Economic & Demographic Analysis

Rural Initiative Study Finds Positive Trends in Broad Statistics

Tired of what seemed like an endless stream of doom and gloom reports about trends in rural areas, Rural Initiative sociologist Dr. Randy Cantrell dug into the census data and went beyond broad populations and economic statistics to find good news. While population losses, an aging population and declining birth rates are realities, Cantrell found some positive trends. For example, population increased in 40 counties and 288 incorporated communities. Although larger communities were more likely to grow, 52% of Nebraska towns under 2,500 population also grew.

• Download a copy of the report "Rural Depopulation"
  
  
• Download a copy of "Nebraska's Micropolitan Statistical Areas: A Growing Piece of a Shrinking Pie"
  Micropolitan areas are small urban centers that dot the Great Plains and are home to an important share of the region's metropolitan population and economic activity.
  
  

Rural Poll Gives Voice to Nebraska's Rural People

The Nebraska Rural Poll is conducted by the Center for Applied Rural Innovation. The Poll is an annual survey of 6,000 non-metropolitan Nebraska households that focuses on such issues as community, government policy, well-being and work. Dr. Randy Cantrell, rural sociologist with the Rural Initiative, serves on the four-person team responsible for developing the survey instrument and analyzing poll results.

• Access all the Rural Poll reports here.
  
  

• Download a copy of "Pillars of Growth in Nebraska's Non-Metropolitan Economy" This report brings together researchers from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, the University of Nebraska at Omaha, and Creighton University to examine multiple dimensions of Nebraska's non-metropolitan economy. These dimensions are agriculture, manufacturing, tourism, trucking, professional & technical services, and information industries. They were chosen because they are prominent in the national economy or have particular potential for growth in Nebraska.
  
  
• Download a copy of "Big Box Stores: Their Impacts on the Economy and Tips for Competing" The study by five researchers from the UNL Bureau of Business Research suggests that Wal-Mart and other big box stores have both positive and negative impacts on the economy. They do not seem to have a significant effect on retail employment, but can reduce the number of retail establishments in rural Nebraska towns. Four strategies are suggested for competing against the big box stores.
  
  
• Download a copy of "The Effect of Wal-Mart on the Economic Growth of Nebraska Counties" The study is a thesis by Gibson Nene under the supervision of UNL Professors Azzedine Assam and Amalia Yiannaka of the Department of Agricultural Economics. It measures the effect of Wal-Mart on the standard of living of Nebraska communities, measured by median household income.
  
  
• Labor Force Implications of Population Decline in Non-Metropolitan Nebraska Published in Business in Nebraska by the UNL Bureau of Business Research, this report by Nebraska Rural Initiative rural sociologist Randy Cantrell uses the most recent release of population estimates from the Census Bureau to document labor force changes in non-metropolitan counties as they relate to population loss in those counties.
  
  
• Moving to the Great Plains: Point of Origin Differences in the Decision Making Process
  This rural development project directed by UNL Dr. Randolph Cantrell is made possible by a $220,387 USDA National Research Initiative Competitive Grant awarded to the Rural Initiative. The primary objective for this proposal is to identify potentially successful strategies for residential recruitment and retention in the Nebraska Panhandle.