Publications

1699 publications found

• Working Paper No. 482
  November 29, 2006

  Net Intergenerational Transfers from an Increase in Social Security Benefits

  Li Gan, Guan Gong, and Michael Hurd
  Abstract

  When the age of death is uncertain, individuals will leave bequests–even if they have no desired bequests–simply because they will hold wealth against the possibility of living longer. Bequests are…more

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• Working Paper No. 481
  November 28, 2006

  An Inquiry into the Nature of Money

  Abstract

  The paper argues that the functional approach of money does not provide a good method to study monetary history and monetary mechanisms. An alternative approach is developed and illustrated by…more

  Download Working Paper No. 481 PDF (180.65 KB)
• Working Paper No. 480
  November 27, 2006

  Methodology and Microeconomics in the Early Work of Hyman P. Minsky

  Jan Toporowski
  Abstract

  This paper reviews the recently published doctoral thesis of Hyman P. Minsky, summarizing its main contributions to methodology and microeconomics. These were aspects of economics with which Minsky is not…more

  Download Working Paper No. 480 PDF (386.16 KB)
• Working Paper No. 479
  November 22, 2006

  European Welfare State Regimes and Their Generosity toward the Elderly

  Axel Börsch-Supan
  Abstract

  This paper examines the generosity of the European welfare state toward the elderly. It shows how various dimensions of the welfare regimes have changed during the past 10 to 15…more

  Download Working Paper No. 479 PDF (459.13 KB)
• Strategic Analysis
  November 14, 2006

  Can Global Imbalances Continue?

  Dimitri B. Papadimitriou and Gennaro Zezza
  Abstract

  In this new Strategic Analysis, we review what we believe is the most important economic policy issue facing policymakers in the United States and abroad: the prospect of a growth…more

  Download Strategic Analysis, November 2006 PDF (428.17 KB)
• Working Paper No. 478
  November 03, 2006

  On Lower-bound Traps

  Alfonso Palacio-Vera
  Abstract

  We present a simple theoretical framework that integrates the notion of the natural or neutral interest rate, liquidity preference theory, and the monetary policy practice by modern central banks. We…more

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• Working Paper No. 477
  October 27, 2006

  When Knowledge Is an Asset

  James B. Rebitzer and Lowell J. Taylor
  Abstract

  We study the economics of employment relationships through theoretical and empirical analyses of an unusual set of firms, large law firms. Our point of departure is the “property rights” approach…more

  Download Working Paper No. 477 PDF (136.07 KB)
• Working Paper No. 476
  October 19, 2006

  The “New Consensus” View of Monetary Policy

  Giuseppe Fontana
  Abstract

  One of the greatest achievements of the modern “new consensus” view in macroeconomics is the assertion of a nonquantity theoretic approach to monetary policy. Leading theorists and practitioners of this…more

  Download Working Paper No. 476 PDF (151.07 KB)
• Public Policy Brief No. 86
  October 18, 2006

  Rethinking Trade and Trade Policy

  Thomas I. Palley
  Abstract

  The theory of comparative advantage says that there are gains from trade for the global economy as a whole. In this second brief of a three-part study of the international…more

  Download Public Policy Brief No. 86, 2006 PDF (182.56 KB)
• Working Paper No. 475
  August 22, 2006

  Capital Stock and Unemployment

  Alfonso Palacio-Vera, Ana Rosa Martinez-Canete, Elena Marquez de la Cruz, and Ines Perez-Soba Aguilar
  Abstract

  This paper examines the proposition that capital stock relative to aggregate output has been an important variable in the determination of the Non-Accelerating Inflation Rate of Unemployment (NAIRU) over the…more

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• Working Paper No. 474
  August 21, 2006

  On the Minskyan Business Cycle

  Korkut A. Ertürk
  Abstract

  The essential insight Minsky drew from Keynes was that optimistic expectations about the future create a margin, reflected in higher asset prices, which makes it possible for borrowers to access…more

  Download Working Paper No. 474 PDF (90.09 KB)
• Working Paper No. 473
  August 20, 2006

  The American Jewish Periphery

  Joel Perlmann
  Abstract

  This paper calls attention to the American Jewish periphery—Americans of recent Jewish origin who have only the most tenuous connections, if any, with those origins. This periphery has been growing…more

  Download Working Paper No. 473 PDF (108.67 KB)
• Working Paper No. 472
  August 19, 2006

