ABSTRACTS 2015
The Effects of Immigration on the U.S. Housing Market
Thura K. Aung
Queens College, City University of New York
Undergraduate Thesis Paper
December 2015
E-mail: tkaung3@gmail.com
ABSTRACT
The paper studies the effect of immigration on the cost of housing rent and
housing prices in the United States over the period 2005 – 2010. Between these
five years, the United States does not only faces an
increase in the number of foreign share in Metropolitan Statistical Areas, but
also faces economic recession and “housing-bubble” crisis in 2008. The
variation is across cities between the two years. Instrument is based on the
number of foreign-born share across cities in the earlier period, 1980. The
study shows that the increase in the number of foreign-born share by 1
percentage point increases the cost of housing rent by 1.103 percentage points,
and increases the cost of housing prices by 2.111 percentage points. We can
imply that immigration accounts for a significant value of the housing market
in the United States.
The impact of free trade agreements on International Trade: the case of Colombian glass exports
Juan Sebastian Nino-Aguirre
Queens College, City University of New York
Undergraduate Thesis Paper
December 2015
E-mail: elistein@outlook.com
ABSTRACT
In this paper, I analyze bilateral exports data from Colombia to all countries in the world for a specific industry, glass products. I focus on the determinants of exports, with an emphasis on free trade, but also consider other variables like distance, GDP, contiguity, or shared official.
An Updated Meta-Analysis on Spillovers from Foreign Direct Investments
By
Kevin Carpintero Bernal
City University of New York: Queens College
Undergraduate Thesis Paper
December 2015
Contact: kevinbernal23@hotmail.com
Abstract. This paper aims to update the Meta-Analysis research on Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) and its spillovers based on the work titled Multinational Companies and Productivity Spillovers: A Meta-Analysis by Holger Gorg and Eric Strobl as well as When and Where Does Foreign Direct Investment Generate Positive Spillovers? A Meta-Analysis by Klaus E. Meyer and Evis Sinani. This will be accomplished by replicating their meta-analysis random effects regression and by adding 7 new recent studies (with data from 2008-2015) to their database. The main purpose is to be to replicate their basic meta-analysis regressions accurately and evaluate if, with the new 7 studies, any significant changes have occurred since Meyer and Sinani’s paper was published in 2009. The study finds similar results to these 2 papers with the small difference, due to the new 7 studies, in the panel data variable. The analysis confirms the conclusions of the previous studies. However, results slightly change with the new data added but nonetheless they remain statistically significant.
Foreign Aid and Democractic Institutions: An Analysis of African States
Eli Stein
Queens College, City University of New York
Undergraduate Thesis Paper
December 2015
E-mail: elistein@outlook.com
ABSTRACT
In this study, I will use panel data of 55 countries in Africa between the years 1975 and 2010. To further the inquiry of previous studies, I divide my data into two panels; one panel of countries that are more democratic and one panel of countries that are more autocratic. I ask whether aid changes countries’ political trajectories or amplifies what they already are. I find that foreign aid does in fact have a statistically significant positive effect on the countries’ Polity IV score. However, I am unable to find evidence of an amplification effect. I conclude that the effects of foreign aid on democracy are small.
Diana Wong
Queens College, City University of New York
Undergraduate Thesis Paper
December 2015
E-mail: diana.wong44@qmail.cuny.edu
ABSTRACT
This paper examines the relation between the output gap and the U.S. stock return. Using data from July 2001 (2001m7) to October 2015 (2015m10), we found that the output gap can be used to predict US stock return. Our results showed that the output gap, both measured as the country's industrial production index and the country's difference in its real and potential GDP, takes on a negative coefficient. Our results indicate that a fall in the output gap today forecast a higher return in the future. In addition, our results strengthen and are consistent with the results done by Cooper and Priestley's analysis.
