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Support for Healthy Eating and Active Living in Rural Communities: Insights from a National Survey of Local Governments
RB 5_23 Support for Healthy Eating and Active Living in Rural Communities: Insights from a National Survey of Local Governments This paper explores local government policies that facilitate or support healthy eating and active living. [...]
Pharmaceuticalization of Obesity: Empirical Analysis of Metro and Nonmetro Populations, Cognitions and Behavior
RB 5_22 Pharmaceuticalization of Obesity: Empirical Analysis of Metro and Nonmetro Populations, Cognitions and Behavior This research uses microdata from the Kaiser Family Foundation’s Health Tracking Poll, 2023, to explore residents’ perceptions, attitude, and behavioral [...]
Beliefs about Dementia and Risk-Reducing Behavior: An Empirical Analysis of Adults Age 40 and Above in the Midwest, Metro versus Nonmetro
RB5_21 Beliefs about Dementia and Risk-Reducing Behavior: An Empirical Analysis of Adults Age 40 and Above in the Midwest, Metro versus Nonmetro. This paper uses microdata from the AARP survey on the Perceptions Related to [...]
Cognitive Functioning in Later-Life, Older than 65 Years: Insights from the Health and Retirement Panel Study, 2010-2020
RB5_20 Cognitive Functioning in Later-Life, Older than 65 Years: Insights from the Health and Retirement Panel Study, 2010-2020 The concept ‘cognitive functioning’ refers to mental abilities; it includes thinking, learning, and decision making. Age-related cognitive [...]
The Costs and Benefits of Recreational Cannabis Legalization in Illinois: County Level Analysis
RB 5-19 The Costs and Benefits of Recreational Cannabis Legalization in Illinois: County Level Analysis Illinois legalized recreational marijuana in January 2020. This paper examines the ‘value’ of cannabis to Illinois counties. The construct ‘value’ [...]
Theories of Financial Hardship and Measures of the Construct in Health Datasets: Empirical Applications for Illinois and the Metro/Nonmetro Populations of the Nation
RB 5-18 Theories of Financial Hardship and Measures of the Construct in Health Datasets: Empirical Applications for Illinois and the Metro/Nonmetro Populations of the Nation This paper shows how the construct “financial hardship” should be [...]
An Empirical Analysis of Financial Hardship Associated with Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementia: Metro and Nonmetro Patients
RB 5-17 An Empirical Analysis of Financial Hardship Associated with Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementia: Metro and Nonmetro Patients This paper explores financial hardships among ADRD patients using data from the National Health and Aging [...]
Burden of Health Care Costs for Persons with Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementia
RB 5-16 Burden of Health Care Costs for Persons with Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementia What is the typical out-of-pocket spending on healthcare for individuals afflicted with Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementia? This paper addresses [...]
Exploring the Other Side of Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementia: Informal Caregivers
RB 5_15 Exploring the Other Side of Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementia: Informal Caregivers This paper investigates metro-nonmetro differences in caregiving for sufferers of Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementia. Based on the reasoning that caregiving [...]
Urban-Rural Differences in Mental Health Concerns: Findings from a Survey of the American General Population
RB 5-14 Urban-Rural Differences in Mental Health Concerns: Findings from a Survey of the American General Population This research provides stylized facts about mental health in the metro and the nonmetro and thus opens pathways [...]
Telemedicine and the Carbon Footprint of Healthcare: An Empirical Analysis of Metro versus Nonmetro Illinois
RB5-13 Telemedicine and the Carbon Footprint of Healthcare: An Empirical Analysis of Metro versus Nonmetro Illinois The US healthcare sector is a significant contributor to greenhouse gas generation and thus climate change. This study explores [...]
Cost of Dementia in Illinois: Metro versus Nonmetro
RB5_12-Cost-of-Dementia-in-Illinois-Metro-versus-Nonmetro This paper explores metro-nonmetro differences in the prevalence of Alzheimer’s dementia. Data analysis suggests that more nonmetro Illinoisans experience cognitive difficulties; dementia is less of a concern for metro residents, men, and for persons [...]
