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on Economic Geography |
| By: | David M. Brasington; Andres Jauregui; Diane Hite |
| Abstract: | We compare hedonic price models estimated with spatial statistics in order to examine the impacts of four different types of neighborhood spatial association: age, education, income and racial clustering. Using Getis and Ord’s (1995) Z(Gi*) as an indicator of spatial clustering, we estimate the impact of segregation on housing prices in seven metropolitan areas in Ohio, USA. In addition, we examine second order clustering impacts by interacting Z(Gi*) variables. Results of price simulations indicate that a 1 standard deviation increase in spatial concentration of African-Americans decreases property prices, while increases in the spatial concentration of people of similar income, age and education level have a mostly positive impact on housing prices across metropolitan areas. Further, we find that increasing both income and black clustering or educational and black clustering does not necessarily increase house prices above the baseline, while increasing both age and black clustering has a decidedly negative effect. |
| Date: | 2009 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cin:ucecwp:2009-05&r=geo |
| By: | Ron Boschma; Koen Frenken |
| Abstract: | The relatedness between the technologies used among firms in a region is thought to affect the nature and scope of knowledge spillovers. In this paper, we set out how the concepts of technological relatedness and related variety have enriched recent literature in economic geography. First, applying the notion of related variety has led to new insights in the externalities literature. There is increasing evidence that regions with different but technologically related activities (related variety) benefit more from spillovers. Second, the technological relatedness concept has provided additional insights to the question whether extra-regional linkages matter for regional growth: it is not inflows of extra-regional knowledge per se, but inflows of knowledge that are related to the existing knowledge base of regions that might be crucial. Third, the concept of relatedness has found its way in network analysis. There is evidence that collaborative research projects tend to create more new knowledge when they consist of agents that bring in related competences. Linking network dynamics to the industry life-cycle approach, one expects that cognitive proximity levels between cluster firms will increase over time, with detrimental effects on their performance levels. Fourth, the cluster literature often regards labor mobility as a key mechanism through which knowledge diffuses, but no attention has been paid to relatedness until recently. And fifth, studies demonstrate that countries and regions tend to expand into sectors that are closely related to their existing activities. To the extent that new industries emerge from related industries, the sectoral composition of a regional economy affects the diversification opportunities of regions in the long run. This process of sectoral branching occurs primarily at the regional level, because it becomes manifest through a number of knowledge transfer mechanisms (i.e. spinoff activity, firm diversification, labor mobility and networking) that tend to be geographically bounded. |
| Keywords: | evolutionary economic geography, technological relatedness, regional branching, related variety |
| JEL: | R0 R1 R12 |
| Date: | 2009–06 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:egu:wpaper:0907&r=geo |
| By: | Edward L. Glaeser; Matthew G. Resseger |
| Abstract: | There is a strong connection between per worker productivity and metropolitan area population, which is commonly interpreted as evidence for the existence of agglomeration economies. This correlation is particularly strong in cities with higher levels of skill and virtually non-existent in less skilled metropolitan areas. This fact is particularly compatible with the view that urban density is important because proximity spreads knowledge, which either makes workers more skilled or entrepreneurs more productive. Bigger cities certainly attract more skilled workers, and there is some evidence suggesting that human capital accumulates more quickly in urban areas. |
| JEL: | D0 R0 |
| Date: | 2009–06 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:nbr:nberwo:15103&r=geo |
| By: | Harald Tauchmann; Stefan Felder |
| Abstract: | The inefficiency of health care provision presents a major health policy concern in Germany. In order to address the issue of efficiency comprehensively – i.e. at the level of the entire system of health care provision rather than individual service providers – empirical analyses are often based on data at the regional level.However, regional efficiencies might be subject to spatial dependence, rendering any analysis biased that aims at identifying the determinants of efficiency differentials. We address this issue by specifying a spatial autoregressive model to explain efficiency scores for German districts which we derive through data envelopment analysis. Regression results suggest that spatial dependence is not a dominant feature in the data. Hence, ignoring spatial interdependence is unlikely to severely bias results of efficiency analyses based on regional data.This holds, in particular, for the role of the states in the efficiency of health production. Significant heterogeneity among states is found in the data regardless of whether or not spatial dependence is accounted for. |
