Sergio Beraldo - Profile on Academia.edu (original) (raw)

Papers by Sergio Beraldo

Regional Studies, Mar 2, 2023

Raul Caruso

Abstract. This paper tests the relationship between time preferences and crime rates as posited b... more Abstract. This paper tests the relationship between time preferences and crime rates as posited by Davis (1988), whose theoretical analysis suggests that individuals ’ attitude towards the future significantly affect their propensity to commit crime. Our empirical analysis is based on a panel of Italian regions for the period 2002-2007. Various proxies for time preferences are considered: the consumer credit share out of the total amount of loans to households, the share of obese individuals out of the total population, and the rate of marriages out of the total population. In line with the theoretical prediction, our empirical analysis confirms that where people are more impatient and discount the future more heavily, property and violent crimes are higher. Results are robust to a number of alternative specifications including covariates drawn from the literature on the determinants of crime.

The importance of the future when deciding levels of personal responsibility and demand for redistribution

Economic Modelling

Life is Now! Time Discounting and Attitudes Towards Crime Evidence from Italian Regions (2002-2007)

This paper aims at studying the relationship between time discounting and crime rates. We build u... more This paper aims at studying the relationship between time discounting and crime rates. We build upon the contribution by Davis (JPE, 1988) which suggests that differing propensities to commit crime can be explained by the attitude of the agents toward the future. The empirical analysis is based on a panel of Italian regions for the period 20012006. As proxy for time preferences, we focus on consumer credit rate, defined as the ratio between the amount of consumer credit and the total amount of loans to households. The main result confirms the basic hypothesis by Davis (1988), namely the existence of a positive association between violent crime and discount rates. JEL Codes: D81, D99, H31, K42, Z13

We offer a new framework for defining and measuring disparities in the distribution of health opp... more We offer a new framework for defining and measuring disparities in the distribution of health opportunities. These are conceived as inversely related to the cost of a specified bundle of health services of given quality, computed by monetizing all the concrete impediments that must be overcome to get access. In the ex-ante perspective we adopt, what is salient is the distribution of costs across cells, where each cell is defined by a set of characteristics determining access barriers. Differently from the existing health literature, our approach allows to disentangle the opportunities individuals enjoy from the mere utilization of health services, working equally well with monetary as well as real costs of access (formal and effective equality of opportunity), where real costs accounts for socioeconomic conditions. Accordingly, an index for the measurement of equality of health opportunities is proposed and resource-conditional policy suggestions are deducted. In particular, given a...

Equality of Opportunity in Health Care: an Axiomatic Framework in a Policy Perspective

We offer a new framework for defining and measuring equality of opportunity in health care, where... more We offer a new framework for defining and measuring equality of opportunity in health care, where (i) the chance of access to health care is disentangled from the utilization of health services, and (ii) both the rate of access and inequality of access to health care are accounted for the measurement of disparities in health opportunities. The latter are conceived as inversely related to the cost of a (bundle of) health treatment(s) of appropriate quality which an individual would have to pay (out-of-pocket) if the need for the health treatment emerges. In the ex-ante perspective we adopt, what is salient is the distribution of costs across cells, where each cell is defined by a set of characteristics determining access barriers to care (e.g., geographic location, assistance needs). On these premises, a general index forthe measurement of equality of access to health care is then developed and resource-conditional policy suggestions are deducted. A simple application based on real d...

A recent article by Bordignon et al. (2020) looks at the experience of Financial Recovery Plans (... more A recent article by Bordignon et al. (2020) looks at the experience of Financial Recovery Plans (FRPs) imposed on regional governments running large fiscal deficits in the management of Health Services, finding convincing evidence that FRPs led in Italy to a significant containment in health spending and almost entirely wiped out regional deficits. The article also suggests that FRPs did not produce any significant deterioration in the quality of health services and in citizens’ health. In this paper we reconsider the effects that FRPs may have produced on health services, by focusing on patient migration. By reframing the empirical analysis within the relevant strand of literature that considers migration as mainly driven by the supply side features of the healthcare systems (Levaggi and Zanola, 2004) and by considering the announcement effects related to this form of fiscal discipline, we estimate an increase in patient mobility in the range 1518% as due to FRPs (18-25% when a com...

