Federal Reserve System

About: Federal Reserve System is a other organization based out in Washington D.C., District of Columbia, United States. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Monetary policy & Inflation. The organization has 2373 authors who have published 10301 publications receiving 511979 citations.

The Effects of Geographic Expansion on Bank Efficiency

Abstract: We assess the effects of geographic expansion on bank efficiency, using cost and profit efficiencies estimated for over 7000 U.S. banks from 1993 to 1998. We find both positive and negative links between geographic scope and bank efficiency. Parent organizations exercise some control over the efficiency of their affiliates, although this control tends to dissipate with the distance to the affiliate. However, on average, distance-related efficiency effects tend to be modest, and our results suggest that some efficient organizations can export efficient practices to their affiliates and overwhelm any effects of distance. The results imply there may be no particular optimal geographic scope for banking organizations—some may operate efficiently within a single region, while others may operate efficiently on a nationwide or international basis.

Religious Intermarriage and Socialization in the United States

Abstract: This paper presents an empirical analysis of a choice‐theoretic model of cultural transmission. In particular, we use data from the General Social Survey to estimate the structural parameters of a model of marriage and child socialization along religious lines in the United States. The observed intermarriage and socialization rates are consistent with Protestants, Catholics, and Jews having a strong preference for children who identify with their own religious beliefs and making costly decisions to influence their children’s religious beliefs. Our estimates imply dynamics of the shares of religious traits in the population that are in sharp contrast with the predictions obtained by linear extrapolations from current intermarriage rates.

The Illusory Effects of Saving Incentives on Saving

Abstract: American saving rates fell dramatically in the 1980s and have remained low since then. The decline in saving has raised concerns that the economy may be unable to finance investment and sustain growth and that households may not be saving adequately for retirement. One response to these concerns has been the development of special saving accounts, such as Individual Retirement Accounts, 401 (k) plans and Keogh plans. These voluntary accounts, which we refer to as "saving incentives," feature preferential tax treatment of contributions and investment earnings, annual contribution limits and penalties for early withdrawals.The question addressed in this paper is the extent to which saving incentives have raised private and national (public plus private) saving. Contributions and investment earnings are typically tax deferred, thus reducing public saving (increasing the budget deficit) in the short run. The long-run impact on public saving is less obvious; if the incentives increase private saving, they may also increase income and tax revenue.

Employment, Hours, and Earnings in the Depression: An Analysis of Eight Manufacturing Industries

Abstract: This paper employs monthly, industry - level data in a study of Depression - era labor markets. The underlying analytical framework is one in which, as in Lucas (1970), employers can vary total labor input not only by changing the number of workers but also by varying the length of the work - week. This framework appears to be particularly relevant to the 1930s, a period in which both employment and hours of work fluctuated sharply. With aggregate demand treated as exogenous, it is shown that an econometric model based on this framework, in conjunction with some additional elements (notably, the adjustment of workers' pay to permanent but not transitory variations in the cost of living, and the effects of New Deal legislation) can provide a good explanation of the behavior of the key time series. In particular, the empirical model is able to explain the puzzle of increasing real wages during a period of high unemployment.