Interaction between fiscal and monetary policy in a dynamic nonlinear model.

PubMed

Bertella, Mario A; Rego, Henio A; Neris, Celso; Silva, Jonathas N; Podobnik, Boris; Stanley, H Eugene

2015-01-01

The objective of this study is to verify the dynamics between fiscal policy, measured by public debt, and monetary policy, measured by a reaction function of a central bank. Changes in monetary policies due to deviations from their targets always generate fiscal impacts. We examine two policy reaction functions: the first related to inflation targets and the second related to economic growth targets. We find that the condition for stable equilibrium is more restrictive in the first case than in the second. We then apply our simulation model to Brazil and United Kingdom and find that the equilibrium is unstable in the Brazilian case but stable in the UK case.

Interaction between Fiscal and Monetary Policy in a Dynamic Nonlinear Model

PubMed Central

Bertella, Mario A.; Rego, Henio A.; Neris, Celso; Silva, Jonathas N.; Podobnik, Boris; Stanley, H. Eugene

2015-01-01

The objective of this study is to verify the dynamics between fiscal policy, measured by public debt, and monetary policy, measured by a reaction function of a central bank. Changes in monetary policies due to deviations from their targets always generate fiscal impacts. We examine two policy reaction functions: the first related to inflation targets and the second related to economic growth targets. We find that the condition for stable equilibrium is more restrictive in the first case than in the second. We then apply our simulation model to Brazil and United Kingdom and find that the equilibrium is unstable in the Brazilian case but stable in the UK case. PMID:25799581

The Disparate Labor Market Impacts of Monetary Policy

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Carpenter, Seth B.; Rodgers, William M., III

2004-01-01

Employing two widely used approaches to identify the effects of monetary policy, this paper explores the differential impact of policy on the labor market outcomes of teenagers, minorities, out-of-school youth, and less-skilled individuals. Evidence from recursive vector autoregressions and autoregressive distributed lag models that use…

Teacher's Guide for "Tightrope," a Simulation Game in Economics.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Baskind, Larry; And Others

"Tightrope" is a simulation based on economic stability and growth in a country. Several small groups of students, acting as Economic Advisory Councils, make fiscal and monetary policy decisions for their country based on their knowledge of business cycles, monetary policy, and fiscal policy. In each of the four rounds the Advisory Councils study…

Inventories, oil shocks, and aggregate economic behavior

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Herrera, Ana Maria

This dissertation examines the relationship between oil price shocks and aggregate economic behavior in the U.S. The first chapter addresses the effects of changes in the price of crude oil on the manufacturing sector in VAR regressions and in a structural linear quadratic inventory model. It finds that oil price increases lead to reductions in manufacturing activity while oil price falls are not followed by booms. This asymmetry in the response of the manufacturing activity, the changes in the composition of the demand, and the large variations in sales of key investment and consumption goods favor a multi-channel transmission mechanism. The analysis shows that differences in the response of the various industrial sectors are determined by the cost structure of the industry as well as by the dynamics of the demand, cost and oil shocks. Positive oil price shocks are first transmitted from the transportation equipment industry to sectors such as primary metals products, rubber and plastics and textiles, later affecting the remaining sectors and the aggregates. In the short run inventories act as a buffer however, one and a half years after the shock significant production cuts do take place. Sluggishness in the response of aggregate output can be accounted by the behavior of inventories as well as by the time lags implied in the propagation from one industry to the remaining sectors and the aggregate. The second chapter studies the role of oil prices and monetary policy in accounting for business cycles in an identified VAR framework. It finds that the slowdown in GDP growth that follows an oil shock can not be solely explained by the response of the Fed's monetary policy. An "exogenous" monetary policy that holds the fed funds rate fixed would exert a large expansionary effect. Nevertheless, conditional on this policy, the reduction in economic activity persists and the price level increases leading to a sharp reduction in the short-term interest rate. In addition, the analysis shows that this policy is unlikely from the perspective of the private agents, given the historical behavior of the U.S. monetary policy.

A Simple Forecasting Model Linking Macroeconomic Policy to Industrial Employment Demand.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Malley, James R.; Hady, Thomas F.

A study detailed further a model linking monetary and fiscal policy to industrial employment in metropolitan and nonmetropolitan areas of four United States regions. The model was used to simulate the impacts on area and regional employment of three events in the economy: changing real gross national product (GNP) via monetary policy, holding the…

The asymmetry of U.S. monetary policy: Evidence from a threshold Taylor rule with time-varying threshold values

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhu, Yanli; Chen, Haiqiang

2017-05-01

In this paper, we revisit the issue whether U.S. monetary policy is asymmetric by estimating a forward-looking threshold Taylor rule with quarterly data from 1955 to 2015. In order to capture the potential heterogeneity for regime shift mechanism under different economic conditions, we modify the threshold model by assuming the threshold value as a latent variable following an autoregressive (AR) dynamic process. We use the unemployment rate as the threshold variable and separate the sample into two periods: expansion periods and recession periods. Our findings support that the U.S. monetary policy operations are asymmetric in these two regimes. More precisely, the monetary authority tends to implement an active Taylor rule with a weaker response to the inflation gap (the deviation of inflation from its target) and a stronger response to the output gap (the deviation of output from its potential level) in recession periods. The threshold value, interpreted as the targeted unemployment rate of monetary authorities, exhibits significant time-varying properties, confirming the conjecture that policy makers may adjust their reference point for the unemployment rate accordingly to reflect their attitude on the health of general economy.

Keynesian, Monetarist and Supply-Side Policies: An Old Debate Gets New Life

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Niederjohn, M. Scott; Wood, William C.

2009-01-01

Debates over how to promote a healthy economy are pervasive once more, after decades when it seemed such debates had been put to rest. The market meltdown of 2008 ended a long string of years in which monetary policy reigned supreme. Monetary policy is the regulation of money and the banking system to influence economic variables. Its adherents,…

Benefits and costs of oil palm expansion in Central Kalimantan, Indonesia, under different policy scenarios.

PubMed

Sumarga, Elham; Hein, Lars

Deforestation and oil palm expansion in Central Kalimantan province are among the highest in Indonesia. This study examines the physical and monetary impacts of oil palm expansion in Central Kalimantan up to 2025 under three policy scenarios. Our modelling approach combines a spatial logistic regression model with a set of rules governing land use change as a function of the policy scenario. Our physical and monetary analyses include palm oil expansion and five other ecosystem services: timber, rattan, paddy rice, carbon sequestration, and orangutan habitat (the last service is analysed in physical units only). In monetary terms, our analysis comprises the contribution of land and ecosystems to economic production, as measured according to the valuation approach of the System of National Accounts. We focus our analysis on government-owned land which covers around 97 % of the province, where the main policy issues are. We show that, in the business-as-usual scenario, the societal costs of carbon emissions and the loss of other ecosystem services far exceed the benefits from increased oil palm production. This is, in particular, related to the conversion of peatlands. We also show that, for Central Kalimantan, the moratorium scenario, which is modelled based on the moratorium currently in place in Indonesia, generates important economic benefits compared to the business-as-usual scenario. In the moratorium scenario, however, there is still conversion of forest to plantation and associated loss of ecosystem services. We developed an alternative, sustainable production scenario based on an ecosystem services approach and show that this policy scenario leads to higher net social benefits including some more space for oil palm expansion.

Monetary Policy after August 2007

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gertler, Mark

2013-01-01

In this article, the author describes conceptually how to think about the dramatic changes in monetary policy since the sub-prime crisis of August 2007. He also discusses how to incorporate these changes and related economic concepts in the teaching of an undergraduate class in macroeconomics. A distinction is made between conventional and…

Monetary policy and the effects of oil price shocks on the Japanese economy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lee, Byung Rhae

1998-12-01

The evidence of output decreases and price level increases following oil price shocks in the Japanese economy is presented in this paper. These negative effects of oil shocks are better explained by Hamilton's (1996) net oil price increase measure (NOPI) than by other oil measures. The fact that an oil shock has a statistically significant effect on the call money rate and real output and that the call money rate also has a statistically significant effect on real output appears to explain that the effects of oil price shocks on economic activity are partially attributed to contractionary monetary policy responses. The asymmetric effects of positive and negative oil shocks are also found in the Japanese economy and this asymmetry can also be partially explained by monetary policy responses. To assess the relative contribution of oil shocks and endogenous monetary policy responses to the economic downturns, I shut off the responses of the call money rate to oil shocks utilizing the impulse response results from the VAR model. Then, I re-run the VAR with the adjusted call money rate series. The empirical results show that around 30--40% of the negative effects of oil price shocks on the Japanese economy can be accounted for by oil shock induced monetary tightening.

Comparison of Monetary Policy Actions and Central Bank Communication on Tackling Asset Price Bubbles—Evidence from China’s Stock Market

PubMed Central

Sun, Ou; Liu, Zhixin

2016-01-01

We examine the different effects of monetary policy actions and central bank communication on China’s stock market bubbles with a Time-varying Parameter SVAR model. We find that with negative responses of fundamental component and positive responses of bubble component of asset prices, contractionary monetary policy induces the observed stock prices to rise during periods of large bubbles. By contrast, central bank communication acts on the market through expectation guidance and has more significant effects on stock prices in the long run, which implies that central bank communication be used as an effective long-term instrument for the central bank’s policymaking. PMID:27851796

Comparison of Monetary Policy Actions and Central Bank Communication on Tackling Asset Price Bubbles-Evidence from China's Stock Market.

PubMed

Sun, Ou; Liu, Zhixin

2016-01-01

We examine the different effects of monetary policy actions and central bank communication on China's stock market bubbles with a Time-varying Parameter SVAR model. We find that with negative responses of fundamental component and positive responses of bubble component of asset prices, contractionary monetary policy induces the observed stock prices to rise during periods of large bubbles. By contrast, central bank communication acts on the market through expectation guidance and has more significant effects on stock prices in the long run, which implies that central bank communication be used as an effective long-term instrument for the central bank's policymaking.

Economic Stimulus: Issues and Policies

DTIC Science & Technology

2009-07-06

entered a recession. To date, financial markets remain volatile, new losses have been announced at major financial institutions , and responses... financial markets .16 The 11 See, for example, Frederic Mishkin , “Housing and the Monetary...sought to contain damages spilling over from housing and financial markets to the broader economy, including monetary policy, which is the

Economic Stimulus: Issues and Policies

DTIC Science & Technology

2009-10-06

economy entered a recession. To date, financial markets remain volatile, new losses have been announced at major financial institutions , and...the financial markets .16 The 11 See, for example, Frederic Mishkin , “Housing and the Monetary...have sought to contain damages spilling over from housing and financial markets to the broader economy, including monetary policy, which is the

The Monetary Rewards of Migration Within the U.S.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wertheimer, Richard F., II

This study focuses on the economic benefits derived by the migrant from migration. The report presents a methodology for computing monetary benefits, an estimate of these benefits, and implications of the findings for public policy. Included are a discussion of domestic migration and public policy, an economic theory of migration, an explanation…

The Simple Analytics of Monetary Policy: A Post-Crisis Approach

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Friedman, Benjamin M.

2013-01-01

The standard workhorse models of monetary policy now commonly in use, both for teaching macro-economics to students and for supporting policymaking within many central banks, are incapable of incorporating the most widely accepted accounts of how the 2007-9 financial crisis occurred and are incapable too of analyzing the actions that monetary…

Money, the Banking System and Monetary Policy in Canada: A Teaching Unit.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Curtis, Douglas C. A.; Staunton, Ted, Ed.

One of a series of teaching units designed to introduce secondary school students to the Canadian economy, this handbook contains instructional materials on Canada's monetary system and policy. Material is organized and presented in terms of specific topic readings and illustrative activities. The topics covered in six sections are money, the…

Chaotic dynamics in optimal monetary policy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gomes, O.; Mendes, V. M.; Mendes, D. A.; Sousa Ramos, J.

2007-05-01

There is by now a large consensus in modern monetary policy. This consensus has been built upon a dynamic general equilibrium model of optimal monetary policy as developed by, e.g., Goodfriend and King [ NBER Macroeconomics Annual 1997 edited by B. Bernanke and J. Rotemberg (Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Press, 1997), pp. 231 282], Clarida et al. [J. Econ. Lit. 37, 1661 (1999)], Svensson [J. Mon. Econ. 43, 607 (1999)] and Woodford [ Interest and Prices: Foundations of a Theory of Monetary Policy (Princeton, New Jersey, Princeton University Press, 2003)]. In this paper we extend the standard optimal monetary policy model by introducing nonlinearity into the Phillips curve. Under the specific form of nonlinearity proposed in our paper (which allows for convexity and concavity and secures closed form solutions), we show that the introduction of a nonlinear Phillips curve into the structure of the standard model in a discrete time and deterministic framework produces radical changes to the major conclusions regarding stability and the efficiency of monetary policy. We emphasize the following main results: (i) instead of a unique fixed point we end up with multiple equilibria; (ii) instead of saddle-path stability, for different sets of parameter values we may have saddle stability, totally unstable equilibria and chaotic attractors; (iii) for certain degrees of convexity and/or concavity of the Phillips curve, where endogenous fluctuations arise, one is able to encounter various results that seem intuitively correct. Firstly, when the Central Bank pays attention essentially to inflation targeting, the inflation rate has a lower mean and is less volatile; secondly, when the degree of price stickiness is high, the inflation rate displays a larger mean and higher volatility (but this is sensitive to the values given to the parameters of the model); and thirdly, the higher the target value of the output gap chosen by the Central Bank, the higher is the inflation rate and its volatility.

Are pro-welfare state and full-employment policies possible in the era of globalization?

PubMed

Navarro, V

2000-01-01

There is a widely held belief in U.S. and European economic, political, and academic circles that economic globalization has considerably diminished states' power to follow public policies identified with the social democratic tradition, such as full-employment policies, comprehensive and universal provision of welfare state services, and state regulatory interventions in labor markets and economic policies. And large sectors of the European center-left and left parties believe that European monetary integration made expansionist and full-employment policies practically impossible, except when realized at the European continental level. This article presents empirical information that questions these positions. It documents how specific governments in Europe have been able to carry out such public policies during these years of economic globalization and monetary integration. Some countries (such as Sweden and Finland) that had carried out these policies then later weakened their implementation did so in response to political changes mostly unrelated to globalization of the economy or monetary integration. The article also analyzes and documents how countries that had followed expansionist and full-employment policies have responded to the globalization of financial markets.

Nonverbal contention and contempt in U.K. parliamentary oversight hearings on fiscal and monetary policy.

PubMed

Schonhardt-Bailey, Cheryl

2017-01-01

In parliamentary committee oversight hearings on fiscal policy, monetary policy, and financial stability, where verbal deliberation is the focus, nonverbal communication may be crucial in the acceptance or rejection of arguments proffered by policymakers. Systematic qualitative coding of these hearings in the 2010-15 U.K. Parliament finds the following: (1) facial expressions, particularly in the form of anger and contempt, are more prevalent in fiscal policy hearings, where backbench parliamentarians hold frontbench parliamentarians to account, than in monetary policy or financial stability hearings, where the witnesses being held to account are unelected policy experts; (2) comparing committees across chambers, hearings in the House of Lords committee yield more reassuring facial expressions relative to hearings in the House of Commons committee, suggesting a more relaxed and less adversarial context in the former; and (3) central bank witnesses appearing before both the Lords and Commons committees tend toward expressions of appeasement, suggesting a willingness to defer to Parliament.

Environmental cost-effectiveness analysis in intertemporal natural resource policy: evaluation of selective fishing gear.

PubMed

Kronbak, Lone Grønbæk; Vestergaard, Niels

2013-12-15

In most decision-making involving natural resources, the achievements of a given policy (e.g., improved ecosystem or biodiversity) are rather difficult to measure in monetary units. To address this problem, the current paper develops an environmental cost-effectiveness analysis (ECEA) to include intangible benefits in intertemporal natural resource problems. This approach can assist managers in prioritizing management actions as least cost solutions to achieve quantitative policy targets. The ECEA framework is applied to a selective gear policy case in Danish mixed trawl fisheries in Kattegat and Skagerrak. The empirical analysis demonstrates how a policy with large negative net benefits might be justified if the intangible benefits are included. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Monetary Policy Rules, Supply Shocks, and the Price-Level Elasticity of Aggregate Demand: A Graphical Examination.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kyer, Ben L.; Maggs, Gary E.

1995-01-01

Utilizes two-dimensional price and output graphs to demonstrate the way that the price-level elasticity of aggregate demand affects alternative monetary policy rules designed to cope with random aggregate supply shocks. Includes graphs illustrating price-level, real Gross Domestic Product (GDP), nominal GDP, and nominal money supply targeting.…

Comparing the sustainability of different action policy possibilities: application to the issue of both household survival and forest preservation in the corridor of Fianarantsoa.

PubMed

Bernard, C; Martin, S

2013-10-01

A sustainability issue for the rain forest in the corridor of Fianarantsoa (Madagascar) is to preserve the forest while ensuring the development of the local population. The aim of this paper is to determine whether the current situation is sustainable or not according to different action policy possibilities. We propose a general procedure based on viability analysis: Translation of sustainability issues into constraints on the system state; elaboration of a mathematical model of system evolution rules in the form of controlled dynamical system; computations of the viability kernels according to different action policy possibilities. Among control variables, we focus on monetary transfer. Without monetary transfer, we show that the current situation of the rain forest corridor is not sustainable in our mathematical modeling framework. We then estimate the minimal maximal amount per year necessary to make the current situation sustainable. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

A Monetarist View.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Friedman, Milton

1983-01-01

Examined are the quantity theory of money and the recent application of monetary policy in Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States. In all three countries, the reduction of monetary growth has reduced inflation. (Author/RM)

The Impact of United States Monetary Policy in the Crude Oil futures market

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Padilla-Padilla, Fernando M.

This research examines the empirical impact the United States monetary policy, through the federal fund interest rate, has on the volatility in the crude oil price in the futures market. Prior research has shown how macroeconomic events and variables have impacted different financial markets within short and long--term movements. After testing and decomposing the variables, the two stationary time series were analyzed using a Vector Autoregressive Model (VAR). The empirical evidence shows, with statistical significance, a direct relationship when explaining crude oil prices as function of fed fund rates (t-1) and an indirect relationship when explained as a function of fed fund rates (t-2). These results partially address the literature review lacunas within the topic of the existing implication monetary policy has within the crude oil futures market.

Monetary Shocks in Models with Inattentive Producers.

PubMed

Alvarez, Fernando E; Lippi, Francesco; Paciello, Luigi

2016-04-01

We study models where prices respond slowly to shocks because firms are rationally inattentive. Producers must pay a cost to observe the determinants of the current profit maximizing price, and hence observe them infrequently. To generate large real effects of monetary shocks in such a model the time between observations must be long and/or highly volatile. Previous work on rational inattentiveness has allowed for observation intervals that are either constant-but-long ( e.g . Caballero, 1989 or Reis, 2006) or volatile-but-short ( e.g . Reis's, 2006 example where observation costs are negligible), but not both. In these models, the real effects of monetary policy are small for realistic values of the duration between observations. We show that non-negligible observation costs produce both of these effects: intervals between observations are infrequent and volatile. This generates large real effects of monetary policy for realistic values of the average time between observations.

Monetary Shocks in Models with Inattentive Producers

PubMed Central

Alvarez, Fernando E.; Lippi, Francesco; Paciello, Luigi

2016-01-01

We study models where prices respond slowly to shocks because firms are rationally inattentive. Producers must pay a cost to observe the determinants of the current profit maximizing price, and hence observe them infrequently. To generate large real effects of monetary shocks in such a model the time between observations must be long and/or highly volatile. Previous work on rational inattentiveness has allowed for observation intervals that are either constant-but-long (e.g. Caballero, 1989 or Reis, 2006) or volatile-but-short (e.g. Reis's, 2006 example where observation costs are negligible), but not both. In these models, the real effects of monetary policy are small for realistic values of the duration between observations. We show that non-negligible observation costs produce both of these effects: intervals between observations are infrequent and volatile. This generates large real effects of monetary policy for realistic values of the average time between observations. PMID:27516627

A fractal comparison of real and Austrian business cycle models

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mulligan, Robert F.

2010-06-01

Rescaled range and power spectral density analysis are applied to examine a diverse set of macromonetary data for fractal character and stochastic dependence. Fractal statistics are used to evaluate two competing models of the business cycle, Austrian business cycle theory and real business cycle theory. Strong evidence is found for antipersistent stochastic dependence in transactions money (M1) and components of the monetary aggregates most directly concerned with transactions, which suggests an activist monetary policy. Savings assets exhibit persistent long memory, as do those monetary aggregates which include savings assets, such as savings money (M2), M2 minus small time deposits, and money of zero maturity (MZM). Virtually all measures of economic activity display antipersistence, and this finding is invariant to whether the measures are adjusted for inflation, including real gross domestic product, real consumption expenditures, real fixed private investment, and labor productivity. This strongly disconfirms real business cycle theory.

The Prospects for Unemployment and Inflation. Hearing before the Subcommittee on Domestic Monetary Policy of the Committee on Banking, Finance and Urban Affairs, House of Representatives, Ninety-Eighth Congress, First Session.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Congress of the U.S., Washington, DC. House Committee on Banking, Finance and Urban Affairs.

This report of a hearing before the Subcommittee on Domestic Monetary Policy of the Committee on Banking, Finance, and Urban Affairs, House of Representatives provides information on unemployment and prospects for employment. The report focuses on the role of the Federal Reserve and actions the administration and Congress must take to bring down…

Breaking the taboo: a history of monetary financing in Canada, 1930-1975.

PubMed

Ryan-Collins, Josh

2017-12-01

Monetary financing - the funding of state expenditure via the creation of new money rather than through taxation or borrowing - has become a taboo policy instrument in advanced economies. It is generally associated with dangerously high inflation and/or war. Relatedly, a key institutional feature of modern independent central banks is that they are not obligated to support government expenditure via money creation. Since the financial crisis of 2007-2008, however, unorthodox monetary policies, in particular quantitative easing, coupled with stagnant growth and high levels of public and private debt have led to questions over the monetary financing taboo. Debates on the topic have so far been mainly theoretical with little attention to the social and political dynamics of historical instances of monetary financing. This paper analyses one of the most significant twentieth-century cases: Canada from the period after the Great Depression up until the monetarist revolution of the 1970s. The period was a successful one for the Canadian economy, with high growth and employment and manageable inflation. It offers some interesting insights into the relationship between states and central banks and present-day discussions around the governance of money creation. © London School of Economics and Political Science 2017.

Policy analysis for prenatal genetic diagnosis.

PubMed

Thompson, M; Milunsky, A

1979-01-01

Consideration of the analytic difficulties faced in estimating the benefits and costs of prenatal genetic diagnosis, coupled with a brief review of existing benefit-cost studies, leads to the conclusion that public subsidy of prenatal testing can yield benefits substantially in excess of costs. The practical obstacles to such programs include the attitudes of prospective parents, a lack of knowledge, monetary barriers, inadequately organized medical resources, and the political issue of abortion. Policy analysis can now nevertheless formulate principles and guide immediate actions to improve present utilization of prenatal testing and to facilitate possible future expansion of these diagnostic techniques.

Non-Market Values in a Cost-Benefit World: Evidence from a Choice Experiment.

PubMed

Eppink, Florian V; Winden, Matthew; Wright, Will C C; Greenhalgh, Suzie

2016-01-01

In support of natural resource and ecosystem service policy, monetary value estimates are often presented to decision makers along with other types of information. There is some evidence that, presented with such 'mixed' information, people prioritise monetary over non-monetary information. We conduct a discrete choice experiment among New Zealand decision makers in which we manipulate the information presented to participants. We find that providing explicit monetary information strengthens the pursuit of economic benefits as well as the avoidance of environmental damage. Cultural impacts, of which we provided only qualitative descriptions, did not affect respondents' choices. Our study provides further evidence that concerns regarding the use of monetary information in decisions with complex, multi-value impacts are valid. Further research is needed to validate our results and find ways to reduce any bias in monetary and non-market information.

Non-Market Values in a Cost-Benefit World: Evidence from a Choice Experiment

PubMed Central

Eppink, Florian V.; Winden, Matthew; Wright, Will C. C.; Greenhalgh, Suzie

2016-01-01

In support of natural resource and ecosystem service policy, monetary value estimates are often presented to decision makers along with other types of information. There is some evidence that, presented with such ‘mixed’ information, people prioritise monetary over non-monetary information. We conduct a discrete choice experiment among New Zealand decision makers in which we manipulate the information presented to participants. We find that providing explicit monetary information strengthens the pursuit of economic benefits as well as the avoidance of environmental damage. Cultural impacts, of which we provided only qualitative descriptions, did not affect respondents’ choices. Our study provides further evidence that concerns regarding the use of monetary information in decisions with complex, multi-value impacts are valid. Further research is needed to validate our results and find ways to reduce any bias in monetary and non-market information. PMID:27783657

Health impact and monetary cost of exposure to particulate matter emitted from biomass burning in large cities.

PubMed

Sarigiannis, Dimosthenis Α; Karakitsios, Spyros P; Kermenidou, Marianthi V

2015-08-15

The study deals with the assessment of health impact and the respective economic cost attributed to particulate matter (PM) emitted into the atmosphere from biomass burning for space heating, focusing on the differences between the warm and cold seasons in 2011-2012 and 2012-2013 in Thessaloniki (Greece). Health impact was assessed based on estimated exposure levels and the use of established WHO concentration-response functions (CRFs) for all-cause mortality, infant mortality, new chronic bronchitis cases, respiratory and cardiac hospital admissions. Monetary cost was based on the valuation of the willingness-to-pay/accept (WTP/WTA), to avoid or compensate for the loss of welfare associated with illness. Results showed that long term mortality during the 2012-2013 winter increased by 200 excess deaths in a city of almost 900,000 inhabitants or 3540 years of life lost, corresponding to an economic cost of almost 200-250m€. New chronic bronchitis cases dominate morbidity estimates (490 additional new cases corresponding to a monetary cost of 30m€). Estimated health and monetary impacts are more severe during the cold season, despite its smaller duration (4 months). Considering that the increased ambient air concentrations (and the integral of outdoor/indoor exposure) are explained by shifting from oil to biomass for domestic heating purposes, several alternative scenarios were evaluated. Policy scenario analysis revealed that significant public health and monetary benefits (up to 2b€ in avoided mortality and 130m€ in avoided illness) might be obtained by limiting the biomass share in the domestic heat energy mix. Fiscal policy affecting fuels/technologies used for domestic heating needs to be reconsidered urgently, since the net tax loss from avoided oil taxation due to reduced consumption was further compounded by the public health cost of increased mid-term morbidity and mortality. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

The dynamic correlation between policy uncertainty and stock market returns in China

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yang, Miao; Jiang, Zhi-Qiang

2016-11-01

The dynamic correlation is examined between government's policy uncertainty and Chinese stock market returns in the period from January 1995 to December 2014. We find that the stock market is significantly correlated to policy uncertainty based on the results of the Vector Auto Regression (VAR) and Structural Vector Auto Regression (SVAR) models. In contrast, the results of the Dynamic Conditional Correlation Generalized Multivariate Autoregressive Conditional Heteroscedasticity (DCC-MGARCH) model surprisingly show a low dynamic correlation coefficient between policy uncertainty and market returns, suggesting that the fluctuations of each variable are greatly influenced by their values in the preceding period. Our analysis highlights the understanding of the dynamical relationship between stock market and fiscal and monetary policy.

Complexity in the Chinese stock market and its relationships with monetary policy intensity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ying, Shangjun; Fan, Ying

2014-01-01

This paper introduces how to formulate the CSI300 evolving stock index using the Paasche compiling technique of weighed indexes after giving the GCA model. It studies dynamics characteristics of the Chinese stock market and its relationships with monetary policy intensity, based on the evolving stock index. It concludes by saying that it is possible to construct a dynamics equation of the Chinese stock market using three variables, and that it is useless to regular market-complexity according to changing intensity of external factors from a chaos point of view.

An Evaluation of the Synergistic Simulation of the Federal Open Market Committee.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bartlett, Robin Lynn; Amsler, Christine E.

The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) simulation employed three techniques: case study, role playing, and model building, in order to acquaint college students studying money and banking with the creation of monetary policy. The specific goals of the FOMC simulation were: (1) to familiarize students with the data used in monetary policy…

The BMW Model: A New Framework for Teaching Monetary Economics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bofinger, Peter; Mayer, Eric; Wollmershauser, Timo

2006-01-01

Although the IS/LM-AS/AD model is still the central tool of macroeconomic teaching in most macroeconomic textbooks, it has been criticized by several economists. Colander (1995) demonstrated that the framework is logically inconsistent, Romer (2000) showed that it is unable to deal with a monetary policy that uses the interest rate as its…

Cost-effectiveness Analysis on Measures to Improve China's Coal-fired Industrial Boiler

DOE PAGES

Liu, Manzhi; Shen, Bo; Han, Yafeng; ...

2015-08-01

Tackling coal-burning industrial boiler is becoming one of the key programs to solve the environmental problem in China. Assessing the economics of various options to address coal-fired boiler is essential to identify cost-effective solutions. This paper discusses our work in conducting a cost-effectiveness analysis on various types of improvement measures ranging from energy efficiency retrofits to switch from coal to other fuels in China. Sensitivity analysis was also performed in order to understand the impacts of some economic factors such as discount rate and energy price on the economics of boiler improvement options. The results show that nine out ofmore » 14 solutions are cost-effective, and a lower discount rate and higher energy price will result in more energy efficiency measures being cost-effective. Both monetary and non-monetary barriers to energy-efficiency improvement are discussed and policies to tackle these barriers are recommended. Our research aims at providing a methodology to assess cost-effective solutions to boiler problems.« less

Reflections on Higher Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fleming, R. W.

1975-01-01

Four problems of higher education are discussed. These include the relationship between society's manpower needs and educational policy; egalitarian admission policies and faculty workloads; government control of monetary appropriations; and economic viability of the institution. (DE)

Science, Scientists, and Public Policy.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schooler, Dean, Jr.

The politically relevant behavior of scientists in the formulation of public policy by the United States government from 1945-68 is studied. The following types of policy issues are treated: science, space, weather, weapons, deterrence and defense, health, fiscal and monetary, pollution, conservation, antitrust, transportation safety, trade and…

State Capacity and Resistance in Afghanistan

DTIC Science & Technology

2009-03-01

PRGF )222 of the International Monetary Fund (IMF).223 Facing these self-imposed (internal) and international (external) constraints, budget and...Budget_Policy_Coord_Reporting/Fact _Sheet/Fact_sheet_final_1386.pdf (accessed 19 November 2008). 222 The PRGF provides aid and structural guidance in the...management. See: A Factsheet: The Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility ( PRGF ). (International Monetary Fund, October 2008). On the web: http

International Organisations and Transnational Education Policy

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Moutsios, Stavros

2009-01-01

This paper focuses on the World Bank/IMF (International Monetary Fund), the OECD (Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development) and the WTO (World Trade Organisation) as institutions of transnational policy making. They are all at present making education policies which are decisively shaping current directions and developments in…

Delay Discounting and Social Policy Issues

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Weatherly, Jeffrey N.; Plumm, Karyn M.; Derenne, Adam

2011-01-01

The present study used a delay discounting framework to study decisions about six social policy issues and one monetary outcome. For outcomes that nearly all participants discounted, social policies were discounted significantly more than money. A similar result was observed when analyzing all outcomes using data only from participants who…

The Impact of Resource Wealth On Economic Growth, Governance, and Conflict in Afghanistan

DTIC Science & Technology

2013-09-01

charged with developing the mining sector . While analysis of aid programs in the country shows flaws in governance and monetary policies, there are...indications that the incentives induced by the emerging mining sector have triggered a shift toward a future-oriented development strategy amongst...the realization of the country’s economic potential has positively affected government institutions charged with developing the mining sector . While

To give or sell human gametes - the interplay between pragmatics, policy and ethics

PubMed Central

Daniels, K

2000-01-01

The ever-growing acceptance and use of assisted human reproduction techniques has caused demand for "donated" sperm and eggs to outstrip supply. Medical professionals and others argue that monetary reward is the only way to recruit sufficient numbers of "donors". Is this a clash between pragmatics and policy/ethics? Where monetary payments are the norm, alternative recruitment strategies used successfully elsewhere may not have been considered, nor the negative consequences of commercialism on all participants thought through. Considerations leading some countries to ban the buying and selling of sperm, eggs and embryos are outlined and a case made that the collective welfare of all involved parties be the primary consideration in this, at times heated, debate. Key Words: Gametes • gifting • selling • ethics • policy PMID:10860215

International Experiences with Quantifying the Co-Benefits of Energy-Efficiency and Greenhouse-Gas Mitigation Programs and Policies

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Williams, Christopher; Hasanbeigi, Ali; Price, Lynn

Improving the efficiency of energy production and consumption and switching to lower carbon energy sources can significantly decrease carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions and reduce climate change impacts. A growing body of research has found that these measures can also directly mitigate many non-climate change related human health hazards and environmental damage. Positive impacts of policies and programs that occur in addition to the intended primary policy goal are called co-benefits. Policy analysis relies on forecasting and comparing the costs of policy and program implementation and the benefits that accrue to society from implementation. GHG reduction and energy efficiency policies andmore » programs face political resistance in part because of the difficulty of quantifying their benefits. On the one hand, climate change mitigation policy benefits are often global, long-term, and subject to large uncertainties, and subsidized energy pricing can reduce the direct monetary benefits of energy efficiency policies to below their cost. On the other hand, the co-benefits that accrue from these efforts’ resultant reductions in conventional air pollution (such as improved health, agricultural productivity, reduced damage to infrastructure, and local ecosystem improvements) are generally near term, local, and more certain than climate change mitigation benefits and larger than the monetary value of energy savings. The incorporation of co-benefits into energy efficiency and climate mitigation policy and program analysis therefore might significantly increase the uptake of these policies. Faster policy uptake is especially important in developing countries because ongoing development efforts that do not consider co-benefits may lock in suboptimal technologies and infrastructure and result in high costs in future years. Over the past two decades, studies have repeatedly documented that non-climate change related benefits of energy efficiency and fuel conversion efforts, as a part of GHG mitigation strategies, can be from between 30% to over 100% of the costs of such policies and programs strategies. Policy makers around the world are increasingly interested in including both GHG and non-GHG impacts in analyses of energy efficiency and fuel switching policies and programs and a set of methodologies has matured from the efforts of early moving jurisdictions such as the European Union, the United States, and Japan.« less

International Monetary Fund sacrifices higher growth, employment, spending, and public investment in health systems in order to keep inflation unnecessarily low.

PubMed

Rowden, Rick

2010-01-01

The International Monetary Fund's response to evidence on the impact of its programs on public health fails to address the fundamental criticisms about its policies. The IMF's demand for borrowers to achieve extremely low inflation targets is founded on very little empirical evidence in the peer-reviewed literature. The low-inflation policies privilege international creditors over domestic debtors and short-term priorities over long-term development goals, and contain high social costs, referred to by economists as a "sacrifice ratio." For example, governments' raising of interest rates to bring down inflation undermines the ability of domestic firms to expand production and employment and thus "sacrifices" higher economic growth and higher tax revenues and unnecessarily constrains domestic health spending. During financial crisis, most countries seek to lower interest rates to stimulate the economy, the opposite of the IMF's general advice. Perversely, compliance with IMF policies has become a prerequisite for receiving donor aid. Critiques of the IMF express significant concerns that IMF fiscal and monetary policies are unduly restrictive. Health advocates must weigh in on such matters and pressure their finance ministries, particularly in the G7, to take steps at the level of the IMF Executive Board to revisit and modify its policy framework on deficits and inflation. Such reforms are crucial to enable countries to generate more domestic resources while the global health community searches for ways to support strengthening health system capacity.

The American Economy in Transition

DTIC Science & Technology

1983-03-01

writes the budget. Business Week pp. 30-2, 11 February 1980. Jameson, Kenneth P. and Joseph Philips . Supply-side economics: a skeptical view. Economic...international monetary policy from World War I1 to the present. Berkeley: Univ. of Calif. Press, 1977. (HG 3881 .B547) Cagan, Philip . Recent monetary...October 1980. 41 Kotler , John. Foreign investments in the United States? Editorial Research Reports pp. 747-64, 12 October 1979. Longenecker, Jane

Energy taxation as a policy instrument to reduce CO{sub 2} emissions: A net benefit analysis

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Boyd, R.; Krutilla, K.; Viscusi, W.K.

1995-07-01

This study evaluates the costs and benefits of energy taxation as a policy instrument to conserve energy and reduce CO{sub 2} emissions. The study combines economic cost estimates generated with a CGE model and monetary estimates of environmental damages in a comprehensive cost/benefit framework. We find that optimal CO{sub 2} emissions reductions range from 5 to 38%, depending on different assumptions about energy substitution elasticities and environmental damages. CO{sub 2} emissions reductions of between 8 and 64% can be attained at no additional welfare cost relative to a policy of not undertaking any action to control CO{sub 2} emissions. 33more » refs., 7 figs., 8 tabs.« less

Three essays on monetary policy responses to oil price shocks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Plante, Michael

This dissertation contains three chapters which explore the question of how monetary policy should respond to changes in the price of oil. Each chapter explores the question from the perspective of a different economic environment. The first chapter examines welfare maximizing optimal monetary policy in a closed economy New Keynesian model that is extended to include household and firm demand for oil products, sticky wages, and capital accumulation. When households and firms demand oil products a natural difference arises between the Consumer Price Index (CPI), the core CPI, and the GDP deflator. I show that when nominal wages are flexible then the optimal policy places a heavy emphasis on stabilizing the inflation rate of the core CPI. If aggregate nominal wages are sticky then the central bank should focus on stabilizing some combination of core inflation and nominal wage inflation. Under no case examined is it optimal to stabilize either GDP deflator or CPI inflation. The second chapter examines monetary policy responses to oil price shocks in a small open economy with traded and non-traded goods. Oil and labor are used to produce the traded and non-traded goods and prices are sticky in the non-traded sector. I show analytically that the ratio of the oil and labor cost shares in the traded and non-traded sectors is crucial for determining the dynamic behavior of many macroeconomic variables after a rise in the price of oil. A policy of fixed exchange rates can produce higher or lower inflation in the non-traded sector depending upon the ratio. Likewise, a policy that stabilizes the inflation rate of prices in the non-traded sector can cause the nominal exchange rate to appreciate or depreciate. For the proper calibration, a policy that stabilizes core inflation produces results very close to the one that stabilizes non-traded inflation. Analytical results show that the fixed exchange rate always produces a unique solution. The policy of stabilizing non-traded inflation produces a unique solution so long as the nominal interest rate is raised more than one for one with increases in non-traded inflation. A policy of stabilizing core inflation, however, produces a unique solution only if the response is greater than one for one and less then one divided by one minus the share of the non-traded good in the CPI. In the third chapter I consider monetary and fiscal policy responses to oil price shocks in a low income oil importing country. The model used in this chapter differs from the model in the second chapter in that there is currency substitution, household demand for oil products, and a potential subsidy on the purchase of oil products by households. I examine the dynamic properties and the welfare implications of a set of inflation targeting policies and a group of policies that subsidize the price of oil and finance the subsidy through a combination of raising lump sum taxes and printing money. The dynamic properties of the inflation targeting policies are similar in many regards to those in the second chapter as the key assumptions driving the results are the same in the two models. For the policies which subsidize the price of oil I show that both the choice to have the subsidy and how to finance it matter a great deal for the behavior of the macroeconomic variables. In terms of welfare, for most calibrations there are only minor differences between the inflation targeting polices, the policy with a subsidy funded by lump sum taxes, and the baseline policy with no subsidy. The policy with a subsidy financed by the inflation tax generally causes significant welfare losses compared to the policy with no pass through.

How does money memorize social interactions? Understanding time-homogeneity in monetary systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Braun, Dieter; Schmitt, Matthias; Schacker, Andreas

2013-03-01

Understanding how money shapes and memorizes our social interactions is central to modern life. There are many schools of thought on as to how monetary systems contribute to crises or boom/bust cycles and how monetary policy can try to avert them. We find that statistical physics gives a refreshing perspective. We analyze how credit mechanisms introduce non-locality and time-heterogeneity to the monetary memory. Motivated by an analogy to particle physics, locality and time-homogeneity can be imposed to monetary systems. As a result, a full reserve banking system is complemented with a bi-currency system of non-bank assets (``money'') and bank assets (``antimoney''). Payment can either be made by passing on money or by receiving antimoney. As a result, a free floating exchange rate between non-bank assets and bank assets is established. Interestingly, this monetary memory allows for credit creation by the simultaneous transfer of money and antimoney at a negotiated exchange rate. We analyze this novel mechanism of liquidity transfer in a model of random social interactions, yielding analytical results for all relevant distributions and the price of liquidity under the conditions of a fully transparent credit market.

Analysis of the uncertainty in the monetary valuation of ecosystem services--A case study at the river basin scale.

PubMed

Boithias, Laurie; Terrado, Marta; Corominas, Lluís; Ziv, Guy; Kumar, Vikas; Marqués, Montse; Schuhmacher, Marta; Acuña, Vicenç

2016-02-01

Ecosystem services provide multiple benefits to human wellbeing and are increasingly considered by policy-makers in environmental management. However, the uncertainty related with the monetary valuation of these benefits is not yet adequately defined or integrated by policy-makers. Given this background, our aim was to quantify different sources of uncertainty when performing monetary valuation of ecosystem services, in order to provide a series of guidelines to reduce them. With an example of 4 ecosystem services (i.e., water provisioning, waste treatment, erosion protection, and habitat for species) provided at the river basin scale, we quantified the uncertainty associated with the following sources: (1) the number of services considered, (2) the number of benefits considered for each service, (3) the valuation metrics (i.e. valuation methods) used to value benefits, and (4) the uncertainty of the parameters included in the valuation metrics. Results indicate that the highest uncertainty was caused by the number of services considered, as well as by the number of benefits considered for each service, whereas the parametric uncertainty was similar to the one related to the selection of valuation metric, thus suggesting that the parametric uncertainty, which is the only uncertainty type commonly considered, was less critical than the structural uncertainty, which is in turn mainly dependent on the decision-making context. Given the uncertainty associated to the valuation structure, special attention should be given to the selection of services, benefits and metrics according to a given context. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

The impact of IMF conditionality on government health expenditure: A cross-national analysis of 16 West African nations.

PubMed

Stubbs, Thomas; Kentikelenis, Alexander; Stuckler, David; McKee, Martin; King, Lawrence

2017-02-01

How do International Monetary Fund (IMF) policy reforms-so-called 'conditionalities'-affect government health expenditures? We collected archival documents on IMF programmes from 1995 to 2014 to identify the pathways and impact of conditionality on government health spending in 16 West African countries. Based on a qualitative analysis of the data, we find that IMF policy reforms reduce fiscal space for investment in health, limit staff expansion of doctors and nurses, and lead to budget execution challenges in health systems. Further, we use cross-national fixed effects models to evaluate the relationship between IMF-mandated policy reforms and government health spending, adjusting for confounding economic and demographic factors and for selection bias. Each additional binding IMF policy reform reduces government health expenditure per capita by 0.248 percent (95% CI -0.435 to -0.060). Overall, our findings suggest that IMF conditionality impedes progress toward the attainment of universal health coverage. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Pilot Study: Impact of Computer Simulation on Students' Economic Policy Performance. Pilot Study.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Domazlicky, Bruce; France, Judith

Fiscal and monetary policies taught in macroeconomic principles courses are concepts that might require both lecture and simulation methods. The simulation models, which apply the principles gleened from comparative statistics to a dynamic world, may give students an appreciation for the problems facing policy makers. This paper is a report of a…

The Relative Strength of Fiscal and Monetary Policy in Saudi Arabia

DTIC Science & Technology

1988-01-01

Looney * " INTRODUCTION In the early 1960s Milton Friedman and David Meiselman(l) undertook a series of statistical comparisons of several simple...Postgraduate School Montercy, California 93943 USA. (I) M. Friedman and David Mcisclman, " The Relative Stability of Monetary Velocity and the Investment...Economic Review (Sep- tember I96S), pp. 693-728. (3) Cr. Jurgen Westphalen, " Friedman versus Keynes in Latin America", Intercconomics (July/August

Transnational tobacco company influence on tax policy during privatization of a state monopoly: British American Tobacco and Uzbekistan.

PubMed

Gilmore, Anna; Collin, Jeff; Townsend, Joy

2007-11-01

The International Monetary Fund encourages privatization of state-owned tobacco industries. Privatization tends to lower cigarette prices, which encourages consumption. This could be countered with effective tax policies. We explored how investment by British American Tobacco (BAT) influenced tax policy in Uzbekistan during privatization there. We obtained internal documents from BAT and analyzed them using a hermeneutic process to create a chronology of events. BAT thoroughly redesigned the tobacco taxation system in Uzbekistan. It secured (1) a reduction of approximately 50% in the excise tax on cigarettes, (2) an excise system to benefit its brands and disadvantage those of its competitors (particularly Philip Morris), and (3) a tax stamp system from which it hoped to be exempted, because this would likely facilitate its established practice of cigarette smuggling and further its competitive advantage.. Privatization can endanger effective tobacco excise policies. The International Monetary Fund should review its approach to privatization and differentiate the privatization of an industry whose product kills from privatization of other industries.

Single European currency and Monetary Union. Macroeconomic implications for pharmaceutical spending.

PubMed

Kanavos, P

1998-01-01

This article examines the potential implications of introducing a single currency among the Member States of the European Union for national pharmaceutical prices and spending. In doing so, it provides a brief account of the direct effects of introducing a single currency on pharmaceutical business. These are static in nature and include the elimination of exchange rate volatility and transaction costs, increased price transparency and limited potential for parallel trade. It subsequently analyses the potential medium and long term macroeconomic policy choices facing the Member States and their impact on pharmaceutical spending following the introduction of a single currency. These include policy directions in order to meet the Maastricht convergence criteria in the run-up to forming an Economic and Monetary Union (EMU) and the implications of EMU on national macroeconomic policy thereafter. This article argues that the necessity for tight fiscal policies across the EU and, in particular, in those Member States facing high budget deficits and overall debt levels, will continue to exert considerable downward pressure on pharmaceutical spending.

Monetary Expansion and the Banking Lending Channel.

PubMed

Tabak, Benjamin Miranda; Moreira, Tito Belchior Silva; Fazio, Dimas Mateus; Cavalcanti, André Luiz Cordeiro; Cunha, George Henrrique de Moura

2016-01-01

This paper examines the bank lending channel, which considers how monetary authority actions affect the variation of loans. We focus on the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) totalizing 1254 banks from five countries in the period 2000-2012 (totalizing 13 years). The empirical results show that the effect of money supply growth on the growth of loans is non-linear and inverted U-shaped. In this context, our results show empirical evidence expansionary monetary policies do not increase the propensity of economic agents to systematically take greater risks on the market. After a certain level of money stock, increases in the money supply do not lead to increased negotiated credit.

Monetary Expansion and the Banking Lending Channel

PubMed Central

Moreira, Tito Belchior Silva; Fazio, Dimas Mateus; Cavalcanti, André Luiz Cordeiro; Cunha, George Henrrique de Moura

2016-01-01

This paper examines the bank lending channel, which considers how monetary authority actions affect the variation of loans. We focus on the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) totalizing 1254 banks from five countries in the period 2000–2012 (totalizing 13 years). The empirical results show that the effect of money supply growth on the growth of loans is non-linear and inverted U-shaped. In this context, our results show empirical evidence expansionary monetary policies do not increase the propensity of economic agents to systematically take greater risks on the market. After a certain level of money stock, increases in the money supply do not lead to increased negotiated credit. PMID:27716816

Clean Air Excellence Awards

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

These non-monetary awards honor sustainable efforts toward pollutant emissions reduction from innovators in clean air technology, community action and outreach, policy development, and transportation efficiency.

Achieving and sustaining full employment.

PubMed

Rosen, S M

1995-01-01

Human rights and public health considerations provide strong support for policies that maximize employment. Ample historical and conceptual evidence supports the feasibility of full employment policies. New factors affecting the labor force, the rate of technological change, and the globalization of economic activity require appropriate policies--international as well as national--but do not invalidate the ability of modern states to apply the measures needed. Among these the most important include: (I) systematic reduction in working time with no loss of income, (2) active labor market policies, (3) use of fiscal and monetary measures to sustain the needed level of aggregate demand, (4) restoration of equal bargaining power between labor and capital, (5) social investment in neglected and outmoded infrastructure, (6) accountability of corporations for decisions to shift or reduce capital investment, (7) major reductions in military spending, to be replaced by socially needed and economically productive expenditures, (8) direct public sector job creation, (9) reform of monetary policy to restore emphasis on minimizing unemployment and promoting full employment. None are without precedent in modern economies. The obstacles are ideological and political. To overcome them will require intellectual clarity and effective advocacy.

Efficient air pollution regulation of coal-fired power in China

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Feng, Therese

This dissertation evaluates monetary external costs of electricity generation in the People's Republic of China and implications for efficient pollution control policy. It presents an integrated assessment of environmental damages of air emissions of a representative new coal-fired plant in urban areas of north and south China. The simulation evaluates the nature and magnitude of damages in China, transboundary effects in Japan and Korea, and global greenhouse gas warming impacts. The valuation is used to identify efficient abatement policy for Chinese plants over time; evaluate benefits of differentiated policies; and consider the importance of dynamic policy. Potential annual damages of operating a 600-MW power plant without controls in China today would be 43-45 million (U.S. 1995). Annual local damages of 37-40 million far exceed transboundary or greenhouse gas damages (1.4 million and $4.6 million respectively). The largest component of damages is the risk of human mortality and chronic morbidity from long-term exposure to fine particles. Efficient pollution control minimizes the sum of abatement costs and residual unabated damages. Because monetary damages reflect sufferers' willingness to pay to avoid environmental risks, the choice of efficient controls is fundamentally tied to societal values and preferences. The optimal path for Chinese abatement moves from modest dispersion measures at present to combined dispersion and emission controls approaching those of current-day United States, by 2050. The inclusion of transboundary and greenhouse damages does not substantively alter local policies. Welfare benefits are gained by differentiating abatement policy by pollutant, meteorological parameters, and by population density. An analysis of optimal one-time investment in abatement for a plant in a growing economy suggests that some investment is optimal at all incomes but no single level of abatement is suitable for all economies. Forward-looking policy anticipates higher future values for environmental services and provides distinct welfare advantages over time compared to myopic or static policies-such as the imposition of developed country standards-especially if aggregate capacity growth is considered.

To Pay or Not to Pay: Examining Underlying Principles in the Debate on Financial Support for Family Caregivers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Keefe, Janice

2007-01-01

In many countries one approach to supporting family-and-friend caregivers is direct financial or monetary support. Debates about the benefits and consequences of such policies pervade the literature. Building on the premise that values underlie public policy, the paper examines four policy paradoxes in the literature and uses selected examples…

Modelling the monetary value of a QALY: a new approach based on UK data.

PubMed

Mason, Helen; Jones-Lee, Michael; Donaldson, Cam

2009-08-01

Debate about the monetary value of a quality-adjusted life year (QALY) has existed in the health economics literature for some time. More recently, concern about such a value has arisen in UK health policy. This paper reports on an attempt to 'model' a willingness-to-pay-based value of a QALY from the existing value of preventing a statistical fatality (VPF) currently used in UK public sector decision making. Two methods of deriving the value of a QALY from the existing UK VPF are outlined: one conventional and one new. The advantages and disadvantages of each of the approaches are discussed as well as the implications of the results for policy and health economic evaluation methodology.

To give or sell human gametes--the interplay between pragmatics, policy and ethics.

PubMed

Daniels, K R

2000-06-01

The ever-growing acceptance and use of assisted human reproduction techniques has caused demand for "donated" sperm and eggs to outstrip supply. Medical professionals and others argue that monetary reward is the only way to recruit sufficient numbers of "donors". Is this a clash between pragmatics and policy/ethics? Where monetary payments are the norm, alternative recruitment strategies used successfully elsewhere may not have been considered, nor the negative consequences of commercialism on all participants thought through. Considerations leading some countries to ban the buying and selling of sperm, eggs and embryos are outlined and a case made that the collective welfare of all involved parties be the primary consideration in this, at times heated, debate.

