O presente trabalho tem como objetivo examinar a formação do senso de justiça das pessoas sob a perspectiva da teoria de justiça da escolha social e de rankings incompletos, de Amartya Sen (2009). Pretende também investigar algumas formas de educar o cidadão para a justiça a fim de se pensar políticas públicas nas escolas que estimulem o florescimento do sentido de justiça nas pessoas. Para tanto, a teoria de justiça de Sen (2009) é apresentada e relacionada a teorias sobre a formação do indivíduo e fases críticas de seu desenvolvimento, em específico a formação de aspectos cognitivos e não cognitivos e sua interação. Ao fim, são indicados caminhos para a educação voltada para a justiça. / This study aims to examine the development of the sense of justice following Amartya Sen’s (2009) social choice and incomplete rank justice theory. Alongside this, in order to present some alternatives about public policies in schools that could encourage the flourishing of a sense of justice, a reflection about ways to educate citizens towards justice is made. To do so, Sen’s Idea of Justice is introduced and related to theories about individual development, combined with an analysis of sensitive stages of human development. Particular attention is given on the interaction of cognitive and non-cognitive abilities. At the end, some thoughts about public policies and the education system are made.

There are several well-known negative side effects associated with pesticide use such as health problems and environmental pollution.  Integrated Pest Management (IPM) seeks to minimize pesticide use while reducing pest infestation to economically tolerable levels.  The introduction of IPM CRSP activities in Ecuador to institutionalize IPM methods focused on priority crops in the country. This study analyzes adoption and the economic impacts of IPM technologies on potato production in the province of Carchi. A model is estimated in which IPM adoption is discrete and ordered and pesticides expenditures are estimated as a function of education, farming experience, wealth, plot size and farmer being sick due to pesticide use for each level of IPM adoption. Results indicate that farmers who were exposed to certain IPM information sources increased adoption of IPM practices on potatoes, but farmers\' education and experience were not important factors in explaining IPM adoption. The calculated economic benefits in terms of aggregate cost savings per production cycle were $823,000. / Master of Science

本研究主要探討台灣上市櫃公司從事首次現金增資之決策受何種公司特徵所影響，並進一步探討進行其首次現金增資的宣告效果影響因素。 本研究針對1981年至2010年共30年期間於台灣上市上櫃之公司其首次現金增資之情形做為探討對象，採用Cox-proportional Hazard Regression檢定影響上市櫃公司進行首次現金增資時程之公司特徵。實證結果顯示，營收成長率越高、規模越大且獲利能力較差的公司會傾向越快進行首次現金增資。同時也針對上市櫃年度其市場情形加以探討，發現於市場處於熱市時上市櫃的公司傾向越快進行首次現金增資，顯示市場時機也會影響公司進行首次現金增資的決策。此外，對其首次現金增資之宣告效果進行迴歸分析同時以Heckman Two-Stage Model方法考慮樣本選擇偏誤之修正，結果發現規模越大的公司宣告效果越差而負債比率較大的公司宣告效果越佳。然而上市櫃後進行首次現金增資之時程與其增資宣告效果間則無顯著關係。 / This study examines how fast companies have their first seasonal equity offerings after their IPOs and further analyses the announcement effects of first SEOs. First, we adopt Cox-proportional Hazard Regression Model to see what firm characteristics make IPO firms decide to conduct first SEOs shortly after their IPOs. Using a sample of IPO firms in Taiwan from 1981 to 2010, we find firms that are larger, less profitable and higher growth potential would conduct their first SEOs faster. Also, market timing plays an important role for SEO decisions. Moreover, the announcement effect of their first SEOs shows that elapsed time to conduct first SEOs after IPOs has no influence on the cumulated abnormal returns. By correcting sampling bias, Heckman Two-Stage Model is adopted to reveal better explanation of the results.

Generally, service industries require a rapid innovation of service portfolios to gain and maintain a competitive advantage. In this context, service elimination is a tool of portfolio renewal, where customer retention is a strategic priority for companies. This is especially so because service elimination usually causes higher churn rates than an average churn in telecommunications. Thus, customer retention is seen as a major aspect in enhancing service elimination success. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the factors that increase customer churn in the case of service elimination. We use one of the three Hungarian telecommunication Operator's databases containing usage data three months before and after Service elimination in the course of a major service package reform. Contract-related information and demographics of 10 065 customers are used to differentiate between high and low churn factors, taking care of a possible sample selection problem. The results show that in the course of service elimination there is a significant positive relationship between price decrease, tenure, interaction intensity on the one, and customer retention on the other side. Besides these, demographics (age and residence) also play an important role in explaining churn rates during service elimination. Furthermore, we find that a higher monthly fee after elimination increases the customer´s usage intensity. This research aims to contribute both to service elimination, as well as to customer retention literature, by hierarchical modeling of retention and usage during service elimination with practical implications for decision-makers in rapidly innovating telecommunication markets. / Series: Department of Economics Working Paper Series