This study designs a laboratory experiment to investigate the link between personal responsibilit... more This study designs a laboratory experiment to investigate the link between personal responsibility and individual preferences for redistribution. We contribute to the literature by considering two key insights: first, effort is costly; second, its fruits can be grasped only in the future. Participants face a crucial trade-off between providing a costly effort or free-riding on their fellows’ effort, playing in a context where the size and the distribution of the pie depend both on circumstances beyond their control, and on their choice of working hard and voting for redistribution. Our findings suggest that people tend to reward effort: the demand for redistribution decreases when the observed average effort in the society increases and the cost of effort is higher. Moreover, people ask for less redistribution the more they are interested in the future. These results hold controlling for a number of other possible determinants of the preferences for redistribution.

National Civil Service, Non-profit Organizations and Southern Italy: Some Reflections Starting from an Analysis of Volunteers' Motivation

RIVISTA ECONOMICA DEL MEZZOGIORNO, 2012

The aim of this paper is to focus on the motivation differences between«real» volunteers and volu... more The aim of this paper is to focus on the motivation differences between«real» volunteers and volunteers of the National Civil Service, by analyzing theanswers given by a sample of 732 volunteers being in Campania and Piedmont.The questionnaires were distributed from October 2008 to May 2009. Evidenceproves that, whereas «real» volunteers are led by an intrinsic motivation (idealmotive), choosing to join the National Civil Service is mainly led by extrinsicmotivations, that is by both the ambition to improve employment perspectivesand the compensation given by the Civil Service. Besides legislator's intents, theCivil Service is therefore largely seen as a pattern of active welfare, and not as ameans for organizing voluntary work. As to this aspect, there are not significantdifferences between Central-North and South Italy.

SSRN Electronic Journal, 2010

I provide a discourse on the article by Prof. Lynn (2010), which suggests that differences in int... more I provide a discourse on the article by Prof. Lynn (2010), which suggests that differences in intelligence explain per capita income levels across the Italian regions. To emphasize that his article is affected by flaws leading to false conclusions. This is clear as soon as some basic principles underpinning any rigorous scientific analysis are employed to discuss his findings.

SSRN Electronic Journal, 2010

We offer a new and robust model of the emergence and persistence of cooperation when interactions... more We offer a new and robust model of the emergence and persistence of cooperation when interactions are anonymous, the population is well-mixed, and evolution selects strategies according to material payoffs. The model has a Prisoner's Dilemma structure, but with an outside option of non-participation. The payoff to mutual cooperation is stochastic; with positive probability, it exceeds that from cheating against a cooperator. Under mild conditions, mutually beneficial cooperation occurs in equilibrium. This is possible because the non-participation option holds down the equilibrium frequency of cheating. Dynamic properties of the model are investigated theoretically and through simulations based on replicator dynamics.

SSRN Electronic Journal, 2012

Organizzazioni" nonprofit", occupazione e Mezzogiorno

Rivista economica del Mezzogiorno, 2007

... l'introduzione, le conclusioni e il paragrafo 5. Si deve a Sergio Beraldo la stesura dei... more ... l'introduzione, le conclusioni e il paragrafo 5. Si deve a Sergio Beraldo la stesura dei paragrafi da 2 a 4 ea Gilberto Turati la ... il panorama italiano del nonprofit non utilizza lavoro retribuito, basandosi quindi su la-voro non retribuito (volontari, obiettori, religiosi) per la forni-tura di ...

The Journal of Socio-Economics, 2009

You may download, copy and otherwise use the AAM for non-commercial purposes provided that your l... more You may download, copy and otherwise use the AAM for non-commercial purposes provided that your license is limited by the following restrictions: (1) You may use this AAM for non-commercial purposes only under the terms of the CC-BY-NC-ND license. (2) The integrity of the work and identification of the author, copyright owner, and publisher must be preserved in any copy.