Health Related Beliefs of Ethnic Groups: An Exploratory Analysis
RB5_11-Health-Related-Beliefs-of-Ethnic-Groups0AAn-Exploratory-Analysis This paper tests the proposition that one’s cognitive representations of health are related to one’s perceptions about happenings in the community. Microdata from a telephone survey of adults aged 18 and older informed the [...]
Gender and Health in the Midwest, Metro versus Nonmetro: Insights from the National Health Interview Survey
RB_5_10-Gender-and-Health-in-the-Midwest This paper tests the proposition that one’s cognitive representations of health are related to one’s perceptions about happenings in the community. Microdata from a telephone survey of adults aged 18 and older informed the [...]
Patient Satisfaction with Rural Health Centers
RB5_9-Patient-Satisfaction-with-Rural-Health-Centers This research uses microdata from a health center patient survey to explore patients’ service quality perceptions and satisfaction with health centers. Results of empirical analysis show that Black patients are more skeptical of health [...]
Race Differences in Physicians’ Annual Incomes in Illinois: Metro versus Nonmetro
RB5_8-Race-Differences-in-Physicians-Annual-Incomes Race is a social construct. Although the median wealth of a White family is 10 times the median wealth of a Black family, race should be less of a determinant of earnings, a proxy [...]
Climate and Mortality in Nonmetro Illinois: Retrospective Study, 1999-2021 and Projections of Mortality for 2030
RB57-Climate-and-Mortality-in-Nonmetro-Illinois-Retrospective-Study-1999-2021-and-Projections-of-Mortality-for-2030 Climatic predictions for the Illinois region are for extreme heat, heavy rainfall, and flashfloods, which suggest that heat-related illness and waterborne disease would be salient public-health concerns. Data analysis reveals that maximum temperatures in [...]
Dental Care Use in the Midwest: Metro vs. Nonmetro
RB5_6-oral-health-disparities-in-the-Midwest This research is about dental care use; motivations for care and likelihood of visiting a dentist or dental clinic are researched. The Midwest region was the geographical unit of analysis. Three sources of data [...]
Worker Burnout in Healthcare: Metro vs. Non-Metro
RB5_5_Mar_7-Worker-Burnout-in-Healthcare This study shows that more than one-in-two healthcare workers, both in the metro and the non-metro, are burned out. Data are from the USA Today / Ipsos survey of healthcare workers, fielded during February [...]
Health Policy for Rural Illinois, Data for Policy Development
RB5_4-Health-Policy-for-Rural-Illinois-Data-for-Policy-Development This paper provides data for heath policy for rural Illinois; the state’s metropolitan data are provided for comparison purposes. The construct, “health policy”, is conceptualized to be a function of four factors: healthcare access, [...]
Health and Healthcare Disparities in Illinois, Metro vs. Nonmetro
RB5_3-Health-and-Healthcare-Disparities-in-Illinois-Metro-vs-Nonmetro This paper addresses the question, “What is the status of health and healthcare disparities in Illinois” using data from three sources: American Community Survey, 2017-2021; Health Cost & Utilization Project, 2018-2020, and Behavioral Risk [...]
Physical Activity of Illinoisans in the Metro and the Nonmetro
RB5_2-Physical-Activity-of-Illinoisans-in-the-Metro-and-the-Nonmetro This research shows that more nonmetro Illinoisans are physically inactive compared to their metro counterparts. Data analysis reveals that 80% of nonmetro residents are either overweight (Body-Mass Index more than 25, but less than [...]
Hospitals in Illinois that are Likely to Seek the Rural Emergency Hospital Designation: An Exploratory Analysis
RB5_1-Hospitals-in-Illinois-that-are-Likely-to-Seek0Athe-Rural-Emergency-Hospital-Designation0AAn-Exploratory-Analysis The Rural Emergency Hospital designation offers current Critical Access Hospitals and rural Prospective Payment System hospitals with fewer than 50 beds to furnish emergency department and observation services. A principal component analysis of microdata [...]