| Keywords: | Health production, data envelopment analysis, spatial autoregressive model |
| JEL: | I12 R10 |
| Date: | 2009–06 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:rwi:repape:0112&r=geo |
| By: | Goerlich, Francisco José; Mas, Matilde |
| Abstract: | This paper focuses on the influence of two classical drivers of population agglomeration: geography and history. Geography is identified by two co-ordinates: coastal position and altitude. The prominence of history is also captured by two characteristics: the initial size of the municipalities, and their status as the administrative centre of the area. In first instance we examine localization patterns, at a small geographical scale, according to these characteristics and present empirical evidence of the progressive population concentration along the coast, on the plains and in the regional (provincial) capitals; a process that has not finished in the present days. Next, we show that both drivers of population agglomeration, geography and history, are relevant for Spain and that they show an increasing explanatory power in accounting for population concentration. From a quantitative point of view the capital status factor shows the most prominent role. An exercise of conditional convergence shows that, even in the absence of these factors, we would have seen a significant amount of population concentration but at a smaller rate. Our reference is the census population data for Spanish municipalities for the period 1900-2001. Given the important changes in municipality structure, the eleven censuses have been homogenised according to the municipal structure of the 2001 Census. |
| Keywords: | Population; Municipalities; Census; Agglomeration |
| JEL: | J10 J11 |
| Date: | 2009 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:15802&r=geo |
| By: | Davide Fiaschi, Andrea Mario Lavezzi and Angela Parenti |
| Abstract: | This paper analyzes the impact of the European Union regional policy of the three programming periods 1975-1988, 1989-1993 and 1994-1999 on the dynamics of productivity of European regions. On average, funding had a positive, but concave, effect on productivity growth. In particular, a share of funds on GVA of 10% GVA is estimated to raise the regional growth rate of about 0.9% per year. However, by separately considering the three programming periods and the composition of the funds according to the objectives defined by the EU, we find that: i) only the funds allocated in the second and third programming periods, when they remarkably increased, had a significant impact; and ii) only Objective 1 and Cohesion funds played a significantly positive impact, while funds devoted to Objectives 2, 3, 4 and 5 had a negative or non significant impact. The results are robust to potential endogeneity of funds and spatial dependence. |
| Keywords: | European regional policy, structural change, convergence, European regions. |
| JEL: | C21 E62 R11 O52 |
| Date: | 2009–06–19 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pie:dsedps:2009/84&r=geo |
| By: | Brata, Aloysius Gunadi |
| Abstract: | The purpose of this paper is to analyze the influence of geographic characteristics on the local economic development. There are two important reasons related to that objective. First, study on this topic in the case of Indonesia is rather limited, especially in the field of local economic development of the country. Second, geographically, Indonesia is a heterogeneous country and its consequence is development policy should also consider the geographic characteristics of the country. The study estimates impact of some geographic variables on the Gross Domestic Regional Product (GDRP) per capita and GDRP density as indicators of local economic development with data of the districts in the Central Java province uses regression models. Geographic variables used in the model are distance to economic centres, location of districts, and a measure of clustering of economic activity. Other socio-economic variable is also used in the model, such as literacy rate which is one of the components of human development index (HDI). This study found that in general geography influences local economic performance; however, geography is not the only determinant of economic performance. It also suggests that study on geographic inequality not only apply “per capita approach” but also “density approach” to get a more comprehensive picture of the impact of geography on economic development. |
| Keywords: | geographic; local economic development; Indonesia |
| JEL: | R58 O18 R11 |
| Date: | 2009–06 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:15817&r=geo |
| By: | Kunz, Marcus |
| Abstract: | "The results for labour demand shocks at the place of residence for German Federal States and districts according to the model of regional adjustment developed by Blanchard/Katz (1992) are in line with other studies in this field. They suggest that adjustment to region-specific shocks in the year of the shock is mainly through par-ticipation behaviour and unemployment changes, not by migration. If, however, the estimations additionally allow for commuting as adjustment mechanism, the unemployment rate and interregional mobility (i.e. migration and commuting activities) capture the major part of the regional adjustment process. Thus, migration and commuting are highly relevant for the adjustment behaviour of districts as well as for Federal States. As the major part of the shock has settled within only about one to two years, slow working adjustment mechanisms in the aftermath of labour demand shocks are not responsible for persistent unemployment differentials. Furthermore, the hypothesis that the adjustment process for smaller spatial units is much more reflected in interregional mobility and less in changes in the unemployment and the participation rate is confirmed." (author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en)) |
| Keywords: | Arbeitskräftenachfrage, Konjunkturabhängigkeit, Arbeitskräfteangebot - Anpassung, regionale Mobilität, Arbeitsmigration, Pendelwanderung, Arbeitslosenquote, regionaler Vergleich, Bundesländer, Landkreis, regionale Disparität, Arbeitskräftemobilität, regionale Faktoren, Westdeutschland, Bundesrepublik Deutschland |
| Date: | 2009–06–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iab:iabdpa:200911&r=geo |
| By: | Chi, Wei; Qian, Xiaoye |
| Abstract: | This study examines one of the channels through which education may contribute to economic growth, specifically, innovation. Endogenous growth theory has long suggested that human capital lead to greater innovation and, through technology innovation and diffusion, contribute to economic growth. However, there is little evidence on the role of human capital in innovation. Using the Chinese provincial data from 1997 to 2006, we show that workers’ tertiary education is significantly and positively related to provincial innovative activities measured by invention patent applications per capita. This result does not vary when spatial dependence is allowed in the estimation. Thus, we find strong and robust evidence for the prediction of endogenous growth theory regarding the effect of human capital on innovation. However, we do not find the consistently significant effect of innovation on growth. This finding may, however, relate to the growth pattern in China. |
| Keywords: | Education; Human Capital; Innovation; Paten; Economic Growth; Spatial Analysis |
| JEL: | O1 O3 |
| Date: | 2009–06 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:15779&r=geo |
| By: | Hirsch, Boris (University of Erlangen-Nuremberg); König, Marion (IAB, Nürnberg); Möller, Joachim (IAB, Nürnberg) |
| Abstract: | In this paper, we investigate regional differences in the gender pay gap both theoretically and empirically. Within a spatial oligopsony model, we show that more densely populated labour markets are more competitive and constrain employers' ability to discriminate against women. Utilising a large administrative data set for western Germany and a flexible semi-parametric propensity score matching approach, we find that the unexplained gender pay gap for young workers is substantially lower in large metropolitan than in rural areas. This regional gap in the gap of roughly ten percentage points remained surprisingly constant over the entire observation period of thirty years. |
| Keywords: | gender pay gap, urban-rural differences, matching, monopsonistic discrimination |
| JEL: | J16 J42 J71 |
| Date: | 2009–06 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp4231&r=geo |
| By: | Ernest Miguélez (Faculty of Economics, University of Barcelona); Rosina Moreno (Faculty of Economics, University of Barcelona); Jordi Suriñach (Faculty of Economics, University of Barcelona) |
| Abstract: | This paper aims to provide new insights into the well-studied phenomenon of knowledge spillovers. We study one of the main mechanisms through which these spillovers occur, that is, the mobility of highly-skilled individuals. In contrast to earlier studies, we focus on the geographical mobility of inventors across European regions. First, we gather information from PCT patent documents (from the OECD REGPAT database, May 2008 edition) and match the names which seemed to belong to the same inventor using name matching algorithms; second, we create a new algorithm to decide whether each patent applied for under each name belongs to the same inventor, according to set of predetermined characteristics. We use this information to trace the pattern of scientists’ and inventors’ mobility across European regions. |
| Keywords: | inventors’ mobility, knowledge spillovers,name matching algorithms, exploratory data analysis |
| Date: | 2009–06 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ira:wpaper:200916&r=geo |
| By: | Rajesh Shukla |
| Abstract: | This paper is an attempt to focus on the role of Science and Technology (S&T) on regional development of India by considering 21 Indian states. The Index approach using the Principal Component technique has been adopted. For analysing the impact, a set of three indices focussing on Current Economic Status, S & T and Welfare has been calculated. Further, using the S&T Index as the basis, the states have been classified into four major categories. Inter and intra-group comparisons are discussed. [NCAER WP NO 98] |
| Keywords: | Science and Technology; regional disparity; development; regional development; liberalisation; contruction; composite index; Principal Components; indicators; welfare indictors; India; Benchmarking results; intra-group comparisons |
| Date: | 2009 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ess:wpaper:id:2051&r=geo |
| By: | Simonetta Longhi (Institute for Social and Economic Research, University of Essex, Colchester, UK); Peter Nijkamp (VU University Amsterdam); Jacques Poot (Population Studies Centre, University of Waikato) |
| Abstract: | A burgeoning literature has emerged during the last two decades to assess the economic impacts of immigration on host countries. In recent years much research has been at the national level under the assumption that impacts in open regions may dissipate through adjustment processes such as factor mobility. However, this is ultimately an empirical issue. In this paper we revisit the impacts of immigration at the regional level. We briefly review analytical approaches for identifying regional economic impacts, specifically the labour market impact. A meta-analytic approach is adopted. As a novel contribution to existing meta-analyses on labour market impacts, we use a simultaneous equations approach to the meta-analysis of wage and employment effects. The number of studies that informs on both effects is rather limited, but eight econometric analyses yielded 130 useful meta-observations. We find that wage rigidity increases the magnitude of the employment impact on the native born, particularly of those who are low skilled, following positive net immigration. The employment elasticity is also greater in Europe than in the United States. However, observed employment elasticities are not informative about whether larger or smaller wage effects may be expected. |
| Keywords: | international migration; regional labour market; meta-analysis; impact analysis; regional growth |
| JEL: | F22 J61 R23 |
| Date: | 2009–06–19 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:dgr:uvatin:20090047&r=geo |
| By: | Henry Chen; Paul Gompers; Anna Kovner; Josh Lerner |
| Abstract: | We document geographic concentration by both venture capital firms and venture capital-financed companies in three cities – San Francisco, Boston, and New York. We find that firms open new satellite offices based on the success rate of venture capital-backed investments in an area. Geography is also significantly related to outcomes. Venture capital firms based in locales that are venture capital centers outperform, regardless of the stage of the investment. Ironically, this outperformance arises from outsized performance outside of the venture capital firms’ office locations, including in peripheral locations. If the goal of state and local policy makers is to encourage venture capital investment, outperformance of non-local investments suggests that policy makers might want to mitigate costs associated with established venture capitalists investing in their geographies rather than encouraging the establishment of new venture capital firms |
| JEL: | G24 R12 |
| Date: | 2009–06 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:nbr:nberwo:15102&r=geo |
| By: | Amita Shah |
| Abstract: | The poverty scenario in Gujarat is marked by three features: (1) low incidence of poverty (2) spatial concentration and (3) adoption of targeted policy for poverty reduction. One of the important highlights of the initiatives by the Government of Gujarat is to place the information on BPL-survey in public domain. There is a need to find a balance between individual/household as well as area based approach for alleviation of multi-dimensional poverty across the regions in the state. This paper tries to address three objectives: (i) review the official estimates of poverty and link that with the BPL estimates across regions in Gujarat; (ii) examine the correlates of poverty (using BPL-ratios); and (iii) discuss the policy implications. [GIDR WP no. 176] |
| Keywords: | Gujarat; rural; rural Gujarat; BPL-households; spatial concentration; poverty; multidimensional poverty; multiple deprivation. |
| Date: | 2009 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ess:wpaper:id:2068&r=geo |
| By: | Richard.M. Bird |
| Abstract: | It is critical to emphasize that intergovernmental fiscal relations must be thought of as a system and that all the pieces in the system must fit together if decentralization is to work properly. Various theories and experiences strongly suggest that if fiscal decentralization is to produce sustainable benefits in developing countries, then subnational governments require subnational taxes than the present system. Moreover, in developing countries there are potentially sound and productive taxes that subnational governments could use. This paper reviews the literature and evidence on the most appropriate structure of regional and local taxes in developing countries. [IIB WP no.16] |
| Keywords: | subnational taxes; developing countries; subnational governments; fiscal decentralization; inter governmental fiscal relations; local tax; regional tax; real property taxes; excise taxes; personal income taxes; payroll taxes; consumption taxes; business taxes. |
| Date: | 2009 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ess:wpaper:id:2072&r=geo |
| By: | Raul Caruso (Institute of Economic Policy, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore di Milano) |