The Journal of Socio-Economics, 2013

This paper tests the relationship between time preferences and crime rates as posited by Davis (1... more This paper tests the relationship between time preferences and crime rates as posited by Davis (1988), whose theoretical analysis suggests that individuals' attitude towards the future significantly affects their propensity to commit crime. Our empirical analysis is based on a panel of Italian regions from 2003 to 2007. Various proxies for time preferences are considered: the consumer credit share out of the total amount of loans to households, the share of obese individuals out of the total population, the rate of marriages out of the total population, and the teenage pregnancy rate. Controlling for a great number of factors suggested by the scientific literature on the determinants of crime, adding to the model also time and regional fixed effects, and clustering standard errors to account for both serial and panel correlations, our results basically provide support to the 'Davis' hypothesis' for property crimes, while for violent crimes there seems to be less evidence that these are higher where people discount the future more heavily. Moreover, there is no evidence of a reverse effect from crime to time preferences at this aggregate level.

International Review of Economics, 2011

Indirect reciprocity is generally considered one of the leading mechanisms to explain how coopera... more Indirect reciprocity is generally considered one of the leading mechanisms to explain how cooperation may emerge by natural selection. The basic intuition is that establishing a reputation of being a helpful individual increases the probability of being in turn helped. Two models have been proposed to explain how indirect reciprocity may work: the standing model (Sugden, 1986/2004) and the image-scoring model (Nowak and Sigmund, 1998a,b). Although there is evidence that the former model would perform better under a wide set of circumstances, it is often maintained that it requires individuals with an implausibly large capacity of processing recursive information. In this paper I argue that this is not actually the case. I then suggest that the information needed by the image-scoring model, under reasonable assumptions, may be sufficient for the standing model to work. Finally I emphasize that even if the hypothesis of indirect reciprocity is unable to give a fair account of the ecological bases of cooperation, it has inspired a deal of research precious to social sciences.

International Review of Economics, 2011

In this article, we discuss some key aspects of Robert Sugden's contribution to social sciences. ... more In this article, we discuss some key aspects of Robert Sugden's contribution to social sciences. We focus on both his inclination to consider social orders compatible with the real distribution of knowledge in society and his idea that the market is better seen as a network of opportunities for mutual advantage. Keywords Robert Sugden Á Spontaneous order Á Mutual advantage JEL Classification B0 Á C72 Á D0 An economist must possess a rare combination of gifts. He must be mathematician, historian, statesman, philosopher-in-some-degree. He must understand symbols and speak in words. He must contemplate the particular in terms off the general, and touch abstract and concrete in the same flight of thought. He must study the present in light of the past for purposes of the future. No part of man's nature or his institutions must lie entirely outside his regard. He must be purposeful and disinterested in a simultaneous mood; as aloof and incorruptible as an artist, yet sometimes as near the earth as a politician.

Fornitura pubblica di beni privati e teoria della tassazione ottimale

Studi Economici, 2003

Fino al contributo di Guesnerie-Roberts (1984) il punto di vista comune-mente accettato tra gli e... more Fino al contributo di Guesnerie-Roberts (1984) il punto di vista comune-mente accettato tra gli economisti, era che l'attuazione, da parte dei governi, di restrizioni quantitative (razionamento, consumo forzato), non fosse coeren-te con l'obiettivo della ...

Abstract. This paper tests the relationship between time preferences and crime rates as posited b... more Abstract. This paper tests the relationship between time preferences and crime rates as posited by Davis (1988), whose theoretical analysis suggests that individuals' attitude towards the future significantly affect their propensity to commit crime. Our empirical analysis is based on a panel of Italian regions for the period 2002-2007. Various proxies for time preferences are considered: the consumer credit share out of the total amount of loans to households, the share of obese individuals out of the total population, and the rate of ...

Medicine, Health Care and Philosophy

An effective method to increase the number of potential cadaveric organ donors is to make people ... more An effective method to increase the number of potential cadaveric organ donors is to make people donors by default with the option to opt out. This non-coercive public policy tool to influence people’s choices is often justified on the basis of the as-judged-by-themselves principle: people are nudged into choosing what they themselves truly want. We review three often hypothesized reasons for why defaults work and argue that the as-judged-by-themselves principle may hold only in two of these cases. We specify further conditions for when the principle can hold in these cases and show that whether those conditions are met is often unclear. We recommend ways to expand nationwide surveys to identify the actual reasons for why defaults work and discuss mandated choice policy as a viable solution to many arising conundrums.