O presente trabalho tem como objetivo fazer uma reflexão conjunta sobre a educação na ótica do desenvolvimento humano e as políticas de avaliação da educação vigentes no Brasil. Para tal, está divido em cinco seções: uma introdução com a contextualização da discussão teórica; a segunda, resumindo o modelo e as evidências dadas dentro do arcabouço analítico de Heckman, (que foca na importância das habilidades não cognitivas para o desempenho escolar e sua interação com as habilidades cognitivas). A terceira seção é dedicada à visão de educação no trabalho de Nussbaum, que trabalha com uma visão mais ampla de educação, focada no conceito de habilidades não cognitivas. Na quarta parte, examina-se a evolução das políticas educacionais brasileiras, com o foco na questão avaliativa e introduz-se alguns elementos críticos à luz do marco de desenvolvimento humano estabelecido. Por fim concluiu-se. / The objective of this dissertation is to jointly examine the meaning of education from a human development perspective in association with the evolution of the Brazilian educational assessment policies. Within this context, it is divided into five parts. After the introduction it examines Heckman’s model and its empirical evidences (where the importance of non cognitive skills for schooling and its relation with cognitive skills is highlighted). The third part delves into Nussbaum work and her arguments for non cognitive dimensions of education. The forth part critically analyses the evolution of educational assessment in Brazil. Then, it concludes.

Dans le contexte de l’intégration internationale, les indicateurs économiques montrentd’importants changements de structure et de spécialisation du Maroc qui tend vers desproduits de manufactures intensifs en recherche et développement (r&d) et des secteursde moyenne haute intensité technologique. De plus, la croissance du commerce intraindustriedans les produits manufacturés témoigne du développement de l’industrieet d’un processus de rattrapage du Maroc. Pour ces raisons, l’objectif de cette thèse estd’examiner l’impact des accords de libre-échange (ale) sur la qualité de la spécialisationet l’intégration internationale du Maroc.L’impact des ale est analysé à partir du modèle de gravité dans deux études distinctes.Le premier modèle de gravité mesure l’évolution du potentiel des exportations du Marocentre 1998 et 2013 à partir d’un échantillon de 172 pays. Cette étude conclut à un impactpositif des accords sur les exportations marocaines. Parmi les partenaires commerciaux,l’Union européenne reste le principal partenaire avec un taux d’exportation de 98,83%par rapport aux exportations estimées. Les exportations dans le cadre des accordsbilatéraux avec les États-Unis, les Émirats arabes unis, la Turquie, l’Égypte et la Jordaniesont aux alentours de 91%. Cependant, il existe un potentiel d’échange inexploité avecles pays de l’Union du Maghreb arabe (uma).Dans la deuxième étude, le modèle de gravité est appliqué pour examiner le rôle del’ouverture commerciale sur les produits technologiques en utilisant des données depanel des exportations du Maroc vers 82 pays de 1967 à 2014. Les résultats confirmentun impact positif des ale sur les produits de moyenne haute technologie et de faibletechnologie et même pour les produits non manufacturés.Enfin, l’analyse de l’impact des ale au niveau des entreprises hétérogènes marocainesest réalisée dans la dernière étude. Les résultats du modèle de sélection de Heckman(1979) montrent que les entreprises créées après l’année 2000 et celles qui utilisent lesintrants importés, augmentent la probabilité d’exportation. Cependant, les contraintesnotamment douanières et fiscales réduisent l’intensité d’exportation des entreprises.Pour sa part, le modèle Tobit donne un résultat positif de l’effet de la technologie surl’intensité des exportations en utilisant la même base de données. / In the context of international integration, the trade indicators show the significantchanges in Morocco’s trade structure and specialization, which tend to intensive manufacturedproducts in r&d and medium high technological intensity. Moreover, thegrowth of intra-industry trade in manufactured products reflects the development ofthe industry and Morocco’s convergence. For this reasons, the aim of this thesis is toexamine the impact of free trade agreements (fta) on the quality of specialization andinternational integration of Morocco.The influence of the fta is analyzed by employing the gravity model in two separatestudies. In the first one, the model measures the potential of Morocco’s exports between1998 and 2013 from 172 countries. This study finds a positive impact of agreements onMoroccan exports. Among the trading partners, the European Union (eu) has remainedto be the Morocco’s main destination market with an export rate around 99% comparedto estimated exports. Meanwhile, the exports in framework of bilateral agreements withUnited States (us), United Arab Emirates (uae), Turkey, Egypt and Jordan are around91%. However, there is an untapped trade potential with Arab Maghreb Union (amu)countries.In the second study, the gravity model is applied to examine the role of trade openness ontechnological products by using a panel data of Morocco’s exports towards 82 countriesfrom 1967 to 2014. The results show a positive impact of fta on medium high technology,low technology and non-manufactured products.Finally, the analysis of fta’s impacts to Moroccan heterogeneous firms is conductedin the last research. The results of Heckman selection model (1979) show that thecompanies created after year 2000, which use the imported inputs, increase exportingprobability. However, customs and tax constraints reduce export intensity. Moreover,the Tobit model gives a positive effect of technology on export intensity by using thesame panel data.

