The usual procedure in the field of optimal growth consists in maximizing a (discounted or not) sum of instantaneous utilities, called welfare. Such an optimality criterion implies that preferences are independent over time. Following in the tradition of Irwing Fisher, Koopmans presented an...

In the field of optimal growth theory, since Ramsey's time it is frequent to maximize a welfare function consisting of the discounted sum of instantaneous utilities. Such an optimality criterion implies that preferences are independent over time. Following in the tradition of Irwing Fisher,...

We propose a complementary explanation for the evolution of the college gender gap that emphasizes the raising opportunity cost of pursuing a college degree for men, due to the increase in the rewards to becoming a superstar in men-dominated occupations, like professional sports. We support our...

I present a survey on the econometric approach to the measurement of efficiency, focusing on the models used in empirical applications. I describe both models for cross sectional data and models for panel data. Finally, I survey the recent literature on models with time varying technical efficiency.

We report that on any given day the number of inmates released from incarceration significantly affects the number of offenses committed this day, and we name this as first-day recidivism. Our estimates of this novel approach to study early recidivism are robust to a variety of alternative model...