  The Adequacy of Retirement Resources among the Soon-to-Retire, 1983–2001

  Edward N. Wolff
  Abstract

  A central issue confronting soon-to-retire workers (those aged 47–64) is whether they will have command over enough resources (both private and public) to maintain a decent standard of living in…more

  Download Working Paper No. 472 PDF (212.06 KB)
• Working Paper No. 471
  August 17, 2006

  Population Forecasts, Fiscal Policy, and Risk

  Shripad Tuljapurkar
  Abstract

  This paper describes how stochastic population forecasts are used to inform and analyze policies related to government spending on the elderly, mainly in the context of the industrialized nations. The…more

  Download Working Paper No. 471 PDF (178.00 KB)
• Working Paper No. 470
  August 16, 2006

  Retiree Health Benefit Coverage and Retirement

  Stephen A. Woodbury and James Marton
  Abstract

  Employer-provided health benefits for workers who retire before age 65 has fallen over the last decade. We examine a cohort of male workers from the Health and Retirement Survey to…more

  Download Working Paper No. 470 PDF (188.43 KB)
• Working Paper No. 469
  August 11, 2006

  The Changing Role of Employer Pensions

  Teresa Ghilarducci
  Abstract

  By any measure, pension coverage should be at an all-time high: the nation is richer and workers are older. However, the pension world is a paradox, as pension security falls…more

  Download Working Paper No. 469 PDF (222.77 KB)
• Working Paper No. 468
  August 10, 2006

  Global Demographic Trends and Provisioning for the Future

  L. Randall Wray
  Abstract

  The world’s population is aging. Virtually no nation is immune to this demographic trend and the challenges it brings for future generations. Relative growth of the elderly population is fueling…more

  Download Working Paper No. 468 PDF (263.53 KB)
• Working Paper No. 467
  August 09, 2006

  The Financial Requirements of Achieving Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment

  Diane Elson, Caren A. Grown, Chandrika Bahadur, and Jessie Handbury
  Abstract

  Although the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) have been ratified in global and national forums, they have not yet been incorporated into operational planning within governments or international organizations. The weak…more

  Download Working Paper No. 467 PDF (337.58 KB)
• Working Paper No. 466
  August 08, 2006

  Net Government Expenditures and the Economic Well-Being of the Elderly in the United States, 1989–2001

  Hyunsub Kum, Edward N. Wolff, and Ajit Zacharias
  Abstract

  We examine the economic well-being of the elderly, using the Levy Institute Measure of Economic Well-Being (LIMEW). Compared to the conventional measures of income, the LIMEW is a comprehensive measure…more

  Download Working Paper No. 466 PDF (344.74 KB)
• Working Paper No. 465
  August 04, 2006

  The Local Geographic Origins of Russian-Jewish Immigrants, circa 1900

  Joel Perlmann
  Abstract

  This working paper concerns the local origins of Russian-Jewish immigrants to the United States, circa 1900. New evidence is drawn from a large random sample of Russian-Jewish immigrant arrivals in…more

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• Working Paper No. 464
  July 26, 2006

  Differing Prospects for Women and Men

  Lois B. Shaw
  Abstract

  Although elderly men and women share many of the same problems as they age, their lives are likely to follow different courses. Women are more likely than men to live…more

  Download Working Paper No. 464 PDF (208.35 KB)
• Working Paper No. 463
  July 25, 2006

  Working for a Good Retirement

  Barbara A. Butrica, Karen E. Smith, and C. Eugene Steuerle
  Abstract

  The choice of retirement age is the most important portfolio choice most workers will make. Drawing on the Urban Institute’s Dynamic Simulation of Income model (DYNASIM3), this report examines how…more

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• Working Paper No. 462
  July 24, 2006

  Quick Impact Initiatives for Gender Equality

  Caren A. Grown
  Abstract

  The UN Millennium Project identified a set of Quick Impact Initiatives (QIIs) for achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). According to the Millennium Project, QIIs are interventions to be implemented…more

  Download Working Paper No. 462 PDF (290.26 KB)
• Working Paper No. 461
  July 23, 2006

  Wage Growth and the Measurement of Social Security’s Financial Condition

  Jagadeesh Gokhale
  Abstract

  Government spending on the elderly is projected to increase rapidly as the American population becomes older. As a result, many policymakers and budget analysts are concerned about the continued viability…more

  Download Working Paper No. 461 PDF (317.69 KB)