Optimal monetary policy and oil price shocks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kormilitsina, Anna

This dissertation is comprised of two chapters. In the first chapter, I investigate the role of systematic U.S. monetary policy in the presence of oil price shocks. The second chapter is devoted to studying different approaches to modeling energy demand. In an influential paper, Bernanke, Gertler, and Watson (1997) and (2004) argue that systematic monetary policy exacerbated the recessions the U.S. economy experienced in the aftermath of post World War II oil price shocks. In the first chapter of this dissertation, I critically evaluate this claim in the context of an estimated medium-scale model of the U.S. business cycle. Specifically, I solve for the Ramsey optimal monetary policy in the medium-scale dynamic stochastic general equilibrium model (henceforth DSGE) of Schmitt-Grohe and Uribe (2005). To model the demand for oil, I use the approach of Finn (2000). According to this approach, the utilization of capital services requires oil usage. In the related literature on the macroeconomic effects of oil price shocks, it is common to calibrate structural parameters of the model. In contrast to this literature, I estimate the parameters of my DSGE model. The estimation strategy involves matching the impulse responses from the theoretical model to responses predicted by an empirical model. For estimation, I use the alternative to the classical Laplace type estimator proposed by Chernozhukov and Hong (2003). To obtain the empirical impulse responses, I identify an oil price shock in a structural VAR (SVAR) model of the U.S. business cycle. The SVAR model predicts that, in response to an oil price increase, GDP, investment, hours, capital utilization, and the real wage fall, while the nominal interest rate and inflation rise. These findings are economically intuitive and in line with the existing empirical evidence. Comparing the actual and the Ramsey optimal monetary policy response to an oil price shock, I find that the optimal policy allows for more inflation, a larger drop in wages, and a rise in hours compared to those actually observed. The central finding of this Chapter is that the optimal policy is associated with a smaller drop in GDP and other macroeconomic variables. The latter results therefore confirm the claim of Bernanke, Gertler and Watson that monetary policy was to a large extent responsible for the recessions that followed the oil price shocks. However, under the optimal policy, interest rates are tightened even more than what is predicted by the empirical model. This result contrasts sharply with the claim of Bernanke, Gertler, and Watson that the Federal Reserve exacerbated recessions by the excessive tightening of interest rates in response to the oil price increases. In contrast to related studies that focus on output stabilization, I find that eliminating the negative response of GDP to an oil price shock is not desirable. In the second chapter of this dissertation, I compare two approaches to modeling energy sector. Because the share of energy in GDP is small, models of energy have been criticized for their inability to explain sizeable effects of energy price increases on the economic activity. I find that if the price of energy is an exogenous AR(1) process, then the two modeling approaches produce the responses of GDP similar in size to responses observed in most empirical studies, but fail to produce the timing and the shape of the response. DSGE framework can solve the timing and the shape of impulse responses problem, however, fails to replicate the size of the impulse responses. Thus, in DSGE frameworks, amplifying mechanisms for the effect of the energy price shock and estimation based calibration of model parameters are needed to produce the size of the GDP response to the energy price shock.

Advantages of type and screen policy: Perspective from a developing country!

PubMed

Aggarwal, Geet; Tiwari, Aseem K; Arora, Dinesh; Dara, Ravi C; Acharya, Devi P; Bhardwaj, Gunjan; Sharma, Jyoti

2018-01-01

The authors' center recently changed their pretransfusion testing protocol from "conventional" type and screen (TS) with anti-human globulin (AHG) crossmatch (Policy A) to TS with immediate-spin (IS) crossmatch (Policy B). Red blood cell (RBC) units were issued after compatible IS crossmatch as and when required instead of AHG crossmatch. This study was conducted to compare the effects of change of policy from A to B over 1-year period on crossmatch-to-transfusion (C/T) ratio, RBC issue turnaround time (TAT), outdating of RBC, man-hours consumption, and monetary savings. This was a comparative, prospective study conducted by the Department of Transfusion Medicine of a tertiary hospital-based blood bank in Northern India. The Policy B was implemented in the department from January 2014. Relevant retrospective data for comparison of the previous 1 year, when Policy A was practiced, were derived from hospital information system. 23909 and 24724 RBC units transfused to patients admitted to the hospital during respective 1-year period of practice for Policy A and B. There was significant reduction in C/T ratio (1.94 vs. 1.01) and RBC issue TAT (79 vs. 65 min) with Policy B. Expiry due to outdating reduced (37 vs. zero) along with man-hours (16% reduction) and monetary (33% reduction) savings. Use of 'TS with IS crossmatch' policy provides multiple advantages to all the stakeholders; blood banker, clinician, patient, and the hospital management.

Transnational Tobacco Company Influence on Tax Policy During Privatization of a State Monopoly: British American Tobacco and Uzbekistan

PubMed Central

Gilmore, Anna; Collin, Jeff; Townsend, Joy

2007-01-01

Objectives. The International Monetary Fund encourages privatization of state-owned tobacco industries. Privatization tends to lower cigarette prices, which encourages consumption. This could be countered with effective tax policies. We explored how investment by British American Tobacco (BAT) influenced tax policy in Uzbekistan during privatization there. Methods. We obtained internal documents from BAT and analyzed them using a hermeneutic process to create a chronology of events. Results. BAT thoroughly redesigned the tobacco taxation system in Uzbekistan. It secured (1) a reduction of approximately 50% in the excise tax on cigarettes, (2) an excise system to benefit its brands and disadvantage those of its competitors (particularly Philip Morris), and (3) a tax stamp system from which it hoped to be exempted, because this would likely facilitate its established practice of cigarette smuggling and further its competitive advantage.. Conclusions. Privatization can endanger effective tobacco excise policies. The International Monetary Fund should review its approach to privatization and differentiate the privatization of an industry whose product kills from privatization of other industries. PMID:17138915

Using wavelets to decompose the time frequency effects of monetary policy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Aguiar-Conraria, Luís; Azevedo, Nuno; Soares, Maria Joana

2008-05-01

Central banks have different objectives in the short and long run. Governments operate simultaneously at different timescales. Many economic processes are the result of the actions of several agents, who have different term objectives. Therefore, a macroeconomic time series is a combination of components operating on different frequencies. Several questions about economic time series are connected to the understanding of the behavior of key variables at different frequencies over time, but this type of information is difficult to uncover using pure time-domain or pure frequency-domain methods. To our knowledge, for the first time in an economic setup, we use cross-wavelet tools to show that the relation between monetary policy variables and macroeconomic variables has changed and evolved with time. These changes are not homogeneous across the different frequencies.

A Study in West German Stabilization Policy, 1956-1974. German Studies Notes. First Draft.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Neumann, Manfred J. M.

The dominant driving force of past movements in West German output and prices is investigated and a review of government policy undertaken to stabilize these movements is presented. Three alternative impulse hypotheses are tested: the monetary, the fiscal, and the foreign impulse hypothesis. The major results of the tests are that: (1) monetary…

JPRS Report, China.

DTIC Science & Technology

1991-04-16

mice , color monitors, image Industrial Production Rises Over 6 Percent First 2 scanners, key-boards and drawing cards in 1990. Months The center...Adjusting Industrial Structure, Suggestions 32 Experts Forecast 1991 Market Trends [ZHONGGUO TONGJI XIAOXI BAO 11 Feb] ................. 35 Price Index of...Policies Regarding Industrial Structure in Hunan [HUNAN RIBAO 5 Feb] ........................... 45 Bank Official Views 1991 Monetary Policies [JINRONG

Economic Stimulus: Issues and Policies

DTIC Science & Technology

2009-09-16

through which the economy entered a recession. To date, financial markets remain volatile, new losses have been announced at major financial institutions ...intervention in the financial markets .16 The 11 See, for example, Frederic Mishkin , “Housing and the...have sought to contain damages spilling over from housing and financial markets to the broader economy, including monetary policy, which is the

34 CFR 60.1 - What are the policies of the Department regarding indemnification?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION EMPLOYEES § 60.1 What are the policies of the Department regarding indemnification? (a)(1) The Department of Education may indemnify, in whole or in part, an employee for any verdict, judgment, or other monetary award rendered against the employee if— (i) The conduct giving rise to the...

The social crisis of the Eurozone: the case of Spain.

PubMed

Navarro, Vicente

2013-01-01

This article discusses the consequences of the austerity policies promoted by the European Central Bank, the European Commission, and the International Monetary Fund and applied to the peripheral countries of the Eurozone, including Spain. In addition to deteriorating the economic conditions of these countries, these policies are hurting the social well-being of their populations.

Investigation of Education Databases in Four States To Support Policy Research on Resource Allocation. Policy Report

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pan, Diane; Smith-Hansen, Lotte; Jones, Debra Hughes; Rudo, Zena H.; Alexander, Celeste; Kahlert, Rahel Kahlert, Rahel

2004-01-01

Information is one of the most important tools education decision makers need to help them effectively spend taxpayer money, allocate qualified staff, and determine the effectiveness of education investments. Decision makers must understand the role and influence of monetary and staff resources on the education system, and they must have…

Food inflation in South Africa: some implications for economic policy.

PubMed

Rangasamy, Logan

2011-01-01

This paper analyses the trends in food price movements in South Africa between 1980 and 2008. There are three main results emanating from the analysis in this paper. Firstly, food price movements have played a large role in generating inflationary episodes in South Africa. Secondly, while external influences do matter, South African food price movements are mainly due to domestic influences. This implies that national policy has an important role to play in taming domestic food price inflation. Thirdly, given the strong second round impacts, food price movements warrant special attention in monetary policymaking. Core measures of inflation that exclude food price movements may not accurately reflect the underlying inflationary pressures in the economy and could compromise the attainment of the goal of price stability.

Why health advocates must get involved in development economics: the case of the International Monetary Fund.

PubMed

Rowden, Rick

2010-01-01

International health advocates have traditionally focused on calling for external strategies for achieving health goals in developing countries, such as more foreign aid, foreign direct investment, loans, and debt cancellation, as opposed to internal approaches, such as building domestic productive capacity and accumulating capital. They have largely neglected questions of development economics, particularly the effectiveness, or lack thereof, of the currently dominant neoliberal development model promoted by the rich countries and aid agencies for poor countries. While critics have been correct to blame the International Monetary Fund for its policies curtailing public health spending in developing countries, their analysis generally neglects the underlying issue of why developing countries are seemingly unable to build their domestic tax base on which health budgets depend. International health advocates should engage with such macroeconomic questions and challenge the failures of the dominant neoliberal economic model that blocks countries from industrializing and building their own productive capacities with which to generate their own resources for financing their health budgets over time.

Quantum Barro-Gordon game in monetary economics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Samadi, Ali Hussein; Montakhab, Afshin; Marzban, Hussein; Owjimehr, Sakine

2018-01-01

Classical game theory addresses decision problems in multi-agent environment where one rational agent's decision affects other agents' payoffs. Game theory has widespread application in economic, social and biological sciences. In recent years quantum versions of classical games have been proposed and studied. In this paper, we consider a quantum version of the classical Barro-Gordon game which captures the problem of time inconsistency in monetary economics. Such time inconsistency refers to the temptation of weak policy maker to implement high inflation when the public expects low inflation. The inconsistency arises when the public punishes the weak policy maker in the next cycle. We first present a quantum version of the Barro-Gordon game. Next, we show that in a particular case of the quantum game, time-consistent Nash equilibrium could be achieved when public expects low inflation, thus resolving the game.

Benefits on public health from transport-related greenhouse gas mitigation policies in Southeastern European cities.

PubMed

Sarigiannis, D A; Kontoroupis, P; Nikolaki, S; Gotti, A; Chapizanis, D; Karakitsios, S

2017-02-01

Climate change is a major environmental threat of our time. Cities have a significant impact on greenhouse gas emissions as most of the traffic, industry, commerce and more than 50% of world population is situated in urban areas. Southern Europe is a region that faces financial turmoil, enhanced migratory fluxes and climate change pressure. The case study of Thessaloniki is presented, one of the only two cities in Greece with established climate change action plans. The effects of feasible traffic policies in year 2020 are assessed and their potential health impact is compared to a business as usual scenario. Two types of measures are investigated: operation of underground rail in the city centre and changes in fleet composition. Potential co-benefits from reduced greenhouse gas emissions on public health by the year 2020 are computed utilizing state-of-the-art concentration response functions for PM x , NO 2 and C 6 H 6 . Results show significant environmental health and monetary co-benefits when the city metro is coupled with appropriate changes in the traffic composition. Monetary savings due to avoided mortality or leukaemia incidence corresponding to the reduction in PM 10 , PM 2.5, NO 2 and C 6 H 6 exposure will be 56.6, 45, 37.7 and 1.0 million Euros respectively. Promotion of 'green' transportation in the city (i.e. the wide use of electric vehicles), will provide monetary savings from the reduction in PM 10 , PM 2.5 , NO 2 and C 6 H 6 exposure up to 60.4, 49.1, 41.2 and 1.08 million Euros. Overall, it was shown that the respective GHG emission reduction policies resulted in clear co-benefits in terms of air quality improvement, public health protection and monetary loss mitigation. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Policy Borrowing and Transfer, and Policy Convergence: Justifications for the Adoption of the Bologna Process in the CEMAC Region and the Cameroonian Higher Education System through the LMD Reform

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Eta, Elizabeth Agbor

2015-01-01

The borrowing and transfer of policies, ideas and practices from one system to another may in part explain the convergence of educational systems. Using text documents as research material, this paper examines the adoption and transfer of Bologna Process (BP) ideas in the Economic and Monetary Community of Central Africa (CEMAC) and in the…

Statistical ensembles for money and debt

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Viaggiu, Stefano; Lionetto, Andrea; Bargigli, Leonardo; Longo, Michele

2012-10-01

We build a statistical ensemble representation of two economic models describing respectively, in simplified terms, a payment system and a credit market. To this purpose we adopt the Boltzmann-Gibbs distribution where the role of the Hamiltonian is taken by the total money supply (i.e. including money created from debt) of a set of interacting economic agents. As a result, we can read the main thermodynamic quantities in terms of monetary ones. In particular, we define for the credit market model a work term which is related to the impact of monetary policy on credit creation. Furthermore, with our formalism we recover and extend some results concerning the temperature of an economic system, previously presented in the literature by considering only the monetary base as a conserved quantity. Finally, we study the statistical ensemble for the Pareto distribution.

[Cost-benefit analysis of the implementation of automated drug-dispensing systems in Critical Care and Emergency Units].

PubMed

Poveda Andrés, J L; García Gómez, C; Hernández Sansalvador, M; Valladolid Walsh, A

2003-01-01

To determine monetary impact when traditional drug floor stocks are replaced by Automated Drug Dispensing Systems (ADDS) in the Medical Intensive Care Unit, Surgical Intensive Care Unit and the Emergency Room. We analysed four different flows considered to be determinant when implementing ADDS in a hospital environment: capital investment, staff costs, inventory costs and costs related to drug use policies. Costs were estimated by calculation of the current net value. Its analysis shows that those expenses derived from initial investment are compensated by the three remaining flows, with costs related to drug use policies showing the most substantial savings. Five years after initial investment, global cash-flows have been estimated at 300.525 euros. Replacement of traditional floor stocks by ADDS in the Medical Intensive Care Unit, Surgery Intensive Care Unit and the Emergency Room produces a positive benefit/cost ratio (1.95).

32 CFR 536.57 - Who should negotiate.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... exceeding the monetary authority delegated by regulation. It is DA policy to delegate USARCS authority, on a... conducted by a non-attorney, under the supervision of an attorney. For further discussion see DA Pam 27-162...

Economic Stimulus: Issues and Policies

DTIC Science & Technology

2009-12-09

financial markets remain volatile, new losses have been announced at major financial institutions , and responses outside traditional monetary policy have...states, middle class tax cuts, and business tax cuts. Also in 2008 and 2009, the government intervened in specific financial markets by providing...broad intervention into the financial markets was passed to avoid the spread of financial instability; but there are disadvantages, including leaving

Economic Stimulus: Issues and Policies

DTIC Science & Technology

2009-02-27

through which the economy entered a recession. To date, financial markets remain volatile, new losses have been announced at major financial institutions ...have sought to contain damages spilling over from housing and financial markets to the broader economy, including monetary policy, which is the...compensation in June and November of 2008. Over the past few months, the government has also intervened in specific financial markets , including

Economic Stimulus: Issues and Policies

DTIC Science & Technology

2009-01-16

recession. To date, financial markets remain volatile, new losses have been announced at major financial institutions , and responses outside traditional...have sought to contain damages spilling over from housing and financial markets to the broader economy, including monetary policy, which is the...compensation in June and November of 2008. Over the past few months, the government has also intervened in specific financial markets , including financial

Health-related external cost assessment in Europe: methodological developments from ExternE to the 2013 Clean Air Policy Package.

PubMed

van der Kamp, Jonathan; Bachmann, Till M

2015-03-03

"Getting the prices right" through internalizing external costs is a guiding principle of environmental policy making, one recent example being the EU Clean Air Policy Package released at the end of 2013. It is supported by impact assessments, including monetary valuation of environmental and health damages. For over 20 years, related methodologies have been developed in Europe in the Externalities of Energy (ExternE) project series and follow-up activities. In this study, we aim at analyzing the main methodological developments over time from the 1990s until today with a focus on classical air pollution-induced human health damage costs. An up-to-date assessment including the latest European recommendations is also applied. Using a case from the energy sector, we identify major influencing parameters: differences in exposure modeling and related data lead to variations in damage costs of up to 21%; concerning risk assessment and monetary valuation, differences in assessing long-term exposure mortality risks together with assumptions on particle toxicity explain most of the observed changes in damage costs. These still debated influencing parameters deserve particular attention when damage costs are used to support environmental policy making.

How International Monetary Fund and World Bank policies undermine labor power and rights.

PubMed

Lloyd, Vincent; Weissman, Robert

2002-01-01

Based on reviews of hundreds of loan and project documents from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank, this article provides detailed evidentiary support for critics who have long claimed that the international financial institutions require Third World countries to adopt policies that harm the interests of working people. After reviewing loan documents between the IMF and World Bank and 26 countries, the authors show that the institutions' loan conditionalities include a variety of provisions that undermine labor rights, labor power, and tens of millions of workers' standard of living. These include downsizing of the civil service and privatization of government-owned enterprises; promotion of labor flexibility: the notion that firms should be able to hire and fire workers, or change terms and conditions of work, with minimal regulatory restrictions; mandated wage rate reductions, minimum-wage reductions or containment, and spreading the wage gap between government employees and managers; and pension reforms, including privatization, that cut social security benefits. These labor-related policies take place in the context of broader IMF and World Bank structural adjustment packages that emphasize trade liberalization, with macroeconomic policies that further advance corporate interests at the expense of labor.

Concordance between monetary and sexual delay discounting in men who have sex with men.

PubMed

Jones, Jeb; Guest, Jodie L; Sullivan, Patrick S; Kramer, Michael R; Jenness, Samuel M; Sales, Jessica M

2017-12-07

Background: Delay discounting has been found to be associated with numerous health-related outcomes, including risky sexual behaviour. To date, it is unclear whether delay discounting measured in different domains is associated within individuals. The goal of this study was to assess the concordance of monetary and sexual delay discounting in men who have sex with men. Methods: Participants completed an online survey, including the Monetary Choice Questionnaire and the Sexual Discounting Task. Linear regression models were used to assess the association between monetary and sexual discount rates. Results: Sexual discount rates did not predict monetary discount rates. There was a substantial amount of clustering of sexual discount rates, requiring sexual discounting data to be categorised. Conclusions: Monetary and sexual delay discounting are distinct processes that are not necessarily associated within individuals, and monetary delay discounting is not an appropriate proxy measure for sexual impulsivity. Data from the Sexual Discounting Task are typically rank-transformed for analysis. These data suggest that this might be an invalid method of analysis. Future studies should investigate the distribution of their data to determine if it is appropriate to analyse sexual discounting data as a continuous measure.

The Implications of China’s Economic Statecraft

DTIC Science & Technology

2012-03-19

the U.S. Monetary Policy , Finance and U.S. Treasury Securities Closely tied to the previously discussed issue of the renminbi exchange rate is the...largely because of its exchange rate policy . In order to limit the appreciation of the renminbi against the dollar, China must purchase U.S. dollars...additional 20 years to inch from one-third to one-half.63 Over-reliance on Foreign Trade. Closely related to its currency exchange policy issues, the

The financial crisis and global health: the International Monetary Fund's (IMF) policy response.

PubMed

Ruckert, Arne; Labonté, Ronald

2013-09-01

In this article, we interrogate the policy response of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to the global financial crisis, and discuss the likely global health implications, especially in low-income countries. In doing so, we ask if the IMF has meaningfully loosened its fiscal deficit targets in light of the economic challenges posed by the financial crisis and adjusted its macro-economic policy advice to this new reality; or has the rhetoric of counter-cyclical spending failed to translate into additional fiscal space for IMF loan-recipient countries, with negative health consequences? To answer these questions, we assess several post-crisis IMF lending agreements with countries requiring financial assistance, and draw upon recent academic studies and civil society reports examining policy conditionalities still being prescribed by the IMF. We also reference recent studies examining the health impacts of these conditionalities. We demonstrate that while the IMF has been somewhat more flexible in its crisis response than in previous episodes of financial upheaval, there has been no meaningful rethinking in the application of dominant neoliberal macro-economic policies. After showing some flexibility in the initial crisis response, the IMF is pushing for excessive contraction in most low and middle-income countries. We conclude that there remains a wide gap between the rhetoric and the reality of the IMF's policy and programming advice, with negative implications for global health.

Cost benefit analysis of two policy options for cannabis: status quo and legalisation.

PubMed

Shanahan, Marian; Ritter, Alison

2014-01-01

To date there has been limited analysis of the economic costs and benefits associated with cannabis legalisation. This study redresses this gap. A cost benefit analysis of two cannabis policy options the status quo (where cannabis use is illegal) and a legalised-regulated option was conducted. A cost benefit analysis was used to value the costs and benefits of the two policies in monetary terms. Costs and benefits of each policy option were classified into five categories (direct intervention costs, costs or cost savings to other agencies, benefits or lost benefits to the individual or the family, other impacts on third parties, and adverse or spill over events). The results are expressed as a net social benefit (NSB). The mean NSB per annum from Monte Carlo simulations (with the 5 and 95 percentiles) for the status quo was $294.6 million AUD ($201.1 to $392.7 million) not substantially different from the $234.2 million AUD ($136.4 to $331.1 million) for the legalised-regulated model which excludes government revenue as a benefit. When government revenue is included, the NSB for legalised-regulated is higher than for status quo. Sensitivity analyses demonstrate the significant impact of educational attainment and wellbeing as drivers for the NSB result. Examining the percentiles around the two policy options, there appears to be no difference between the NSB for these two policy options. Economic analyses are essential for good public policy, providing information about the extent to which one policy is substantially economically favourable over another. In cannabis policy, for these two options this does not appear to be the case.

Cost Benefit Analysis of Two Policy Options for Cannabis: Status Quo and Legalisation

PubMed Central

Shanahan, Marian; Ritter, Alison

2014-01-01

Aims To date there has been limited analysis of the economic costs and benefits associated with cannabis legalisation. This study redresses this gap. A cost benefit analysis of two cannabis policy options the status quo (where cannabis use is illegal) and a legalised–regulated option was conducted. Method A cost benefit analysis was used to value the costs and benefits of the two policies in monetary terms. Costs and benefits of each policy option were classified into five categories (direct intervention costs, costs or cost savings to other agencies, benefits or lost benefits to the individual or the family, other impacts on third parties, and adverse or spill over events). The results are expressed as a net social benefit (NSB). Findings The mean NSB per annum from Monte Carlo simulations (with the 5 and 95 percentiles) for the status quo was $294.6 million AUD ($201.1 to $392.7 million) not substantially different from the $234.2 million AUD ($136.4 to $331.1 million) for the legalised–regulated model which excludes government revenue as a benefit. When government revenue is included, the NSB for legalised–regulated is higher than for status quo. Sensitivity analyses demonstrate the significant impact of educational attainment and wellbeing as drivers for the NSB result. Conclusion Examining the percentiles around the two policy options, there appears to be no difference between the NSB for these two policy options. Economic analyses are essential for good public policy, providing information about the extent to which one policy is substantially economically favourable over another. In cannabis policy, for these two options this does not appear to be the case. PMID:24755942

Research as due diligence: What can supply-side interventions accomplish and at what cost?

PubMed

Greenfield, Victoria A; Paoli, Letizia

2017-03-01

Supply-side interventions, which we define as laws, regulations, enforcement activities, and other measures that extend from drug production to dealing, feature prominently in drug policy and related expenditures internationally, but have undergone relatively little rigorous, empirical evaluation. We argue for filling the knowledge gap and highlight three areas of particular concern: first, the policy community knows less than it should about the efficacy of supply-side interventions; second, it lacks sufficient understanding of the scope, magnitude, and practical implications of adverse consequences that accompany such interventions; third, it lacks tools to gauge the balance of benefits and costs, both monetary and non-monetary. Our interest has been in developing a harm-based approach to address these concerns and we put forward a "harm assessment framework" for that purpose. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

The Regime Shift Associated with the 2004–2008 US Housing Market Bubble

PubMed Central

Cheong, Siew Ann

2016-01-01

The Subprime Bubble preceding the Subprime Crisis of 2008 was fueled by risky lending practices, manifesting in the form of a large abrupt increase in the proportion of subprime mortgages issued in the US. This event also coincided with critical slowing down signals associated with instability, which served as evidence of a regime shift or phase transition in the US housing market. Here, we show that the US housing market underwent a regime shift between alternate stable states consistent with the observed critical slowing down signals. We modeled this regime shift on a universal transition path and validated the model by estimating when the bubble burst. Additionally, this model reveals loose monetary policy to be a plausible cause of the phase transition, implying that the bubble might have been deflatable by a timely tightening of monetary policy. PMID:27583633

Forecasting of palm oil price in Malaysia using linear and nonlinear methods

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nor, Abu Hassan Shaari Md; Sarmidi, Tamat; Hosseinidoust, Ehsan

2014-09-01

The first question that comes to the mind is: "How can we predict the palm oil price accurately?" This question is the authorities, policy makers and economist's question for a long period of time. The first reason is that in the recent years Malaysia showed a comparative advantage in palm oil production and has become top producer and exporter in the world. Secondly, palm oil price plays significant role in government budget and represents important source of income for Malaysia, which potentially can influence the magnitude of monetary policies and eventually have an impact on inflation. Thirdly, knowledge on the future trends would be helpful in the planning and decision making procedures and will generate precise fiscal and monetary policy. Daily data on palm oil prices along with the ARIMA models, neural networks and fuzzy logic systems are employed in this paper. Empirical findings indicate that the dynamic neural network of NARX and the hybrid system of ANFIS provide higher accuracy than the ARIMA and static neural network for forecasting the palm oil price in Malaysia.

Economic Stimulus: Issues and Policies

DTIC Science & Technology

2009-04-03

have sought to contain damages spilling over from housing and financial markets to the broader economy, including monetary policy, which is the...compensation in June and November of 2008. Over the past few months, the government has also intervened in specific financial markets , including financial ...into the financial markets has been passed to avoid the spread of financial instability into the broader market but there are disadvantages

Economic Stimulus: Issues and Policies

DTIC Science & Technology

2009-01-23

have sought to contain damages spilling over from housing and financial markets to the broader economy, including monetary policy, which is the...compensation in June and November of 2008. Over the past few months, the government has also intervened in specific financial markets , including financial ...intervention into the financial markets has been passed to avoid the spread of financial instability into the broader market but there are disadvantages

The Global Financial Crisis: The Role of the International Monetary Fund (IMF)

DTIC Science & Technology

2009-02-04

of Europe and create a set of international institutions to resolve many of the economic issues—such as protectionist trade policies and unstable...lender of last resort for countries afflicted by such crises. Current IMF operations and responsibilities can be grouped into three areas : surveillance...lending, and technical assistance. Surveillance involves monitoring economic and financial developments and providing policy advice to member

The Budget of the United States Government. Department of Defense Extract for Fiscal Years 1988 and 1989

DTIC Science & Technology

1989-01-01

due simply to chance—it is the result of successful policies adopted during the past 6 years. Disposable personal income is at an all-time high and...of the 7 previous postwar expansions in duration, and leading economic indicators point to continued growth ahead. Our policies have worked. Let me...relieving the economy of excessive regulation and paperwork; and • supporting a sound and stable monetary policy . BUDGET SUMMARY (In billions of

12 CFR 614.4900 - Foreign exchange.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

... Cooperatives and Agricultural Credit Banks Financing International Trade § 614.4900 Foreign exchange. (a... international financial activities. The bank's policies should include established guidelines for: (1) Net... Department of the Treasury pertaining to currency exchange activities and international transfers of monetary...

Monetary and Fiscal Policy Interactions in the Euro Area

DTIC Science & Technology

2004-03-01

Balassa - Samuelson -Effekt, Nr. 3/2002, erschienen in: Stefan Reitz (Hg.): Theoretische und wirtschaftspolitische Aspekte der internatio- nalen Integration...156, 2000, S. 646-660. Friihere Diskussionsbeitriige zur Finanzwissenschaft Josten, Stefan, Crime, Inequality, and Economic Growth. A Classical Argument

Monetary burden of health impacts of air pollution in Mumbai, India: implications for public health policy.

PubMed

Patankar, A M; Trivedi, P L

2011-03-01

Mumbai, a mega city with a population of more than 12 million, is experiencing acute air pollution due to commercial activity, a boom in construction and vehicular traffic. This study was undertaken to investigate the link between air pollution and health impacts for Mumbai, and estimate the monetary burden of these impacts. Cross-sectional data were subjected to logistic regression to analyse the link between air pollution and health impacts, and the cost of illness approach was used to measure the monetary burden of these impacts. Data collected by the Environmental Pollution Research Centre at King Edward Memorial Hospital in Mumbai were analysed using logistic regression to investigate the link between air pollution and morbidity impacts. The monetary burden of morbidity was estimated through the cost of illness approach. For this purpose, information on treatment costs and foregone earnings due to illness was obtained through the household survey and interviews with medical practitioners. Particulate matter (PM(10)) and nitrogen dioxide (NO(2)) emerged as the critical pollutants for a range of health impacts, including symptoms such as cough, breathlessness, wheezing and cold, and illnesses such as allergic rhinitis and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). This study developed the concentration-response coefficients for these health impacts. The total monetary burden of these impacts, including personal burden, government expenditure and societal cost, is estimated at 4522.96 million Indian Rupees (INR) or US$ 113.08 million for a 50-μg/m(3) increase in PM(10), and INR 8723.59 million or US$ 218.10 million for a similar increase in NO(2). The estimated monetary burden of health impacts associated with air pollution in Mumbai mainly comprises out-of-pocket expenses of city residents. These expenses form a sizable proportion of the annual income of individuals, particularly those belonging to poor households. These findings have implications for public health policy, particularly accessibility and affordability of health care for poor households in Mumbai. The study provides a rationale for strengthening the public health services in the city to make them more accessible to poor households, especially those living in the slums of Mumbai. Copyright © 2010 The Royal Society for Public Health. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The adverse effects of International Monetary Fund programs on the health and education workforce.

PubMed

Marphatia, Akanksha A

2010-01-01

Decades of underinvestment in public sectors and in teachers and health workers have adversely affected the health and educational outcomes of women. This is partly explained by a general lack of resources. However, the amount a country can spend on social sectors, including teachers and health workers, is also determined by its macroeconomic framework, which is set in agreement with the International Monetary Fund. There is now ample evidence of how IMF-imposed wage ceilings have constrained the ability of governments to hire adequate numbers of trained professionals and increase investment in social sectors. Though the IMF has recently removed wage ceilings from its basket of conditions, little change has taken place to ensure that women are better supported by macroeconomic policies or, at the least, are less adversely affected. Thus far, the IMF's neoliberal policies have either ignored gender concerns or instrumentalized equity, health, and education to support economic development. Unless macroeconomic policies are more flexible and deliberately take into account the different needs of women and men, social outcomes will continue to be poor and inequitable. Governments must pursue alternative, feminist policies that put the goals of social equity at the center of macroeconomic policy. These policies can facilitate increased investment in education and health care, which are vital measures for achieving gender equality and providing both women and men with the skills and training needed to soften the impact of the current economic crisis.

First approaches to the monetary impact of environmental health disturbances in Germany.

PubMed

Haucke, Florian; Brückner, Ulrike

2010-01-01

This article aims to describe essential conditions and starting-points for the monetary evaluation of environmentally attributable diseases. Furthermore, a cost calculation within a scenario analysis is conducted for Germany. To calculate the costs of environmental health effects we chose a disease-specific perspective. The national statistics of the Federal Statistical Office and the World Health Report burden of disease estimates were used to identify the most important disease categories for Germany. Based on an extensive literature research in computerized databases and the publications of national and international institutions, available costs of illness studies for Germany as well as environmental attributable fractions (EAFs) were identified. Based on these data environmental health costs were calculated with a top-down approach. Direct and indirect environmental costs of illness add up to 15-62 billion euro(2006) per year depending on the specific scenario. From our results a tentative scheme is deduced of how the monetary environmental burden of specific diseases is composed and how it can be assigned to major environmental exposures and economic sectors which can be used in setting intervention priorities and evaluating intervention efficiency. Within this article, we were able to calculate environmental health costs for Germany based on available, easy to access data and deduce implications for environmental policy decision-making. However, there are restrictions in data quality, as the aetiology of some diseases with respect to environmental impacts is not very well documented and data has not been collected particularly for Germany.

44 CFR 206.206 - Appeals.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... the Regional Administrator. The grantee shall review and evaluate all subgrantee appeals before submission to the Regional Administrator. The grantee may make grantee-related appeals to the Regional... the monetary figure in dispute and the provisions in Federal law, regulation, or policy with which the...

44 CFR 206.440 - Appeals.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... the Regional Administrator. The grantee shall review and evaluate all subgrantee appeals before submission to the Regional Administrator. The grantee may make grantee-related appeals to the Regional... the monetary figure in dispute and the provisions in Federal law, regulation, or policy with which the...

Policy Governance Revisited.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Price, William J.

2001-01-01

An administrator trainer/former superintendent's experience suggests that corporate governance models don't fit the reality of school governance in many districts. Elected board members define their roles differently than their business counterparts and derive little or no monetary benefit from public service. The "new breed" resemble…

Education for Democracy.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hodder, Janyne M.

1996-01-01

Discusses the problems related to decreased spending for education. Argues in favor of greater accountability for two reasons: policy must be shaped through something other than monetary importance of a given lobby group; and the education debate should be public and democratic, engaging the entire citizenry. (JOW)

Monetary Incentives and Organizational Change in Mexican Higher Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Moreno, Carlos Ivan

2012-01-01

This dissertation explores and explains the organizational responses of Mexican public state universities to an ambitious incentive-based policy created by the federal government in 2001: "The Integral Program for Institutional Strengthening" ("PIFI"). Drawing upon literature on organizational-environmental relationships and on…

Monetary Diet Cost, Diet Quality, and Parental Socioeconomic Status in Spanish Youth.

PubMed

Schröder, Helmut; Gomez, Santiago F; Ribas-Barba, Lourdes; Pérez-Rodrigo, Carmen; Bawaked, Rowaedh Ahmed; Fíto, Montserrat; Serra-Majem, Lluis

2016-01-01

Using a food-based analysis, healthy dietary patterns in adults are more expensive than less healthy ones; studies are needed in youth. Therefore, the objective of the present study was to determine relationships between monetary daily diet cost, diet quality, and parental socioeconomic status. Data were obtained from a representative national sample of 3534 children and young people in Spain, aged 2 to 24 years. Dietary assessment was performed with a 24-hour recall. Mediterranean diet adherence was measured by the KIDMED questionnaire. Average food cost was calculated from official Spanish government data. Monetary daily diet cost was expressed as euros per day (€/d) and euros per day standardized to a 1000kcal diet (€/1000kcal/d). Mean monetary daily diet cost was 3.16±1.57€/d (1.56±0.72€/1000kcal/d). Socioeconomic status was positively associated with monetary daily diet cost and diet quality measured by the KIDMED index (€/d and €/1000kcal/d, p<0.019). High Mediterranean diet adherence (KIDMED score 8-12) was 0.71 €/d (0.28€/1000kcal/d) more expensive than low compliance (KIDMED score 0-3). Analysis for nonlinear association between the KIDMED index and monetary daily diet cost per1000kcal showed no further cost increases beyond a KIDMED score of 8 (linear p<0.001; nonlinear p = 0.010). Higher monetary daily diet cost is associated with healthy eating in Spanish youth. Higher socioeconomic status is a determinant for higher monetary daily diet cost and quality.

Non-monetary valuation using Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis: Sensitivity of additive aggregation methods to scaling and compensation assumptions

EPA Science Inventory

Analytical methods for Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis (MCDA) support the non-monetary valuation of ecosystem services for environmental decision making. Many published case studies transform ecosystem service outcomes into a common metric and aggregate the outcomes to set land ...

A Prospective Analysis of the Costs, Benefits, and Impacts of U.S. Renewable Portfolio Standards

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Mai, Trieu; Wiser, Ryan; Barbose, Galen

This is the third in a series of reports exploring the costs, benefits, and other impacts of state renewable portfolio standards (RPS). This report evaluates the effects of renewable electricity used to meet aggregate RPS demand growth prospectively, over the period 2015-2050, under both current RPS policies as well as a potential expansion of those policies. Relying on a well-vetted suite of methods, the report quantifies: the costs to the electric system and retail electricity price impacts; the potential societal benefits associated with reduced greenhouse gas emissions, air pollution emissions, and water use; workforce requirements and economic development effects; andmore » consumer savings associated with reduced natural gas prices. The study quantifies these effects in both physical and monetary terms, where possible, at both national and regional levels, and characterizes key uncertainties. The two prior studies in the series have focused, instead, on the historical costs and on the historical benefits and impacts of state RPS policies.« less

School attributes, household characteristics, and demand for schooling: A case study of rural Peru

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ilon, Lynn; Moock, Peter

1991-12-01

Educational expansion, long a goal of many LDCs, has become a difficult policy to pursue. Growing populations, shrinking national incomes and higher marginal costs of schooling as schooling reaches more rural dwellers have caused policy makers to take a hard look at factors which influence educational demand and expansion. This paper examines the case of Peru where rural areas have yet to attain the nearly universal enrollment of urban areas. The study examines 2500 rural households to explore reasons why children do not attend school, drop out of school, and begin school at later ages. The study finds that the monetary costs of schools (fees and other costs) have a substantial influence on parental decisions regarding school attendance and continuation. Sensitivity analysis reveals that mother's education has a bearing on their children's educational participation, particularly in low-income households. Sensitivity analysis also reveals that school attendance of low income and female children are most strongly affected by simulated changes in school fees.

Continuing inflation leading to erosion of purchasing power, unemployment and constraint of capital availability

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1975-01-01

The persistence of the current period of inflation and its apparent resistance to traditional fiscal and monetary policies implies a circular behavior that becomes increasingly impervious to ameliorative action. This behavior is attributed to: A concurrent industrial boom among industrialized nations; price and production policies; worldwide reductions in agricultural products; international shortages of natural resources and raw materials; and rise in multinational firms and merchant banking.

Managing the downturn

Treesearch

Urs Buehlmann; Matt Bumgardner; Al Schuler; Jeff Crissey

2008-01-01

After years of seemingly unrestricted growth, the housing market has turned and is deteriorating fast. Housing construction and sales have slowed dramatically, foreclosures have skyrocketed and mortgage rates have increased modestly despite the Federal Reserve's easing of monetary policy. Given the increasingly high dependency of the wood products industry on...

77 FR 47070 - Withdrawal of the Commission Policy Statement on Monetary Equitable Remedies in Competition Cases

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-08-07

... that disgorgement should not be sought in cases of first impression. Whether conduct is common or novel.... As to the first factor, rarity or clarity of the violation is not an element considered by the courts...

A Golden Opportunity for Currency Competition.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cobb, Joe

1983-01-01

The Federal Reserve makes mistakes in monetary policy and causes business cycles. A free market solution to the failure of central economic planning is competition in money and banking. A second currency, the "Gold Eagle," should be issued and allowed to compete with the dollar. (SR)

49 CFR 387.29 - Definitions.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

.... Financial responsibility the financial reserves (e.g., insurance policies or surety bonds) sufficient to... motor carrier. Insurance premium the monetary sum an insured pays an insurer for acceptance of liability... bench or split bench seat in a passenger car, truck or multi-purpose passenger vehicle with a gross...

14 CFR 1261.316 - Policy.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... damages against that employee personally, for any verdict, judgment, appeal bond, or other monetary award..., appeal bond, or award was taken within the scope of his or her employment and that such indemnification... documentation including copies of the verdict, judgment, appeal bond, award, or settlement proposal to the...

14 CFR 1261.316 - Policy.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... damages against that employee personally, for any verdict, judgment, appeal bond, or other monetary award..., appeal bond, or award was taken within the scope of his or her employment and that such indemnification... documentation including copies of the verdict, judgment, appeal bond, award, or settlement proposal to the...

German physicians "on strike"--shedding light on the roots of physician dissatisfaction.

PubMed

Janus, Katharina; Amelung, Volker Eric; Gaitanides, Michael; Schwartz, Friedrich Wilhelm

2007-08-01

Over the past few years, students in Germany have been dropping out of medical school at increasing rates, and the number of physicians choosing to work abroad or in non-medical professions has been growing. A recent study (the "Ramboll Study") commissioned by the Health Ministry concluded that German physicians' dissatisfaction with existing monetary and non-monetary incentive systems during training and subsequent practice was the main reason for these trends. Among those physicians who have remained in the workforce, there is a similar dissatisfaction, reflected in part by a general strike in 2006 by German physicians in favour of higher wages and better working conditions. To better understand the decision-making process of physicians which is highly determined by the satisfaction they experience in their work life and to extract the factors that contribute to their satisfaction. We surveyed all physicians who spent more than 50% of their time in patient care (and less than 50% in research) at the teaching hospital of the Hannover Medical School (839, after exclusion of pre-test participants). Based on existing satisfaction studies, we designed a self-administered questionnaire that contained 28 items, including items measuring several dimensions of physician job satisfaction; the monetary and non-monetary incentives the physicians experienced in the recent past; other job-related potential confounding factors and socio-demographic questions. Respondents were asked to rate each job satisfaction item on five-point Likert scales regarding both satisfaction with and importance of the item. Data were analysed using descriptive statistics, factor and correlation analyses. Our data suggest that non-monetary factors are important determinants of physician job satisfaction, perhaps more important than monetary incentives that may augment or reduce physicians' base incomes. Factor analysis revealed seven principal factors of which decision-making and recognition, continuous education and job security, administrative tasks and collegial relationships were highly significant, specialized technology and patient contact were significant and research and teaching and international exchange were not significant in contributing to physician job satisfaction. This study sheds light to the underlying factors that contribute to physician job satisfaction in Germany, and it provides insights into the reasons for physicians leaving medical practice. In order for a health system to recruit and retain physicians, it may be necessary for a system's physician strategy to shift from focusing primarily on hard, monetary and compensation-related factors to a broader focus that incorporates the soft, non-monetary factors. The implementation of policies and management practices that reduce the time burden on physicians, and enhance physicians' participation in the development of patient care management processes and in managerial decisions that affect patient care appears to be crucial. The result will be increased job satisfaction among physicians, which is important to the future recruitment and retention of doctors, as well as to the productivity and quality of the services provided by this essential component of our medical care systems.

Determining Preferences Related to HIV Counselling and Testing Services Among High School Learners in KwaZulu-Natal: A Discrete Choice Experiment.

PubMed

Strauss, Michael; George, Gavin L; Rhodes, Bruce D

2018-01-01

A key strategy of the South African national response to HIV is the scale-up of HIV counselling and testing (HCT) in the 15-49 years age group. The integrated school health policy aims to guide the roll out of youth-friendly health services including the provision of HCT in schools. Using a discrete choice experiment to examine preferences regarding the attributes of HCT service packages, this study identifies barriers to and facilitators of HCT among high school learners. Monetary considerations were found to have the strongest effect of any attribute on choice, whilst confidentiality was found to be a primary concern for learners considering HCT. Policy makers and service providers must ensure that confidentiality is maintained, and could consider using monetary incentives as a way of increasing uptake of HCT. Programmes designed to reduce social stigma and improve education and knowledge dissemination around HCT and HIV, are vital in creating demand for HCT and changing attitudes among young people.

Understanding the essentials of economic evaluation.

PubMed

Schmid, G P

1995-01-01

Economic evaluation (EE) answers the following simple question: "From which course of action do we get the most value for our money?" We ask this question because resources are always limited, i.e., we never have enough money to do all the things we would like to do. Three types of economic evaluations are used: cost-effectiveness analysis, cost-utility analysis, and cost-benefit analysis. Although all involve a monetary and outcome comparison of two or more courses of action, the methodologies and outcomes of each type vary, making each one particularly suited for specific and different indications. Although the performance of an EE may be complex, its concept is intuitively simple. Understanding the basic elements of economic analysis is more and more important to all health-care providers because health-care policy makers at all levels are increasingly using EE for allocating resources.

Monetary Diet Cost, Diet Quality, and Parental Socioeconomic Status in Spanish Youth

PubMed Central

Ribas-Barba, Lourdes; Pérez-Rodrigo, Carmen; Bawaked, Rowaedh Ahmed; Fíto, Montserrat; Serra-Majem, Lluis

2016-01-01

Background Using a food-based analysis, healthy dietary patterns in adults are more expensive than less healthy ones; studies are needed in youth. Therefore, the objective of the present study was to determine relationships between monetary daily diet cost, diet quality, and parental socioeconomic status. Design and Methods Data were obtained from a representative national sample of 3534 children and young people in Spain, aged 2 to 24 years. Dietary assessment was performed with a 24-hour recall. Mediterranean diet adherence was measured by the KIDMED questionnaire. Average food cost was calculated from official Spanish government data. Monetary daily diet cost was expressed as euros per day (€/d) and euros per day standardized to a 1000kcal diet (€/1000kcal/d). Results Mean monetary daily diet cost was 3.16±1.57€/d (1.56±0.72€/1000kcal/d). Socioeconomic status was positively associated with monetary daily diet cost and diet quality measured by the KIDMED index (€/d and €/1000kcal/d, p<0.019). High Mediterranean diet adherence (KIDMED score 8–12) was 0.71 €/d (0.28€/1000kcal/d) more expensive than low compliance (KIDMED score 0–3). Analysis for nonlinear association between the KIDMED index and monetary daily diet cost per1000kcal showed no further cost increases beyond a KIDMED score of 8 (linear p<0.001; nonlinear p = 0.010). Conclusion Higher monetary daily diet cost is associated with healthy eating in Spanish youth. Higher socioeconomic status is a determinant for higher monetary daily diet cost and quality. PMID:27622518

Fallen Heroes of 9/11 Act

THOMAS, 112th Congress

Rep. Shuster, Bill [R-PA-9

2011-09-07

House - 10/04/2011 Referred to the Subcommittee on Domestic Monetary Policy and Technology. (All Actions) Notes: For further action, see H.R.3421, which became Public Law 112-76 on 12/23/2011. Tracker: This bill has the status IntroducedHere are the steps for Status of Legislation:

24 CFR 576.102 - Emergency shelter component.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

..., dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking, including services offered by rape crisis centers and... Real Property Acquisition Policies Act of 1970 (URA). Eligible costs are the costs of providing URA... reasonable monetary value assigned to the building, such as the value assigned by an independent real estate...

In Praise of Monetary Motivation.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Piamonte, John S.

1979-01-01

Although management has built remuneration policies on the belief that money does not motivate personnel, the author states that the best way to encourage high performance is still money if administered correctly. He discusses behavior theories, incentive/contingency principles, the weaknesses of many merit pay schemes, and factors in employee…

Banking Structure and Monetary Policy: New Wine in Old Bottles.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hacche, John

1989-01-01

Provides an extension of the basic banking model used in introductory economics courses. This expanded model introduces the concept of banking capital and reserves, and includes the relationship existing between current issues and banking structure and money supply growth. Provides worksheet exercises and answers. (LS)

Analysis of the Effect of Zero-Emission Vehicle Policies: State-Level Incentives and the California Zero-Emission Vehicle Regulations

EIA Publications

2017-01-01

The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) contracted with Leidos to analyze the effect of California zero-emission vehicle regulations (ZEVR) and state-level incentives on zero-emission and plug-in hybrid vehicle sales. Leidos worked to review the effect of state-level incentives by: *Conducting a review on the available incentives on zero-emission vehicles and related transitional vehicle types such has plug-in hybrid electric vehicles *Quantifying the effective monetary value of these different incentives *Evaluating the combined values of these incentives in each state on an example sale of a Nissan Leaf and Chevrolet Volt

Financial Management: DOD Needs to Clarify Its General Gift Fund Policies to Provide for Effective Oversight

DTIC Science & Technology

2009-05-27

Representatives Subject: Financial Management: DOD Needs to Clarify Its General Gift Fund Policies to Provide for Effective Oversight From fiscal...year 2005 through fiscal year 2008, the military services received about $295 million in monetary and nonmonetary gifts from individuals and...organizations wishing to donate gifts to the Department of Defense (DOD).1 Section 2601(a) of Title 10, U.S. Code is a long-standing authority under which

Housing demand or money supply? A new Keynesian dynamic stochastic general equilibrium model on China's housing market fluctuations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wen, Xing-Chun; He, Ling-Yun

2015-08-01

There is a bitter controversy over what drives the housing price in China in the existing literature. In this paper, we investigate the underlying driving force behind housing price fluctuations in China, especially focusing on the role of housing demand shock with that of money supply shock in explaining housing price movements, by a new Keynesian dynamic stochastic general equilibrium model. Empirical results suggest that it is housing demand, instead of money supply, that mainly drives China's housing price movements. Relevant policy implication is further discussed, namely, whether to consider the housing price fluctuations in the conduct of monetary policy. By means of the policy simulations, we find that a real house price-augmented money supply rule is a better monetary policy for China's economy stabilization. 1. Investment refers to fixed capital investment. 2. Housing price refers to national average housing price. Quarterly data on housing price during the period of our work are not directly available. However, monthly data of the value of sales on housing and sale volume on housing can be directly obtained from National Bureau of Statistics of China. We add up the monthly data and calculate one quarter's housing price by dividing the value of housing sales by its sale volume in one quarter. 3. M2 means the broad money supply in China.

The impact of the International Monetary Fund's macroeconomic policies on the AIDS pandemic.

PubMed

Baker, Brook K

2010-01-01

Expansion of funding for HIV/AIDS, especially treatment, is under attack over concerns about cost effectiveness and financial constraints. The International Monetary Fund is deeply implicated in the history of the AIDS pandemic, the underlying weakness of health systems, and the ideology of constrained resources that underlies most attacks on AIDS funding. The IMF imposed structural violence on developing countries in the 1980s and 1990s through neoliberal and macroeconomic reforms that intensified individual and communal vulnerability to infection and dismantled already weak health systems. This same macroeconomic fundamentalism has recently been repackaged and renamed. IMF fundamentalist policies continue to prioritize low inflation, constricted government spending, robust foreign currency reserves, and prompt repayment of debt at the expense of investments in health and more expansionary, pro-growth and job-creation policies. Several recent surveys have concluded that the IMF reluctantly relaxed overly restrictive policy prescriptions in response to the global economic crisis, but this relaxation was temporary at best and only extended to countries previously acceding to IMF orthodoxy. AIDS activists are campaigning for billions of dollars to fulfill the promise of universal access. If IMF pressures persist, developing countries will continue to undermine the additionality of donor health financing by substituting donor for domestic financing, refusing to invest in recurrent costs for medicines and health workers, and neglecting needed investments in health infrastructure and health system strengthening.

An Efficient, Noniterative Method of Identifying the Cost-Effectiveness Frontier.

PubMed

Suen, Sze-chuan; Goldhaber-Fiebert, Jeremy D

2016-01-01

Cost-effectiveness analysis aims to identify treatments and policies that maximize benefits subject to resource constraints. However, the conventional process of identifying the efficient frontier (i.e., the set of potentially cost-effective options) can be algorithmically inefficient, especially when considering a policy problem with many alternative options or when performing an extensive suite of sensitivity analyses for which the efficient frontier must be found for each. Here, we describe an alternative one-pass algorithm that is conceptually simple, easier to implement, and potentially faster for situations that challenge the conventional approach. Our algorithm accomplishes this by exploiting the relationship between the net monetary benefit and the cost-effectiveness plane. To facilitate further evaluation and use of this approach, we also provide scripts in R and Matlab that implement our method and can be used to identify efficient frontiers for any decision problem. © The Author(s) 2015.

An Efficient, Non-iterative Method of Identifying the Cost-Effectiveness Frontier

PubMed Central

Suen, Sze-chuan; Goldhaber-Fiebert, Jeremy D.

