Get spring started with the latest issue of Roanomics!
Monday, March 25, 2013
Saturday, March 23, 2013
What can I do with a degree in economics? March 26th
Join us in Kime March 26th 6-7 pm to hear how Jorge Guzman Correa has been using his degree in economics with his work with the Peruvian government. Please RSVP careers@roanoke.edu OR roanokeecon@gmail.com
Tuesday, March 5, 2013
Monday, March 4, 2013
The Running Economist: The next John S. Shannon Professor of Economics, R...
The Running Economist: The next John S. Shannon Professor of Economics, R...: I am so honored to have been named the next John S. Shannon Professor of Economics at Roanoke College. Dean Richard Smith and President Mich...
Tuesday, February 19, 2013
Health Economics (ECON 227) using technology to study health and income across countries
Dr. Kassens Health Economics class examined the relationship between health and income for six different countries using a data application from the World Bank.
Prior the group project, class discussion addressed two observations:
1) Wealthier countries are healthier
2) Wealthier countries spend more money on health
and a question "Does this mean that countries can buy health?"
Students offered a variety of answers, but collectively answered "not necessarily". They noted that income is related to education, infrastructure, transportation, etc. that determine health. Additionally, behavioral issues, such as smoking and obesity, can offset the impact of income on health status. Finally, we addressed the differences in cross sectional analyses of health vs. changes over time.
In an effort to learn about the obstacles low-income countries face with respect to health compared to higher income nations, six student groups were formed. Each group was assigned a country:
Low Income
Ghana
Sudan
Middle Income
China
Poland
High Income
Japan
Germany
Students were given 20 minutes to produce a report on their assigned country using World Bank data. Their reports needed to address four things:
1) Health outcomes
2) Health resources
3) Health spending
4) Economic indicators
Those students with laptops accessed the data through the following link: http://data.worldbank.org/. Those with smart phones used a World Bank application.
Reports included the following variables:
Health care expenditure per person (current $US)
% children 12-23 months immunized for diphtheria, pertussis, and tetanus
% population with access to improved sanitation facilities
Life expectancy at birth
GDP per capita (current $US)
Each group then reported their findings and commented on similarities/differences in their country and a country from the same income group and countries from other income groups.
General comments included:
Prior the group project, class discussion addressed two observations:
1) Wealthier countries are healthier
2) Wealthier countries spend more money on health
and a question "Does this mean that countries can buy health?"
Students offered a variety of answers, but collectively answered "not necessarily". They noted that income is related to education, infrastructure, transportation, etc. that determine health. Additionally, behavioral issues, such as smoking and obesity, can offset the impact of income on health status. Finally, we addressed the differences in cross sectional analyses of health vs. changes over time.
In an effort to learn about the obstacles low-income countries face with respect to health compared to higher income nations, six student groups were formed. Each group was assigned a country:
Low Income
Ghana
Sudan
Middle Income
China
Poland
High Income
Japan
Germany
Students were given 20 minutes to produce a report on their assigned country using World Bank data. Their reports needed to address four things:
1) Health outcomes
2) Health resources
3) Health spending
4) Economic indicators
Those students with laptops accessed the data through the following link: http://data.worldbank.org/. Those with smart phones used a World Bank application.
Reports included the following variables:
Health care expenditure per person (current $US)
% children 12-23 months immunized for diphtheria, pertussis, and tetanus
% population with access to improved sanitation facilities
Life expectancy at birth
GDP per capita (current $US)
Each group then reported their findings and commented on similarities/differences in their country and a country from the same income group and countries from other income groups.
General comments included:
- Higher income countries had better health, access to health facilities and technology, and fewer incidences of infectious diseases and malnutrition
- In many ways China was similar to low-income countries with respect to access and expenditures, while Poland was more like the higher income countries
- Substantial differences in sanitation, infrastructure, and income exist between low income countries and the other groups
If you are interested in conducting a cross-country analysis you should check out the resources that the World Bank offers, including for your smart phone!
Tuesday, February 5, 2013
Dr. Kassens joins forces with MassINC Polling Group to produce Consumer Sentiment Report
Today the MassINC Polling Group, a survey opinion research company based in Boston, MA, released its first Consumer Sentiment Report for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Roanoke College's Dr. Alice Louise Kassens (Economics) worked with MassINC Polling Group's Steve Koczela to produce the report.
The MassINC Polling Group has collected consumer sentiment survey data each quarter since January 2011 and released the resulting consumer sentiment indexes as a part of it's quarterly Trend Monitor.
The Consumer Sentiment Report, released as an "Opinion Brief", is the first detailed analysis of the consumer sentiment survey data.
The report teaser reads:
The MassINC Polling Group has collected consumer sentiment survey data each quarter since January 2011 and released the resulting consumer sentiment indexes as a part of it's quarterly Trend Monitor.
The Consumer Sentiment Report, released as an "Opinion Brief", is the first detailed analysis of the consumer sentiment survey data.
The report teaser reads:
"Consumer confidence fell this quarter to the lowest level in over a year, according to poll data released today by The MassINC Polling Group. The Massachusetts Index of Consumer Sentiment dropped about 15 points to 71.2 since October 2012, a reversal of a yearlong trend of steady improvements in consumers’ outlook."Read the complete report here.
Monday, January 28, 2013
Dr. Edward Nik-Khah gives lecture in Young Scholars Workshop (Hong Kong)
As a part of the Institute for New Economic Thinking's conference in Hong Kong, the organization's Young Scholars Initiative will host a graduate student workshop, including several lectures. In one of the lectures, Roanoke College Associate Professor of Economics, Dr. Edward NIk-Khah, along with Dr. Philip Mirowski (Notre Dame), will provide a
"...narrative of the development of 20th century economics with particular focus on how the market came to be viewed as a processor of information or knowledge."
Read about INET and Dr. Nik-Khah and Mirowski's lecture
with specifics found
.
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