In this study we explore the determinants of body-weight in Greece utilizing information at the individual level from the National Health Survey of 2009. BMI has been treated as both, a cardinal and an ordinal measure of body-weight, while different estimation techniques were applied (OLS,...

The first cluster of coronavirus cases in Europe was officially detected on 21st February 2020 in Northern Italy, even if recent evidence showed sporadic first cases in Europe at the beginning of the year. In this study we have tested the presence of coronavirus in Italy and, even more...

The structure of China’s current governance bears prominent features of fiscal decentralization. The supply of healthcare resources in China has clearly witnessed slower growth in the last two decades during which the fiscal decentralization process has taken place. Using China’s provincial...

The rapid spread of COVID-19 motivated countries worldwide to mitigate mortality through actions including social distancing, home quarantine, school closures, and case isolation. We estimate the global mortality benefits of these actions. We use county-level data on COVID-19 from January 2020,...

The main thesis in this manuscript is that a social choice theory based on aggregating individual preferences and values is insufficient to confront the social choices that today’s world is facing. It is defended in here that institutions play a critical role in any social choice, and that the...

In less than fifteen years, the world has experienced the worst financial crisis since the 1930’s, the worst global pandemic since the flu in 1918, and the largest war fought since the Second World War. This manuscript argues that these crises are not isolated events. The main thesis is that...

This paper examines the impact of stay-at-home policies on people’s health behaviours towards weight gain and probable obesity attributable to imposing the order. Using Google Trends data, we investigate whether the lockdowns that were implemented in the U.S. led to changes in...

We set and solved the problem of identifying socio-economic determinants of Parkinson's disease (PD) by comparing the characteristics of different countries. Econometric analysis of panel data on 117 countries for 2010-2013 showed that the nature of the impact of a number of factors depends on...

Using Japan’s prefecture-level panel data from 1989-2001, this paper examines the influence of the social norm on a person’s smoking behavior when the complementary relationship between smoking and drinking is taken into account. The key findings through a dynamic panel model controlling for...

The evidence of higher income inequality leading to increased HIV prevalence through channels of coercion and migration has emerged. This coupled with previously established macroeconomic impact of HIV/AIDS connotes reverse causality that is likely to develop a cyclical effect. The plausible...