Liberalization of electricity markets has become a dominant energy sector reform for most of the European Union (EU) countries since 1990s. Despite initial expectations that liberalization will reduce electricity prices and strengthen overall energy security, outcomes of the deregulation reforms proved to be unclear and even contradictory. This study seeks...
In 2005, Beijing acted to court the farmers of Taiwan through a series of unilateral
agricultural tariff reductions. This move was deliberately formulated to weaken the incumbent
Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) by targeting the party's strong rural base. This paper seeks
to investigate the effectiveness of China's use of interest...
As the threat of climate change becomes more imminent and the role of cities in climate adaptation becomes clearer, urban resilience, the ability of a city or urban system to withstand a wide array of shocks and stresses, has gained increasing attention in climate adaptation policy and planning. Critics of...
Fracking and natural gas have been widely studied in public opinion research over the years, but few studies evaluate natural gas export and the perceptions of its associated economic benefits and environmental risks. Since the shale revolution in the early 2000s, the U.S. transitioned from a net natural gas importer...
The child welfare system was established in the 1935 Social Security Act to help families and their children. Children have been the inspiration for protection and assistance among families especially those living in poverty. Previous research aims to analyze the associations between a child’s living arrangements and several child outcomes....
This thesis examines whether and how interest groups concerned with capital punishment change how they frame the issue when advocating before the Supreme Court via amicus curiae briefs over time. I measured the frequency of frames used throughout amicus briefs submitted in cases pertaining to how the death penalty could...
The benefits of electrification are widely discussed in energy and development literature, but little research to date has studied the impacts of household electricity access on women in particular. Women make up the majority of the world’s poor and are also disproportionately affected by energy poverty because of their social...
Far from the decimated state it was during the 1990s, Russia has risen to become a key player in many international events, often in opposition to the West. In particular, President Putin and his allies have invested heavily in increasing both Russia’s soft power, or its attractiveness to other countries,...
Global warming is an increasingly serious problem around the world. To mitigate the influence of global warming on people’s lives, the Obama Administration put an emphasis on reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions to mitigate global warming. The adoption of energy efficient vehicles, including hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs), plug-in hybrid vehicles...
Studies suggest that higher investment in human capital boosts economic growth by increased productivity. Education is considered to improve human capital, but it takes relatively long to achieve progress in education. Literacy of female population holds particular importance as it has both direct and indirect effect on growth. Apart from...