2015-01-01

Cost-effectiveness analysis aims to identify treatments and policies that maximize benefits subject to resource constraints. However, the conventional process of identifying the efficient frontier (i.e., the set of potentially cost-effective options) can be algorithmically inefficient, especially when considering a policy problem with many alternative options or when performing an extensive suite of sensitivity analyses for which the efficient frontier must be found for each. Here, we describe an alternative one-pass algorithm that is conceptually simple, easier to implement, and potentially faster for situations that challenge the conventional approach. Our algorithm accomplishes this by exploiting the relationship between the net monetary benefit and the cost-effectiveness plane. To facilitate further evaluation and use of this approach, we additionally provide scripts in R and Matlab that implement our method and can be used to identify efficient frontiers for any decision problem. PMID:25926282

Reconstructing Economics in Light of the 2007-? Financial Crisis

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Friedman, Benjamin M.

2010-01-01

The lessons learned from the recent financial crisis should significantly reshape the economics profession's thinking, including, importantly, what we teach our students. Five such lessons are that we live in a monetary economy and therefore aggregate demand and policies that affect aggregate demand are determinants of real economic outcomes; that…

JPRS Report, East Asia, Southeast Asia.

DTIC Science & Technology

1988-04-11

forex reserve has surged, our policy is to continue creating monetary stability, espe- cially during the present tight money situation, which is...were in the range of 6.5-7.0 per cent in a week of continuing tight money supply. In the forex market, premiums for one-month dollar forward deals

31 CFR 132.6 - Non-exclusive examples of policies and procedures.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... Finance MONETARY OFFICES, DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY PROHIBITION ON FUNDING OF UNLAWFUL INTERNET GAMBLING... determination regarding the risk the commercial customer presents of engaging in an Internet gambling business... that the commercial customer presents a minimal risk of engaging in an Internet gambling business. (ii...

31 CFR 132.6 - Non-exclusive examples of policies and procedures.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... Finance MONETARY OFFICES, DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY PROHIBITION ON FUNDING OF UNLAWFUL INTERNET GAMBLING... determination regarding the risk the commercial customer presents of engaging in an Internet gambling business... that the commercial customer presents a minimal risk of engaging in an Internet gambling business. (ii...

31 CFR 132.6 - Non-exclusive examples of policies and procedures.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... Finance MONETARY OFFICES, DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY PROHIBITION ON FUNDING OF UNLAWFUL INTERNET GAMBLING... determination regarding the risk the commercial customer presents of engaging in an Internet gambling business... that the commercial customer presents a minimal risk of engaging in an Internet gambling business. (ii...

7 CFR 1.501 - Policy on employee indemnification.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... her employment, giving rise to a verdict, judgment, or other monetary award rendered against the... her discretion, that the conduct giving rise to such verdict, judgment, or award was taken within the... United States. (c) The Department of Agriculture may pay for the settlement or compromise of a personal...

Interactions Between Monetary and Fiscal Policies in the Euro Area

DTIC Science & Technology

2006-03-01

185-210. "* Haucap, Justus, Uwe Pauly & Christian Wey, Collective Wage Setting When Wages Are Generally Binding: An Antitrust Perspective, Nr. 106 (2000...Generations Model, Nr. 8/1999. "* Henning, Andreas & Wolfgang Greiner, Organknappheit im Transplantationswesen - L6sungs- ansditze aus 6konomischer Sicht, Nr. 7

31 CFR 132.6 - Non-exclusive examples of policies and procedures.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... Finance MONETARY OFFICES, DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY PROHIBITION ON FUNDING OF UNLAWFUL INTERNET GAMBLING... determination regarding the risk the commercial customer presents of engaging in an Internet gambling business... that the commercial customer presents a minimal risk of engaging in an Internet gambling business. (ii...

76 FR 5250 - Departmental Offices; Proposed Collection; Comment Request

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-01-28

.... The Office of International Monetary and Financial Policy within the Department of the Treasury is soliciting comments concerning Extension of Foreign Currency Form FC-1 (OMB No. 1505-0012) Weekly Consolidated Foreign Currency Report of Major Market Participants, Extension of Form FC-2 (OMB No. 1505-0010...

MONETARY POLICY AND THE FINANCING OF HIGHER EDUCATION.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

SWAN, ELIOT J.

COMMERCIAL BANKS ARE EXPECTED TO PLAY AN INCREASINGLY IMPORTANT ROLE IN THE EXTENSION OF CREDIT UNDER THE HIGHER EDUCATION ACT OF 1965, AND BANKERS' ASSOCIATIONS ARE ACTIVELY PARTICIPATING IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF THIS PROGRAM. HOWEVER, THE EXTENT OF COMMERCIAL BANK PARTICIPATION CANNOT BE ENTIRELY INSULATED FROM THE BROADER PROBLEMS ASSOCIATED WITH…

Iran Transparency and Accountability Act of 2011

THOMAS, 112th Congress

Rep. Deutch, Theodore E. [D-FL-19

2011-02-16

House - 03/23/2011 Referred to the Subcommittee on International Monetary Policy and Trade. (All Actions) Notes: For further action, see H.R.1905, which became Public Law 112-158 on 8/10/2012. Tracker: This bill has the status IntroducedHere are the steps for Status of Legislation:

Financing health development projects: some macro-economic considerations.

PubMed

Sorkin, A L

1986-01-01

The paper briefly discusses the importance of macro-economic policy in health sector financing. The ways in which monetary and fiscal policy (macro-economic policy) affect interest rates, price levels and aggregate output are presented. The main portion of the paper considers a variety of methods for public financing of health and development projects. These approaches are analyzed in light of distributional and efficiency considerations. One way of increasing health sector resources is through reallocation from other sectors of the economy. The potential for redistribution from the defense to the health service industry is briefly considered.

On dynamics in a Keynesian model of monetary stabilization policy with debt effect

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Asada, Toichiro; Demetrian, Michal; Zimka, Rudolf

2018-05-01

In this paper, a four-dimensional model of flexible prices with the central bank's stabilization policy, describing the development of the firms' private debt, the output, the expected rate of inflation and the rate of interest is analyzed. Questions concerning the existence of limit cycles around its normal equilibrium point are investigated. The bifurcation equation is found. The formulae for the calculation of its coefficients are gained. A numerical example is presented by means of numerical simulations.

[Economic effects of integrated RIS-PACS solution in the university environment].

PubMed

Kröger, M; Nissen-Meyer, S; Wetekam, V; Reiser, M

1999-04-01

The goal of the current article is to demonstrate how qualitative and monetary effects resulting from an integrated RIS/PACS installation can be evaluated. First of all, the system concept of a RIS/PACS solution for a university hospital is defined and described. Based on this example, a generic method for the evaluation of qualitative and monetary effects as well as associated risks is depicted and demonstrated. To this end, qualitative analyses, investment calculations and risk analysis are employed. The sample analysis of a RIS/PACS solution specially designed for a university hospital demonstrates positive qualitative and monetary effects of the system. Under ideal conditions the payoff time of the investments is reached after 4 years of an assumed 8 years effective life of the system. Furthermore, under conservative assumptions, the risk analysis shows a probability of 0% for realising a negative net present value at the end of the payoff time period. It should be pointed out that the positive result of this sample analysis will not necessarily apply to other clinics or hospitals. However, the same methods may be used for the individual evaluation of the qualitative and monetary effects of a RIS/PACS installation in any clinic.

Manual-control Analysis Applied to the Money-supply Control Task

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wingrove, R. C.

1984-01-01

The recent procedure implemented by the Federal Reserve Board to control the money supply is formulated in the form of a tracking model as used in the study of manual-control tasks. Using this model, an analysis is made to determine the effect of monetary control on the fluctuations in economic output. The results indicate that monetary control can reduce the amplitude of fluctuations at frequencies near the region of historic business cycles. However, with significant time lags in the control loop, monetary control tends to increase the amplitude of the fluctuations at the higher frequencies. How the investigator or student can use the tools developed in the field of manual-control analysis to study the nature of economic fluctuations and to examine different strategies for stabilization is examined.

An evaluation of the International Monetary Fund's claims about public health.

PubMed

Stuckler, David; Basu, Sanjay; Gilmore, Anna; Batniji, Rajaie; Ooms, Gorik; Marphatia, Akanksha A; Hammonds, Rachel; McKee, Martin

2010-01-01

The International Monetary Fund's recent claims concerning its impact on public health are evaluated against available data. First, the IMF claims that health spending either does not change or increases with IMF-supported programs, but there is substantial evidence to the contrary. Second, the IMF claims to have relaxed strict spending requirements in response to the 2008-9 financial crisis, but there is no evidence supporting this claim, and some limited evidence from the Center for Economic Policy Research contradicting it. Third, the IMF states that wage ceilings on public health are no longer part of its explicit conditionalities to poor countries, as governments can choose how to achieve public spending targets; but in practice, ministers are left with few viable alternatives than to reduce health budgets to achieve specific IMF-mandated targets, so the result effectively preserves former policy. Fourth, the IMF's claim that it has increased aid to poor countries also seems to be contradicted by its policies of diverting aid to reserves, as well as evidence that a very small fraction of the Fund's new lending in response to the financial crisis has reached poor countries. Finally, the IMF's claim that it follows public health standards in tobacco control contrasts with its existing policies, which fail to follow the guidelines recommended by the World Bank and World Health Organization. The authors recommend that the IMF (1) become more transparent in its policies, practices, and data to allow improved independent evaluations of its impact on public health (including Health Impact Assessment) and (2) review considerable public health evidence indicating a negative association between its current policies and public health outcomes.

Managing Risk in Producing Concerts and Other Major Campus Events: A Guide for Student Programmers.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

German, Carol J.

1999-01-01

Offers suggestions for campus-activities programmers on how to minimize liability for problems with concerts and other student-planned campus events. Discussion covers prevention of monetary loss, breach of contract issues, and preventing personal injuries and property damage. Specific preventive actions and policies are discussed. (MSE)

International Financial Institution Policies of Conditionality and Public Pedagogy

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

MacPhail, Scott; McGray, Robert

2014-01-01

Conditionalities are most broadly defined as the provisos that are to be met by a country when borrowing money from the International Financial Institutions (IFIs). Increasingly, they have proven to have far reaching consequences for countries entering into agreements with The World Bank, the International Monetary Fund, and the World Trade…

78 FR 44419 - Civil Monetary Penalties Inflation Adjustments

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-07-24

... Commission to adjust the civil penalties under its jurisdiction by using a cost-of-living adjustment (``COLA'') formula. The application of this COLA does not involve any Commission discretion or policy judgments. Thus... Commission must adjust civil penalties by a COLA defined as the percentage by which the U.S. Department of...

76 FR 39474 - Monthly Median Cost of Funds Reporting, and Publication of Cost of Funds Indices

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-07-06

... commenter noted that there are ``numerous adjustable interest rate home loans including loans sold to the... original indices; and (B) the substitution of the new indices will result in an interest rate substantially... direct substitute because of recent changes in interest rate relationships resulting from monetary policy...

The Effect of Disability Insurance on Health Investment: Evidence from the Veterans Benefits Administration's Disability Compensation Program

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Singleton, Perry

2009-01-01

I examine whether individuals respond to monetary incentives to detect latent medical conditions. The effect is identified by a policy that deemed diabetes associated with herbicide exposure a compensable disability under the Veterans Benefits Administration's Disability Compensation program. Since a diagnosis is a requisite for benefit…

38 CFR 7.6 - Benefits.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... 38 Pensions, Bonuses, and Veterans' Relief 1 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Benefits. 7.6 Section 7.6... Soldiers' and Sailors' Civil Relief Act Amendments of 1942 § 7.6 Benefits. Any policy found to be entitled... such monetary benefits arising out of the contract or by reason thereof, will be held subject to...

38 CFR 7.6 - Benefits.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... 38 Pensions, Bonuses, and Veterans' Relief 1 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false Benefits. 7.6 Section 7.6... Soldiers' and Sailors' Civil Relief Act Amendments of 1942 § 7.6 Benefits. Any policy found to be entitled... such monetary benefits arising out of the contract or by reason thereof, will be held subject to...

38 CFR 7.6 - Benefits.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... 38 Pensions, Bonuses, and Veterans' Relief 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Benefits. 7.6 Section 7.6... Soldiers' and Sailors' Civil Relief Act Amendments of 1942 § 7.6 Benefits. Any policy found to be entitled... such monetary benefits arising out of the contract or by reason thereof, will be held subject to...

38 CFR 7.6 - Benefits.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... 38 Pensions, Bonuses, and Veterans' Relief 1 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Benefits. 7.6 Section 7.6... Soldiers' and Sailors' Civil Relief Act Amendments of 1942 § 7.6 Benefits. Any policy found to be entitled... such monetary benefits arising out of the contract or by reason thereof, will be held subject to...

38 CFR 7.6 - Benefits.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... 38 Pensions, Bonuses, and Veterans' Relief 1 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Benefits. 7.6 Section 7.6... Soldiers' and Sailors' Civil Relief Act Amendments of 1942 § 7.6 Benefits. Any policy found to be entitled... such monetary benefits arising out of the contract or by reason thereof, will be held subject to...

Economics and Education for Human Flourishing: Wendell Berry and the "Oikonomic" Alternative to Neoliberalism

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Henderson, Joseph A.; Hursh, David W.

2014-01-01

Neoliberal ideologies and policies have transformed how we think about the economy, education, and the environment. Economics is presented as objective and quantifiable, best left to distant experts who develop algorithms regarding different monetary relations in our stead. This same kind of thinking--technical, numerical, decontextualized, and…

Macroeconomic Stabilization When the Natural Real Interest Rate Is Falling

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Buttet, Sebastien; Roy, Udayan

2015-01-01

The authors modify the Dynamic Aggregate Demand-Dynamic Aggregate Supply model in Mankiw's widely used intermediate macroeconomics textbook to discuss monetary policy when the natural real interest rate is falling over time. Their results highlight a new role for the central bank's inflation target as a tool of macroeconomic stabilization. They…

The Ignorant Donor: A Radical Reimagination of International Aid, Development, and Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brehm, William C.; Silova, Iveta

2010-01-01

The logic behind international aid to development has typically centered on economics. Notwithstanding the variation in focus--from macroeconomic monetary and trade policies, to economic wealth programs aimed at creating jobs, to supply- and demand-side reforms--the central discourse on international aid has been dominated by a political…

Economic growth and inflation rate: implications for municipal revenue and health expenditure of the municipalities of Pernambuco, Brazil.

PubMed

Feliciano, Marciana; Bezerra, Adriana Falangola Benjamin; Santo, Antônio Carlos Gomes do Espírito

2017-06-01

This paper analyzes the implications of municipal budget revenue growth and the monetary policy's inflation rates goals in the availability of public health resources of municipalities. This is a descriptive, exploratory, quantitative, retrospective and longitudinal cross-sectional study covering the period 2002-2011. We analyzed health financing and expenditure variables in the municipalities of the state of Pernambuco, Brazil, describing the trend and the relationship between them. Data showed the growth of the variables and trend towards homogeneity. The exception was for the participation of Intergovernmental Transfers in the Total Health Expenditure of the Municipality. We found a significant correlation between Budget Revenue per capita and Health Expenditure per capita and a strong significant negative correlation between Inflation Rate, Budget Revenue per capita and Health Expenditure per capita. We concluded that increased health expenditure is due more to higher municipal tax revenue than to increased transfers that, in relative terms, did not increase. The strong inverse relationship between inflation rate and the Financing and Expenditure variables show that the monetary policy's inflation goals have restricted health financing to municipalities.

Estimating monetary damages from flooding in the United States under a changing climate

EPA Science Inventory

A national-scale analysis of potential changes in monetary damages from flooding under climate change. The approach uses empirically based statistical relationships between historical precipitation and flood damage records from 18 hydrologic regions of the United States, along w...

Identifying Cost-Effective Dynamic Policies to Control Epidemics

PubMed Central

Yaesoubi, Reza; Cohen, Ted

2016-01-01

We describe a mathematical decision model for identifying dynamic health policies for controlling epidemics. These dynamic policies aim to select the best current intervention based on accumulating epidemic data and the availability of resources at each decision point. We propose an algorithm to approximate dynamic policies that optimize the population’s net health benefit, a performance measure which accounts for both health and monetary outcomes. We further illustrate how dynamic policies can be defined and optimized for the control of a novel viral pathogen, where a policy maker must decide (i) when to employ or lift a transmission-reducing intervention (e.g. school closure) and (ii) how to prioritize population members for vaccination when a limited quantity of vaccines first become available. Within the context of this application, we demonstrate that dynamic policies can produce higher net health benefit than more commonly described static policies that specify a pre-determined sequence of interventions to employ throughout epidemics. PMID:27449759

The monetary approach to the balance of payments: The case of the oil-based, small, open, developing economies of Libya, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Buzakuk, M.R.

1988-01-01

This study explores the determinants of foreign reserves flow in light of the oil-based small open economies of Libya, Kuwait, and Saudi Arabia. The period of study encompasses the major oil price increases of the 1970s and early 1980s, which had led to the huge transfers of foreign exchanges towards these, among other, developing economies. The framework of analysis is basically a monetary approach to the balance of payments. This study is of both a theoretical and empirical nature. It utilizes the monetary forces in the domestic money market to derive a basic balance of payments (BOP) equation that explainsmore » the monetary nature of the balance of payments. The study found that the data from those countries support the monetary relationships as hypothesized by the monetary approach, especially the negative one-to-one relation between domestic credit (DC) and the BOP. Results from the simultaneous estimations of the BOP and DC reported better estimates than the single-equation model. Findings from the reaction function indicated that the monetary authorities of these oil-based economies were actively sterilizing the effect of foreign reserve flows. Findings supported the integrated market hypothesis in Kuwait and Libya, but not in the Saudi case.« less

Monetary conversion factors for economic evaluations of substance use disorders.

PubMed

McCollister, Kathryn; Yang, Xuan; Sayed, Bisma; French, Michael T; Leff, Jared A; Schackman, Bruce R

2017-10-01

Estimating the economic consequences of substance use disorders (SUDs) is important for evaluating existing programs and new interventions. Policy makers in particular must weigh program effectiveness with scalability and sustainability considerations in deciding which programs to fund with limited resources. This study provides a comprehensive list of monetary conversion factors for a broad range of consequences, services, and outcomes, which can be used in economic evaluations of SUD interventions (primarily in the United States), including common co-occurring conditions such as HCV and HIV. Economic measures were selected from standardized clinical assessment instruments that are used in randomized clinical trials and other research studies (e.g., quasi-experimental community-based projects) to evaluate the impact of SUD interventions. National datasets were also reviewed for additional SUD-related consequences, services, and outcomes. Monetary conversion factors were identified through a comprehensive literature review of published articles as well as targeted searches of other sources such as government reports. Eight service/consequence/outcome domains were identified containing more than sixty monetizable measures of medical and behavioral health services, laboratory services, SUD treatment, social services, productivity outcomes, disability outcomes, criminal activity and criminal justice services, and infectious diseases consequences. Unit-specific monetary conversion factors are reported, along with upper and lower bound estimates, whenever possible. Having an updated and standardized source of monetary conversion factors will facilitate and improve future economic evaluations of interventions targeting SUDs and other risky behaviors. This exercise should be repeated periodically as new sources of data become available to maintain the timeliness, comprehensiveness, and quality of these estimates. Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From heterogeneity to harmonization? Recent trends in European health policy.

PubMed

Gerlinger, Thomas; Urban, Hans-Jürgen

2007-01-01

In the European Union (EU), health policy and the institutional reform of health systems have been treated primarily as national affairs, and health care systems within the EU thus differ considerably. However, the health policy field is undergoing a dynamic process of Europeanization. This process is stimulated by the orientation towards a more competitive economy, recently inaugurated and known as the Lisbon Strategy, while the regulatory requirements of the European Economic and Monetary Union are stimulating the Europeanization of health policy. In addition, the so-called open method of coordination, representing a new mode of regulation within the European multi-level system, is applied increasingly to the health policy area. Diverse trends are thus emerging. While the Lisbon Strategy goes along with a strategic upgrading of health policy more generally, health policy is increasingly used to strengthen economic competitiveness. Pressure on Member States is expected to increase to contain costs and promote market-based health care provision.

Dollar’s Vulnerability and the Implications for National Security

DTIC Science & Technology

2009-12-01

higher inflation leads to exchange - rate depreciation as well as increased volatility. 36 This indicates that expansionary monetary policy would also...resulted in debasement and depreciation.7 Thus, exchange rate and currency convertibility problems...creation and evolution of international currencies. The problems of establishing and maintaining exchange rates and retaining value led to a system

Inflation: The Rising Cost of Living on a Small Planet. Worldwatch Paper 34.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fuller, Robert

Global inflation should be viewed more as a sympton of social problems than as an economic disease that can be cured by monetary and fiscal policy. Social problems signaled by inflation include exploding demand, rising costs for essential commodities, stagnating productivity, and a decline in the real standard of living. Inflation is interpreted…

34 CFR 60.1 - What are the policies of the Department regarding indemnification?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

..., judgment, or other monetary award rendered against the employee if— (i) The conduct giving rise to the... (ii) The indemnification is in the interest of the United States, as determined by the Secretary. (2... giving rise to the personal damage claim occurred within the scope of employment; and (ii) The settlement...

Do Alternative Base Periods Increase Unemployment Insurance Receipt among Low-Educated Unemployed Workers? National Poverty Center Working Paper Series #12-19

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gould-Werth, Alix; Shaefer, H. Luke

2012-01-01

Unemployment Insurance (UI) is the major social insurance program that protects against lost earnings resulting from involuntary unemployment. Existing literature finds that low-earning unemployed workers experience difficulty accessing UI benefits. The most prominent policy reform designed to increase rates of monetary eligibility, and thus UI…

Zimbabwe: Current Issues and U.S. Policy

DTIC Science & Technology

2007-06-21

Monetary Fund ( IMF ) lending has been suspended for more than six years due to nonpayment of arrears, and foreign currency for essential imports... devalue the official exchange rate. Instead, in June 2006, Gono devalued the country’s currency , the Zimbabwe dollar, removing three zeros in an...27 The IMF and the World Bank . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28 Attempts to Revive Agriculture Industry

Personal Goals and Global Awareness of American Community College Women regarding Parenthood

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Strom, Robert D.; Strom, Paris S.

2010-01-01

Young women in many countries are choosing a future without children. The scope of decline in fertility rates among developed nations is described along with public policy efforts intended to reverse the course of population change. The initiatives commonly used to persuade women that they should become mothers are monetary incentives and…

Evaluating the Impact of a Connecticut Program to Reduce Availability of Unhealthy Competitive Food in Schools

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Long, Michael W.; Henderson, Kathryn E.; Schwartz, Marlene B.

2010-01-01

Background: This article seeks to inform state and local school food policies by evaluating the impact of Connecticut's Healthy Food Certification (HFC), a program which provides monetary incentives to school districts that choose to implement state nutrition standards for all foods sold to students outside reimbursable school meals. Methods: Food…

Monetary and Nonmonetary Student Incentives for Tutoring Services: A Randomized Controlled Trial

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Springer, Matthew G.; Rosenquist, Brooks A.; Swain, Walker A.

2015-01-01

In recent years, the largely punitive accountability measures imposed by the 2001 No Child Left Behind Act have given way to an emphasis on financial incentives. Although most policy interventions have focused primarily on linking teacher compensation to student test scores, several recent studies have examined the prospects for the use of…

The Fed's Year of Transition

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schug, Mark C.; Niederjohn, Scott

2006-01-01

The purpose of this article is to: (1) Examine the historical development of the Federal Reserve System; (2) Provide background on Ben Bernanke, the new Fed chairman; (3) Explain the basic tools of monetary policy used by the Fed; (4) Examine the causes of the Great Depression, a topic of special interest to Bernanke; and (5) Provide some key…

The Post-Recession Employment Situation: A Comparative Perspective

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Couch, Kenneth A.

2012-01-01

Slow economic growth since the end of the U.S. recession in June of 2009 has not yet translated into increases in employment large enough to meaningfully reduce the rate of unemployment. Because expansionary macroeconomic policy has been pursued on both the fiscal and monetary fronts, it appears at first glance that the hands of government at this…

The IS-LM Model: Is There a Connection between Slopes and the Effectiveness of Fiscal and Monetary Policy?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Findlay, David W.

1999-01-01

Offers instructors a presentation of the IS (investment saving)-LM (liquidity preference-money supply) model, suggesting that a number of benefits emerge if the instructor focuses on what determines the size of both the horizontal and vertical distances between the IS curves and between the LM curves. (CMK)

The International Monetary Fund and tobacco: a product like any other?

PubMed

Gilmore, Anna; Fooks, Gary; McKee, Martin

2009-01-01

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has promoted the lifting of trade restrictions on tobacco and the privatization of state-owned tobacco industries as part of its loan conditions. Growing evidence shows that tobacco industry privatization stimulates tobacco consumption and smoking prevalence in borrowing countries. Privatized tobacco companies make favorable tobacco control policies a condition of their investment and lobby aggressively against further control measures. This, along with increased efficiency of the private sector, leads to increases in marketing, substantial reductions in excise taxes, drops in cigarette prices, and overall rises in sales of cigarettes. The actions of the IMF have therefore led to substantially greater use of tobacco, a product that kills half of its consumers when used as intended, with little evidence of economic gain.

Risk-benefit analysis and public policy: a bibliography

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Clark, E.M.; Van Horn, A.J.

1976-11-01

Risk-benefit analysis has been implicitly practiced whenever decision-makers are confronted with decisions involving risks to life, health, or to the environment. Various methodologies have been developed to evaluate relevant criteria and to aid in assessing the impacts of alternative projects. Among these have been cost-benefit analysis, which has been widely used for project evaluation. However, in many cases it has been difficult to assign dollar costs to those criteria involving risks and benefits which are not now assigned explicit monetary values in our economic system. Hence, risk-benefit analysis has evolved to become more than merely an extension of cost-benefit analysis,more » and many methods have been applied to examine the trade-offs between risks and benefits. In addition, new scientific and statistical techniques have been developed for assessing current and future risks. The 950 references included in this bibliography are meant to suggest the breadth of those methodologies which have been applied to decisions involving risk.« less

Methods for comparing drug policies--the utility of composite drug harm indexes.

PubMed

Ritter, Alison

2009-11-01

One of the challenges for drug policy research is being able to compare policy options and outcomes. The development of indexes, such as the UK Drug Harm Index or the UNODC Illicit Drug Index is a way to systematically enable such comparisons. An Index is a single common metric that represents the diverse outcomes or consequences of drug use. An Index may be used for performance monitoring within one country/region over time; to establish societal benefit of drug policies as expressed in social costs saved; to compare countries or regions; or for comparative policy analysis. Clarity of purpose is important in how an Index is used. The consequences or outcomes that can be combined into a single Index include health consequences, crime consequences, public amenity, pain and suffering, labour market outcomes, and drug manufacture and trafficking activity. The choice of outcomes for inclusion is driven by the purpose but also often by practical considerations, such as data availability. The weighting of the consequences is an important consideration in translating the outcomes into a common metric. A monetary unit has a number of advantages: it is a unit that can be measured across diverse impacts; it gives implicit "weighting" of harms; and it is intuitive for policy makers and community. On the other hand, it represents an economic perspective. No one Index will be regarded as suitable and appropriate by every stakeholder and ongoing research effort on Indexes is an important foundational research activity to advance illicit drug policy.

The Valuation of Non-Monetary Consumption in Household Surveys

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Muller, Christophe

2005-01-01

Many social indicators are based on household consumption information. The valuation of non-monetary operations is crucial for the analysis of consumption surveys in developing countries because of the importance of own-consumption and transfers in kind. What are the price statistics used in the valuation of consumption indicators? How is the…

Relative Deprivation, Poverty, and Subjective Health: JAGES Cross-Sectional Study

PubMed Central

Saito, Masashige; Kondo, Katsunori; Kondo, Naoki; Abe, Aya; Ojima, Toshiyuki; Suzuki, Kayo

2014-01-01

To evaluate the association between relative deprivation (lacking daily necessities) and subjective health in older Japanese adults, we performed a cross-sectional analysis using data from the Japan Gerontological Evaluation Study (JAGES). The data were obtained from functionally independent residents aged ≥65 years from 24 municipalities in Japan (n = 24,742). Thirteen items in three dimensions were used to evaluate relative deprivation of material conditions. Approximately 28% of older Japanese people indicated that they lacked some daily necessities (non-monetary poverty). A two-level Poisson regression analysis revealed that relative deprivation was associated with poor self-rated health (PR = 1.3–1.5) and depressive symptoms (PR = 1.5–1.8) in both men and women, and these relationships were stronger than those observed in people living in relative poverty (monetary poverty). The interaction effect between relative deprivation and relative poverty was not associated with poor health. As a dimension of the social determinants of health, poverty should be evaluated from a multidimensional approach, capturing not only monetary conditions but also material-based, non-monetary conditions. PMID:25350284

Relative deprivation, poverty, and subjective health: JAGES cross-sectional study.

PubMed

Saito, Masashige; Kondo, Katsunori; Kondo, Naoki; Abe, Aya; Ojima, Toshiyuki; Suzuki, Kayo

2014-01-01

To evaluate the association between relative deprivation (lacking daily necessities) and subjective health in older Japanese adults, we performed a cross-sectional analysis using data from the Japan Gerontological Evaluation Study (JAGES). The data were obtained from functionally independent residents aged ≥65 years from 24 municipalities in Japan (n = 24,742). Thirteen items in three dimensions were used to evaluate relative deprivation of material conditions. Approximately 28% of older Japanese people indicated that they lacked some daily necessities (non-monetary poverty). A two-level Poisson regression analysis revealed that relative deprivation was associated with poor self-rated health (PR = 1.3-1.5) and depressive symptoms (PR = 1.5-1.8) in both men and women, and these relationships were stronger than those observed in people living in relative poverty (monetary poverty). The interaction effect between relative deprivation and relative poverty was not associated with poor health. As a dimension of the social determinants of health, poverty should be evaluated from a multidimensional approach, capturing not only monetary conditions but also material-based, non-monetary conditions.

Welfare implications of energy and environmental policies: A general equilibrium approach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Iqbal, Mohammad Qamar

Government intervention and implementation of policies can impose a financial and social cost. To achieve a desired goal there could be several different alternative policies or routes, and government would like to choose the one which imposes the least social costs or/and generates greater social benefits. Therefore, applied welfare economics plays a vital role in public decision making. This paper recasts welfare measure such as equivalent variation, in terms of the prices of factors of production rather than product prices. This is made possible by using duality theory within a general equilibrium framework and by deriving alternative forms of indirect utility functions and expenditure functions in factor prices. Not only we are able to recast existing welfare measures in factor prices, we are able to perform a true cost-benefit analysis of government policies using comparative static analysis of different equilibria and breaking up monetary measure of welfare change such as equivalent variation into its components. A further advantage of our research is demonstrated by incorporating externalities and public goods in the utility function. It is interesting that under a general equilibrium framework optimal income tax tends to reduce inequalities. Results show that imposition of taxes at socially optimal rates brings a net gain to the society. It was also seen that even though a pollution tax may reduce GDP, it leads to an increase in the welfare of the society if it is imposed at an optimal rate.

A Retrospective Analysis of the Benefits and Impacts of U.S. Renewable Portfolio Standards

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Wiser, Ryan; Barbose, Galen; Heeter, Jenny

This is the second in a series of reports exploring the costs, benefits, and other impacts of state renewable portfolio standards (RPS), both retrospectively and prospectively. This report focuses on the benefits and impacts of all state RPS programs, in aggregate, for the year 2013 (the most-recent year for which the requisite data were available). Relying on a well-vetted set of methods, the study evaluates a number of important benefits and impacts in both physical and monetary terms, where possible, and characterizes key uncertainties. The prior study in this series focused on historical RPS compliance costs, and future work willmore » evaluate costs, benefits, and other impacts of RPS policies prospectively.« less

Overcoming Structural Adjustment Policies in Africa: Strategies for Vocational Education and Training in the Sudan.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Washi, Sidiga; Pitamber, Sunita

Most developing countries have been debt ridden since the mid-1970s. This continuing debt burden has resulted in increasing prices and inflation, growing unemployment, and daily life difficulties. This problem has been acute for the Sudan. Sudan received help from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in 1978 and negotiated new credit terms. By…

A synthesis of current knowledge on forests and carbon storage in the United States

Treesearch

Duncan C. McKinley; Michael G. Ryan; Richard A. Birdsey; Christian P. Giardina; Mark E. Harmon; Linda S. Heath; Richard A. Houghton; Robert B. Jackson; James F. Morrison; Brian C. Murray; Diane E. Pataki; Kenneth E. Skog

2011-01-01

Using forests to mitigate climate change has gained much interest in science and policy discussions. We examine the evidence for carbon benefits, environmental and monetary costs, risks and trade-offs for a variety of activities in three general strategies: (1) land use change to increase forest area (afforestation) and avoid deforestation; (2) carbon management in...

Measuring the Value of Statistical Life: Estimating Compensating Wage Differentials among Workers in India

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Madheswaran, S.

2007-01-01

Policy makers confronted with the need to introduce health and safety regulations often wonder how to value the benefits of these regulations. One way that a monetary value could be placed on reductions in health risks, including risk of death, is through understanding how people are compensated for the different risks they take. While there is an…

From Mangos to Manufacturing: Uneven Development and Its Impact on Social Well-Being in the Dominican Republic

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pomeroy, Carlton; Jacob, Steve

2004-01-01

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank have been trying to help developing countries speed up economic growth in order to help eradicate poverty. In the last two decades these policies in the Dominican Republic have caused rapid and severe changes. Over the last two centuries Dominican culture has faced numerous challenges…

Patient mobility and health care quality when regions and patients differ in income.

PubMed

Brekke, Kurt R; Levaggi, Rosella; Siciliani, Luigi; Straume, Odd Rune

2016-12-01

We study the effects of cross-border patient mobility on health care quality and welfare when income varies across and within regions. We use a Salop model with a high-, middle-, and low-income region. In each region, a policy maker chooses health care quality to maximise the utility of its residents when health care costs are financed by general income taxation. In equilibrium, regions with higher income offer better quality, which creates an incentive for patient mobility from lower- to higher-income regions. Assuming a prospective payment scheme based on DRG-pricing, we find that lower non-monetary (administrative) mobility costs have (i) no effect on quality or welfare in the high-income region; (ii) a negative effect on quality but a positive effect on welfare for the middle-income region; and (iii) ambiguous effects on quality and welfare for the low-income region. Lower monetary mobility costs (copayments) might reduce welfare in both the middle- and low-income region. Thus, health policies that stimulate cross-border patient mobility can be counterproductive when regions differ in income. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Carrots and Sticks: New Brunswick and Maine Forest Landowner Perceptions Toward Incentives and Regulations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Quartuch, Michael R.; Beckley, Thomas M.

2014-01-01

The governments of countries that allow private land ownership have two main tools to motivate landowner behavior: regulations and incentives. This research examines landowner preferences toward these policy tools and asks specifically: Do private forest landowners in New Brunswick and Maine believe that regulations and/or incentives are effective means to motivate responsible stewardship? Can landowners identify explicit regulations and policies that restrict property rights? Also, we were interested to see if any discernible differences existed between these adjacent jurisdictions from different countries, but that share similar forests and a similar settlement history. We identified and interviewed diverse landowners, recorded and transcribed our discussions, and analyzed the results using a grounded theory approach. Findings suggest that both New Brunswick and Maine participants are fairly comfortable with most regulations and many agreed that a combination of incentives and regulations are in fact useful. Furthermore, landowners in New Brunswick discussed non-monetary incentives as a mechanism to reward "good" stewardship; while Maine respondents articulated a degree of responsible stewardship that transcends a need to incentivize landowners. This study demonstrates that diverse landowners may be more comfortable with environmental regulations than previously understood and may be interested in non-monetary incentives.

The impact of the financial crisis on human resources for health policies in three southern-Europe countries.

PubMed

Correia, Tiago; Dussault, Gilles; Pontes, Carla

2015-12-01

The public health sector has been the target of austerity measures since the global financial crisis started in 2008, while health workforce costs have been a source of rapid savings in most European Union countries. This article aims to explore how health workforce policies have evolved in three southern European countries under external constraints imposed by emergency financial programmes agreed with the International Monetary Fund, Central European Bank and European Commission. The selected countries, Greece, Portugal and Cyprus, show similarities with regard to corporatist systems of social protection and comprehensive welfare mechanisms only recently institutionalized. Based on document analysis of the Memoranda of Understanding agreed with the Troika, our results reveal broadly similar policy responses to the crisis but also important differences. In Cyprus, General Practitioners have a key position in reducing public expenditure through gatekeeping and control of users' access, while Portugal and Greece seeks to achieve cost containment by constraining the decision-making powers of professionals. All three countries lack innovation as well as monitoring and assessment of the effects of the financial crisis in relation to the health workforce. Consequently, there is a need for health policy development to use human resources more efficiently in healthcare. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

DALYs, dollars and dogs: how best to analyse the economics of controlling zoonoses.

PubMed

Shaw, A P M; Rushton, J; Roth, F; Torgerson, P R

2017-04-01

Decision-makers increasingly require comprehensive economic metrics summarising and comparing the benefits and costs of controlling zoonotic diseases. The impact of disease in people is conventionally quantified in non-monetary terms, usually a disability-adjusted life year (DALY), whereas the losses due to disease in animals, particularly livestock, are quantified in monetary terms. The potential for the development of a non-monetary metric for ill health in animals, based on life years lost and disability, is discussed and rejected. Within and across animal species and livestock production systems, maximising life spans is not a consistent goal and morbidity/disabilities have very different weights and often lead to culling. By relating livestock losses to a measure of national income forgone, the recently developed alternative of converting monetary losses due to livestock illness into an animal loss equivalent (ALE) provides a viable solution. Based on this, the literature on the economics of controlling zoonoses is revisited and four options for quantifying and comparing benefits and costs are examined and illustrated using numerical examples. These are i) the simplistic grouping of all monetary elements and their comparison to DALYs averted (described as the aggregate net cost method), ii) the separable costs method, iii) the use of ALEs to convert all benefits to a non-monetary equivalent, termed the zoonotic DALY (zDALY), or iv) the use of a full monetary cost-benefit analysis, based on converting DALYs to a monetary equivalent. The strengths and weaknesses of each are discussed. For effective prioritisation and decision-making, it is vital that an analytical approach is widely adopted which yields consistent results and which supports the control of zoonoses.

Integrating Monetary and Non-monetary Reenlistment Incentives Utilizing the Combinatorial Retention Auction Mechanism (CRAM)

DTIC Science & Technology

2008-12-01

NAVAL POSTGRADUATE SCHOOL MONTEREY, CALIFORNIA THESIS INTEGRATING MONETARY AND NON-MONETARY REENLISTMENT INCENTIVES UTILIZING THE...Monetary and Non- monetary Reenlistment Incentives Utilizing the Combinatorial Retention Auction Mechanism (CRAM) 6. AUTHOR(S) Brooke Zimmerman 5...iii Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited INTEGRATING MONETARY AND NON-MONETARY REENLISTMENT INCENTIVES UTILIZING THE

Decarbonizing urban transport in European cities: four cases show possibly high co-benefits

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Creutzig, Felix; Mühlhoff, Rainer; Römer, Julia

2012-12-01

Cities worldwide are increasingly becoming agents of climate change mitigation, while simultaneously aiming for other goals, such as improved accessibility and clean air. Based on stakeholder interviews and data analysis, we assess the current state of urban mobility in the four European cities of Barcelona, Malmö, Sofia and Freiburg. We then provide scenarios of increasingly ambitious policy packages, reducing greenhouse gas emissions from urban transport by up to 80% from 2010 to 2040. We find significant concurrent co-benefits in cleaner air, reduced noise ambience, fewer traffic-related injuries and deaths, more physical activity, less congestion and monetary fuel savings. Our scenarios suggest that non-motorized transport, especially bicycles, can occupy high modal shares, particularly in cities with less than 0.5 million inhabitants. We think that this kind of multi-criteria assessment of social costs and benefits is a useful complement to cost-benefit analysis of climate change mitigation measures.

Uncertainty in macroeconomic policy-making: art or science?

PubMed

Aikman, David; Barrett, Philip; Kapadia, Sujit; King, Mervyn; Proudman, James; Taylor, Tim; de Weymarn, Iain; Yates, Tony

2011-12-13

Uncertainty is pervasive in economic policy-making. Modern economies share similarities with other complex systems in their unpredictability. But economic systems also differ from those in the natural sciences because outcomes are affected by the state of beliefs of the systems' participants. The dynamics of beliefs and how they interact with economic outcomes can be rich and unpredictable. This paper relates these ideas to the recent crisis, which has reminded us that we need a financial system that is resilient in the face of the unpredictable and extreme. It also highlights how such uncertainty puts a premium on sound communication strategies by policy-makers. This creates challenges in informing others about the uncertainties in the economy, and how policy is set in the face of those uncertainties. We show how the Bank of England tries to deal with some of these challenges in its communications about monetary policy.

Job-Linked Literacy: Innovative Strategies at Work. Part III. Moving Ahead: Basic Skills for Career Advancement. A Work in America Policy Study.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rosow, Jerome M.; Zager, Robert

This volume, Interim Report No. 3 in a 3-year study, considers literacy programs designed to qualify employees for promotions or professional advancement. It adopts a multidimensional definition of moving ahead, one that extends to monetary rewards, career development, and employment security. The volume is divided into two parts: report and case…

Obstacles to Private Sector Activities in Africa,

DTIC Science & Technology

1983-01-01

policy reforms, including higher interest rates, price increases on basic foodstuffs, the ending of subsidies, currency devaluation , and reduced...Monetary Fund ( IMF ) is Pxpanding its lending facilities in Africa, but attaching strict conditivnality to them; the World Bank is trying to restructure...recipient country, puts US investment in Nigeria in 1980 at only $27 million as compared to $205 million in the Cameroon. In fact, the Department of

The topology of the federal funds market

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bech, Morten L.; Atalay, Enghin

2010-11-01

We explore the network topology of the federal funds market. This market is important for distributing liquidity throughout the financial system and for the implementation of monetary policy. The recent turmoil in global financial markets underscores its importance. We find that the network is sparse, exhibits the small-world phenomenon, and is disassortative. Centrality measures are useful predictors of the interest rate of a loan.

Economic Analysis of Social Common Capital

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Uzawa, Hirofumi

2005-06-01

Social common capital provides members of society with those services and institutional arrangements that are crucial in maintaining human and cultural life. The term æsocial common capital' is comprised of three categories: natural capital, social infrastructure, and institutional capital. Natural capital consists of all natural environment and natural resources including the earth's atmosphere. Social infrastructure consists of roads, bridges, public transportation systems, electricity, and other public utilities. Institutional capital includes hospitals, educational institutions, judicial and police systems, public administrative services, financial and monetary institutions, and cultural capital. This book attempts to modify and extend the theoretical premises of orthodox economic theory to make them broad enough to analyze the economic implications of social common capital. It further aims to find the institutional arrangements and policy measures that will bring about the optimal state of affairs.

The role of benefit transfer in ecosystem service valuation

USGS Publications Warehouse

Richardson, Leslie A.; Loomis, John; Kroeger, Timm; Casey, Frank

2015-01-01

The demand for timely monetary estimates of the economic value of nonmarket ecosystem goods and services has steadily increased over the last few decades. This article describes the use of benefit transfer to generate monetary value estimates of ecosystem services specifically. The article provides guidance for conducting such benefit transfers and summarizes advancements in benefit transfer methods, databases and analysis tools designed to facilitate its application.

Near East/South Asia Report.

DTIC Science & Technology

1985-12-19

effective tools of monetary policy. Changing business opportunities in the Gulf and overseas have led to the creation of an increasingly sophisticated...return lawsuits involving interest. Modern technology and high-cost training have had their effect on the banks1 income. While these banks have been...good opportunities for Gulf banks to help medium-size companies in the region which are feeling the effects of the economic slow- down and which

Euros, Pounds and Albion at Arms: European Monetary Policy and British Defence in the 21st Century

DTIC Science & Technology

2004-09-01

Shakespeare , Hamlet , Prince of Denmark, act 1, scene 2. 2 William Shakespeare , Richard the Second, act 2, scene 1. 3 Hugo Young, This Blessed Plot: Britain...THIS PAGE INTENTIONALLY LEFT BLANK 1 I. INTRODUCTION Queen: Good Hamlet , cast thy nighted colour...tis common. All that lives must die, Passing through nature to eternity. Hamlet : Ay, madam, it is common. Queen: If it

To provide clarity on the use of National Infantry Museum and Soldier Center Commemorative Coin surcharges, the use of Abraham Lincoln Commemorative Coin surcharges, and for other purposes.

THOMAS, 112th Congress

Rep. Westmoreland, Lynn A. [R-GA-3

2012-07-17

House - 07/31/2012 Referred to the Subcommittee on Domestic Monetary Policy and Technology. (All Actions) Notes: For further action, see S.3363, which became Public Law 112-169 on 8/10/2012. Tracker: This bill has the status IntroducedHere are the steps for Status of Legislation:

Impact of monetary incentives on adherence to referral for screening chest x-rays after syringe exchange-based tuberculin skin testing.

PubMed

Perlman, David C; Friedmann, Patricia; Horn, Leslie; Nugent, Anne; Schoeb, Veronika; Carey, Jeanne; Salomon, Nadim; Des Jarlais, Don C

2003-09-01

Syringe-exchange programs (SEPs) have proven to be valuable sites to conduct tuberculin skin testing among active injection drug users. Chest x-rays (CXRs) are needed to exclude active tuberculosis prior to initiating treatment for latent tuberculosis infection. Adherence of drug users to referral for off-site chest x-rays has been incomplete. Previous cost modeling demonstrated that a monetary incentive to promote adherence could be justified on the cost basis if it had even a modest effect on adherence. We compared adherence to referral for chest x-rays among injection drug users undergoing syringe exchange-based tuberculosis screening in New York City before and after the implementation of monetary incentives. From 1995 to 1998, there were 119 IDUs referred for CXRs based on tuberculin skin testing at the SEP. From 1999 to 2001, there were 58 IDUs referred for CXRs with a $25 incentive based on adherence. Adherence to CXR referral within 7 days was 46/58 (79%) among individuals who received the monetary incentive versus 17/119 (14%) prior to the implementation of the monetary incentive (P<.0001; odds ratio [OR]=23; 95% confidence interval [CI]=9.5-57). The median time to obtaining a CXR was significantly shorter among those given the incentive than among those referred without the incentive (2 vs. 11 days, P<.0001). In multivariate logistic regression analysis, use of the incentive was highly independently associated with increased adherence (OR=22.9; 95% CI=10-52). Monetary incentives are highly effective in increasing adherence to referral for screening CXRs to exclude active tuberculosis after syringe exchange-based tuberculin skin testing. Prior cost modeling demonstrated that monetary incentives could be justified on the cost basis if they had even a modest effect on adherence. The current data demonstrated that monetary incentives are highly effective at increasing adherence in this setting and therefore are justifiable on a cost basis. When health care interventions for drug users require referral off site, monetary incentives may be particularly valuable in promoting adherence.

Environmental, policy, and cultural factors related to physical activity in African American women.

PubMed

Richter, Donna L; Wilcox, Sara; Greaney, Mary L; Henderson, Karla A; Ainsworth, Barbara E

2002-01-01

Six focus groups were conducted in South Carolina with African American women (n = 42) aged 19-51 years to identify factors that influence physical activity. Transcripts were analyzed using NUD*IST. Cultural influences were seen as more important in determining the type of physical activity than its level. Barriers to and enablers of physical activity were identified in the social and physical environments, as were policy issues affecting physical activity in the community and at the work site. Potential community and work site interventions were suggested. Child care and monetary costs were frequently cited as barriers to physical activity.

Societal cost-benefit analysis for soil remediation in The Netherlands.

PubMed

van Wezel, Annemarie P; Franken, Ron O G; Drissen, Eric; Versluijs, Kees C W; van den Berg, Reinier

2008-01-01

There is a political demand on the efficiency of environmental policy. Cost-benefit analyses (CBAs) can play a role in answering that demand. This societal CBA for nationwide soil remediation operations in The Netherlands distinguishes 4 alternatives for future investments. In the zero alternative government funding will be terminated. Besides this, 3 policy alternatives are distinguished that are government financed. Soil remediation benefits human health, the drinking water supply, housing, perceptions, and the ecosystem. Soil remediation also answers the concerns of the Dutch population. The benefits to health (exposure to cadmium, lead, and carcinogens), drinking water supply, and housing are expressed in monetary terms. The extent that benefits equal the money spent depends partly on the value-loaded choice for the discount rate. Use of the current discount rate of 4% will mean a slightly negative balance whichever policy alternative is chosen. Focusing on nonmoneterized benefits, such as ecology, can cause the scales to tip in another direction. Using a lower discount rate will make future benefits, such as health and drinking water supply, more important. If the discount rate drops to 2% or less, all policy alternatives lead to a positive balance. Predominantly, the health benefits that are veiled in uncertainty can become a reason for applying a surcharge and, in turn, a higher discount rate. In that case, each of the alternatives will result in a net negative balance.

Monetary and nonmonetary household consumption of health services and the role of insurance benefits: An analysis of the Mexico's National Household Income and Expenditure Survey.

PubMed

Serván-Mori, Edson; Wirtz, Veronika J

2018-05-23

To study the monetary and nonmonetary consumption of healthcare services at household level in Mexico and the magnitude of the contribution of public programs. By using the National Household Income and Expenditure Survey 2012, we performed a cross-sectional and observational analysis of actual household consumption of health services by insurance type (no insurance, social security, Seguro Popular (SP)). Household consumption was divided into 2 categories: consumption related to "monetary" expenditure in health care and "nonmonetary" consumption in health care by the household. Nonmonetary included self-consumption or gifts received from other households and institutional contributions such as government payments or private organization transfers. In SP households, monetary and nonmonetary consumption of health services represented the highest proportion of available household expenditure (11.2%) compared to uninsured (8.4%) and social security (5.9%) households. The prevalence of outpatient consultation and medicine use is the highest among the health service consumption categories regardless of insurance status. Distribution of nonmonetary versus monetary consumption of health services was pro-poor: The poorer the households, the larger the proportion of nonmonetary consumption. The higher probability of receiving nonmonetary resources as a component of health service consumption in SP households is likely to increase the affordability to health services and likely to reduce healthcare expenditures. Future research should focus on the type of nonmonetary consumption of health services at household level to better understand financial protection and access to health care in Mexico. Copyright © 2018 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Parameter and model uncertainty in a life-table model for fine particles (PM2.5): a statistical modeling study

PubMed Central

Tainio, Marko; Tuomisto, Jouni T; Hänninen, Otto; Ruuskanen, Juhani; Jantunen, Matti J; Pekkanen, Juha

2007-01-01

Background The estimation of health impacts involves often uncertain input variables and assumptions which have to be incorporated into the model structure. These uncertainties may have significant effects on the results obtained with model, and, thus, on decision making. Fine particles (PM2.5) are believed to cause major health impacts, and, consequently, uncertainties in their health impact assessment have clear relevance to policy-making. We studied the effects of various uncertain input variables by building a life-table model for fine particles. Methods Life-expectancy of the Helsinki metropolitan area population and the change in life-expectancy due to fine particle exposures were predicted using a life-table model. A number of parameter and model uncertainties were estimated. Sensitivity analysis for input variables was performed by calculating rank-order correlations between input and output variables. The studied model uncertainties were (i) plausibility of mortality outcomes and (ii) lag, and parameter uncertainties (iii) exposure-response coefficients for different mortality outcomes, and (iv) exposure estimates for different age groups. The monetary value of the years-of-life-lost and the relative importance of the uncertainties related to monetary valuation were predicted to compare the relative importance of the monetary valuation on the health effect uncertainties. Results The magnitude of the health effects costs depended mostly on discount rate, exposure-response coefficient, and plausibility of the cardiopulmonary mortality. Other mortality outcomes (lung cancer, other non-accidental and infant mortality) and lag had only minor impact on the output. The results highlight the importance of the uncertainties associated with cardiopulmonary mortality in the fine particle impact assessment when compared with other uncertainties. Conclusion When estimating life-expectancy, the estimates used for cardiopulmonary exposure-response coefficient, discount rate, and plausibility require careful assessment, while complicated lag estimates can be omitted without this having any major effect on the results. PMID:17714598

Parameter and model uncertainty in a life-table model for fine particles (PM2.5): a statistical modeling study.

