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Source: Department of Economics, Illinois Wesleyan University

Resulting in 11 citations.

1.	Bennett, Bruce T.
1.	The Demand for Higher Education: A Cost/Benefit Analysis of the Human Capitol Theory Honors Project Paper 92, Department of Economics, Illinois Wesleyan University, 1993. Also: http://digitalcommons.iwu.edu/econ_honproj/92 Cohort(s): NLSY79 Publisher: Department of Economics, Illinois Wesleyan University Keyword(s): College Enrollment; Family Background and Culture; Gender Differences; High School Completion/Graduates; Racial Differences; Socioeconomic Factors; Undergraduate Research Permission to reprint the abstract has not been received from the publisher. I will attempt to identify the costs and benefits of the high school graduate using the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth as the database. The study will be cross-sectional using those respondents born in 1964 or 1965. Using this data, I will formulate and test a number of hypotheses concerning the personal characteristics such as innate ability, family background, and other socioeconomic variables affecting the decision to go to college. Furthermore, I will explore the possibility of structural differences occurring between four groups - black males, white males, black females, and white females - to see if family background and ability have different effects on each group's educational decisions. Section II of this paper will review a sample of the current literature on my topic; Section III will present and explain the model and data to be used; Section IV will discuss the results of the regression analysis for the population; Section V will discuss the model and results of the structural equations; and Section VI will draw some conclusions and suggest ideas for further research in this area.
	Bibliography Citation Bennett, Bruce T. "The Demand for Higher Education: A Cost/Benefit Analysis of the Human Capitol Theory." Honors Project Paper 92, Department of Economics, Illinois Wesleyan University, 1993.

2.	Calaway, Jaynanne
2.	The Gender Pay Differential: Choice, Tradition, or Overt Discrimination? Honors Projects Paper 70, Department of Economics, Illinois Wesleyan University, 1999. Also: http://digitalcommons.iwu.edu/econ_honproj/70/ Cohort(s): NLSY79 Publisher: Department of Economics, Illinois Wesleyan University Keyword(s): Discrimination, Sex; Gender Attitudes/Roles; Human Capital; Undergraduate Research; Wage Differentials; Wage Gap; Wages, Men; Wages, Women Permission to reprint the abstract has not been received from the publisher. No one disputes that a male-female gender wage differential favoring men exists. This study seeks to unearth not only the sources of this differential but also the relative degrees to which the various sources impact the differential. The theories proposed by current literature suggest three principal causes: differences in human capital, crowding discrimination, and other forms of discrimination. This study estimates separate equations for men and women and then uses the regression results to decompose the gender wage differential into the three aforementioned components. We find, after isolating the effects of differences in individual human capital and choice characteristics as well as differences due to crowding, the residual surprisingly accounts for the largest proportion of the gender wage gap. Because the residual is so large, we believe that basic discrimination models must still be necessary and useful. Moreover, when one considers that the human capital differences that do exist may be reflecting feedback effects, the justification for combating societal stereotyping of gender roles becomes even stronger, to promote not only equity but also efficiency in today's labor market.
	Bibliography Citation Calaway, Jaynanne. "The Gender Pay Differential: Choice, Tradition, or Overt Discrimination?." Honors Projects Paper 70, Department of Economics, Illinois Wesleyan University, 1999.

