Purpose of study. This study is to determine whether DRG reimbursement has changed the structure of hospital costs. Due to incentives for greater output efficiency, inpatient per unit costs should fall, ceteris paribus. A countereffect for capital-intensive services is that hospitals may realize economies of scale to a lesser extent under DRGs due to inability to fully adjust in the short-run. Because outpatient services have remained under cost-reimbursement, per unit costs are not expected to decrease, ceteris paribus. However, more emphasis on outpatient services under DRGs could cause per unit costs to decrease due to greater realized economies of scale. / Procedure. A translog multiproduct cost function was used to estimate the structure of hospital costs in FY 1981-82 and 1985-86. The model included four outputs (medical-surgical discharges, outpatient visits, laboratory services, and ancillary procedures and treatments) and four annualized input prices. Other variables included fixed inputs (capital and physicians), casemix, payer mix, hospital ownership, and market structure. Product-specific economies of scale and average incremental costs were then calculated from estimation results. / Findings. Results of a joint likelihood ratio test showed that the cost structure was not significantly different in 1981-82 and 1985-86. However, t-tests regarding the difference in predicted costs evaluated at constant independent variable levels revealed that predicted costs are significantly higher in 1981-82 as anticipated. Comparative results of estimated parameters in the two years suggest hospitals are employing less capital under DRGS and physicians are inducing less demand. Further, average incremental costs for out-patient visits and laboratory services appear to be decreasing, while the average cost of discharges and ancillary procedures and treatments are increasing. Finally, unrealized economies of scale appear to be decreasing in 1985-86 for outpatient services and ancillary procedures and treatments. / Conclusion. The new DRG reimbursement system appears to have potential for reducing excess capacity, service intensity, and costs of services. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 49-12, Section: B, page: 5213. / Major Professor: Gary Fournier. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1988.

The recent history of Mexico presents a unique opportunity to unravel the complex effects of foreign direct investment (FDI) on the economy of a developing host nation. Through the years Mexico has been the recipient of widely varying amounts of FDI. Mexico's current modernization strategy, which began in 1983 and opened the floodgates to FDI in many sectors of the nation's economy, is rooted in the failure of the country's previous development model, which more forcefully regulated foreign direct investment. In particular, the country's post-1982 development goals emphasize increased manufacturing production and expansion of manufactured exports through an infusion of FDI. / This study addresses whether Mexico's decision to welcome foreign direct investment was born of desperation and thus may be unjustified, or whether the decision rightly reflects the potential benefits of FDI that have for too long been kept at bay by a political ideology. In this regard, the project seeks to ascertain the extent to which foreign direct investment in Mexico facilitates the state's objective of economic growth, the vanguard of development. Specifically, the study seeks to appraise the ability of FDI to positively affect growth in Mexico's manufacturing sector. / Nevertheless, the implications of the study's findings extend far beyond the impact of FDI on one sector of one developing nation' s economy. Separate but related bodies of research--and events around the world--suggest that pro-market policies are necessary for growth and prosperity, that a more prosperous world may be a more democratic one, and that a more democratic world may be a more peaceful one. This study is based on those premises, and to this end, foreign direct investment is viewed as a catalyzing ingredient in the equation. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 56-10, Section: A, page: 4137. / Major Professor: James Lee Ray. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1995.

Thesis advisor: Richard McGowan / Gambling, both in the casino-style and lottery forms, has risen to become a major component of the entertainment industry in the United States. State governments are the gatekeepers of this growing industry, holding the power to legalize and regulate all aspects of gambling. This thesis explores the rationale state governments have for legalizing gambling as well as the impact gambling tax revenues have for state budgets. The main focus is casino-style gambling, as casino-style gambling in particular is being pursued for expansion by numerous states in a variety of forms. As various forms of gambling are legalized throughout the country, a state's gambling interests begin to face competition from both neighboring states and other forms of gambling within the state. Econometric models attempted to predict the tax revenues a state can obtain from legalized gambling based on such competition and a states own demographics. The results support a first-mover advantage for states expanding casino-style gambling and finds that new forms of gambling significantly erode established gambling industries. / Thesis (BS) — Boston College, 2006. / Submitted to: Boston College. College of Arts and Sciences. / Discipline: Economics Honors Program.