Queens College, City University of New York
Undergraduate Thesis Paper
December 2015
E-mail: bryan.vasquez78@qmail.cuny.edu
ABSTRACT
The world has become much smaller with air travel in recent decades. However, because of political influence or travel bans some countries remain isolated. This model studies the air passenger flow from the US to destinations around the world. Then it focuses on Cuba, a Caribbean island that has been restricted and banned by the US government. Therefore, Americans are not able to freely travel as tourist or for leisure to Cuba. This affects Cuba in the tourist sector, therefore impacting their GDP and the potential to compete with other Caribbean destinations that Americans frequently travel too. Using the gravity model this study shows that an increase in GDP for Cuba increases the number of air passenger’s flows that Cuba.
Short-run Economic Effects of Austerity Measures in Europe
Aitor Iriarte-Gurrutxaga
Queens College, City University of New York
Undergraduate Thesis Paper
December 2015
E-mail: iriarte_28@hotmail.com
ABSTRACT
Detailed analysis on how the Austerity Fiscal Policies short-run economic effects played a minor role in the Southern European countries Sovereign Debt Crisis
ABSTRACTS 2016
The Effects of Minimum Wage Policy
Donghwan Shin
Queens College, City University of New York
Undergraduate Thesis Paper
December 2016
E-mail: donghwanshin35@gmail.com
ABSTRACT
The United States government has implemented minimum wage laws not only at the federal level, but also at the state level to guarantee minimum hourly wages primarily for low-skilled and part-time workers with a wage floor. This topic has been studied by many other previous literature to evaluate the effects of minimum wages on earnings and levels of employment. This paper particularly introduces leaner regression models to demonstrate the effects of states minimum wage increases on the level of GDP and changes in number of employment among low-skilled and high-skilled workers over the period 1988 – 2015. On average, the models show that minimum wage increases of each state do not produce a significant impact on its level of GDP and numbers of employment. According to the traditional supply-demand graph of competitive labor markets, when minimum wage increases, numbers of employment decrease correspondingly. However, this paper concludes that low-skilled workers, who are the main target of the policy, do not explicitly affect by minimum wage increases.
Neighborhood Quality and Housing Values
By Deena Goldman
Queens College, CUNY
December 2016
Abstract
Everyone wants to
buy the best house for the best price in the best neighborhood with the best
chance of reselling the house for an even better price. These values are
calculated used the average housing values for a neighborhood. All the
elements that people want in for their home and neighborhood play into the
housing value. Compared to other research, which looks at school quality,
transportation quality, and demographic elements, this paper looks at how
neighborhood quality variables affect the average housing value in New York
City. Through an OLS regression, a comparison of two years, and a first
difference analysis of panel data my research proves which quality elements
affect the average housing value the most. I addressed this research by
using panel data consists of data from 2011 and 2015 and uses the 311
complaints from all NYC zip codes. In conclusion we found that the
quality complaints were more significant than not quality related variables,
and that specific quality variables, such as street conditions, were the most
significant.
Income Disparity and Its Effect on Education
Hafsa Patel
December 5, 2016
Abstract
Income inequality can affect students’ desire for further education and have a detrimental effect on society by promoting the rich over the poor. In order to determine how adversely affected students are, it is important to study and analyze the data to come to a conclusion. Using the National Center for Education Statistics survey for Educational Longitudinal Study of 2002, data was obtained on students that are nationally represented. Family income growing up can affect how much education you will obtain but more importantly, math and reading test scores play an equally significant part in not only going to college, but also being able to graduate. If income levels signify a change in opportunities for students who come from different backgrounds, low-income students will be at a disadvantage by not having the same resources available to them as their peers whose families have a higher income.
