Essays in political and development economics

 This research analyses the role of terrain ruggedness and elite domination as obstacles undermining the cooperation and cohesiveness of groups in societies. Specifically, terrain ruggedness hinders state capacity development and fiscal decentralisation could mitigate this negative effect. Additionally, it proves the role of elites in the selection of economic policies.

Applied econometrics and implications for energy economics research

Developments in applied econometrics, particularly with regard to unit root tests and cointegration tests, have motivated a rich empirical literature on energy economics over the last decade. This study reviews recent developments in time series econometrics applications in the energy economics literature. We first consider the literature on the integration properties of energy variables. We begin with a discussion of the implications of whether energy variables contain a unit root and proceed to examine how results differ according to the specific unit root or stationarity test employed. We then proceed to examine recent developments in the literature on cointegration, Granger causality and long-run estimates between (disaggregated) energy consumption and economic growth. We review both single country and panel studies and pay particular attention to studies which have expanded the literature through adding variables such as financial development and trade, in addition to energy consumption to the augmented production function, as well as studies which have extended the literature through examining disaggregated energy consumption by type. In each case we highlight best practice in the literature, point to limitations in the literature, including econometric modeling challenges, and suggest recommendations for future research. A key message of our survey is that the profession needs to guard against 'overload' of research in these areas as most applied studies are no longer adding anything more to what is already known. © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

N-Acetylcysteine improves mitochondrial function and ameliorates behavioral deficits in the R6/1 mouse model of Huntington's disease

Huntington's disease (HD) is a neurodegenerative disorder, involving psychiatric, cognitive and motor symptoms, caused by a CAG-repeat expansion encoding an extended polyglutamine tract in the huntingtin protein. Oxidative stress and excitotoxicity have previously been implicated in the pathogenesis of HD. We hypothesized that N-acetylcysteine (NAC) may reduce both excitotoxicity and oxidative stress through its actions on glutamate reuptake and antioxidant capacity. The R6/1 transgenic mouse model of HD was used to investigate the effects of NAC on HD pathology. It was found that chronic NAC administration delayed the onset and progression of motor deficits in R6/1 mice, while having an antidepressant-like effect on both R6/1 and wild-type mice. A deficit in the astrocytic glutamate transporter protein, GLT-1, was found in R6/1 mice. However, this deficit was not ameliorated by NAC, implying that the therapeutic effect of NAC is not due to rescue of the GLT-1 deficit and associated glutamate-induced excitotoxicity. Assessment of mitochondrial function in the striatum and cortex revealed that R6/1 mice show reduced mitochondrial respiratory capacity specific to the striatum. This deficit was rescued by chronic treatment with NAC. There was a selective increase in markers of oxidative damage in mitochondria, which was rescued by NAC. In conclusion, NAC is able to delay the onset of motor deficits in the R6/1 model of Huntington's disease and it may do so by ameliorating mitochondrial dysfunction. Thus, NAC shows promise as a potential therapeutic agent in HD. Furthermore, our data suggest that NAC may also have broader antidepressant efficacy.

Early-developmental stress, repeatability, and canalization in a suite of physiological and behavioral traits in female zebra finches

Adaptive developmental plasticity allows individuals experiencing poor environmental conditions in early life to adjust their life-history strategy in order to prioritize short-term fitness benefits and maximize reproductive output in challenging environments. Much research has been conducted to test whether such adoption of a "faster" life-history strategy is accompanied by concordant changes in behavior and physiology, with mixed results. As research in this field has focused on comparison of mean-level responses of treatment groups, few studies include repeated measures of response variables and the effect that developmental stress may have on repeatability per se. We investigated how early-developmental stress affects the mean expression of (and repeatability in) a variety of behavioral and physiological traits in female zebra finches. We predicted that: (1) individuals subjected to nutritional restriction in the nestling phase would have higher feeding and activity rates, with associated increases in hematocrit and basal metabolic rates (BMRs), (2) nutritional restriction in early life would alter adults' stress-induced corticosterone level, and (3) developmental stress would, respectively, influence the amount of among-individual and within-individual variation in behavioral and physiological traits, hence affecting the repeatability of these traits. In comparison to control females, stressed females did not differ in activity rate or stress-induced corticosterone level, but they did have higher levels of feeding, hematocrit, and BMR. Among-individual variance and repeatability were generally higher in stressed females than in controls. Finally, we found that developmental dietary restriction significantly reduced the amount of within-individual variance both in activity rate in the novel environment and in stress-induced corticosterone level. Our results not only confirm previous findings on the effect of early-developmental stress on BMR, but also extend its effect to feeding rate and hematocrit, suggesting that developmental plasticity in these traits is ontogenetically linked. Early-developmental stress may disable particular genetic canalizing processes, which would release cryptic genetic variation and explain why repeatability and among-individual variance were generally higher in the stressed groups than in controls. For activity rate in the novel environment and with stress-induced corticosterone level, however, early-developmental stress significantly reduced within-individual variance, which may be a consequence of increased canalization of these traits at the micro-environmental level.