O presente trabalho tem como objetivo fazer uma reflexão conjunta sobre a educação na ótica do desenvolvimento humano e as políticas de avaliação da educação vigentes no Brasil. Para tal, está divido em cinco seções: uma introdução com a contextualização da discussão teórica; a segunda, resumindo o modelo e as evidências dadas dentro do arcabouço analítico de Heckman, (que foca na importância das habilidades não cognitivas para o desempenho escolar e sua interação com as habilidades cognitivas). A terceira seção é dedicada à visão de educação no trabalho de Nussbaum, que trabalha com uma visão mais ampla de educação, focada no conceito de habilidades não cognitivas. Na quarta parte, examina-se a evolução das políticas educacionais brasileiras, com o foco na questão avaliativa e introduz-se alguns elementos críticos à luz do marco de desenvolvimento humano estabelecido. Por fim concluiu-se. / The objective of this dissertation is to jointly examine the meaning of education from a human development perspective in association with the evolution of the Brazilian educational assessment policies. Within this context, it is divided into five parts. After the introduction it examines Heckman’s model and its empirical evidences (where the importance of non cognitive skills for schooling and its relation with cognitive skills is highlighted). The third part delves into Nussbaum work and her arguments for non cognitive dimensions of education. The forth part critically analyses the evolution of educational assessment in Brazil. Then, it concludes.

The following dissertation contains two related essays. The first essay explores how institutional investor presence impacts investments during the global financial crisis. Using OLS, industry fixed effects, and Heckman 2SLS regression approaches, I explore two ways through which institutional investors could impact investments: liquidity and monitoring. My findings best support monitoring theory. I find that institutional investors monitor capital and R&D levels to maximize crisis period firm value. The second essay is a direct fallout from my first essay. In it, I investigate how institutional investor types influence investments. I ask, do certain types of investors improve liquidity or monitor firm investment behavior during the global financial crisis? My results suggest that long-term, dedicated institutional investors monitor firm investments more than short-term, transient investors. As a result, firms with greater dedicated investor presence perform better during the crisis periods than their peers.

O presente trabalho tem como objetivo fazer uma reflexão conjunta sobre a educação na ótica do desenvolvimento humano e as políticas de avaliação da educação vigentes no Brasil. Para tal, está divido em cinco seções: uma introdução com a contextualização da discussão teórica; a segunda, resumindo o modelo e as evidências dadas dentro do arcabouço analítico de Heckman, (que foca na importância das habilidades não cognitivas para o desempenho escolar e sua interação com as habilidades cognitivas). A terceira seção é dedicada à visão de educação no trabalho de Nussbaum, que trabalha com uma visão mais ampla de educação, focada no conceito de habilidades não cognitivas. Na quarta parte, examina-se a evolução das políticas educacionais brasileiras, com o foco na questão avaliativa e introduz-se alguns elementos críticos à luz do marco de desenvolvimento humano estabelecido. Por fim concluiu-se. / The objective of this dissertation is to jointly examine the meaning of education from a human development perspective in association with the evolution of the Brazilian educational assessment policies. Within this context, it is divided into five parts. After the introduction it examines Heckman’s model and its empirical evidences (where the importance of non cognitive skills for schooling and its relation with cognitive skills is highlighted). The third part delves into Nussbaum work and her arguments for non cognitive dimensions of education. The forth part critically analyses the evolution of educational assessment in Brazil. Then, it concludes.

Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited. / This thesis investigates the effect of marital and family status on the performance and job productivity of male U.S. Marine Corps officers. The analysis includes evaluation of fitness reports, retention, and promotion to O-4 and O-5 ranks as performance measures. The primary goal is to examine the existence of any marriage premium on officers' performance and productivity and to investigate potential causal hypotheses. The personnel database used for the analysis includes more than 27,000 male Marine officers who entered the Marine Corps between FY 1980 and 1999. After controlling for selection, estimating fixed effects and using panel data in order to capture timely-varying effects, this study finds that there is a marriage premium for all performance measures. The thesis rejects the explanation that such premiums are due to supervisor favoritism. Moreover, married male officers obtain higher fitness report scores, higher promotion probabilities, and higher retention probabilities than single officers. Each additional year spent in marriage increases fitness report scores and retention probabilities. Having additional non-spousal dependents increase fitness report scores and retention probabilities. On the other hand, being a currently single but "to-be-married" officer yields higher premium, as married officers, for all productivity and performance indicators. This supports selectivity into marriage as a partial explanation of the source of the marriage premium. / Lieutenant Junior Grade, Turkish Navy / First Lieutenant, Turkish Army