Numerous studies have explored the relationship between economic freedom and longrun economic growth across countries. See, for example, the studies cited in the recent review by Berggren (2003). One particular aspect of economic freedom that has received relatively little attention in the empirical growth literature, however, is the extent of government regulation. Determining the impact of re...

Good clinical trials can be carried out in the developing countries but ethical issues concerning the trials are frequently brought up for international debate. The concern has its own merit but can be amended if investigators (local and international) pay serious attention to these criticisms and work out the way that will most benefit the trial participants. Although scientific progress is im...

T H E DECADE that has passed since the Social Security Act was adopted in the United States saw a rapid expansion of social security measures throughout the world. When the act was under consideration by Congress in the spring of 1 9 3 5 , Great Britain and almost every country of Europe had one or more social insurance programs providing protection against the risks of old age, death, invalidi...

We present a model where the enforcement of international risk sharing contracts is costly. With non diversifiable enforcement costs, welfare is not necessarily maximized for perfect worldwide risk sharing. Some groupings, or “pools” of countries can deliver higher welfare, with higher diversification gains net of enforcement costs. We construct an exhaustive list of such pools of countries. Fo...

The associations between fertility and outcomes in the family and society have been treated as causal, but this is inaccurate if fertility is a choice coordinated by families with other life-cycle decisions, including labour supply of mothers and children, child human capital, and savings. Estimating how exogenous changes in fertility that are uncorrelated with preferences or constraints affect...