An RCT to evaluate the utility of a clinical protocol for staff in the management of behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia in residential aged-care settings

Objectives: Behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia (BPSD) cause significant stress and distress to both aged-care residents and staff. This study evaluated a training program to assist staff to manage BPSD in residential care. Method: A randomised controlled trial (RCT) was employed. The study was included in the Australian and New Zealand Clinical Trial Register residential care facilities. Staff (n = 204) and residents (n = 187) were from 16 residential care facilities. Facilities were recruited and randomly assigned to four staff training conditions: (1) training in the use of a BPSD-structured clinical protocol, plus external clinical support, (2) a workshop on BPSD, plus external clinical support, (3) training in the use of the structured clinical protocol alone, and (4) care as usual. Staff and resident outcome measures were obtained pre-intervention, three months and six months post-intervention. The primary outcome was changes in BPSD, measured using the Cohen-Mansfield Agitation Inventory (CMAI) as well as frequency and duration of challenging behaviors. Secondary outcomes were changes in staff adjustment. Results: There were improvements in challenging behaviors for both intervention conditions that included training in the BPSD instrument, but these were not maintained in the condition without clinical support. The training/support condition resulted in sustained improvements in both staff and resident variables, whereas the other conditions only led to improvement in some of the measured variables. Conclusion: These results demonstrate the effectiveness of the BPSD protocol in reducing BPSD and improving staff self-efficacy and stress.

The efficacy of a brief behavioral sleep intervention in school-aged children with ADHD and comorbid autism spectrum disorder

Sleep problems are common in children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) and ADHD and impact adversely on child and parent well-being. The study evaluated the efficacy of a brief behavioral sleep intervention in children with comorbid ADHD-ASD.

Mental health care system optimization from a health-economics perspective: where to sow and where to reap?

Health care expenditure (as % of GDP) has been rising in all OECD countries over the last decades. Now, in the context of the economic downturn, there is an even more pressing need to better guarantee the sustainability of health care systems. This requires that policy makers are informed about optimal allocation of budgets. We take the Dutch mental health system in the primary care setting as an example of new ways to approach optimal allocation.

Physical functioning, emotional, and behavioral problems in children with ADHD and comorbid ASD : a cross-sectional study

OBJECTIVE: To examine (a) physical and daily functioning in children with ADHD and autism spectrum disorder (ASD) compared with ADHD alone and (b) whether decreased physical quality of life (QoL) is associated with increased emotional and behavioral problems in children with ADHD-ASD. METHOD: Cross-sectional study comprising 392 children with confirmed ADHD (ADHD-ASD, n = 93; ADHD alone, n = 299) recruited from 21 pediatric practices in Victoria, Australia. Data were collected via parent and teacher surveys. Key measures included the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) and Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory (PedsQL). RESULTS: Children with ADHD-ASD had poorer QoL across both psychosocial and physical health domains, and also had greater parent-reported behavioral, emotional, and peer problems, compared with children with ADHD alone. Poorer physical QoL partially mediated the relationship between comorbid ASD status and poorer emotional and behavioral functioning. CONCLUSION: The comorbid overlay of ASD in ADHD appears to influence not only problems in physical functioning but also the severity of problems relating to areas of emotional and behavioral functioning.

The raising of corporate sponsorship: a behavioral study

Research was conducted in order to define a "buyer behavior" process for the purchase of sponsorship at a corporate level. A series of interviews was carried out with a number of organizations that are currently involved in sponsorship of varying kinds. A consideration was made to include a balance of sponsorship types-small and large-as well as arts, sports, and events, although no attempt was made to identify how the process differs across sponsorship type. Our results show that while sponsorship and fundraising are flipsides of the same coin from the nonprofit sponsorship-seeker's perspective, the sponsorship provider sees the act of sponsorship as a commercial profit-making venture. This is a conundrum that has wide-reaching consequences for the sector. © 2012 Copyright Taylor and Francis Group, LLC.