http://ageconsearch.umn.edu/handle/36551 Search the Channel search http://ageconsearch.umn.edu/simple-search http://ageconsearch.umn.edu/handle/10151 Title: Inside Front Cover Thu, 29 Mar 2007 22:58:59 GMT http://ageconsearch.umn.edu/handle/10152 Title: Table of Contents Thu, 29 Mar 2007 22:58:59 GMT http://ageconsearch.umn.edu/handle/10153 Title: Amenities and Rural Appalachia Economic Growth <br/> <br/>Authors: Deller, Steven; Lledo, Victor <br/> <br/>Abstract: Patterns of economic growth in rural Appalachia are examined with a focus on natural and built amenities. While the literature is clear that rural areas endowed with scenic beauty, lakes, forests, and wildlife, among other natural amenities, and coupled with built amenities such as golf courses, are experiencing robust economic growth. It is not clear if these patterns extend to rural Appalachia. In this applied research study we use data for rural U.S. counties. We estimate an augmented Carlino-Mills growth model with specific attention to growth patterns of Appalachia. We also build on the empirical modeling by adopting a Bayesian Modeling Average (BMA) approach to address the problem of model specification. We find that while there are some commonalities across the whole of the United States, the country is sufficiently heterogeneous that impact of amenities or other policy variables may be significantly different depending on where one is within the country. Our results suggest that while non-metropolitan Appalachia tends to follow national trends, there are sufficient differences that warrant special attention. Thu, 29 Mar 2007 22:58:59 GMT http://ageconsearch.umn.edu/handle/10154 Title: Net Gains from 'Net Purchases? Farmers' Preferences for Online and Local Input Purchases <br/> <br/>Authors: Batte, Marvin T.; Ernst, Stan <br/> <br/>Abstract: E-commerce represents both threats to and opportunities for rural communities. This study addresses one element of the issue: farmers' willingness to substitute online merchants or national farm input stores for local businesses. Results of a conjoint analysis of contingent choice experiments suggest that farmers are willing to purchase from online or national stores outside their communities if compensated with lower prices or greater services. Results also demonstrate that the context of the input purchase, such as time constraints, was very important not only in valuing these services, but, more broadly, in terms of the farmer's loyalty to a local merchant. Thu, 29 Mar 2007 22:58:59 GMT http://ageconsearch.umn.edu/handle/10155 Title: Can Health Care Services Attract Retirees And Contribute to the Economic Sustainability of Rural Places? <br/> <br/>Authors: Oehmke, James F.; Tsukamoto, Satoshi; Post, Lori A. <br/> <br/>Abstract: The search for engines to power rural economic growth has gone beyond the traditional boundaries of the food and fiber sector to industries such as tourism and to schemes such as attracting metropolitan workers to commuter communities with rural amenities. A group that has been somewhat overlooked is retirees, who may wish to trade in urban or suburban life-styles for a more peaceful rural retirement. An industry that has been neglected is the health care industry, which is the most rapidly growing industry nationally and of particular interest to retirees and aging populations. This paper examines the importance of rural health care services in attracting migrants age 65+ to rural counties in Michigan. Results indicate that the number of health care workers has a positive effect on net in-migration, and that this effect is large and statistically significant for the 70+ age group. Implications for rural development strategies are discussed. Thu, 29 Mar 2007 22:58:59 GMT http://ageconsearch.umn.edu/handle/10156 Title: Front Cover Thu, 29 Mar 2007 22:58:59 GMT http://ageconsearch.umn.edu/handle/10157 Title: ARER GUIDELINES FOR MANUSCRIPT SUBMISSION Thu, 29 Mar 2007 22:58:59 GMT http://ageconsearch.umn.edu/handle/10158 Title: The Emergence of Rural Artistic Havens: A First Look <br/> <br/>Authors: Wojan, Timothy R.; Lambert, Dayton M.; McGranahan, David A. <br/> <br/>Abstract: Nearly all applied research on arts activity has examined phenomena in metropolitan areas. Findings from this past research confirm an arts specialization in a limited number of cities. This paper finds a similar pattern in nonmetropolitan areas, where a limited number of counties maintain or develop a distinct specialization in the arts. We document the emergence of these "rural artistic havens" and identify county characteristics associated with the attraction of performing, fine, and applied artists. The implications of these findings for rural development strategies focusing on the arts are discussed. Thu, 29 Mar 2007 22:58:59 GMT http://ageconsearch.umn.edu/handle/10159 Title: Editorial Board Thu, 29 Mar 2007 