Eastern Economic Journal Recognizes Two Holy Cross Economics Professors

Melissa Boyle, associate professor of economics, and David Schap, professor of economics, have been named 5th and 11th respectively on the Eastern Economic Journal’s list of their 20 most downloaded articles of the year, out of almost 1,500 articles.

Boyle, who co-wrote “The Effect of Ticket Resale Laws on Consumption and Production in Performing Arts Markets” (2011) with Lesley Chiou, associate professor of economics at Occidental College, said that while the article is a few years old, the ranking is evidence that it is still relevant and being read.

“The article examines the impact of state and municipal scalping laws on production and consumption in the market for live theater, such as plays and musicals,” said Boyle. “We found that restrictions on scalping (licensing requirements for resellers and prohibiting resale above face value) lead to decreases in variety in local markets, but at the same time these restrictions lead to higher theater attendance. This potentially occurs because in areas without regulations, producers can make riskier choices because the scalper acts like insurance when demand is uncertain. At the same time, consumers may value the protection that these laws bring and the associated lower ticket prices more than increased variety.”

Schap’s article “Forensic Economics: An Overview” describes the forensic economics field broadly with various examples of different cases, especially concerning forensic economic analysis of personal injury and wrongful death cases.

The journal’s top 20 also includes Nobel winners and other notable economists, including Paul Krugman, 2008 recipient of the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economics and professor of economics and international affairs at Princeton University; Greg Mankiw, chairman and professor of economics at Harvard University; David Colander, Christian A. Johnson Distinguished Professor of Economics at Middlebury College; Joe Stiglitz, 2001 recipient of the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economics and professor of economics at Columbia University; and Robert Shiller, 2013 recipient of the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economics and Sterling Professor of Economics at Yale University.

The “Eastern Economic Journal” is a quarterly publication of the Eastern Economic Association that publishes papers written from every perspective in all areas of economics. The journal encourages manuscript submissions that are methodological and philosophical as well as empirical and theoretical. The journal highly considers the articles’ readability and general interest as factors for acceptance.