3.	Deherrera, John A.
3.	Investments in Human Capital and the Poverty Transition Honors Project Paper 47, Department of Economics, Illinois Wesleyan University, 1994. Also: http://digitalcommons.iwu.edu/econ_honproj/47 Cohort(s): NLSY79 Publisher: Department of Economics, Illinois Wesleyan University Keyword(s): Educational Returns; Human Capital Theory; Modeling, Nonparametric Regression; Poverty; Transition, Welfare to Work; Undergraduate Research Permission to reprint the abstract has not been received from the publisher. In 1990, almost 34 million people were living below the government's official poverty level (Hoffman, p.395). That represents 13.5 percent of the total population, or more people than live in the state of California. Thus, it should be obvious that the plight of the poor is one which warrants serious concern on all levels -political, social, and economic. Unfortunately, the question of how to alleviate this dreadful problem is one that has long perplexed even the most brilliant of minds. Using the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth (NLSY), this paper will explore the various strategies within the context of the human capital economic model and determine the effects of each on youth's probability of making the transition out of poverty. This data base is particularly wellsuited to the research in that it surveys a large sample of youth aged 14-17 in 1979 and [t]races them through the year 1991. Thus, it will be possible to follow each youth's investment decisions over this time period. A regression model will then be developed to estimate the effects of various human capital investment strategies on the probability of moving out of poverty when controlling for ability and a set of background variables. It is hypothesized that formal education will prove to be a powerful predictor of the poverty transition.
	Bibliography Citation Deherrera, John A. "Investments in Human Capital and the Poverty Transition." Honors Project Paper 47, Department of Economics, Illinois Wesleyan University, 1994.

4.	Hood, Jaclyn K.
4.	The Determinants of Home Ownership: An Application of Human Capital Investment Theory To the Home Ownership Decision Honors Project Paper 71, Department of Economics, Illinois Wesleyan University, 1999. Also: http://digitalcommons.iwu.edu/econ_honproj/71 Cohort(s): NLSY79 Publisher: Department of Economics, Illinois Wesleyan University Keyword(s): Debt/Borrowing; Demography; Family Characteristics; Home Ownership; Undergraduate Research Permission to reprint the abstract has not been received from the publisher. The decision to purchase a home is one of the most important financial decisions made by young adults today. This decision is influenced by several factors including the individual's demographics and family characteristics. The purpose of this study is to focus on the influence of these factors on the probability of home ownership for young adults.
	Bibliography Citation Hood, Jaclyn K. "The Determinants of Home Ownership: An Application of Human Capital Investment Theory To the Home Ownership Decision." Honors Project Paper 71, Department of Economics, Illinois Wesleyan University, 1999.

5.	Kumazawa, Risa
5.	Educational Attainment: The Effects of Socioeconomic Differences Honors Project Paper 49, Department of Economics, Illinois Wesleyan University, 1994. Also: http://digitalcommons.iwu.edu/econ_honproj/49 Cohort(s): NLSY79 Publisher: Department of Economics, Illinois Wesleyan University Keyword(s): Educational Attainment; Ethnic Studies; Poverty; Racial Studies; Socioeconomic Factors; Undergraduate Research Permission to reprint the abstract has not been received from the publisher. Educational attainment is a topic that has been discussed in both economics and sociology. Economic research has focused on the importance of socioeconomic factors, mainly race/ ethnic origins and poverty status (Wolfe, 1973; Hoffman, 1987; Krein & Beller, 1988; Kominski, 1990; Courtless, 1991). Research in sociology has also dealt with other important factors such as attitudes and influences of significant others (Sewell, 1971; Featherman, 1972; Hauser, 1973; Featherman, 1980; Velez, 1986). Little has been done to incorporate both types of research.While sociological research took important factors into account such as attitudes, many of the initial models were constructed for studying whites. My research will predict educational attainment more accurately by integrating the models from both areas. It also tests to determine if the model predicts differently for four prominent population groups--whites, blacks, Hispanics and Asians.
	Bibliography Citation Kumazawa, Risa. "Educational Attainment: The Effects of Socioeconomic Differences." Honors Project Paper 49, Department of Economics, Illinois Wesleyan University, 1994.