| Abstract: | What is the broad impact of sport participation and sport activities in a society? The first aim of this paper is tackling this crucial point by studying whether or not there is a relationship between sport participation and crime. A panel dataset have been constructed for the twenty Italian regions over the period 1997-2003. The impact of spot participation on different type of crimes has been studied. Results show that: (i) there is a robust negative association between sport participation and property crime; (ii) There is a robust negative association between sport participation and juvenile crime; (iii) There is a positive association between sport participation and violent crime, but it is only weakly significant. |
| Keywords: | Sport participation, relational goods, crime |
| JEL: | L83 D62 |
| Date: | 2009–06 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:spe:wpaper:0904&r=geo |
| By: | Bandyopadhyay,Simanti (National Institute of Public Finance and Policy); Rao, M. Govinda (National Institute of Public Finance and Policy) |
| Abstract: | The paper aims to assess the fiscal health of five urban agglomerations (UAs) in India viz. Delhi, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Chennai, and Pune. Our sample consists of five corporations and sixty three smaller Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) dispersed in thirteen districts of five major states. The main objective of the paper is twofold. First, to review the status of revenue generation and expenditure responsibilities of the constituent ULBs. Second, to assess the magnitudes of their fiscal gaps by estimating the expenditure needs and revenue capacities and give some useful recommendations to reduce these gaps. Data on ULB finances for the financial year 2004-05 collected through surveys are used for the analysis. For estimation of expenditure needs the updated financial norms on the selected services specified by Zakaria Committee are used as benchmarks. For revenue capacity estimations Gross City Products (GCPs) are estimated from non-agricultural components of the District Domestic Products (DDPs). Revenue capacities are estimated by applying a tax-to-GCP ratio, which is higher than that existing in a ULB by a politically feasible margin, on the estimated GCPs. The main findings suggest that excepting five small ULBs in Hyderabad, the others are not in a position to cover their expenditure needs by their present revenue collections. All the UAs have unutilised potentials for revenue generations but with the exception of one UA i.e, Hyderabad, all the others would fail to cover their expenditure needs, even if they realise their revenue potentials. In all the UAs, except Chennai, bigger corporations are more constrained than the smaller ULBs. Besides, concrete evidence in support of the efficiency of parastatal agencies in sharing the burden of responsibilities cannot be established. The paper recommends better utilisation of 'own revenue' handles of the cities, by improved administration of the property taxes, implementation of other taxes, and collection of user charges. The option of state governments to allow the local bodies piggybacking a small proportion on their VAT collections can also be explored. Another way to reduce the fiscal gap would be to earmark a portion of the sales proceeds from land and housing by state governments sold through their development agencies for improvement in the infrastructure of the cities. The paper also recommends that the State Finance Commissions (SFCs) should develop appropriate norms for estimating expenditure needs based on which transfers from the state to local governments can be decided. |
| Keywords: | Expenditure needs ; Revenue capacity ; Fiscal gap |
| JEL: | H72 H73 H76 R51 R58 |
| Date: | 2009–03 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:npf:wpaper:09/58&r=geo |
| By: | Filipe Campante; Edward L. Glaeser |
| Abstract: | Buenos Aires and Chicago grew during the nineteenth century for remarkably similar reasons. Both cities were conduits for moving meat and grain from fertile hinterlands to eastern markets. However, despite their initial similarities, Chicago was vastly more prosperous for most of the 20th century. Can the differences between the cities after 1930 be explained by differences in the cities before that date? We highlight four major differences between Buenos Aires and Chicago in 1914. Chicago was slightly richer, and significantly better educated. Chicago was more industrially developed, with about 2.25 times more capital per worker. Finally, Chicago’s political situation was far more stable and it wasn’t a political capital. Human capital seems to explain the lion’s share of the divergent path of the two cities and their countries, both because of its direct effect and because of the connection between education and political instability. |
| JEL: | D0 N0 R0 |
| Date: | 2009–06 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:nbr:nberwo:15104&r=geo |
| By: | Deprez, Frank Lekanne; Tissen, René (Nyenrode Business Universiteit) |
