The paradox of politics and policy in redistributing income

With political ideology with respect to the income distribution measured by proxy as the fraction of conservative coalition victories, it is found that over the period 1961–1984 the degree of conservative coalition strength is positively associated with changes in inequality, holding the effects of unemployment and inflation constant.A natural question is why don't the low income types vote in candidates who will consistently redistribute income in their favor? The result of such a political process would be a downward trend in income inequality. In point of fact, there is no evidence whatsoever of any trend in income equality over the period. The answer to both questions may be that Tullock (1983, 1986) is on to something. If the middle class voters transfer gains back and forth, the poor can't gain and they don't, then the distribution should be stable and is.     

Erikson stage resolution: The relationship between identity and intimacy

Ego identity and intimacy statuses were determined for 88 college students, 44 men and 44 women, and related to each other and to measures of intimacy, loving, and liking. As hypothesized, more advanced stages of identity development were associated with higher levels of intimacy formation. Further, for both males and females, occupational identity development was the primary predictive factor in the identity/intimacy stage resolution relationship.Received her M. S. from Utah State University.Received his M. A. in psychology from the University of Nebraska at Omaha and his Ph.D. in human development from The Pennsylvania State University.     

Toward the development of an objective assessment of ego-identity status

Four investigations were completed to develop a self-report measure of ego-identity status. Following James Marcia's definition of diffusion, moratorium, foreclosure, and identity achievement status, a series of Likert-type items were constructed and validated for use in the study of ego-identity formation. Convergent-divergent, concurrent, and predictive validity and test-retest reliability are documented in the reported data. Cross-sectional data suggest the measure will be sensitive to intraindividual change in identity formation. The new Objective Measure of Ego-Identity Status allows researchers to use either a typology or a distribution of stage responses in future longitudinal investigations.This research was supported by a Division of Research Grant at Utah State University.Received his Ph.D. in human development from the Pennsylvania State University. Current research interests include adolescent personality and social development, interpersonal attraction, and family relations.Received her M.S. from Utah State University and is currently a doctoral student at Pennsylvania State University.Received his B.S. from Utah State University and is currently a graduate student at that institution.     

Democide and genocide as rent-seeking activities

Murder of the population by the state has been common historically and in modern times. I estimate a demand function for state-sponsored murder and find that it obeys the law of demand. The main focus of the paper is estimation of the change in the growth path of economies that practice democide relative to those that do not. On average, the rent-seeking loss associated with democide is about a 20 percent loss of wealth.     

Factors underlying migration and refugee issues: Responses and cooperation among OECD member states

Human migration over thousands of years has come to be accepted as a natural phenomenon. With the emergence 300 years ago and subsequent legitimization of state sovereignty, controls over the movement and entry of persons into virtually all states have become increasingly prevalent. As the twentieth century concludes, international migratory pressures are more intense than in any previous era. What distinguishes this period from earlier ones is that the supply of willing receiving destinations for would‐be migrants has fallen far behind the demand.

This article sets out to examine the more significant root causes behind international migration, to identify the reasons explaining the rapid rise of migration issues on the agendas of OECD governments, to discuss the varied responses to these pressures from these same governments, and to speculate about how the global migration phenomenon will continue to evolve and what stance will be adopted by concerned governments in both sending and probable and actual receiving states.