IPPSR is MSU’s new hub for public policy information and research. Search our summaries of scientific research with implications for public policy by inputting keywords in the search box or selecting options from the menus below.
You are here
Policy Research
Public Private Partnerships for Promotion of Cross Border Trade and Transportation
David Lick, Roger E. Hamlin
May 2012
While public-private partnerships (P3s) are simple at their core, the legal, financial, and organizational details can be complex. The cultural differences between public and private participants are great. P3 projects that strengthen cross-border trade between Mexico, Canada, and the United States are vital for maintaining a competitive economy. This article offers guidance for how to promote these relationships and develop the necessary infrastructure.
Just Undercompensation: The Idiosyncratic Premium in Eminent Domain
Brian Angelo Lee
April 2013
The Fifth Amendment defines eminent domain’s “just compensation” as fair market value. As many state governments believe this leads to undercompensation, they have enacted fixed percentage bonus programs as a solution. This article argues that determining fair market value can be subjective. Additionally, out of fairness, the subjective value that fair market value does not compensate should not be compensated. Fixed percentage bonus programs are not the best method to compensate sentimental value and lost autonomy. Since all people are equal, the sentimental value of property should be an equal dollar amount instead of percentage. A percentage bonus unjustly favors the wealthy.
Rethinking the effect of immigration on wages
Gianmarco Ottaviano, Giovanni Peri
February 2012
The article attempts to estimate the overall effects that immigration has on wages of both U.S. natives and other immigrants at various education levels. Unlike the majority of studies trying to estimate this effect, this study is done at the national level and thus allows for a general equilibrium view on how sensitive to substitution various labor types are. The study uses census data and finds that the cumulative effect of immigration between 1990-2007 lead to an overall increase in the wages of native citizens by a somewhat small 0.6%. Additionally, the study estimated that immigration during the same time period could be attributed to a roughly 6% decrease in wages of other immigrants. There was slight evidence that immigration could have caused small (less than 2%) decreases in wages of natives without a high school diploma. Overall, however, there appears to be a very small effect on wages.
Gender Difference or Parallel Publics? The Dynamics of Defense Spending Opinions in the United States, 1965 to 2007
Richard Eichenberg, Richard Stoll
April 2012
The article attempts to estimate the gender gap in opinions on defense spending in the United States. The study employs a time series analysis using survey data dating back to 1963 and finds that men consistently prefer increases in defense spending to women. However, the study also finds that the “gender gap” in preference stays relatively consistent. This implies that events that increase men’s support of defense spending will have nearly identical effects on women. The article also notes that women tend to prefer social spending to defense spending, so if increases in defense spending are posed as alternatives to social spending their effect could be more dramatic than if coming from an unspecified source. Further, the study found that certain events could shift the overall size of the gap which implies that the gap is not simply caused by inherent genetic differences.
Banking the poor via savings accounts: Evidence from a field experiment
Silvia Prina
January 2013
The article attempts to estimate the demand and utility that providing banking institutions to poor households in Nepal brings to Nepal citizens and the country. The study employs a randomized field experiment by creating simple, fee-free, locally placed banking institutions in a variety of Nepal towns and assigning 50% of interested household to be given an account via lottery. The article finds that poor households have a high demand for banking services and that being given access to a savings account increasing overall saving behavior and monetary assets for poor citizens and that the effect is stronger as the income decreases. The study also finds that the savings significantly increased investments in human capital, and allowed households to guard against shocks without having to use costly credit.
Evaluation of the Homebase Community Prevention Program
Howard Rolston, Judy Geyer, Gretchen Locke
June 2013
This randomized experiment explores the effect of the Homebase Community Prevention Program in New York City. Participants in the program were members of households deemed at-risk of homelessness. These participants were assigned to a control group, and a treatment group that received access to a case manager, limited financial assistance, job training, child care, legal resources, and so on. Results show that participants in the program spent significantly less time in shelters, and were less likely to ever enter a shelter in the first place. Otherwise, no other benefits were found.
School Gardens and Physical Activity: A Randomized Controlled Trial of Low income Elementary Schools
Nancy M. Wells, Beth M. Myers, Charles R. Henderson Jr.
December 2014
This study consists of a randomized controlled trial that assess the impact school gardens have on physical activity. Schools were randomly assigned to a control group, or a treatment group that received one 4 ft. by 8 ft. for each class, and access to a 20 lesson curriculum on gardening, horticulture, nutrition, as well as student activities including weeding, harvesting, and planting. Results show that students in the treatment group had significantly higher levels of physical activity, and a much lower prevalence of sedentary behavior.
The Family Transition Program: Final Report on Floridas Initial Time Limited Welfare Program
Dan Bloom, James J. Kemple, Pamela Morris, Susan Scrivener, Nandita Verma, Richard Hendra
December 2000
Florida’s Family Transition Program (FTP) represents the first attempt of a state to initiate time limits on welfare benefits. At the onset of this program, welfare recipients were randomly assigned to either the FTP, or to the traditional welfare program. FTP enrollees were subject to time limits on their benefits, but were provided services to aide in the search for employment. Findings show that families taking part in FTP exhibited significantly lower levels of long-term (> three years) welfare relative the traditional welfare group (6% and 17%, respectively). By the end of the program, however, both groups had the same probability of being employed.
Welfare Programs That Target Workforce Participation May Negatively Affect Mortality
Peter Muennig, Zohn Rosen, Elizabeth Ty Wilde
June 2013
This randomized trial analyzes results from the Florida Family Transition Program, an experiment looking at time limits on welfare benefits. Researchers utilize the sample of over 3,500 participants to examine the effect welfare time limits has on mortality. Ultimately, they find participants of the welfare program that included time-limited benefits experienced a mortality rate 16% higher than the group receiving traditional welfare.
Summer Nudging: Can Personalized Text Messages and Peer Mentor Outreach Increase College Going Among Low Income High School Graduates?
Benjamin L. Castleman, Lindsay C. Page
January 2014
This randomized experiment analyzes the usage of text messages to increase college attendance. Students in several school districts (across three states) were randomly assigned into three groups: a control group; a treatment group where students received text message reminders, help, and web-links to complete required pre-college activities (e.g. paperwork, orientation, placement tests); and a second control group where students were contacted by a peer mentor, who assessed the students’ readiness, talked them through required processes to ensure college readiness, and offered follow up conversations and meetings. Though results differed by location, both treatments had significant positive impacts on students’ likelihood of attending college.