bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Risk Attitudes of Subsistence Farmers in Northeast Brazil: A Sampling Approach
Authors: Dillon John L. , Scandizzo Pasquale L. 
Published: July 2006

AbstractMind experiments involving choice between risky and sure farm alternatives were used to assess risk attitudes of samples of small farm owners and sharecroppers in Brazil. Results indicate that most subsistence farmers are risk averse, and that risk aversion tends to be more common and perhaps greater among owners than sharecroppers. In an expected utility context, distribution of risk attitude coefficients (based on mean‐standard deviation, mean‐variance, and exponential utility functions) was diverse and not necessarily well represented by an average sample value. Econometric analysis indicated that income level and perhaps other socioeconomic variables influence risk attitude.
Active Learning, Control Theory, and Agricultural Policy
Authors: Rausser Gordon C. 
Published: July 2006

AbstractIn the evaluation of key agricultural policies, a number of critical uncertainties arise for which little in the way of empirical evidence has been accumulated. The typical departmentalization within the agricultural economics profession fails to offer any hope of properly assessing these uncertainties. One approach that integrates the separate tasks of system analysis, econometric estimation, optimization and more pragmatic data collection and summarization efforts is adaptive control. This framework effectively combines the characteristics of dynamic systems, uncertainties, and the active accumulation of information. Implications are drawn for potentially rewarding applications in agricultural and natural resource economics.
Daily Fluctuations in Campground Use: An Econometric Analysis
Authors: Oliveira Ronald A. , Rausser Gordon C. 
Published: July 2006

AbstractMany recreation activities are characterized by fluctuating use levels over time. This paper presents a theoretical and quantitative analysis of fluctuations in campground use series. Theoretical use functions are specified as the reduced form of a demand and supply system, where the derived demand for campground use is based upon the household production approach to consumer demand theory. A pooled time‐series cross‐section econometric use model is specified, and its estimated parameters are presented. In addition, campground use series are modeled incorporating Box‐Jenkins time‐series analysis techniques. Econometric predictions are more accurate relative to autoregressive‐integrated‐moving‐average (ARIMA) predictions.
Endangered Species and Uncertainty: The Economics of a Safe Minimum Standard
Authors: Bishop Richard C. 
Published: July 2006

AbstractSpecies extinction irreversibly narrows the reservoir of potential resources. The future repercussions of this narrowing are uncertain. This paper develops the safe minimum standard (SMS) approach to public decisions involving endangered species. The SMS approach is based on game theory and calls for avoidance of extinction unless the social costs are unacceptably large. The level at which costs become excessive is a matter of intergenerational distribution. The paper also explores important linkages between the SMS approach and recent literature on preservation of natural environments.
Food Distribution and Food Stamp Program Effects on Food Consumption and Nutritional “Achievement” of Low Income Persons in Kern County, California
Authors: Lane Sylvia 
Published: July 2006

AbstractParticipants in the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food Distribution Program received more food than they would have purchased with food stamps in the market. These participants had slightly higher achievement ratios for some specific nutrients, such as protein, iron, and thiamine, than did nonparticipants. Food stamp recipients also had somewhat similar gains in nutrients, while spending a lower percentage of money income on food than nonparticipants.
Incorporating Policy Variables in a Model of the World Soybean/Rapeseed Market
Authors: Meilke Karl D. , Griffith Garry R. 
Published: July 2006

AbstractPolicy variables are typically treated as exogenous variables in agricultural commodity models. In this paper evidence that policy variables can be successfully endogenized in a world trade model of the soybean/rapeseed and products market is presented. Minimum price support equations are estimated for U.S., Brazilian, and Japanese soybeans, and EC and Japanese rapeseed. Macroeconomic indicator variables are used to capture the impact of nontariff barriers in Brazil and Japan domestic‐world price link equations. Simulation experiments are conducted which indicate that the model with endogenous policy variables performs well in comparison with a model which treats policy exogenously.
Soil Conservation with Uncertain Revenues and Input Supplies
Authors: Kramer Randall A. , McSweeny William T. , Stavros Robert W. 
Published: July 2006

