REY S. J. and MONTOURI B. D. (1999) US regional income convergence: a spatial econometric perspective, Reg. Studies 33 , 143-156. This study reconsiders the question of US regional economic income convergence from a spatial econometric perspective. Recently developed methods of exploratory spatial data analysis provide new insights on the geographical dynamics of US regional income growth patterns over the 1929-94 period. Strong patterns of both global and local spatial autocorrelation are found throughout the study period, and the magnitude of global spatial autocorrelation is also found to exhibit strong temporal co-movement with regional income dispersion. A spatial econometric analysis of the familiar Baumol specification reveals strong evidence of misspecification due to ignored spatial error dependence. Because of this dependence, shocks originating in one state can spillover into surrounding states, potentially complicating the transitional dynamics of the convergence process. REY S. J. et MONTOURI...

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US Regional Income Convergence: A Spatial Econometric Perspective

The authors present an overview of the academic literature on charitable giving based on a literature review of more than 500 articles. They structure their review around the central question of why people donate money to charitable organizations. They identify eight mechanisms as the most important forces that drive charitable giving: (a) awareness of need; (b) solicitation; (c) costs and benefits; (d) altruism; (e) reputation; (f) psychological benefits; (g) values; (h) efficacy. These mechanisms can provide a basic theoretical framework for future research explaining charitable giving.

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A Literature Review of Empirical Studies of Philanthropy: Eight Mechanisms That Drive Charitable Giving

This paper is a review of the post-war literature on income distribution and development. It argues that the literature has cycled from one consensus to another, responding to emerging policy issues and new analysis. On the basis of the review, the paper identifies five areas that will command the attention of analysts in the coming two decades: (i) country case studies rather than cross-country regression analysis; (ii) the phenomenon of increasing inequality; (iii) different levels of disaggregation, particularly distribution between broadly defined groups; (iv) intra-household allocation; and (v) alternative modes of redistribution in face of inequality increasing tendencies.

Income Distribution and Development

Perceptual determinants of nonprofit giving behavior

This paper looks at the relationship between fiscal and political decentralization and the evolution of regional inequalities in a panel of 26 countries -- 19 developed and 7 developing -- for the period between 1990 and 2006. Using an instrumental variables method, it finds that whereas for the whole sample decentralization is completely dissociated for the evolution of regional disparities, the results are highly contingent on the level of development, the existing level of territorial inequalities, and the fiscal redistributive capacity of the countries in the sample. Decentralization in high income countries has, if anything, been associated with a reduction of regional inequality. In low and medium income countries, fiscal decentralization has been associated with a significant rise in regional disparities, which the positive effects of political decentralization have been unable to compensate. Policy preferences by subnational governments for expenditure in economic affairs, education, and social protection have contributed to this trend.

Does Decentralization Matter for Regional Disparities? A Cross-Country Analysis

A parametric programming model is used to estimate crop production profitability of Iowa's noncropland. The model indicates that Iowa cropland is expandable by five million acres if crop prices double the 1978 level. Additional cropland expansion is less responsive to further crop price increases. The model also indicates that soil erosion from cropland expansion is greater than the state's average. However, if the model constrains soil erosion to under five tons per acre, soil erosion is greatly reduced with only slight reductions in potential cropland.

Iowa Crop Production and Soil Erosion with Cropland Expansion

Two models of the interaction between regional financial markets and regional production are examined. The first assumes that regional expenditures are determined by the regional interest rate, analogous to national IS-LM macroeconomic models. The second assumes that regional expenditures are constrained by the availability of regional credit available through financial markets. The first model implies regional financial markets have no effect on regional growth if financial capital is perfectly mobile. However, the second model indicates regional growth is affected by regional financial markets. This difference is tested using gross product and commercial bank loan data for states from 1965 to 1985. A two-step procedure is used that (1) estimates the structural coefficients for each state through time series analysis, then (2) tests the explanatory power of these coefficients in a cross-section analysis of state growth rates. This analysis indicates that regional financial markets exhibit a positive impact on regional growth.

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An Empirical Test Of The Interaction Between Regional Financial Markets And Regional Growth

This paper proposes an explanation of unbalanced regional growth and regional inequalities based on the view that human behaviour is motivated either to reduce the physiological state of arousal or to increase it. While arousal reduction is the basis of conventional economic analysis arousal augmentation is seldom considered. This paper argues that arousal augmentation motivates society to seek technological and socioeconomic innovations that trigger economic progress. The mechanism for this progress is seen as a synthesis of spatial growth poles and temporal long waves.

Secular seasons: long-run trends in spatial-temporal socioeconomic behavior

A number of factors must be considered in facility location decisions. Recent research on job design suggests that the effects jobs may have on quality of work life and quality of life in general should be considered in facility location decisions in addition to other normal factors. The present study was designed to examine quality of work life and quality of life factors of residents in a low income and low education area. The intent was to determine what types of jobs might have the most positive effect on people in this type of region. Data were collected from 409 households in a low income/education region. The results showed that people from this region were as satisfied with their quality of work life and quality of life as people in other regions with better jobs, higher incomes, and better general life situations. Results are discussed in light of facility location decisions and types of jobs having the most positive impact.

Social factors and company location decisions: Technology, quality of life and quality of work life concerns

This paper undertakes an historical analysis of regional trading bloc formation in the 1980s. This time period was characterized by the formation of major global trading blocs, especially the European Union and the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), at the same time existing national structures broke apart, most notably the Soviet Union. A gravity model based analysis of trade flow data indicates that two forces operated simultaneously during the study period, one leading to the formation of trading blocs (as captured by a dummy variable for “same regions”) and the other leading to the dissolution of trading blocs (based on the interaction of GNP and the dummy variable for “same regions”).

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Orley M. Amos

Papers

Iowa Crop Production and Soil Erosion with Cropland Expansion

An Empirical Test Of The Interaction Between Regional Financial Markets And Regional Growth

Secular seasons: long-run trends in spatial-temporal socioeconomic behavior

Social factors and company location decisions: Technology, quality of life and quality of work life concerns

Regional Economic Integration and the Formation of Global Trading Blocs: An Historical Analysis of the 1980s