The Living Conditions of Elderly in Nonmetro Illinois and East North Central Division of the Midwest Region
RB4_22-Living-Conditions-of-Elderly This paper describes the attributes of elderly housing in the metro and the nonmetro. Paucity of housing data at the nonmetro level motivated the research. Data analysis suggests that a majority of elderly in [...]
Free Expression among Races: Differences Between the Metro and the Nonmetro
RB4_21_free-expression-among-races This paper highlights differences in beliefs about the First Amendment and free speech rights among three different races: Whites, African Americans, and Asians. Data are from a survey conducted by the Knight Foundation. While [...]
Farmers Involvement in Educational Activities: Insights from the American Time Use Survey (ATUS) and Consumer Expenditure Survey (CES) Microdata Sets
RB4_20_farmers-involvement-in-education-activities This paper explores time spent by self-employed farmers on work and work-related educational activities. Data analysis reveals that farming is primarily learned by experience and discovery; farmers spend little or no time on formal [...]
Shifting Meaning of Inequity: Insights from the Blog Posts of National Black Farmers Association
Shifting-Meaning-of-Inequity-Insights-from-the-Blog-Posts-of-National-Black-Farmers-Association-RB419 This paper uses topic modelling to study 217 blogs from the National Black Farmers Association. A blog is a verbal behavior of the blogger; every verbal behavior or utterance has a probability of emission. [...]
Youth E-Cigarette Use in Illinois and the Midwest: Insights from A Panel Study
Youth-E-Cigarette-Use-_-RB418 This paper explores e-cigarette use among young people in Illinois and the Midwest; data were from the Population Assessment of Tobacco and Health (PATH) study. Results of data analysis suggest that (i) 11% of [...]
The Threat of Automation: Differences in Perceptions Between Metro and Nonmetro Labor Force Participants
RB4_17-Threat-of-automation The present study was constructed to determine the social and economic characteristics of those workers who perceive automation as a threat. Data were from a survey of adults sponsored by the Center for Workforce [...]
Impacts of Automation on Employment: Metro and Nonmetro Illinois
RB4_16-Impacts-of-Automation This paper explores the impact of automation on occupations in Illinois. Many foresee negative impacts, that automation will wipe out millions of jobs. Empirical analysis suggests that the role of labor in industry output [...]
An Empirical Analysis of the Attributes of New and Beginning Farmers in Illinois
New-and-beginning-farmers-in-Illinois-RB4_15 This paper compares the characteristics of beginning operators and their farming operations with those of experienced producers using data from the census of agriculture. Results of data analysis reveal that 99% of all beginning [...]
Young Illinoisans’ Interests in Farming
Young-Illinoisans-Interests-in-Farming_RB4_14_ This paper explores young persons’ interests in farming using published data from the Census of Agriculture and related sources. One of the salient findings of the research is that the head of the farming [...]
An Empirical Analysis of Farm Tenancy in Illinois and Tweets about Farm Tenancy
Empirical-analysis-of-Illinois-farm-tenancy-RB4_13_3 This paper explores Illinois farm tenancy using both published quantitative data and qualitative Tweets. Results of data analysis suggest that in 2020 eight percent of Illinois farms had tenant farmers; sixty two percent of [...]
Foreign Businesses in the Agricultural Sector in Illinois
Foreign-Businesses-in-the-Agricultural-Sector-In-Illinois_RB4_12 Fourteen overseas companies operate 27 subsidiaries in the state. The typical parent company has been in business since 1954, employs 23,500 people, and has an annual revenue of $10.03bil. The 27 subsidiaries function in [...]
Rural Illinois in Numbers: Content-Valid Indicators for Governance
Rural-Illinois-in-Numbers-Content-Valid-Indicators-for-governance_RB4_11_2 This paper provides ‘valid’ indicators for quality of life assessment at the county level. Validity is the response to the question, “how truthfully does the measure represent the constructs in the theory”. Based on [...]
