Rabin (2000) argues that, under expected-utility, observed risk aversion over modest stakes implies extremely high risk aversion over large stakes. Cox & Sadiraj (2006) have replied that this is a problem of expected-utility of wealth, but that expected-utility of income does not share that...

In a model in which credit markets play a crucial role, we examine two policy options for reducing child labour, 'food for education' and 'investment in education quality,' With an imperfectly elastic supply of credit, an increase in food subsidy is more effective in reducing child labour than...

We examine the effect of trade on a small open economy with an open access renewable resource. Within a novel two-sector equilibrium model we first chracterize the autarkic steady state, and then show trade reduces steady state utility for a diversified resource exporting small country....

This research suggests that favorable geographical conditions, that were inherently associated with inequality in the distribution of land ownership, adversely affected the implementation of human capital promoting institutions (e.g., public schooling and child labor regulations), and thus the...

This paper explores the long-run relationship between institutions and wage inequality in Europe and its periphery using a two-sector model. When institutions improve, wages rise across the board, thus reducing the costs of rural-urban migration and skills acquisition relative to the expected...

The teaching of economic history is in decline in our schools and universities. Yet much can be learned from the ananlysis of historical economic events. In this paper, the author combines an analyis of the economic history of the nineteenth century railways and ICT booms with an explanation of...

Despite the shortcomings of Hayek's spontaneous order, there is a positive side, perhaps even a positive feedback. Hayek left us with a what if question and returns us to that initial opening of Pandora's Box, or perhaps the initial onset of neo-realism, neo-liberalism, developmentalism,...

We develop a positive theory of the adoption of child labor laws. Workers who compete with children in the labor market support the introduction of a child labor ban, unless their own working children provide a large fraction of family income. Since child labor income depends on family size,...

This study examines the relationship between financial development indicators and human development in Nigeria from 1990-2019. It investigates the effect of broad money supply/Gross Domestic Product (GDP) on Human development; it examines the impact of credit supply/GDP on human development and...

What is a “worker-centered” trade policy? The Biden administration claims that it means protecting all workers—foreign and American—from exploitative working conditions in trade sectors. The administration’s vigorous enforcement of international labor rights suggests a significant...