Plan of investigation. The structure of this dissertation will consist of three primary components. The first section will consist of an empirical estimation of a testable hypothesis following the work of Helpman (1987) and Hummels & Levinsohn (1995). The data is drawn from several sources including world trade flows published by the National Bureau of Economic Research, macroeconomic data from the Penn World Tables, and education data supplied by the World Bank. The second section analyzes the patterns and structure of trade flows over the past 20 years utilizing the same data set as in the first essay. The purpose is to elucidate common patterns and relate them to the broader literature on intra-industry trade and trade flows, in general. The third section focuses on the domestic policy issue of growing wage disparity. Using a three factor, two good model the inter-relationships between capital, high-skilled labor and low-skilled labor are examined. Of particular interests are the cross-price elasticities and complementarity between factors, as well as, the effect of changes in endowments, prices and technology on returns Expected results. Preliminary findings indicate that the monopolistically competitive model fairs well in cross sectional tests when the sample of countries is inclusive of OECD and developing nations. Mixed results are obtained when the sample includes only OECD nations or in panel tests of the hypothesis. This may be partly attributed to an accounting issue stemming from differences in vertical vs. horizontal intra-industry trade. This issue is taken up in the second section as trade flows are examined more closely for 'stylized facts' and trends. Of importance is the chain of production and trade of intermediate products between countries of different levels of development. Finally, the third essay concerning the role of trade, technology and factor supplies on wage inequality in the U.S. will elucidate the relative contribution of each of these components on changes in factor returns. Since other studies have found limited fluctuations in relative prices, it is expected that factor supplies and technology (particularly the substitutibility-complementarity between factors) will have a greater impact on wages then trade. (Abstract shortened by UMI.) / acase@tulane.edu

International trade often occurs in imperfectly competitive markets. If these markets are profitable, a government may want to intervene in order to increase the market share of domestic firms via subsidies, or may try to capture a share of foreign firm profits by levying tariffs on imports. Early papers by Brander and Spencer (1983, 1984) and Eaton and Grossman (1986) began investigations into the benefits of trade intervention. They showed that governmental intervention into oligopolistic markets can result in greater national welfare than what would result under free trade This dissertation provides three extensions to the trade literature. A common link among the three essays is the concept of incomplete information. An optimal output level for a firm is a function of the market demand, the firm's cost, and the competitor's cost. If the firm is uncertain about one of these parameters, they may end up over-producing or under-producing. If the domestic firm shares its private information only with the domestic government, any action by the government may signal the competitiveness of the domestic firm to the foreign firm. This in turn will have a Bayesian updating effect, causing the foreign firm to alter its level of production Firm and market structures vary in the different essays. Uncertainty may be in the form of costs, or with regard to market demand. Production flexibility varies, as does the concentration of competition. The essays examine both unilateral and bilateral intervention. Subsidizing a domestic firm, or imposing a tariff on a foreign firm, may make the domestic firm more competitive. However, if domestic and foreign governments intervene simultaneously, it may not be possible to gain welfare at the other's expense The dissertation is from a domestic government's perspective, which is solely concerned with maximizing national welfare. The government's goal is to shift profits from foreign firms to domestic firms, consumers, or government coffers. The essays compare the expected welfare that would result from the usage of different policy instruments, and show the problem that uncertainty can create in achieving effective policy coordination. This addresses how the government may select an optimal trade policy / acase@tulane.edu

During the past two decades, the Mexican agricultural policy has endured significant changes. These changes have impacted the lives of campesino families in a remarkable manner and the services provided by the State institutions supporting the agricultural sector. This study analyses these impacts in the context of a rural development program in Mexico that has experienced both the previous and the most recent policy frameworks developed by the Mexican State during this period The primary purpose of this research is to evaluate 20 years of agricultural development policy, resulting from recent changes in the country's economic policy, within the context of the Plan Llanos de Serdan program in central Mexico. This program was developed in 1975 in the framework of an agricultural-economic model suggesting that increases in yield of corn would result into betterment of overall household conditions It is argued in this study that this program has successfully achieved the goals related to adoption of technology and increments in yields; however its impact in household welfare has not been significant due to the inappropriateness of the agricultural policy formulated by the Mexican State in behalf of campesinos / acase@tulane.edu

