Research Papers

We explored the relationship between imprisonment and crime rates, considering the possibility of reducing both imprisonment rates and crime.

We wanted to challenge the prevailing notion that increasing imprisonment rates are the only effective strategy for reducing crime, suggesting alternative approaches.

We contribute to the debate on criminal justice policies, advocating for a balanced approach that considers both crime prevention and the social costs of imprisonment.

We reviewed linear and nonlinear models and their applications, including results regarding partial identification. We also examined conceptual and methodological links with spatial econometrics and the social networks literature. We considered empirical applications in the context of the methodological overview.

We wanted to provide a template for understanding the broad social interactions literature by outlining a theoretical framework for social interactions and describing the econometric implementation of social interaction ideas.

The study of social interactions enriches the domain of inquiry of economists and the way economists conceptualize individual decision-making.

We critically reviewed the identification strategies of the social determinants of individual behaviors and interactions.

While a rich literature on the identification strategies for uncovering empirical evidence of social interactions exists, a more mature system of identification strategies is needed to identify the conditions under which social interactions occur.

This overview of the existing identification strategies of social interactions clarifies the directions for future research that improves the empirical modeling of social interactions.

We examined the deterrent effect of imprisonment on criminal behavior, considering the impact of incarceration as a crime prevention strategy.

We aimed to provide empirical evidence on the effectiveness of imprisonment as a deterrent, contributing to the ongoing policy debate on crime control strategies.

Our findings can inform the discussion on the role of imprisonment in controlling crime, offering insights that can guide policymakers in developing evidence-based criminal justice policies.

We analyzed a model of adoption decisions in which social interactions are present.

There has been a resurgence of interest in the role of social interactions in determining the rate at which technologies are adopted. We focused on the properties of a particular model of heterogeneous atomistic potential adopters to identify properties of adoption curves that imply the presence of social interactions.

We revealed two model properties that may assist empirical researchers in interpreting some interesting patterns in the data that provide useful directions for uncovering social influences on individual behavior.

To stimulate further work on social interactions that moves the field towards the consideration of aggregate phenomena, first, we review some of the theory and econometrics of social interactions. This part of the chapter will represent a brief synthesis of a large literature. Second, we consider how this body of work may be related to macroeconomics.

While the importance of social interactions has been argued for a range of interesting behaviors, far less attention has been paid to the role of social interactions in aggregate phenomena. There has yet to be any systematic examination of whether social interactions may help explain the standard macroeconomic phenomena of growth and fluctuations, although they may be connected to social interactions.

Within economics, social interaction research constitutes a growing area of study. This research represents a good-faith attempt to introduce substantive sociological factors into economic modeling. There is now an impressive range of applications of social interaction models in microeconomic contexts.

We examined the relationship between the use of regressions and variance contrast methods to uncover social interactions. We illustrated how these methods use different identifying assumptions and are thus complementary. Additionally, we provided formal identification results that extend existing ones for both methods.

We aimed to clarify the complementary nature of regressions and variance contrast methods in identifying social interactions. By doing so, we sought to enhance the robustness and reliability of empirical analyses in this field.

Understanding the complementary strengths of different methods for identifying social interactions helps improve the accuracy and depth of social science research. Our formal identification results provide a stronger foundation for empirical studies, leading to more nuanced and reliable insights into social dynamics.

We provided a set of results on the econometric identifiability of binary choice models with social interactions. Our analysis extended beyond parametric identification to consider identifiability when the distribution of random payoff terms is unknown and examined the effects of unobservable payoff terms and endogenous group membership on identification.

We aimed to address limitations in existing identification results by considering more general scenarios where the distribution of random payoff terms is unknown and unobservable payoff terms and endogenous group membership are present. This approach allows for a broader understanding of identification in binary choice models with social interactions.

Achieving at least partial identification under plausible assumptions enhances the robustness and applicability of binary choice models in social interactions. Our results contribute to more accurate and comprehensive econometric modeling, improving empirical research’s ability to analyze and understand social phenomena.

We described a perspective on poverty traps where group-level influences generate persistence in economic status. We explored how social and environmental factors in places like Harlem contribute to this phenomenon and examined the impact of these influences on the identity and socioeconomic conditions of residents.

We aimed to understand the mechanisms behind persistent poverty by focusing on group-level influences. By examining social and environmental factors, we sought to provide insights into how these elements perpetuate economic disparity and hinder upward mobility.

Understanding poverty traps and the role of group-level influences is crucial for developing effective policies to break the cycle of poverty. By identifying the factors that contribute to persistent economic status, we can better address the root causes of inequality and promote social and economic mobility.

We show how to develop an analysis of social interactions that builds the interdependencies that characterize complex systems into a framework consistent with individual decision making.

A major weakness of the social interactions literature as it is currently constituted is the absence of strong connections between theory and empirics. By this, we mean that there has been little effort to employ theoretical models of social interactions in structural estimation. This paper extends our previous work on binary choice models to account for multinomial choice.

Within economics, there has developed an increasing recognition that social interactions may play a major role in explaining a range of individual behaviors.