PubMed

Tainio, Marko; Tuomisto, Jouni T; Hänninen, Otto; Ruuskanen, Juhani; Jantunen, Matti J; Pekkanen, Juha

2007-08-23

The estimation of health impacts involves often uncertain input variables and assumptions which have to be incorporated into the model structure. These uncertainties may have significant effects on the results obtained with model, and, thus, on decision making. Fine particles (PM2.5) are believed to cause major health impacts, and, consequently, uncertainties in their health impact assessment have clear relevance to policy-making. We studied the effects of various uncertain input variables by building a life-table model for fine particles. Life-expectancy of the Helsinki metropolitan area population and the change in life-expectancy due to fine particle exposures were predicted using a life-table model. A number of parameter and model uncertainties were estimated. Sensitivity analysis for input variables was performed by calculating rank-order correlations between input and output variables. The studied model uncertainties were (i) plausibility of mortality outcomes and (ii) lag, and parameter uncertainties (iii) exposure-response coefficients for different mortality outcomes, and (iv) exposure estimates for different age groups. The monetary value of the years-of-life-lost and the relative importance of the uncertainties related to monetary valuation were predicted to compare the relative importance of the monetary valuation on the health effect uncertainties. The magnitude of the health effects costs depended mostly on discount rate, exposure-response coefficient, and plausibility of the cardiopulmonary mortality. Other mortality outcomes (lung cancer, other non-accidental and infant mortality) and lag had only minor impact on the output. The results highlight the importance of the uncertainties associated with cardiopulmonary mortality in the fine particle impact assessment when compared with other uncertainties. When estimating life-expectancy, the estimates used for cardiopulmonary exposure-response coefficient, discount rate, and plausibility require careful assessment, while complicated lag estimates can be omitted without this having any major effect on the results.

Estimating the monetary value of willingness to pay for E-book reader's attributes using partially confounded factorial conjoint choice experiment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yong, Chin-Khian

2013-09-01

A partially confounded factorial conjoint choice experiments design was used to examine the monetary value of the willingness to pay for E-book Reader's attributes. Conjoint analysis is an efficient, cost-effective, and most widely used quantitative method in marketing research to understand consumer preferences and value trade-off. Value can be interpreted by customer or consumer as the received of multiple benefits from a price that was paid. The monetary value of willingness to pay for battery life, internal memory, external memory, screen size, text to Speech, touch screen, and converting handwriting to digital text of E-book reader were estimated in this study. Due to the significant interaction effect of the attributes with the price, the monetary values for the seven attributes were found to be different at different values of odds of purchasing versus not purchasing. The significant interactions effects were one of the main contribution of the partially confounded factorial conjoint choice experiment.

The need for monetary information within corporate water accounting.

PubMed

Burritt, Roger L; Christ, Katherine L

2017-10-01

A conceptual discussion is provided about the need to add monetary data to water accounting initiatives and how best to achieve this if companies are to become aware of the water crisis and to take actions to improve water management. Analysis of current water accounting initiatives reveals the monetary business case for companies to improve water management is rarely considered, there being a focus on physical information about water use. Three possibilities emerge for mainstreaming the integration of monetization into water accounting: add-on to existing water accounting frameworks and tools, develop new tools which include physical and monetary information from the start, and develop environmental management accounting (EMA) into a water-specific application and set of tools. The paper appraises these three alternatives and concludes that development of EMA would be the best way forward. Suggestions for further research include the need to examine the use of a transdisciplinary method to address the complexities of water accounting. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The Impacts and Economic Costs of Climate Change in Agriculture and the Costs and Benefits of Adaptation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Iglesias, A.; Quiroga, S.; Garrote, L.; Cunningham, R.

2012-04-01

This paper provides monetary estimates of the effects of agricultural adaptation to climate change in Europe. The model computes spatial crop productivity changes as a response to climate change linking biophysical and socioeconomic components. It combines available data sets of crop productivity changes under climate change (Iglesias et al 2011, Ciscar et al 2011), statistical functions of productivity response to water and nitrogen inputs, catchment level water availability, and environmental policy scenarios. Future global change scenarios are derived from several socio-economic futures of representative concentration pathways and regional climate models. The economic valuation is conducted by using GTAP general equilibrium model. The marginal productivity changes has been used as an input for the economic general equilibrium model in order to analyse the economic impact of the agricultural changes induced by climate change in the world. The study also includes the analysis of an adaptive capacity index computed by using the socio-economic results of GTAP. The results are combined to prioritize agricultural adaptation policy needs in Europe.

Inpatient expenditures on alcohol-attributed diseases and alcohol tax policy: a nationwide analysis in Taiwan from 1996 to 2010.

PubMed

Lin, C-M; Liao, C-M

2014-11-01

To assess the two opposing effects of alcohol tax policy interventions (tax rate increase in 2002 and decrease in 2009) on hospitalization in monetary terms of alcohol-attributed diseases (AADs) in Taiwan. An interrupted time-series analysis. Admissions data from 1996 to 2010 were retrieved from the National Health Insurance Research Database claims file and analysed in this study. Data for 430,388 males and 34,874 females aged 15 or above who were admitted due to an AAD were collected. An interrupted time-series analysis examining the effects of the implementation of alcohol tax policy on quarterly adjusted hospital inpatient charges (HICs) for AADs was employed. The study showed significant (p < 0.001) changes in the adjusted HICs for AADs in 2002. Quarterly HICs showed an abrupt 14.8% decline (i.e., a 1.3 million US dollar reduction) after the first tax policy was implemented. No change in quarterly HICs for AADs was found after the alcohol tax increase. The total cost of treating these AAD inpatients over the course of the 15-year period was 640.9 million US dollars. Each inpatient with an AAD costs an average of $900-$2000 depending on the patient's sex and age with the cost increasing gradually after the two tax interventions. More than 80% of the HICs were attributed to alcoholic liver diseases. Psychoses accounted for 6%-18% of the total HICs. Alcohol abuse and alcohol poisoning accounted for less than 2% of the total HICs. This study provides evidence that alcohol taxation has resulted in an immediate reduction of medical expenditures related to AADs. The policy of increasing alcohol tax rates may have favourable influences on health care resources related to treating AADs. Copyright © 2014 The Royal Society for Public Health. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Association of increased monetary cost of dietary intake, diet quality and weight management in Spanish adults.

PubMed

Schröder, Helmut; Serra-Majem, Luis; Subirana, Isaac; Izquierdo-Pulido, Maria; Fitó, Montserrat; Elosua, Roberto

2016-03-14

Higher monetary diet cost is associated with healthier food choices and better weight management. How changes in diet cost affect changes in diet quality and weight remains unknown. The aim of this study was to assess the impact of changes in individual monetary diet cost on changes in diet quality, measured by the modified Mediterranean diet score recommendations (MDS-rec) and by energy density (ED), as well as changes in weight and BMI. We conducted a prospective, population-based study of 2181 male and female Spaniards aged between 25 and 74 years, who were followed up to the 2009-2010 academic year. We measured weight and height and recorded dietary data using a validated FFQ. Average food cost was calculated from official Spanish government data. We fitted multivariate linear and logistic regression models. The average daily diet cost increased from 3·68(SD0.0·89)€/8·36 MJ to 4·97(SD1·16)€/8·36 MJ during the study period. This increase was significantly associated with improvement in diet quality (Δ ED and Δ MDS-rec; P<0·0001). Each 1€ increase in monetary diet cost per 8·36 MJ was associated with a decrease of 0·3 kg in body weight (P=0·02) and 0·1 kg/m(2) in BMI (P=0·04). These associations were attenuated after adjusting for changes in diet quality indicators. An improvement in diet quality and better weight management were both associated with an increase in diet cost; this could be considered in food policy decisions.

[Mortality cost of smoking in Spain].

PubMed

Cobacho Tornel, Ma Belén; López Nicolás, Angel; Ramos Parreño, José María

2010-01-01

Public policies are crucial for smoking prevention and improving health among the population. Despite the positive impact in Spain of the law for smoking prevention in 2006, there is room for further improvement in this area of public policy. The estimate of the mortality cost per pack of cigarretes is a crucial factor in cost-benefit analysis for policies aimed to reducing smoking induced mortality. The aim of this paper is twofold. First, we estimate the Value of Statistical Life (VSL) among Spanish smokers. Secondly, we quantify the mortality cost of smoking. We use a hedonic wage model to quantify the marginal value of an increase in the mortality risk in monetary terms. We estimate the model for the Spanish labour market using the European Community Household Data and the Encuesta de Accidentes de Trabajo from the Ministerio de Trabajo e Inmigración. We estimate a VSL of 3.78 million Euros for Spanish smokers. Using this value, in conjunction with the increase in the mortality risk over the life cycle due to smoking, the private mortality cost of smoking is 78 Euros per pack for men, and 54 Euros per pack for women (in 2000 Euros). The mortality cost per pack of cigarettes is highly above its market price.

Air quality and climate impacts due to CNG conversion of motor vehicles in Dhaka, Bangladesh.

PubMed

Wadud, Zia; Khan, Tanzila

2013-12-17

Dhaka had recently experienced rapid conversion of its motor vehicle fleet to run on compressed natural gas (CNG). This paper quantifies ex-post the air quality and climate benefits of the CNG conversion policy, including monetary valuations, through an impact pathway approach. Around 2045 (1665) avoided premature deaths in greater Dhaka (City Corporation) can be attributed to air quality improvements from the CNG conversion policy in 2010, resulting in a saving of around USD 400 million. Majority of these health benefits resulted from the conversion of high-emitting diesel vehicles. CNG conversion was clearly detrimental from climate change perspective using the changes in CO2 and CH4 only (CH4 emissions increased); however, after considering other global pollutants (especially black carbon), the climate impact was ambiguous. Uncertainty assessment using input distributions and Monte Carlo simulation along with a sensitivity analysis show that large uncertainties remain for climate impacts. For our most likely estimate, there were some climate costs, valued at USD 17.7 million, which is an order of magnitude smaller than the air quality benefits. This indicates that such policies can and should be undertaken on the grounds of improving local air pollution alone and that precautions should be taken to reduce the potentially unintended increases in GHG emissions or other unintended effects.

Free Trade Agreements: Impact on U.S. Trade and Implications for U.S. Trade Policy

DTIC Science & Technology

2010-02-23

markets in which member countries go beyond a customs union by eliminating barriers to labor and capital flows across national borders within the... market ; and • economic unions where members merge their economies even further by establishing a common currency, and therefore a unified monetary... market over the lowest tariff wall. Most FTAs also include procedures on the settlement of disputes arising among members and rules on the

Wooing the Dark Continent: U.S. and China Engagement Strategy in Africa, is it Complimentary or Competition

DTIC Science & Technology

2008-05-01

huge advantage over any trading partner. This is done by currency manipulation ( devalued remnibi), piracy, lax health and safety standards, lax...Africa relations. Issues like devalued Chinese currency , imports, and exports place both the U.S. and Africa in the same corner with regards to China...International Monetary Fund ( IMF ) and World Bank. Bretton Woods Western Economic Policies: China is not associated with the structural adjustment

The History of EU Cooperation in the Field of Education and Training: How Lifelong Learning Became a Strategic Objective

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pepin, Luce

2007-01-01

In 2007, the EU is celebrating both the 50th Anniversary of the Treaty of Rome and the 20 years of existence of its flagship programme, Erasmus, thus recalling that the EU is more than its economic, agricultural or monetary policies and that it develops also as a community of peoples. Education has a key role to play in this respect. This article…

The Global Economic Crisis: Impact on Sub-Saharan Africa and Global Policy Responses

DTIC Science & Technology

2009-10-19

concessional lending facilities, the Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility ( PRGF ) and the Exogenous Shocks Facility (ESF).99 Figure 12. IMF Concessional Loans...to Africa Billions of Dollars Source: International Monetary Fund. Notes: Amounts are the total amount of outstanding PRGF and ESF loans to...99 PRGF loans are intended to help low-income countries address balance of payments concerns, such as those created by the financial crisis. Unlike

A Cost Analysis of Direct Cash Compensation In Lieu of Operating Military Commissary Stores

DTIC Science & Technology

2016-06-01

current benefit that DeCA provides them. This thesis will also provide an estimate of the monetary value of the commissary benefit to service members and...the monetary value of the commissary benefit in remote locations. The research will incorporate data extracted from financial statements from DeCA...shopping benefit , military benefit , military stores, DeCA, budget cuts, savings, cost cut, eligible patron, groceries, food, remote military bases

Cost-benefit analysis of ambulance and rescue helicopters in Norway: reflections on assigning a monetary value to saving a human life.

PubMed

Elvik, Rune

2002-01-01

This paper reports the results of a cost-benefit analysis undertaken in 1996 for a public commission set up to plan the future operation of state-owned ambulance and rescue helicopters in Norway. The analysis indicates that the benefits of ambulance missions flown by helicopters exceeds the costs by a factor of almost six. To do this analysis it was necessary to assign a monetary value to human life. Traditionally this has not been done in medicine, and may be widely regarded as inconsistent with medical ethics. The results of the cost-benefit analysis serve as the starting point to a more general discussion surrounding the economic value of activities designed to reduce human mortality. It is concluded that human preferences for the provision of health care or other life-saving interventions are probably too complex to be adequately represented by means of a single monetary value expressing the benefits of life-saving. The task of developing an inclusive framework for a normative approach to priority setting in injury prevention is daunting, and may be insoluble. It is important to assess the extent to which current value-of-life estimates depend on study methods and social context.

Resistance Towards the Language of Globalisation - The Case of Sri Lanka

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Punchi, Lakshman

2001-07-01

This paper relates the contemporary educational reforms in Sri Lanka to the processes of globalisation. The international monetary organisations such as the IMF and the World Bank and the regional organisations like the Asian Development Bank (ADB) play a dominant role in influencing the debt-receiving countries when it comes to their educational practice. The intensity of the influence of these organisations can vary depending on the existing educational policy of the aid receiving countries. This paper, after a brief introduction on globalisation, examines its effects on the education policy in Sri Lanka with a special emphasis on the current language policy. Equity in education is usually advocated at primary level based on the universal primary education concept so highly upheld by the World Bank. However, the present high human development indicators are undoubtedly due to Sri Lanka's free education policy in native languages. The paper concludes stressing the importance to retain the national education policy as a means of empowerment and liberation of its masses and creating stronger ethnic harmony.

Analysis of network clustering behavior of the Chinese stock market

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, Huan; Mai, Yong; Li, Sai-Ping

2014-11-01

Random Matrix Theory (RMT) and the decomposition of correlation matrix method are employed to analyze spatial structure of stocks interactions and collective behavior in the Shanghai and Shenzhen stock markets in China. The result shows that there exists prominent sector structures, with subsectors including the Real Estate (RE), Commercial Banks (CB), Pharmaceuticals (PH), Distillers&Vintners (DV) and Steel (ST) industries. Furthermore, the RE and CB subsectors are mostly anti-correlated. We further study the temporal behavior of the dataset and find that while the sector structures are relatively stable from 2007 through 2013, the correlation between the real estate and commercial bank stocks shows large variations. By employing the ensemble empirical mode decomposition (EEMD) method, we show that this anti-correlation behavior is closely related to the monetary and austerity policies of the Chinese government during the period of study.

Report summary Prevalence and monetary costs of dementia in Canada (2016): a report by the Alzheimer Society of Canada.

PubMed

2016-10-01

Dementia prevalence estimates vary among population-based studies, depending on the definitions of dementia, methodologies and data sources and types of costs they use. A common approach is needed to avoid confusion and increase public and stakeholder confidence in the estimates. Since 1994, five major studies have yielded widely differing estimates of dementia prevalence and monetary costs of dementia in Canada. These studies variously estimated the prevalence of dementia for the year 2011 as low as 340 170 and as high as 747 000. The main reason for this difference was that mild cognitive impairment (MCI) was not consistently included in the projections. The estimated monetary costs of dementia for the same year also varied, from $910 million to $33 billion. This discrepancy is largely due to three factors: (1) the lack of agreed-upon methods for estimating financial costs; (2) the unavailability of prevalence estimates for the various stages of dementia (mild, moderate and severe), which directly affect the amount of money spent; and (3) the absence of tools to measure direct, indirect and intangible costs more accurately. Given the increasing challenges of dementia in Canada and around the globe, reconciling these differences is critical for developing standards to generate reliable information for public consumption and to shape public policy and service development.

Investing in river health.

PubMed

Bennett, J

2002-01-01

Rivers provide society with numerous returns. These relate to both the passive and extractive uses of the resources embodied in river environments. Some returns are manifest in the form of financial gains whilst others are non-monetary. For instance, rivers are a source of monetary income for those who harvest their fish. The water flowing in rivers is extracted for drinking and to water crops and livestock that in turn yield monetary profits. However, rivers are also the source of non-monetary values arising from biological diversity. People who use them for recreation (picnicking, swimming, boating) also receive non-monetary returns. The use of rivers to yield these returns has had negative consequences. With extraction for financial return has come diminished water quantity and quality. The result has been a diminished capacity of rivers to yield (non-extractive) environmental returns and to continue to provide extractive values. A river is like any other asset. With use, the value of an asset depreciates because its productivity declines. In order to maintain the productive capacity of their assets, managers put aside from their profits depreciation reserves that can be invested in the repair or replacement of those assets. Society now faces a situation in which its river assets have depreciated in terms of their capacity to provide monetary and non-monetary returns. An investment in river "repair" is required. But, investment means that society gives up something now in order to achieve some benefit in the future. Society thus has to grapple wih the choice between investing in river health and other investments--such as in hospitals, schools, defence etc. - as well as between investing in river health and current consumption--such as on clothes, food, cars etc. A commonly used aid for investment decision making in the public sector is benefit cost analysis. However, its usefulness in tackling the river investment problem is restricted because it requires all benefits and costs to be measured in dollar terms, and many of the benefits arising from investments in river health are non-monetary. In this paper, techniques that enable non-monetary values to be estimated in dollar terms are described. Applications of the techniques to the estimation of the environmental values of rivers are demonstrated. The values estimated are used to demonstrate the extent of returns that are possible from investing in river health.

Greek's health, waiting for the 'deus ex machina'.

PubMed

Fanourgiakis, John; Kanoupakis, Emmanuel

2014-10-01

Greece from May 2010 has been following Troika's (European Commission, European Central Bank and International Monetary Fund) austere policies in all over the public finance sector. Troika's instructions which are adopted by the politicians resulted to depressed and weak citizens. The consequences in health care sector are becoming visible across the society. A big part of Greek's society is uninsured without any access to public health care system. The vulnerable social groups confront catastrophic health care expenditures and impoverishment with no social net protection. Greeks are paying the price of their irrational way of living. The current paper has gathered from the literature the early effects of the implementation of these policies on public health and healthcare.

The balance of benefit: a review of intergenerational transfers in Australia.

PubMed

Legge, V; O'Loughlin, K

2000-10-01

This article reviews the financial and nonfinancial transfers taking place intergenerationally and between older people and the community. Secondary data were used in the analysis and discussion to provide an overview of the Australian context. Within the public arena, governments provide major financial contributions through money transfers and the provision of residential support. Older people provide considerable community support by undertaking voluntary services. This article concludes that the balance of benefit is difficult to determine; however, in terms of public expenditure older people are major recipients. Within the family, the balance of benefit is reversed. Older people are major monetary contributors to adult children and their families in the transition to an independent status. Older people are also the principal carers of their frail-aged partners, thus reducing both the burden of care on their adult children and government institutions. The analysis reported here has major implications for the development of policy and structural change and for reducing negative stereotypes of dependency in old age.

Disparity Implications of the Medicare MTM Eligibility Criteria: A Literature Review

PubMed Central

Munshi, Kiraat D.; Shih, Ya-Chen Tina; Brown, Lawrence M.; Dagogo-Jack, Samuel; Wan, Jim Y.; Wang, Junling

2013-01-01

Summary The emphasis on eliminating racial and ethnic disparities in health care has received national attention, with various policy initiatives addressing this problem and proposing solutions. However, in the current economic era requiring tight monetary constraints, emphasis is increasingly being placed on economic efficiency, which often conflicts with the equality doctrine upon which many policies have been framed. Our review aims to highlight the disparity implications of one such policy provision—the predominantly utilization-based eligibility criteria for medication therapy management (MTM) services under Medicare Part D—by identifying studies that have documented racial and ethnic disparities in health status and the use of and spending on prescription medications. Future design and evaluation of various regulations and legislations employing utilization-based eligibility criteria must use caution in order to strike an equity-efficiency balance. PMID:23570431

JPRS Report, Soviet Union, Peoples of Asia and Africa, No. 6, November-December 1987

DTIC Science & Technology

1988-06-07

World Bank on condition of reducing the budget deficit and devaluing the national currency . The Bank granted credit to Indonesia for the purpose of...well as the devaluation of the national currency in relation to the dollar. These policies initially led to a further worsening of the country’s... currency organiza- tions. Footnotes 1. The IBRD [World Bank] was created simultaneously with the International Monetary Fund ( IMF ) at the Bretton

Making Policy in the Shadow of the Future

DTIC Science & Technology

2010-01-01

dollar would be replaced as the inter- national currency by the euro; the International Monetary Fund’s synthetic blend of curren- cies, known as SDRs...Special Drawing Rights); or even the Chinese renminbi. Indeed, in June 2009, the Chinese Central Bank called for the creation of a new reserve currency ...2006.32 Nor do short-term rates reflect panic on the part of debt holders. The U.S. dollar remains the international reserve currency . The reasons

The G-20 and International Economic Cooperation: Background and Implications for Congress

DTIC Science & Technology

2009-12-09

exports may decline should another country devalue its currency or restrict imports to attempt to reverse a trade deficit or protect domestic industries...International Monetary Fund ( IMF ), and more informal economic forums, like the Group of Seven, or G-7, and the Group of 20, or G-20. This report focuses on...international framework to monitor and coordinate economic policies, voting reform at the IMF and World Bank, increased funding of multilateral development banks

The health crisis in Argentina.

PubMed

Escudero, José Carlos

2003-01-01

The health crisis in Argentina is part of the larger crisis that has resulted from a collapse in the country's economic and political systems. After a brief review of the country's history over the last century, from international success story to economic failure, the author explains the health crisis in particular and the social crisis in general in terms of failed neoliberal policies imposed on Argentina by the United States and International Monetary Fund through the mediation of the country's political class.

The Global Economic Crisis: Impact on Sub-Saharan Africa and Global Policy Responses

DTIC Science & Technology

2009-08-25

facilities, the Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility ( PRGF ) and the Exogenous Shocks Facility (ESF).88 Figure 11. IMF Concessional Loans to Africa...Billions of Dollars Source: International Monetary Fund. Notes: Amounts are the total amount of outstanding PRGF and ESF loans to African countries...the Needs of Low-Income Countries,” July 29, 2009. 87 CRS Report RS22534, The Multilateral Debt Relief Initiative, by Martin A. Weiss. 88 PRGF loans

A Study of the Less-Developed-Countries Debt Crisis in Mexico and Subsequent Economic Policies

DTIC Science & Technology

2012-09-01

August, 1982, the Finance Minister of Mexico, Silvia Herzog informed the International Monetary Fund that Mexico was unable to meet its principle ...world. A principle cause of the 1983 debt crisis proved to be the ability of Mexico to borrow considerable sums of capital from the international...environment that is favorable to the accumulation of human knowledge.”30 Additionally, studies conducted by “Barro (1991), Mankiw , Romer, and Well (1992

Frameworks for comparing emissions associated with production, consumption, and international trade.

PubMed

Kanemoto, Keiichiro; Lenzen, Manfred; Peters, Glen P; Moran, Daniel D; Geschke, Arne

2012-01-03

While the problem of climate change is being perceived as increasingly urgent, decision-makers struggle to agree on the distribution of responsibility across countries. In particular, representatives from countries hosting emissions-intensive exporting industries have argued that the importers of emissions-intensive goods should bear the responsibility, and ensuing penalties. Indeed, international trade and carbon leakage appear to play an increasingly important role in the carbon emissions debate. However, definitions of quantities describing the embodiment of carbon emissions in internationally traded products, and their measurement, have to be sufficiently robust before being able to underpin global policy. In this paper we critically examine a number of emissions accounting concepts, examine whether the ensuing carbon balances are compatible with monetary trade balances, discuss their different interpretations, and highlight implications for policy. In particular, we compare the emissions embodied in bilateral trade (EEBT) method which considers total trade flows with domestic emission intensities, with the multi-regional input-output (MRIO) method which considers trade only into final consumption with global emission intensities. If consumption-based emissions of different countries were to be compared, we would suggest an MRIO approach because of the global emissions coverage inherent in this method. If trade-adjusted emission inventories were to be compared, we would suggest an EEBT approach due to the consistency with a monetary trade balance.

Monetising the impacts of waste incinerators sited on brownfield land using the hedonic pricing method.

PubMed

Rivas Casado, Monica; Serafini, Jan; Glen, John; Angus, Andrew

2017-03-01

In England and Wales planning regulations require local governments to treat waste near its source. This policy principle alongside regional self-sufficiency and the logistical advantages of minimising distances for waste treatment mean that energy from waste incinerators have been built close to, or even within urban conurbations. There is a clear policy and research need to balance the benefits of energy production from waste incinerators against the negative externalities experienced by local residents. However, the monetary costs of nuisance emissions from incinerators are not immediately apparent. This study uses the Hedonic Pricing Method to estimate the monetary value of impacts associated with three incinerators in England. Once operational, the impact of the incinerators on local house prices ranged from approximately 0.4% to 1.3% of the mean house price for the respective areas. Each of the incinerators studied had been sited on previously industrialised land to minimise overall impact. To an extent this was achieved and results support the effectiveness of spatial planning strategies to reduce the impact on residents. However, negative impacts occurred in areas further afield from the incinerator, suggesting that more can be done to minimise the impacts of incinerators. The results also suggest that in some case the incinerator increased the value of houses within a specified distance of incinerators under specific circumstances, which requires further investigation. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

46 CFR 506.4 - Cost of living adjustments of civil monetary penalties.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-10-01

... 46 Shipping 9 2012-10-01 2012-10-01 false Cost of living adjustments of civil monetary penalties... MONETARY PENALTY INFLATION ADJUSTMENT § 506.4 Cost of living adjustments of civil monetary penalties. (a... penalty for each civil monetary penalty by the cost-of-living adjustment. Any increase determined under...

46 CFR 506.4 - Cost of living adjustments of civil monetary penalties.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-10-01

... 46 Shipping 9 2014-10-01 2014-10-01 false Cost of living adjustments of civil monetary penalties... MONETARY PENALTY INFLATION ADJUSTMENT § 506.4 Cost of living adjustments of civil monetary penalties. (a... penalty for each civil monetary penalty by the cost-of-living adjustment. Any increase determined under...

46 CFR 506.4 - Cost of living adjustments of civil monetary penalties.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... 46 Shipping 9 2011-10-01 2011-10-01 false Cost of living adjustments of civil monetary penalties... MONETARY PENALTY INFLATION ADJUSTMENT § 506.4 Cost of living adjustments of civil monetary penalties. (a... penalty for each civil monetary penalty by the cost-of-living adjustment. Any increase determined under...

46 CFR 506.4 - Cost of living adjustments of civil monetary penalties.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... 46 Shipping 9 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Cost of living adjustments of civil monetary penalties... MONETARY PENALTY INFLATION ADJUSTMENT § 506.4 Cost of living adjustments of civil monetary penalties. (a... penalty for each civil monetary penalty by the cost-of-living adjustment. Any increase determined under...

46 CFR 506.4 - Cost of living adjustments of civil monetary penalties.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-10-01

... 46 Shipping 9 2013-10-01 2013-10-01 false Cost of living adjustments of civil monetary penalties... MONETARY PENALTY INFLATION ADJUSTMENT § 506.4 Cost of living adjustments of civil monetary penalties. (a... penalty for each civil monetary penalty by the cost-of-living adjustment. Any increase determined under...

Investment appraisal using quantitative risk analysis.

PubMed

Johansson, Henrik

2002-07-01

Investment appraisal concerned with investments in fire safety systems is discussed. Particular attention is directed at evaluating, in terms of the Bayesian decision theory, the risk reduction that investment in a fire safety system involves. It is shown how the monetary value of the change from a building design without any specific fire protection system to one including such a system can be estimated by use of quantitative risk analysis, the results of which are expressed in terms of a Risk-adjusted net present value. This represents the intrinsic monetary value of investing in the fire safety system. The method suggested is exemplified by a case study performed in an Avesta Sheffield factory.

Beyond monetary benefits of restoring sight in Vietnam: Evaluating well-being gains from cataract surgery.

PubMed

Feeny, Simon; Posso, Alberto; McDonald, Lachlan; Chuyen, Truong Thi Kim; Tung, Son Thanh

2018-01-01

A more holistic understanding of the benefits of sight-restoring cataract surgery requires a focus that goes beyond income and employment, to include a wider array of well-being measures. The objective of this study is to examine the monetary and non-monetary benefits of cataract surgery on both patients as well as their caregivers in Vietnam. Participants were randomly recruited from a Ho-Chi-Minh City Hospital. A total of 82 cataract patients and 83 caregivers participated in the survey conducted for this study. Paired t-tests, Wilcoxon Signed Rank tests, and regression analysis are used to detect any statistically significant differences in various measures of well-being for patients and caregivers before and after surgery. There are statistically significant improvements in monetary and non-monetary measures of well-being for both patients and caregivers approximately three months after undergoing cataract surgery, compared with baseline assessments collected prior to surgery. Non-monetary measures of well-being include self-assessments of overall health, mental health, hope, self-efficacy, happiness and life satisfaction. For patients, the benefits included statistically significant improvements in earnings, mobility, self-care, the ability to undertake daily activities, self-assessed health and mental health, life satisfaction, hope, and self-efficacy (p<0.01). For caregivers, attendance at work improved alongside overall health, mental health, hope, self-efficacy, happiness and life satisfaction, three months post-surgery (p<0.01). Restoring sight has positive impacts for those suffering from cataracts and their caregivers. Sometimes the benefits are almost equal in their magnitude. The study has also demonstrated that many of these impacts are non-monetary in nature. It is clear that estimates of the rate of return to restoring sight that focus only on financial gains will underestimate the true returns to society of restoring sight from cataract surgeries.

Modulation of working memory function by motivation through loss-aversion.

PubMed

Krawczyk, Daniel C; D'Esposito, Mark

2013-04-01

Cognitive performance is affected by motivation. Few studies, however, have investigated the neural mechanisms of the influence of motivation through potential monetary punishment on working memory. We employed functional MRI during a delayed recognition task that manipulated top-down control demands with added monetary incentives to some trials in the form of potential losses of bonus money. Behavioral performance on the task was influenced by loss-threatening incentives in the form of faster and more accurate performance. As shown previously, we found enhancement of activity for relevant stimuli occurs throughout all task periods (e.g., stimulus encoding, maintenance, and response) in both prefrontal and visual association cortex. Further, these activation patterns were enhanced for trials with possible monetary loss relative to nonincentive trials. During the incentive cue, the amygdala and striatum showed significantly greater activation when money was at a possible loss on the trial. We also evaluated patterns of functional connectivity between regions responsive to monetary consequences and prefrontal areas responsive to the task. This analysis revealed greater delay period connectivity between and the left insula and prefrontal cortex with possible monetary loss relative to nonincentive trials. Overall, these results reveal that incentive motivation can modulate performance on working memory tasks through top-down signals via amplification of activity within prefrontal and visual association regions selective to processing the perceptual inputs of the stimuli to be remembered. Copyright © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Modulation of working memory function by motivation through loss-aversion

PubMed Central

Krawczyk, Daniel C.; D’Esposito, Mark

2012-01-01

Cognitive performance is affected by motivation. Few studies, however, have investigated the neural mechanisms of the influence of motivation through potential monetary punishment on working memory. We employed functional MRI during a delayed recognition task that manipulated top-down control demands with added monetary incentives to some trials in the form of potential losses of bonus money. Behavioral performance on the task was influenced by loss-threatening incentives in the form of faster and more accurate performance. As shown previously, we found enhancement of activity for relevant stimuli occurs throughout all task periods (e.g. stimulus encoding, maintenance, and response) in both prefrontal and visual association cortex. Further, these activation patterns were enhanced for trials with possible monetary loss relative to non-incentive trials. During the incentive cue, the amygdala and striatum showed significantly greater activation when money was at a possible loss on the trial. We also evaluated patterns of functional connectivity between regions responsive to monetary consequences and prefrontal areas responsive to the task. This analysis revealed greater delay period connectivity between and the left insula and prefrontal cortex with possible monetary loss relative to non-incentive trials. Overall, these results reveal that incentive motivation can modulate performance on working memory tasks through top-down signals via amplification of activity within prefrontal and visual association regions selective to processing the perceptual inputs of the stimuli to be remembered. PMID:22113962

Emergy analysis of a farm biogas project in China: A biophysical perspective of agricultural ecological engineering

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhou, S. Y.; Zhang, B.; Cai, Z. F.

2010-05-01

This paper aims to present a biophysical understanding of the agricultural ecological engineering by emergy analysis for a farm biogas project in China as a representative case. Accounting for the resource inputs into and accumulation within the project, as well as the outputs to the social system, emergy analysis provides an empirical study in the biophysical dimension of the agricultural ecological engineering. Economic benefits and ecological economic benefits of the farm biogas project indicated by market value and emergy monetary value are discussed, respectively. Relative emergy-based indices such as renewability (R%), emergy yield ratio (EYR), environmental load ratio (ELR) and environmental sustainability index (ESI) are calculated to evaluate the environmental load and local sustainability of the concerned biogas project. The results show that the farm biogas project has more reliance on the local renewable resources input, less environmental pressure and higher sustainability compared with other typical agricultural systems. In addition, holistic evaluation and its policy implications for better operation and management of the biogas project are presented.

Modelling of volatility in monetary transmission mechanism

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Dobešová, Anna; Klepáč, Václav; Kolman, Pavel

2015-03-10

The aim of this paper is to compare different approaches to modeling of volatility in monetary transmission mechanism. For this purpose we built time-varying parameter VAR (TVP-VAR) model with stochastic volatility and VAR-DCC-GARCH model with conditional variance. The data from three European countries are included in the analysis: the Czech Republic, Germany and Slovakia. Results show that VAR-DCC-GARCH system captures higher volatility of observed variables but main trends and detected breaks are generally identical in both approaches.

Health impact assessment and monetary valuation of IQ loss in pre-school children due to lead exposure through locally produced food.

PubMed

Bierkens, J; Buekers, J; Van Holderbeke, M; Torfs, R

2012-01-01

A case study has been performed which involved the full chain assessment from policy drivers to health effect quantification of lead exposure through locally produced food on loss of IQ in pre-school children at the population level across the EU-27, including monetary valuation of the estimated health impact. Main policy scenarios cover the period from 2000 to 2020 and include the most important Community policy developments expected to affect the environmental release of lead (Pb) and corresponding human exposure patterns. Three distinct scenarios were explored: the emission situation based on 2000 data, a business-as-usual scenario (BAU) up to 2010 and 2020 and a scenario incorporating the most likely technological change expected (Most Feasible Technical Reductions, MFTR) in response to current and future legislation. Consecutive model calculations (MSCE-HM, WATSON, XtraFOOD, IEUBK) were performed by different partners on the project as part of the full chain approach to derive estimates of blood lead (B-Pb) levels in children as a consequence of the consumption of local produce. The estimated B-Pb levels were translated into an average loss of IQ points/child using an empirical relationship based on a meta-analysis performed by Schwartz (1994). The calculated losses in IQ points were subsequently further translated into the average cost/child using a cost estimate of €10.000 per loss of IQ point based on data from a literature review. The estimated average reduction of cost/child (%) for all countries considered in 2010 under BAU and MFTR are 12.16 and 18.08% as compared to base line conditions, respectively. In 2020 the percentages amount to 20.19 and 23.39%. The case study provides an example of the full-chain impact pathway approach taking into account all foreseeable pathways both for assessing the environmental fate and the associated human exposure and the mode of toxic action to arrive at quantitative estimates of health impacts at the individual and the population risk levels alike at EU scale. As the estimated B-Pb levels fall below the range of observed biomonitoring data collected for pre-school children in 6 different EU countries, results presented in this paper are only a first approximation of the costs entailed in the health effects of exposure to lead and the potential benefits that may arise from MFTR measures inscribed in Commission policies. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Heterogeneous motivations for coca growing: the case of an indigenous Aymara community in Peru.

PubMed

Garcia-Yi, Jaqueline

2014-11-01

Coca is a native bush from the Amazon rainforest from which cocaine is extracted. Growing coca is a profitable activity; however, not all farmers located in the coca-supply areas do so. Little is known about farmers' motivations for the decision to grow coca and if so, how much to grow. This article evaluates the influence of monetary and non-monetary factors on these decisions. The study is based on a survey of 496 households in an indigenous Aymara community in Peru. The results suggest, for example, that farmers are more likely to cultivate coca when their plots are characterized by flatter agricultural slopes and when in debt. In relation to the scale of coca cultivation, farmers can be classified into two groups. The larger group (73 percent) grows a high number of coca bushes when facing economic hardship; farmers in the second group (27 percent) seem to be more motivated by the potential profits from coca production relative to coffee, the alternative crop in the area. Therefore, the results support the common notion that farmers cultivate coca in accordance with economic need. Nonetheless, non-economic factors also influence the number of coca bushes cultivated and offer an additional opportunity to reduce coca cultivation if explicitly considered in drug-control policies. This research also discusses potential farmers' responses to different coca-growing reduction strategies. Common drug-control policies such as organic coffee certification, road construction, and education have mixed effects on coca cultivation, depending on the type of coca grower. As such, farmers' motivations are heterogeneous and the design of effective drug-control policies needs to reflect this. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Review Article "Valuating the intangible effects of natural hazards - review and analysis of the costing methods"

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Markantonis, V.; Meyer, V.; Schwarze, R.

2012-05-01

The "intangible" or "non-market" effects are those costs of natural hazards which are not, or at least not easily measurable in monetary terms, as for example, impacts on health, cultural heritage or the environment. The intangible effects are often not included in costs assessments of natural hazards leading to an incomplete and biased cost assessment. However, several methods exist which try to estimate these effects in a non-monetary or monetary form. The objective of the present paper is to review and evaluate methods for estimating the intangible effects of natural hazards, specifically related to health and environmental effects. Existing methods are analyzed and compared using various criteria, research gaps are identified, application recommendations are provided, and valuation issues that should be addressed by the scientific community are highlighted.

Analyzing Patients' Values by Applying Cluster Analysis and LRFM Model in a Pediatric Dental Clinic in Taiwan

PubMed Central

Lin, Shih-Yen; Liu, Chih-Wei

2014-01-01

This study combines cluster analysis and LRFM (length, recency, frequency, and monetary) model in a pediatric dental clinic in Taiwan to analyze patients' values. A two-stage approach by self-organizing maps and K-means method is applied to segment 1,462 patients into twelve clusters. The average values of L, R, and F excluding monetary covered by national health insurance program are computed for each cluster. In addition, customer value matrix is used to analyze customer values of twelve clusters in terms of frequency and monetary. Customer relationship matrix considering length and recency is also applied to classify different types of customers from these twelve clusters. The results show that three clusters can be classified into loyal patients with L, R, and F values greater than the respective average L, R, and F values, while three clusters can be viewed as lost patients without any variable above the average values of L, R, and F. When different types of patients are identified, marketing strategies can be designed to meet different patients' needs. PMID:25045741

Analyzing patients' values by applying cluster analysis and LRFM model in a pediatric dental clinic in Taiwan.

PubMed

Wu, Hsin-Hung; Lin, Shih-Yen; Liu, Chih-Wei

2014-01-01

This study combines cluster analysis and LRFM (length, recency, frequency, and monetary) model in a pediatric dental clinic in Taiwan to analyze patients' values. A two-stage approach by self-organizing maps and K-means method is applied to segment 1,462 patients into twelve clusters. The average values of L, R, and F excluding monetary covered by national health insurance program are computed for each cluster. In addition, customer value matrix is used to analyze customer values of twelve clusters in terms of frequency and monetary. Customer relationship matrix considering length and recency is also applied to classify different types of customers from these twelve clusters. The results show that three clusters can be classified into loyal patients with L, R, and F values greater than the respective average L, R, and F values, while three clusters can be viewed as lost patients without any variable above the average values of L, R, and F. When different types of patients are identified, marketing strategies can be designed to meet different patients' needs.

Agricultural policy and social returns to eradication programs: the case of Aujeszky's disease in Sweden.

PubMed

Andersson, H; Lexmon, A; Robertsson, J A; Lundeheim, N; Wierup, M

1997-02-01

Economic-welfare analysis of animal disease prevention programs frequently ignore the constraints of the agricultural policy environment. Prevention programs affect producers, consumers and the government. The policy environment to a large extent determines the magnitude as well as the distribution of benefits of the program among these groups. The Swedish hog industry has been exposed to three major policy changes during the 1990-1995 period. These scenarios involve various degrees of government intervention in the agricultural sector including internal market deregulation and EU-membership. Aujeszky's disease is a virus disease with swine as the natural infection reservoir. Piglets are the most fragile and an outbreak of the disease results in symptoms such as shaking, cramps and convulsions with an increase in the mortality rate. Slaughter hogs suffer from coughing, fever and reduce their feed consumption. During the last 20-25 years the incidence of Aujeszky's disease (AD) has been increasing in Sweden. In 1989 an eradication program was undertaken. A model is developed to analyze social benefits of an eradication program given variations in agricultural policy. The model refers to the specifics of the AD-program implemented in Sweden. The expected benefits of the program are evaluated using a welfare-economic analysis applying cost-benefit analysis. Total benefits of the program are evaluated across herd and size categories and different regions. Data concerning the frequency of the virus among various categories of herds prior to enacting the program were used (Wahlström et al., 1990). In addition, data from an agricultural insurance company were used to estimate the conditional probability of an outbreak given that the herd is infected. Biological and technical parameter values were collected from a variety of sources. The results of the analysis indicate that the program is economically viable given a social rate of discount in the range of 3-5% without considering non-monetary aspects such as animal ethics. A scenario where the Swedish agricultural sector is deregulated provides the maximum benefits of the program. Consumers obtain about 50% of the benefits excluding program costs. The deregulation scenario would correspond closely to a case where a reformed Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) is applied across member countries. In the current case where Sweden is a member of the EU, the benefits are reduced mainly due to lower prices of inputs and pork.

Contribution of ecosystem services to air quality and climate change mitigation policies: the case of urban forests in Barcelona, Spain.

PubMed

Baró, Francesc; Chaparro, Lydia; Gómez-Baggethun, Erik; Langemeyer, Johannes; Nowak, David J; Terradas, Jaume

2014-05-01

Mounting research highlights the contribution of ecosystem services provided by urban forests to quality of life in cities, yet these services are rarely explicitly considered in environmental policy targets. We quantify regulating services provided by urban forests and evaluate their contribution to comply with policy targets of air quality and climate change mitigation in the municipality of Barcelona, Spain. We apply the i-Tree Eco model to quantify in biophysical and monetary terms the ecosystem services "air purification," "global climate regulation," and the ecosystem disservice "air pollution" associated with biogenic emissions. Our results show that the contribution of urban forests regulating services to abate pollution is substantial in absolute terms, yet modest when compared to overall city levels of air pollution and GHG emissions. We conclude that in order to be effective, green infrastructure-based efforts to offset urban pollution at the municipal level have to be coordinated with territorial policies at broader spatial scales.

United States-Vietnam Relations 1945-1967. Book 7 of 12

DTIC Science & Technology

1971-09-20

have the 118 rate in both directions. (2) A new tax on beverages would raise about 1.5 billion piasters in revenue. (3) The GVK would sell gold to...12) Increase receipts from domestic taxes and tariffs, and revise monetary policies. 103/ 17. The Leverage Study On August 31 State...of pressures against the North became more urgent, and the pros-- peet of increasing U.S. inputs to all phases of the war loomed larger. The U.S

Estimated Impact of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act on Employment and Economic Output from October 2011 Through December 2011

DTIC Science & Technology

2012-02-01

used to finance 11. Changes in the output gap affect unemployment gradually over several quarters. Initially, part of a rise in output shows up as...discussion of the long-run effects of other debt- financed policies for boosting output and employment, see statement of Douglas W. Elmendorf, Director...DECEMBER 2011 CBO 6. See Eric M. Leeper, "Monetary Science, Fiscal Alchemy " (paper presented at the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City symposium

Job satisfaction and its influential factors in dental academic members in tehran, iran.

PubMed

Seraj, B; Ghadimi, S; Mirzaee, M; Ahmadi, R; Bashizadeh, H; Ashofteh-Yazdi, K; Sahebjamee, M; Kharazi, Mj; Jahanmehr, M

2014-03-01

Assessment of job satisfaction of the faculty members and its underlying factors may increase career fulfillment and raise the educational and research productivity, leading to higher quality of dental services at the community level, ultimately improving public oral health status. This study assessed job satisfaction and its influential factors in dental academic members in Tehran. The job satisfaction level of 203 faculty members was assessed using a Likert scale questionnaire from 0 to 4, with 4 representing very satisfied and 0 not at all satisfied. The analysis of variance was used to compare the responses among dental faculty members of three different universities. The impact of age, gender, academic rank, employment status and the date of employment on the overall faculty job satisfaction was identified by multiple linear regression analysis. The mean professional satisfaction score among faculty members was 1.5 (0.5) out of four. Among the studied underlying factors, only the date of employment was seen to have a statistically significant impact on the faculties' overall job satisfaction (P= 0.05). There was no difference in job compensation observed between the three dental faculties. Dissatisfying aspects of the academic work included educational and research policies, monetary strategies, quality of leadership and administration, promotion and tenure policies, job security, educational environment, equipments, and facilities. The only satisfying factor was the interaction between faculty colleagues and students. Faculty members of Tehran Dental Schools are dissatisfied with their work environments in Tehran Dental Schools. Issues such as salary and remuneration, facilities, equipments, promotion and tenure policies are strongly believed to account for the dissatisfaction.

Promoting consumption of fruit and vegetables for better health. Have campaigns delivered on the goals?

PubMed

Rekhy, Reetica; McConchie, Robyn

2014-08-01

Daily intake of fruits and vegetables worldwide remains well below the recommended WHO levels, despite the established health benefits associated with fruit and vegetable consumption. A diversity of policy interventions designed to increase consumption have been conducted in the developed economies around the globe for over a decade, involving significant monetary outlays. The impact of these initiatives remains at best, modest to low, in effecting a significant increase in daily consumption on a sustained basis. Several factors have been identified in both promoting and impeding the increase in fruit and vegetable consumption, including the effects of consumer behaviour. This paper reviews several of the major promotional campaigns from around the world and provides analysis of their level of success, with a view to developing novel approaches for formulating more effective marketing and promotional interventions that will prompt significant change. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

[Costs and benefits of smoking].

PubMed

Polder, J J; van Gils, P F; Kok, L; Talhout, R; Feenstra, T L

2017-01-01

- Two recent societal cost-benefit analyses have documented the costs of smoking and the cost-effectiveness of preventing smoking.- Smoking costs the Netherlands society EUR 33 billion per year.- The majority of this is the monetary value of health loss; these are "soft" euros that cannot be re-spent.- There is not a great deal of difference between costs and benefits when expressed in "hard" euros, which means that there is no clear business case for anti-smoking policy.- The greatest benefit of discouraging smoking is improved health for the individual and increased productivity for the business sector; however, the benefits cannot be easily realised, because even in the most favourable scenario the number of smokers will decrease slowly.- Excise duties seem to offer the most promising avenue for combating smoking. The benefits of anti-smoking policy, therefore, consist mainly of tax revenues for the government.- Stringent policy is required to transform tax revenues into health gains.

Economic Adjustment, Education and Human Resource Development in Africa: The Case of Nigeria

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Geo-Jaja, Macleans A.; Mangum, Garth

2003-07-01

On the basis of the Nigerian experience, this article argues that the structural adjustment programs of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, when misapplied, can have a devastating effect on the educational systems that are essential to human resource development. The paper considers how the objectives of structural adjustment might have been accomplished without harming education, and recommends an outcomes-based educational policy for Nigeria which could serve equally well in other developing nations. The key message of the paper is that the ongoing austerity programs have been secured at excessively high human cost, and that it is time for a policy redirection that reaffirms education as the essential tool of all development.

A techno-economic analysis of aquaculture business in Ogun State, Nigeria

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kareem, R. O.; Williams, S. B.

2009-05-01

Fish supplies 25% of the total protein source in developing countries. A techno-economic analysis was performed for developing a good business proposal for aquaculture loans to enhance aquaculture development in Nigeria. A case study of catfish Clarias gariepinus framing was conducted in Abeokuta North Local Government of Ogun State, Nigeria. The results show that the fixed cost is N18 338 per year, and the variable cost is N459 700 per year, accounting for the largest amount of the total; therefore, a profit of N43 289 per month can be made. Sensitivity analysis was performed to assess any risk(s) that associated with unfavorable changes in government policy with particular reference to monetary policy. Positive net present value shows that the investment in fish farm is economically feasible and the net investment ratio is 3.52. Also, the benefit-cost ratio is 2.17. The internal rate of return (IRR) is 21% showing that the enterprise is able to offset the interest being charged on the loan. It is therefore worthwhile to invest into fish farm business in the study area. The study suggests that to better sustain the local aquaculture business, the government should create a good conducive environment to foster development of the fish farming. Government intervention is urgently needed to solve problems such as in traditional land tenure, grant credit facilities and subsidies, to enhance the aquacultural development in the country.

Structural adjustment and health: A conceptual framework and evidence on pathways.

PubMed

Kentikelenis, Alexander E

2017-08-01

Economic reform programs designed by the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank-so-called 'structural adjustment programs'-have formed one of the most influential policy agendas of the past four decades. To gain access to financial support from these organizations, countries-often in economic crisis-have reduced public spending, limited the role of the state, and deregulated economic activity. This article identifies the multiple components of structural adjustment, and presents a conceptual framework linking them to health systems and outcomes. Based on a comprehensive review of the academic literature, the article identifies three main pathways through which structural adjustment affects health: policies directly targeting health systems; policies indirectly impacting health systems; and policies affecting the social determinants of health. The cogency of the framework is illustrated by revisiting Greece's recent experience with structural adjustment, drawing on original IMF reports and secondary literature. Overall, the framework offers a lens through which to analyze the health consequences of structural adjustment across time, space and levels of socioeconomic development, and can be utilized in ex ante health impact assessments of these policies. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

High monetary reward rates and caloric rewards decrease temporal persistence

PubMed Central

Bode, Stefan; Murawski, Carsten

2017-01-01

Temporal persistence refers to an individual's capacity to wait for future rewards, while forgoing possible alternatives. This requires a trade-off between the potential value of delayed rewards and opportunity costs, and is relevant to many real-world decisions, such as dieting. Theoretical models have previously suggested that high monetary reward rates, or positive energy balance, may result in decreased temporal persistence. In our study, 50 fasted participants engaged in a temporal persistence task, incentivised with monetary rewards. In alternating blocks of this task, rewards were delivered at delays drawn randomly from distributions with either a lower or higher maximum reward rate. During some blocks participants received either a caloric drink or water. We used survival analysis to estimate participants' probability of quitting conditional on the delay distribution and the consumed liquid. Participants had a higher probability of quitting in blocks with the higher reward rate. Furthermore, participants who consumed the caloric drink had a higher probability of quitting than those who consumed water. Our results support the predictions from the theoretical models, and importantly, suggest that both higher monetary reward rates and physiologically relevant rewards can decrease temporal persistence, which is a crucial determinant for survival in many species. PMID:28228517

High monetary reward rates and caloric rewards decrease temporal persistence.

PubMed

Fung, Bowen J; Bode, Stefan; Murawski, Carsten

2017-02-22

Temporal persistence refers to an individual's capacity to wait for future rewards, while forgoing possible alternatives. This requires a trade-off between the potential value of delayed rewards and opportunity costs, and is relevant to many real-world decisions, such as dieting. Theoretical models have previously suggested that high monetary reward rates, or positive energy balance, may result in decreased temporal persistence. In our study, 50 fasted participants engaged in a temporal persistence task, incentivised with monetary rewards. In alternating blocks of this task, rewards were delivered at delays drawn randomly from distributions with either a lower or higher maximum reward rate. During some blocks participants received either a caloric drink or water. We used survival analysis to estimate participants' probability of quitting conditional on the delay distribution and the consumed liquid. Participants had a higher probability of quitting in blocks with the higher reward rate. Furthermore, participants who consumed the caloric drink had a higher probability of quitting than those who consumed water. Our results support the predictions from the theoretical models, and importantly, suggest that both higher monetary reward rates and physiologically relevant rewards can decrease temporal persistence, which is a crucial determinant for survival in many species. © 2017 The Authors.

