Thesis (Ph. D.)--Florida State University, 2004. / Advisor: Dr. Jill Quadagno, Florida State University, College of Social Sciences, Dept. of Sociology. Title and description from dissertation home page (viewed Sept. 24, 2004). Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Ohio State University, 2005. / Title from first page of PDF file. Document formatted into pages; contains ix, 86 p.; also includes graphics. Includes bibliographical references (p. 81-86). Available online via OhioLINK's ETD Center

Orientador: Waldir Jose de Quadros / Dissertação (mestrado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Instituto de Economia / Made available in DSpace on 2018-08-13T00:16:11Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Moraes_AnaCarmenNavarrode_M.pdf: 1391775 bytes, checksum: e2b6e4e46ed590962a7a7b837e2e568d (MD5) Previous issue date: 2009 / Resumo: Este trabalho buscou analisar a evolução da situação ocupacional do jovem nordestino entre 15 e 24 anos, no período 1981-2002, destacando suas dificuldades de inserção nos setores melhor situados do mercado de trabalho. Para tanto, foram feitas duas abordagens teórico-históricas: a primeira trata das transformações econômicas e seus impactos no mercado de trabalho, com ênfase nas décadas de 1980 e 1990; e a segunda analisa, ainda que de forma sucinta, o processo de formação econômica e social do Nordeste e o como esta região se comportou diante das transformações da economia brasileira. A partir deste resgate e utilizando-se os dados das PNADs, mostrou-se que o segmento jovem da população continuou sendo mais afetado pelo desemprego e pela precarização do trabalho. No que se refere às especificidades nordestinas, viu-se, através da estruturas ocupacionais individuais que, nesta região, ainda é elevada a participação das ocupações agrícolas entre os jovens. Além disto, pela análise da estratificação familiar dos jovens, constatou-se um crescimento da massa de pobres e miseráveis no período 1981-2002, cuja proporção continuou muito superior à verificada para o estado de São Paulo, reforçando a permanência das disparidades regionais. Não obstante o crescimento do período recente (2003/2006), abordado, ainda que sinteticamente, no apêndice do capítulo 3, esses resultados apontam para a necessidade de reconstrução de um projeto nacional que priorize efetivamente o equacionamento dos problemas estruturais do país / Abstract: This study analyses the evolution of occupational status of the northeastern youth aging between 15 and 24, during the 1981-2002 period, highlighting their difficulties in becoming part of better sector of the labor market. Two theoretical-historical approaches were done: the fist deals with the economic transformations and their impacts on the labor market, with emphasis on the 80's and 90's; and the second analyses, in a succinct way, the process of economic and social formation of the Northeast and how this region responded to the changes in the Brazilian economy. Using PNAD data, it was shown that the young segment of the population is still the most affected by unemployment and by precarious work conditions. Regarding the specificities of the Northeastern region, by using individual occupational structures we saw that the participation of rural labor amongst youth is still high in this region. Additionally, by analyzing the family stratification of the youth, a growth of the number of poor and miserable people in the 1981-2002 period was verified, remaining proportionally higher than the numbers verified in the State of São Paulo, reinforcing existing regional disparities. Despite the economic growth observed in the past years (2003/2006), which is discusses in the appendix of Chapter 3, these results indicate the need of reconstructing a National Project that gives priority to the solution of the country's structural problems / Mestrado / Historia Economica / Mestre em Ciências Econômicas