6.	Rocheleau, Kara Joy
6.	The Effects of High School Mathematics and Science Classes on Wages Honors Project Paper 56, Department of Economics, Illinois Wesleyan University, 1995. Also: http://digitalcommons.iwu.edu/econ_honproj/56 Cohort(s): NLSY79 Publisher: Department of Economics, Illinois Wesleyan University Keyword(s): High School Curriculum; Human Capital Theory; Schooling; Skill Formation; Technology/Technological Changes; Undergraduate Research; Wage Levels Permission to reprint the abstract has not been received from the publisher. The popular press is filled with claims that the world is becoming a more technological place, and that mathematical and scientific knowledge is becoming a necessity. Carol Wynn, chairwoman of a chamber of commerce education group, projects by the year 2000 almost all new jobs will be technical in nature (Louka 1993, p. 1). According to Barbara Behrendt (1993, p. 1), education is also moving in that direction; many people feel pursuing more math or science oriented classes will payoff financially. I use the Human Capital Model as my theoretical framework. An individual's human capital consists of his or her acquired productive skills, talents, ability, and knowledge. Human capitalists believe that schooling enhances productivity, which in turn, increases wages. If mathematics and science classes are really essential, then they should increase productivity and wages even more so than other classes. My research looks for evidence of this. My results show that the human capital factors of previous work experience and age positively affect wages. Further, demographic variables such as having children present in the home or being male also increase wages. However, the results fail to support the claims that high school mathematics and science classes are more beneficial than other classes. None of my variables that measured the number of classes are significant. My paper concludes by suggesting possible reasons why my results did not support these claims.
	Bibliography Citation Rocheleau, Kara Joy. "The Effects of High School Mathematics and Science Classes on Wages." Honors Project Paper 56, Department of Economics, Illinois Wesleyan University, 1995.

7.	Scholz, Dan
7.	Risk and College Majors Honors Project Paper 113, Department of Economics, Illinois Wesleyan University, 1995. Also: http://digitalcommons.iwu.edu/econ_honproj/113 Cohort(s): NLSY79 Publisher: Department of Economics, Illinois Wesleyan University Keyword(s): College Major/Field of Study/Courses; Education, Guidance and Counseling; Educational Aspirations/Expectations; Occupational Choice; Occupational Investment; Risk Perception; Undergraduate Research Permission to reprint the abstract has not been received from the publisher. When students choose a certain field of study in college, some opportunities are instantly forgone. Since different types of educations have varying degrees of forgone opportunities, risk is associated with educational choices. The extent to which these educational choices impose a risk on the individual is studied here. It is hypothesized that more technically oriented and job-specific type educations will have a higher risk than less restrictive liberal arts type educations. Using a large sample drawn from the National Longitudinal Survey of Labor Market Experience of Youth, this paper examines the presence and nature of risk across the different areas of study. Initial analysis reveals that compared to other areas of study, engineers and scientists have a high average income and a high variance in those incomes. Using standard linear regression analysis to control for background variables, it is found that in general, this variance is significant and positively correlated to the higher paying, more technical fields.
	Bibliography Citation Scholz, Dan. "Risk and College Majors." Honors Project Paper 113, Department of Economics, Illinois Wesleyan University, 1995.

8.	Shull, Virginia
8.	Division of Labor and the Economic Determinants of Divorce Honors Project Paper 57, Department of Economics, Illinois Wesleyan University, 1995. Also: http://digitalcommons.iwu.edu/econ_honproj/57 Cohort(s): NLSY79 Publisher: Department of Economics, Illinois Wesleyan University Keyword(s): Divorce; Family Formation; Family Income; Family Models; Family Studies; Gender Attitudes/Roles; Marital Satisfaction/Quality; Marital Stability; Marriage; Undergraduate Research Permission to reprint the abstract has not been received from the publisher. The theme of the 1992 National Republican Convention rang out with such phrases as the "traditional family" and "family values," and many conservatives asserted that a return to these molds of the established institutions of marriage and family would be the solution to the societal ills America now faces. As the number of single parent households skyrocketed in the 1980's and more single-headed household incomes began to fall at or below the poverty line, America as a whole began to feel the economic burden of a booming population of families economically dependent on federal and state social programs. This paper will explore how the economic structure of a marriage determines the viability of the marriage over time. More specifically, it will attempt to test a hypothesis implied by Gary Becker's theory of the family that the lack of division of labor between two spouses, that is both spouses working full time outside the home, causes a greater probability of divorce. Hence, a "traditional family", with only one spouse as the primary wage earner and the other spouse primarily producing nonmarketable commodities within the home is "better off" than a non-traditional family because that family unit is more likely to realize economies from divisions of labor and to remain permanent.
	Bibliography Citation Shull, Virginia. "Division of Labor and the Economic Determinants of Divorce." Honors Project Paper 57, Department of Economics, Illinois Wesleyan University, 1995.

