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Robustness Checks (robustness + check)
Selected AbstractsCaring for mom and neglecting yourself?HEALTH ECONOMICS, Issue 9 2009The health effects of caring for an elderly parent Abstract We examine the physical and mental health effects of providing care to an elderly mother on the adult child caregiver. We address the endogeneity of the selection in and out of caregiving using an instrumental variable approach, using the death of the care recipient and sibling characteristics. We also carefully control for baseline health and work status of the adult child. We explore flexible specifications, such as Arellano,Bond estimation techniques. Continued caregiving over time increases depressive symptoms and decreases self-rated health for married women and married men. In addition, the increase in depressive symptoms is persistent for married women. While depressive symptoms for single men and women are not affected by continued caregiving, there is evidence of increased incidence of heart conditions for single men, and that these effects are persistent. Robustness checks indicate that these health changes can be directly attributable to caregiving behavior, and not due to a direct effect of the death of the mother. The initial onset of caregiving has modest immediate negative effects on depressive symptoms for married women and no immediate effects on physical health. Negative physical health effects emerge 2 years later, however, suggesting that there are delayed effects on health that would be missed with a short recall period. Initial caregiving does not affect health of married men. Published in 2009 by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Forecasting the recent behavior of US business fixed investment spending: an analysis of competing models,JOURNAL OF FORECASTING, Issue 1 2007David E. Rapach Abstract We evaluate forecasting models of US business fixed investment spending growth over the recent 1995:1,2004:2 out-of-sample period. The forecasting models are based on the conventional Accelerator, Neoclassical, Average Q, and Cash-Flow models of investment spending, as well as real stock prices and excess stock return predictors. The real stock price model typically generates the most accurate forecasts, and forecast-encompassing tests indicate that this model contains most of the information useful for forecasting investment spending growth relative to the other models at longer horizons. In a robustness check, we also evaluate the forecasting performance of the models over two alternative out-of-sample periods: 1975:1,1984:4 and 1985:1,1994:4. A number of different models produce the most accurate forecasts over these alternative out-of-sample periods, indicating that while the real stock price model appears particularly useful for forecasting the recent behavior of investment spending growth, it may not continue to perform well in future periods.,,Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Price Movers on the Stock Exchange of Thailand: Evidence from a Fully Automated Order-Driven MarketFINANCIAL REVIEW, Issue 3 2010Charlie Charoenwong G12; G14; G15 Abstract This study examines which trade sizes move stock prices on the Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET), a pure limit order market, over two distinct market conditions of bull and bear. Using intraday data, the study finds that large-sized trades (i.e., those larger than the 75th percentile) account for a disproportionately large impact on changes in traded and quoted prices. The finding remains even after it has been subjected to a battery of robustness checks. In contrast, the results of studies conducted in the United States show that informed traders employ trade sizes falling between the 40th and 95th percentiles (Barclay and Warner, 1993; Chakravarty, 2001). Our results support the hypothesis that informed traders in a pure limit order market, such as the SET, where there are no market makers, also use larger-size trades than those employed by informed traders in the United States. [source] Extending the capital asset pricing model: the reward beta approachACCOUNTING & FINANCE, Issue 1 2007Graham Bornholt G12; G24; G31 Abstract This paper offers an alternative method for estimating expected returns. The proposed reward beta approach performs well empirically and is based on asset pricing theory. The empirical section compares this approach with the capital asset pricing model (CAPM) and the Fama,French three-factor model. In out-of-sample testing, both the CAPM and the three-factor model are rejected. In contrast, the reward beta approach easily passes the same test. In robustness checks, the reward beta approach consistently outperforms both the CAPM and the three-factor model. [source] Can Nutritional Label Use Influence Body Weight Outcomes?KYKLOS INTERNATIONAL REVIEW OF SOCIAL SCIENCES, Issue 4 2009Andreas C. Drichoutis SUMMARY Many countries around the world have already mandated, or plan to mandate, the presence of nutrition related information on most pre-packaged food products. Health advocates and lobbyists would like to see similar laws mandating nutrition information in the restaurant and fast-food market as well. In fact, New York City has already taken a step forward and now requires all chain restaurants with 15 or more establishments anywhere in US to show calorie information on their menus and menu board. The benefits were estimated to be as much as 150,000 fewer obese New Yorkers over the next five years. The implied benefits of the presence of nutrition information are that consumers will be able to observe such information and then make informed (and hopefully healthier) food choices. In this study, we use the latest available dataset from the US National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (2005,2006) to explore whether reading such nutrition information really has an effect on body weight outcomes. In order to deal with the inherent problem of cross-sectional datasets, namely self-selection, and the possible occurrence of reverse causality we use a propensity score matching approach to estimate causal treatment effects. We conducted a series of tests related to variable choice of the propensity score specification, quality of matching indicators, robustness checks, and sensitivity to unobserved heterogeneity, using Rosenbaum bounds to validate our propensity score exercise. Our results generally suggest that reading nutrition information does not affect body mass index. The implications of our findings are also discussed. [source] Does access to credit improve productivity?THE ECONOMICS OF TRANSITION, Issue 3 2008Evidence from Bulgaria Access to credit; productivity; transition Abstract Although it is widely accepted that financial development is associated with higher growth, the evidence on the channels through which credit affects growth at the microeconomic level is scant. Using data from a cross-section of Bulgarian firms, we estimate the impact of access to credit, as proxied by indicators of whether firms have access to a credit line or overdraft facility, on productivity. To overcome potential omitted variable bias of Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) estimates, we use information on firms' past growth to instrument for access to credit. We find credit to be positively and strongly associated with TFP. These results are robust to a wide range of robustness checks. [source] TRUST, INEQUALITY AND THE SIZE OF THE CO-OPERATIVE SECTOR: CROSS-COUNTRY EVIDENCEANNALS OF PUBLIC AND COOPERATIVE ECONOMICS, Issue 2 2009Derek C. Jones ABSTRACT:,We provide the first empirical evidence on the determinants of differences in the size of the cooperative sector around the world. Our key data have been recently released by the ICA and are integrated with other standard sources, such as data from the World Values surveys. In our empirical work we concentrate on the links between inequality and trust and cooperative incidence and undertake selectivity correction estimates as well as a series of robustness checks. Consistent with theory we find strong support for the proposition that trust plays a causal role in accounting for differences in co-operative incidence. Also consistent with theory, we find support (albeit much weaker) for the role of inequality. Further support for our findings flows from our estimates for conventional, listed firms, where we do not find that trust and inequality play similar roles in accounting for the variation in the incidence of large listed firms across countries. [source] | ||||||||||