by Beau De Koninck, Tom Meldrum
Faculty mentor: Dr. Amrita Dhar
Our project uses a location quotient technique and OLS regression to identify the job sectors which provide an economic base for the state of Virginia. A comparison of the bases in 2012 and 2017 reveal that Virginia’s economy has grown more reliant on Professional and Scientific, Public Administration, and Social Security recipients. Through our regression, we can also estimate the relative importance of each of the basic jobs identified through the location quotient technique.
Interesting project. There are often references to the economic base in VA, including discussion of public sector jobs- I enjoyed learning more about what this means and how it has changed between 2012 and 2017. Your conclusion that the base has become less diverse is a concern- do you see this as a risk for more potential volatility, or does the nature of public sector work control for that?