Strategic Contracting with Complementary Assets under Assymetric Information. With the recent tendency for companies to patent any feasible innovations they might make, public policy must focus on the disincentive effects this may have for producers who must combine multiple patents. The project seeks to understand the 'holdout problem' that stems from such situations, and evaluate policy solutions for Australia and Internationally. Expected outcomes include publication in leading Australian and ....Strategic Contracting with Complementary Assets under Assymetric Information. With the recent tendency for companies to patent any feasible innovations they might make, public policy must focus on the disincentive effects this may have for producers who must combine multiple patents. The project seeks to understand the 'holdout problem' that stems from such situations, and evaluate policy solutions for Australia and Internationally. Expected outcomes include publication in leading Australian and International journals, and inputs to the policy debate.Read moreRead less
Ways to Growth: Auditing and Encouraging Industry Innovation Capacity and Employment Growth in South-West Sydney Region. Uneven economic opportunities across regions have long concerned local and regional policymakers but policy results have remained limited. The four major strands of regional and local analytical work and policy focus (inwards attraction, focus on small local firms, innovation systems, clusters, networks) have not been combined in analysis of particular geographic spaces. The d ....Ways to Growth: Auditing and Encouraging Industry Innovation Capacity and Employment Growth in South-West Sydney Region. Uneven economic opportunities across regions have long concerned local and regional policymakers but policy results have remained limited. The four major strands of regional and local analytical work and policy focus (inwards attraction, focus on small local firms, innovation systems, clusters, networks) have not been combined in analysis of particular geographic spaces. The doctoral study proposed here is an innovative audit of economic activity in Liverpool City and the southwest region of Sydney to test ways in which the elements of economic growth identified in the four literatures interact. The aim is developing both better analytical tools and policy interventions.Read moreRead less
Adapting for an uncertain future: farmer behaviour in water-stressed basins. Given the future risk of water scarcity, farmers will need to plan for greater farm-level adaptation. Drought and policy reform have inflicted significant economic, social and personal stress upon Murray-Darling Basin rural communities. This project aims to aid water managers and policy makers with a greater understanding of transformational farmer adaptation in order to plan for the economic, social and health impacts ....Adapting for an uncertain future: farmer behaviour in water-stressed basins. Given the future risk of water scarcity, farmers will need to plan for greater farm-level adaptation. Drought and policy reform have inflicted significant economic, social and personal stress upon Murray-Darling Basin rural communities. This project aims to aid water managers and policy makers with a greater understanding of transformational farmer adaptation in order to plan for the economic, social and health impacts of future water scarcity from climate change and water reform-related policies. The focus will be on the Murray-Darling Basin, as well as undertaking a comparative analysis with water stressed basins in the United States.Read moreRead less
Child Dental Benefit Policies and the Health of Australian Children. This project aims to examine the early effects of two recent initiatives by the Australian government to improve children’s dental health by providing funds to cover essential dental services for children from disadvantaged families. It explores the factors affecting eligible children’s access to benefits from these initiatives and identifies the causal impacts of these changed health care financing arrangements on children’s c ....Child Dental Benefit Policies and the Health of Australian Children. This project aims to examine the early effects of two recent initiatives by the Australian government to improve children’s dental health by providing funds to cover essential dental services for children from disadvantaged families. It explores the factors affecting eligible children’s access to benefits from these initiatives and identifies the causal impacts of these changed health care financing arrangements on children’s consumption of dental services, indicators of oral health and general health, and other indicators of cognitive and non-cognitive development. Using advanced econometric techniques and panel datasets, this project is expected to contribute to the development of effective policies for promoting health and wellbeing.Read moreRead less
Nanny state or good public policy: Do the benefits of mandatory health programs justify the loss of consumer choice? Governments are increasingly turning to mandatory programs to improve health. Such programs are appealing because there are high health benefits from universal participation and low costs for promotion and monitoring the program. However, this apparent benefit relies on restriction of personal choice, which may impose welfare losses on consumers. Evaluations generally ignore loss ....Nanny state or good public policy: Do the benefits of mandatory health programs justify the loss of consumer choice? Governments are increasingly turning to mandatory programs to improve health. Such programs are appealing because there are high health benefits from universal participation and low costs for promotion and monitoring the program. However, this apparent benefit relies on restriction of personal choice, which may impose welfare losses on consumers. Evaluations generally ignore loss of choice, despite evidence suggesting consumers value the ability to choose. This study will estimate the impact and value this loss of consumer choice, explore program specific factors and consumer characteristics influencing the valuation, and determine whether and how restricted choice should be explicitly considered when evaluating public health programs.Read moreRead less