Illinois Farm Ownership by Race and Farm Productivity
RB410-Illinois-Farm-Ownership-by-race-and-farm-productivity This paper explores the impact of producer’s race on farm productivity. Data analysis suggests that: (i) minority farmers own farms that are less than 50 acres in size; the opposite is true for the [...]
Restaurant Inspections in Illinois: A Control Theory Analysis
RB49-restaurants-inspections-in-Illinois Market-regulation is often imposed on industries that generate substantial external costs; restaurants are responsible for majority of foodborne illness in the nation. Data on restaurant inspections for the years 2020, 2021, and January 1, [...]
Labor Mobility in Illinois: Industry by Occupation Analysis
RB48_local-mobility-in-illinois-industry-by-occupation This paper explores whether Covid-19 could have increased the likelihood of job changes of an extreme sort; Illinoisans may have taken jobs outside their interests and below their capacities. Employment data from the Bureau [...]
Job-to-Job Flows in Illinois, 2000-2021
rb47-Job-to-Job-Hires This paper explores the dynamics of labor movements in Illinois using data from the US Census Bureau. Empirical analysis reveals that Covid-19 has altered the level of job-to-job movements, from a pre Covid-19 average [...]
Rural Education in Charts, 2000-2022
Rural-education-in-charts-2000-to-2022_v4_6 This paper provides a snapshot of rural educational attainment as at January 2022. Apart from crosstabulations of educational attainment with demographic variables such as gender and age, the paper also estimates Covid-19 impacts on [...]
Discouraged Workers in the Nonmetro
Discouraged-Workers-v4_5 This paper explores the personal characteristics of those discouraged over job prospects. Microdata from the Current Population Survey, for three monthly periods, January 2020, January 2021, and January 2022, were compiled to gain insights [...]
Rural Residents’ Evaluation of their College Education: Insights from the Federal Reserve Board’s Survey of Household Economics and Decision Making
Rural-residents-evaluation-of-college-education-RB4_4 This paper explores metro nonmetro differences in value perceptions of college degrees. Responses from 11,648 adults, a nationally representative sample of 18+ year old individuals, were used to gain insights into cost-benefit evaluations of [...]
Demographics of High-Income Households in Rural Illinois, 2021
demographics-high-income-households-in-rural-illinois-2022_V4_3 This paper presents the profile of high-income households in rural Illinois. Salient findings include: (1) Households in the top quintile accounted for 52% of total household income in rural Illinois; and (2) A typical [...]
Interpreting the Recent Decline in Illinois’ Labor Force: April 2020 – December 2021
RB42_LF_Final This paper focuses on the effects of extraneous factors such as Covid-19 on Illinoisans’ nonparticipation in the labor market. During the early weeks of the pandemic, April 23, 2020 to June 23, 2020, Covid-19 [...]
Telemedicine use in Illinois during the weeks leading to the spread of Covid-19, omicron variant: Insights from the Census Bureau’s Household Pulse Survey
RB4_1_household_pulse_survey_complete Based on the reasoning that behavior is adaptable to changing circumstances, this paper explores whether telemedicine has become common among Illinoisans, since the emergence of Covid-19 in January 2020. Micro data from the US [...]
Coronavirus Vaccine Refusal and Hesitancy: Metro versus Nonmetro Differences
Vaccine_refusal_hesitancy This paper highlights Covid-19 vaccine behavior among Medicare beneficiaries. Data are from the Winter 2021, Covid-19 supplement to the Medicare Beneficiary Survey. Results of data analysis suggest that slightly more than one-in-three metro and [...]
Supplier-Induced Demand and Telemedicine in Rural Illinois: An Exploratory Analysis
supplier-induced-demand-and-telemedicine-in-rural-illinois This paper explores the market for telehealth in rural Illinois; specifically, the argument that medical practitioners have the ability to generate demand for telemedicine services is empirically tested using data from the Medicare Beneficiary [...]
