Ph.D. Research

Robin Tepper (Winter 2002 graduate)

Using survey data, Tepper examines the influence of high-stakes testing on teacher behavior in Chicago. Her research finds strong evidence that teachers have aligned the content of their math and reading classes to cover the subjects and skills tested by the Iowa Tests of Basic Skills, which includes spending more time on grade-level material in mathematics. It is also evident that teachers are spending more time on test preparation activities, such as taking practice tests, but that the magnitude of this change may not be as large as critics have suggested. In addition, while sharp increases in test preparation are observed immediately after the implementation of the policy, the effect appears to diminish over time. Tepper finds little evidence that teachers are putting forth greater effort in their classrooms, have changed their behavior to focus on the lowest-performing students, or have made changes in their pedagogy (for better or worse) in response to high-stakes testing.

Mark Joseph (Spring 2002 graduate)

The Impact of a Criminal Background on Earnings

Using data from the National Youth Survey (NYS) and the Panel Study of Income Dynamics (PSID), Joseph examines whether criminal background negatively affects earnings. He examines the effect of arrests and incarceration on earnings of both young and older men, as well as the economic implications of the earnings gap between those who have been incarcerated and those who have not. He finds that an arrest reduces annual earnings by 18% to 26% for young men. Incarceration reduces annual earnings by between 16.5% and 18% for men older than 18. He finds that the earnings gap is twice as large between black men who have been incarcerated and those who have not. Applying a wage decomposition, he find that between 20% and 25% of the earnings gap remains unexplained, which leaves open the possibility of employer discrimination. Finally, he outlines the important economic costs to ex-offenders and their families, communities, and by society. He suggests a sentencing process that considers the full economic cost of incarceration to an individual.

Douglas Noonan (Spring 2002 graduate)

Microeconomic Analysis of Adapting to Environmental Public Goods: Three Essays on Making Lemonade from Lemons

Noonan examines three microeconomic approaches to public goods problems and extends standard environmental policy analysis by exploring individuals’ adaptation to and substitution for public goods. He first examines the effects of geographic barriers on demographic sorting patterns in Chicago. He then develops a theoretical model for developing genetically altered products in both agricultural and public health settings. He finds that effects from accelerating genetic resistance to pests might be mitigated through producer-sponsored programs under different market structures. The final analysis uses an innovative survey instrument and preliminary data to study individual valuation of a broad array of cultural goods. The validity of such a survey-based approach to eliciting the value of public goods and substitutions is assessed.

Cesar Velazquez (Summer 2002 graduate)

Three Essays on Political Economy

Mexico has recently moved toward a more decentralized and democratic regime and, with this process, a change in the relationships among the different economic and political actors, and the institutions that regulate them. Two key examples of these changes are the new economic and political interactions between the different levels of government, and the legislation that regulates the development of political parties and their financing. In his research, Velazquez examines how the federal government distributes its resources among the different states of Mexico, in particular, the role of equity and politics in the allocation mechanism. He also examines how the increasing political competition at the state and local level has affected the state’s fiscal behavior. Finally, he examines the relationship between campaign expenditures and the vote in the Mexican Congressional elections of 1994, 1997, and 2000.