Journal of Economic and Social Measurement - Volume 14, issue 4

Article Type: Other

DOI: 10.3233/JEM-1986-14411

Citation: Journal of Economic and Social Measurement, vol. 14, no. 4, pp. I-I, 1986

Article Type: Other

DOI: 10.3233/JEM-1986-14412

Citation: Journal of Economic and Social Measurement, vol. 14, no. 4, pp. II-IV, 1986

Authors: Worrall, L.

Article Type: Research Article

Abstract: In this paper I take as a starting point the view that nationally available statistical series in the United Kingdom provide an inadequate basis for urban planning and research. The purpose of this paper is to describe a suite of integrated information systems that has been developed to support both an annual policy planning process and research into urban adjustment processes and structures. The paper comprises four main sections. In the first section, some …design criteria for urban and regional information systems are set out. In the second section, recent urban change in Telford, a new town in the West Midlands Region of the United Kingdom, is discussed in order to describe the operational context in which the local information systems have been developed and used. In the third section, each information system is described: the framework in which the information systems have been arranged in order to support policy planning and research into urban processes and structures is then described. The purpose of the fourth section is to present the results of a research project into labor market adjustment by exploring the relationship between sectoral industrial structure and sectoral unemployment rates, durations, and flows. Show more

DOI: 10.3233/JEM-1986-14401

Citation: Journal of Economic and Social Measurement, vol. 14, no. 4, pp. 257-270, 1986

Authors: Maunder, W.F. | Fleming, M.C.

Article Type: Research Article

Abstract: Reviews of U.K. Statistical Sources is a series of volumes, sponsored jointly by the Economic and Social Research Council and the Royal Statistical Society, which aim to provide an authoritative guide to sources of both official and unofficial data and a critical appraisal of their nature and limitations. This paper has been written to mark the completion of the first 20 volumes covering 36 review topics. It describes the scope and nature of the series and the …subjects covered. Show more

DOI: 10.3233/JEM-1986-14402

Citation: Journal of Economic and Social Measurement, vol. 14, no. 4, pp. 271-275, 1986

Authors: Sapsford, D.

Article Type: Research Article

Abstract: This paper presents some new evidence in the statistical debate surrounding the Prebisch-Singer hypothesis of a declining long-run trend in the net barter terms of trade between primary products and manufactures. The paper analyses data from a variety of sources covering the period up to and including the early 1980s and finds evidence of a structural instability in the underlying growth path. Once appropriate action is taken to allow for this instability, some strong empirical …support for the declining trend hypothesis emerges. Show more

DOI: 10.3233/JEM-1986-14403

Citation: Journal of Economic and Social Measurement, vol. 14, no. 4, pp. 277-288, 1986

Authors: Shriver, Keith A.

Article Type: Research Article

Abstract: The purpose of this study is to construct a valuation model for used capital assets during time periods exhibiting alternative degrees of demand for industrial machinery and equipment. A data base containing approximately 45,000 new, used, and salvage price data was analyzed for the three diverse demand years of 1973, 1976, and 1980. The data base encompassed most of the standard specifications of industrial machinery and equipment utilized by business …enterprises in various industries. The results indicate that the relationships among new current value, used current value, and salvage value are relatively constant over the diverse demand years. In addition, the results demonstrate that machine tools appear to retain the highest relative used value in the industrial machinery and equipment field; whereas medical and laboratory testing equipment possess a minimal used value due to the extreme technological changes in that field. Show more

DOI: 10.3233/JEM-1986-14404

Citation: Journal of Economic and Social Measurement, vol. 14, no. 4, pp. 289-310, 1986

Authors: McCrohan, Kevin F.

Article Type: Research Article

Abstract: This paper presents estimates of the income of undocumented aliens working in the continental United States in 1980. It reviews existing studies of the number of undocumented aliens in the United States, their occupational status, earnings, and tax compliance levels. Estimates of total undocumented alien income, total unreported income, incomes not subject to filing requirements, and the tax consequences resulting from undocumented alien incomes are provided. It is estimated the …undocumented aliens earned $9.5 billion in 1980. Of this, $.9 billion was earned by agricultural workers who are presumed to be below the filing threshold; $2.6 billion was earned by nonfilers who do not have income withheld; and $2.9 billion was earned by undocumented aliens who had income tax withheld but who did not file returns. Although the unreported income of undocumented aliens was significant, $5.3 billion, it does not appear to have resulted in a significant tax loss due to the low tax liability of undocumented aliens and the contributions of nominal nonfilers. The tax loss is estimated to be $121 million in 1980. Show more

DOI: 10.3233/JEM-1986-14405

Citation: Journal of Economic and Social Measurement, vol. 14, no. 4, pp. 311-324, 1986

Authors: Nguyen, Sang V. | Andrews, Stephen H.