Unused Human Resources in Rural Illinois: A Profile of “Not in the Labor Force” Population, January – October 2021
Unused-human-resources This paper uses the concept of ‘labor reserve’ to highlight the potential supply of labor in rural Illinois. Labor reserve encompasses those nonparticipants who are most likely to join the labor force under more [...]
The Dynamics of Rural Illinois’ Human Capital
Rural-Illinois-Human-Capital This paper shows educational attainment by race and gender for rural Illinois. Public Use Microdata Sample (PUMS) were used to calibrate a human capital metric for rural Illinois. Results show that White females contribute [...]
Explaining Outmigration Intentions of Rural Population
Explaining-Outmigration-Intentions This study uses data from a recent Ipsos survey, Understanding Society: Wave 1 April 2021 2 , to explore the determinants of outmigration intentions of rural residents. Results of empirical analysis show that the [...]
Direct Mail Advertisements and Their Economic Contributions: The Case of Rural Illinois
direct_mail_advertisement_rural Any unsolicited advertising sent to potential customers through the mail is called “direct mail”. Illinois is home to 109 direct mail enterprises; the state is fifth largest in market concentration of direct mail businesses. [...]
Illinoisans Reports to the Do-Not-Call Registry Since the Indoor Mask Mandate: August 30, 2021 – September 13, 2021
Do_not_call This paper addresses the question whether the introduction of the indoor mask mandate in Illinois stimulate or increase telemarketing activities in the state; data from the Federal Trade Commission were used to gain insights.
Twitter Reactions to Governor Pritzker’s Indoor Mask Mandate
mask_mandate This paper analyzed Tweets that were provided as responses to Governor Pritzker’s indoor mask mandate that came into effect on August 30, 2021. Illinoisans responded to the mandate the most, 67%. The low vaccination [...]
Covid-19 Impacts on Women-Owned Businesses: A Systematic Literature Review and Empirical Analysis
covid_impact_on_women-owned_businesses_v3_13_2021_2 This research shows that women-owned businesses were impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic severely; during April, 2020, the number of women-owned businesses were 50% less than what it was during April, 2019. Businesses functioning in [...]
Problem Identification in Community Economic Development via Natural Language Processing
Problem Identification in Community Economic Development via Natural Language Processing This paper highlights the use of natural language processing algorithms to mine popular press articles about CED; specifically, it highlights a methodology to extract CED [...]
Differing Perceptions of External Environment: The Case of Ethnic Groups in the Midwest, Metro versus Nonmetro Region
ethnicity_pereceptions_v3_n11_3 This paper is about people living geographically side by side, yet socially and politically dwelling in different spheres. This paper has highlighted some ideas and practices of the four prominent ethnic groups in the [...]
Deep-Tech Inventions in Illinois: An Empirical Analysis
deep-tech-inventions-v3-n10_2 This paper explores deep-tech inventions in Illinois using the USPTO data on patents. Download Appendix I here.
An Empirical Analysis of Research Outputs in Community Economic Development: Implications for the Study Area
research-output-community-development-June-3-2021 This paper addresses the question, “what are the emerging areas of research in community economic development (CED)”. Using dispersion-analysis of journal publications in the field, the difficulty of repeat-publications in CED is explored. Next, [...]
Marijuana Tax Revenues: Estimates for Illinois Counties, July 1, 2020 to April 30, 2021
marijuana-tax-revenue-May-18-2021 This paper estimates marijuana tax revenues at the county level. Counties were allowed to collect taxes on recreational marijuana sales starting July 2020. In nonmetro, the median tax receipts for recreational marijuana is slightly [...]
Marijuana Use: Differences Between Metro and Nonmetro Regions
Market-Demand-for-Marijuana_May7 What are the drivers of demand for Cannabis products in Illinois? Does marijuana use differ between metro and nonmetro regions? What are the characteristics of marijuana users? This paper addresses these and other related [...]