Regional Studies, Mar 2, 2023

Raul Caruso

Abstract. This paper tests the relationship between time preferences and crime rates as posited b... more Abstract. This paper tests the relationship between time preferences and crime rates as posited by Davis (1988), whose theoretical analysis suggests that individuals ’ attitude towards the future significantly affect their propensity to commit crime. Our empirical analysis is based on a panel of Italian regions for the period 2002-2007. Various proxies for time preferences are considered: the consumer credit share out of the total amount of loans to households, the share of obese individuals out of the total population, and the rate of marriages out of the total population. In line with the theoretical prediction, our empirical analysis confirms that where people are more impatient and discount the future more heavily, property and violent crimes are higher. Results are robust to a number of alternative specifications including covariates drawn from the literature on the determinants of crime.

The importance of the future when deciding levels of personal responsibility and demand for redistribution

Economic Modelling

Life is Now! Time Discounting and Attitudes Towards Crime Evidence from Italian Regions (2002-2007)

This paper aims at studying the relationship between time discounting and crime rates. We build u... more This paper aims at studying the relationship between time discounting and crime rates. We build upon the contribution by Davis (JPE, 1988) which suggests that differing propensities to commit crime can be explained by the attitude of the agents toward the future. The empirical analysis is based on a panel of Italian regions for the period 20012006. As proxy for time preferences, we focus on consumer credit rate, defined as the ratio between the amount of consumer credit and the total amount of loans to households. The main result confirms the basic hypothesis by Davis (1988), namely the existence of a positive association between violent crime and discount rates. JEL Codes: D81, D99, H31, K42, Z13

We offer a new framework for defining and measuring disparities in the distribution of health opp... more We offer a new framework for defining and measuring disparities in the distribution of health opportunities. These are conceived as inversely related to the cost of a specified bundle of health services of given quality, computed by monetizing all the concrete impediments that must be overcome to get access. In the ex-ante perspective we adopt, what is salient is the distribution of costs across cells, where each cell is defined by a set of characteristics determining access barriers. Differently from the existing health literature, our approach allows to disentangle the opportunities individuals enjoy from the mere utilization of health services, working equally well with monetary as well as real costs of access (formal and effective equality of opportunity), where real costs accounts for socioeconomic conditions. Accordingly, an index for the measurement of equality of health opportunities is proposed and resource-conditional policy suggestions are deducted. In particular, given a...

Equality of Opportunity in Health Care: an Axiomatic Framework in a Policy Perspective

We offer a new framework for defining and measuring equality of opportunity in health care, where... more We offer a new framework for defining and measuring equality of opportunity in health care, where (i) the chance of access to health care is disentangled from the utilization of health services, and (ii) both the rate of access and inequality of access to health care are accounted for the measurement of disparities in health opportunities. The latter are conceived as inversely related to the cost of a (bundle of) health treatment(s) of appropriate quality which an individual would have to pay (out-of-pocket) if the need for the health treatment emerges. In the ex-ante perspective we adopt, what is salient is the distribution of costs across cells, where each cell is defined by a set of characteristics determining access barriers to care (e.g., geographic location, assistance needs). On these premises, a general index forthe measurement of equality of access to health care is then developed and resource-conditional policy suggestions are deducted. A simple application based on real d...

A recent article by Bordignon et al. (2020) looks at the experience of Financial Recovery Plans (... more A recent article by Bordignon et al. (2020) looks at the experience of Financial Recovery Plans (FRPs) imposed on regional governments running large fiscal deficits in the management of Health Services, finding convincing evidence that FRPs led in Italy to a significant containment in health spending and almost entirely wiped out regional deficits. The article also suggests that FRPs did not produce any significant deterioration in the quality of health services and in citizens’ health. In this paper we reconsider the effects that FRPs may have produced on health services, by focusing on patient migration. By reframing the empirical analysis within the relevant strand of literature that considers migration as mainly driven by the supply side features of the healthcare systems (Levaggi and Zanola, 2004) and by considering the announcement effects related to this form of fiscal discipline, we estimate an increase in patient mobility in the range 1518% as due to FRPs (18-25% when a com...