Article Type: Research Article

Abstract: In this paper, we construct and compare various service price indexes of capital input, inventories, and financial working capital, using complete sets of variants of the Jorgensonian user cost formula. We demonstrate that variations in the construction of the series yield substantially different results. We also find that proper measures of service prices should incorporate a complete set of variables suggested by economic theory. In addition, Divisia indexes of financial …working capital and its service price are superior to the direct aggregates. Show more

DOI: 10.3233/JEM-1986-14406

Citation: Journal of Economic and Social Measurement, vol. 14, no. 4, pp. 325-340, 1986

Authors: Perez-Chopra, Marisol | Grimes, Richard M.

Article Type: Research Article

Abstract: This paper reports on an examination of the relationship between increases in health care costs in 23 Standard Metropolitan Statistical areas and various other changes in these communities over the period 1969–1977. The other changes examined consisted of 145 variables divided into 7 categories. The categories were termed demographic, economic, community illness, prices of other goods and services, hospital, physician, and technology factors. The results show that there was little …relationship between rates of medical and hospital inflation and the examined variables. Total hospital costs could be related to several of the factors, the most important of which were demographic, economic, and hospital factors. Show more

DOI: 10.3233/JEM-1986-14407

Citation: Journal of Economic and Social Measurement, vol. 14, no. 4, pp. 341-355, 1986

Authors: Reisman, A. | Ritchken, P.H. | Pollack-Johnson, Bruce | Dean, B.V. | Escueta, E.S. | Li, Gang

Article Type: Research Article

Abstract: In forecasting the supply and demand of highly trained human resources at the national level, it must be recognized that people flow through a network that starts at kindergarten and ends in higher education. The upper reaches of this pipeline exhibit many branches and even some feedback loops. Network models used in such forecasting require people flow data, in addition to many socioeconomic and political considerations. This paper, using a systems approach, points out …the voids in the U.S. national education statistics. Show more

DOI: 10.3233/JEM-1986-14408

Citation: Journal of Economic and Social Measurement, vol. 14, no. 4, pp. 357-365, 1986

Authors: Cohen, Steven B.

Article Type: Research Article

Abstract: The National Medical Care Utilization and Expenditure Survey (NMCUES), which has a complex survey design, was further complicated by combining two independently drawn national samples of households from the Research Triangle Institute (RTI) and the National Opinion Research Center (NORC). It is assumed that because the structures of both national area samples are similar, they are thereby compatible and allow for the derivation of unbiased national estimates of relevant health …parameters. However, even though the two survey organizations operate under a common set of survey conditions with comparable samples, the actual data generated may differ across them, over and above differences due to pure sampling error. The NORC sample had a higher representation of individuals living in non-SMSA urban areas, of individuals with fair or poor health status, and of individuals incapable of performing usual activity. In addition, significantly higher mean estimates of the number of restricted activity days, of total charges for dental Visits, for non-doctor visits and for hospital stays, and of overall total charges, characterized the NORC sample. The consistent directional difference in these health care estimates indicated a data collection organization effect was operational in the NMCUES. A comparison of item non response rates, however, indicated the level of data quality on this dimension was generally equivalent across survey organizations. Further, the observed survey design differentials across organizations did not significantly differ in their impact on the precision in survey estimates. When a data collection organization effect is operational for a set of related survey statistics, as in the National Medical Care Utilization and Expenditure Survey, the use of more than one survey organization should be seriously considered. Show more

DOI: 10.3233/JEM-1986-14409

Citation: Journal of Economic and Social Measurement, vol. 14, no. 4, pp. 367-378, 1986

Authors: Shack-Marquez, Janice

Article Type: Research Article

Abstract: This paper studies the effects of repeated interviewing (termed interview group bias) on the accuracy of aggregate unemployment rates computed from the Current Population Survey. Studies of rotation group bias at the aggregate level have shown that reports of labor force status vary systematically with the number of times a household has been sampled. This paper presents estimates of the systematic variation using microdata and shows that previous studies have …underestimated its magnitude. It is shown that rotation group bias is a special case of interview group bias and that the magnitude of interview group bias is substantial enough that unemployment rates across groups interviewed only once can be more than 50% higher than for groups interviewed four times. Show more

DOI: 10.3233/JEM-1986-14410

Citation: Journal of Economic and Social Measurement, vol. 14, no. 4, pp. 379-398, 1986