Econometrics in the Usa

The United Stated is known as one of the wealthiest countries in the world. People in other parts of the globe look at it as the "promised land "which explains a tremendous amount of immigrants to the United States. Ironically, life is not always easy here, especially in the last 3 decades. For the first time since the Depression in the 1930s, homelessness increased significantly in the late 1970s and brought a dramatic rise in homelessness in American cities during the 1980s. Different types of people have become homeless for a variety of new reasons and the problem of homeless has become a national issue. It is also recognized as one of the leading social problems of the decade.

According to the United States government's statistics, there were about 200,000 to500,000 Americans were homeless back then. Starting in the early 1980s homeless people - often called "street people- became an increasingly frequent sight in New York; Los Angeles; Chicago; Washington, D.C.; Saint Louis; and most other major cities, as well as many smaller cities. Men and women of all ages, individuals and families from varied backgrounds and circumstances - shabbily dressed and inadequately nourished - began roaming city streets, sleeping on benches in summer and on heating grates or in crowded public shelters in winter.

Many factors were blamed for the growth of homelessness at that time. Science researchers claimed that mental illness, substance abuse, especially among men, and the lack of needed services, are major reasons that lead to the surge of homelessness rate. The homeless tend to have behaviors that can cause them serious health risks. Many of them do have neither the funds nor the ability to seek medical attention. Their story is often one of suffering and trepidation. Many feel forced into the streets, and are unable to muster the resources to get out of poverty. Most are concerned with the basic tenets of survival, and spend the large percentage of their time hunting for food, shelter, and clothing. The problems are compounded in areas with severe winters, and the search for warmth and comfort is ongoing and ever-present in the lives of many homeless people all over America.

On the other hand, housing economists say that housing market conditions and economic circumstances are also the cause of this problem. It is assumed that as housing has become less affordable, homelessness would occur. People cannot afford houses also may be resulted from unemployment.

We have acquired the dataset that covers 273 urban areas and is based on the 1990 U.S. Census. In the noneconomic perspective, we have run an OLS regression of the homeless rate on the variables as follow:

*mhosp: the change in mental hospital population per 100,000 people from 1981 1992

*prison: the change in prison population per 100,000 people 1981 1992

*jantemp: