The Dynamics of Low Income, Welfare reliance, and Changes in the Family Stucture of Parents with Dependent children. We build a new seven-year longitudinal database, from FaCS administrative records and supplementary surveys, for low income parents with dependent children to analyse the dynamics of, and interrationships among, changes in family structure, income and welfare reliance. We identify and analyse exit and entry routes from low income, short and long run welfare receipt and movement fr ....The Dynamics of Low Income, Welfare reliance, and Changes in the Family Stucture of Parents with Dependent children. We build a new seven-year longitudinal database, from FaCS administrative records and supplementary surveys, for low income parents with dependent children to analyse the dynamics of, and interrationships among, changes in family structure, income and welfare reliance. We identify and analyse exit and entry routes from low income, short and long run welfare receipt and movement from one program to another, and highlight locational/regional variations in these movements. The project will help policy makers evaluate the impacts of existing programs and will change the nature and significance of Australian research and policy development in welfare dependency and support.Read moreRead less
A Review of Work for the Dole as a Labour Market Program. The project will review the Work for the Dole program in terms of its first formal objective (to install work habits in young people)and in the wider context of giving young unemployed people the skills and confidence that will increase their chances of finding employment. The principal research tools used will be sample surveys and in-depth interviews. An independent substantial review will give a firm basis for discussions of the progr ....A Review of Work for the Dole as a Labour Market Program. The project will review the Work for the Dole program in terms of its first formal objective (to install work habits in young people)and in the wider context of giving young unemployed people the skills and confidence that will increase their chances of finding employment. The principal research tools used will be sample surveys and in-depth interviews. An independent substantial review will give a firm basis for discussions of the program, including how it can be improved and whether or not, given the political imperatives to retain it,it is desirable to increase expenditure on it.Read moreRead less
Technological innovation, trade liberalization, unemployment, and policy design. Australia, like all economies, is heavily influenced by technological changes and shifting trade patterns. Understanding these influences, and the impact they have on the distribution of income, the unemployment rate, and the job mix, is very important for the design of appropriate policy initiatives. The proposed research aims to achieve exactly this by developing a mathematical model which incorporates technologic ....Technological innovation, trade liberalization, unemployment, and policy design. Australia, like all economies, is heavily influenced by technological changes and shifting trade patterns. Understanding these influences, and the impact they have on the distribution of income, the unemployment rate, and the job mix, is very important for the design of appropriate policy initiatives. The proposed research aims to achieve exactly this by developing a mathematical model which incorporates technological change, trade, and unemployment. The model will be used to analyse the effects of these changes and, thus, to design optimal policy. The results from this project should also stimulate policy discussions both within Australia and abroad - enriching academic relations between domestic and international universities.Read moreRead less
Blended payment systems for doctors: evaluation of an experiment. The results of the study will provide new evidence for health care policy makers in Australia (and internationally) on the effects of changing the remuneration system for GPs on the costs and quality of health care provided. The study will examine effects in the national priority and national health priority areas of preventive health care and chronic disease. The results will be relevant to other countries, such as the US and U ....Blended payment systems for doctors: evaluation of an experiment. The results of the study will provide new evidence for health care policy makers in Australia (and internationally) on the effects of changing the remuneration system for GPs on the costs and quality of health care provided. The study will examine effects in the national priority and national health priority areas of preventive health care and chronic disease. The results will be relevant to other countries, such as the US and UK, where blended payments schemes exist for GPs but have not been evaluated. Read moreRead less
Understanding the Effects of News Shocks on Macroeconomic Fluctuations. There are significant potential benefits for Australia. First, it could lead to more effective policymaking, with an understanding of how policy in one branch of the government can affect other sectors that have not been considered before. For example, changes in fiscal policy can affect not just growth, but also unemployment, inflation, and the income distribution. Second, this project will make a contribution to the resear ....Understanding the Effects of News Shocks on Macroeconomic Fluctuations. There are significant potential benefits for Australia. First, it could lead to more effective policymaking, with an understanding of how policy in one branch of the government can affect other sectors that have not been considered before. For example, changes in fiscal policy can affect not just growth, but also unemployment, inflation, and the income distribution. Second, this project will make a contribution to the research training of new macroeconomists in Australia: we will train three PhD students in the very latest methods. We also will organize a conference and bring the very top economists in the world to work with researchers here, and to consider issues surrounding the Australian economy. Read moreRead less
Evaluating the impact of Indigenous preferential procurement programs. This project aims to conduct a multi-disciplinary, multi-method evaluation of the implementation and impacts of Indigenous preferential procurement programs (IPPPs) on Indigenous businesses, Indigenous communities, procurers’ operations and outcomes. Bringing together researchers in partnership with corporate and government procurers, Indigenous data custodians and the Australian Bureau of Statistics we aim to produce a signi ....Evaluating the impact of Indigenous preferential procurement programs. This project aims to conduct a multi-disciplinary, multi-method evaluation of the implementation and impacts of Indigenous preferential procurement programs (IPPPs) on Indigenous businesses, Indigenous communities, procurers’ operations and outcomes. Bringing together researchers in partnership with corporate and government procurers, Indigenous data custodians and the Australian Bureau of Statistics we aim to produce a significant national program evaluation of IPPPs and the impact at the community level. The project aims to highlight ways in which IPPPs can be [re]designed to reduce implementation friction, facilitate access and participation among Indigenous businesses and help guarantee positive effects on Indigenous communities.Read moreRead less
State & territory economic performance and national economic policy. The research is intended to provide a better understanding of the relationship between national and state & territory economic behaviour in Australia and the relative strengths of common and idiosyncratic factors affecting economic performance across the states and territories. The results of the research will help to inform both national and sub-national economic policies and hence contribute to better economic and social outc ....State & territory economic performance and national economic policy. The research is intended to provide a better understanding of the relationship between national and state & territory economic behaviour in Australia and the relative strengths of common and idiosyncratic factors affecting economic performance across the states and territories. The results of the research will help to inform both national and sub-national economic policies and hence contribute to better economic and social outcomes in Australia.Read moreRead less
PATHWAYS TO IMPROVED EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT FOR INDIGENOUS AUSTRALIANS: SOCIAL AND INSTITUTIONAL FACTORS UNDERLYING SCHOOL PARTICIPATION. This project aims to provide an economic analysis of social environmental and institutional factors associated with educational participation of Indigenous and other Australian youth. The incentives for Indigenous youth to attend school, include: local labour market conditions, and the extent/nature of Indigenous interaction with the criminal justice system. B ....PATHWAYS TO IMPROVED EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT FOR INDIGENOUS AUSTRALIANS: SOCIAL AND INSTITUTIONAL FACTORS UNDERLYING SCHOOL PARTICIPATION. This project aims to provide an economic analysis of social environmental and institutional factors associated with educational participation of Indigenous and other Australian youth. The incentives for Indigenous youth to attend school, include: local labour market conditions, and the extent/nature of Indigenous interaction with the criminal justice system. By identifying the relative importance of the factors underlying education, policy can be directed to reducing dependence on welfare by enhancing their competitiveness in the mainstream labour market. The resulting increase in social inclusion of Indigenous people is no doubt a pre-condition for achieving a lasting reconciliation of Indigenous and other Australians.Read moreRead less
Competition in medical labour markets. A sharp increase in the supply of medical practitioners has occurred in Australia. This is expensive and has uncertain effects on population health, earnings, and the distribution of medical practitioners. The aim of this project is to examine the impact of competition and increased supply on the prices charged, the quality of care provided, and the health status of patients. The research also aims to examine the location choices of medical practitioners an ....Competition in medical labour markets. A sharp increase in the supply of medical practitioners has occurred in Australia. This is expensive and has uncertain effects on population health, earnings, and the distribution of medical practitioners. The aim of this project is to examine the impact of competition and increased supply on the prices charged, the quality of care provided, and the health status of patients. The research also aims to examine the location choices of medical practitioners and is expected to generate new and important evidence using unique longitudinal data.Read moreRead less
Literacy and Numeracy, Schooling, Neighbourhoods and Labour Market Success. Our research will assess the role of literacy and numeracy in explaining the educational attainment and labour markets outcomes of young Australians, after accounting for background characteristics and school and neighbourhood effects. By exploiting differences in Australian jurisdictions? school structures, it will enable, for the first time, the direct estimation of the effect of schooling on literacy and numeracy. T ....Literacy and Numeracy, Schooling, Neighbourhoods and Labour Market Success. Our research will assess the role of literacy and numeracy in explaining the educational attainment and labour markets outcomes of young Australians, after accounting for background characteristics and school and neighbourhood effects. By exploiting differences in Australian jurisdictions? school structures, it will enable, for the first time, the direct estimation of the effect of schooling on literacy and numeracy. This will clarify the role of literacy and numeracy in subsequent decisions to acquire more human capital through education. This will enable more precise estimates of the contribution of literacy and numeracy to subsequent labour market outcomes achieved by young Australians.Read moreRead less