Background: Depression is a common psychiatric illness that is associated with high rates of mortality and morbidity. However, studies reporting the trends of depression among U.S. veterans are limited. Therefore, the aim of this study was to evaluate the prevalence and trend of depression among U.S. veterans and evaluate potential exploratory variables that may contribute. Methods: Data were from six cycles, 2005–2016, of the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). Veteran status of depression was self-reported using the Patient Health Questionnaire. Rao–Scott χ 2 test measured bivariate association of depression and exploratory variables (age, gender, race/ethnicity, poverty, and education). Cochran–Armitage trend test assessed depression prevalence time-trends from 2005 to 2016. Results: Over a two-week period, 16.3% of veterans spent at least half of the days feeling tired or having little energy. Also, over 15.0% of veterans reported having trouble sleeping or sleeping too much on more than half of the days (6.5%) or nearly every day (9.1%). The overall prevalence of depression among veterans peaked in 2011–2012 at 12.3%. Among female veterans, there is a general increasing prevalence of depression, escalating from 9.0% in the 2007–2008 cycle to 14.8% in the 2015–2016 cycle. White veterans consistently had a higher prevalence of depression compared to Black and Hispanic veterans. Limitations: NHANES data were only able to assess noninstitutionalized individuals. Conclusions: Results indicate that disparities in prevalence of depression existed among U.S. veterans. Cost-effective strategies are needed to help prevent and treat depression among U.S. veterans.

This thesis proposes a new econometric methodology for the estimation and inference of macro- economic models in the presence of time variation in the parameters. A novel quasi-Bayesian local likelihood (QBLL) approach is established and it is shown that the method gives rise to as- ymptotically valid quasi-posterior distributions. In addition, in the special case of linear Gaussian models, expressions of the quasi-posteriors are derived in closed form, which simpli es inference and makes the use of MCMC unnecessary. Inference based on the QBLL approach, as a consequence of modelling parameter variation nonparametrically, is robust to di¤erent processes for the drifting parameters, as its validity does not depend on parametric restrictions typically imposed by alterna- tive state space models. In addition, the Bayesian treatment of the approach provides a remedy to the curse of dimensionality by accommodating large dimensional systems. We demonstrate that the proposed estimators exhibit good nite sample properties, and, unlike the alternative para- metric state space models, are robust to di¤erent parameter processes. We provide a variety of interesting macroeconomic applications and forecasting exercises to reduced-form VAR models. In addition, we develop the methodology to the estimation of structural DSGE models in the presence of parameter drift. We apply the proposed algorithms to di¤erent medium-sized DSGE models in order to study structural change in the parameters.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Rutgers University, 2009. / "Graduate Program in Economics." Includes bibliographical references (p. 177-188).

Project (D. Min.)--Iliff School of Theology, 2007. / Includes abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 100-103).

Thesis (master's)--Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio de Janeiro, 1989. / Abstracts in English and French. Includes bibliographical references (p. 111-117).

Project (D. Min.)--Iliff School of Theology, 2007. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 100-103).

Thesis (Ph. D. in Management)--Vanderbilt University, Aug. 2006. / Title from title screen. Includes bibliographical references.

Purpose – This paper uses institutional characteristics and regional economic data to determine if institutional mission may help drive non-resident undergraduate enrollment. Design/methodology/approach – A two-stage least squares regression models is employed on 180 Doctoral, 333 Comprehensive, and 501 Baccalaureate higher education institutions to determine if there is a correlation between non-resident enrollment and tuition for each of the separate mission-based classifications. Findings – The study finds a significant positive correlation between non-resident undergraduate enrollment and tuition for both doctoral and baccalaureate institutions. There is no significant correlation between non-resident enrollment and tuition for comprehensive institutions. Research limitations/implications – Suggests that non-resident undergraduate students are attracted to both larger flagship institutions, as well as to smaller institutions that are almost entirely focused on undergraduate instruction. Comprehensive institutions do not generally experience this phenomenon; however, the more selective schools within this category are also attractive to non-resident students. Originality/value – Attracting non-resident students is an important issue for a higher education institution. This research article presents tantalizing evidence that institutional mission may be a factor in non-resident enrollment. This may allow a higher education institution to garner excess returns when pricing non-resident tuition, and in addition it may allow for some leeway in pricing resident tuition.