Economic policy when interest rates are zero. This Project studies economic policy when interest rates are zero. Low interest rate environments constrain monetary policy because central banks cannot lower rates to raise demand. We exploit recent international experience with zero rates to understand why new policies have had mixed success. We argue different outcomes across countries arise because of different degrees of credibility and familiarity with new policy initiatives. We provide empiric ....Economic policy when interest rates are zero. This Project studies economic policy when interest rates are zero. Low interest rate environments constrain monetary policy because central banks cannot lower rates to raise demand. We exploit recent international experience with zero rates to understand why new policies have had mixed success. We argue different outcomes across countries arise because of different degrees of credibility and familiarity with new policy initiatives. We provide empirical support for this view and study the consequences of imperfectly credible policy. We characterize how monetary policy (conventional and unconventional) and fiscal policy can be used to greatest effect in low interest rate environments and quantify the welfare implications for Australia. Read moreRead less
Modelling community preferences for health policy: how choice experiments can inform the organisation of acute health services for older Australians. This work will provide vital information on community preferences to inform health policy regarding how we should best organise acute healthcare for older Australians. It addresses one of the most pressing health policy issues in Australia: how to maintain a sustainable, equitable and responsive health care system, in the face of an ageing populati ....Modelling community preferences for health policy: how choice experiments can inform the organisation of acute health services for older Australians. This work will provide vital information on community preferences to inform health policy regarding how we should best organise acute healthcare for older Australians. It addresses one of the most pressing health policy issues in Australia: how to maintain a sustainable, equitable and responsive health care system, in the face of an ageing population.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
Long term economic impacts of disease on older workers to 2030: Costs to government and individuals and opportunities for intervention. This project will fill substantial gaps in Australian evidence about the health conditions of the future that will keep older workers out of the labour market and diminish their own immediate and long-term livings standards, thereby reducing funds available to government. We will address one of the most significant issues resulting from the fundamental changes t ....Long term economic impacts of disease on older workers to 2030: Costs to government and individuals and opportunities for intervention. This project will fill substantial gaps in Australian evidence about the health conditions of the future that will keep older workers out of the labour market and diminish their own immediate and long-term livings standards, thereby reducing funds available to government. We will address one of the most significant issues resulting from the fundamental changes to the demography of the Australian labour market and one that is regularly raised by the government following the release of the 2002 and 2007 Intergenerational Reports. This project will also examine the interventions that would improve the health of older workers and increase labour force participation over the long term.Read moreRead less
Community preferences for organ donation and allocation in Australia. This work will provide vital information on the Australian public's attitudes and preferences towards organ donation and allocation strategies, and inform the development of a national organ donation strategy that considers the public's preferences for different policies to increase organ donor rates. This project will directly address the National Research Priority of 'promoting and maintaining good health'; increasing the a ....Community preferences for organ donation and allocation in Australia. This work will provide vital information on the Australian public's attitudes and preferences towards organ donation and allocation strategies, and inform the development of a national organ donation strategy that considers the public's preferences for different policies to increase organ donor rates. This project will directly address the National Research Priority of 'promoting and maintaining good health'; increasing the availability of donor organs, and improving the equity and transparency of organ allocation in Australia will lead to improved health outcomes for patients on transplant waiting lists around Australia, and improved health outcomes for patients not previously eligible for transplant (e.g. some dialysis patients)Read moreRead less