This study designs a laboratory experiment to investigate the link between personal responsibilit... more This study designs a laboratory experiment to investigate the link between personal responsibility and individual preferences for redistribution. We contribute to the literature by considering two key insights: first, effort is costly; second, its fruits can be grasped only in the future. Participants face a crucial trade-off between providing a costly effort or free-riding on their fellows’ effort, playing in a context where the size and the distribution of the pie depend both on circumstances beyond their control, and on their choice of working hard and voting for redistribution. Our findings suggest that people tend to reward effort: the demand for redistribution decreases when the observed average effort in the society increases and the cost of effort is higher. Moreover, people ask for less redistribution the more they are interested in the future. These results hold controlling for a number of other possible determinants of the preferences for redistribution.

National Civil Service, Non-profit Organizations and Southern Italy: Some Reflections Starting from an Analysis of Volunteers' Motivation

RIVISTA ECONOMICA DEL MEZZOGIORNO, 2012

The aim of this paper is to focus on the motivation differences between«real» volunteers and volu... more The aim of this paper is to focus on the motivation differences between«real» volunteers and volunteers of the National Civil Service, by analyzing theanswers given by a sample of 732 volunteers being in Campania and Piedmont.The questionnaires were distributed from October 2008 to May 2009. Evidenceproves that, whereas «real» volunteers are led by an intrinsic motivation (idealmotive), choosing to join the National Civil Service is mainly led by extrinsicmotivations, that is by both the ambition to improve employment perspectivesand the compensation given by the Civil Service. Besides legislator's intents, theCivil Service is therefore largely seen as a pattern of active welfare, and not as ameans for organizing voluntary work. As to this aspect, there are not significantdifferences between Central-North and South Italy.

SSRN Electronic Journal, 2010

I provide a discourse on the article by Prof. Lynn (2010), which suggests that differences in int... more I provide a discourse on the article by Prof. Lynn (2010), which suggests that differences in intelligence explain per capita income levels across the Italian regions. To emphasize that his article is affected by flaws leading to false conclusions. This is clear as soon as some basic principles underpinning any rigorous scientific analysis are employed to discuss his findings.

SSRN Electronic Journal, 2010

We offer a new and robust model of the emergence and persistence of cooperation when interactions... more We offer a new and robust model of the emergence and persistence of cooperation when interactions are anonymous, the population is well-mixed, and evolution selects strategies according to material payoffs. The model has a Prisoner's Dilemma structure, but with an outside option of non-participation. The payoff to mutual cooperation is stochastic; with positive probability, it exceeds that from cheating against a cooperator. Under mild conditions, mutually beneficial cooperation occurs in equilibrium. This is possible because the non-participation option holds down the equilibrium frequency of cheating. Dynamic properties of the model are investigated theoretically and through simulations based on replicator dynamics.

SSRN Electronic Journal, 2012

Organizzazioni" nonprofit", occupazione e Mezzogiorno

Rivista economica del Mezzogiorno, 2007

... l'introduzione, le conclusioni e il paragrafo 5. Si deve a Sergio Beraldo la stesura dei... more ... l'introduzione, le conclusioni e il paragrafo 5. Si deve a Sergio Beraldo la stesura dei paragrafi da 2 a 4 ea Gilberto Turati la ... il panorama italiano del nonprofit non utilizza lavoro retribuito, basandosi quindi su la-voro non retribuito (volontari, obiettori, religiosi) per la forni-tura di ...

The Journal of Socio-Economics, 2009

You may download, copy and otherwise use the AAM for non-commercial purposes provided that your l... more You may download, copy and otherwise use the AAM for non-commercial purposes provided that your license is limited by the following restrictions: (1) You may use this AAM for non-commercial purposes only under the terms of the CC-BY-NC-ND license. (2) The integrity of the work and identification of the author, copyright owner, and publisher must be preserved in any copy.