22:58:59 GMT http://ageconsearch.umn.edu/handle/10160 Title: Place-Based Economic Policy: Innovation or Fad? <br/> <br/>Authors: Johnson, Thomas G. <br/> <br/>Abstract: This paper explores the emerging concept of place-based economic policy. It reviews recent literature on place-based economics policy, especially regional competitiveness policy, and explores the adoption and diffusion of this concept by economic development practitioners and social science researchers. It attempts to answer the question: Are place-based economic policy and the underlying conceptual foundations lasting innovations, or are they fads which economic development practitioners and social scientists will adopt until another fad emerges? The conclusion is that economic development practitioners and social scientists do tend to respond to fads. To ensure that regional economic development policy is not dominated by fads, social scientists must get out in front of economic development practitioners far enough to thoroughly develop and test regional competitiveness and other place-based economic theories. Thu, 29 Mar 2007 22:58:59 GMT http://ageconsearch.umn.edu/handle/10161 Title: Regional Growth Impacts on Agricultural Land Development: A Spatial Model for Three States <br/> <br/>Authors: Hailu, Yohannes G.; Brown, Cheryl <br/> <br/>Abstract: In this study we attempt to understand the relationship between regional growth in population, employment, and per capita income, and farmland development in Maryland, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia. A spatial simultaneous equations model is estimated using county-level data. Results indicate that while county income growth and agricultural land value increases in neighboring counties increase the rate of farmland loss, growth in county agricultural land values, increases in agricultural land density in neighboring counties, and increases in agricultural income per farm reduce farmland losses. Farmland protection policies were not significant in reducing agricultural land development. This approach, focused on regional growth, provides insight into linkages between growth and agricultural land development that can potentially enhance land use planning. Thu, 29 Mar 2007 22:58:59 GMT http://ageconsearch.umn.edu/handle/10162 Title: Ambient Returns: Creative Capital's Contribution to Local Manufacturing Competitiveness <br/> <br/>Authors: Wojan, Timothy R.; McGranahan, David A. <br/> <br/>Abstract: This paper addresses the possibility that competitive rural manufacturing is increasingly driven by quality-of-life factors required to attract highly skilled and creative workers. Recent findings that highly creative workers are drawn to amenity-rich rural areas provide the empirical leverage for testing anecdotal claims that these areas tend to contain small manufacturing bases that are more reliant on innovation. This contrasts with the cost advantage rationale of traditional rural manufacturing, an advantage that is eroding with increased globalization. The analysis provides the first empirical evidence that the start of entrepreneurial manufacturing plants and the adoption of advanced technologies and management practices are strongly associated with the local employment share in highly creative occupations. Thu, 29 Mar 2007 22:58:59 GMT http://ageconsearch.umn.edu/handle/10163 Title: Spatial Analysis of Rural Economic Development Using a Locally Weighted Regression Model <br/> <br/>Authors: Cho, Seong-Hoon; Kim, Seung Gyu; Clark, Christopher D.; Park, William M. <br/> <br/>Abstract: This study uses locally weighted regression to identify county-level characteristics that serve as drivers of creative employment throughout the southern United States. We found that higher per capita income, greater infrastructure investments, and the rural nature of a county tended to promote creative employment density, while higher scores on a natural amenity index had the opposite effect. We were also able to identify and map clusters of rural counties where the marginal effects of these variables on creative employment density were greatest. These findings should help rural communities to promote creative employment growth as a means of furthering rural economic development. Thu, 29 Mar 2007 22:58:59 GMT http://ageconsearch.umn.edu/handle/10164 Title: A Consumption Base Theory of Development: An Application to the Rural Cultural Economy <br/> <br/>Authors: Markusen, Ann <br/> <br/>Abstract: Export base theory, which posits that overall regional growth is a function of external sales of locally produced goods and services, dominates economic development practice. But the consumption base can also serve as a growth driver, especially in small towns and rural areas. Local investments may induce residents to divert expenditures into local purchases, attract new and footloose residents and tourists, and revitalize