Book•
Intermediate microeconomics : A modern approach
01 Jan 2006-
TL;DR: The Varian approach as mentioned in this paper gives students tools they can use on exams, in the rest of their classes, and in their careers after graduation, and is still the most modern presentation of the subject.
Abstract: This best-selling text is still the most modern presentation of the subject. The Varian approach gives students tools they can use on exams, in the rest of their classes, and in their careers after graduation.
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23 Mar 2010
TL;DR: In this paper, the second in a series of studies on transport and aid effectiveness in Sub-Saharan Africa is presented, which follows a study on transport costs and prices along the main international trade corridors (Teravaninthorn and Raballand 2008).
Abstract: This report is the second in a series of studies on transport and aid effectiveness in Sub-Saharan Africa. It follows a study on transport costs and prices along the main international trade corridors (Teravaninthorn and Raballand 2008). One of the principal findings of the research on international corridors in Africa was that trucking market structure and regulation differ widely among sub-regions in Sub-Saharan Africa; therefore, transport prices (but not necessarily transport costs)1 differ greatly among sub-regions and corridors. The trucking environment and market structure in West and Central Africa are characterized by cartels offering low transport quality, whereas in East Africa, the trucking environment is more competitive and the market is more mature. Much of the transport price burden along African corridors seems to depend on the political economy of freight logistics.
42 citations
TL;DR: This paper argues that product competition on the Web is not for generic products but, rather, for expected and augmented product bundles, and suggests that online services affect a vendor's customer retention strategy as they influence the design of the augmented product.
Abstract: As products on the Web are continually enhanced through "free" Web-based services that add to the product purchase experience, it is important to understand how these free services may affect pricing and customer retention strategies of an online vendor. This paper argues that product competition on the Web is not for generic products but, rather, for expected and augmented product bundles. Our findings point out that even in the absence of price premiums, variance in the ability to offer online services can affect pricing strategies and possibly contribute to online price dispersion. We then go on to suggest that online services affect a vendor's customer retention strategy as they influence the design of the augmented product. We characterize an online vendor's selection of augmenting services as a knapsack problem, and recommend that the online vendor should not only periodically reevaluate the set of services offered to satisfy the expected product requirements, but also assess the customer retention ability of his augmented product. A service does not contribute to customer retention when it has either lost its value to the customer or become required as a part of the expected product. Our solution recommends that a vendor should include new services based on the cost-to-value ratio of each service so as to remain above the loyalty threshold of a consumer. The results from our model partially explain the variety in product offerings of many online vendors, whose competency in providing Web-based services allows them to vary the generic product.
42 citations
Cites background from "Intermediate microeconomics : A mod..."
...Standard microeconomic theory [ 31 ] dictates that the rational consumer will choose a bundle of services from those available so as to maximize his utility subject to a budget....
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TL;DR: There were no differences in PT attendance, parents’ motivations for enrolling, or the degree to which parents were actively engaged in PT sessions by condition, and despite the added cost of the discounts, there was no difference in group costs by condition.
Abstract: We tested the cost-effectiveness of giving low-income parents childcare discounts contingent on their participation in the Chicago Parent Program, a 12-session preventive parent training (PT) program offered at their child’s daycare center. Eight centers were matched and randomized to an experimental condition in which parents received a discount on their childcare bill (M = $8.92 per session attended) or a control group with no financial incentive. Participants (n = 174) consisted mostly of African American (55%) or Latino (42%) mothers, 62% reporting annual household incomes less than $20,000. Parents in the discount condition were 15.4% more likely to enroll than control parents, though this difference was not significant. There were no differences in PT attendance, parents’ motivations for enrolling, or the degree to which parents were actively engaged in PT sessions by condition. Despite the added cost of the discounts, there was no difference in group costs by condition. Parent interviews revealed important challenges in implementing financial incentive programs in community-based agencies serving low-income families. Cost simulations show how low parent enrollment or low attendance negatively affect the economic efficiency of group-based PT. Implications for policies guiding financial incentive programs targeting low-income families and their participation in prevention programs are discussed.
42 citations
Cites background from "Intermediate microeconomics : A mod..."
...For example, if a parent takes time off of work to attend a PT session, the opportunity cost of attending the PT session is the wages foregone from taking time away from work (Varian, 1996)....
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01 Jan 2002
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors examined the research on costbenefit analysis of situational crime prevention and found that the few existing studies do not accurately represent the likely benefits of the situational approach.
Abstract: Research on cost-benefit analysis of situational crime prevention is examined and found wanting. The few existing studies do not accurately represent the likely benefits of the situational approach. While measures of non-monetary crime costs are improving, at least four other key areas warrant more attention.
42 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors used a random frontier model to analyse technical efficiency in a data set of hotels in Luanda, the capital city of Angola, for 1990-2007, and concluded that those hotels adopting a more strategic approach are better, and thus more efficient, than those that lack vision.
Abstract: This paper uses a random frontier model to analyse technical efficiency in a data set of hotels in Luanda, the capital city of Angola, for 1990–2007. The hotels are ranked according to their technical efficiency, disentangling homogeneous and heterogeneous variables. This methodology attempts to account for observed and unobserved heterogeneity across hotels. The study rests on the premise that hotels in Luanda have an established role in the business market and emerging significance in the tourism market, broadly defined. Based on the analysis, the authors conclude that those hotels adopting a more strategic approach are better, and thus more efficient, than those that lack vision. They then point to the wider implications of the discussion.
42 citations