This dissertation consists of three chapters that contribute to the fields of macroeconomics, economic development, and entrepreneurship. In the first chapter, "Entrepreneurship Selection and Performance in the U.S. and Across Countries: The Role of Human Capital," I seek to establish a set of stylized facts related to entrepreneurship…

21st century research, to date, indicates that the private and social returns from higher education are substantial. The subtext of both human capital theory and the signaling model is a belief that higher earnings are an indicator of "earned merit"; an assumption called into question, challenging the meritocratic basis for earnings…

This paper presents a comprehensive analysis of the link between age and proficiency in information-processing skills, based on information drawn from the Survey of Adult Skills (PIAAC). The data reveal significant age-related differences in proficiencies, strongly suggesting that proficiency tends to "naturally" decline with age. Age…

The Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) program is growing at an unsustainable pace. Over the past 40 years the number of disabled worker beneficiaries has increased nearly sixfold, rising from 1.5 million in 1970 to 8.2 million in 2010. Rapid growth in the rolls has put increasing pressure on program finances. The rapid rise in SSDI…

In order to profit from the economic growth in their society farmers can (1) increase the yields of their crops and animals, (2) switch to the production of high value products for which there is an increasing demand in the market, (3) increase the labour productivity on their farm, (4) find non-farm sources of income for some or all of their…

We examine the relationship between human capital and economic activity in U.S. metropolitan areas, extending the literature in two ways. First, we utilize new data on metropolitan area GDP to measure economic activity. Results show that a one-percentage-point increase in the proportion of residents with a college degree is associated with about a…

Canada weathered the global economic crisis well, mainly reflecting sustained growth in domestic pending, and the economy is continuing to grow despite the persistence of international turbulence, most recently stemming from the euro zone sovereign debt crisis. In Canada's case, several factors are acting in its favour. Federal fiscal plans are…

Attacks two assumptions: (1) that schooling raises the level of cognitive development of students, and (2) that this increase explains the relationship between schooling and earnings. (Author/LR)

A review of the state of the art of educational economics considers recent seemingly conflicting or disparate forms of economic analysis such as human capital theory, the study of education and economic growth, distribution of income, internal system efficiency, and education's effects on crime, savings, and consumption. (MSE)

Provides a review of research on the contribution of education to the organization and productivity of a nation's resources. Focuses on what is known about the particular contribution of higher education to U.S. economic growth. Discusses the relationship between earnings and additional schooling. Concludes that increased education probably has…

A series of multiple linear regressions analyses was used to investigate the relationship between educational stock and economic output. The gross state product (GSP) per capita was used as the dependent variable. Used as independent variables were percentages of: (1) state residents with a high school diploma and above; (2) state residents with…

The work of the Arizona Commission for Postsecondary Education (ACPE) is guided by a strategic plan. The purpose of the plan is to provide focus for the activity of this small agency and its five staff members in order to increase productivity and impact in the areas of its statutory authority. The mission and goals were accepted by Commissioners…

The central purpose of the present study is to examine whether increases in the potential productivity and/or the credential-derived social attractiveness of ghetto workers are translated into higher quality employment. Under the untested assumption that the potential productivity of a worker living in the ghetto is positively correlated with the…

Economic decline is indicated by productivity per man-hour of work, per capita real personal income, and real gross national product. Unless new technology overcomes the force of a stable population and develops new sources of raw materials and of energy, economic decline seems a likely possibility. Creative management is a process of planning,…

Data from the 1970 National Longitudinal Survey of Labor Market Experience are employed to estimate the foregone earnings of college students. An estimation of earnings functions from male and female youths who are not enrolled in school, and the potential earnings of enrollees is derived by substituting the characteristics of enrollees into the…