Improved theory and practice in econometric modelling of nonlinear spatial time series. Modern Australia faces many challenges in economic and global climate changes, which require advanced statistical technologies in modeling and forecasting of econometric spatial time series data. This project will provide flexible models and methods that enable practitioners to more accurately measure and manage economic and climatic risks.
Origins, evolution, and economic cost of gender norms. Gender norms are slow to change, and key drivers of economic development. This proposal leverages natural experiments to test their causal implications on two major channels of economic growth: the trust shared by individuals and the productivity of firms. It will use cutting-edge empirical techniques to generate novel measures of diversity and inclusion for Australian firms, and will conduct original fieldwork, matching experimental measure ....Origins, evolution, and economic cost of gender norms. Gender norms are slow to change, and key drivers of economic development. This proposal leverages natural experiments to test their causal implications on two major channels of economic growth: the trust shared by individuals and the productivity of firms. It will use cutting-edge empirical techniques to generate novel measures of diversity and inclusion for Australian firms, and will conduct original fieldwork, matching experimental measures of trust and cooperation with variation in traditional male versus female roles. This research aims at improving fundamental knowledge about how cultural norms shape economic outcomes and anticipates delivering practical policy recommendations for more efficient and inclusive economic growth. Read moreRead less
A Bayesian State Space Methodology for Forecasting Stock Market Volatility and Associated Time-varying Risk Premia. Accurate prediction of stock market volatility is critical for effective financial risk management. Along with information on volatility embedded in historical stock market returns, the prices of options written on the underlying stocks also reflect the option market's assessment of future volatility. This project will exploit this dual data source in a completely new way, using it ....A Bayesian State Space Methodology for Forecasting Stock Market Volatility and Associated Time-varying Risk Premia. Accurate prediction of stock market volatility is critical for effective financial risk management. Along with information on volatility embedded in historical stock market returns, the prices of options written on the underlying stocks also reflect the option market's assessment of future volatility. This project will exploit this dual data source in a completely new way, using it to produce forecasts of both volatility itself and the premia factored into asset prices as a result of traders' perceptions of volatility risk. State-of-the-art statistical methods will be used to produce up-dates of the probability of extreme volatility and/or extreme risk aversion, as new market data becomes available each trading day.Read moreRead less
Health insurance design: choices, consumer behavior and policy challenges . Rising health costs is a global challenge. Creating an efficient health insurance system is a key policy concern in all developed countries. This project aims to study choices, consumer behaviors, and policy challenges in two health insurance markets: Australian private health insurance (PHI) and US Medicare prescription drug insurance.
Expected outcomes include new evidence needed to develop a new framework for PHI, ne ....Health insurance design: choices, consumer behavior and policy challenges . Rising health costs is a global challenge. Creating an efficient health insurance system is a key policy concern in all developed countries. This project aims to study choices, consumer behaviors, and policy challenges in two health insurance markets: Australian private health insurance (PHI) and US Medicare prescription drug insurance.
Expected outcomes include new evidence needed to develop a new framework for PHI, new knowledge on how consumers respond to complex pricing structures, and new policy proposals to improve the overall efficiency of the health system. The research will benefit the re-design of PHI and the health system to improve Australians’ health while saving health costs.
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Resilient Democracy for the 21st Century. This project will establish novel foundational theoretical frameworks for the design of democratic institutions that can withstand internal and external pressure towards autocratisation. It will develop state of the art dynamic models of information manipulation and political dynamics, and analyse large-scale online survey experiments, as well as contemporary and historical data. This combination will deliver new insights into the management of sensitive ....Resilient Democracy for the 21st Century. This project will establish novel foundational theoretical frameworks for the design of democratic institutions that can withstand internal and external pressure towards autocratisation. It will develop state of the art dynamic models of information manipulation and political dynamics, and analyse large-scale online survey experiments, as well as contemporary and historical data. This combination will deliver new insights into the management of sensitive information and how to protect democracy from information manipulation. Ultimately, the project will generate a body of theoretical and empirical evidence for the design of more effective and resilient democratic institutions for a more inclusive economic development. Read moreRead less
Understanding Business Dynamism: Drivers and Macroeconomic Implications. Business dynamism – the process of firm entry, growth and exit – is key for productivity as it moves jobs and capital from less to more efficient uses. But, business dynamism (and with it growth in productivity and living standards) has slowed in many countries, including Australia. Grasping the reasons and economic effects of this is a challenge. This Project aims to reshape our thinking about business dynamism, its driver ....Understanding Business Dynamism: Drivers and Macroeconomic Implications. Business dynamism – the process of firm entry, growth and exit – is key for productivity as it moves jobs and capital from less to more efficient uses. But, business dynamism (and with it growth in productivity and living standards) has slowed in many countries, including Australia. Grasping the reasons and economic effects of this is a challenge. This Project aims to reshape our thinking about business dynamism, its drivers, and how it impacts the economy – from sources of long-run productivity growth and the cleansing effect of firm exit, to how climate risks impact business dynamism. The delivered empirical facts and models will aid policy design for reviving business dynamism, underpinning potentially large societal and economic gains.Read moreRead less
Ambient spatial intelligence: Spatial analysis and event detection in environmental geosensor networks. This project will design and test innovative new decentralised algorithms for responding to spatiotemporal queries in environmental monitoring networks. The research is essential for constructing larger, denser, and more reliable networks, helping to embed spatial intelligence within the environment itself (ambient spatial intelligence). The project builds on Australia's existing research exce ....Ambient spatial intelligence: Spatial analysis and event detection in environmental geosensor networks. This project will design and test innovative new decentralised algorithms for responding to spatiotemporal queries in environmental monitoring networks. The research is essential for constructing larger, denser, and more reliable networks, helping to embed spatial intelligence within the environment itself (ambient spatial intelligence). The project builds on Australia's existing research excellence in geographic information science. By making smarter use of spatial information, the project will further strengthen Australia's world-leading spatial information industry, and support sustainable and economic environmental management through important applications like conservation contracts and carbon sequestration monitoring.Read moreRead less
Fostering Safe Nanotechnology Research Focused on Critical Public Health Problems. This Project builds upon the applicant's unique interdisciplinary research and collaborations to develop an innovative framework for improving occupational health and safety standards of nanotechnology research at the Australian National University and fostering its focus on critical public health problems such as biosecurity, food and water safety, pollution control and equitable access to health technologies.
Regional dimensions of the transition to a low carbon economy. This project's examination of the impacts of carbon-reduction policies in two vulnerable regions will identify the social, political, economic and cultural changes needed to promote the revitalisation of regional economies and communities.
Income and well-being: Evidence from international commodity price shocks. This project aims to examine the effects of income from international commodity price windfalls on peoples’ well-being. Exports of natural resources (iron, coal and copper) are an important source of income for the Australian economy. International prices for these commodities have declined in recent years, lowering national income. The project will analyse both objective and subjective measures of well-being at both the ....Income and well-being: Evidence from international commodity price shocks. This project aims to examine the effects of income from international commodity price windfalls on peoples’ well-being. Exports of natural resources (iron, coal and copper) are an important source of income for the Australian economy. International prices for these commodities have declined in recent years, lowering national income. The project will analyse both objective and subjective measures of well-being at both the cross-country time-series and the sub-national levels, tailored to the Australian economy. It is expected that the project’s findings will benefit academia, public policy makers and everyday people. The project will inform academics and policy makers about how income from international commodity price windfalls affects peoples' well-being.Read moreRead less