Jobless Recoveries: A Panel Data Look at the State Level
Queens College, CUNY
December 2016
Abstract
Has the relationship between GDP and employment changed over time? It is maintained that in the recessions that occurred after 1990 this relationship has weakened; these recoveries are referred to as jobless recoveries. Using panel data of employment, net capital stock, and GDP from 1971 to 2015 of the 50 states, this paper focuses on whether this relationship can be deduced from the given data. To isolate and establish the jobless recovery phenomenon the data was split into two sections. The first one focuses on data from year 1970 to 1990, when the economy recovered from recession at its usual rate, and the second section is from 1990 to 2015, when jobless recovery first appears. The fixed effect regression for data from 1970-1990, show the employment elasticity to be .648 while for data ranging from 1990-2015 it is .622. This paper established that the relationship between GDP and employment weakens after 1990. However, when the employment elasticity is calculated for individual states, the relationship is not consistent. There is an increase in employment elasticity for states like Alabama and Ohio while a significant decrease in elasticity for states like N.Y and California. This suggests that jobless recovery occurs in certain states.
Contact information: ikramullah.2@gmail.com
Price Dynamics in Hide and Leather Markets in Brazil, Argentina, and the United States
Mosesson, Michael
12/14/2016
Abstract. This paper attempts to explain price movement in international leather markets. It uses unrestricted vector autoregression (VAR) modeling techniques to suggest relationships between cowhide prices in the United States and their counterparts in Brazil and Argentina. The paper then uses impulse response functions to demonstrate the effects of a shock each of the respective markets would have on each other. The findings include relative rankings of national cowhide markets and their effect on each other, with the United States on top and Argentina on the bottom. This paper is among the first to draw econometric between international cowhide markets in the Americas.
The Contribution of Foreign-Born Workers to the U.S. Economy. State and Industry Evidence
Nasreen Khan
Queens College
December 2016
Abstract:
Are foreign born employees contributing positively to the U.S economy? This paper brings forth the contributions made foreign born employees in the US economy, more specifically their contributions to the U.S GDP, compared to the contributions of native born employees. I conducted this research study in a way that allowed me to select multiple industries within each state for the years 2004 and 2014. The study conducted suggests that an increase of native born employees by 1% leads to an increase in GDP of 1.043%, while an increase of foreign born employees of 1% leads to an increase in GDP of 0.094%. In this study, I will focus on the changes in contributions by the foreign born employees and native born employees in 15 different industries for the states of New York and California.
Contact Information: nasreen.khan52@qmail.cuny.edu
Pay to Play: The Role of Money in Congressional Elections
By Nathaniel Selevan
Queens College, CUNY
December 2016
Abstract
With another election season behind us, and the character of the Presidency, Senate, and House of Representatives determined, the role of money in politics is often discussed. Utilizing spending records and results from the 2010, 2012 and 2014 elections for the House of Representatives, I will seek to undermine the common myth that more spending equals more votes. Additionally, I will examine different types of campaign spending to determine if a superior way to spend exists. I find that overall spending does not have the effect that it is widely believed to have. Additionally, I will also find that out of the 12 categories of campaign disbursements recognized by the Federal Election Commission, Administrative, Overhead, and Salary Expenses have the highest impact on election results.
Contact information: nms94@ymail.com
The Effects of Health Care Coverage on Health Care Cost and Mortality
By Sucaina Thyma
Queens College, CUNY
December 2016
Abstract
How does health care coverage expansion impact health care cost and mortality? This paper argues that health care coverage does not have significant effects on health care spending. However, expansions in Private Health insurance are likely to reduce mortality several years after the increase in Private Health coverage. I analyzed data obtained from three different databases on healthcare spending and health coverage for 50 states over the period of 1999-2005, and mortality for the period of 1999–2005 and 2006–2012. My fixed–effects OLS estimation model suggests that health care coverage expansion is not statistically significant enough to reduce health care cost. This could be -as suggested by other studies- the result of the impact of factors such as patient demography, technology, health care market characteristics and health care payment system. My estimates also strongly suggest that as more people get Medicare coverage, mortality rate increases seven years after. I believe this result might be biased due to the fact that it could be an age-related factor. I believe the Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) model I use for my research analysis was not equipped to remove all biases, however, a more sophisticated method would provide stronger evidence.
Contact information: Sthyma@gmail.com