This dissertation addresses three separate questions in human capital and development economics. In the first chapter, I study how college admission concerns drive students' field choices in a field-specific college admission system. To study this question, I leverage a college admission policy reform in Ethiopia that sharply increased the proportion of college seats in public universities allocated to college STEM fields. The reform significantly decreased the admission selectivity of STEM fields in the short run. Using cohort analysis and a regression discontinuity design, I show that students are significantly more likely to choose the STEM fields after the reform. More importantly, I find significant heterogeneity in the field choice response, with the marginal students responding more strongly compared to the infra-marginal students. In addition, using a complier characteristics analysis, I show that the reform led to a significant sorting on field-specific skills. In particular, those induced to choose the STEM fields have a comparative advantage in skills valued more in the STEM fields. These overall and field-specific sorting significantly changed the peer quality in STEM and non-STEM fields. These findings imply that admission concerns play a significant role in students' field choices. However, students do not naively sort into less selective college fields. Instead, their choices are consistent with their relative position in the distribution of multi-dimensional skills. The latter suggests that students make more informed and rational choices than the existing literature suggests. In the second chapter, I investigate the effect of the fast expansion of the Second Generation (2G) and Third Generation (3G) mobile technologies in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) on health literacy in the region. Using Demographic and Health Surveys data from 25 countries in SSA and a historical mobile network coverage map, I estimate an Instrumental Variable (IV) specification. I show that the widespread use of these technologies has significantly improved health literacy in the region. Specifically, access to either technology significantly decreases misconceptions and wrong beliefs about diseases and health. The benefits are substantial in regions where the technologies have been available longer. Consistent with the range of services it provides, 3G technology results in a larger gain in health literacy. These findings imply that mobile technologies have considerable potential to improve health and quality of life in many developing countries. In the final chapter, I study the relationship between birth spacing and children's outcomes, focusing on the mechanisms that underlie the relationship. Using linked mother-child data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth (NLSY), I explore two mechanisms: the maternal health and physiology channel and the material and parental time input channel. The result shows that a short pre-birth inter-pregnancy interval negatively affects the birth endowments of children, highlighting the importance of the birth spacing effect that works through the maternal health and physiology channel. The study also provides evidence in support of the material and parental time input channel. In particular, I show that closely spaced siblings score significantly lower on the standardized Peabody International Achievement Test (PIAT), a wide-range measure of academic achievement for children aged five and above. On the other hand, I find limited evidence of the birth spacing effect on long-term outcomes such as schooling and labor market outcomes. These findings have implications for parental leave and other labor market policies affecting the birth spacing choices of parents.

Améliorer l’accès et la qualité de l’emploi des jeunes figure parmi les priorités en France. Ainsi, ce travail doctoral aide à comprendre l’efficacité et les limites des canaux formels et informels. Les trois études empiriques de cette thèse fournissent un état des lieux de l’employabilité des jeunes en mettant l’accent sur les tendances concernant leurs pratiques de recherche et la qualité des emplois qu’ils obtiennent. Ces trois études sont précédés par une introduction générale et une revue de littérature. La première est dédiée à l’analyse des déterminants de l’accès à l’emploi à travers un mode de recherche bien déterminé. Dans le cadre de cette analyse, les effets de certains facteurs tels que l’origine, le genre, le lieu de résidence et l’éducation sont mis en évidence. La deuxième s’interroge sur l’influence des modes d’accès sur la qualité et la satisfaction de l’emploi obtenu. La troisième s’intéresse aux demandeurs d’emploi afin de comprendre leurs préférences et leurs stratégies de prospection. Cette dernière étude de la thèse est dédiée à la comparaison entre les pratiques (en termes d’intensité et de préférences) employées par les individus en emploi et celles menées par les chômeurs. Nos conclusions suggèrent un renforcement du rôle joué par les intermédiaires institutionnels de placement (en particulier le service public) mais aussi la nécessité de renforcer davantage le rôle des établissements scolaires afin de promouvoir le réseau scolaire comme moyen de recrutement. / Improve youth employment’s quality is a priority in France. This thesis focuses on job search and job access trends, in addition to the role played by the informal and formal search channels on the job matching issue. It helps understanding the informal and formal channels’ efficiency and limitations in order to ameliorate youth employment as France continues to prioritize youth in its national policy agendas. This PhD work offers valuable lessons learned on "who uses what" and on "what works" better for youth employment through three empirical studies.These three studies are preceded by a general introduction and a literature review. The first chapter is dedicated to the analysis of the job access channel’s determinants. As part of this chapter, the effects of some factors such as origin, gender, place of residence and education are emphasized. The second chapter examines the influence of these access channels on the quality and the satisfaction with the obtained job. The third chapter focuses on the comparaison of on- and out-of-the job seekers’ preferences, search intensity and strategies. Our findings suggest a further strengthening of the role played by the public employment service as well as the role of schools as a possible recruitment channel.