Covid-19 Pandemic: Effects on Minority-Owned Businesses in Illinois
ResBrief6_Minority_Apr2021 This research explores minority economic development in Illinois, using self-employment numbers for the minorities during the Covid-19 pandemic. During all four phases of Covid-19 mitigation, African-American self-employment took the turn for the worse, the [...]
Twitter Conversations of Lawmakers in Illinois: Do Lawmakers’ Verbal Behaviors Predict their Political Affiliation?
twitter-conversations-of-lawmakers-in-Illinois_Mar6_2021_2 This paper explores the verbal behaviors of Illinois lawmakers using their Tweets as the unit of analysis. Empirical analysis suggests that reinforcement history within the two major political parties has resulted in production of [...]
Telemedicine in Illinois: Ecological Explanations
telemedicine_ecological_explanation2 This paper explores the environmental correlates of telemedicine. Empirical analysis of telemedicine use in Illinois counties reveals that the service is patronized in large numbers by collectivists, people who value collective responsibility over individual [...]
The Value of Telemedicine
Telemedicine_ResBrief3_Feb3_2021 Webinar on the Topic This paper constructs a theoretical framework that aids in evaluating people’s subjective utility of telemedicine, empirically tests the factors related to utility assessment, and employs relevant factors to compute the [...]
Who Uses Telemedicine, Believers or Disbelievers of Covid-19 ?
who_uses_telemedicine_v3_2_2021 This paper empirically explores the assertion that stronger is a patient’s belief about the threats of Covid-19, the higher is the probability of her use of telemedicine.
Consumer Awareness of Telemedicine During the Covid-19 Pandemic: Demographic Influences
telemedicine_awareness_v3_1 This paper set out to address two questions about telemedicine: (i) to what extent did awareness about telemedicine change during the Covid-19 pandemic and (ii) is awareness related to the demographics of the population. [...]
Some Empirical Aspects of Manufacturing Sector During the Covid-19 Pandemic
RRR_Jan2021_Feb12 Did Covid-19 shutter proportionally more small businesses (including manufacturing businesses) in the metro or the nonmetro? How do rural manufacturers in Illinois adapt to and cope with the threats of Covid-19? Is variability in [...]
Segments of Metro and Nonmetro Population that are Prone to Severe Illness from Covid-19: Insights for Policy ( Appendix 1)
Segments-of-Metro-and-Nonmetro-Population-that-are-Prone-to-Severe-Illness-from-Covid-19_v2_15 This research empirically demonstrates the positive relationship between severe illness from Covid-19 and preexisting medical conditions. Two sets of data are used to gain insights into population that are vulnerable to severe Covid-19 infection: [...]
Trade-Affected Workers in Illinois: Insights from Trade Adjustment Petitions,1975-2020
TAA_Research-Brief14_2020 What are the TAA numbers for Illinois? How have they changed since the inception of the program in 1975? Employees from which industry and from which geography (metro / nonmetro county) accounts for the [...]
WARN Applications in Illinois During the Covid-19 Pandemic: July 2020 to September 2020
WARN_Covid-19_Research-Brief-October-25-2020 In this paper, the number of WARN notifications in Illinois during the third quarter of 2020 (July-September time period) is presented and compared with WARN numbers during the 3 rd quarter of 2019, pre-Covid-19 [...]
Differential Growth of Covid-19 in Illinois Counties: A Quantitative Assessment Using the Shift Method
Covid-19_Research-Brief_differential-growth-illinois-counties-quantitative-assessment-12_June162020 This paper was designed to alert economic development practitioners about pitfalls in comparing communities’ Covid-19 cases using absolute and/or relative measures of change; the net shift method is recommended for such comparisons. Net shift [...]
Covid-19 Information on County Health Department Websites: The Case of Rural Illinois
Covid-19-Information-on-County-Health-Department-Websites_May-2020 It has been almost three months since the first case of Covid-19 appeared in Cumberland County. Since then the number of cases in rural Illinois has grown at the rate of 5% per day, [...]