Applied economics: The use of monetary incentives to modulate behavior.

PubMed

Strang, S; Park, S Q; Strombach, T; Kenning, P

2016-01-01

According to standard economic theory higher monetary incentives will lead to higher performance and higher effort independent of task, context, or individual. In many contexts this standard economic advice is implemented. Monetary incentives are, for example, used to enhance performance at workplace or to increase health-related behavior. However, the fundamental positive impact of monetary incentives has been questioned by psychologists as well as behavioral economists during the last decade, arguing that monetary incentives can sometimes even backfire. In this chapter, studies from proponents as well as opponents of monetary incentives will be presented. Specifically, the impact of monetary incentives on performance, prosocial, and health behavior will be discussed. Furthermore, variables determining whether incentives have a positive or negative impact will be identified. © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Access to medicines in Brazil based on monetary and non-monetary acquisition data obtained from the 2008/2009 Household Budget Survey

PubMed Central

Goes, Fernanda Caroline Silva; Homem-de-Mello, Mauricio; Caldas, Eloisa Dutra

2016-01-01

ABSTRACT OBJECTIVE To investigate the access to medicines by Brazilian families by monetary and non-monetary acquisition data. METHODS This is a cross-sectional study based on data obtained from the 2008/2009 Brazilian Household Budget Survey. The units of assessment were households that participated in the survey and the data on the acquisition of medicines over the 30 days prior to the interviews. The medicines were classified according to the Anatomical Therapeutic Chemical classification system. RESULTS Acquisition of medicines was reported by 82.9% of Brazilian households, with 2.38 medicines/household, and 0.72 medicine/individual. In the South and Southeast regions, the average acquisition was slightly greater than the national average (2.53 and 2.49, respectively). In 22.3% of Brazilian households, it was reported that a medicine was not acquired due to lack of financial resources, mainly in the North and Northeastern regions, and in rural areas. Approximately 15.0% of medicines were obtained with no costs, 90.1% of them by the Brazilian Unified Health System. The medicines most acquired were those acting on the nervous system (28.8% of Brazilian households), on the cardiovascular system (15.7%), on the digestive tract and metabolism (14.3%), and on the respiratory system (12.1%). Overall, the quantity of medicines acquired was greater in higher socioeconomic classes of the population, with the exception of antiparasitic products, most likely because of the precarious sanitary conditions faced by less privileged social classes. CONCLUSIONS The acquisition of medicines is a common practice in Brazil, being reported by over 80.0% of the Brazilian households in 2008/2009. Although the data obtained from the Brazilian Household Budget Survey have some limitations, the information obtained in this study can help health authorities to design national and regional policies to guarantee access to these products while promoting their rational use. PMID:28099666

Intelligence moderates neural responses to monetary reward and punishment.

PubMed

Hawes, Daniel R; DeYoung, Colin G; Gray, Jeremy R; Rustichini, Aldo

2014-05-01

The relations between intelligence (IQ) and neural responses to monetary gains and losses were investigated in a simple decision task. In 94 healthy adults, typical responses of striatal blood oxygen level-dependent (BOLD) signal after monetary reward and punishment were weaker for subjects with higher IQ. IQ-moderated differential responses to gains and losses were also found for regions in the medial prefrontal cortex, posterior cingulate cortex, and left inferior frontal cortex. These regions have previously been identified with the subjective utility of monetary outcomes. Analysis of subjects' behavior revealed a correlation between IQ and the extent to which choices were related to experienced decision outcomes in preceding trials. Specifically, higher IQ predicted behavior to be more strongly correlated with an extended period of previously experienced decision outcomes, whereas lower IQ predicted behavior to be correlated exclusively to the most recent decision outcomes. We link these behavioral and imaging findings to a theoretical model capable of describing a role for intelligence during the evaluation of rewards generated by unknown probabilistic processes. Our results demonstrate neural differences in how people of different intelligence respond to experienced monetary rewards and punishments. Our theoretical discussion offers a functional description for how these individual differences may be linked to choice behavior. Together, our results and model support the hypothesis that observed correlations between intelligence and preferences may be rooted in the way decision outcomes are experienced ex post, rather than deriving exclusively from how choices are evaluated ex ante.

Using Count Data and Ordered Models in National Forest Recreation Demand Analysis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Simões, Paula; Barata, Eduardo; Cruz, Luis

2013-11-01

This research addresses the need to improve our knowledge on the demand for national forests for recreation and offers an in-depth data analysis supported by the complementary use of count data and ordered models. From a policy-making perspective, while count data models enable the estimation of monetary welfare measures, ordered models allow for the wider use of the database and provide a more flexible analysis of data. The main purpose of this article is to analyse the individual forest recreation demand and to derive a measure of its current use value. To allow a more complete analysis of the forest recreation demand structure the econometric approach supplements the use of count data models with ordered category models using data obtained by means of an on-site survey in the Bussaco National Forest (Portugal). Overall, both models reveal that travel cost and substitute prices are important explanatory variables, visits are a normal good and demographic variables seem to have no influence on demand. In particular, estimated price and income elasticities of demand are quite low. Accordingly, it is possible to argue that travel cost (price) in isolation may be expected to have a low impact on visitation levels.

[Evaluation of ecosystem service and emergy of Wanshan Waters in Zhuhai, Guangdong Province, China].

PubMed

Qin, Chuan-xin; Chen, Pi-mao; Zhang, An-kai; Yuan, Hua; Li, Guo-ying; Shu, Li-ming; Zhou, Yan-bo; Li, Xiao-guo

2015-06-01

The method for monetary value and emergy value analysis of ecosystem service was used in this paper to analyze the change in value of marine ecosystem service of Wanshan District, Zhuhai from 2007 to 2012. The result showed that the monetary value and emergy value of marine ecosystem service of Wanshan District, Zhuhai rose to 11512840000 yuan and 1.97 x 10(22) sej from 7721630000 yuan and 1.04 x 10(22) sej, respectively. Both monetary value and emergy value could forecast the change in the value of marine ecosystem service, but they reflected different value structures and ecological energy, which could be used to more objectively evaluate the ecosystem service. Ecological civilization development, as an inherent driving force to impel the development of marine ecosystem service structure, was important for rational exploitation of marine resources and optimization of marine ecosystem service.

Monetary incentives to reinforce engagement and achievement in a job-skills training program for homeless, unemployed adults.

PubMed

Koffarnus, Mikhail N; Wong, Conrad J; Fingerhood, Michael; Svikis, Dace S; Bigelow, George E; Silverman, Kenneth

2013-01-01

The current study examined whether monetary incentives could increase engagement and achievement in a job-skills training program for unemployed, homeless, alcohol-dependent adults. Participants (n=124) were randomized to a no-reinforcement group (n=39), during which access to the training program was provided but no incentives were given; a training reinforcement group (n=42), during which incentives were contingent on attendance and performance; or an abstinence and training reinforcement group (n=43), during which incentives were contingent on attendance and performance, but access was granted only if participants demonstrated abstinence from alcohol. abstinence and training reinforcement and training reinforcement participants advanced further in training and attended more hours than no-reinforcement participants. Monetary incentives were effective in promoting engagement and achievement in a job-skills training program for individuals who often do not take advantage of training programs. © Society for the Experimental Analysis of Behavior.

32 CFR 269.3 - Civil monetary penalty inflation adjustment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... 32 National Defense 2 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Civil monetary penalty inflation adjustment. 269.3 Section 269.3 National Defense Department of Defense (Continued) OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY OF DEFENSE (CONTINUED) MISCELLANEOUS CIVIL MONETARY PENALTY INFLATION ADJUSTMENT § 269.3 Civil monetary...

14 CFR 13.305 - Cost of living adjustments of civil monetary penalties.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... monetary penalties. 13.305 Section 13.305 Aeronautics and Space FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION PROCEDURAL RULES INVESTIGATIVE AND ENFORCEMENT PROCEDURES Civil Monetary Penalty Inflation Adjustment § 13.305 Cost of living adjustments of civil monetary penalties. (a) Except for the...

14 CFR 13.305 - Cost of living adjustments of civil monetary penalties.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

... monetary penalties. 13.305 Section 13.305 Aeronautics and Space FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION PROCEDURAL RULES INVESTIGATIVE AND ENFORCEMENT PROCEDURES Civil Monetary Penalty Inflation Adjustment § 13.305 Cost of living adjustments of civil monetary penalties. (a) Except for the...

14 CFR 13.305 - Cost of living adjustments of civil monetary penalties.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

... monetary penalties. 13.305 Section 13.305 Aeronautics and Space FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION PROCEDURAL RULES INVESTIGATIVE AND ENFORCEMENT PROCEDURES Civil Monetary Penalty Inflation Adjustment § 13.305 Cost of living adjustments of civil monetary penalties. (a) Except for the...

14 CFR 13.305 - Cost of living adjustments of civil monetary penalties.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

... monetary penalties. 13.305 Section 13.305 Aeronautics and Space FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION PROCEDURAL RULES INVESTIGATIVE AND ENFORCEMENT PROCEDURES Civil Monetary Penalty Inflation Adjustment § 13.305 Cost of living adjustments of civil monetary penalties. (a) Except for the...

14 CFR 13.305 - Cost of living adjustments of civil monetary penalties.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... monetary penalties. 13.305 Section 13.305 Aeronautics and Space FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION PROCEDURAL RULES INVESTIGATIVE AND ENFORCEMENT PROCEDURES Civil Monetary Penalty Inflation Adjustment § 13.305 Cost of living adjustments of civil monetary penalties. (a) Except for the...

Mozambique's Debt and the International Monetary Fund's Influence on Poverty, Education, and Health.

PubMed

Beste, Jason; Pfeiffer, James

2016-01-01

For nearly 30 years, Mozambique has been facing austerity measures regulated by the IMF. These austerity measures, grounded in macroeconomic policies, were supposed to lift Mozambique out of poverty, and improve its healthcare and education systems. By taking an in-depth look at the major etiologies of Mozambique's debt and the conditions which forced the country to accept austerity measures-despite their protests-prior to receiving IMF funding, this paper examines how IMF policies over the past 30 years have affected poverty, health, and the education system. The results of these policies have contributed to Mozambique's enduring classification as one of the poorest countries in the world. Aside from economic outcomes, Mozambique also has abysmal health and education systems, with one of the lowest life expectancies in Sub-Saharan Africa. It is time to re-evaluate how the current IMF macroeconomic policies negatively affect, health, education and the socioeconomic status of those who live in abject poverty. As short term macroeconomic policies of PARPA have been ineffective at reducing poverty, promoting education and improving health, the IMF should consider using longer term macroeconomic policies which invest in-rather than limit-public services such as health and education. © The Author(s) 2016.

46 CFR 506.3 - Civil monetary penalty inflation adjustment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... 46 Shipping 9 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Civil monetary penalty inflation adjustment. 506.3... PENALTY INFLATION ADJUSTMENT § 506.3 Civil monetary penalty inflation adjustment. The Commission shall... each civil monetary penalty provided by law within the jurisdiction of the Commission by the inflation...

16 CFR 0.5 - Laws authorizing monetary claims.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... 16 Commercial Practices 1 2011-01-01 2011-01-01 false Laws authorizing monetary claims. 0.5... ORGANIZATION § 0.5 Laws authorizing monetary claims. The Commission is authorized to entertain monetary claims..., unless the adjudicative officer finds that the party has committed a willful violation of law or...

16 CFR 0.5 - Laws authorizing monetary claims.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

... 16 Commercial Practices 1 2012-01-01 2012-01-01 false Laws authorizing monetary claims. 0.5... ORGANIZATION § 0.5 Laws authorizing monetary claims. The Commission is authorized to entertain monetary claims..., unless the adjudicative officer finds that the party has committed a willful violation of law or...

32 CFR 269.4 - Cost of living adjustments of civil monetary penalties.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... 32 National Defense 2 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Cost of living adjustments of civil monetary... DEFENSE (CONTINUED) MISCELLANEOUS CIVIL MONETARY PENALTY INFLATION ADJUSTMENT § 269.4 Cost of living.... Maximum civil monetary penalties within the jurisdiction of the Department of Defense are adjusted for...

78 FR 672 - Civil Monetary Penalties

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-01-04

... Part 3560 RIN 0575AC93 Civil Monetary Penalties AGENCY: Rural Housing Service, USDA. ACTION: Proposed rule. SUMMARY: The Rural Housing Service (RHS or Agency) proposes to implement two civil monetary... civil monetary penalties under the authority of 42 U.S.C. 1490s (section 543 of the Housing Act of 1949...

Shipping emission forecasts and cost-benefit analysis of China ports and key regions' control.

PubMed

Liu, Huan; Meng, Zhi-Hang; Shang, Yi; Lv, Zhao-Feng; Jin, Xin-Xin; Fu, Ming-Liang; He, Ke-Bin

2018-05-01

China established Domestic Emission Control Area (DECA) for sulphur since 2015 to constrain the increasing shipping emissions. However, future DECA policy-makings are not supported due to a lack of quantitive evaluations. To investigate the effects of current and possible Chinese DECAs policies, a model is presented for the forecast of shipping emissions and evaluation of potential costs and benefits of an DECA policy package set in 2020. It includes a port-level and regional-level projection accounting for shipping trade volume growth, share of ship types, and fuel consumption. The results show that without control measures, both SO 2 and particulate matter (PM) emissions are expected to increase by 15.3-61.2% in Jing-Jin-Ji, the Yangtze River Delta, and the Pearl River Delta from 2013 to 2020. However, most emissions can be reduced annually by the establishment of a DECA that depends on the size of the control area and the fuel sulphur content limit. Costs range from 0.667 to 1.561 billion dollars (control regional shipping emissions) based on current fuel price. A social cost method shows the regional control scenarios benefit-cost ratios vary from 4.3 to 5.1 with large uncertainty. Chemical transportation model combined with health model method is used to get the monetary health benefits and then compared with the results from social cost method. This study suggests that Chinese DECAs will reduce the projected emissions at a favorable benefit-cost ratio, and furthermore proposes policy combinations that provide high cost-effective benefits as a reference for future policy-making. Crown Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Lean diesel technology and human health: a case study in six Brazilian metropolitan regions.

PubMed

André, Paulo Afonso de; Veras, Mariana Matera; Miraglia, Simone Georges El Khouri; Saldiva, Paulo Hilário Nascimento

2012-01-01

Due to their toxicity, diesel emissions have been submitted to progressively more restrictive regulations in developed countries. However, in Brazil, the implementation of the Cleaner Diesel Technologies policy (Euro IV standards for vehicles produced in 2009 and low-sulfur diesel with 50 ppm of sulfur) was postponed until 2012 without a comprehensive analysis of the effect of this delay on public health parameters. We aimed to evaluate the impact of the delay in implementing the Cleaner Diesel Technologies policy on health indicators and monetary health costs in Brazil. The primary estimator of exposure to air pollution was the concentration of ambient fine particulate matter (particles with aerodynamic diameters <2.5 μm, [PM2.5]). This parameter was measured daily in six Brazilian metropolitan areas during 2007-2008. We calculated 1) the projected reduction in the PM2.5 that would have been achieved if the Euro IV standards had been implemented in 2009 and 2) the expected reduction after implementation in 2012. The difference between these two time curves was transformed into health outcomes using previous dose-response curves. The economic valuation was performed based on the DALY (disability-adjusted life years) method. The delay in implementing the Cleaner Diesel Technologies policy will result in an estimated excess of 13,984 deaths up to 2040. Health expenditures are projected to be increased by nearly US$ 11.5 billion for the same period. The present results indicate that a significant health burden will occur because of the postponement in implementing the Cleaner Diesel Technologies policy. These results also reinforce the concept that health effects must be considered when revising fuel and emission policies.

Modern money theory and ecological tax reform: A functional finance approach to energy conservation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

McConnell, Scott L. B.

This dissertation contributes to heterodox economics by developing a theoretical and policy-relevant link that will promote the conservation of energy while driving the value of the domestic currency. The analysis relies upon the theoretical foundation of modern money theory and functional finance, which states that "taxes-drive-money" where the value of a sovereign nation's currency is imputed through the acceptance by the sovereign nation of the currency in payment of taxation. This theoretical perspective lends itself to various public policy prescriptions, such as government employment policies or the employer of last resort (ELR), which has been discussed at length elsewhere (Wray 1998; Tcherneva 2007, Forstater 2003). This research contributes to this overall program by arguing that the basis for taxation under modern money theory allows public policy makers various alternatives regarding the make-up of the tax system in place. In particular, following functional finance, taxes do not have the sole purpose of paying for government spending, but rather drive the value of the currency and may be designed to perform other functions as well, such as penalizing socially undesirable behavior. The focus in this dissertation is on the amelioration of pollution and increasing energy conservation. The research question for this dissertation is this: what federally implemented tax would best serve the multiple criteria of 1) driving the value of the currency, 2) promoting energy conservation and 3) ameliorating income and wealth disparities inherent in a monetary production economy? This dissertation provides a suggestion for such a tax that would be part of a much larger overall policy program based upon the tenets of modern money theory and functional finance. Additionally, this research seeks to provide an important theoretical contribution to the emerging Post Keynesian and ecological economics dialog.

Facilitating the Funding for the Conservation Through Tradeable Development Rights: AN Approach Through Mapping and Analyzing the Built Heritage at Ahmedabad, India

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Routh, R.; Shah, P.

2013-07-01

In India, most of the built heritage is still retained by private ownership, who usually are un inproficient to provide the monetary support for the upkeep of the building. In such a scenario, the property goes into deterioration and is gradually lost. In response to this, the Ahmedabad Urban Develepment Authority (AUDA) have introduced a policy named Tradable Development Rights (TDR) for listed structures within the historic core of Ahmedabad, which will help in generating revenue for conservation of the built heritage. This paper discusses an apparatus which will assist the process of TDR by forming a common platform between the stakeholders to increase efficiency in the procurement and transaction procedure. The system comprises of a procedure which puts all the listed properties on an interactive map, classified according to the grade assigned to each along with the present physical condition of the building, along with information such as the heritage value, contact details, available FSI through TDR and at what amount. The map has been developed using Open Source GIS, and will act as a model for mapping and managing the inventory generated for Ahmedabad. This will help the builders approach the properties which have been graded in terms of importance and urgency as well as simultaneously providing public awareness by through necessary information which the property owner should know to avail the monetary benefits through TDR. The paper also highlights a comparative analysis and benefits of procuring the FSI available through TDR for the historic core.

How Financial Innovation Has Made Textbook Monetary Theory Obsolete.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gilbody, John

1988-01-01

Argues that much of the monetary theory in economics textbooks has not changed in accordance with the facts of monetary history. Contends that by neglecting institutional changes in the monetary system in the 50 years since the publication of Keynes' General Theory, many textbooks are now in danger of seriously misleading their readers. (GEA)

22 CFR 123.23 - Monetary value of shipments.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... 22 Foreign Relations 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Monetary value of shipments. 123.23 Section 123... EXPORT OF DEFENSE ARTICLES § 123.23 Monetary value of shipments. Port Directors of U.S. Customs and... value of the export does not exceed the aggregate monetary value (not quantity) stated on the license by...

Methodological developments in US state-level Genuine Progress Indicators: toward GPI 2.0

USGS Publications Warehouse

Bagstad, Kenneth J.; Berik, Günseli; Gaddis, Erica J. Brown

2014-01-01

The Genuine Progress Indicator (GPI) has emerged as an important monetary measure of economic well-being. Unlike mainstream economic indicators, primarily Gross Domestic Product (GDP), the GPI accounts for both the benefits and costs of economic production across diverse economic, social, and environmental domains in a more comprehensive manner. Recently, the GPI has gained traction in subnational policy in the United States, with GPI studies being conducted in a number of states and with their formal adoption by several state governments. As the GPI is applied in different locations, new methods are developed, different data sources are available, and new issues of policy relevance are addressed using its component indicators. This has led to a divergence in methods, reducing comparability between studies and yielding results that are of varying methodological sophistication. In this study, we review the “state of the art” in recent US state-level GPI studies, focusing on those from Hawaii, Maryland, Ohio, Utah, and Vermont. Through adoption of a consistent approach, these and future GPI studies could utilize a framework that supports more uniform, comparable, and accurate measurements of progress. We also identify longer-term issues, particularly related to treatment of nonrenewable resource depletion, government spending, income inequality, and ecosystem services. As these issues are successfully addressed and disseminated, a “GPI 2.0” will emerge that better measures economic well-being and has greater accuracy and policy relevance than past GPI measurements. As the GPI expands further into mainstream policy analysis, a more formal process by which methods could be updated, standardized, and applied is needed.

BOLD responses in reward regions to hypothetical and imaginary monetary rewards

PubMed Central

Miyapuram, Krishna P.; Tobler, Philippe N.; Gregorios-Pippas, Lucy; Schultz, Wolfram

2015-01-01

Monetary rewards are uniquely human. Because money is easy to quantify and present visually, it is the reward of choice for most fMRI studies, even though it cannot be handed over to participants inside the scanner. A typical fMRI study requires hundreds of trials and thus small amounts of monetary rewards per trial (e.g. 5p) if all trials are to be treated equally. However, small payoffs can have detrimental effects on performance due to their limited buying power. Hypothetical monetary rewards can overcome the limitations of smaller monetary rewards but it is less well known whether predictors of hypothetical rewards activate reward regions. In two experiments, visual stimuli were associated with hypothetical monetary rewards. In Experiment 1, we used stimuli predicting either visually presented or imagined hypothetical monetary rewards, together with non-rewarding control pictures. Activations to reward predictive stimuli occurred in reward regions, namely the medial orbitofrontal cortex and midbrain. In Experiment 2, we parametrically varied the amount of visually presented hypothetical monetary reward keeping constant the amount of actually received reward. Graded activation in midbrain was observed to stimuli predicting increasing hypothetical rewards. The results demonstrate the efficacy of using hypothetical monetary rewards in fMRI studies. PMID:21985912

BOLD responses in reward regions to hypothetical and imaginary monetary rewards.

PubMed

Miyapuram, Krishna P; Tobler, Philippe N; Gregorios-Pippas, Lucy; Schultz, Wolfram

2012-01-16

Monetary rewards are uniquely human. Because money is easy to quantify and present visually, it is the reward of choice for most fMRI studies, even though it cannot be handed over to participants inside the scanner. A typical fMRI study requires hundreds of trials and thus small amounts of monetary rewards per trial (e.g. 5p) if all trials are to be treated equally. However, small payoffs can have detrimental effects on performance due to their limited buying power. Hypothetical monetary rewards can overcome the limitations of smaller monetary rewards but it is less well known whether predictors of hypothetical rewards activate reward regions. In two experiments, visual stimuli were associated with hypothetical monetary rewards. In Experiment 1, we used stimuli predicting either visually presented or imagined hypothetical monetary rewards, together with non-rewarding control pictures. Activations to reward predictive stimuli occurred in reward regions, namely the medial orbitofrontal cortex and midbrain. In Experiment 2, we parametrically varied the amount of visually presented hypothetical monetary reward keeping constant the amount of actually received reward. Graded activation in midbrain was observed to stimuli predicting increasing hypothetical rewards. The results demonstrate the efficacy of using hypothetical monetary rewards in fMRI studies. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Imagining flood futures: risk assessment and management in practice.

PubMed

Lane, Stuart N; Landström, Catharina; Whatmore, Sarah J

2011-05-13

The mantra that policy and management should be 'evidence-based' is well established. Less so are the implications that follow from 'evidence' being predictions of the future (forecasts, scenarios, horizons) even though such futures define the actions taken today to make the future sustainable. Here, we consider the tension between 'evidence', reliable because it is observed, and predictions of the future, unobservable in conventional terms. For flood risk management in England and Wales, we show that futures are actively constituted, and so imagined, through 'suites of practices' entwining policy, management and scientific analysis. Management has to constrain analysis because of the many ways in which flood futures can be constructed, but also because of commitment to an accounting calculus, which requires risk to be expressed in monetary terms. It is grounded in numerical simulation, undertaken by scientific consultants who follow policy/management guidelines that define the futures to be considered. Historical evidence is needed to deal with process and parameter uncertainties and the futures imagined are tied to pasts experienced. Reliance on past events is a challenge for prediction, given changing probability (e.g. climate change) and consequence (e.g. development on floodplains). So, risk management allows some elements of risk analysis to become unstable (notably in relation to climate change) but forces others to remain stable (e.g. invoking regulation to prevent inappropriate floodplain development). We conclude that the assumed separation of risk assessment and management is false because the risk calculation has to be defined by management. Making this process accountable requires openness about the procedures that make flood risk analysis more (or less) reliable to those we entrust to produce and act upon them such that, unlike the 'pseudosciences', they can be put to the test of public interrogation by those who have to live with their consequences. © 2011 Royal Society

International financial institutions and health in Egypt and Tunisia: change or continuity?

PubMed

Ismail, Sharif

2013-01-01

The revolutions in Egypt and Tunisia appeared to herald a re-casting of International Monetary Fund and World Bank policy across the region. Public pronouncements by the heads of both institutions in the months following February 2011 acknowledged flaws in their approach to macroeconomic advice, against a background of worsening socioeconomic indicators, widespread youth unemployment, and widening health inequalities. Evidence on the ground, however, suggests continuity rather than change in international financial institution policies in Egypt and Tunisia, notwithstanding the emergence of a powerful new player-the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development. In the long term, new electoral realities and hardening public opposition in both countries seem likely to force a fundamentally different relationship between regional governments and the major international financial institutions than existed before 2011.

Statistical mechanics of a time-homogeneous system of money and antimoney

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schmitt, Matthias; Schacker, Andreas; Braun, Dieter

2014-03-01

Financial crises appear throughout human history. While there are many schools of thought on what the actual causes of such crises are, it has been suggested that the creation of credit money might be a source of financial instability. We discuss how the credit mechanism in a system of fractional reserve banking leads to non-local transfers of purchasing power that also affect non-involved agents. To overcome this issue, we impose the local symmetry of time homogeneity on the monetary system. A bi-currency system of non-bank assets (money) and bank assets (antimoney) is considered. A payment is either made by passing on money or by receiving antimoney. As a result, a free floating exchange rate between non-bank assets and bank assets is established. Credit creation is replaced by the simultaneous transfer of money and antimoney at a negotiated exchange rate. This is in contrast to traditional discussions of full reserve banking, which stalls creditary lending. With money and antimoney, the problem of credit crunches is mitigated while a full time symmetry of the monetary system is maintained. As a test environment for such a monetary system, we discuss an economy of random transfers. Random transfers are a strong criterion to probe the stability of monetary systems. The analysis using statistical physics provides analytical solutions and confirms that a money-antimoney system could be functional. Equally important to the probing of the stability of such a monetary system is the question of how to implement the credit default dynamics. This issue remains open.

Cost-effectiveness of health research study participant recruitment strategies: a systematic review.

PubMed

Huynh, Lynn; Johns, Benjamin; Liu, Su-Hsun; Vedula, S Swaroop; Li, Tianjing; Puhan, Milo A

2014-10-01

A large fraction of the cost of conducting clinical trials is allocated to recruitment of participants. A synthesis of findings from studies that evaluate the cost and effectiveness of different recruitment strategies will inform investigators in designing cost-efficient clinical trials. To systematically identify, assess, and synthesize evidence from published comparisons of the cost and yield of strategies for recruitment of participants to health research studies. We included randomized studies in which two or more strategies for recruitment of participants had been compared. We focused our economic evaluation on studies that randomized participants to different recruitment strategies. We identified 10 randomized studies that compared recruitment strategies, including monetary incentives (cash or prize), direct contact (letters or telephone call), and medical referral strategies. Only two of the 10 studies compared strategies for recruiting participants to clinical trials. We found that allocating additional resources to recruit participants using monetary incentives or direct contact yielded between 4% and 23% additional participants compared to using neither strategy. For medical referral, recruitment of prostate cancer patients by nurses was cost-saving compared to recruitment by consultant urologists. For all underlying study designs, monetary incentives cost more than direct contact with potential participants, with a median incremental cost per recruitment ratio of Int$72 (Int$-International dollar, a theoretical unit of currency) for monetary incentive strategy compared to Int$28 for direct contact strategy. Only monetary incentives and source of referral were evaluated for recruiting participants into clinical trials. We did not review studies that presented non-monetary cost or lost opportunity cost. We did not adjust for the number of study recruitment sites or the study duration in our economic evaluation analysis. Systematic and explicit reporting of cost and effectiveness of recruitment strategies from randomized comparisons is required to aid investigators to select cost-efficient strategies for recruiting participants to health research studies including clinical trials. © The Author(s) 2014.

Conflict of Interest Policies for Organizations Producing a Large Number of Clinical Practice Guidelines

PubMed Central

Norris, Susan L.; Holmer, Haley K.; Burda, Brittany U.; Ogden, Lauren A.; Fu, Rongwei

2012-01-01

Background Conflict of interest (COI) of clinical practice guideline (CPG) sponsors and authors is an important potential source of bias in CPG development. The objectives of this study were to describe the COI policies for organizations currently producing a significant number of CPGs, and to determine if these policies meet 2011 Institute of Medicine (IOM) standards. Methodology/Principal Findings We identified organizations with five or more guidelines listed in the National Guideline Clearinghouse between January 1, 2009 and November 5, 2010. We obtained the COI policy for each organization from publicly accessible sources, most often the organization's website, and compared those polices to IOM standards related to COI. 37 organizations fulfilled our inclusion criteria, of which 17 (46%) had a COI policy directly related to CPGs. These COI policies varied widely with respect to types of COI addressed, from whom disclosures were collected, monetary thresholds for disclosure, approaches to management, and updating requirements. Not one organization's policy adhered to all seven of the IOM standards that were examined, and nine organizations did not meet a single one of the standards. Conclusions/Significance COI policies among organizations producing a large number of CPGs currently do not measure up to IOM standards related to COI disclosure and management. CPG developers need to make significant improvements in these policies and their implementation in order to optimize the quality and credibility of their guidelines. PMID:22629391

Quantitative Outcomes of a One Health approach to Study Global Health Challenges.

PubMed

Falzon, Laura C; Lechner, Isabel; Chantziaras, Ilias; Collineau, Lucie; Courcoul, Aurélie; Filippitzi, Maria-Eleni; Laukkanen-Ninios, Riikka; Peroz, Carole; Pinto Ferreira, Jorge; Postma, Merel; Prestmo, Pia G; Phythian, Clare J; Sarno, Eleonora; Vanantwerpen, Gerty; Vergne, Timothée; Grindlay, Douglas J C; Brennan, Marnie L

2018-03-01

Having gained momentum in the last decade, the One Health initiative promotes a holistic approach to address complex global health issues. Before recommending its adoption to stakeholders, however, it is paramount to first compile quantitative evidence of the benefit of such an approach. The aim of this scoping review was to identify and summarize primary research that describes monetary and non-monetary outcomes following adoption of a One Health approach. An extensive literature search yielded a total of 42,167 references, of which 85 were included in the final analysis. The top two biotic health issues addressed in these studies were rabies and malaria; the top abiotic health issue was air pollution. Most studies described collaborations between human and animal (n = 42), or human and environmental disciplines (n = 41); commonly reported interventions included vector control and animal vaccination. Monetary outcomes were commonly expressed as cost-benefit or cost-utility ratios; non-monetary outcomes were described using disease frequency or disease burden measurements. The majority of the studies reported positive or partially positive outcomes. This paper illustrates the variety of health challenges that can be addressed using a One Health approach, and provides tangible quantitative measures that can be used to evaluate future implementations of the One Health approach.

A common neural code for social and monetary rewards in the human striatum

PubMed Central

Wake, Stephanie J

2017-01-01

Abstract Although managing social information and decision making on the basis of reward is critical for survival, it remains uncertain whether differing reward type is processed in a uniform manner. Previously, we demonstrated that monetary reward and the social reward of good reputation activated the same striatal regions including the caudate nucleus and putamen. However, it remains unclear whether overlapping activations reflect activities of identical neuronal populations or two overlapping but functionally independent neuronal populations. Here, we re-analyzed the original data and addressed this question using multivariate-pattern-analysis and found evidence that in the left caudate nucleus and bilateral nucleus accumbens, social vs monetary reward were represented similarly. The findings suggest that social and monetary rewards are processed by the same population of neurons within these regions of the striatum. Additional findings demonstrated similar neural patterns when participants experience high social reward compared to viewing others receiving low social reward (potentially inducing schadenfreude). This is possibly an early indication that the same population of neurons may be responsible for processing two different types of social reward (good reputation and schadenfreude). These findings provide a supplementary perspective to previous research, helping to further elucidate the mechanisms behind social vs non-social reward processing. PMID:28985408

A common neural code for social and monetary rewards in the human striatum.

PubMed

Wake, Stephanie J; Izuma, Keise

2017-10-01

Although managing social information and decision making on the basis of reward is critical for survival, it remains uncertain whether differing reward type is processed in a uniform manner. Previously, we demonstrated that monetary reward and the social reward of good reputation activated the same striatal regions including the caudate nucleus and putamen. However, it remains unclear whether overlapping activations reflect activities of identical neuronal populations or two overlapping but functionally independent neuronal populations. Here, we re-analyzed the original data and addressed this question using multivariate-pattern-analysis and found evidence that in the left caudate nucleus and bilateral nucleus accumbens, social vs monetary reward were represented similarly. The findings suggest that social and monetary rewards are processed by the same population of neurons within these regions of the striatum. Additional findings demonstrated similar neural patterns when participants experience high social reward compared to viewing others receiving low social reward (potentially inducing schadenfreude). This is possibly an early indication that the same population of neurons may be responsible for processing two different types of social reward (good reputation and schadenfreude). These findings provide a supplementary perspective to previous research, helping to further elucidate the mechanisms behind social vs non-social reward processing. © The Author (2017). Published by Oxford University Press.

Detecting signatures of stochastic self-organization in US money and velocity measures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Serletis, Apostolos; Uritskaya, Olga Y.

2007-11-01

In this paper, we continue the research by Serletis [Random walks, breaking trend functions, and the chaotic structure of the velocity of money, J. Bus. Econ. Stat. 13 (1995) 453-458] and Serletis and Shintani [Chaotic monetary dynamics with confidence, J. Macroeconomics 28 (2006) 228-252] by applying the method of detrended fluctuation analysis (DFA)-introduced by Peng et al. [Mosaic organization of DNA nucleotides, Phys. Rev. E 49 (1994) 1685-1689] and adapted to the analysis of long-range correlations in economic data by Uritskaya [Forecasting of magnitude and duration of currency crises based on analysis of distortions of fractal scaling in exchange rate fluctuations, Noise and fluctuations in econophysics and finance, Proc. SPIE 5848 (2005) 17-26; Fractal methods for modeling and forecasting of currency crises, in: Proceedings of the fourth International Conference on Modeling and Analysis of Safety and Risk in Complex Systems, SPbSU Press, St.Petersburg, 2005, pp. 210-215]-to investigate the dynamical structure of United States money and velocity measures. We use monthly data over the time period from 1959:1 to 2006:2, at each of the four levels of monetary aggregation, M1, M2, M3, and MZM, making comparisons among simple-sum, Divisia, and currency equivalent (CE) methods of aggregation. The results suggest that the sum and Divisia monetary aggregates are more appropriate for measuring long-term tendencies in money supply dynamics while the CE aggregates are more sensitive measures of short-term processes in the economy.

Major depressive disorder is characterized by greater reward network activation to monetary than pleasant image rewards

PubMed Central

Smoski, Moria J.; Rittenberg, Alison; Dichter, Gabriel S.

2011-01-01

Anhedonia, the loss of interest or pleasure in normally rewarding activities, is a hallmark feature of unipolar Major Depressive Disorder (MDD). A growing body of literature has identified frontostriatal dysfunction during reward anticipation and outcomes in MDD. However, no study to date has directly compared responses to different types of rewards such as pleasant images and monetary rewards in MDD. To investigate the neural responses to monetary and pleasant image rewards in MDD, a modified Monetary Incentive Delay task was used during fMRI scanning to assess neural responses during anticipation and receipt of monetary and pleasant image rewards. Participants included nine adults with MDD and thirteen affectively healthy controls. The MDD group showed lower activation than controls when anticipating monetary rewards in right orbitofrontal cortex and subcallosal cortex, and when anticipating pleasant image rewards in paracingulate and supplementary motor cortex. The MDD group had relatively greater activation in right putamen when anticipating monetary versus pleasant image rewards, relative to the control group. Results suggest reduced reward network activation in MDD when anticipating rewards, as well as relatively greater hypoactivation to pleasant image than monetary rewards. PMID:22079658

Real and hypothetical monetary rewards modulate risk taking in the brain.

PubMed

Xu, Sihua; Pan, Yu; Wang, You; Spaeth, Andrea M; Qu, Zhe; Rao, Hengyi

2016-07-07

Both real and hypothetical monetary rewards are widely used as reinforcers in risk taking and decision making studies. However, whether real and hypothetical monetary rewards modulate risk taking and decision making in the same manner remains controversial. In this study, we used event-related potentials (ERP) with a balloon analogue risk task (BART) paradigm to examine the effects of real and hypothetical monetary rewards on risk taking in the brain. Behavioral data showed reduced risk taking after negative feedback (money loss) during the BART with real rewards compared to those with hypothetical rewards, suggesting increased loss aversion with real monetary rewards. The ERP data demonstrated a larger feedback-related negativity (FRN) in response to money loss during risk taking with real rewards compared to those with hypothetical rewards, which may reflect greater prediction error or regret emotion after real monetary losses. These findings demonstrate differential effects of real versus hypothetical monetary rewards on risk taking behavior and brain activity, suggesting a caution when drawing conclusions about real choices from hypothetical studies of intended behavior, especially when large rewards are used. The results have implications for future utility of real and hypothetical monetary rewards in studies of risk taking and decision making.

Major depressive disorder is characterized by greater reward network activation to monetary than pleasant image rewards.

PubMed

Smoski, Moria J; Rittenberg, Alison; Dichter, Gabriel S

2011-12-30

Anhedonia, the loss of interest or pleasure in normally rewarding activities, is a hallmark feature of unipolar Major Depressive Disorder (MDD). A growing body of literature has identified frontostriatal dysfunction during reward anticipation and outcomes in MDD. However, no study to date has directly compared responses to different types of rewards such as pleasant images and monetary rewards in MDD. To investigate the neural responses to monetary and pleasant image rewards in MDD, a modified Monetary Incentive Delay task was used during functional magnetic resonance imaging to assess neural responses during anticipation and receipt of monetary and pleasant image rewards. Participants included nine adults with MDD and 13 affectively healthy controls. The MDD group showed lower activation than controls when anticipating monetary rewards in right orbitofrontal cortex and subcallosal cortex, and when anticipating pleasant image rewards in paracingulate and supplementary motor cortex. The MDD group had relatively greater activation in right putamen when anticipating monetary versus pleasant image rewards, relative to the control group. Results suggest reduced reward network activation in MDD when anticipating rewards, as well as relatively greater hypoactivation to pleasant image than monetary rewards. 2011 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

A comparison of the electrocortical response to monetary and social reward

PubMed Central

Distefano, Amanda; Jackson, Felicia; Levinson, Amanda R; Infantolino, Zachary P; Jarcho, Johanna M; Nelson, Brady D

2018-01-01

Abstract Affective science research on reward processing has primarily focused on monetary rewards. There has been a growing interest in evaluating the neural basis of social decision-making and reward processing. The present study employed a within-subject design and compared the reward positivity (RewP), an event-related potential component that is present following favorable feedback and absent or reduced following unfavorable feedback, during monetary and social reward tasks. Specifically, 114 participants (75 females) completed a monetary reward task and a novel social reward task that were matched on trial structure, timing, and feedback stimuli in a counterbalanced order. Results indicated that the monetary and social RewP were of similar magnitude, positively correlated and demonstrated comparable psychometric properties, including reliability and dependability. Across both the monetary and social tasks, women demonstrated a greater RewP compared with men. This study provides a novel methodological approach toward examining the electrocortical response to social reward that is comparable to monetary reward. PMID:29373743

Efficiency of two nitrification inhibitors (dicyandiamide and 3, 4-dimethypyrazole phosphate) on soil nitrogen transformations and plant productivity: a meta-analysis

PubMed Central

Yang, Ming; Fang, Yunting; Sun, Di; Shi, Yuanliang

2016-01-01

Dicyandiamide (DCD) and 3, 4-dimethypyrazole phosphate (DMPP) are often claimed to be efficient in regulating soil N transformations and influencing plant productivity, but the difference of their performances across field sites is less clear. Here we applied a meta-analysis approach to compare effectiveness of DCD and DMPP across field trials. Our results showed that DCD and DMPP were equally effective in altering soil inorganic N content, dissolve inorganic N (DIN) leaching and nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions. DCD was more effective than DMPP on increasing plant productivity. An increase of crop yield by DMPP was generally only observed in alkaline soil. The cost and benefit analysis (CBA) showed that applying fertilizer N with DCD produced additional revenues of $109.49 ha−1 yr−1 for maize farms, equivalent to 6.02% increase in grain revenues. In comparisons, DMPP application produced less monetary benefit of $15.67 ha−1 yr−1. Our findings showed that DCD had an advantage of bringing more net monetary benefit over DMPP. But this may be weakened by the higher toxicity of DCD than DMPP especially after continuous DCD application. Alternatively, an option related to net monetary benefit may be achieved through applying DMPP in alkaline soil and reducing the cost of purchasing DMPP products. PMID:26902689

Efficiency of two nitrification inhibitors (dicyandiamide and 3, 4-dimethypyrazole phosphate) on soil nitrogen transformations and plant productivity: a meta-analysis.

PubMed

Yang, Ming; Fang, Yunting; Sun, Di; Shi, Yuanliang

2016-02-23

Dicyandiamide (DCD) and 3, 4-dimethypyrazole phosphate (DMPP) are often claimed to be efficient in regulating soil N transformations and influencing plant productivity, but the difference of their performances across field sites is less clear. Here we applied a meta-analysis approach to compare effectiveness of DCD and DMPP across field trials. Our results showed that DCD and DMPP were equally effective in altering soil inorganic N content, dissolve inorganic N (DIN) leaching and nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions. DCD was more effective than DMPP on increasing plant productivity. An increase of crop yield by DMPP was generally only observed in alkaline soil. The cost and benefit analysis (CBA) showed that applying fertilizer N with DCD produced additional revenues of $109.49 ha(-1) yr(-1) for maize farms, equivalent to 6.02% increase in grain revenues. In comparisons, DMPP application produced less monetary benefit of $15.67 ha(-1) yr(-1). Our findings showed that DCD had an advantage of bringing more net monetary benefit over DMPP. But this may be weakened by the higher toxicity of DCD than DMPP especially after continuous DCD application. Alternatively, an option related to net monetary benefit may be achieved through applying DMPP in alkaline soil and reducing the cost of purchasing DMPP products.

International financial institutions and human rights: implications for public health.

PubMed

Stubbs, Thomas; Kentikelenis, Alexander

2017-01-01

Serving as lender of last resort to countries experiencing unsustainable levels of public debt, international financial institutions have attracted intense controversy over the past decades, exemplified most recently by the popular discontent expressed in Eurozone countries following several rounds of austerity measures. In exchange for access to financial assistance, borrowing countries must settle on a list of often painful policy reforms that are aimed at balancing the budget. This practice has afforded international financial institutions substantial policy influence on governments throughout the world and in a wide array of policy areas of direct bearing on human rights. This article reviews the consequences of policy reforms mandated by international financial institutions on the enjoyment of human rights, focusing on the International Monetary Fund and World Bank. It finds that these reforms undermine the enjoyment of health rights, labour rights, and civil and political rights, all of which have deleterious implications for public health. The evidence suggests that for human rights commitments to be met, a fundamental reorientation of international financial institutions' activities will be necessary.

Neoliberalism as a class ideology; or, the political causes of the growth of inequalities.

PubMed

Navarro, Vicente

2007-01-01

Neoliberalism is the dominant ideology permeating the public policies of many governments in developed and developing countries and of international agencies such as the World Bank, International Monetary Fund, World Trade Organization, and many technical agencies of the United Nations, including the World Health Organization. This ideology postulates that the reduction of state interventions in economic and social activities and the deregulation of labor and financial markets, as well as of commerce and investments, have liberated the enormous potential of capitalism to create an unprecedented era of social well-being in the world's population. This article questions each of the theses that support such ideology, presenting empirical information that challenges them. The author also describes how the application of these neoliberal policies has been responsible for a substantial growth of social inequalities within the countries where such policies have been applied, as well as among countries. The major beneficiaries of these policies are the dominant classes of both the developed and the developing countries, which have established worldwide class alliances that are primarily responsible for the promotion of neoliberalism.

Intergenerational aspects of government policy under changing demographic and economic conditions.

PubMed

Boskin, M J

1987-07-01

Changing demographic and economic conditions in the US require that attention be given to some of the intergenerational equity features of government policy. In particular, social insurance programs and public debt leave public liabilities to future generations. Taken in the aggregate, the effects of rapidly rising public debt and especially social insurance programs are transferring substantial amounts of resources from younger working generations to the expanding generation of retirees. The most crucial element in evaluating the desirability of intergenerational wealth distribution in the long run is the rate of economic growth. A society's monetary, fiscal, tax, and regulatory policies can be more or less conducive to the generation of capital formation, technical change, and economic growth. Policies that influence growth and interest rates will combine with the national deficit to determine how rapidly the debt grows or shrinks. Present accounting procedures are insufficient to provide quantitative answers to the question of what is the impact of a given program on the age-specific distributions of resources. It is important to reconsider the desirability and efficiency of intergenerational redistributions of wealth in the US. It is likely that current policies are not in line with the principles of efficiency, equity, target effectiveness, and cost effectiveness.

16 CFR 1.98 - Adjustment of civil monetary penalty amounts.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... OF PRACTICE GENERAL PROCEDURES Civil Penalty Adjustments Under the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation... monetary penalty amounts. This section makes inflation adjustments in the dollar amounts of civil monetary...

Influence of paper color and a monetary incentive on response rate.

PubMed

King, Keith A; Vaughan, Jennifer L

2004-10-01

This study examined whether survey response rate differed based on the color of the paper the survey was printed on (blue vs green) and presence of a monetary incentive. A 4-page survey on eating disorders was mailed to Division 1A and 1AA college head athletic trainers (N=223) with half of the surveys on blue paper and half on green paper. Half of the athletic trainers (n = 111) received a $1.00 monetary incentive, and half (n = 112) received no monetary incentive. A total of 166 (71%) athletic trainers returned completed surveys. Response rates did not differ based on survey color but did differ based on presence of a monetary incentive. Athletic trainers who received a monetary incentive were significantly more likely than those who did not to return completed surveys (86% vs 63%, respectively).

Fatigue level estimation of monetary bills based on frequency band acoustic signals with feature selection by supervised SOM

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Teranishi, Masaru; Omatu, Sigeru; Kosaka, Toshihisa

Fatigued monetary bills adversely affect the daily operation of automated teller machines (ATMs). In order to make the classification of fatigued bills more efficient, the development of an automatic fatigued monetary bill classification method is desirable. We propose a new method by which to estimate the fatigue level of monetary bills from the feature-selected frequency band acoustic energy pattern of banking machines. By using a supervised self-organizing map (SOM), we effectively estimate the fatigue level using only the feature-selected frequency band acoustic energy pattern. Furthermore, the feature-selected frequency band acoustic energy pattern improves the estimation accuracy of the fatigue level of monetary bills by adding frequency domain information to the acoustic energy pattern. The experimental results with real monetary bill samples reveal the effectiveness of the proposed method.

Who Benefits from Ecosystem Services? A Case Study for Central Kalimantan, Indonesia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Suwarno, Aritta; Hein, Lars; Sumarga, Elham

2016-02-01

There is increasing experience with the valuation of ecosystem services. However, to date, less attention has been devoted to who is actually benefiting from ecosystem services. This nevertheless is a key issue, in particular, if ecosystem services analysis and valuation is used to support environmental management. This study assesses and analyzes how the monetary benefits of seven ecosystem services are generated in Central Kalimantan Province, Indonesia, are distributed to different types of beneficiaries. We analyze the following ecosystem services: (1) timber production; (2) rattan collection; (3) jelutong resin collection; (4) rubber production (based on permanent agroforestry systems); (5) oil palm production on three management scales (company, plasma farmer, and independent smallholder); (6) paddy production; and (7) carbon sequestration. Our study shows that the benefits generated from these services differ markedly between the stakeholders, which we grouped into private, public, and household entities. The distribution of these benefits is strongly influenced by government policies and in particular benefit sharing mechanisms. Hence, land-use change and policies influencing land-use change can be expected to have different impacts on different stakeholders. Our study also shows that the benefits generated by oil palm conversion, a main driver for land-use change in the province, are almost exclusively accrued by companies and at this point in time are shared unequally with local stakeholders.

Who Benefits from Ecosystem Services? A Case Study for Central Kalimantan, Indonesia.

PubMed

Suwarno, Aritta; Hein, Lars; Sumarga, Elham

2016-02-01

There is increasing experience with the valuation of ecosystem services. However, to date, less attention has been devoted to who is actually benefiting from ecosystem services. This nevertheless is a key issue, in particular, if ecosystem services analysis and valuation is used to support environmental management. This study assesses and analyzes how the monetary benefits of seven ecosystem services are generated in Central Kalimantan Province, Indonesia, are distributed to different types of beneficiaries. We analyze the following ecosystem services: (1) timber production; (2) rattan collection; (3) jelutong resin collection; (4) rubber production (based on permanent agroforestry systems); (5) oil palm production on three management scales (company, plasma farmer, and independent smallholder); (6) paddy production; and (7) carbon sequestration. Our study shows that the benefits generated from these services differ markedly between the stakeholders, which we grouped into private, public, and household entities. The distribution of these benefits is strongly influenced by government policies and in particular benefit sharing mechanisms. Hence, land-use change and policies influencing land-use change can be expected to have different impacts on different stakeholders. Our study also shows that the benefits generated by oil palm conversion, a main driver for land-use change in the province, are almost exclusively accrued by companies and at this point in time are shared unequally with local stakeholders.

Provider payments and patient charges as policy tools for cost-containment: How successful are they in high-income countries?

PubMed Central

Carrin, Guy; Hanvoravongchai, Piya

2003-01-01

In this paper, we focus on those policy instruments with monetary incentives that are used to contain public health expenditure in high-income countries. First, a schematic view of the main cost-containment methods and the variables in the health system they intend to influence is presented. Two types of instruments to control the level and growth of public health expenditure are considered: (i) provider payment methods that influence the price and quantity of health care, and (ii) cost-containment measures that influence the behaviour of patients. Belonging to the first type of instruments, we have: fee-for-service, per diem payment, case payment, capitation, salaries and budgets. The second type of instruments consists of patient charges and reference price systems for pharmaceuticals. Secondly, we provide an overview of experience in high-income countries that use or have used these particular instruments. Finally, the paper assesses the overall potential of these instruments in cost-containment policies. PMID:12914661

Achieving the World Health Organization's vision for clinical pharmacology

PubMed Central

Henry, David; Gray, Jean; Day, Richard; Bochner, Felix; Ferro, Albert; Pirmohamed, Munir; Mörike, Klaus; Schwab, Matthias

2015-01-01

Clinical pharmacology is a medical specialty whose practitioners teach, undertake research, frame policy, give information and advice about the actions and proper uses of medicines in humans and implement that knowledge in clinical practice. It involves a combination of several activities: drug discovery and development, training safe prescribers, providing objective and evidence‐based therapeutic information to ethics, regulatory and pricing bodies, supporting patient care in an increasingly subspecialized arena where co‐morbidities, polypharmacy, altered pharmacokinetics and drug interactions are common and developing and contributing to medicines policies for Governments. Clinical pharmacologists must advocate drug quality and they must also advocate for sustainability of the Discipline. However for this they need appropriate clinical service and training support. This Commentary discusses strategies to ensure the Discipline is supported by teaching, training and policy organizations, to communicate the full benefits of clinical pharmacology services, put a monetary value on clinical pharmacology services and to grow the clinical pharmacology workforce to support a growing clinical, academic and regulatory need. PMID:26466826

A review of the impacts of tobacco industry privatisation: Implications for policy

PubMed Central

Gilmore, Anna B.; Fooks, Gary; McKee, Martin

2011-01-01

State owned tobacco monopolies, which still account for 40% of global cigarette production, face continued pressure from, among others, the International Monetary Fund (IMF), to be privatised. This review of available literature on tobacco industry privatisation suggests that any economic benefits of privatisation may be lower than supposed because private owners avoid competitive tenders (thus underpaying for assets), negotiate lengthy tax holidays and are complicit in the smuggling of cigarettes to avoid import and excise duties. It outlines how privatisation leads to increased marketing, more effective distribution and lower prices, creating additional demand for cigarettes among new and existing smokers, leading to increased cigarette consumption, higher smoking prevalence and lower age of smoking initiation. Privatisation also weakens tobacco control because private owners, in their drive for profits, lobby aggressively against effective policies and ignore or overturn existing policies. This evidence suggests that further tobacco industry privatisation is likely to increase smoking and that instead of transferring assets from state to private ownership, alternative models of supply should be explored. PMID:21790502

The effect of employment transitions on physical health among the elderly in South Korea: A longitudinal analysis of the Korean Retirement and Income Study.