In the first chapter we introduce securitisations and discuss the current state of structured finance in Europe; we also explore the main trends in securitisations and future prospects. Next, we provide a general introduction to the theoretical and empirical literature concerning securitisations and structured finance more generally: we discuss theoretical hypotheses concerning different rationales for structured credit and explore the empirical literature on the topic. In the second chapter, we look at financial contracts determining implicit boundaries of a firm. In the spirit of the incomplete contract theory, we analyse optimal allocations of control in financial contracts involving limits on managerial discretion and legal separation of assets. Our model explores the interplay between different groups of creditors and managers in a symmetric information environment. The results display optimality conditions for different contracts from asset-backed securities through project finance to debt with covenants vis-a-vis a standard debt contract. In the third chapter, we provide the first systematic testing of the theories of tranching. We find support for asymmetric information and market segmentation explanations for tranching and present evidence on how such different rationales influence the structuring process in practice. We also investigate the impact of tranching on the price of securities at the issue level. In the fourth chapter, we investigate determinants of launch spreads in securitisation transactions. First, we develop a reduced-form pricing model of tranches across different transaction types and test it. We document the importance of credit ratings for prices of structured securities. Next, we test for the effect of tranching on pricing of individual securities. Finally, we develop a simultaneous equations supply and demand model with endogenous structuring to further investigate the effects of structuring on prices at launch. In the fifth chapter, we investigate returns to equity around securitisation dates, and explore how different factors influence the size and the direction of the potential effects. We find significant, positive, and consistent abnormal returns to equity on the pricing date, over longer event windows, and over the period immediately prior to the issue date. We find support for the theory that equity holders in well-capitalised banks and firms with low gearing benefit from securitisations. Furthermore, we show that more developed securitisation markets, larger issuers, and banks in particular all benefit from securitisations.

The rst chapter uses a unique dataset on Brazilian party members and variation from mayoral elections to examine the determinants of party membership in Brazil. It starts by examining the effect of winning office on the membership of political parties at the local level. The effect of interest is identi ed using a differences-indifferences approach that compares changes in membership of parties that assume office with changes in membership of all other political parties registered in a municipality. The results indicate that winning office increases the membership of the party of the mayor by 0:5%. In addition, political alignment with higher levels of government has a signifi cant effect on the membership of the mayoral candidate party. Finally, the paper documents that party switching is one of the drivers of the estimated increase in membership. The paper offers evidence in favor of the hypothesis that party membership is driven by opportunistic motives in addition to ideology. The second chapter combines data on the universe of recipients of the Bolsa Famlia program from 2005 to 2015 with data on party membership to investigate the returns to political loyalty. Speci cally, it uses variation from mayoral elections to investigate whether members of political parties that assume office at the local level are more likely to receive social transfers. Regression results from an IV estimation show that indeed members of the party that gained access to municipal government are signifi cantly more likely to receive the benefi t. Additionally, it finds no evidence that members of parties that did not win office are more likely to lose the benefi t as a result of the electoral defeat. This chapter offers direct evidence of material rewards to party membership. The last chapter focuses on the impact of pay transparency on earnings inequality in the Brazilian public sector. Differences-in-differences estimates show that the disclosure of wages reduced the 90/50 decile wage gap across municipalities located in states that adopted wage transparency in comparison to those located in states that did not adopt the policy. There is also no evidence that earnings decile gaps below the median were affected by the salary transparency policy, which indicates that the effect of disclosure in the public sector was mainly concentrated at the upper tail of the log earnings distribution. Finally, evidence presented suggests that the effect on inequality compression is the result of lower returns to top paid occupations rather than changes in employment. The paper suggests that at the margin, top paid public sector employees are insensitive to changes in their earnings, indicating that there are rents that accrue to holding these positions.