Empirical Analysis of Data from Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act (WARN) for April 2020: A Report on the Status of Illinois Counties During the Covid-19 Pandemic
WARN_Covid_Policy_Brief-vol-2_10 This paper is an update to the March 2020 WARN filings reported in the Research Brief, Vol. 2 (4) . During April 2020, Covid-19 induced plant closings cost Illinoisans 5,575 jobs, 55% of the [...]
The Economic Impact of Covid-19 on Illinois Counties
Economic-Impact-of-Covid-19-on-Illinois-Counties-ResBrief9_May-4-2020 The economic impact of Covid-19 is being felt by Illinoisans in a variety of ways, from layoffs and furloughs to price hikes in essentials such as grocery products. 2 It has also changed the [...]
Covid-19 in Illinois Counties: Effectiveness of Mitigation Effects
Covid-19-Mitigation-Effects_Policy_Brief This paper addresses the question, how effective is the state’s mitigation effort in arresting the spread of Covid-19 in Illinois counties. To address this question, we use county data on number of Covid-19 cases; [...]
Illinoisans’ Perceptions about their State Government, Economy, and Healthcare During the Covid-19 Pandemic
IL_Perceptions_During_Covid_Policy_Brief The Covid-19 pandemic has almost stopped social and economic activities in Illinois; the IMF predicts 3% contraction in the global economy, a much larger impact than the 2008-2009 great recession 2 . In earlier [...]
Covid-19 in Rural Illinois Counties: Disease Progression, and Health Care System Correlates
Tracking_Covid_Policy_Brief The Covid-19 outbreak is likely to grow, mature, and decline. Governments at all levels should aim to (1) FLATTEN the growth curve, and (2) collectively FIGHT the virus, to preserve public health, and reopen [...]
Data Update for the Paper: Twitter Conversations about SARS-Cov-2: What is Going on Out There in Illinois?
Data-Update-for-Research-Brief-25 This report provides information about Covid-19 in Illinois counties as at April 11, 2020. The report should be read together with the Research Brief, Vol. 2, No. 5 (2020, April 7), hereon labeled the [...]
Twitter Conversations about SARS-Cov-2: What is Going on Out There in Illinois?
Twitter-Conversations-about-SARS-Cov-2_April-2020 We study Twitter conversations among Illinoisans about Coronavirus through the systematic analysis of tweets collected during March 21, 2020 through April 5, 2020, the first two weeks of stay-at-home order issued by Governor J. [...]
The Impact of SARS-CoV-2 on Plant Closings and Mass Layoffs: The Case of Illinois Counties
The-Impact-of-SARS-CoV-2-on-Plant-Closings-and-Mass-Layoffs-The-Case-of-Illinois-Counties The SARS-CoV-2 virus, commonly called Corona virus, is inflicting a heavy toll on the world economies; the International Monetary Fund predicts a global downturn at least as bad as the 2008 financial crisis 2 [...]
The Effect of Pharmaceuticals’ Trade Promotions to Medical Professionals in Illinois Counties: Some Research Findings on Opioid Prescriptions
The-Effect-of-Trade-Promotion_Opioid_March25_20 This paper shows that the target market for opioids are women, and people with less than a college education. It also lists the number of chronic pain sufferers in Illinois, county-wise. The market share [...]
Opioid Use Disorder in the Nonmetro Regions: Some Basic Facts from the 2018 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH)
Opiod_2020 This paper highlights opioid misuse behavior among rural or nonmetro residents using micro data from the recently released 2018 NSDUH. Compared to the urban population, rural residents are 87% more likely to be prescribed [...]
Implementing Community Economic Development: Normative Prescriptions, with Applications to Rural Illinois
EDImplementation_Jan2020-1 Economic development strategies at the county level focus on Creation, Attraction, Retention and Expansion (CARE) of businesses. For business attraction, it is essential that a county highlights the region’s quality of life and economic [...]