AbstractThe influence of risk on farm level soil conservation decisions is examined. A symmetric quadratic risk‐programming model is used which allows the simultaneous consideration of uncertainty in revenues and input supplies. It is demonstrated that risk aversion can influence the selection of soil‐conserving activities.
Return Flow Control Policy and Income Distribution among Irrigators
Authors: Dudek Daniel J. , Horner Gerald L. 
Published: July 2006

AbstractIncome distributional impacts and irrigation return flows resulting from the implementation of alternative water quality policies were projected for the Western San Joaquin Subbasin from a recursive simulation of an integrated physical‐economic analytical system. The imposition of a water management policy to increase irrigation efficiency resulted in an improved income distribution with a slight decline in average firm income. Salt load and concentrations were reduced by 80%. A policy of increased surface water costs worsened income distribution and decreased average firm income by 34%. Total salt load decreased by 35%, but the concentration in return flows was only slightly decreased.
Agricultural and Financial Market Interdependence in the Short Run
Authors: Chambers Robert G. 
Published: July 2006

AbstractA theoretical model capable of examining the effects of various monetary policies on agriculture is developed. Results from comparative static experiments with the model show that a restrictive monetary policy may adversely affect agriculture. Results from the theoretical model are compared with earlier studies and are empirically investigated using vector autoregression techniques. In general, empirical analysis supports the theoretical developments.
Florida Motor Carrier Deregulation: Perspectives of Urban and Rural Shipper/Receivers
Authors: Beilock Richard , Freeman James 
Published: July 2006

AbstractIt is commonly asserted that with release from economic regulations, motor carriers will eliminate or sharply reduce services to small and inconveniently located shipper/receivers. In this study the experiences of shipper/receivers under Florida deregulation are examined. Shipper/receiver experiences are compared according to firm size, community size, and proximity to major metropolitan areas or highways. The results indicate that while firm size has little bearing on service, locational factors are important. For all shipper/receiver subgroups, however, those indicating improvements greatly outnumber those reporting erosions in service.
Forecasting U.S. Pork Production Using a Random Coefficient Model
Authors: Dixon Bruce L. , Martin Larry J. 
Published: July 2006

AbstractA random coefficient regression model is found to be superior to a fixed coefficient model for short‐ and intermediate‐term forecasting of quarterly U.S. pork production. The random coefficient model portrays some regression parameters as the sum of a systematically changing component and random error. Use of such models is discussed. Pork supply is hypothesized as a function of seasonal shifters with geometric lags on hog and feed prices. Results show seasonal effects declining, feed price not being a significant explanatory variable, and pork production adjusting faster to lagged price conditions than indicated by the constant coefficient model.
Agricultural Income Tax Expenditures—A Microeconomic Analysis
Authors: Hanson Gregory D. , Eidman Vernon R. 
Published: July 2006

AbstractAnnual agricultural tax expenditures (tax subsidies) for farms in the sample increased dramatically from $@@‐@@2,430 in 1967–72 to $@@‐@@8,590 in 1973–78. Tax expenditures were beneficial to all major enterprises and farm sizes. While large farmers received nearly three times the value of small farm tax savings, small farmers received more tax expenditures per dollar of farm sales. Tax progressivity declined during the sample period based on adjusted gross and economic measures of income, and combined state income and self‐employment taxes exceeded federal income taxes during 1973–78. Also, tax expenditures far exceeded direct government payments to sample farmers during 1973–78.
Welfare Evaluations in Contingent Valuation Experiments with Discrete Responses
Authors: Hanemann W. Michael 
Published: July 2006