aging town centers. A consumption base approach is not reducible to import substitution, but seeks to serve latent demand and alter the broad portfolio of goods and services purchased locally. I present the analytics for a consumption base theory and demonstrate how cultural investments prompt regional growth, emphasizing the role of artists as catalysts. Three types of arts and cultural investments are explored: artists' centers, artists' live/work spaces, and performing arts facilities, with examples from rural and small town settings. I conclude with rural cultural strategy recommendations. Thu, 29 Mar 2007 22:58:59 GMT http://ageconsearch.umn.edu/handle/10165 Title: What Is Historic Integrity Worth to the General Public? Evidence from a Proposed Relocation of a West Virginia Agricultural Mill <br/> <br/>Authors: Maskey, Vishakha; Brown, Cheryl; Collins, Alan R.; Nassar, Hala F. <br/> <br/>Abstract: While historians believe that preserving a historic building in its original location is important to maintain its historic integrity, the general public’s opinion is unknown. Survey data were gathered from local residents regarding a proposed relocation of a historic mill in rural West Virginia. Only a minority of the sample population supported preserving the mill at its original location. Willingness to pay for preservation was estimated at $8.45 for a one-time donation for the sample and $2.29 after adjusting for non-respondents using characteristics of the local population. Thu, 29 Mar 2007 22:58:59 GMT http://ageconsearch.umn.edu/handle/10166 Title: Foreword: Special Issue on Opportunities and Challenges Facing the Rural Creative Economy <br/> <br/>Authors: Gabe, Todd Thu, 29 Mar 2007 22:58:59 GMT http://ageconsearch.umn.edu/handle/10167 Title: The Effects of Workforce Creativity on Earnings in U.S. Counties <br/> <br/>Authors: Gabe, Todd M.; Colby, Kristen; Bell, Kathleen P. <br/> <br/>Abstract: This paper examines the effects of local workforce creativity on county-level earnings. Descriptive analysis of the data shows that most of the high-creativity counties in the United States are part of metropolitan areas, and that employee earnings are high in these places. Regression results indicate that, other things being equal, workforce creativity enhances county-level labor earnings. However, the returns to creativity that we found can be confirmed only in the urban context. An extension of the analysis suggests that the creative workforce wage premium may be capturing the effects of "technical workforce creativity" on earnings. Thu, 29 Mar 2007 22:58:59 GMT http://ageconsearch.umn.edu/handle/10168 Title: Prioritizing Invasive Species Threats Under Uncertainty <br/> <br/>Authors: Moffitt, L. Joe; Osteen, Craig D. <br/> <br/>Abstract: Prioritizing exotic or invasive pest threats in terms of agricultural, environmental, or human health damages is an important resource allocation issue for programs charged with preventing or responding to the entry of such organisms. Under extreme uncertainty, program managers may decide to research the severity of threats, develop prevention or control actions, and estimate cost-effectiveness in order to provide better information and more options when making decisions to choose strategies for specific pests. We examine decision rules based on the minimax and relative cost criteria in order to express a cautious approach for decisions regarding severe, irreversible consequences, discuss the strengths and weaknesses of these rules, examine the roles of simple rules and sophisticated analyses in decision making, and apply a simple rule to develop a list of priority plant pests. Wed, 29 Mar 2006 22:58:59 GMT http://ageconsearch.umn.edu/handle/10169 Title: Controlling the Biological Invasion of a Commercial Fishery by a Space Competitor: A Bioeconomic Model with Reference to the Bay of St-Brieuc Scallop Fishery <br/> <br/>Authors: Fresard, Marjolaine; Boncoeur, Jean <br/> <br/>Abstract: This paper presents a bioeconomic model of a commercial fishery facing biological invasion by an alien species acting as a space competitor for the native species. The model is illustrated in a case study of the common scallop fishery of the Bay of St-Brieuc (France), where biological invasion by a slipper-limpet (Crepidula fornicata) is now addressed by a control program. First we present the model, which combines the dynamics of the two competing stocks. We then use the model to analyze the equilibrium of the fishery under various assumptions concerning invasive species control, and to assess the social cost of the invasion. Finally we propose a set of dynamic simulations concerning the ongoing program, emphasizing the influence of its starting date on its overall economic results. Wed, 29 Mar 2006 22:58:59 GMT http://ageconsearch.umn.edu/handle/10170 Title: Editorial Board Wed, 29 Mar 2006 22:58:59 GMT