Copula-GARCH models have been recently proposed in the financial literature as a statistical tool to build flexible multivariate distributions. Our extensive simulation studies investigate the small sample properties of these models and examine how misspecification in the marginals may affect...

In this paper we provide a generalization of the standard models of the diffusion of a new product. Consumers are heterogeneous and risk averse, and the firm is uncertain about the demand curve: both learn from past observations. The attitude towards risk has important effects with regard to the...

This paper tests whether the academic achievement is a significant determinant of the employment status in the Italian labor market: are the new entrepreneurs selected from the top or bottom end of the graduates ability distribution? Is the cream of the graduate crop pulled into selfemployment...

Purpose: To investigate the gender impact of tertiary education on the probability of entering and remaining in self employment. Design/methodology/approach: We exploit a data set on labour market flows produced by the Italian National Statistical Office by interviewing about 62,000 graduate and...

The paper proposes a new nonparametric prior for two–dimensional vectors of survival functions (S1, S2). The definition we introduce is based on the notion of L´evy copula and it will be used to model, in a nonparametric Bayesian framework, two–sample survival data. Such an application will...

This paper employs the distribution dynamics approach to investigate cross-regional convergence of GDP per worker in Italy, between 1980 and 2003. Two sets of competitive hypotheses are tested: absolute versus conditional and neoclassical versus technological. Supportive evidence of only...

Elaborating on PAsinetti (1998), the 'Geometry of Debt Sustainability' - GDS - represents a simple analytical tool for the analysis of the long run sustainability of foreign debt. GDS provides a simple analysis of three aspects of debt sustainability. It points up how the 'structural' aspect -...

The implementation of the Bayesian paradigm to model comparison can be problematic. In particular, prior distributions on the parameter space of each candidate model require special care. While it is well known that improper priors cannot be used routinely for Bayesian model comparison, we claim...

Even low levels of trend inflation substantially affect the dynamics of a basic new Keynesian DSGE model when monetary policy is conducted by a contemporaneous Taylor rule. Positive trend inflation shrinks the determinacy region. Neither the Taylor principle, which requires the inflation...

This paper considers the joint role of macroeconomic and bankspecific factors in explaining the occurrence of bank failures. As bank failures are, fortunately, rare, we apply a regression model, based on extreme value theory, that turns out to be more effective than classical logistic regression...