PubMed

Lee, Juyeon; Kim, Myoung-Hee

2017-05-01

This study aims to answer three research questions: First, is the positive effect of retirement on physical health replicated in Korea? Second, is there any difference in health effects of employment transition according to employment status? Third, to what extent do monetary, non-monetary and work-related factors explain the effects of employment transitions on changes in physical health? The longitudinal panel data from five waves of the Korea Retirement and Income Study was used. We conducted (a) the pooled cross-sectional analysis, which used five-wave pooled data; and (b) the fixed-effects analyses to investigate how within-individual changes in employment status correspond to changes in subjective physical health among older adults aged 55 to 84. Results show that transition into retirement leads to poor physical health in Korea, and such effect was moderately mediated by both monetary and non-monetary factors. Compared to respondents who moved to non-precarious employment, those who became employers, self-employers, precarious workers, and unpaid family workers experienced significantly greater odds of reporting subjective poor physical health. Job dissatisfaction seems to be the most important mechanism through which employment transitions were translated into increasing likelihood of poor physical health. In conclusion, the social cost of retirement should consider the negative effects of retirement on the well-being and psychological health of retired individuals and their relationships with family, friends and neighbors, as well as income loss and economic uncertainty. Improving employment quality and working conditions for older working adults may be crucial in accomplishing longer and healthier working lives. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Neural markers of social and monetary rewards in children with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder and Autism Spectrum Disorder.

PubMed

Gonzalez-Gadea, Maria Luz; Sigman, Mariano; Rattazzi, Alexia; Lavin, Claudio; Rivera-Rei, Alvaro; Marino, Julian; Manes, Facundo; Ibanez, Agustin

2016-07-28

Recent theories of decision making propose a shared value-related brain mechanism for encoding monetary and social rewards. We tested this model in children with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and control children. We monitored participants' brain dynamics using high density-electroencephalography while they played a monetary and social reward tasks. Control children exhibited a feedback Error-Related Negativity (fERN) modulation and Anterior Cingulate Cortex (ACC) source activation during both tasks. Remarkably, although cooperation resulted in greater losses for the participants, the betrayal options generated greater fERN responses. ADHD subjects exhibited an absence of fERN modulation and reduced ACC activation during both tasks. ASD subjects exhibited normal fERN modulation during monetary choices and inverted fERN/ACC responses in social options than did controls. These results suggest that in neurotypicals, monetary losses and observed disloyal social decisions induced similar activity in the brain value system. In ADHD children, difficulties in reward processing affected early brain signatures of monetary and social decisions. Conversely, ASD children showed intact neural markers of value-related monetary mechanisms, but no brain modulation by prosociality in the social task. These results offer insight into the typical and atypical developments of neural correlates of monetary and social reward processing.

Endogenous cortisol levels are associated with an imbalanced striatal sensitivity to monetary versus non-monetary cues in pathological gamblers

PubMed Central

Li, Yansong; Sescousse, Guillaume; Dreher, Jean-Claude

2014-01-01

Pathological gambling is a behavioral addiction characterized by a chronic failure to resist the urge to gamble. It shares many similarities with drug addiction. Glucocorticoid hormones including cortisol are thought to play a key role in the vulnerability to addictive behaviors, by acting on the mesolimbic reward pathway. Based on our previous report of an imbalanced sensitivity to monetary versus non-monetary incentives in the ventral striatum of pathological gamblers (PGs), we investigated whether this imbalance was mediated by individual differences in endogenous cortisol levels. We used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and examined the relationship between cortisol levels and the neural responses to monetary versus non-monetary cues, while PGs and healthy controls were engaged in an incentive delay task manipulating both monetary and erotic rewards. We found a positive correlation between cortisol levels and ventral striatal responses to monetary versus erotic cues in PGs, but not in healthy controls. This indicates that the ventral striatum is a key region where cortisol modulates incentive motivation for gambling versus non-gambling related stimuli in PGs. Our results extend the proposed role of glucocorticoid hormones in drug addiction to behavioral addiction, and help understand the impact of cortisol on reward incentive processing in PGs. PMID:24723862

Advertising energy saving programs: The potential environmental cost of emphasizing monetary savings.

PubMed

Schwartz, Daniel; Bruine de Bruin, Wändi; Fischhoff, Baruch; Lave, Lester

2015-06-01

Many consumers have monetary or environmental motivations for saving energy. Indeed, saving energy produces both monetary benefits, by reducing energy bills, and environmental benefits, by reducing carbon footprints. We examined how consumers' willingness and reasons to enroll in energy-savings programs are affected by whether advertisements emphasize monetary benefits, environmental benefits, or both. From a normative perspective, having 2 noteworthy kinds of benefit should not decrease a program's attractiveness. In contrast, psychological research suggests that adding external incentives to an intrinsically motivating task may backfire. To date, however, it remains unclear whether this is the case when both extrinsic and intrinsic motivations are inherent to the task, as with energy savings, and whether removing explicit mention of extrinsic motivation will reduce its importance. We found that emphasizing a program's monetary benefits reduced participants' willingness to enroll. In addition, participants' explanations about enrollment revealed less attention to environmental concerns when programs emphasized monetary savings, even when environmental savings were also emphasized. We found equal attention to monetary motivations in all conditions, revealing an asymmetric attention to monetary and environmental motives. These results also provide practical guidance regarding the positioning of energy-saving programs: emphasize intrinsic benefits; the extrinsic ones may speak for themselves. (c) 2015 APA, all rights reserved).

Understanding the dynamics of the Seguro Popular de Salud policy implementation in Mexico from a complex adaptive systems perspective.

PubMed

Nigenda, Gustavo; González-Robledo, Luz María; Juárez-Ramírez, Clara; Adam, Taghreed

2016-05-13

In 2003, Mexico's Seguro Popular de Salud (SPS), was launched as an innovative financial mechanism implemented to channel new funds to provide health insurance to 50 million Mexicans and to reduce systemic financial inequities. The objective of this article is to understand the complexity and dynamics that contributed to the adaptation of the policy in the implementation stage, how these changes occurred, and why, from a complex and adaptive systems perspective. A complex adaptive systems (CAS) framework was used to carry out a secondary analysis of data obtained from four SPS's implementation evaluations. We first identified key actors, their roles, incentives and power, and their responses to the policy and guidelines. We then developed a causal loop diagram to disentangle the feedback dynamics associated with the modifications of the policy implementation which we then analyzed using a CAS perspective. Implementation variations were identified in seven core design features during the first 10 years of implementation period, and in each case, the SPS's central coordination introduced modifications in response to the reactions of the different actors. We identified several CAS phenomena associated with these changes including phase transitions, network emergence, resistance to change, history dependence, and feedback loops. Our findings generate valuable lessons to policy implementation processes, especially those involving a monetary component, where the emergence of coping mechanisms and other CAS phenomena inevitably lead to modifications of policies and their interpretation by those who implement them. These include the difficulty of implementing strategies that aim to pool funds through solidarity among beneficiaries where the rich support the poor when there are no incentives for the rich to do so. Also, how resistance to change and history dependence can pose significant challenges to implementing changes, where the local actors use their significant power to oppose or modify these changes.

The scorecard on globalization 1980-2000: its consequences for economic and social well-being.

PubMed

Weisbrot, Mark; Baker, Dean; Kraev, Egor; Chen, Judy

2002-01-01

The era of globalization has brought substantially less progress than was achieved in the preceding 20 years. This study by the Center for Economic and Policy Research concludes that the data provide no evidence that the policies associated with globalization have improved outcomes for developing countries, and its findings challenge economists and policymakers who cite globalization as an engine of growth while pressing for policies that strengthen the trend. The study also served as a backdrop to the release of the United Nations Development Program's Human Development Report on July 11, 2001. Using standard measures of economic growth, health outcomes, education, and literacy, the CEPR study compares the progress achieved during the period preceding globalization, 1960-80, with the period from 1980 to 2000, which was characterized by the reduction of tariff and nontariff barriers to trade, the removal of restrictions on international investment flows, and increasing intervention by the International Monetary Fund and World Bank on a wide range of economic and policy issues. While the evidence presented here does not prove that the policies associated with globalization were responsible for the deterioration in economic performance, it does present a very strong prima facie case that some structural and policy changes implemented during the last two decades are at least partly responsible for these declines.

Greater Emotional Gain from Giving in Older Adults: Age-Related Positivity Bias in Charitable Giving

PubMed Central

Bjälkebring, Pär; Västfjäll, Daniel; Dickert, Stephan; Slovic, Paul

2016-01-01

Older adults have been shown to avoid negative and prefer positive information to a higher extent than younger adults. This positivity bias influences their information processing as well as decision-making. We investigate age-related positivity bias in charitable giving in two studies. In Study 1 we examine motivational factors in monetary donations, while Study 2 focuses on the emotional effect of actual monetary donations. In Study 1, participants (n = 353, age range 20–74 years) were asked to rate their affect toward a person in need and then state how much money they would be willing to donate to help this person. In Study 2, participants (n = 108, age range 19–89) were asked to rate their affect toward a donation made a few days prior. Regression analysis was used to investigate whether or not the positivity bias influences the relationship between affect and donations. In Study 1, we found that older adults felt more sympathy and compassion and were less motivated by negative affect when compared to younger adults, who were motivated by both negative and positive affect. In Study 2, we found that the level of positive emotional reactions from monetary donations was higher in older participants compared to younger participants. We find support for an age-related positivity bias in charitable giving. This is true for motivation to make a future donation, as well as affective thinking about a previous donation. We conclude that older adults draw more positive affect from both the planning and outcome of monetary donations and hence benefit more from engaging in monetary charity than their younger counterparts. PMID:27378966

Uncertainty of Monetary Valued Ecosystem Services – Value Transfer Functions for Global Mapping

PubMed Central

Schmidt, Stefan; Manceur, Ameur M.; Seppelt, Ralf

2016-01-01

Growing demand of resources increases pressure on ecosystem services (ES) and biodiversity. Monetary valuation of ES is frequently seen as a decision-support tool by providing explicit values for unconsidered, non-market goods and services. Here we present global value transfer functions by using a meta-analytic framework for the synthesis of 194 case studies capturing 839 monetary values of ES. For 12 ES the variance of monetary values could be explained with a subset of 93 study- and site-specific variables by utilizing boosted regression trees. This provides the first global quantification of uncertainties and transferability of monetary valuations. Models explain from 18% (water provision) to 44% (food provision) of variance and provide statistically reliable extrapolations for 70% (water provision) to 91% (food provision) of the terrestrial earth surface. Although the application of different valuation methods is a source of uncertainty, we found evidence that assuming homogeneity of ecosystems is a major error in value transfer function models. Food provision is positively correlated with better life domains and variables indicating positive conditions for human well-being. Water provision and recreation service show that weak ownerships affect valuation of other common goods negatively (e.g. non-privately owned forests). Furthermore, we found support for the shifting baseline hypothesis in valuing climate regulation. Ecological conditions and societal vulnerability determine valuation of extreme event prevention. Valuation of habitat services is negatively correlated with indicators characterizing less favorable areas. Our analysis represents a stepping stone to establish a standardized integration of and reporting on uncertainties for reliable and valid benefit transfer as an important component for decision support. PMID:26938447

Can eHealth Reduce Medical Expenditures of Chronic Diseases?

PubMed

Tsuji, Masatsugu; Taher, Sheikh Abu; Kinai, Yusuke

2015-01-01

The objective of this research is to evaluate empirically the effectiveness of eHealth in Nishi-aizu Town, Fukushima Prefecture, based on a mail survey to the residents and their receipt data of National Health Insurance from November 2006 to February 2007. The residents were divided into two groups, users and non-users, and sent questionnaires to ask their characteristics or usage of the system. Their medical expenditures paid by National Health Insurance for five years from 2002 to 2006 are examined. The effects were analyzed by comparison of medical expenditures between users and non-users. The interests are focused on four chronic diseases namely heart diseases, high blood pressure, diabetes, and strokes. A regression analysis is employed to estimate the effect of eHealth to users who have these diseases and then calculate the monetary effect of eHealth on reduction of medical expenditures. The results are expected to be valid for establishment of evidence-based policy such as reimbursement from medical insurance to eHealth.

An Analysis of Costs and Health Co-Benefits for a U.S. Power Plant Carbon Standard

PubMed Central

Buonocore, Jonathan J.; Lambert, Kathleen F.; Burtraw, Dallas; Sekar, Samantha; Driscoll, Charles T.

2016-01-01

Reducing carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from power plants can have important “co-benefits” for public health by reducing emissions of air pollutants. Here, we examine the costs and health co-benefits, in monetary terms, for a policy that resembles the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Clean Power Plan. We then examine the spatial distribution of the co-benefits and costs, and the implications of a range of cost assumptions in the implementation year of 2020. Nationwide, the total health co-benefits were $29 billion 2010 USD (95% CI: $2.3 to $68 billion), and net co-benefits under our central cost case were $12 billion (95% CI: -$15 billion to $51 billion). Net co-benefits for this case in the implementation year were positive in 10 of the 14 regions studied. The results for our central case suggest that all but one region should experience positive net benefits within 5 years after implementation. PMID:27270222

An Analysis of Costs and Health Co-Benefits for a U.S. Power Plant Carbon Standard.

PubMed

Buonocore, Jonathan J; Lambert, Kathleen F; Burtraw, Dallas; Sekar, Samantha; Driscoll, Charles T

2016-01-01

Reducing carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from power plants can have important "co-benefits" for public health by reducing emissions of air pollutants. Here, we examine the costs and health co-benefits, in monetary terms, for a policy that resembles the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Clean Power Plan. We then examine the spatial distribution of the co-benefits and costs, and the implications of a range of cost assumptions in the implementation year of 2020. Nationwide, the total health co-benefits were $29 billion 2010 USD (95% CI: $2.3 to $68 billion), and net co-benefits under our central cost case were $12 billion (95% CI: -$15 billion to $51 billion). Net co-benefits for this case in the implementation year were positive in 10 of the 14 regions studied. The results for our central case suggest that all but one region should experience positive net benefits within 5 years after implementation.

Imbalance in the sensitivity to different types of rewards in pathological gambling.

PubMed

Sescousse, Guillaume; Barbalat, Guillaume; Domenech, Philippe; Dreher, Jean-Claude

2013-08-01

Pathological gambling is an addictive disorder characterized by a persistent and compulsive desire to engage in gambling activities. This maladaptive behaviour has been suggested to result from a decreased sensitivity to experienced rewards, regardless of reward type. Alternatively, pathological gambling might reflect an imbalance in the sensitivity to monetary versus non-monetary incentives. To directly test these two hypotheses, we examined how the brain reward circuit of pathological gamblers responds to different types of rewards. Using functional magnetic resonance imaging, we compared the brain responses of 18 pathological gamblers and 20 healthy control subjects while they engaged in a simple incentive task manipulating both monetary and visual erotic rewards. During reward anticipation, the ventral striatum of pathological gamblers showed a differential response to monetary versus erotic cues, essentially driven by a blunted reactivity to cues predicting erotic stimuli. This differential response correlated with the severity of gambling symptoms and was paralleled by a reduced behavioural motivation for erotic rewards. During reward outcome, a posterior orbitofrontal cortex region, responding to erotic rewards in both groups, was further recruited by monetary gains in pathological gamblers but not in control subjects. Moreover, while ventral striatal activity correlated with subjective ratings assigned to monetary and erotic rewards in control subjects, it only correlated with erotic ratings in gamblers. Our results point to a differential sensitivity to monetary versus non-monetary rewards in pathological gambling, both at the motivational and hedonic levels. Such an imbalance might create a bias towards monetary rewards, potentially promoting addictive gambling behaviour.

Neural reactivity to monetary rewards and losses differentiates social from generalized anxiety in children.

PubMed

Kessel, Ellen M; Kujawa, Autumn; Hajcak Proudfit, Greg; Klein, Daniel N

2015-07-01

The relationship between reward sensitivity and pediatric anxiety is poorly understood. Evidence suggests that alterations in reward processing are more characteristic of depressive than anxiety disorders. However, some studies have reported that anxiety disorders are also associated with perturbations in reward processing. Heterogeneity in the forms of anxiety studied may account for the differences between studies. We used the feedback-negativity, an event-related potential sensitive to monetary gains versus losses (ΔFN), to examine whether different forms of youth anxiety symptoms were uniquely associated with reward sensitivity as indexed by neural reactivity to the receipt of positive and negative monetary outcomes. Participants were 390, eight- to ten-year-old children (175 females) from a large community sample. The ΔFN was measured during a monetary reward task. Self-reports of child anxiety and depression symptoms and temperamental positive emotionality (PE) were obtained. Multiple regression analysis revealed that social anxiety and generalized anxiety symptoms were unique predictors of reward sensitivity after accounting for concurrent depressive symptoms and PE. While social anxiety was associated with a greater ΔFN, generalized anxiety was associated with a reduced ΔFN. Different symptom dimensions of child anxiety are differentially related to alterations in reward sensitivity. This may, in part, explain inconsistent findings in the literature regarding reward processing in anxiety. © 2014 Association for Child and Adolescent Mental Health.

The neglected zoonoses--the case for integrated control and advocacy.

PubMed

Welburn, S C; Beange, I; Ducrotoy, M J; Okello, A L

2015-05-01

The neglected zoonotic diseases (NZDs) have been all but eradicated in wealthier countries, but remain major causes of ill-health and mortality across Africa, Asia, and Latin America. This neglect is, in part, a consequence of under-reporting, resulting in an underestimation of their global burden that downgrades their relevance to policy-makers and funding agencies. Increasing awareness about the causes of NZDs and how they can be prevented could reduce the incidence of many endemic zoonoses. Addressing NZDs by targeting the animal reservoir can deliver a double benefit, as enhanced animal health means a reduced risk of infection for humans, as well as improved livelihoods through increased animal productivity. Advocacy for NZD control is increasing, but with it comes a growing awareness that NZD control demands activities both in the short term and over a long period of time. Moreover, despite the promise of cheap, effective vaccines or other control tools, these endemic diseases will not be sustainably controlled in the near future without long-term financial commitment, particularly as disease incidence decreases and other health priorities take hold. NZD intervention costs can seem high when compared with the public health benefits alone, but these costs are easily outweighed when a full cross-sector analysis is carried out and monetary/non-monetary benefits--particularly regarding the livestock sector--are taken into account. Public-private partnerships have recently provided advocacy for human disease control, and could prove equally effective in addressing endemic zoonoses through harnessing social impact investments. Evidence of the disease burdens imposed on communities by the NZDs and demonstration of the cost-effectiveness of integrated control can strengthen the case for a One Health approach to endemic zoonotic disease control. Copyright © 2015 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

Human resources for health strategies adopted by providers in resource-limited settings to sustain long-term delivery of ART: a mixed-methods study from Uganda.

PubMed

Zakumumpa, Henry; Taiwo, Modupe Oladunni; Muganzi, Alex; Ssengooba, Freddie

2016-10-19

Human resources for health (HRH) constraints are a major barrier to the sustainability of antiretroviral therapy (ART) scale-up programs in Sub-Saharan Africa. Many prior approaches to HRH constraints have taken a top-down trend of generalized global strategies and policy guidelines. The objective of the study was to examine the human resources for health strategies adopted by front-line providers in Uganda to sustain ART delivery beyond the initial ART scale-up phase between 2004 and 2009. A two-phase mixed-methods approach was adopted. In the first phase, a survey of a nationally representative sample of health facilities (n = 195) across Uganda was conducted. The second phase involved in-depth interviews (n = 36) with ART clinic managers and staff of 6 of the 195 health facilities purposively selected from the first study phase. Quantitative data was analysed based on descriptive statistics, and qualitative data was analysed by coding and thematic analysis. The identified strategies were categorized into five themes: (1) providing monetary and non-monetary incentives to health workers on busy ART clinic days; (2) workload reduction through spacing ART clinic appointments; (3) adopting training workshops in ART management as a motivation strategy for health workers; (4) adopting non-physician-centred staffing models; and (5) devising ART program leadership styles that enhanced health worker commitment. Facility-level strategies for responding to HRH constraints are feasible and can contribute to efforts to increase country ownership of HIV programs in resource-limited settings. Consideration of the human resources for health strategies identified in the study by ART program planners and managers could enhance the long-term sustainment of ART programs by providers in resource-limited settings.

Neural markers of social and monetary rewards in children with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder and Autism Spectrum Disorder

PubMed Central

Gonzalez-Gadea, Maria Luz; Sigman, Mariano; Rattazzi, Alexia; Lavin, Claudio; Rivera-Rei, Alvaro; Marino, Julian; Manes, Facundo; Ibanez, Agustin

2016-01-01

Recent theories of decision making propose a shared value-related brain mechanism for encoding monetary and social rewards. We tested this model in children with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and control children. We monitored participants’ brain dynamics using high density-electroencephalography while they played a monetary and social reward tasks. Control children exhibited a feedback Error-Related Negativity (fERN) modulation and Anterior Cingulate Cortex (ACC) source activation during both tasks. Remarkably, although cooperation resulted in greater losses for the participants, the betrayal options generated greater fERN responses. ADHD subjects exhibited an absence of fERN modulation and reduced ACC activation during both tasks. ASD subjects exhibited normal fERN modulation during monetary choices and inverted fERN/ACC responses in social options than did controls. These results suggest that in neurotypicals, monetary losses and observed disloyal social decisions induced similar activity in the brain value system. In ADHD children, difficulties in reward processing affected early brain signatures of monetary and social decisions. Conversely, ASD children showed intact neural markers of value-related monetary mechanisms, but no brain modulation by prosociality in the social task. These results offer insight into the typical and atypical developments of neural correlates of monetary and social reward processing. PMID:27464551

An organizational analysis of road traffic crash prevention to explain the difficulties of a national program in a low income country.

PubMed

Vogel, Tania; Reinharz, Daniel; Gripenberg, Marissa; Barennes, Hubert

2015-09-28

Road traffic crashes (RTC), that daily kill 3400 people and leave 15,000 with a permanent disability could be prevented through the implementation of safety programs developed in partnership with governments and institutions. The relationship between key stakeholders can be a crucial determinant to the effectiveness of road safety programs. This issue has rarely been addressed. We conducted a detailed organizational analysis of the stakeholders involved in road safety programs in Lao People's Democratic Republic (Lao PDR). A case study was performed. The framework used was a snowball effect in which the characterization of all key stakeholders and the links between them, as well as the factors that led to these links, were determined. The effect of the relations between key stakeholders on the prevention of RTC was assessed through an analysis of the transactional, intangible and controlling factors that influence these relationships. The design and implementation of road safety programs in Lao PDR suffer from weak relationships between stakeholders and a poorly functional bicephal leadership between the Ministry of Public Works and Transport and the non-governmental organisation called Handicap International. This poor coordination between key stakeholders is evident, particularly in the area of collective action and is reinforced by a lack of interest from several different stakeholders. Most agencies do not prioritize road safety. Uneven distribution of funding is another contributing factor. Strengthening the leadership is crucial to the success of the program. Some organisations have skills, power the decision making and the allocation of resources in regards to road safety programs. Encouraging participation of these organizations through a more prominent position would thus result in a better collaboration. Non-monetary rewards would further help to strengthen collaborative work. The bicephal nature of the leadership of road safety programs proves detrimental, is associated with a weak coalition between stakeholders, and contributes to the declaimed poor effectiveness of the existing programs. The study has identified non-monetary and realistic means of strengthening the collaboration between key stakeholders. Stakeholders need to revise their interpretive schemes, in order to actively support the reinforcement of government leadership of road safety policies.

Components of reward-driven attentional capture.

PubMed

Sha, Li Z; Jiang, Yuhong V

2016-02-01

Recent research reported that task-irrelevant colors captured attention if these colors previously served as search targets and received high monetary reward. We showed that both monetary reward and value-independent mechanisms influenced selective attention. Participants searched for two potential target colors among distractor colors in the training phase. Subsequently, they searched for a shape singleton in a testing phase. Experiment 1 found that participants were slower in the testing phase if a distractor of a previous target color was present rather than absent. Such slowing was observed even when no monetary reward was used during training. Experiment 2 associated monetary rewards with the target colors during the training phase. Participants were faster finding the target associated with higher monetary reward. However, reward training did not yield value-dependent attentional capture in the testing phase. Attentional capture by the previous target colors was not significantly greater for the previously high-reward color than the previously low or no-reward color. These findings revealed both the power and limitations of monetary reward on attention. Although monetary reward can increase attentional priority for the high-reward target during training, subsequent attentional capture effects may not be reward-based, but reflect, in part, attentional capture by previous targets.

Strategies to improve retention in randomised trials: a Cochrane systematic review and meta-analysis

PubMed Central

Brueton, V C; Tierney, J F; Stenning, S; Meredith, S; Harding, S; Nazareth, I; Rait, G

2014-01-01

Objective To quantify the effect of strategies to improve retention in randomised trials. Design Systematic review and meta-analysis. Data sources Sources searched: MEDLINE, EMBASE, PsycINFO, DARE, CENTRAL, CINAHL, C2-SPECTR, ERIC, PreMEDLINE, Cochrane Methodology Register, Current Controlled Trials metaRegister, WHO trials platform, Society for Clinical Trials (SCT) conference proceedings and a survey of all UK clinical trial research units. Review methods Included trials were randomised evaluations of strategies to improve retention embedded within host randomised trials. The primary outcome was retention of trial participants. Data from trials were pooled using the fixed-effect model. Subgroup analyses were used to explore the heterogeneity and to determine whether there were any differences in effect by the type of strategy. Results 38 retention trials were identified. Six broad types of strategies were evaluated. Strategies that increased postal questionnaire responses were: adding, that is, giving a monetary incentive (RR 1.18; 95% CI 1.09 to 1.28) and higher valued incentives (RR 1.12; 95% CI 1.04 to 1.22). Offering a monetary incentive, that is, an incentive given on receipt of a completed questionnaire, also increased electronic questionnaire response (RR 1.25; 95% CI 1.14 to 1.38). The evidence for shorter questionnaires (RR 1.04; 95% CI 1.00 to 1.08) and questionnaires relevant to the disease/condition (RR 1.07; 95% CI 1.01 to 1.14) is less clear. On the basis of the results of single trials, the following strategies appeared effective at increasing questionnaire response: recorded delivery of questionnaires (RR 2.08; 95% CI 1.11 to 3.87); a ‘package’ of postal communication strategies (RR 1.43; 95% CI 1.22 to 1.67) and an open trial design (RR 1.37; 95% CI 1.16 to 1.63). There is no good evidence that the following strategies impact on trial response/retention: adding a non-monetary incentive (RR=1.00; 95% CI 0.98 to 1.02); offering a non-monetary incentive (RR=0.99; 95% CI 0.95 to 1.03); ‘enhanced’ letters (RR=1.01; 95% CI 0.97 to 1.05); monetary incentives compared with offering prize draw entry (RR=1.04; 95% CI 0.91 to 1.19); priority postal delivery (RR=1.02; 95% CI 0.95 to 1.09); behavioural motivational strategies (RR=1.08; 95% CI 0.93 to 1.24); additional reminders to participants (RR=1.03; 95% CI 0.99 to 1.06) and questionnaire question order (RR=1.00, 0.97 to 1.02). Also based on single trials, these strategies do not appear effective: a telephone survey compared with a monetary incentive plus questionnaire (RR=1.08; 95% CI 0.94 to 1.24); offering a charity donation (RR=1.02, 95% CI 0.78 to 1.32); sending sites reminders (RR=0.96; 95% CI 0.83 to 1.11); sending questionnaires early (RR=1.10; 95% CI 0.96 to 1.26); longer and clearer questionnaires (RR=1.01, 0.95 to 1.07) and participant case management by trial assistants (RR=1.00; 95% CI 0.97 to 1.04). Conclusions Most of the trials evaluated questionnaire response rather than ways to improve participants return to site for follow-up. Monetary incentives and offers of monetary incentives increase postal and electronic questionnaire response. Some strategies need further evaluation. Application of these results would depend on trial context and follow-up procedures. PMID:24496696

Tested program for Third World economic development

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Lindholm, R.W.

1977-04-01

Some of the responsibility for the inability of Western-oriented Third World Countries (1) to make democratic economic institutions work rests upon advisers to American and international financial institutions who recommend principles of economic growth distilled out of Keynesian recipes for an over-saving Western society of the 1930s, and out of aspects of American experience with no applicability elsewhere. Applicable aspects of U.S. experience suggest a program relying on capitalistic drives and using fiscal and monetary policy of the type that proved useful in the development of democratic capitalism in the U.S. in the 19th century.

Cosmetic surgery in times of recession: macroeconomics for plastic surgeons.

PubMed

Krieger, Lloyd M

2002-10-01

Periods of economic downturn place special demands on the plastic surgeon whose practice involves a large amount of cosmetic surgery. When determining strategy during difficult economic times, it is useful to understand the macroeconomic background of these downturns and to draw lessons from businesses in other service industries. Business cycles and monetary policy determine the overall environment in which plastic surgery is practiced. Plastic surgeons can take both defensive and proactive steps to maintain their profits during recessions and to prepare for the inevitable upturn. Care should also be taken when selecting pricing strategy during economic slowdowns.

The effectiveness of recruitment strategies on general practitioner’s survey response rates – a systematic review

PubMed Central

2014-01-01

Background Low survey response rates in general practice are common and lead to loss of power, selection bias, unexpected budgetary constraints and time delays in research projects. Methods Objective: To assess the effectiveness of recruitment strategies aimed at increasing survey response rates among GPs. Design: Systematic review. Search methods: MEDLINE (OVIDSP, 1948-2012), EMBASE (OVIDSP, 1980-2012), Evidence Based Medicine Reviews (OVIDSP, 2012) and references of included papers were searched. Major search terms included GPs, recruitment strategies, response rates, and randomised controlled trials (RCT). Selection criteria: Cluster RCTs, RCTs and factorial trial designs that evaluate recruitment strategies aimed at increasing GP survey response rates. Data collection and analysis: Abstracts identified by the search strategy were reviewed and relevant articles were retrieved. Each full-text publication was examined to determine whether it met the predetermined inclusion criteria. Data extraction and study quality was assessed by using predetermined checklists. Results Monetary and nonmonetary incentives were more effective than no incentive with monetary incentives having a slightly bigger effect than nonmonetary incentives. Large incentives were more effective than small incentives, as were upfront monetary incentives compared to promised monetary incentives. Postal surveys were more effective than telephone or email surveys. One study demonstrated that sequentially mixed mode (online survey followed by a paper survey with a reminder) was more effective than an online survey or the combination of an online and paper survey sent similtaneously in the first mail out. Pre-contact with a phonecall from a peer, personalised packages, sending mail on Friday, and using registered mail also increased response rates in single studies. Pre-contact by letter or postcard almost reached statistical signficance. Conclusions GP survey response rates may improve by using the following strategies: monetary and nonmonetary incentives, larger incentives, upfront monetary incentives, postal surveys, pre-contact with a phonecall from a peer, personalised packages, sending mail on Friday, and using registered mail. Mail pre-contact may also improve response rates and have low costs. Improved reporting and further trials, including sequential mixed mode trials and social media, are required to determine the effectiveness of recruitment strategies on GPs' response rates to surveys. PMID:24906492

Estimating a WTP-based value of a QALY: the 'chained' approach.

PubMed

Robinson, Angela; Gyrd-Hansen, Dorte; Bacon, Philomena; Baker, Rachel; Pennington, Mark; Donaldson, Cam

2013-09-01

A major issue in health economic evaluation is that of the value to place on a quality adjusted life year (QALY), commonly used as a measure of health care effectiveness across Europe. This critical policy issue is reflected in the growing interest across Europe in development of more sound methods to elicit such a value. EuroVaQ was a collaboration of researchers from 9 European countries, the main aim being to develop more robust methods to determine the monetary value of a QALY based on surveys of the general public. The 'chained' approach of deriving a societal willingness-to-pay (WTP) based monetary value of a QALY used the following basic procedure. First, utility values were elicited for health states using the standard gamble (SG) and time trade off (TTO) methods. Second, a monetary value to avoid some risk/duration of that health state was elicited and the implied WTP per QALY estimated. We developed within EuroVaQ an adaptation to the 'chained approach' that attempts to overcome problems documented previously (in particular the tendency to arrive at exceedingly high WTP per QALY values). The survey was administered via Internet panels in each participating country and almost 22,000 responses achieved. Estimates of the value of a QALY varied across question and were, if anything, on the low side with the (trimmed) 'all country' mean WTP per QALY ranging from $18,247 to $34,097. Untrimmed means were considerably higher and medians considerably lower in each case. We conclude that the adaptation to the chained approach described here is a potentially useful technique for estimating WTP per QALY. A number of methodological challenges do still exist, however, and there is scope for further refinement. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

76 FR 74625 - Civil Monetary Penalties Inflation Adjustment

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-12-01

...-2011] RIN 1125-AA69 Civil Monetary Penalties Inflation Adjustment AGENCIES: U.S. Customs and Border... adjust for inflation certain civil monetary penalties assessed under the Immigration and Nationality Act... assessed under the INA. The Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act of 1990 (Adjustment Act...

48 CFR 3045.508-3 - Quantitative and monetary control.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... 48 Federal Acquisition Regulations System 7 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Quantitative and monetary control. 3045.508-3 Section 3045.508-3 Federal Acquisition Regulations System DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND... Management of Government Property in the Possession of Contractors 3045.508-3 Quantitative and monetary...

48 CFR 3045.508-3 - Quantitative and monetary control.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... 48 Federal Acquisition Regulations System 7 2011-10-01 2011-10-01 false Quantitative and monetary control. 3045.508-3 Section 3045.508-3 Federal Acquisition Regulations System DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND... Management of Government Property in the Possession of Contractors 3045.508-3 Quantitative and monetary...

Re-establishing an ecological discourse in the policy debate over how to value ecosystems and biodiversity.

PubMed

Spash, Clive L; Aslaksen, Iulie

2015-08-15

In this paper we explore the discourses of ecology, environmental economics, new environmental pragmatism and social ecological economics as they relate to the value of ecosystems and biodiversity. Conceptualizing biodiversity and ecosystems as goods and services that can be represented by monetary values in policy processes is an economic discourse being increasingly championed by ecologists and conservation biologists. The latter promote a new environmental pragmatism internationally as hardwiring biodiversity and ecosystems services into finance. The approach adopts a narrow instrumentalism, denies value pluralism and incommensurability, and downplays the role of scientific knowledge. Re-establishing an ecological discourse in biodiversity policy implies a crucial role for biophysical indicators as independent policy targets, exemplified in this paper by the Nature Index for Norway. Yet, there is a recognisable need to go beyond a traditional ecological approach to one recognising the interconnections of social, ecological and economic problems. This requires reviving and relating to a range of alternative ecologically informed discourses, including an ecofeminist perspective, in order to transform the increasingly dominant and destructive relationship of humans separated from and domineering over Nature. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

European Community.

PubMed

1987-05-01

The European Community was established in 1951 to reconcile France and Germany after World War II and to make possible the eventual federation of Europe. By 1986, there were 12 member countries: France, Italy, Belgium, the Federal Republic of Germany, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Denmark, Ireland, the United Kingdom, Greece, Spain, and Portugal. Principal areas of concern are internal and external trade, agriculture, monetary coordination, fisheries, common industrial and commercial policies, assistance, science and research, and common social and regional policies. The European Community has a budget of US$34.035 billion/year, funded by customs duties and 1.4% of each member's value-added tax. The treaties establishing the European Community call for members to form a common market, a common customs tariff, and common agricultural, transport, economic, and nuclear policies. Major European Community institutions include the Commission, Council of Ministers, European Parliament, Court of Justice, and Economic and Social Committee. The Community is the world's largest trading unit, accounting for 15% of world trade. The 2 main goals of the Community's industrial policy are to create an open internal market and to promote technological innovation in order to improve international competitiveness. The European Community aims to contribute to the economic and social development of Third World countries as well.

17 CFR 143.8 - Inflation-adjusted civil monetary penalties.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... 17 Commodity and Securities Exchanges 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Inflation-adjusted civil... JURISDICTION General Provisions § 143.8 Inflation-adjusted civil monetary penalties. (a) Unless otherwise amended by an act of Congress, the inflation-adjusted maximum civil monetary penalty for each violation of...

8 CFR 280.53 - Civil monetary penalties inflation adjustment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... 8 Aliens and Nationality 1 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Civil monetary penalties inflation... REGULATIONS IMPOSITION AND COLLECTION OF FINES § 280.53 Civil monetary penalties inflation adjustment. (a) In general. In accordance with the requirements of the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act of...

78 FR 14179 - Adjustments to Civil Monetary Penalty Amounts

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-03-05

... SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION 17 CFR Part 201 [Release Nos. 33-9387; 34-68994; IA-3557; IC-30408] Adjustments to Civil Monetary Penalty Amounts AGENCY: Securities and Exchange Commission. ACTION... adjusting for inflation the maximum amount of civil monetary penalties under the Securities Act of 1933, the...

31 CFR 103.58 - Forfeiture of currency or monetary instruments.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... instruments. 103.58 Section 103.58 Money and Finance: Treasury Regulations Relating to Money and Finance FINANCIAL RECORDKEEPING AND REPORTING OF CURRENCY AND FOREIGN TRANSACTIONS General Provisions § 103.58 Forfeiture of currency or monetary instruments. Any currency or other monetary instruments which are in the...

20 CFR 498.102 - Basis for civil monetary penalties and assessments.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... 20 Employees' Benefits 2 2011-04-01 2011-04-01 false Basis for civil monetary penalties and... PENALTIES, ASSESSMENTS AND RECOMMENDED EXCLUSIONS § 498.102 Basis for civil monetary penalties and assessments. (a) The Office of the Inspector General may impose a penalty and assessment, as applicable...

20 CFR 498.102 - Basis for civil monetary penalties and assessments.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... 20 Employees' Benefits 2 2014-04-01 2014-04-01 false Basis for civil monetary penalties and... PENALTIES, ASSESSMENTS AND RECOMMENDED EXCLUSIONS § 498.102 Basis for civil monetary penalties and assessments. (a) The Office of the Inspector General may impose a penalty and assessment, as applicable...

20 CFR 498.102 - Basis for civil monetary penalties and assessments.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... 20 Employees' Benefits 2 2012-04-01 2012-04-01 false Basis for civil monetary penalties and... PENALTIES, ASSESSMENTS AND RECOMMENDED EXCLUSIONS § 498.102 Basis for civil monetary penalties and assessments. (a) The Office of the Inspector General may impose a penalty and assessment, as applicable...

20 CFR 498.102 - Basis for civil monetary penalties and assessments.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... 20 Employees' Benefits 2 2013-04-01 2013-04-01 false Basis for civil monetary penalties and... PENALTIES, ASSESSMENTS AND RECOMMENDED EXCLUSIONS § 498.102 Basis for civil monetary penalties and assessments. (a) The Office of the Inspector General may impose a penalty and assessment, as applicable...

Effects of alexithymia and empathy on the neural processing of social and monetary rewards.

PubMed

Goerlich, Katharina Sophia; Votinov, Mikhail; Lammertz, Sarah E; Winkler, Lina; Spreckelmeyer, Katja N; Habel, Ute; Gründer, Gerhard; Gossen, Anna

2017-07-01

Empathy has been found to affect the neural processing of social and monetary rewards. Alexithymia, a subclinical condition showing a close inverse relationship with empathy is linked to dysfunctions of socio-emotional processing in the brain. Whether alexithymia alters the neural processing of rewards, which is currently unknown. Here, we investigated the influence of both alexithymia and empathy on reward processing using a social incentive delay (SID) task and a monetary incentive delay (MID) task in 45 healthy men undergoing functional magnetic resonance imaging. Controlling for temperament-character dimensions and rejection sensitivity, the relationship of alexithymia and empathy with neural activity in several a priori regions of interest (ROIs) was examined by means of partial correlations, while participants anticipated and received social and monetary rewards. Results were considered significant if they survived Holm-Bonferroni correction for multiple comparisons. Alexithymia modulated neural activity in several ROIs of the emotion and reward network, both during the anticipation of social and monetary rewards and in response to the receipt of monetary rewards. In contrast, empathy did not affect reward anticipation and modulated ROI activity only in response to the receipt of social rewards. These results indicate a significant influence of alexithymia on the processing of social and monetary rewards in the healthy brain.

Priority for the worse-off and the social cost of carbon

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Adler, Matthew; Anthoff, David; Bosetti, Valentina; Garner, Greg; Keller, Klaus; Treich, Nicolas

2017-06-01

The social cost of carbon (SCC) is a key tool in climate policy. The SCC expresses in monetary terms the social impact of the emission of a ton of CO2 in a given year. The SCC is calculated using a `social welfare function’ (SWF): a method for assessing social welfare. The dominant SWF in climate policy is the discounted-utilitarian SWF. Individuals’ well-being numbers (utilities) are summed, and the values for later generations are reduced (`discounted’). This SWF has been criticized for ignoring the distribution of well-being and including an arbitrary time preference. Here, we use a `prioritarian’ SWF, with no time discount, to calculate the SCC. This SWF gives extra weight (`priority’) to worse-off individuals. Prioritarianism is a well-developed concept in ethics and welfare economics, but has been rarely used in climate scholarship. We find substantial differences between the discounted-utilitarian and non-discounted prioritarian SCCs.

Bretton Woods Institution Narratives about Inequality and Economic Vulnerability on the Eve of South African Austerity.

PubMed

Bond, Patrick

2015-01-01

In South Africa, at a time when National Health Insurance should be generously funded (7 years after its approval as public policy by the ruling party), state fiscal austerity appears certain to nip the initiative in the bud. The World Bank and the International Monetary Fund issued separate reports about South Africa in late 2014, following a new finance minister's mid-term budget speech. In justifying austerity, they revealed 2 important conceptual blockages regarding inequality and international financial relations. The resulting political bias in the macroeconomic debate has, in turn, given neoliberal policy advocates intellectual weaponry to impose deeper austerity. In contrast, the rise of a "united front" of labor, community-based, and social movement activists, along with a vigorous left opposition party in Parliament, ensure that one of the world's most visible class struggles ratchets up in intensity in the years ahead. © SAGE Publications 2015.

Pesticide Environmental Accounting: a method for assessing the external costs of individual pesticide applications.

PubMed

Leach, A W; Mumford, J D

2008-01-01

The Pesticide Environmental Accounting (PEA) tool provides a monetary estimate of environmental and health impacts per hectare-application for any pesticide. The model combines the Environmental Impact Quotient method and a methodology for absolute estimates of external pesticide costs in UK, USA and Germany. For many countries resources are not available for intensive assessments of external pesticide costs. The model converts external costs of a pesticide in the UK, USA and Germany to Mediterranean countries. Economic and policy applications include estimating impacts of pesticide reduction policies or benefits from technologies replacing pesticides, such as sterile insect technique. The system integrates disparate data and approaches into a single logical method. The assumptions in the system provide transparency and consistency but at the cost of some specificity and precision, a reasonable trade-off for a method that provides both comparative estimates of pesticide impacts and area-based assessments of absolute impacts.

An econometric analysis of regional differences in household waste collection: the case of plastic packaging waste in Sweden.

PubMed

Hage, Olle; Söderholm, Patrik

2008-01-01

The Swedish producer responsibility ordinance mandates producers to collect and recycle packaging materials. This paper investigates the main determinants of collection rates of household plastic packaging waste in Swedish municipalities. This is done by the use of a regression analysis based on cross-sectional data for 252 Swedish municipalities. The results suggest that local policies, geographic/demographic variables, socio-economic factors and environmental preferences all help explain inter-municipality collection rates. For instance, the collection rate appears to be positively affected by increases in the unemployment rate, the share of private houses, and the presence of immigrants (unless newly arrived) in the municipality. The impacts of distance to recycling industry, urbanization rate and population density on collection outcomes turn out, though, to be both statistically and economically insignificant. A reasonable explanation for this is that the monetary compensation from the material companies to the collection entrepreneurs vary depending on region and is typically higher in high-cost regions. This implies that the plastic packaging collection in Sweden may be cost ineffective. Finally, the analysis also shows that municipalities that employ weight-based waste management fees generally experience higher collection rates than those municipalities in which flat and/or volume-based fees are used.

An econometric analysis of regional differences in household waste collection: The case of plastic packaging waste in Sweden

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Hage, Olle; Soederholm, Patrik

2008-07-01

The Swedish producer responsibility ordinance mandates producers to collect and recycle packaging materials. This paper investigates the main determinants of collection rates of household plastic packaging waste in Swedish municipalities. This is done by the use of a regression analysis based on cross-sectional data for 252 Swedish municipalities. The results suggest that local policies, geographic/demographic variables, socio-economic factors and environmental preferences all help explain inter-municipality collection rates. For instance, the collection rate appears to be positively affected by increases in the unemployment rate, the share of private houses, and the presence of immigrants (unless newly arrived) in the municipality. Themore » impacts of distance to recycling industry, urbanization rate and population density on collection outcomes turn out, though, to be both statistically and economically insignificant. A reasonable explanation for this is that the monetary compensation from the material companies to the collection entrepreneurs vary depending on region and is typically higher in high-cost regions. This implies that the plastic packaging collection in Sweden may be cost ineffective. Finally, the analysis also shows that municipalities that employ weight-based waste management fees generally experience higher collection rates than those municipalities in which flat and/or volume-based fees are used.« less

Does environmental policy affect scaling laws between population and pollution? Evidence from American metropolitan areas

PubMed Central

2017-01-01

Modern cities are engines of production, innovation, and growth. However, urbanization also increases both local and global pollution from household consumption and firms’ production. Do emissions change proportionately to city size or does pollution tend to outpace or lag urbanization? Do emissions scale differently with population versus economic growth or are emissions, population, and economic growth inextricably linked? How are the scaling relationships between emissions, population, and economic growth affected by environmental regulation? This paper examines the link between urbanization, economic growth and pollution using data from Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs) in the United States between 1999 and 2011. We find that the emissions of local air pollution in these MSAs scale according to a ¾ power law with both population size and gross domestic product (GDP). However, the monetary damages from these local emissions scale linearly with both population and GDP. Counties that have previously been out of attainment with the local air quality standards set by the Clean Air Act show an entirely different relationship: local emissions scale according to the square root of population, while the monetary damages from local air pollution follow a 2/3rds power law with population. Counties out of attainment are subject to more stringent emission controls; we argue based on this that enforcement of the Clean Air Act induces sublinear scaling between emissions, damages, and city size. In contrast, we find that metropolitan GDP scales super-linearly with population in all MSAs regardless of attainment status. Summarizing, our findings suggest that environmental policy limits the adverse effects of urbanization without interfering with the productivity benefits that manifest in cities. PMID:28792949

Does environmental policy affect scaling laws between population and pollution? Evidence from American metropolitan areas.

PubMed

Muller, Nicholas Z; Jha, Akshaya

2017-01-01

Modern cities are engines of production, innovation, and growth. However, urbanization also increases both local and global pollution from household consumption and firms' production. Do emissions change proportionately to city size or does pollution tend to outpace or lag urbanization? Do emissions scale differently with population versus economic growth or are emissions, population, and economic growth inextricably linked? How are the scaling relationships between emissions, population, and economic growth affected by environmental regulation? This paper examines the link between urbanization, economic growth and pollution using data from Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs) in the United States between 1999 and 2011. We find that the emissions of local air pollution in these MSAs scale according to a ¾ power law with both population size and gross domestic product (GDP). However, the monetary damages from these local emissions scale linearly with both population and GDP. Counties that have previously been out of attainment with the local air quality standards set by the Clean Air Act show an entirely different relationship: local emissions scale according to the square root of population, while the monetary damages from local air pollution follow a 2/3rds power law with population. Counties out of attainment are subject to more stringent emission controls; we argue based on this that enforcement of the Clean Air Act induces sublinear scaling between emissions, damages, and city size. In contrast, we find that metropolitan GDP scales super-linearly with population in all MSAs regardless of attainment status. Summarizing, our findings suggest that environmental policy limits the adverse effects of urbanization without interfering with the productivity benefits that manifest in cities.

Factors associated with continued participation in a matched monetary incentive programme at local farmers' markets in low-income neighbourhoods in San Diego, California.

PubMed

Ratigan, Amanda R; Lindsay, Suzanne; Lemus, Hector; Chambers, Christina D; Anderson, Cheryl Am; Cronan, Terry A; Browner, Deirdre K; Wooten, Wilma J

2017-10-01

The Farmers' Market Fresh Fund Incentive Program is a policy, systems and environmental intervention to improve access to fresh produce for participants on governmental assistance in the USA. The current study examined factors associated with ongoing participation in this matched monetary incentive programme. Relationship of baseline factors with number of Fresh Fund visits was assessed using Poisson regression. Mixed-effects modelling was used to explore changes in consumption of fruits and vegetables and diet quality. San Diego, California. Recipients of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) who attended participating farmers' markets from 2010 to 2012 (n 7298). Among those with participation for ≤6 months, factors associated with increased visits included reporting more daily servings of fruits and vegetables (F&V) at baseline, being Vietnamese or Asian/Pacific Islander, and eligibility because of SNAP/CalFresh or SSI (v. WIC). Among those who came for 6-12 months, being Asian/Pacific Islander, eligibility because of SNAP/CalFresh and enrolling in the autumn, winter or spring were associated with a greater number of Fresh Fund visits. Among those who came for >12 months, being male and eligibility because of SSI were associated with a greater number of visits. Overall, the odds of increasing number of servings of F&V consumed increased by 2 % per month, and the odds of improved perception of diet quality increased by 10 % per month. Sustaining and increasing Fresh Fund-type programme operations should be a top priority for future policy decisions concerning farmers' market use in low-income neighbourhoods.

THE SHEFFIELD ALCOHOL POLICY MODEL - A MATHEMATICAL DESCRIPTION.

PubMed

Brennan, Alan; Meier, Petra; Purshouse, Robin; Rafia, Rachid; Meng, Yang; Hill-Macmanus, Daniel; Angus, Colin; Holmes, John

2014-09-30

This methodology paper sets out a mathematical description of the Sheffield Alcohol Policy Model version 2.0, a model to evaluate public health strategies for alcohol harm reduction in the UK. Policies that can be appraised include a minimum price per unit of alcohol, restrictions on price discounting, and broader public health measures. The model estimates the impact on consumers, health services, crime, employers, retailers and government tax revenues. The synthesis of public and commercial data sources to inform the model structure is described. A detailed algebraic description of the model is provided. This involves quantifying baseline levels of alcohol purchasing and consumption by age and gender subgroups, estimating the impact of policies on consumption, for example, using evidence on price elasticities of demand for alcohol, quantification of risk functions relating alcohol consumption to harms including 47 health conditions, crimes, absenteeism and unemployment, and finally monetary valuation of the consequences. The results framework, shown for a minimum price per unit of alcohol, has been used to provide policy appraisals for the UK government policy-makers. In discussion and online appendix, we explore issues around valuation and scope, limitations of evidence/data, how the framework can be adapted to other countries and decisions, and ongoing plans for further development. © 2014 The Authors. Health Economics published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd. © 2014 The Authors. Health Economics published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Association Between Monetary Deposits and Weight Loss in Online Commitment Contracts

PubMed Central

Lesser, Lenard I.; Thompson, Caroline A.; Luft, Harold S.