9.	Smith, Angela A.
9.	Predicting the Divorce Decisions of Young Women Using the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth Honors Project Paper 63, Department of Economics, Illinois Wesleyan University, 1996. Also: http://digitalcommons.iwu.edu/econ_honproj/63 Cohort(s): NLSY79 Publisher: Department of Economics, Illinois Wesleyan University Keyword(s): Divorce; Economic Changes/Recession; Family Income; Family Structure; Marital Satisfaction/Quality; Marriage; Undergraduate Research; Wage Rates; Wages, Young Women Permission to reprint the abstract has not been received from the publisher. Over recent decades, we have witnessed drastic changes in American family structure. Previous studies, such as those performed by Gary Becker (1991) and Manser and Brown (1980) have applied economic models to divorce and other family structure decisions. Building on the utility maximization analysis of Manser and Brown, as adapted by John Ermisch (1993), this study uses a logit regression analysis to predict divorce decisions for an all female sample of respondents, ages 28 to 36. Data are extracted from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth for this analysis. Economic theory predicts that the probability of divorce is directly related to one's opportunity cost to being married. Using a woman's estimated wage rate as a proxy for the economic portion of this opportunity cost, this study hypothesizes that the probability of a woman seeking divorce will increase with increases in her potential wage rate, holding total family income constant. The empirical results of the study support this hypothesis.
	Bibliography Citation Smith, Angela A. "Predicting the Divorce Decisions of Young Women Using the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth." Honors Project Paper 63, Department of Economics, Illinois Wesleyan University, 1996.

10.	Spear, Nicole K.
10.	Adopted Children's Outcome as Young Adults in Regards to Educational Attainment and Income Honors Project Paper 102, Department of Economics, Illinois Wesleyan University, 2009. Also: http://digitalcommons.iwu.edu/econ_honproj/102 Cohort(s): NLSY79 Publisher: Department of Economics, Illinois Wesleyan University Keyword(s): Adoption; Family Income; Family Size; Mothers, Education; Poverty; Undergraduate Research Permission to reprint the abstract has not been received from the publisher. This study explains the differences between the outcomes for children adopted by the age of two in comparison to biologically raised children using the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth. It analyzes the educational attainment and income earned through a competing effects framework. The Family Background Effect measures the positive effects caused by higher than average socioeconomic status of the average family with adopted children. The Family Background Effect contrasted with the negative Adoption Effect caused by a number of different factors that could work against an adopted child. Using linear regression analysis, the study finds that the Family Background Effect prevails over the Adoption Effect. Then the Oaxaca Decomposition technique breaks down the effects of each family background variable on educational attainment for the adopted young adult. It is determined that the differences in the average level of education of the respondents' mother explains over 50% of the' difference in educational attainment between adopted and biologically raised young adults.
	Bibliography Citation Spear, Nicole K. "Adopted Children's Outcome as Young Adults in Regards to Educational Attainment and Income." Honors Project Paper 102, Department of Economics, Illinois Wesleyan University, 2009.

11.	Van Dyke, Jennifer
11.	Does it Pay to be a Man? A Study of Pay Differentials Between College Graduates Honors Project Paper 73, Department of Economics, Illinois Wesleyan University, 1999. Also: http://digitalcommons.iwu.edu/econ_honproj/73 Cohort(s): NLSY79 Publisher: Department of Economics, Illinois Wesleyan University Keyword(s): College Enrollment; Undergraduate Research; Wage Differentials; Wages, Young Men; Wages, Young Women Permission to reprint the abstract has not been received from the publisher. This paper takes a section by section approach to address the problem of wage differentials between college men and women. Section I serves as an introduction to the topic and Section II introduces the theoretical foundation for this subject. Section III lays out the hypothesis and explains the theoretical model and data. Section IV discusses the results of the model and Section V draws conclusions from the results and makes policy implications.
	Bibliography Citation Van Dyke, Jennifer. "Does it Pay to be a Man? A Study of Pay Differentials Between College Graduates." Honors Project Paper 73, Department of Economics, Illinois Wesleyan University, 1999.

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