The endogeneity of optimum currency areas criteria has been widely studied since Frankel and Rose (1998) seminal paper. Literature normally suggests that there is a positive relationship between trade and business cycles correlation. This paper develops work on this subject (Silvestre and Mendonça, 2007) where we confirm this hypothesis in euro area countries and UE-15 for 1967-2003 period usin...

This paper examines the unexplored link between the prevalence of overweight and obesity and vehicle demand in the United States. Exploring annual sales data of new passenger vehicles at the model level in 48 U.S. counties from 1999 to 2005, we find that new vehicles demanded by consumers are less fuel-efficient on average as a larger share of people become overweight or obese. The OLS results ...

This paper considers a functional-coefficient spatial Durbin model with nonparametric spatial weights. Applying the series approximation method, we estimate the unknown functional coefficients and spatial weighting functions via a nonparametric two-stage least squares (or 2SLS) estimation method. To further improve estimation accuracy, we also construct a second-step estimator of the unknown fu...

Urban nature spaces are increasingly recognized as essential urban features providing crucial amenities to the residents’ health and well-being. While many studies have been conducted focusing on influence of green house prices, very few explored impact blue spaces. In this study, we analyzed proximity effects different types sizes property value in Changsha metropolis, China, examined spatial ...

Mendelian randomization (MR) is increasingly employed as a technique to assess the causation of risk factor on an outcome using observational data. The two-stage least-squares (2SLS) procedure commonly used examine genetic variants instrument variables. validity 2SLS relies representative sample randomly selected from study cohort or population for genome-wide association (GWAS), which not alwa...

A Note on Parametric and Nonparametric Regression in the Presence of Endogenous Control Variables This note argues that nonparametric regression not only relaxes functional form assumptions vis-a-vis parametric regression, but that it also permits endogenous control variables. To control for selection bias or to make an exclusion restriction in instrumental variables regression valid, additiona...

We derive mean-unbiased estimators for the structural parameter in instrumental variables models where the sign of one or more first stage coefficients is known. In the case with a single instrument, the unbiased estimator is unique. For cases with multiple instruments we propose a class of unbiased estimators and show that an estimator within this class is efficient when the instruments are st...

This study addresses a question that has not been researched much previously, namely, does the unavailability of health insurance act as an incentive for persons to enlist in the military in the U.S.? This relationship is proffered as the “Military Health Care Magnet Hypothesis.” The present study endeavors to provide insight into this issue within a cost-benefit framework. The empirical analys...

This paper derives a 3SLS estimator for a simultaneous system of spatial autoregressive equations with random effects which can therefore handle endoegeneity, spatial lag dependence, heterogeneity as well as cross equation correlation. This is done by utilizing the Kelejian and Prucha (1998) and Lee (2003) type instruments from the cross-section spatial autoregressive literature and marrying th...

The paper analyses the impact of geographic innovation on Total Factor Productivity (TFP) in Taiwan. Using 242 four-digit standard industrial classification (SIC) industries in Taiwan in 2001, we compute TFP by estimating Translog production functions with K, L, E and M inputs, and measure the geographic innovative activity using both Krugman's Gini coefficients and the location Herfindahl inde...