The Journal of Socio-Economics, 2013

This paper tests the relationship between time preferences and crime rates as posited by Davis (1... more This paper tests the relationship between time preferences and crime rates as posited by Davis (1988), whose theoretical analysis suggests that individuals' attitude towards the future significantly affects their propensity to commit crime. Our empirical analysis is based on a panel of Italian regions from 2003 to 2007. Various proxies for time preferences are considered: the consumer credit share out of the total amount of loans to households, the share of obese individuals out of the total population, the rate of marriages out of the total population, and the teenage pregnancy rate. Controlling for a great number of factors suggested by the scientific literature on the determinants of crime, adding to the model also time and regional fixed effects, and clustering standard errors to account for both serial and panel correlations, our results basically provide support to the 'Davis' hypothesis' for property crimes, while for violent crimes there seems to be less evidence that these are higher where people discount the future more heavily. Moreover, there is no evidence of a reverse effect from crime to time preferences at this aggregate level.

International Review of Economics, 2011

Indirect reciprocity is generally considered one of the leading mechanisms to explain how coopera... more Indirect reciprocity is generally considered one of the leading mechanisms to explain how cooperation may emerge by natural selection. The basic intuition is that establishing a reputation of being a helpful individual increases the probability of being in turn helped. Two models have been proposed to explain how indirect reciprocity may work: the standing model (Sugden, 1986/2004) and the image-scoring model (Nowak and Sigmund, 1998a,b). Although there is evidence that the former model would perform better under a wide set of circumstances, it is often maintained that it requires individuals with an implausibly large capacity of processing recursive information. In this paper I argue that this is not actually the case. I then suggest that the information needed by the image-scoring model, under reasonable assumptions, may be sufficient for the standing model to work. Finally I emphasize that even if the hypothesis of indirect reciprocity is unable to give a fair account of the ecological bases of cooperation, it has inspired a deal of research precious to social sciences.

International Review of Economics, 2011

In this article, we discuss some key aspects of Robert Sugden's contribution to social sciences. ... more In this article, we discuss some key aspects of Robert Sugden's contribution to social sciences. We focus on both his inclination to consider social orders compatible with the real distribution of knowledge in society and his idea that the market is better seen as a network of opportunities for mutual advantage. Keywords Robert Sugden Á Spontaneous order Á Mutual advantage JEL Classification B0 Á C72 Á D0 An economist must possess a rare combination of gifts. He must be mathematician, historian, statesman, philosopher-in-some-degree. He must understand symbols and speak in words. He must contemplate the particular in terms off the general, and touch abstract and concrete in the same flight of thought. He must study the present in light of the past for purposes of the future. No part of man's nature or his institutions must lie entirely outside his regard. He must be purposeful and disinterested in a simultaneous mood; as aloof and incorruptible as an artist, yet sometimes as near the earth as a politician.

Fornitura pubblica di beni privati e teoria della tassazione ottimale

Studi Economici, 2003

Fino al contributo di Guesnerie-Roberts (1984) il punto di vista comune-mente accettato tra gli e... more Fino al contributo di Guesnerie-Roberts (1984) il punto di vista comune-mente accettato tra gli economisti, era che l'attuazione, da parte dei governi, di restrizioni quantitative (razionamento, consumo forzato), non fosse coeren-te con l'obiettivo della ...

Abstract. This paper tests the relationship between time preferences and crime rates as posited b... more Abstract. This paper tests the relationship between time preferences and crime rates as posited by Davis (1988), whose theoretical analysis suggests that individuals' attitude towards the future significantly affect their propensity to commit crime. Our empirical analysis is based on a panel of Italian regions for the period 2002-2007. Various proxies for time preferences are considered: the consumer credit share out of the total amount of loans to households, the share of obese individuals out of the total population, and the rate of ...

Medicine, Health Care and Philosophy

An effective method to increase the number of potential cadaveric organ donors is to make people ... more An effective method to increase the number of potential cadaveric organ donors is to make people donors by default with the option to opt out. This non-coercive public policy tool to influence people’s choices is often justified on the basis of the as-judged-by-themselves principle: people are nudged into choosing what they themselves truly want. We review three often hypothesized reasons for why defaults work and argue that the as-judged-by-themselves principle may hold only in two of these cases. We specify further conditions for when the principle can hold in these cases and show that whether those conditions are met is often unclear. We recommend ways to expand nationwide surveys to identify the actual reasons for why defaults work and discuss mandated choice policy as a viable solution to many arising conundrums.