2017-01-01

Purpose To examine the characteristics of voluntary online commitment contracts that may be associated with greater weight loss. Design Retrospective analysis of weight loss commitment contracts derived from a company that provides web-based support for personal commitment contracts. Using regression, we analyzed whether percentage weight loss differed between participants who incentivized their contract using monetary deposits and those who did not. Setting Online. Participants Users (N = 3857) who voluntarily signed up online in 2013 for a weight loss contract. Intervention Participants specified their own weight loss goal, time period, and self-reported weekly weight. Deposits were available in the following 3 categories: charity, anticharity (a nonprofit one does not like), or donations made to a friend. Measures Percentage weight loss per week. Analysis Multivariable linear regressions. Results Controlling for several participant and contract characteristics, contracts with anticharity, charity, and friend deposits had greater reported weight loss than nonincentivized contracts. Weight change per week relative to those without deposits was −0.33%, −0.28%, and −0.25% for anti-charity, charity, and friend, respectively (P < 0.001). Contracts without a weight verification method claimed more weight loss than those with verification. Conclusion Voluntary use of commitment contracts may be an effective tool to assist weight loss. Those who choose to use monetary incentives report more weight loss. It is not clear whether this is due to the incentives or higher motivation. PMID:27502832

Health versus money. Value judgments in the perspective of decision analysis.

PubMed

Thompson, M S

1983-01-01

An important, but largely uninvestigated, value trade-off balances marginal nonhealth consumption against marginal medical care. Benefit-cost analysts have traditionally, if not fully satisfactorily, dealt with this issue by valuing health gains by their effects on productivity. Cost-effectiveness analysts compare monetary and health effects and leave their relative valuations to decision makers. A decision-analytic model using the satisfaction or utility gained from nonhealth consumption and the level of health enables one to calculate willingness to pay--a theoretically superior way of assigning monetary values to effects for benefit-cost analysis-and to determine minimally acceptable cost-effectiveness ratios. Examples show how a decision-analytic model of utility can differentiate medical actions so essential that failure to take them would be considered negligent from actions so expensive as to be unjustifiable, and can help to determine optimal legal arrangements for compensation for medical malpractice.

A multi-criteria decision analysis perspective on the health economic evaluation of medical interventions.

PubMed

Postmus, Douwe; Tervonen, Tommi; van Valkenhoef, Gert; Hillege, Hans L; Buskens, Erik

2014-09-01

A standard practice in health economic evaluation is to monetize health effects by assuming a certain societal willingness-to-pay per unit of health gain. Although the resulting net monetary benefit (NMB) is easy to compute, the use of a single willingness-to-pay threshold assumes expressibility of the health effects on a single non-monetary scale. To relax this assumption, this article proves that the NMB framework is a special case of the more general stochastic multi-criteria acceptability analysis (SMAA) method. Specifically, as SMAA does not restrict the number of criteria to two and also does not require the marginal rates of substitution to be constant, there are problem instances for which the use of this more general method may result in a better understanding of the trade-offs underlying the reimbursement decision-making problem. This is illustrated by applying both methods in a case study related to infertility treatment.

Analysis of ethnic disparities in workers' compensation claims using data linkage.

PubMed

Friedman, Lee S; Ruestow, Peter; Forst, Linda

2012-10-01

The overall goal of this research project was to assess ethnic disparities in monetary compensation among construction workers injured on the job through the linkage of medical records and workers' compensation data. Probabilistic linkage of medical records with workers' compensation claim data. In the final multivariable robust regression model, compensation was $5824 higher (P = 0.030; 95% confidence interval: 551 to 11,097) for white non-Hispanic workers than for other ethnic groups when controlling for injury severity, affected body region, type of injury, average weekly wage, weeks of temporary total disability, percent permanent partial disability, death, or attorney use. The analysis indicates that white non-Hispanic construction workers are awarded higher monetary settlements despite the observation that for specific injuries the mean temporary total disability and permanent partial disability were equivalent to or lower than those in Hispanic and black construction workers.

Can money heal all wounds? Social exchange norm modulates the preference for monetary versus social compensation.

PubMed

Cao, Yulong; Yu, Hongbo; Wu, Yanhong; Zhou, Xiaolin

2015-01-01

Compensation is a kind of pro-social behavior that can restore a social relationship jeopardized by interpersonal transgression. The effectiveness of a certain compensation strategy (e.g., repaying money, sharing loss, etc.) may vary as a function of the social norm/relationship. Previous studies have shown that two types of norms (or relationships), monetary/exchange and social/communal, differentially characterize people's appraisal of and response to social exchanges. In this study, we investigated how individual differences in preference for these norms affect individuals' perception of others' as well as the selection of their own reciprocal behaviors. In a two-phase experiment with interpersonal transgression, we asked the participant to perform a dot-estimation task with two partners who occasionally and unintentionally inflicted noise stimulation upon the participant (first phase). As compensation one partner gave money to the participant 80% of the time (the monetary partner) and the other bore the noise for the participant 80% of the time (the social partner). Results showed that the individuals' preference for compensation (repaying money versus bearing noise) affected their relationship (exchange versus communal) with the partners adopting different compensation strategies: participants tended to form communal relationships and felt closer to the partner whose compensation strategy matched their own preference. The participants could be differentiated into a social group, who tended to form communal relationship with the social partner, and a monetary group, who tended to form communal relationship with the monetary partner. In the second phase of the experiment, when the participants became transgressors and were asked to compensate for their transgression with money, the social group offered more compensation to the social partners than to the monetary partners, while the monetary group compensated less than the social group in general and showed no difference in their offers to the monetary and social partners. These findings demonstrate that the effectiveness of compensation varies as a function of individuals' preference for communal versus monetary norm and that monetary compensation alone does not heal all wounds.

Can money heal all wounds? Social exchange norm modulates the preference for monetary versus social compensation

PubMed Central

Cao, Yulong; Yu, Hongbo; Wu, Yanhong; Zhou, Xiaolin

2015-01-01

Compensation is a kind of pro-social behavior that can restore a social relationship jeopardized by interpersonal transgression. The effectiveness of a certain compensation strategy (e.g., repaying money, sharing loss, etc.) may vary as a function of the social norm/relationship. Previous studies have shown that two types of norms (or relationships), monetary/exchange and social/communal, differentially characterize people’s appraisal of and response to social exchanges. In this study, we investigated how individual differences in preference for these norms affect individuals’ perception of others’ as well as the selection of their own reciprocal behaviors. In a two-phase experiment with interpersonal transgression, we asked the participant to perform a dot-estimation task with two partners who occasionally and unintentionally inflicted noise stimulation upon the participant (first phase). As compensation one partner gave money to the participant 80% of the time (the monetary partner) and the other bore the noise for the participant 80% of the time (the social partner). Results showed that the individuals’ preference for compensation (repaying money versus bearing noise) affected their relationship (exchange versus communal) with the partners adopting different compensation strategies: participants tended to form communal relationships and felt closer to the partner whose compensation strategy matched their own preference. The participants could be differentiated into a social group, who tended to form communal relationship with the social partner, and a monetary group, who tended to form communal relationship with the monetary partner. In the second phase of the experiment, when the participants became transgressors and were asked to compensate for their transgression with money, the social group offered more compensation to the social partners than to the monetary partners, while the monetary group compensated less than the social group in general and showed no difference in their offers to the monetary and social partners. These findings demonstrate that the effectiveness of compensation varies as a function of individuals’ preference for communal versus monetary norm and that monetary compensation alone does not heal all wounds. PMID:26441783

42 CFR 420.410 - Establishment of a program to collect suggestions for improving Medicare program efficiency and...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... for improving Medicare program efficiency and to reward suggesters for monetary savings. 420.410... Program Efficiency and to Reward Suggesters for Monetary Savings § 420.410 Establishment of a program to collect suggestions for improving Medicare program efficiency and to reward suggesters for monetary...

42 CFR 420.410 - Establishment of a program to collect suggestions for improving Medicare program efficiency and...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... for improving Medicare program efficiency and to reward suggesters for monetary savings. 420.410... Program Efficiency and to Reward Suggesters for Monetary Savings § 420.410 Establishment of a program to collect suggestions for improving Medicare program efficiency and to reward suggesters for monetary...

25 CFR 162.553 - Must a WSR lease specify who receives monetary compensation payments?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... 25 Indians 1 2013-04-01 2013-04-01 false Must a WSR lease specify who receives monetary compensation payments? 162.553 Section 162.553 Indians BUREAU OF INDIAN AFFAIRS, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR LAND AND WATER LEASES AND PERMITS Wind and Solar Resource Leases Wsr Lease Monetary Compensation...

25 CFR 162.553 - Must a WSR lease specify who receives monetary compensation payments?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... 25 Indians 1 2014-04-01 2014-04-01 false Must a WSR lease specify who receives monetary compensation payments? 162.553 Section 162.553 Indians BUREAU OF INDIAN AFFAIRS, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR LAND AND WATER LEASES AND PERMITS Wind and Solar Resource Leases Wsr Lease Monetary Compensation...

Using Non-Monetary Deprivation Indicators to Analyze Poverty and Social Exclusion: Lessons from Europe?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nolan, Brian; Whelan, Christopher T.

2010-01-01

Non-monetary indicators of deprivation are now widely used in studying poverty in Europe. While measuring financial resources remains central, having reliable information about material deprivation adds to the ability to capture poverty and social exclusion. Non-monetary indicators can help improve the identification of those experiencing poverty…

31 CFR 103.60 - Enforcement authority with respect to transportation of currency or monetary instruments.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... transportation of currency or monetary instruments. 103.60 Section 103.60 Money and Finance: Treasury Regulations Relating to Money and Finance FINANCIAL RECORDKEEPING AND REPORTING OF CURRENCY AND FOREIGN TRANSACTIONS... instruments. (a) If a customs officer has reasonable cause to believe that there is a monetary instrument...

Asymmetry of Reinforcement and Punishment in Human Choice

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rasmussen, Erin B.; Newland, M. Christopher

2008-01-01

The hypothesis that a penny lost is valued more highly than a penny earned was tested in human choice. Five participants clicked a computer mouse under concurrent variable-interval schedules of monetary reinforcement. In the no-punishment condition, the schedules arranged monetary gain. In the punishment conditions, a schedule of monetary loss was…

Counterfactual thinking affects the excitability of the motor cortex.

PubMed

Vicario, Carmelo M; Rafal, Robert D; Avenanti, Alessio

2015-04-01

Evidence suggests that monetary reward and affective experiences induce activity in the cortical motor system. Nevertheless, it is unclear whether counterfactual thinking related to wrong choices that lead to monetary loss and regret affects motor excitability. Using transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) of the motor cortex, we measured corticospinal excitability of 2 groups of healthy humans asked to actively guess the winning key among two possible alternatives (choice group); or passively assist to monetary outcomes randomly selected by the computer program (follow group). Results document a selective increment of the corticospinal excitability when a monetary loss outcome followed the key selection (i.e., in the choice group). On the other hand, no change in corticospinal excitability was found when participants passively assisted to a monetary loss randomly selected by the computer program (i.e., follow group). These findings suggest that counterfactual thinking and the negative emotional experiences arising from choices causing monetary loss--i.e., "I would have won instead of lost money if I'd made a different choice"--are mapped in the motor system. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Unhealthy diets, obesity and time discounting: a systematic literature review and network analysis.

PubMed

Barlow, Pepita; Reeves, Aaron; McKee, Martin; Galea, Gauden; Stuckler, David

2016-09-01

There is an increasing policy commitment to address the avoidable burdens of unhealthy diet, overweight and obesity. However, to design effective policies, it is important to understand why people make unhealthy dietary choices. Research from behavioural economics suggests a critical role for time discounting, which describes how people's value of a reward, such as better health, decreases with delay to its receipt. We systematically reviewed the literature on the relationship of time discounting with unhealthy diets, overweight and obesity in Web of Science and PubMed. We identified 41 studies that met our inclusion criteria as they examined the association between time discount rates and (i) unhealthy food consumption; (ii) overweight and (iii) response to dietary and weight loss interventions. Nineteen out of 25 cross-sectional studies found time discount rates positively associated with overweight, obesity and unhealthy diets. Experimental studies indicated that lower time discounting was associated with greater weight loss. Findings varied by how time discount rates were measured; stronger results were observed for food than monetary-based measurements. Network co-citation analysis revealed a concentration of research in nutrition journals. Overall, there is moderate evidence that high time discounting is a significant risk factor for unhealthy diets, overweight and obesity and may serve as an important target for intervention. © 2016 The Authors Obesity Reviews published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of International Association for the Study of Obesity (IASO). © 2016 The Authors Obesity Reviews published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of International Association for the Study of Obesity (IASO).

The Impact of Social Pressure and Monetary Incentive on Cognitive Control.

PubMed

Ličen, Mina; Hartmann, Frank; Repovš, Grega; Slapničar, Sergeja

2016-01-01

We compare the effects of two prominent organizational control mechanisms-social pressure and monetary incentive-on cognitive control. Cognitive control underlies the human ability to regulate thoughts and actions in the pursuit of behavioral goals. Previous studies show that monetary incentives can contribute to goal-oriented behavior by activating proactive control. There is, however, much less evidence of how social pressure affects cognitive control and task performance. In a within-subject experimental design, we tested 47 subjects performing the AX-CPT task to compare the activation of cognitive control modes under social pressure and monetary incentive beyond mere instructions to perform better. Our results indicate that instructing participants to improve their performance on its own leads to a significant shift from a reactive to a proactive control mode and that both social pressure and monetary incentive further enhance performance.

Problem Gambling among Young People in Sub-Saharan Africa.

PubMed

Ssewanyana, Derrick; Bitanihirwe, Byron

2018-01-01

Gambling is a cross-cultural and global activity which typically involves the wagering of money or an item of monetary value on an outcome that is governed by chance. Although gambling is positioned as a legitimate recreational and leisure activity within sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), there is widespread recognition among healthcare professionals and policy-makers that gambling has the capacity to become dysfunctional in a minority. Emerging knowledge suggests that problem gambling is rapidly evolving in to a public health concern in SSA, especially among youth. This article focuses on problem gambling among young people in SSA with an emphasis on three key themes: (1) gambling behavior and patterns in SSA; (2) public health and socioeconomic implications of gambling in SSA; and (3) public health policies and interventions for addressing this issue. We believe that collaborative efforts between government, prevention specialists, legislators, researchers, treatment providers, and other stake holders can influence the uptake of research findings necessary to implement social policies and design effective public health intervention options to combat problem gambling and its associated implications among young people in SSA.

Problem Gambling among Young People in Sub-Saharan Africa

PubMed Central

Ssewanyana, Derrick; Bitanihirwe, Byron

2018-01-01

Gambling is a cross-cultural and global activity which typically involves the wagering of money or an item of monetary value on an outcome that is governed by chance. Although gambling is positioned as a legitimate recreational and leisure activity within sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), there is widespread recognition among healthcare professionals and policy-makers that gambling has the capacity to become dysfunctional in a minority. Emerging knowledge suggests that problem gambling is rapidly evolving in to a public health concern in SSA, especially among youth. This article focuses on problem gambling among young people in SSA with an emphasis on three key themes: (1) gambling behavior and patterns in SSA; (2) public health and socioeconomic implications of gambling in SSA; and (3) public health policies and interventions for addressing this issue. We believe that collaborative efforts between government, prevention specialists, legislators, researchers, treatment providers, and other stake holders can influence the uptake of research findings necessary to implement social policies and design effective public health intervention options to combat problem gambling and its associated implications among young people in SSA. PMID:29479527

Loss anticipation and outcome during the Monetary Incentive Delay Task: a neuroimaging systematic review and meta-analysis

PubMed Central

Dugré, Jules R.; Dumais, Alexandre; Bitar, Nathalie

2018-01-01

Background Reward seeking and avoidance of punishment are key motivational processes. Brain-imaging studies often use the Monetary Incentive Delay Task (MIDT) to evaluate motivational processes involved in maladaptive behavior. Although the bulk of research has been done on the MIDT reward events, little is known about the neural basis of avoidance of punishment. Therefore, we conducted a meta-analysis of brain activations during anticipation and receipt of monetary losses in healthy controls. Methods All functional neuro-imaging studies using the MIDT in healthy controls were retrieved using PubMed, Google Scholar & EMBASE databases. Functional neuro-imaging data was analyzed using the Seed-based d Mapping Software. Results Thirty-five studies met the inclusion criteria, comprising 699 healthy adults. In both anticipation and loss outcome phases, participants showed large and robust activations in the bilateral striatum, (anterior) insula, and anterior cingulate gyrus relatively to Loss > Neutral contrast. Although relatively similar activation patterns were observed during the two event types, they differed in the pattern of prefrontal activations: ventro-lateral prefrontal activations were observed during loss anticipation, while medial prefrontal activations were observed during loss receipt. Discussion Considering that previous meta-analyses highlighted activations in the medial prefrontal cortex/anterior cingulate cortex, the anterior insula and the ventral striatum, the current meta-analysis highlighted the potential specificity of the ventro-lateral prefrontal regions, the median cingulate cortex and the amygdala in the loss events. Future studies can rely on these latter results to examine the neural correlates of loss processing in psychiatric populations characterized by harm avoidance or insensitivity to punishment. PMID:29761060

Loss anticipation and outcome during the Monetary Incentive Delay Task: a neuroimaging systematic review and meta-analysis.

PubMed

Dugré, Jules R; Dumais, Alexandre; Bitar, Nathalie; Potvin, Stéphane

2018-01-01

Reward seeking and avoidance of punishment are key motivational processes. Brain-imaging studies often use the Monetary Incentive Delay Task (MIDT) to evaluate motivational processes involved in maladaptive behavior. Although the bulk of research has been done on the MIDT reward events, little is known about the neural basis of avoidance of punishment. Therefore, we conducted a meta-analysis of brain activations during anticipation and receipt of monetary losses in healthy controls. All functional neuro-imaging studies using the MIDT in healthy controls were retrieved using PubMed, Google Scholar & EMBASE databases. Functional neuro-imaging data was analyzed using the Seed-based d Mapping Software. Thirty-five studies met the inclusion criteria, comprising 699 healthy adults. In both anticipation and loss outcome phases, participants showed large and robust activations in the bilateral striatum, (anterior) insula, and anterior cingulate gyrus relatively to Loss > Neutral contrast. Although relatively similar activation patterns were observed during the two event types, they differed in the pattern of prefrontal activations: ventro-lateral prefrontal activations were observed during loss anticipation, while medial prefrontal activations were observed during loss receipt. Considering that previous meta-analyses highlighted activations in the medial prefrontal cortex/anterior cingulate cortex, the anterior insula and the ventral striatum, the current meta-analysis highlighted the potential specificity of the ventro-lateral prefrontal regions, the median cingulate cortex and the amygdala in the loss events. Future studies can rely on these latter results to examine the neural correlates of loss processing in psychiatric populations characterized by harm avoidance or insensitivity to punishment.

Assessment of the water supply:demand ratios in a Mediterranean basin under different global change scenarios and mitigation alternatives.

PubMed

Boithias, Laurie; Acuña, Vicenç; Vergoñós, Laura; Ziv, Guy; Marcé, Rafael; Sabater, Sergi

2014-02-01

Spatial differences in the supply and demand of ecosystem services such as water provisioning often imply that the demand for ecosystem services cannot be fulfilled at the local scale, but it can be fulfilled at larger scales (regional, continental). Differences in the supply:demand (S:D) ratio for a given service result in different values, and these differences might be assessed with monetary or non-monetary metrics. Water scarcity occurs where and when water resources are not enough to meet all the demands, and this affects equally the service of water provisioning and the ecosystem needs. In this study we assess the value of water in a Mediterranean basin under different global change (i.e. both climate and anthropogenic changes) and mitigation scenarios, with a non-monetary metric: the S:D ratio. We computed water balances across the Ebro basin (North-East Spain) with the spatially explicit InVEST model. We highlight the spatial and temporal mismatches existing across a single hydrological basin regarding water provisioning and its consumption, considering or not, the environmental demand (environmental flow). The study shows that water scarcity is commonly a local issue (sub-basin to region), but that all demands are met at the largest considered spatial scale (basin). This was not the case in the worst-case scenario (increasing demands and decreasing supply), as the S:D ratio at the basin scale was near 1, indicating that serious problems of water scarcity might occur in the near future even at the basin scale. The analysis of possible mitigation scenarios reveals that the impact of global change may be counteracted by the decrease of irrigated areas. Furthermore, the comparison between a non-monetary (S:D ratio) and a monetary (water price) valuation metrics reveals that the S:D ratio provides similar values and might be therefore used as a spatially explicit metric to valuate the ecosystem service water provisioning. © 2013.

Cocaine dependent individuals discount future rewards more than future losses for both cocaine and monetary outcomes.

PubMed

Johnson, Matthew W; Bruner, Natalie R; Johnson, Patrick S

2015-01-01

Cocaine dependence and other forms of drug dependence are associated with steeper devaluation of future outcomes (delay discounting). Although studies in this domain have typically assessed choices between monetary gains (e.g., receive less money now versus receive more money after a delay), delay discounting is also applicable to decisions involving losses (e.g., small loss now versus larger delayed loss), with gains typically discounted more than losses (the "sign effect"). It is also known that drugs are discounted more than equivalently valued money. In the context of drug dependence, however, relatively little is known about the discounting of delayed monetary and drug losses and the presence of the sign effect. In this within-subject, laboratory study, delay discounting for gains and losses was assessed for cocaine and money outcomes in cocaine-dependent individuals (n=89). Both cocaine and monetary gains were discounted at significantly greater rates than cocaine and monetary losses, respectively (i.e., the sign effect). Cocaine gains were discounted significantly more than monetary gains, but cocaine and monetary losses were discounted similarly. Results suggest that cocaine is discounted by cocaine-dependent individuals in a systematic manner similar to other rewards. Because the sign effect was shown for both cocaine and money, delayed aversive outcomes may generally have greater impact than delayed rewards in shaping present behavior in this population. Copyright © 2014. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Children's Use of Meta-Cognition in Solving Everyday Problems: Children's Monetary Decision-Making

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lee, Chwee Beng; Koh, Noi Keng; Cai, Xin Le; Quek, Choon Lang

2012-01-01

The purpose of this study was to understand how children use meta-cognition in their everyday problem-solving, particularly making monetary decisions. A particular focus was to identify components of meta-cognition, such as regulation of cognition and knowledge of cognition observed in children's monetary decision-making process, the roles of…

25 CFR 162.552 - When are monetary compensation payments due under a WSR lease?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... 25 Indians 1 2014-04-01 2014-04-01 false When are monetary compensation payments due under a WSR lease? 162.552 Section 162.552 Indians BUREAU OF INDIAN AFFAIRS, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR LAND AND WATER LEASES AND PERMITS Wind and Solar Resource Leases Wsr Lease Monetary Compensation Requirements...

25 CFR 162.552 - When are monetary compensation payments due under a WSR lease?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... 25 Indians 1 2013-04-01 2013-04-01 false When are monetary compensation payments due under a WSR lease? 162.552 Section 162.552 Indians BUREAU OF INDIAN AFFAIRS, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR LAND AND WATER LEASES AND PERMITS Wind and Solar Resource Leases Wsr Lease Monetary Compensation Requirements...

25 CFR 162.554 - What form of monetary compensation payment is acceptable under a WSR lease?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... 25 Indians 1 2013-04-01 2013-04-01 false What form of monetary compensation payment is acceptable under a WSR lease? 162.554 Section 162.554 Indians BUREAU OF INDIAN AFFAIRS, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR LAND AND WATER LEASES AND PERMITS Wind and Solar Resource Leases Wsr Lease Monetary Compensation...

25 CFR 162.554 - What form of monetary compensation payment is acceptable under a WSR lease?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... 25 Indians 1 2014-04-01 2014-04-01 false What form of monetary compensation payment is acceptable under a WSR lease? 162.554 Section 162.554 Indians BUREAU OF INDIAN AFFAIRS, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR LAND AND WATER LEASES AND PERMITS Wind and Solar Resource Leases Wsr Lease Monetary Compensation...

18 CFR 292.210 - Petition alleging commitment of substantial monetary resources before October 16, 1986.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... Power and Water Resources FEDERAL ENERGY REGULATORY COMMISSION, DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY REGULATIONS UNDER... substantial monetary resources (as that term is defined in § 292.202(r)) to the development of the project. (b... monetary resources will be presumed if the applicant held a preliminary permit for the project and had...

18 CFR 292.210 - Petition alleging commitment of substantial monetary resources before October 16, 1986.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... Power and Water Resources FEDERAL ENERGY REGULATORY COMMISSION, DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY REGULATIONS UNDER... substantial monetary resources (as that term is defined in § 292.202(r)) to the development of the project. (b... monetary resources will be presumed if the applicant held a preliminary permit for the project and had...

18 CFR 292.210 - Petition alleging commitment of substantial monetary resources before October 16, 1986.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... Power and Water Resources FEDERAL ENERGY REGULATORY COMMISSION, DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY REGULATIONS UNDER... substantial monetary resources (as that term is defined in § 292.202(r)) to the development of the project. (b... monetary resources will be presumed if the applicant held a preliminary permit for the project and had...

18 CFR 292.210 - Petition alleging commitment of substantial monetary resources before October 16, 1986.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... Power and Water Resources FEDERAL ENERGY REGULATORY COMMISSION, DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY REGULATIONS UNDER... substantial monetary resources (as that term is defined in § 292.202(r)) to the development of the project. (b... monetary resources will be presumed if the applicant held a preliminary permit for the project and had...

18 CFR 292.210 - Petition alleging commitment of substantial monetary resources before October 16, 1986.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... Power and Water Resources FEDERAL ENERGY REGULATORY COMMISSION, DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY REGULATIONS UNDER... substantial monetary resources (as that term is defined in § 292.202(r)) to the development of the project. (b... monetary resources will be presumed if the applicant held a preliminary permit for the project and had...

17 CFR Table V to Subpart E of... - Civil Monetary Penalty Inflation Adjustments

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... Inflation Adjustments V Table V to Subpart E of Part 201 Commodity and Securities Exchanges SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION RULES OF PRACTICE Adjustment of Civil Monetary Penalties Pt. 201, Subpt. E, Table V Table V to Subpart E of Part 201—Civil Monetary Penalty Inflation Adjustments U.S. Code citation Civil...

17 CFR Table V to Subpart E of... - Civil Monetary Penalty Inflation Adjustments

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... Inflation Adjustments V Table V to Subpart E of Part 201 Commodity and Securities Exchanges SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION RULES OF PRACTICE Adjustment of Civil Monetary Penalties Pt. 201, Subpt. E, Table V Table V to Subpart E of Part 201—Civil Monetary Penalty Inflation Adjustments U.S. Code citation Civil...

26 CFR 1.985-8 - Special rules applicable to the European Monetary Union (conversion to euro).

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... Monetary Union (conversion to euro). 1.985-8 Section 1.985-8 Internal Revenue INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE... Corporations § 1.985-8 Special rules applicable to the European Monetary Union (conversion to euro). (a... Community which is substituted for the euro in accordance with the Treaty establishing the European...

26 CFR 1.985-8 - Special rules applicable to the European Monetary Union (conversion to euro).

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... Monetary Union (conversion to euro). 1.985-8 Section 1.985-8 Internal Revenue INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE... Corporations § 1.985-8 Special rules applicable to the European Monetary Union (conversion to euro). (a... Community which is substituted for the euro in accordance with the Treaty establishing the European...

26 CFR 1.985-8 - Special rules applicable to the European Monetary Union (conversion to euro).

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... Monetary Union (conversion to euro). 1.985-8 Section 1.985-8 Internal Revenue INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE... Corporations § 1.985-8 Special rules applicable to the European Monetary Union (conversion to euro). (a... Community which is substituted for the euro in accordance with the Treaty establishing the European...

26 CFR 1.985-8 - Special rules applicable to the European Monetary Union (conversion to euro).

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... Monetary Union (conversion to euro). 1.985-8 Section 1.985-8 Internal Revenue INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE... Corporations § 1.985-8 Special rules applicable to the European Monetary Union (conversion to euro). (a... Community which is substituted for the euro in accordance with the Treaty establishing the European...

The Effect of Positive and Negative Feedback on Risk-Taking across Different Contexts.

PubMed

Losecaat Vermeer, Annabel B; Sanfey, Alan G

2015-01-01

Preferences for risky choices have often been shown to be unstable and context-dependent. Though people generally avoid gambles with mixed outcomes, a phenomenon often attributed to loss aversion, contextual factors can impact this dramatically. For example, people typically prefer risky options after a financial loss, while generally choosing safer options after a monetary gain. However, it is unclear what exactly contributes to these preference shifts as a function of prior outcomes, as these gain/loss outcomes are usually confounded with participant performance, and therefore it is unclear whether these effects are driven purely by the monetary gains or losses, or rather by success or failure at the actual task. Here, we experimentally separated the effects of monetary gains/losses from performance success/failure prior to a standard risky choice. Participants performed a task in which they experienced contextual effects: 1) monetary gain or loss based directly on performance, 2) monetary gain or loss that was randomly awarded and was, crucially, independent from performance, and 3) success or failure feedback based on performance, but without any monetary incentive. Immediately following these positive/negative contexts, participants were presented with a gain-loss gamble that they had to decide to either play or pass. We found that risk preferences for identical sets of gambles were biased by positive and negative contexts containing monetary gains and losses, but not by contexts containing performance feedback. This data suggests that the observed framing effects are driven by aversion for monetary losses and not simply by the positive or negative valence of the context, or by potential moods resulting from positive or negative contexts. These results highlight the specific context dependence of risk preferences.

Brain reward system's alterations in response to food and monetary stimuli in overweight and obese individuals.

PubMed

Verdejo-Román, Juan; Vilar-López, Raquel; Navas, Juan F; Soriano-Mas, Carles; Verdejo-García, Antonio

2017-02-01

The brain's reward system is crucial to understand obesity in modern society, as increased neural responsivity to reward can fuel the unhealthy food choices that are driving the growing obesity epidemic. Brain's reward system responsivity to food and monetary rewards in individuals with excessive weight (overweight and obese) versus normal weight controls, along with the relationship between this responsivity and body mass index (BMI) were tested. The sample comprised 21 adults with obesity (BMI > 30), 21 with overweight (BMI between 25 and 30), and 39 with normal weight (BMI < 25). Participants underwent a functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) session while performing two tasks that involve the processing of food (Willing to Pay) and monetary rewards (Monetary Incentive Delay). Neural activations within the brain reward system were compared across the three groups. Curve fit analyses were conducted to establish the association between BMI and brain reward system's response. Individuals with obesity had greater food-evoked responsivity in the dorsal and ventral striatum compared with overweight and normal weight groups. There was an inverted U-shape association between BMI and monetary-evoked responsivity in the ventral striatum, medial frontal cortex, and amygdala; that is, individuals with BMIs between 27 and 32 had greater responsivity to monetary stimuli. Obesity is associated with greater food-evoked responsivity in the ventral and dorsal striatum, and overweight is associated with greater monetary-evoked responsivity in the ventral striatum, the amygdala, and the medial frontal cortex. Findings suggest differential reactivity of the brain's reward system to food versus monetary rewards in obesity and overweight. Hum Brain Mapp 38:666-677, 2017. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Environmental Effects on Public Health: An Economic Perspective

PubMed Central

Remoundou, Kyriaki; Koundouri, Phoebe

2009-01-01

In this article we critically review the economic literature on the effects of environmental changes on public health, in both the developed and the developing world. We first focus on the economic methodologies that are available for the evaluation of the effects (social costs and benefits) of environmental changes (degradation/preservation) on public health. Then, we explain how the monetary valuations of these effects can feed back in the construction of economic policy for creating agent-specific incentives for more efficient public health management, which is also equitable and environmentally sustainable. Our exposition is accompanied by a synthesis of the available quantitative empirical results. PMID:19742153

Environmental effects on public health: an economic perspective.

PubMed

Remoundou, Kyriaki; Koundouri, Phoebe

2009-08-01

In this article we critically review the economic literature on the effects of environmental changes on public health, in both the developed and the developing world. We first focus on the economic methodologies that are available for the evaluation of the effects (social costs and benefits) of environmental changes (degradation/preservation) on public health. Then, we explain how the monetary evaluations of these effects can feed back in the construction of economic policy for creating agent-specific incentives for more efficient public health management, which is also equitable and environmentally sustainable. Our exposition is accompanied by a synthesis of the available quantitative empirical results.

Expansion vs. Quality: Emerging Issues of For-Profit Private Higher Education Institutions in Ethiopia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Alemu, Daniel S.

2010-02-01

Private for-profit higher education has been rapidly expanding in developing countries worldwide since the early 1990s. This global trend has been particularly evident in Ethiopia, where only three public universities existed until 1996. By 2005, about 60 private for-profit higher education institutions had been founded in Ethiopia. This has led to mixed feelings among the Ethiopian public. While some laud the opportunities and advantages these new institutions bring, others are apprehensive that the quality of education might be compromised by an expansion motivated by monetary gain. This article sheds light on these paradoxes and provides suggestions for policy and practices.

The effect of a contingent monetary reward on probation referrals to a drug abuse program.

PubMed

Hunsaker, A C

1985-01-01

Faced with reductions in public funds and calls for greater accountability, substance abuse programs can possibly increase revenues through patient fees by increasing referrals from the criminal justice system. Accountability can be improved through the use of organizational behavior management techniques. This study demonstrates the utility of behavioral techniques to increase referrals and revenue in an outpatient drug abuse program. The rate of criminal justice referrals increased substantially when counselors were offered "commissions" based on patient fees. These results are discussed with respect to the practicality of behavioral techniques in the management of drug abuse programs and with regard to policy implications.

Monetary Incentives in Speeded Perceptual Decision: Effects of Penalizing Errors Versus Slow Responses

PubMed Central

Dambacher, Michael; Hübner, Ronald; Schlösser, Jan

2011-01-01

The influence of monetary incentives on performance has been widely investigated among various disciplines. While the results reveal positive incentive effects only under specific conditions, the exact nature, and the contribution of mediating factors are largely unexplored. The present study examined influences of payoff schemes as one of these factors. In particular, we manipulated penalties for errors and slow responses in a speeded categorization task. The data show improved performance for monetary over symbolic incentives when (a) penalties are higher for slow responses than for errors, and (b) neither slow responses nor errors are punished. Conversely, payoff schemes with stronger punishment for errors than for slow responses resulted in worse performance under monetary incentives. The findings suggest that an emphasis of speed is favorable for positive influences of monetary incentives, whereas an emphasis of accuracy under time pressure has the opposite effect. PMID:21980316

The Impact of Social Pressure and Monetary Incentive on Cognitive Control

PubMed Central

Ličen, Mina; Hartmann, Frank; Repovš, Grega; Slapničar, Sergeja

2016-01-01

We compare the effects of two prominent organizational control mechanisms—social pressure and monetary incentive—on cognitive control. Cognitive control underlies the human ability to regulate thoughts and actions in the pursuit of behavioral goals. Previous studies show that monetary incentives can contribute to goal-oriented behavior by activating proactive control. There is, however, much less evidence of how social pressure affects cognitive control and task performance. In a within-subject experimental design, we tested 47 subjects performing the AX-CPT task to compare the activation of cognitive control modes under social pressure and monetary incentive beyond mere instructions to perform better. Our results indicate that instructing participants to improve their performance on its own leads to a significant shift from a reactive to a proactive control mode and that both social pressure and monetary incentive further enhance performance. PMID:26903901

25 CFR 162.555 - May a WSR lease provide for non-monetary or varying types of compensation?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... 25 Indians 1 2014-04-01 2014-04-01 false May a WSR lease provide for non-monetary or varying types of compensation? 162.555 Section 162.555 Indians BUREAU OF INDIAN AFFAIRS, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR LAND AND WATER LEASES AND PERMITS Wind and Solar Resource Leases Wsr Lease Monetary Compensation...

25 CFR 162.555 - May a WSR lease provide for non-monetary or varying types of compensation?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... 25 Indians 1 2013-04-01 2013-04-01 false May a WSR lease provide for non-monetary or varying types of compensation? 162.555 Section 162.555 Indians BUREAU OF INDIAN AFFAIRS, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR LAND AND WATER LEASES AND PERMITS Wind and Solar Resource Leases Wsr Lease Monetary Compensation...

26 CFR 1.1001-5 - European Monetary Union (conversion to the euro).

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... 26 Internal Revenue 11 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 true European Monetary Union (conversion to the euro... § 1.1001-5 European Monetary Union (conversion to the euro). (a) Conversion of currencies. For purposes of § 1.1001-1(a), the conversion to the euro of legacy currencies (as defined in § 1.985-8(a)(1...

26 CFR 1.1001-5 - European Monetary Union (conversion to the euro).

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... 26 Internal Revenue 11 2011-04-01 2011-04-01 false European Monetary Union (conversion to the euro... Gain Or Loss § 1.1001-5 European Monetary Union (conversion to the euro). (a) Conversion of currencies. For purposes of § 1.1001-1(a), the conversion to the euro of legacy currencies (as defined in § 1.985...

26 CFR 1.1001-5 - European Monetary Union (conversion to the euro).

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... 26 Internal Revenue 11 2013-04-01 2013-04-01 false European Monetary Union (conversion to the euro... Gain Or Loss § 1.1001-5 European Monetary Union (conversion to the euro). (a) Conversion of currencies. For purposes of § 1.1001-1(a), the conversion to the euro of legacy currencies (as defined in § 1.985...

26 CFR 1.1001-5 - European Monetary Union (conversion to the euro).

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... 26 Internal Revenue 11 2014-04-01 2014-04-01 false European Monetary Union (conversion to the euro... Gain Or Loss § 1.1001-5 European Monetary Union (conversion to the euro). (a) Conversion of currencies. For purposes of § 1.1001-1(a), the conversion to the euro of legacy currencies (as defined in § 1.985...

26 CFR 1.1001-5 - European Monetary Union (conversion to the euro).

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... 26 Internal Revenue 11 2012-04-01 2012-04-01 false European Monetary Union (conversion to the euro... Gain Or Loss § 1.1001-5 European Monetary Union (conversion to the euro). (a) Conversion of currencies. For purposes of § 1.1001-1(a), the conversion to the euro of legacy currencies (as defined in § 1.985...

Money Affects Theory of Mind Differently by Gender

PubMed Central

Ridinger, Garret; McBride, Michael

2015-01-01

Theory of Mind (ToM) ─ the ability to understand other’s thoughts, intentions, and emotions ─ is important for navigating interpersonal relationships, avoiding conflict, and empathizing. Prior research has identified many factors that affect one’s ToM ability, but little work has examined how different kinds of monetary incentives affect ToM ability. We ask: Does money affect ToM ability? If so, how does the effect depend on the structure of monetary incentives? How do the differences depend on gender? We hypothesize that money will affect ToM ability differently by gender: monetary rewards increase males’ motivation to express ToM ability while simultaneously crowding out females’ motivation. This prediction is confirmed in an experiment that varies the structure of monetary rewards for correct answers in the Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test (RMET). RMET scores decrease for females and increase for males with individual payments, and this effect is stronger with competitively-structured payments. RMET scores do not significantly change when monetary earnings go to a charity. Whether money improves or hinders ToM ability, and, hence, success in social interactions, thus depends on the interaction of gender and monetary incentive structure. PMID:26633171

Money Affects Theory of Mind Differently by Gender.

PubMed

Ridinger, Garret; McBride, Michael

2015-01-01

Theory of Mind (ToM)--the ability to understand other's thoughts, intentions, and emotions--is important for navigating interpersonal relationships, avoiding conflict, and empathizing. Prior research has identified many factors that affect one's ToM ability, but little work has examined how different kinds of monetary incentives affect ToM ability. We ask: Does money affect ToM ability? If so, how does the effect depend on the structure of monetary incentives? How do the differences depend on gender? We hypothesize that money will affect ToM ability differently by gender: monetary rewards increase males' motivation to express ToM ability while simultaneously crowding out females' motivation. This prediction is confirmed in an experiment that varies the structure of monetary rewards for correct answers in the Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test (RMET). RMET scores decrease for females and increase for males with individual payments, and this effect is stronger with competitively-structured payments. RMET scores do not significantly change when monetary earnings go to a charity. Whether money improves or hinders ToM ability, and, hence, success in social interactions, thus depends on the interaction of gender and monetary incentive structure.

Monetary alloys in Iron Age Armorica (Finistère, France): The singular case of the Osismi tribe

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Guerra, M. F.; Abollivier, Ph.

2016-06-01

The analysis by PIXE and PAA of 64 coins struck in Iron Age Armorica by the Osismi tribe revealed the use of a different system from the usual Celtic Gaul tri-metallic system. The gold-based alloy (Au-Ag-Cu) firstly issued is debased over time to become a silver-based alloy (Ag-Cu-Sn). Based on the analytical data, two chronological phases were defined and dates of issuing could be ascribed to the coin-types. The presence of Sn and Sb in the alloys and the low contents of Pb were used in the attribution of 9 specimens of unknown origin to the Osismi monetary system. Considerations on the mints supplies could also be provided.

An elicitation of utility for quality of life under prospect theory.

PubMed

Attema, Arthur E; Brouwer, Werner B F; l'Haridon, Olivier; Pinto, Jose Luis

2016-07-01

This paper performs several tests of decision analysis applied to the health domain. First, we conduct a test of the normative expected utility theory. Second, we investigate the possibility to elicit the more general prospect theory. We observe risk aversion for gains and losses and violations of expected utility. These results imply that mechanisms governing decisions in the health domain are similar to those in the monetary domain. However, we also report one important deviation: utility is universally concave for the health outcomes used in this study, in contrast to the commonly found S-shaped utility for monetary outcomes, with concave utility for gains and convex utility for losses. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

25 CFR 162.551 - How will BIA determine fair market rental for a WSR lease?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... LEASES AND PERMITS Wind and Solar Resource Leases Wsr Lease Monetary Compensation Requirements § 162.551 How will BIA determine fair market rental for a WSR lease? (a) We will use a market analysis... method; or (2) Use an approved market analysis, appraisal, or other appropriate valuation method from the...

25 CFR 162.551 - How will BIA determine fair market rental for a WSR lease?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... LEASES AND PERMITS Wind and Solar Resource Leases Wsr Lease Monetary Compensation Requirements § 162.551 How will BIA determine fair market rental for a WSR lease? (a) We will use a market analysis... method; or (2) Use an approved market analysis, appraisal, or other appropriate valuation method from the...

Who Pays for Blended Learning? A Cost-Benefit Analysis

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Taplin, Ross H.; Kerr, Rosemary; Brown, Alistair M.

2013-01-01

Using cost-benefit analysis, the purpose of this study is to analyse the monetary value students place on having access, via the internet, to recorded lectures in a blended learning context. The principal results are that the average price students are willing to pay to download iLectures is approximately $30 per equivalent full time student.…

Insula and striatum activity in effort-related monetary reward processing in gambling disorder: the role of depressive symptomatology.

PubMed

Fauth-Bühler, Mira; Zois, Evangelos; Vollstädt-Klein, Sabine; Lemenager, Tagrid; Beutel, Martin; Mann, Karl

2014-01-01

The neurobiological underpinnings of effort-related monetary reward processing of gambling disorder have not been previously studied. To date neuroimaging studies lack in large sample sizes and as a consequence less attention has been given to brain reward processing that could potentially be attributed to comorbid conditions such as depressive mood state. We assessed monetary reward processing using an effort-dependent task during 3 tesla functional magnetic resonance imaging. We investigated a large sample of male, right-handed, slot-machine-playing disordered gamblers (DGs; N = 80) as well as age- and smoking-matched male healthy controls (HCs; N = 89). Depressive symptoms were assessed using the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI). DGs and HCs were divided into subgroups ("high" and "low") based on their BDI scores. Effort-related monetary reward processing did not differ between the complete groups of HCs and DGs. Brain activation during receipt of monetary reward though revealed a significant Group × BDI interaction: DGs with higher BDI scores compared to DGs with lower BDI scores showed greater brain activity in the right insula cortex and dorsal striatum while no differences were observed for HCs with higher versus lower BDI scores. Our results suggest that effort-related aspects of monetary motivation, i.e. when monetary output is tied to performance, are not altered in DG. Additionally, our findings strengthen the need for subgroup comparisons in future investigations of the disorder as part of a personalized medicine approach.

Asymmetry of Reinforcement and Punishment in Human Choice

PubMed Central

Rasmussen, Erin B; Newland, M Christopher

2008-01-01

The hypothesis that a penny lost is valued more highly than a penny earned was tested in human choice. Five participants clicked a computer mouse under concurrent variable-interval schedules of monetary reinforcement. In the no-punishment condition, the schedules arranged monetary gain. In the punishment conditions, a schedule of monetary loss was superimposed on one response alternative. Deviations from generalized matching using the free parameters c (sensitivity to reinforcement) and log k (bias) were compared in the no-punishment and punishment conditions. The no-punishment conditions yielded values of log k that approximated zero for all participants, indicating no bias. In the punishment condition, values of log k deviated substantially from zero, revealing a 3-fold bias toward the unpunished alternative. Moreover, the c parameters were substantially smaller in punished conditions. The values for bias and sensitivity under punishment did not change significantly when the measure of net reinforcers (gains minus losses) was applied to the analysis. These results mean that punishment reduced the sensitivity of behavior to reinforcement and biased performance toward the unpunished alternative. We concluded that a single punisher subtracted more value than a single reinforcer added, indicating an asymmetry in the law of effect. PMID:18422016

Auction Mechanisms For Allocating Individualized Non-monetary Retention Incentives in Complex Decision Environments: Evaluation Via Laboratory Experimentation

DTIC Science & Technology

2010-03-01

MILITARY COMPENSATION .....................7 1. Basic Pay and Allowances ......................8 2. Other Monetary and Non-Monetary Benefits ......9...3. Deferred Benefits ............................10 4. Special Pays and Bonuses .....................10 C. THE SRB PROGRAM (MARINE CORPS...or flexible benefits packages, to military personnel. Much of the thesis builds on this prior research. Chapter II provides an overview of

Standards guide for space and earth sciences computer software

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mason, G.; Chapman, R.; Klinglesmith, D.; Linnekin, J.; Putney, W.; Shaffer, F.; Dapice, R.

1972-01-01

Guidelines for the preparation of systems analysis and programming work statements are presented. The data is geared toward the efficient administration of available monetary and equipment resources. Language standards and the application of good management techniques to software development are emphasized.

"Nudge" and the epidemic of missed appointments.

PubMed

Aggarwal, Ajay; Davies, Joanna; Sullivan, Richard

2016-06-20

Purpose - Missed appointments constitute a significant problem in the UK National Health Service (NHS) and this remains an area where improvements could yield substantial efficiency savings. The purpose of this paper is to suggest that nudge policies based on behavioural theories may help target interventions to improve patient motivation to attend appointments. Design/methodology/approach - The authors propose two policies to reduce missed appointments. The first attempts to empower patients through making the appointment system more individualised to them and utilising their intrinsic feelings of social responsibility. The second policy utilises a financial commitment given by the patient at the time of booking. The different mechanisms of influencing patient behaviour are based on two different views of what motivates individuals' actions. The first policy is based on individuals being "knights". They are altruistic and have well-intentioned values. The second policy option is constructed on the premise that an individual is governed by self-interest, and they are in fact "knaves". Findings - A policy, which avoids the use of financial penalties is likely to be more culturally acceptable within the NHS. It could also prevent the phenomenon of "crowding out" whereby the desire to act dutifully gets displaced by the motivation to avoid incurring a monetary fine. Originality/value - Testing both strategies would provide insight into patient attitudes towards health care and society. This would help optimise behavioural strategies which may influence not only appointment attendances but also have wider implications for encouraging rational health care consumption.

Bridging environmental and financial cost of dairy production: A case study of Irish agricultural policy.

PubMed

Chen, Wenhao; Holden, Nicholas M

2018-02-15

The Irish agricultural policy 'Food Harvest 2020' is a roadmap for sectoral expansion and Irish dairy farming is expected to intensify, which could influence the environmental and economic performance of Irish milk production. Evaluating the total environmental impacts and the real cost of Irish milk production is a key step towards understanding the possibility of sustainable production. This paper addresses two main issues: aggregation of environmental impacts of Irish milk production by monetization, to understand the real cost of Irish milk production, including the environmental costs; and the effect of the agricultural policy 'Food Harvest 2020' on total cost (combining financial cost and environmental cost) of Irish milk production. This study used 2013 Irish dairy farming as a baseline, and defined 'bottom', 'target' and 'optimum' scenarios, according to the change of elementary inputs required to meet agricultural policy ambitions. The study demonstrated that the three monetization methods, Stepwise 2006, Eco-cost 2012 and EPS 2000, could be used for aggregating different environmental impacts into monetary unit, and to provide an insight for evaluating policy related to total environmental performance. The results showed that the total environmental cost of Irish milk production could be greater than the financial cost (up to €0.53/kg energy corrected milk). The dairy expansion policy with improved herbage utilization and fertilizer application could reduce financial cost and minimize the total environmental cost of per unit milk produced. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

How required reserve ratio affects distribution and velocity of money

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Xi, Ning; Ding, Ning; Wang, Yougui

2005-11-01

In this paper the dependence of wealth distribution and the velocity of money on the required reserve ratio is examined based on a random transfer model of money and computer simulations. A fractional reserve banking system is introduced to the model where money creation can be achieved by bank loans and the monetary aggregate is determined by the monetary base and the required reserve ratio. It is shown that monetary wealth follows asymmetric Laplace distribution and latency time of money follows exponential distribution. The expression of monetary wealth distribution and that of the velocity of money in terms of the required reserve ratio are presented in a good agreement with simulation results.

How to measure monetary losses in gambling disorder? An evidence-based refinement.

PubMed

Medeiros, Gustavo C; Redden, Sarah A; Chamberlain, Samuel R; Grant, Jon E

2018-05-01

Diverse monetary measures have been utilized across different studies in gambling disorder (GD). However, there are limited evidence-based proposals regarding the best way to assess financial losses. We investigated how different variables of monetary losses correlate with validated assessments of gambling severity and overall functioning in a large sample of subjects with GD (n = 436). We found that relative monetary variables (i.e. when financial losses were evaluated in relation to personal income) showed the most robust correlations with gambling severity and overall psychosocial functioning. Percentage of monthly income lost from gambling was the variable with the best performance. Copyright © 2018 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

The impact of economic evaluation on quality management in spine surgery

PubMed Central

2009-01-01

Health care expenditures are substantially increasing within the last two decades prompting the imperative need for economic evaluations in health care. Historically, economic evaluations in health care have been carried out by four approaches: (1) the human-capital approach (HCA), (2) cost-effectiveness analysis (CEA), (3) cost-utility analysis (CUA) and (4) cost-benefit analysis (CBA). While the HCA cannot be recommended because of methodological shortcomings, CEA and CUA have been used frequently in healthcare. In CEA, costs are measured in monetary terms and health effects are measured in a non-monetary unit, e.g. number of successfully treated patients. In an attempt to develop an effectiveness measure that incorporates effects on both quantity and quality of life, so-called Quality Adjusted Life Years (QUALYs) were introduced. Contingent valuation surveys are used in cost-benefit analyses (CBA) to elicit the consumer’s monetary valuations for program benefits by applying the willingness-to-pay approach. A distinguished feature of CBA is that costs and benefits are expressed in the same units of value, i.e. money. Only recently, economic evaluations have started to explore various spinal interventions particularly the very expensive fusion operations. While most of the studies used CEA or CUA approaches, CBAs are still rare. Most studies fail to show that sophisticated spinal interventions are more cost-effective than conventional treatments. In spite of the lack of therapeutic or cost-effectiveness for most spinal surgeries, there is rapidly growing spinal implant market demonstrating market imperfection and information asymmetry. A change can only be anticipated when physicians start to focus on the improvement of health care quality as documented by outcome research and economic evaluations of cost-effectiveness and net benefits. PMID:19337760

Different Imaging Strategies in Patients With Possible Basilar Artery Occlusion: Cost-Effectiveness Analysis.

PubMed

Beyer, Sebastian E; Hunink, Myriam G; Schöberl, Florian; von Baumgarten, Louisa; Petersen, Steffen E; Dichgans, Martin; Janssen, Hendrik; Ertl-Wagner, Birgit; Reiser, Maximilian F; Sommer, Wieland H

2015-07-01

This study evaluated the cost-effectiveness of different noninvasive imaging strategies in patients with possible basilar artery occlusion. A Markov decision analytic model was used to evaluate long-term outcomes resulting from strategies using computed tomographic angiography (CTA), magnetic resonance imaging, nonenhanced CT, or duplex ultrasound with intravenous (IV) thrombolysis being administered after positive findings. The analysis was performed from the societal perspective based on US recommendations. Input parameters were derived from the literature. Costs were obtained from United States costing sources and published literature. Outcomes were lifetime costs, quality-adjusted life-years (QALYs), incremental cost-effectiveness ratios, and net monetary benefits, with a willingness-to-pay threshold of $80,000 per QALY. The strategy with the highest net monetary benefit was considered the most cost-effective. Extensive deterministic and probabilistic sensitivity analyses were performed to explore the effect of varying parameter values. In the reference case analysis, CTA dominated all other imaging strategies. CTA yielded 0.02 QALYs more than magnetic resonance imaging and 0.04 QALYs more than duplex ultrasound followed by CTA. At a willingness-to-pay threshold of $80,000 per QALY, CTA yielded the highest net monetary benefits. The probability that CTA is cost-effective was 96% at a willingness-to-pay threshold of $80,000/QALY. Sensitivity analyses showed that duplex ultrasound was cost-effective only for a prior probability of ≤0.02 and that these results were only minimally influenced by duplex ultrasound sensitivity and specificity. Nonenhanced CT and magnetic resonance imaging never became the most cost-effective strategy. Our results suggest that CTA in patients with possible basilar artery occlusion is cost-effective. © 2015 The Authors.