AbstractSince the work of Bishop and Heberlein, a number of contingent valuation experiments have appeared involving discrete responses which are analyzed by logit or similar techniques. This paper addresses the issues of how the logit models should be formulated to be consistent with the hypothesis of utility maximization and how measures of compensating and equivalent surplus should be derived from the fitted models. Two distinct types of welfare measures are introduced and then estimated from Bishop and Heberlein's data.
Stochastic Dynamic Duality: Theory and Empirical Applicability
Authors: Taylor C. Robert 
Published: July 2006

AbstractThis paper explores duality relationships for a broad class of stochastic dynamic production problems. Assuming that the decision maker maximizes the expected present value of profit, it is shown that product supply, negative factor demand, and negative quasifixed factor acquisition equations cannot be directly obtained by partial differentiation of the indirect profit function if price expectations have a Markovian structure. Consequently, empirical application of duality to many stochastic dynamic problems is quite complex and may be more difficult than a primal approach to the problem.
Analysis of Food Stamp Participation Using Qualitative Choice Models
Authors: Capps Oral , Kramer Randall A. 
Published: July 2006

AbstractFood stamp program participation at the household level was analyzed using a nationwide sample of households as well as refined measures of residential location, source of income, and household age distribution. Additionally, an empirical comparison of probit analysis vis‐à‐vis logit analysis was provided. The criteria for the comparison consisted of the use of estimated parameter values, signs, magnitudes, and test statistics, goodness‐of‐fit to sample data, predictive ability to independent data samples, and non‐nested testing procedures. On the basis of this application, the two alternatives appeared to perform equally well.
The Welfare Implications of Minimum Quality Standards
Authors: Bockstael Nancy E. 
Published: July 2006

AbstractPrevious analysis of the social welfare implications of minimum quality standards has yielded no decisive results. In this paper the specific nature of consumer and producer responses to quality standards is incorporated into the analysis. Both consumer and producer gains are shown to be impossible when consumers can perceive quality before purchase, even if low quality produce is diverted to secondary markets. Standards unambiguously reduce net social benefits. The paper explores the possibility that minimum quality standards are a form of rent‐seeking behavior.
The Influence of Psychic Costs on Rural‐Urban Migration
Authors: Deaton Brady J. , Morgan Larry C. , Anschel Kurt R. 
Published: July 2006

AbstractPsychic costs reflect differences in interregional utility, an important determinant of population among regions. Following Sjaastad's definition of psychic costs, the consumer surplus foregone by Appalachian migrants in two urban areas was measured as the difference between current urban income and an acceptable income level in eastern Kentucky. Psychic costs varied significantly with the size of the city of destination; migrants' demographic characteristics; and their satisfaction with jobs, city services, and interpersonal relationships in the city. Mobility which reduces psychic costs contributes to social well‐being but will not be measured in national economic accounts.
Cooperatives' Tax “Advantages”: Growth, Retained Earnings, and Equity Rotation
Authors: Caves Richard E. , Petersen Bruce C. 
Published: July 2006

AbstractCooperatives are subject to full tax integration for the bulk of their income, while corporations' net income is subject to what is known as a classical form of taxation. This paper derives the condition under which full tax integration gives the cooperative a lower cost of equity capital and develops a model to examine the effect of taxation, together with equity rotation, on the growth path of cooperatives. An examination of some financial data of the largest 100 cooperatives supports our conclusion that cooperatives, under current financial practices, are capable of extremely high short‐term growth rates, but they are not sustainable.
Expectations and Commodity Price Dynamics: The Overshooting Model
Authors: Frankel Jeffrey A. 
Published: July 2006

AbstractMonetary policy has important effects on agricultural commodity prices because, though they are flexible, other goods prices are sticky. This paper formalizes the argument by applying the Dornbusch overshooting model. A decline in the nominal money supply is a decline in the real money supply in the short run. It raises the real interest rate, which depresses real commodity prices. They overshoot their new equilibrium in order to generate an expectation of future appreciation sufficient to offset the higher interest rate. These real effects (which vanish in the long run) also result from a decline in the money growth rate.
Oligopolistic Behavior by Public Agencies in International Trade: The World Wheat Market
Authors: Paarlberg Philip L. , Abbott Philip C. 
Published: July 2006