This study compares and contrasts the remedies available to an aggrieved party under the United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods to the equivalent remedies in the Mexican law on sales. The purpose of the study is to establish that, although the remedies of Specific Performance, Damages and Avoidance are contained in both bodies of law and are in principle equivalent, they are neither exercised nor applied in the same manner In order to achieve an informative comparison, it is essential to analyze the letter of both pieces of legislation and to consult relevant academic literature. It is also pertinent to explore how judicial and arbitral tribunals have interpreted the Convention for the International Sale of Goods and the Mexican law on sales on each topic This study will, thus, provide legal practitioners, academics, scholars and the judiciary with a better understanding of the applicability and implementation of the remedies of Specific Performance or Cumplimiento Forzoso, Damages or Danos y Perjuicios and Avoidance or Rescision, available under the Convention and the Mexican law, respectively The reason to make this comparison available to all of those who participate in international sales is, first, that they will find it useful when drafting contracts. Second, it is also relevant for determining strategy when analyzing a case of breach of an international contract of sale. Third, it will assist any tribunal responsible for deciding a dispute over a breach of a sales contract to which the CISG or Mexican law is applicable In sum, this study is relevant due to the fact that it presents the similarities and the differences in the main remedies for breach of contract contained in the CISG and Mexican law. Therefore, when facing a case of breach of an international contract of sales where the remedies in question are at stake, the interested party will have a precise tool to decide his legal strategy / acase@tulane.edu

This study’s primary objectives are to establish the dimensions, strategies, and tactics used by auditors in the negotiation of sensitive disclosure issues with clients. These issues are typically addressed at the end of the audit and are the primary concern of the audit partner and senior manager. This study uses the tactics established in the negotiation research to test if auditors use the same groups of tactics, and whether these tactics are related by some underlying dimensions, and their relevant strategies. Multidimensional scaling found that there are four dimensions to the tactics that auditors use. During negotiations with their clients, auditors employ tactics representing the underlying dimensions which can be interpreted as “Concern for Self”, “Concern for Client”, “Concern for Others”, and “Concern for Accounting Principles”. Results of cluster analysis established four primary classifications to the 38 auditor tactics. These are “Facilitating”, “Contextual”, “Forcing/asserting”, and “Appeal to authority”. Within these four classifications, twelve sub-categories were observed. These findings reinforce the complexities inherent in the resolution of an audit conflict, and suggest that auditors group together certain tactics for use as called for in the circumstances with which they are dealing. This research contributes to theory within the fields of auditing and general negotiation because it has established that the two-dimensional model of concern that has formed the basis of much behavioural research is insufficient to describe an auditor’s responsibilities. There are four dimensions of concern. While some researchers have proposed a three-dimensional model of negotiation for auditors, the fourth dimension identified in this study is a contribution. This research expands current knowledge fundamental to the audit discipline by establishing the negotiation tactics used by auditors and their underlying multidimensionality, and thus has extended the knowledge of audit conflict management beyond that of strategy-level. Accordingly,this research is beneficial to practicing auditors and for the education of auditors.

The development and patenting of a new technology for the anaerobic digestion of solid waste is described. The design basis is explained and justified by extensive reference to the literature. The technology was specifically designed to be versatile, robust and affordable and is directly derived from other proven processes for organic waste management. The ways in which environmental regulations directly affect the development and commercialization of organic waste processing technologies are described. The great differences in regulations between Europe and North America are analyzed to explain why anaerobic digestion is common in Europe and rare in North America and why this is the result of waste management economics which are driven by these regulations. The new technology is shown to be competitive in the Province of Ontario in particular and North America in general; a detailed financial analysis and comparison with European technologies is provided in support of this conclusion.

The development and patenting of a new technology for the anaerobic digestion of solid waste is described. The design basis is explained and justified by extensive reference to the literature. The technology was specifically designed to be versatile, robust and affordable and is directly derived from other proven processes for organic waste management. The ways in which environmental regulations directly affect the development and commercialization of organic waste processing technologies are described. The great differences in regulations between Europe and North America are analyzed to explain why anaerobic digestion is common in Europe and rare in North America and why this is the result of waste management economics which are driven by these regulations. The new technology is shown to be competitive in the Province of Ontario in particular and North America in general; a detailed financial analysis and comparison with European technologies is provided in support of this conclusion.