modern Turkey) with a minimum wage sector and a free sector and a tax on labor earnings. We ask can a minimum wage hike raise employment and economic efficiency?

In an overlapping generations model, capital and labor produce two tradeable goods. A kleptocratic government spends the tariff revenue. Trade liberalization benefits the retired generation if and only if the relative price of the capital intensive good rises. Starting from autarky, a small...

Recently, Jans, Wall and Hariharan demonstrated that "there may exist an incentive for a welfare-maximizing government that normally prefers free trade to maintain a protectionist reputation by imposing a voluntary export restraint, VER." We show in the context of their model, which postulates a...

This study empirically tests the hypothesis that trade liberalization increases capacity utilization. It calculates capacity utilization for the Turkish rubber industry by using a production theory framework. More specifically, plant-level capacity utilization levels are calculated using a...

Given the lack of a bill or amendment specific to cotton, we introduce a Cotton Influence Index to capture legislators influence in championing the cause of the cotton growers during the hearings of the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002. Regression analyses reveal a relationship...

Sebastian Edwards and Alejandra Cox Edwards in their analysis of the Chilean economic liberalization argue that both capital inflows and outflows may have harmed the Chilean economy. They model the Chilean economy as using labor and fixed factors to produce traded and non-traded goods subject to...

Robert Crandall in the March 19, 1999 Wall Street Journal wrote, "On Wednesday the House passed one of the most blatantly protectionist pieces of legislation since the 1930s. Reacting to the anguished cries from the steel industry and its rapidly declining unionized workforce, the House voted to...

This paper discovers that a campaign contribution to a member of the U.S. House of Representatives by the National Education Association (the major teacher's union) in the 2000 election cycle reduces the probability that a Representative will vote for a pro-choice amendment to the "No Child Left...