Inconsistency Transmission and Variance Reduction in Two-Stage Quantile Regression
Forthcoming in Communications in Statistics Working Paper Version Authors: Tae-Hwan Kim and Christophe Muller Abstract: In this paper, we propose a new variance reduction method for quantile regressions with endogeneity problems, for alpha-mixing or m-dependent covariates and error terms. First, we derive the asymptotic distribution of two-stage quantile estimators based on the fitted-value approach under very general
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Transborder Ethnic Kin and Regional Prosperity : Evidence from Night-Time Light Intensity in Africa (Update)
Updated version 27th May 2018 Authors : Christophe Muller and Pierre Pecher This study investigates the consequences of cross-border ethnic linkages affecting local income in Africa. We show that kinship connections to transborder ethnic clans affect the allocation of public good spending, measured by luminosity in an ethnic group’s homeland, controlling for many other factors. We
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Social Policies and State Capacity: Evidence from Developing Countries
Authors : Christophe Muller and Marina Dodlova. Abstract : Poor countries remain poor. This paper explores one reason of such a vicious cycle as state capacity. The previous literature presents many theories on state building and development policy. However, little rigorous empirical analysis has been conducted. We put forward our understanding of state fragility through a comprehensive
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Social Transfers and Conditionalities under Different Regime Types
Authors : Marina Dodlova, Anna Giolbas, and Jann Lay. This paper examines the implications of political factors for social policy choices. Specifically, we explore the link between regime type and adoption of unconditional transfers versus transfers conditioned on beneficiaries’ investments in human capital. Due to the direct nature of benefits, unconditional transfers are more likely to be used to
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Fertility Regulation Behavior: Sequential Decisions in Tunisia
Authors : Olfa Frini and Christophe Muller Fertility analysis in Tunisia is revisited by focusing on regulation instruments instead of the number of births or the number of children alive. In Muslim societies, in which marriage is the exclusive acknowledged childbearing context, a woman may be seen as starting her fertility regulation period by postponing her
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Anti-Poverty Transfers and Spatial Prices in Tunisia
Author : Christophe Muller In this paper, the role of price deflation in estimating the impact of price subsidies and anti-poverty cash transfer schemes on poverty in Tunisia is studied. Three types of price corrections are considered: (a) no corrections; (b) living standards deflated by spatial Laspeyres price indices; and (c) living standards deflated by
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Within-Firm Human Capital Externalities in Tunisia
This case study exploits matched firm-employee Tunisian data in order to underline the role played by within-firm human capital in worker remuneration. The estimated returns to human capital in wage equations remain unchanged when the dummies representing firm heterogeneity are replaced in the list of regressors with three firm variables: a textile industry dummy, within-firm
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Refined Targeting against poverty in Tunisia
We introduce a new methodology to target direct transfers against poverty. Our method is based on estimation methods that focus on the poor. Using data from Tunisia, we estimate ‘focused’transfer schemes that highly improve anti-poverty targeting performances. Post-transfer poverty can be substantially reduced with the new estimation method. For example, a one-third reduction in poverty
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