AbstractA model of the world wheat market is presented which treats public policies as endogenous. The oligopolistic nature of international wheat trade is captured by assuming policy makers form conjectures on the slope of the excess demand function they face and use that information to determine domestic and trade policies. The policies reflect differing influences of political interest groups. A U.S. crop shortfall scenario illustrates the different results with endogenous policies compared to the traditional model.
Rate Making for Farm‐Level Crop Insurance: Implications for Adverse Selection
Authors: Skees Jerry R. , Reed Michael R. 
Published: July 2006

AbstractThis research identifies two problems in the new Federal Crop Insurance that may cause adverse selection: (a) the relationship between rate making and expected yields for individual farmers, and (b) the bias introduced in coverage protection when trends are not used to establish expected yields. A theoretical investigation using the normality assumption demonstrates the potential severity of these problems, and empirical results from farm‐level data lend further support. As crop insurance changes to individualized methods of protection, these issues will be particularly important for developing rates.
The Impact of Food Stamps on Food Expenditures: Rejection of the Traditional Model
Authors: Senauer Ben , Young Nathan 
Published: July 2006

AbstractFor food stamp recipients whose normal food purchases exceed their coupon allotment, the traditional economic model predicts that the impact of food stamps on food spending will be the same as for an equal cash transfer. The Tobit analysis in this study indicates that, for these recipients, food stamps have a substantially greater impact on at‐home food expenditures than an equal amount of cash income. These results reject the traditional model. Several possible explanations of this behavior are discussed.
Agricultural Credit Programs and Production Efficiency: An Analysis of Traditional Farming in Southeastern Minas Gerais, Brazil
Authors: Taylor Timothy G. , Drummond H. Evan , Gomes Aloisio T. 
Published: July 2006

AbstractOver the past two decades the effectiveness of subsidized credit programs in improving the productivity of traditional farmers in developing countries has been extensively debated. This study analyzes the effects of one such program—PRODEMATA—on the technical and allocative efficiency of traditional farmers in Minas Gerais, Brazil. The empirical results suggest that PRODEMATA has had no effect on technical efficiency and a slightly negative effect on allocative efficiency.
The Fallacy of Differencing to Reduce Multicollinearity
Authors: Burt Oscar R. 
Published: July 2006

AbstractIt is shown analytically that differencing time‐series data for the purpose of reducing multicollinearity in the data set for the independent variables of a regression equation cannot possibly succeed when its effect on the disturbance term is taken into account. In addition, the intuitive basis used to justify first differencing of multicollinear data is demonstrated to contain a flaw, even when the effects of differencing the disturbance term are ignored.
Implications of Bovine Somatotropin on the Value of Fluid Milk Quota in Ontario
Authors: Brown James 
Published: July 2006

AbstractThe biotechnological production of recombinant bovine somatotropin (rbST) could have a significant impact on North American dairy industries. To evaluate some of the potential effects of this science on Ontario milk producers, an econometric model was developed incorporating distortions caused by the dairy policies of this province. The focus of the simulation was to predict the possible effect that rbST could have on the value of Ontario milk production quotas. The Ontario Milk Marketing Board (OMMB) has the legislated authority to set supply limits. The policies that the board chooses to adopt will determine the eventual influence that this and any cost‐reducing technological advance will have on quota values. This study examines the range of values that may occur given various policy choices by the OMMB.
Comparative Analysis of Investment Models for New York Dairy Farms
Authors: Weersink Alfons J. , Tauer Loren W. 
Published: July 2006