The impact of economic evaluation on quality management in spine surgery.

PubMed

Boos, Norbert

2009-08-01

Health care expenditures are substantially increasing within the last two decades prompting the imperative need for economic evaluations in health care. Historically, economic evaluations in health care have been carried out by four approaches: (1) the human-capital approach (HCA), (2) cost-effectiveness analysis (CEA), (3) cost-utility analysis (CUA) and (4) cost-benefit analysis (CBA). While the HCA cannot be recommended because of methodological shortcomings, CEA and CUA have been used frequently in healthcare. In CEA, costs are measured in monetary terms and health effects are measured in a non-monetary unit, e.g. number of successfully treated patients. In an attempt to develop an effectiveness measure that incorporates effects on both quantity and quality of life, so-called Quality Adjusted Life Years (QUALYs) were introduced. Contingent valuation surveys are used in cost-benefit analyses (CBA) to elicit the consumer's monetary valuations for program benefits by applying the willingness-to-pay approach. A distinguished feature of CBA is that costs and benefits are expressed in the same units of value, i.e. money. Only recently, economic evaluations have started to explore various spinal interventions particularly the very expensive fusion operations. While most of the studies used CEA or CUA approaches, CBAs are still rare. Most studies fail to show that sophisticated spinal interventions are more cost-effective than conventional treatments. In spite of the lack of therapeutic or cost-effectiveness for most spinal surgeries, there is rapidly growing spinal implant market demonstrating market imperfection and information asymmetry. A change can only be anticipated when physicians start to focus on the improvement of health care quality as documented by outcome research and economic evaluations of cost-effectiveness and net benefits.

Forecasting of magnitude and duration of currency crises based on the analysis of distortions of fractal scaling in exchange rate fluctuations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Uritskaya, Olga Y.

2005-05-01

Results of fractal stability analysis of daily exchange rate fluctuations of more than 30 floating currencies for a 10-year period are presented. It is shown for the first time that small- and large-scale dynamical instabilities of national monetary systems correlate with deviations of the detrended fluctuation analysis (DFA) exponent from the value 1.5 predicted by the efficient market hypothesis. The observed dependence is used for classification of long-term stability of floating exchange rates as well as for revealing various forms of distortion of stable currency dynamics prior to large-scale crises. A normal range of DFA exponents consistent with crisis-free long-term exchange rate fluctuations is determined, and several typical scenarios of unstable currency dynamics with DFA exponents fluctuating beyond the normal range are identified. It is shown that monetary crashes are usually preceded by prolonged periods of abnormal (decreased or increased) DFA exponent, with the after-crash exponent tending to the value 1.5 indicating a more reliable exchange rate dynamics. Statistically significant regression relations (R=0.99, p<0.01) between duration and magnitude of currency crises and the degree of distortion of monofractal patterns of exchange rate dynamics are found. It is demonstrated that the parameters of these relations characterizing small- and large-scale crises are nearly equal, which implies a common instability mechanism underlying these events. The obtained dependences have been used as a basic ingredient of a forecasting technique which provided correct in-sample predictions of monetary crisis magnitude and duration over various time scales. The developed technique can be recommended for real-time monitoring of dynamical stability of floating exchange rate systems and creating advanced early-warning-system models for currency crisis prevention.

Gender relations and economic issues.

PubMed

Elson, D

1993-10-01

While most discussions of economic issues pay no explicit attention to gender relations, most economic policy is marked by male bias which provides women with an unequal access to resources. This situation exists because most economists, officials, and business managers lack the imagination to see the gender impact of economic issues and most women's groups and researchers lack the language to portray this connection. This article explores some aspects of this gap and aims to provide women with the ability to effectively discuss economic issues. After an introduction, the article considers the basic problem caused by the fact that the economy is defined primarily in terms of money-making activities. This leads to a male bias since much of women's work occurs outside of the monetary sphere. The next section looks at how a failure to understand the significance of gender relations will interfere with the fulfillment of policy objectives. This discussion is followed by a description of how cutbacks in government expenditures increase the burden on women who must replace the services. Problems with the option of the private-sector replacing government services, such as the fact that increasing disposable income in households does not guarantee that unpaid labor will be reduced and the fact that the private sector may fail to expand in a productive way, are covered. The article then touches on the new emphasis placed by some economists and policy makers on cooperative and interactive solutions to these problems and ends by mentioning three new initiatives which seek to build capacity for gender-aware economic analysis: the development of a training program at Manchester University in the UK, coordination of an international research workshop by the University of Utah in the US, and development of an international association for feminist economics based in the US.

Common alterations in sensitivity to type but not amount of reward in ADHD and autism spectrum disorders.

PubMed

Demurie, Ellen; Roeyers, Herbert; Baeyens, Dieter; Sonuga-Barke, Edmund

2011-11-01

Children with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) display abnormalities in reward processing. Most reward studies have focused on the effects of material or monetary rewards. Studies with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have focused on social rewards. In this study we compared the effects of amount and type of reward in children with ADHD and those with ASD. Two adapted versions of the Monetary Incentive Delay Task were used to study the effects of monetary and social reward anticipation on performance in 40 typically developing (TD) children and adolescents (8-16y), 35 children and adolescents with ADHD and 31 children and adolescents with ASD. Monetary and social reward improved accuracy and response time (RT) in all groups. The higher the anticipated reward, the more accurate and faster were responses. Independent of these effects, there was a differential effect of reward type. Both clinical groups, but not TD, responded faster for monetary than social rewards. The results, while not supporting hyposensitivity to changes in reward amount in ADHD and ASD, do suggest that both groups are generally less motivated in settings where social as opposed to monetary rewards can be earned. © 2011 The Authors. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry. © 2011 Association for Child and Adolescent Mental Health.

Effects of Motivation: Rewarding Hackers for Undetected Attacks Cause Analysts to Perform Poorly.

PubMed

Maqbool, Zahid; Makhijani, Nidhi; Pammi, V S Chandrasekhar; Dutt, Varun

2017-05-01

The aim of this study was to determine how monetary motivations influence decision making of humans performing as security analysts and hackers in a cybersecurity game. Cyberattacks are increasing at an alarming rate. As cyberattacks often cause damage to existing cyber infrastructures, it is important to understand how monetary rewards may influence decision making of hackers and analysts in the cyber world. Currently, only limited attention has been given to this area. In an experiment, participants were randomly assigned to three between-subjects conditions ( n = 26 for each condition): equal payoff, where the magnitude of monetary rewards for hackers and defenders was the same; rewarding hacker, where the magnitude of monetary reward for hacker's successful attack was 10 times the reward for analyst's successful defense; and rewarding analyst, where the magnitude of monetary reward for analyst's successful defense was 10 times the reward for hacker's successful attack. In all conditions, half of the participants were human hackers playing against Nash analysts and half were human analysts playing against Nash hackers. Results revealed that monetary rewards for human hackers and analysts caused a decrease in attack and defend actions compared with the baseline. Furthermore, rewarding human hackers for undetected attacks made analysts deviate significantly from their optimal behavior. If hackers are rewarded for their undetected attack actions, then this causes analysts to deviate from optimal defend proportions. Thus, analysts need to be trained not become overenthusiastic in defending networks. Applications of our results are to networks where the influence of monetary rewards may cause information theft and system damage.

The rewarding value of good motor performance in the context of monetary incentives.

PubMed

Lutz, Kai; Pedroni, Andreas; Nadig, Karin; Luechinger, Roger; Jäncke, Lutz

2012-07-01

Whether an agent receives positive task feedback or a monetary reward, neural activity in their striatum increases. In the latter case striatal activity reflects extrinsic reward processing, while in the former, striatal activity reflects the intrinsically rewarding effects of performing well. There can be a "hidden cost of reward", which is a detrimental effect of extrinsic on intrinsic reward value. This raises the question how these two types of reward interact. To address this, we applied a monetary incentive delay task: in all trials participants received feedback depending on their performance. In half of the trials they could additionally receive monetary reward if they performed well. This resulted in high performance trials, which were monetarily rewarded and high performance trials that were not. This made it possible to dissociate the neural correlates of performance feedback from the neural correlates of monetary reward that comes with high performance. Performance feedback alone elicits activation increases in the ventral striatum. This activation increases due to additional monetary reward. Neural response in the dorsal striatum on the other hand is only significantly increased by feedback when a monetary incentive is present. The quality of performance does not significantly influence dorsal striatum activity. In conclusion, our results indicate that the dorsal striatum is primarily sensitive to optional or actually received external rewards, whereas the ventral striatum may be coding intrinsic reward due to positive performance feedback. Thus the ventral striatum is suggested to be involved in the processing of intrinsically motivated behavior. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Facilitating responsible gambling: the relative effectiveness of education-based animation and monetary limit setting pop-up messages among electronic gaming machine players.

PubMed

Wohl, Michael J A; Gainsbury, Sally; Stewart, Melissa J; Sztainert, Travis

2013-12-01

Although most gamblers set a monetary limit on their play, many exceed this limit--an antecedent of problematic gambling. Responsible gambling tools may assist players to gamble within their means. Historically, however, the impact of such tools has been assessed in isolation. In the current research, two responsible gambling tools that target adherence to a monetary limit were assessed among 72 electronic gaming machine (EGM) players. Participants watched an educational animation explaining how EGMs work (or a neutral video) and then played an EGM in a virtual reality environment. All participants were asked to set a monetary limit on their play, but only half were reminded when that limit was reached. Results showed that both the animation and pop-up limit reminder helped gamblers stay within their preset monetary limit; however, an interaction qualified these main effects. Among participants who did not experience the pop-up reminder, those who watched the animation stayed within their preset monetary limits more than those who did not watch the animation. For those who were reminded of their limit, however, there was no difference in limit adherence between those who watched the animation and those who did not watch the animation. From a responsible gambling perspective, the current study suggests that there is no additive effect of exposure to both responsible gambling tools. Therefore, for minimal disruption in play, a pop-up message reminding gamblers of their preset monetary limit might be preferred over the lengthier educational animation.

Insula and striatum activity in effort-related monetary reward processing in gambling disorder: The role of depressive symptomatology

PubMed Central

Fauth-Bühler, Mira; Zois, Evangelos; Vollstädt-Klein, Sabine; Lemenager, Tagrid; Beutel, Martin; Mann, Karl

2014-01-01

The neurobiological underpinnings of effort-related monetary reward processing of gambling disorder have not been previously studied. To date neuroimaging studies lack in large sample sizes and as a consequence less attention has been given to brain reward processing that could potentially be attributed to comorbid conditions such as depressive mood state. We assessed monetary reward processing using an effort-dependent task during 3 tesla functional magnetic resonance imaging. We investigated a large sample of male, right-handed, slot-machine-playing disordered gamblers (DGs; N = 80) as well as age- and smoking-matched male healthy controls (HCs; N = 89). Depressive symptoms were assessed using the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI). DGs and HCs were divided into subgroups (“high” and “low”) based on their BDI scores. Effort-related monetary reward processing did not differ between the complete groups of HCs and DGs. Brain activation during receipt of monetary reward though revealed a significant Group × BDI interaction: DGs with higher BDI scores compared to DGs with lower BDI scores showed greater brain activity in the right insula cortex and dorsal striatum while no differences were observed for HCs with higher versus lower BDI scores. Our results suggest that effort-related aspects of monetary motivation, i.e. when monetary output is tied to performance, are not altered in DG. Additionally, our findings strengthen the need for subgroup comparisons in future investigations of the disorder as part of a personalized medicine approach. PMID:25379437

25 CFR 162.550 - How much monetary compensation must be paid under a WSR lease of individually owned Indian land?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

..., DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR LAND AND WATER LEASES AND PERMITS Wind and Solar Resource Leases Wsr Lease... Indian landowners submit an economic analysis that is approved by the Office of Indian Energy & Economic...

TOWARD COST-BENEFIT ANALYSIS OF ACUTE BEHAVIORAL EFFECTS OF TOLUENE IN HUMANS

EPA Science Inventory

There is increasing interest in being able to express the consequences of exposure to potentially toxic compounds in monetary terms in order to evaluate potential cost-benefit relationships of controlling exposure. Behavioral effects of acute toluene exposure could be subjected ...

The potential impact of rural mayday systems on vehicular crash fatalities.

PubMed

Evanco, W M

1999-09-01

Rural mayday systems can reduce the time between the occurrence of an accident and the notification of emergency medical services--called the accident notification time. Reductions in this time, in turn, may affect the numbers of fatalities. A statistical analysis is used to estimate the quantitative relationship between fatalities and the accident notification time. The elasticity of rural fatalities with respect to the accident notification time was found to be 0.14. If a rural mayday system were fully implemented (i.e. a 100% market penetration) and the service availability were 100%, then we would expect monetary benefits of about $1.83 billion per year and comprehensive benefits (which includes the monetary value attached to the lost quality of life) of $6.37 billion per year.

Unmasking decoupling: Redefining the Resource Intensity of the Economy.

PubMed

Bithas, Kostas; Kalimeris, Panos

2018-04-01

Interest in investigating the complex link between resources and developments has revived recently following studies which support striking "dematerialized" growth over the last hundred years or so. This so-called decoupling effect is defined as the declining quantity of resources required for producing one unit of GDP. Decoupling studies adopt aggregate GDP as the measure of the outcome of the economy. However, this outcome is contributed by the total population which differs over time and between countries. A valid comparison should use a comparable, standardized indicator that adjusts for population size. GDP per capita, the income index, defines in monetary terms the ultimate outcome of the economy and is adopted by international organizations as the standard index for comparing economies. The income index approximates, in monetary terms, the welfare produced by the economic system and enjoyed by individuals. Recently developed alternative indexes of welfare lack broad data coverage and have limited empirical application as yet. For this reason and for ensuring direct comparison with the standard decoupling estimates, our study remains within the monetary context. The present paper re-evaluates the resources-economy link from the perspective of "the resources required for the production of one unit of GDP per capita (Income)" and hence evaluates the efficiency of turning resources into the actual outcome of the economic system. Our estimates suggest that the dependence of global economic growth on natural resources has increased by over 60% in the last 110years (1900-2009), contrasting with the prevailing decoupling estimates which suggest a reduction by 63%. We find that the actual decoupling, which began in the mid-1970s in post-industrial economies, is counterbalanced by the intensified resource intensity of several developing economies. Accordingly, in the pursuit of sustainability, the dematerialization target needs to be more clearly incorporated into environmental policies and pervade contemporary economic thinking. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Reincentivizing--a new theory of work and work absence.

PubMed

Thulesius, Hans O; Grahn, Birgitta E

2007-07-03

Work capacity correlates weakly to disease concepts, which in turn are insufficient to explain sick leave behavior. With data mainly from Sweden, a welfare state with high sickness absence rates, our aim was to develop an explanatory theory of how to understand and deal with work absence and sick leave. We used classic grounded theory for analyzing data from >130 interviews with people working or on sick leave, physicians, social security officers, and literature. Several hundreds of typed and handwritten memos were the basis for writing up the theory. In this paper we present a theory of work incentives and how to deal with work absence. We suggest that work disability can be seen as hurt work drivers or people caught in mode traps. Work drivers are specified as work capacities + work incentives, monetary and non-monetary. Also, people can get trapped in certain modes of behavior through changed capacities or incentives, or by inertia. Different modes have different drivers and these can trap the individual from reincentivizing, ie from going back to work or go on working. Hurt drivers and mode traps are recognized by driver assessments done on several different levels. Mode driver calculations are done by the worker. Then follows employer, physician, and social insurance officer assessments. Also, driver assessments are done on the macro level by legislators and other stakeholders. Reincentivizing is done by different repair strategies for hurt work drivers such as body repair, self repair, work-place repair, rehumanizing, controlling sick leave insurance, and strengthening monetary work incentives. Combinations of these driver repair strategies also do release people from mode traps. Reincentivizing is about recognizing hurt work drivers and mode traps followed by repairing and releasing the same drivers and traps. Reincentivizing aims at explaining what is going on when work absence is dealt with and the theory may add to social psychological research on work and work absence, and possibly inform sick leave policies.

Reincentivizing – a new theory of work and work absence

PubMed Central

Thulesius, Hans O; Grahn, Birgitta E

2007-01-01

Background Work capacity correlates weakly to disease concepts, which in turn are insufficient to explain sick leave behavior. With data mainly from Sweden, a welfare state with high sickness absence rates, our aim was to develop an explanatory theory of how to understand and deal with work absence and sick leave. Methods We used classic grounded theory for analyzing data from >130 interviews with people working or on sick leave, physicians, social security officers, and literature. Several hundreds of typed and handwritten memos were the basis for writing up the theory. Results In this paper we present a theory of work incentives and how to deal with work absence. We suggest that work disability can be seen as hurt work drivers or people caught in mode traps. Work drivers are specified as work capacities + work incentives, monetary and non-monetary. Also, people can get trapped in certain modes of behavior through changed capacities or incentives, or by inertia. Different modes have different drivers and these can trap the individual from reincentivizing, ie from going back to work or go on working. Hurt drivers and mode traps are recognized by driver assessments done on several different levels. Mode driver calculations are done by the worker. Then follows employer, physician, and social insurance officer assessments. Also, driver assessments are done on the macro level by legislators and other stakeholders. Reincentivizing is done by different repair strategies for hurt work drivers such as body repair, self repair, work-place repair, rehumanizing, controlling sick leave insurance, and strengthening monetary work incentives. Combinations of these driver repair strategies also do release people from mode traps. Conclusion Reincentivizing is about recognizing hurt work drivers and mode traps followed by repairing and releasing the same drivers and traps. Reincentivizing aims at explaining what is going on when work absence is dealt with and the theory may add to social psychological research on work and work absence, and possibly inform sick leave policies. PMID:17608942

The effect of glass shape on alcohol consumption in a naturalistic setting: a feasibility study.

PubMed

Troy, David M; Maynard, Olivia M; Hickman, Matthew; Attwood, Angela S; Munafò, Marcus R

2015-12-01

Alcohol-related harms are a major public health concern, and population-level interventions are needed to reduce excessive alcohol consumption. Glass shape is an easily modifiable target for public health intervention. Laboratory findings show beer is consumed slower from a straight glass compared to a curved glass, but these findings have not been replicated in a naturalistic setting. The purpose of this study is to investigate the feasibility of conducting a randomised controlled trial investigating the effect of glass shape on alcohol consumption in public houses. Straight and curved half-pint and pint glasses were delivered to three public houses over two weekends. Glass type was counterbalanced over the two weekends and between the public houses. Monetary takings were recorded as an indirect measure of consumption. Replacing stocks of glassware in public houses was feasible and can be enacted in a short space of time. One landlord found the study too disruptive, possibly due to a laborious exchange of glassware and complaints about the new glassware from some customers. One public house's dishwasher could not accommodate the supplied curved full-pint glasses. Obtaining monetary takings from public house staff was a feasible and efficient way of measuring consumption, although reporting absolute amounts may be commercially sensitive. Monetary takings were reduced by 24 % (95 % confidence interval 77 % reduction to 29 % increase) when straight glasses were used compared to curved glasses. This study shows that it is feasible to carry out a trial investigating glass shape in a naturalistic environment, although a number of challenges were encountered. Brewery owners and landlords are willing to engage with public health research in settings where alcohol is consumed, such as public houses. Good communication with stakeholders was vital to acquire good data, and highlighting the potential commercial benefits of participating was vital to the study's success. A full scale evaluation of the effects of glass shape on alcohol consumption could inform local and national policy.

Land-use change in Indian tropical agro-ecosystems: eco-energy estimation for socio-ecological sustainability.

PubMed

Nautiyal, Sunil; Kaechele, Harald; Umesh Babu, M S; Tikhile, Pavan; Baksi, Sangeeta

2017-04-01

This study was carried out to understand the ecological and economic sustainability of floriculture and other main crops in Indian agro-ecosystems. The cultivation practices of four major flower crops, namely Jasminum multiflorum, Crossandra infundibuliformis, Chrysanthemum and Tagetes erecta, were studied in detail. The production cost of flowers in terms of energy was calculated to be 99,622-135,996 compared to 27,681-69,133 MJ ha -1 for the main crops, namely Oryza sativa, Eleusine coracana, Zea mays and Sorghum bicolor. The highest-energy input amongst the crops was recorded for Z. mays (69,133 MJ ha -1 ) as this is a resource-demanding crop. However, flower cultivation requires approximately twice the energy required for the cultivation of Z. mays. In terms of both energy and monetary inputs, flower cultivation needs two to three times the requirements of the main crops cultivated in the region. The monetary inputs for main crop cultivation were calculated to be ₹ 27,349 to ₹ 46,930 as compared to flower crops (₹ 62,540 to ₹ 144,355). Floriculture was found to be more efficient in monetary terms when compared to the main crops cultivated in the region. However, the energy efficiency of flower crops is lower than that of the main crops, and the energy output from flower cultivation was found to be declining in tropical agro-ecosystems in India. Amongst the various inputs, farmyard manure accounts for the highest proportion, and for its preparation, most of the raw material comes from the surrounding ecosystems. Thus, flower cultivation has a direct impact on the ecosystem resource flow. Therefore, keeping the economic and environmental sustainability in view, this study indicates that a more field-based research is required to frame appropriate policies for flower cultivation to achieve sustainable socio-ecological development.

Costing the Morbidity and Mortality Consequences of Zoonoses Using Health-Adjusted Life Years.

PubMed

Jordan, H; Dunt, D; Hollingsworth, B; Firestone, S M; Burgman, M

2016-10-01

Governments are routinely involved in the biosecurity of agricultural and food imports and exports. This involves controlling the complex ongoing threat of the broad range of zoonoses: endemic, exotic and newly emerging. Policy-related decision-making in these areas requires accurate information and predictions concerning the effects and potential impacts of zoonotic diseases. The aim of this article was to provide information concerning the development and use of utility-based tools, specifically disability-adjusted life years (DALYs), for measuring the burden on human disease (morbidity and mortality) as a consequence of zoonotic infections. Issues and challenges to their use are also considered. Non-monetary utility approaches that are reviewed in this paper form one of a number of tools that can be used to estimate the monetary and non-monetary 'cost' of morbidity- and mortality-related consequences. Other tools derive from cost-of-illness, willingness-to-pay and multicriteria approaches. Utility-based approaches are specifically designed to capture the pain, suffering and loss of functioning associated with diseases, zoonotic and otherwise. These effects are typically complicated to define, measure and subsequently 'cost'. Utility-based measures will not be able to capture all of the effects, especially those that extend beyond the health sector. These will more normally be captured in financial terms. Along with other uncommon diseases, the quality of the relevant epidemiological data may not be adequate to support the estimation of losses in utility as a result of zoonoses. Other issues in their use have been identified. New empirical studies have shown some success in addressing these issues. Other issues await further study. It is concluded that, bearing in mind all caveats, utility-based methods are important tools in assessing the magnitude of the impacts of zoonoses in human disease. They make an important contribution to decision-making and priority setting across all sectors. In doing so, they highlight the relative importance of the burden of zoonotic disease globally. © 2014 Blackwell Verlag GmbH.

Modeled changes in 100 year Flood Risk and Asset Damages within Mapped Floodplains of the Contiguous United States

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wobus, C. W.; Gutmann, E. D.; Jones, R.; Rissing, M.; Mizukami, N.; Lorie, M.; Mahoney, H.; Wood, A.; Mills, D.; Martinich, J.

2017-12-01

A growing body of recent work suggests that the extreme weather events that drive inland flooding are likely to increase in frequency and magnitude in a warming climate, thus increasing monetary damages from flooding in the future. We use hydrologic projections based on the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 5 (CMIP5) to estimate changes in the frequency of modeled 1% annual exceedance probability flood events at 57,116 locations across the contiguous United States (CONUS). We link these flood projections to a database of assets within mapped flood hazard zones to model changes in inland flooding damages throughout the CONUS over the remainder of the 21st century, under two greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions scenarios. Our model generates early 21st century flood damages that reasonably approximate the range of historical observations, and trajectories of future damages that vary substantially depending on the GHG emissions pathway. The difference in modeled flood damages between higher and lower emissions pathways approaches $4 billion per year by 2100 (in undiscounted 2014 dollars), suggesting that aggressive GHG emissions reductions could generate significant monetary benefits over the long-term in terms of reduced flood risk. Although the downscaled hydrologic data we used have been applied to flood impacts studies elsewhere, this research expands on earlier work to quantify changes in flood risk by linking future flood exposure to assets and damages at a national scale. Our approach relies on a series of simplifications that could ultimately affect damage estimates (e.g., use of statistical downscaling, reliance on a nationwide hydrologic model, and linking damage estimates only to 1% AEP floods). Although future work is needed to test the sensitivity of our results to these methodological choices, our results suggest that monetary damages from inland flooding could be substantially reduced through more aggressive GHG mitigation policies.

Modeling uncertainties in workforce disruptions from influenza pandemics using dynamic input-output analysis.

PubMed

El Haimar, Amine; Santos, Joost R

2014-03-01

Influenza pandemic is a serious disaster that can pose significant disruptions to the workforce and associated economic sectors. This article examines the impact of influenza pandemic on workforce availability within an interdependent set of economic sectors. We introduce a simulation model based on the dynamic input-output model to capture the propagation of pandemic consequences through the National Capital Region (NCR). The analysis conducted in this article is based on the 2009 H1N1 pandemic data. Two metrics were used to assess the impacts of the influenza pandemic on the economic sectors: (i) inoperability, which measures the percentage gap between the as-planned output and the actual output of a sector, and (ii) economic loss, which quantifies the associated monetary value of the degraded output. The inoperability and economic loss metrics generate two different rankings of the critical economic sectors. Results show that most of the critical sectors in terms of inoperability are sectors that are related to hospitals and health-care providers. On the other hand, most of the sectors that are critically ranked in terms of economic loss are sectors with significant total production outputs in the NCR such as federal government agencies. Therefore, policy recommendations relating to potential mitigation and recovery strategies should take into account the balance between the inoperability and economic loss metrics. © 2013 Society for Risk Analysis.

Cost-benefit and extended cost-effectiveness analysis of a comprehensive adolescent pregnancy prevention program in Zambia: study protocol for a cluster randomized controlled trial.

PubMed

Mori, Amani Thomas; Kampata, Linda; Musonda, Patrick; Johansson, Kjell Arne; Robberstad, Bjarne; Sandøy, Ingvild

2017-12-19

Early marriages, pregnancies and births are the major cause of school drop-out among adolescent girls in sub-Saharan Africa. Birth complications are also one of the leading causes of death among adolescent girls. This paper outlines a protocol for a cost-benefit analysis (CBA) and an extended cost-effectiveness analysis (ECEA) of a comprehensive adolescent pregnancy prevention program in Zambia. It aims to estimate the expected costs, monetary and non-monetary benefits associated with health-related and non-health outcomes, as well as their distribution across populations with different standards of living. The study will be conducted alongside a cluster-randomized controlled trial, which is testing the hypothesis that economic support with or without community dialogue is an effective strategy for reducing adolescent childbearing rates. The CBA will estimate net benefits by comparing total costs with monetary benefits of health-related and non-health outcomes for each intervention package. The ECEA will estimate the costs of the intervention packages per unit health and non-health gain stratified by the standards of living. Cost data include program implementation costs, healthcare costs (i.e. costs associated with adolescent pregnancy and birth complications such as low birth weight, pre-term birth, eclampsia, medical abortion procedures and post-abortion complications) and costs of education and participation in community and youth club meetings. Monetary benefits are returns to education and averted healthcare costs. For the ECEA, health gains include reduced rate of adolescent childbirths and non-health gains include averted out-of-pocket expenditure and financial risk protection. The economic evaluations will be conducted from program and societal perspectives. While the planned intervention is both comprehensive and expensive, it has the potential to produce substantial short-term and long-term health and non-health benefits. These benefits should be considered seriously when evaluating whether such a program can justify the required investments in a setting with scarce resources. The economic evaluations outlined in this paper will generate valuable information that can be used to guide large-scale implementation of programs to address the problem of the high prevalence of adolescent childbirth and school drop-outs in similar settings. ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT02709967. Registered on 2 March 2016. ISRCTN, ISRCTN12727868. Registered on 4 March 2016.

Air Cargo Transportation Route Choice Analysis

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Obashi, Hiroshi; Kim, Tae-Seung; Oum, Tae Hoon

2003-01-01

Using a unique feature of air cargo transshipment data in the Northeast Asian region, this paper identifies the critical factors that determine the transshipment route choice. Taking advantage of the variations in the transport characteristics in each origin-destination airports pair, the paper uses a discrete choice model to describe the transshipping route choice decision made by an agent (i.e., freight forwarder, consolidator, and large shipper). The analysis incorporates two major factors, monetary cost (such as line-haul cost and landing fee) and time cost (i.e., aircraft turnaround time, including loading and unloading time, custom clearance time, and expected scheduled delay), along with other controls. The estimation method considers the presence of unobserved attributes, and corrects for resulting endogeneity by use of appropriate instrumental variables. Estimation results find that transshipment volumes are more sensitive to time cost, and that the reduction in aircraft turnaround time by 1 hour would be worth the increase in airport charges by more than $1000. Simulation exercises measures the impacts of alternative policy scenarios for a Korean airport, which has recently declared their intention to be a future regional hub in the Northeast Asian region. The results suggest that reducing aircraft turnaround time at the airport be an effective strategy, rather than subsidizing to reduce airport charges.

Costs and outcomes of an intervention programme for offenders with personality disorders.

PubMed

Barrett, Barbara; Byford, Sarah

2012-04-01

The dangerous severe personality disorder programme was developed in high secure prisons and hospitals at great expense to identify and treat the most dangerous offenders with personality disorders. To evaluate whether the long-term costs of the programme are greater or less than the long-term outcomes. We used a Markov decision model with a cost-effectiveness analysis to determine the incremental cost of the programme per serious offence prevented and a cost-offset analysis to consider whether monetary benefits were greater than costs. Costs were consistently higher for the intervention programme and the cost per serious offence prevented was over £2 million, although there was some evidence that adjustments to the programme could lead to similar interventions becoming cost-effective. Little evidence was found to support the cost-effectiveness of the intervention programme for offenders with personality disorders, although delivery of the programme in a lower-cost prison would probably yield greater benefits than costs. There are frequent calls for mentally disordered offenders to be detained in secure hospitals rather than prisons; however, if reoffending remains the outcome of interest for policy makers, it is likely that the costs of detention in hospital will remain greater than the benefits for dangerous offenders with a personality disorder.

Equity in the allocation of public sector financial resources in low- and middle-income countries: a systematic literature review.

PubMed

Anselmi, Laura; Lagarde, Mylene; Hanson, Kara

2015-05-01

This review aims to identify, assess and analyse the evidence on equity in the distribution of public health sector expenditure in low- and middle-income countries. Four bibliographic databases and five websites were searched to identify quantitative studies examining equity in the distribution of public health funding in individual countries or groups of countries. Two different types of studies were identified: benefit incidence analysis (BIA) and resource allocation comparison (RAC) studies. Quality appraisal and data synthesis were tailored to each study type to reflect differences in the methods used and in the information provided. We identified 39 studies focusing on African, Asian and Latin American countries. Of these, 31 were BIA studies that described the distribution, typically across socio-economic status, of individual monetary benefit derived from service utilization. The remaining eight were RAC studies that compared the actual expenditure across geographic areas to an ideal need-based distribution. Overall, the quality of the evidence from both types of study was relatively weak. Looking across studies, the evidence confirms that resource allocation formulae can enhance equity in resource allocation across geographic areas and that the poor benefits proportionally more from primary health care than from hospital expenditure. The lack of information on the distribution of benefit from utilization in RAC studies and on the countries' approaches to resource allocation in BIA studies prevents further policy analysis. Additional research that relates the type of resource allocation mechanism to service provision and to the benefit distribution is required for a better understanding of equity-enhancing resource allocation policies. Published by Oxford University Press in association with The London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine © The Author 2014; all rights reserved.

Bid purchasing of pharmaceuticals.

PubMed

Swift, R G; Ryan, M R

1978-11-01

The effects of bid purchasing of drug products by hospitals and the factors to consider in bid purchasing of pharmaceuticals are reviewed; further, the prices available with bid purchasing to a specific hospital in 1974 and 1977 are presented. Factors important for a successful bid purchasing system of pharmaceuticals are: (1) use of a formulary policy, (2) an effective procedure for handling bid purchasing and (3) criteria for evaluation of drug products. Significant differences were found between prices available with and without bid purchasing for 50 nonproprietary drug products in 1974 and for 19 products in 1977. Although monetary savings to hospitals do exist with bid purchasing of pharmaceuticals, the degree of savings is dependent upon the drug usage for that hospital.

Borrowing against the Future: Children and Third World Indebtedness.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bradshaw, York W.; And Others

1993-01-01

In response to the global debt crisis, international lenders have pressured Third World debtor nations to implement "structural adjustments." Analysis of data from the United Nations, the World Bank, and the International Monetary Fund suggest that externally imposed austerity measures have adversely affected children's survival and…

Macroeconomics and oil-supply disruptions

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Hubbard, R.G.; Fry, R.C. Jr.

1981-04-01

Energy-economy interactions and domestic linkages have been used in a system of models. Domestic economic aggregates are linked with a model of the world oil market by a core macroeconomic model with real and financial sectors. The model can be used to examine the policy ramifications of various short-run scenarios. Demand factors are not taken as exogenous to the world oil market, nor are oil prices taken as exogenous to the US economy. Simulations of the model have generated endogenous cycles in the world oil market; which then affect the US economy primarily through output and inflation channels. Policy simulationmore » was centered around the short-run imposition of a disruption tariff. The disruption tariff exhibited at least some of the desirable features noted by its proponents, though it did not function as a shield against the short-run output loss forced by the disruption. One might also simulate the rebate of tariff revenues as a reduction in the social security payroll tax. Other possible simulations include the use of any of the fiscal and monetary instruments included in the model. The effectiveness of these other policy instruments will be examined in a later paper.« less

Implementation of data security and data privacy provisions will bring sweeping changes to laboratory service providers.

PubMed

Boothe, J F

2000-01-01

The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act included substantial changes involving handling of health information by establishing national standards for electronic transactions, data privacy, and data security. The first final rule for electronic transaction standards was published August 17, 2000. The remaining final rules are expected to be published in Winter 2000. Providers, such as clinical laboratories, will have 26 months from the data of publication to comply. The civil monetary fines for noncompliance are substantial. This article will review the key provisions of the data security and data privacy proposed rules. These provisions will touch virtually every aspect of electronic claims submissions, electronic data transactions, and the electronic storage of medical information. The proposed rules will require a coordinated approach by providers to develop the policies and procedures, and the technical and physical infrastructure to protect health information. Moreover, providers will need to identify a privacy officer, to review existing privacy policies to compare the proposed rule with any existing state laws to determine which may be more stringent, and to develop new policies to address the particular requirements of the final rule.

Structural adjustment and public spending on health: evidence from IMF programs in low-income countries.

PubMed

Kentikelenis, Alexander E; Stubbs, Thomas H; King, Lawrence P

2015-02-01

The relationship between health policy in low-income countries (LICs) and structural adjustment programs devised by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has been the subject of intense controversy over past decades. While the influence of the IMF on health policy can operate through various pathways, one main link is via public spending on health. The IMF has claimed that its programs enhance government spending for health, and that a number of innovations have been introduced to enable borrowing countries to protect health spending from broader austerity measures. Critics have pointed to adverse effects of Fund programs on health spending or to systematic underfunding that does not allow LICs to address health needs. We examine the effects of Fund programs on government expenditures on health in low-income countries using data for the period 1985-2009. We find that Fund programs are associated with higher health expenditures only in Sub-Saharan African LICs, which historically spent less than any other region. This relationship turns negative in LICs in other regions. We outline the implications of these findings for health policy in a development context. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Public procurement of health technologies in Greece in an era of economic crisis.

PubMed

Kastanioti, Catherine; Kontodimopoulos, Nick; Stasinopoulos, Dionysis; Kapetaneas, Nikolaos; Polyzos, Nikolaos

2013-01-01

Public procurement is generally an important sector of the economy and, in most countries, is controlled by the introduction of regulatory and policy mechanisms. In the Greek healthcare sector, recent legislation redefined centralized procurement through the reestablishment of a state Health Procurement Committee (EPY), with an aim to formulate a plan to reduce procurement costs of medical devices and pharmaceuticals, improve payment time, make uniform medical requests, transfer redundant materials from one hospital to another and improve management of expired products. The efforts described in this paper began in early 2010, under the co-ordination of the Ministry of Health (MoH) and with the collaboration of senior staff from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the European Commission (EC) and the European Central Bank (ECB). The procurement practices and policies set forth by EPY and the first measurable outcomes, in terms of cost savings, resulting from these policies are presented. The importance of these measures is discussed in light of the worst economic crisis faced by Greece since the restoration of democracy in 1974, as a result of both the world financial crisis and uncontrolled government spending. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Use of strategies to improve retention in primary care randomised trials: a qualitative study with in-depth interviews.

PubMed

Brueton, V C; Stevenson, F; Vale, C L; Stenning, S P; Tierney, J F; Harding, S; Nazareth, I; Meredith, S; Rait, G

2014-01-24

To explore the strategies used to improve retention in primary care randomised trials. Qualitative in-depth interviews and thematic analysis. 29 UK primary care chief and principal investigators, trial managers and research nurses. In-depth face-to-face interviews. Primary care researchers use incentive and communication strategies to improve retention in trials, but were unsure of their effect. Small monetary incentives were used to increase response to postal questionnaires. Non-monetary incentives were used although there was scepticism about the impact of these on retention. Nurses routinely used telephone communication to encourage participants to return for trial follow-up. Trial managers used first class post, shorter questionnaires and improved questionnaire designs with the aim of improving questionnaire response. Interviewees thought an open trial design could lead to biased results and were negative about using behavioural strategies to improve retention. There was consensus among the interviewees that effective communication and rapport with participants, participant altruism, respect for participant's time, flexibility of trial personnel and appointment schedules and trial information improve retention. Interviewees noted particular challenges with retention in mental health trials and those involving teenagers. The findings of this qualitative study have allowed us to reflect on research practice around retention and highlight a gap between such practice and current evidence. Interviewees describe acting from experience without evidence from the literature, which supports the use of small monetary incentives to improve the questionnaire response. No such evidence exists for non-monetary incentives or first class post, use of which may need reconsideration. An exploration of barriers and facilitators to retention in other research contexts may be justified.

Use of strategies to improve retention in primary care randomised trials: a qualitative study with in-depth interviews

PubMed Central

Brueton, V C; Stevenson, F; Vale, C L; Stenning, S P; Tierney, J F; Harding, S; Nazareth, I; Meredith, S; Rait, G

2014-01-01

Objective To explore the strategies used to improve retention in primary care randomised trials. Design Qualitative in-depth interviews and thematic analysis. Participants 29 UK primary care chief and principal investigators, trial managers and research nurses. Methods In-depth face-to-face interviews. Results Primary care researchers use incentive and communication strategies to improve retention in trials, but were unsure of their effect. Small monetary incentives were used to increase response to postal questionnaires. Non-monetary incentives were used although there was scepticism about the impact of these on retention. Nurses routinely used telephone communication to encourage participants to return for trial follow-up. Trial managers used first class post, shorter questionnaires and improved questionnaire designs with the aim of improving questionnaire response. Interviewees thought an open trial design could lead to biased results and were negative about using behavioural strategies to improve retention. There was consensus among the interviewees that effective communication and rapport with participants, participant altruism, respect for participant's time, flexibility of trial personnel and appointment schedules and trial information improve retention. Interviewees noted particular challenges with retention in mental health trials and those involving teenagers. Conclusions The findings of this qualitative study have allowed us to reflect on research practice around retention and highlight a gap between such practice and current evidence. Interviewees describe acting from experience without evidence from the literature, which supports the use of small monetary incentives to improve the questionnaire response. No such evidence exists for non-monetary incentives or first class post, use of which may need reconsideration. An exploration of barriers and facilitators to retention in other research contexts may be justified. PMID:24464427

Theoretical Loss and Gambling Intensity (Revisited): A Response to Braverman et al. (2013).

PubMed

Auer, Michael; Griffiths, Mark D

2015-09-01

In this paper, we provide a brief response to Braverman et al. (J Gambl Stud. doi: 10.1007/s10899-013-9428-z , 2013b) critique of our 'Theoretical Loss' metric as a measure of monetary gambling intensity (Auer and Griffiths in J Gambl Stud. doi: 10.1007/s10899-013-9376-7 , 2013a; Auer et al. in Gaming Law Rev Econ 16:269-273, 2012). We argue that 'gambling intensity' and 'gambling involvement' are essentially the same construct as descriptors of monetary gambling activity. Additionally, we acknowledge that playing duration (i.e., the amount of time—as opposed to money—actually spent gambling) is clearly another important indicator of gambling involvement-something that we have consistently noted in our previous studies including our empirical studies on gambling using behavioural tracking data. Braverman and colleagues claim that the concept of Theoretical Loss is nullified when statistical analysis focuses solely on one game type as the house edge is constant across all games. In fact, they state, the correlation between total amount wagered and Theoretical Loss is perfect. Unfortunately, this is incorrect. To disprove the claim made, we demonstrate that in sports betting (i.e., a single game type), the amount wagered does not reflect monetary gambling involvement using actual payout percentage data (based on 52,500 independent bets provided to us by an online European bookmaker). After reviewing the arguments presented by Braverman and colleagues, we are still of the view that when it comes to purely monetary measures of 'gambling intensity', the Theoretical Loss metric is a more robust and accurate measure than other financial proxy measures such as 'amount wagered' (i.e., bet size) as a measure of what players are prepared to financially risk while gambling.

Low-carbon energy policy and ambient air pollution in Shanghai, China: a health-based economic assessment.

PubMed

Chen, Changhong; Chen, Bingheng; Wang, Bingyan; Huang, Cheng; Zhao, Jing; Dai, Yi; Kan, Haidong

2007-02-01

Energy and related health issues are of growing concern worldwide today. To investigate the potential public health and economic impact of ambient air pollution under various low-carbon energy scenarios in Shanghai, we estimated the exposure level of Shanghai residents to air pollution under various planned scenarios, and assessed the public health impact using concentration-response functions derived from available epidemiologic studies. We then estimated the corresponding economic values of the health effects based on unit values for each health outcome. Our results show that ambient air pollution in relation to low-carbon energy scenarios could have a significant impact on the future health status of Shanghai residents, both in physical and monetary terms. Compared with the base case scenario, implementation of various low-carbon energy scenarios could prevent 2804-8249 and 9870-23,100 PM10-related avoidable deaths (mid-value) in 2010 and 2020, respectively. It could also decrease incidence of several relevant diseases. The corresponding economic benefits could reach 507.31-1492.33 and 2642.45-6192.11 million U.S. dollars (mid-value) in 2010 and 2020, respectively. These findings illustrate that a low-carbon energy policy will not only decrease the emission of greenhouse gases, but also play an active role in the reduction of air pollutant emissions, improvement of air quality, and promotion of public health. Our estimates can provide useful information to local decision-makers for further cost-benefit analysis.

Healthcare organization-education partnerships and career ladder programs for health care workers.

PubMed

Dill, Janette S; Chuang, Emmeline; Morgan, Jennifer C

2014-12-01

Increasing concerns about quality of care and workforce shortages have motivated health care organizations and educational institutions to partner to create career ladders for frontline health care workers. Career ladders reward workers for gains in skills and knowledge and may reduce the costs associated with turnover, improve patient care, and/or address projected shortages of certain nursing and allied health professions. This study examines partnerships between health care and educational organizations in the United States during the design and implementation of career ladder training programs for low-skill workers in health care settings, referred to as frontline health care workers. Mixed methods data from 291 frontline health care workers and 347 key informants (e.g., administrators, instructors, managers) collected between 2007 and 2010 were analyzed using both regression and fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis (QCA). Results suggest that different combinations of partner characteristics, including having an education leader, employer leader, frontline management support, partnership history, community need, and educational policies, were necessary for high worker career self-efficacy and program satisfaction. Whether a worker received a wage increase, however, was primarily dependent on leadership within the health care organization, including having an employer leader and employer implementation policies. Findings suggest that strong partnerships between health care and educational organizations can contribute to the successful implementation of career ladder programs, but workers' ability to earn monetary rewards for program participation depends on the strength of leadership support within the health care organization. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Integrated agro-hydrological modelling and economic analysis of BMPs to support decision making and policy design

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Maroy, E.; Rousseau, A. N.; Hallema, D. W.

2012-12-01

With recent efforts and increasing control over point source pollution of freshwater, agricultural non-point pollution sources have become responsible for most of sediment and nutrient loads in North American water systems. Environmental and agricultural agencies have recognised the need for reducing eutrophication and have developed various policies to compel or encourage producers to best management practices (BMPs). Addressing diffuse pollution is challenging considering the complex and cumulative nature of transport processes, high variability in space and time, and prohibitive costs of distributed water quality monitoring. Many policy options exist to push producers to adopt environmentally desirable behaviour while keeping their activity viable, and ensure equitable costs to consumers and tax payers. On the one hand, economic instruments (subsidies, taxes, water quality markets) are designed to maximize cost-effectiveness, so that farmers optimize their production for maximum profit while implementing BMPs. On the other hand, emission standards or regulation of inputs are often easier and less costly to implement. To study economic and environmental impacts of such policies, a distributed modelling approach is needed to deal with the complexity of the system and the large environmental and socio-economic data requirements. Our objective is to integrate agro-hydrological modelling and economic analysis to support decision and policy making processes of BMP implementation. The integrated modelling system GIBSI was developed in an earlier study within the Canadian WEBs project (Watershed Evaluation of BMPs) to evaluate the influence of BMPs on water quality. The case study involved 30 and 15 year records of discharge and water quality measurements respectively, in the Beaurivage River watershed (Quebec, Canada). GIBSI provided a risk-based overview of the impact of BMPs (including vegetated riparian buffer strips, precision slurry application, conversion to grassland and no-till) in terms of sediment, nutrient and pesticide yields and loads. Input data included characteristics of reservoirs, land cover, soil, agricultural management, livestock management and point sources of pollution. The present study continues from there by first assessing the cost-effectiveness of different sets of BMPs, based on farm budgets and environmental criteria selected by the user. We subsequently examine monetary trade-offs between on-farm costs and social value of water quality improvements using cost-benefit ratios. Because water quality is a non-excludable and non-rivalrous good, its benefits to society are evaluated with non-market evaluation techniques mostly based on quality-constrained recreational use of water. From a policy perspective, cost-effectiveness analysis is very helpful in assisting the decision maker in the highly complex process of defining priorities with respect to BMP strategies. With a user-friendly interface for economic analysis integrated into GIBSI, watershed organizations and stakeholders can use such a tool to promote sustainable agricultural practices and water use. This submission is part of Watershed Evaluation of BMPs project (WEBs) funded by Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada and Ducks Unlimited Canada

An Exploration of How Simulated Gambling Games May Promote Gambling with Money.

PubMed

Armstrong, Tess; Rockloff, Matthew; Browne, Matthew; Li, En

2018-01-10

Portable media devices, such as smartphones, have allowed gambling related content to infiltrate into a new market of potential consumers. Simulated gambling products are now readily available through multiple online platforms, and are becoming a popular form of entertainment for many young media users. Despite widespread use of these products, very little is known about how continued exposure to and involvement with simulated gambling may impact on real-money gambling attitudes and behaviours, particularly for young consumers. This paper reviews the literature exploring simulated gambling products and how consumption may promote monetary gambling, as well as fostering pro-gambling attitudes among youth and adolescents. Findings suggest that youth are highly exposed to simulated gambling games, and those who engage with these products are also more likely to be prone to monetary gambling and gambling problems. Virtual currency, in-game events and gambling themed content are also likely to promote biases about gambling or desensitise consumers to monetary losses. Simulated gambling products may therefore pose a risk to consumers, and particularly young consumers, rather than serve as a benign substitute for monetary gambling. To date, research has largely focused on correlational relationships between simulated and monetary gambling using cross-sectional methodologies. Future research should focus on determining the causal pathway between simulated gambling involvement and monetary gambling in order to identify and manage any risk associated simulated gambling participation.

Humans Integrate Monetary and Liquid Incentives to Motivate Cognitive Task Performance

PubMed Central

Yee, Debbie M.; Krug, Marie K.; Allen, Ariel Z.; Braver, Todd S.

2016-01-01

It is unequivocal that a wide variety of incentives can motivate behavior. However, few studies have explicitly examined whether and how different incentives are integrated in terms of their motivational influence. The current study examines the combined effects of monetary and liquid incentives on cognitive processing, and whether appetitive and aversive incentives have distinct influences. We introduce a novel task paradigm, in which participants perform cued task-switching for monetary rewards that vary parametrically across trials, with liquid incentives serving as post-trial performance feedback. Critically, the symbolic meaning of the liquid was held constant (indicating successful reward attainment), while liquid valence was blocked. In the first experiment, monetary rewards combined additively with appetitive liquid feedback to improve subject task performance. Aversive liquid feedback counteracted monetary reward effects in low monetary reward trials, particularly in a subset of participants who tended to avoid responding under these conditions. Self-report motivation ratings predicted behavioral performance above and beyond experimental effects. A follow-up experiment replicated the predictive power of motivation ratings even when only appetitive liquids were used, suggesting that ratings reflect idiosyncratic subjective values of, rather than categorical differences between, the liquid incentives. Together, the findings indicate an integrative relationship between primary and secondary incentives and potentially dissociable influences in modulating motivational value, while informing hypotheses regarding candidate neural mechanisms. PMID:26834668

Funny money: the attentional role of monetary feedback detached from expected value.

PubMed

Roper, Zachary J J; Vecera, Shaun P

2016-10-01

Stimuli associated with monetary reward can become powerful cues that effectively capture visual attention. We examined whether such value-driven attentional capture can be induced with monetary feedback in the absence of an expected cash payout. To this end, we implemented images of U.S. dollar bills as reward feedback. Participants knew in advance that they would not receive any money based on their performance. Our reward stimuli-$5 and $20 bill images-were thus dissociated from any practical utility. Strikingly, we observed a reliable attentional capture effect for the mere images of bills. Moreover, this finding generalized to Monopoly money. In two control experiments, we found no evidence in favor of nominal or symbolic monetary value. Hence, we claim that bill images are special monetary representations, such that there are strong associations between the defining visual features of bills and reward, probably due to a lifelong learning history. Together, we show that the motivation to earn cash plays a minor role when it comes to monetary rewards, while bill-defining visual features seem to be sufficient. These findings have the potential to influence human factor applications, such as gamification, and can be extended to novel value systems, such as the electronic cash Bitcoin being developed for use in mobile banking. Finally, our procedure represents a proof of concept on how images of money can be used to conserve expenditures in the experimental context.

Monetary reward magnitude effects on behavior and brain function during goal-directed behavior.

PubMed

Rosell-Negre, P; Bustamante, J C; Fuentes-Claramonte, P; Costumero, V; Benabarre, S; Barrós-Loscertales, A

2017-08-01

Reward may modulate the cognitive processes required for goal achievement, while individual differences in personality may affect reward modulation. Our aim was to test how different monetary reward magnitudes modulate brain activation and performance during goal-directed behavior, and whether individual differences in reward sensitivity affect this modulation. For this purpose, we scanned 37 subjects with a parametric design in which we varied the magnitude of monetary rewards (€0, €0.01, €0.5, €1 or €1.5) in a blocked fashion while participants performed an interference counting-Stroop condition. The results showed that the brain activity of left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) and the striatum were modulated by increasing and decreasing reward magnitudes, respectively. Behavioral performance improved as the magnitude of monetary reward increased while comparing the non reward (€0) condition to any other reward condition, or the lower €0.01 to any other reward condition, and this improvement was related with individual differences in reward sensitivity. In conclusion, the locus of influence of monetary incentives overlaps the activity of the regions commonly involved in cognitive control.