| Abstract: | This paper addresses the spatial design of modern organizations in the context of a fundamental change which is currently taking place in the way companies view their organizations and the inherent performance expectations, requirements and results underlying these. This change involves a managerial shift in perspective from the commonly adopted resource-based view of the firm, towards the knowledge based view of the firm. This paper follows the notion that company performance from a knowledge-based perspective benefits more from new ways of organizing, than from new ways of managing. A different type of organizations is introduced - that of the spatial organization - in which traditional one size fits all organizational ‘structures’ are replaced by ‘spatial arrangements’ which aim to connect people, knowledge and technology in a mentally fitting –natural- way. A number of core spatial organizational forms are presented and discussed (modular, circular, cellular, constellar). This paper encompasses part two of a series of Nyenrode research papers on spatial organizations, of which part one describes the theoretical foundations underlying their emergence. |
| Keywords: | Knowledge Economy, Knowledge Based View of the Firm, Spatial Arrangements, Organizational Design, Spatial Organizations |
| Date: | 2009 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:dgr:nijrep:2009-07&r=geo |
| By: | Albert Sole-Olle; Pilar Sorribas-Navarro (Universitat de Barcelona) |
| Abstract: | The aim of this paper is to analyze whether Spanish municipalities adjust in response to budget shocks and (if so) which elements of the budget they are more likely to adjust. The methodology we use to answer these questions is a vector error-correction model (VECM), estimated with data from a panel of Spanish municipalities during the period 1988-2006. Our results confirm, first, that municipalities do indeed make adjustments in response to fiscal shocks (i.e., the deficit is stationary in the long run). Second, we find that most of the adjustment to a revenue shock is borne by the municipalities themselves as they proceed to cut expenditures, with a minor role being played by grant financing. By contrast, adjustments to expenditure shocks are shared on largely equal terms by the municipality through the raising of taxes and higher tiers of government through the raising of grants. These results suggest that the viability of the local finance system is feasible with different institutional arrangements. |
| Keywords: | fiscal adjustment, local government, intergovernmental transfers |
| JEL: | H77 H72 H70 |
| Date: | 2009 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:bar:bedcje:2009226&r=geo |
| By: | Travis Warziniack (University of Heidelberg, Department of Economics) |
| Abstract: | This article incorporates a political decision process into an urban land use model to predict the likely location of a public good. It fills an important gap in the literature by modeling the endogenous location of open space. The article compares open space decisions made under a majority-rules voting scheme with welfare-improving criterion and finds households tied to a location in space compete against each other for public goods located nearer them. Significant differences emerge between the two decision criteria, indicating that requiring referenda for open space decisions is likely to lead to inefficient outcomes. Specifically, many open space votes are likely to fail that would lead to welfare improvements, and any open space decisions that do pass will require amenities larger than needed to achieve the social optimum. The more dispersed and large the population, the larger is the gap between the socially efficient level and the level needed for a public referendum to pass. |
| Keywords: | organizational slack, antecedents, dispositional requirements, resources |
| JEL: | D23 L29 M10 |
| Date: | 2009–06 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:awi:wpaper:0483&r=geo |
| By: | Ankarhem, Mattias (Ministry of Finance); Daunfeldt, Sven-Olov (The Ratio Institute); Quoreshi, Shahiduzzaman (The National Institute of Economic Research); Rudholm, Niklas (The Swedish Retail Institute and Dalarna University) |
| Abstract: | The effect of Swedish regional investment grants during 1990-1999 on firm performance, in terms of returns on equity and number of employees, were studied using a propensity-score matching-method to control for sample selection. Firms that received grants did not perform better in terms of returns on equity when compared to matched firms in the control group. In most years, recipient firms also did not hire more employees. The results thus cast doubt on the use of regional investment grants as a general policy instrument to improve firm performance. |
| Keywords: | Economic efficiency; propensity score matching; sample selection; logit regression; panel data |
| JEL: | R11 R58 |
| Date: | 2009–06–09 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hhs:ratioi:0137&r=geo |
| By: | Hynninen S (University of Jyvaskyla) |
| Abstract: | The study examines how the job competition among the highly educated affects their wages in regional labour markets. We estimate individual-level wage curves separately for graduates and post-graduates and divide the job competition in unemployed and employed job search by level of education. The study does not find a wage curve for the highly educated in Finland. The results indicate that the dynamics of the market apparent in the increased employed job search creates more job opportunities for the graduates in the private sector, while declining the opportunities of both the graduates and the postgraduates in the municipality sector. |
| Date: | 2009–06–11 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ese:iserwp:2009-17&r=geo |