AbstractTraditional and dynamic investment models were estimated using farm‐level dairy data. The traditional model predicted more variability in desired capital and less variability in the adjustment rate than did the dynamic model. Overall the traditional model performed better. Both models suggest a significant delay between changes in the determinants of desired capital stock and the actual investment expenditure. New York dairy farmers may be making more extensive use of existing capital before making additional expenditures. Another explanation may be our use of farm‐level data where investment is periodic and discrete. Most other studies have used aggregate data.
Land Quality, Irrigation Development, and Cropping Patterns in the Northern High Plains
Authors: Lichtenberg Erik 
Published: July 2006

AbstractThis article examines the interactions between land quality, crop choice, and technological change using a framework that integrates cross‐sectional and intertemporal aspects of diffusion. The empirical results indicate that (a) the acreages allocated to different crops vary significantly over land quality, (b) crops tend to be grown on specific ranges of land quality, (c) the introduction of center pivot technology induced significant changes in cropping patterns, (d) land quality‐augmenting technologies tend to be utilized primarily on lower qualities of land, and (e) irrigation development has been quite sensitive to tax policies.
Computer Use in Agriculture: Evidence from Tulare County, California
Authors: Putler Daniel S. , Zilberman David 
Published: July 2006

AbstractLogit analysis using data from a survey of Tulare County, California, farmers is used to examine computer and application ownership patterns in agriculture. The analysis indicates that the size of the farming operation, education level, age level, and the ownership of a farm‐related nonfarming business significantly influence the probability of computer ownership; however, the type of farm products used on the farm does not. The type of application software owned is influenced primarily by the type of farm products produced, the size of the farming operation, ownership of a farm‐related business, and the education level of the farmer.
Labor Market Dynamics in the U.S. Food Sector
Authors: Lee David R. 
Published: July 2006

AbstractA simultaneous equation model is estimated to explain labor market phenomena (including wages, employment, and labor productivity) and food prices at manufacturing and retail levels of the U.S. food industry. Dynamic simulation results show that endogenizing input costs in a fully specified markup‐pricing model leads to a complex long‐run pattern of food price determination. Wage determination is found to play a central role linking general price levels to food sector prices and labor market behavior. Energy price changes are shown to significantly affect food prices. Food sector labor productivity is found to decline in response to exogenous commodity price shocks.
Determinants of the Intrahousehold Allocation of Food in the Rural Philippines
Authors: Senauer Benjamin , Garcia Marito , Jacinto Elizabeth 
Published: July 2006

AbstractThis study shows that the opportunity cost of time for husbands and wives can affect the intrahousehold distribution of food in a developing country. Equations which explain the relative allocation of calories within households were estimated for husbands, wives, and children with data for the rural Philippines. The estimating equation is derivable from both a joint household utility function and a bargaining model. Because the same households were included in the four survey rounds, the various observations for a given individual were averaged for each variable in the estimation procedure. Wages were estimated using the Heckman approach.
Insurability and Moral Hazard in Agricultural Insurance Markets
Authors: Chambers Robert G. 
Published: July 2006

AbstractPareto‐optimal and constrained Pareto‐optimal all‐risk insurance contracts are studied. Conditions required for emergence of competitive insurance markets are isolated and discussed. Full insurance contracts are shown to be dominated by contracts involving coinsurance and deductibles if insurers are pseudo‐risk averse. The effect of moral hazard on all‐risk agricultural insurance indemnity schedules is examined. Results for indemnity schedules under moral hazard and constant absolute risk aversion show that providing farmers with the incentives to take appropriate actions may imply lower deductibles in the presence of moral hazard than in the absence of moral hazard.
Migratory Labor and Agriculture
Authors: Emerson Robert D. 
Published: July 2006

AbstractFarm workers are shown to respond strongly to economic incentives to seasonally migrate for work. The economic model is specified with separate earnings structures for migratory and nonmigratory work, and a reservation wage for migration is specified to reflect the choice between migratory and nonmigratory work. The empirical model adjusts for self‐selectivity in the sample and demonstrates that domestic farm workers sort themselves into migratory and nonmigratory workers in a manner consistent with the theory of comparative advantage. Implications for immigration and government employment and training programs are considered.