Dollar Stores in Illinois: Trading Areas, Consumer Behavior, and Impacts on Commercial Structure and Incumbent Retailers
The structure of the US retail sector is changing, the exit or closing rate of US malls has tripled in the last few years and the 25% of the remaining malls are expected to close [...]
CNN Business – Dollar Stores are Everywhere
July 19, 2019. “In rural places without existing grocery stores, having a Dollar General might be viewed as an asset,” said Christopher Merrett, director of the Illinois Institute for Rural Affairs at Western Illinois University. [...]
The Opioid Epidemic and its Impact on Labor Productivity in Illinois
Illinois’ labor force is shrinking at the rate of .24% per annum. Opioid-involved drug overdoses are contributing to this poor state of labor force, on average drug overdoses account for 17.2 deaths per 100,000 Illinoisans. [...]
Living Wage Calculator for Illinois Counties
The living wage calculator is calibrated on consumer expenditure data sourced from both public and private agencies. Major sources of data are BLS, HUD, and USDA. The calculator models living wages for households with members [...]
Sustainable Economic Development Indices (SEDI) for Illinois Counties
This paper addresses the question, “how effective are Illinois counties in converting wealth (GDP) into wellbeing of residents”. To address this question, a multi-item measure of wellbeing (SEDI) was constructed using publicly available data. Based [...]
Determinants of Sustainability and Human Capital
Knowledge and skills of a person are called ‘human capital’. A person’s stock of human capital is determined by her time-use choices. Based on the reasoning that policymakers must first learn what persons are already [...]
Cultural Capital in Illinois: A County-Wise Analysis
This paper is driven by the idea that cultural capital contributes to wellbeing. Empirical analysis of cultural capital suggests that children in Illinois are missing opportunities for cultural development;their caregivers spend very little time in [...]
Social Capital Manifestations in Illinois Counties: An Empirical Assessment
Social capital refers to acts of cooperation between two or more individuals or groups. While cultural capital is embodied in persons, social capital exists in relations among persons. The economic benefit of social capital is [...]
Economic Capital of Illinois: An Empirical Analysis
This paper explores the contributions of market economy to sustainable development using the ‘capability theory’ framework. The operational (production of goods and services) and dynamic (innovation) capabilities of firms promote well being in communities, but [...]
Natural Capital as an Economic Public Product: An Empirical Analysis of Illinois Counties
This paper addresses the question, “how do Illinois counties rank in terms of investments in natural capital”. A statistical modeling of county capability suggests that metro counties not only invest in natural capital, but also [...]
Thirty Years of IIRA’s Rural Research Reports: A Thematic Analysis
This paper employs a machine-learning algorithm to analyze the words of all the Rural Research Reports published since 1990 to discover the themes that run through them. The results are then built into an interactive [...]
Determinants of Economic Growth in Illinois: An Empirical Analysis
This paper presents growth-accounting results for Illinois. It is shown that growth in GDP is mainly driven by labor and capital. The role of technology in GDP growth is minimal or none. IL-Growth_2019_v1_2
Economic Development Strategy for the Greater Peoria Region, Illinois: Insights from Growth Accounting and Decision Theory
This paper highlights strategies for establishing and maintaining a robust economic ecosystem in the Greater Peoria region. The strategic advantage of the region is deduced from an empirical analysis of the region’s national accounts and [...]
A Microanalysis of Carpooling in Rural Illinois
The concept of high-occupancy vehicle (HOV) has long been an attraction for policymakers wanting to minimize greenhouse gas emissions (cf. the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act, 1991 (Jaskevich 2001)). Since carpooling reduces the number of [...]
Entrepreneurial Intensity
A common prescription for community economic development is to stimulate entrepreneurship (Audretsch 2007; Herman, 2018). This prescription is largely derived from global data that shows positive correlations between the entrepreneurial activity of nations and their [...]