Product Diversification and Labor Productivity Dispersion in German Manufacturing Industries

Empirical research has shown tremendous productivity differences, even within narrowly defined industries. A great host of studies is explainsing this productivity disparity by factors such as idiosyncratic technology shocks, input price differences, management skills, or international trade. Although these explanations are undoubtedly important, the current paper suggests that product diversification strategies of firms can also play an important role. Using a matched producer-product panel dataset of German manufacturing industries over the period 2003-2006, we find that the average degree of product diversification across industry establishments is positively related to within-industry labor productivity dispersion.Product Diversification, Productivity, Industrial Dynamics

Diversity of human capital and regional growth

In this paper we study the impact of diversity on regional growth by extending the existing literature in such that we differentiate between industry diversity and human capital diversity. In order to measure human capital diversity we construct a regional measure based on individual occupational data. In fact, based on panel data for German regions we find empirical evidence that regions with higher degrees of human capital diversity exhibit higher GDP-per-capita and employment growth, as well as higher patent-output per R&D-worker. So far the empirical literature whether regional specialization or regional diversification encourage knowledge spillover and therefore promote regional growth mainly focused on the diversity of the regional industry structure and thus disregards that knowledge transmission merely occurs between individuals. This was already described by Jacobs (1969), and is also recognized by Glaeser et al. (1992) who emphasize the importance of interaction between people in close geographical distance for innovation. Nevertheless, the existing literature typically relies on the regional industry diversity as an indicator for the breadth of the local knowledge base. However, we argue that the diversity of skills and knowledge at the individual level rather than the diversity of industries reflects the scope of the local knowledge base and the potential for spillover. A more fruitful approach should therefore take a more disaggregated view on this topic by looking at the diversity of skills and abilities at the level of individuals. We apply two strategies to assure that human capital diversity is not just a proxy of the regional industrial structure. First we calculate a variable for the regional industry diversity equivalent to the occupational diversity using regional industry employment shares at the three digit industry level. Second we incorporate regional employment shares of 27 out of 28 aggregated industries as additional explanatory variables in our regression. Furthermore, skill complementarity and substitutability in production, as well as differences in the importance of knowledge spillovers should be addressed with a detailed consideration of changes in the regional industry structure

Product Quality, Product Price, and Share Dynamics in the German Compact Car Market

The present paper examines one of the central elements of evolutionary thinking - competition formalized by the replicator dynamics mechanism. Using data on product characteristics of automobiles sold on the German domestic market over the period 2001-2006, we construct a competitiveness or fitness variable for each car model applying non-parametric efficiency measurement techniques. The basic question we intend to answer is whether cars providing a higher quality-price ratio for consumers tend to increase their market share compared to variants with lower quality-price ratios. The relationship between a car models' fitness and its market performance is empirically tested in a regression framework. The results show that the principle of `growth of the fitter' is working as suggested by evolutionary theory. In particular, we find that car models with considerably lower fitness than the market average lose, whereas models with above-average fitness gain additional market shares.Replicator Dynamics, Product Characteristics, Data Envelopment Analysis

Der Registerzensus: Ziele, Anforderungen und Umsetzungsansätze

Die Anforderungen an den Bevölkerungs- und Wohnungszensus sowie die Bevölkerungsstatistik unterliegen derzeit einem starken Wandel. Nutzerinnen und Nutzer benötigen die Ergebnisse zunehmend häufiger, aktueller sowie in tiefer geografischer Gliederung. Diese Anforderungen können das aktuelle Zensusmodell und die darauf aufbauende Bevölkerungsfortschreibung absehbar nicht mehr erfüllen. Bis 2031 soll daher schrittweise auf ein modernes, rein registerbasiertes Verfahren, den Registerzensus, umgestellt werden. Der vorliegende Beitrag beschreibt dessen Zielsetzung und Hintergründe, stellt die thematischen Module des neuen Systems und die Anforderungen an ein künftiges Zensusmodell vor. Zudem skizziert er ausgewählte methodische Aspekte und stellt den aktuellen Umsetzungsstand des künftigen Registerzensus dar.The demands on the census of population and housing as well as on population statistics are changing considerably. Users now require more frequent and more timely results as well as results that provide a detailed geographical breakdown. In the foreseeable future, the current census model and the intercensal population updates based on it will not be able to meet these requirements. Therefore, the plan is to switch step-by-step to a modern, purely register-based method, the register census, until 2031. This article describes the aims and backgrounds, presents the thematic modules of the new system and the demands to be met by the future census model. It also outlines selected methodological aspects and explains the current implementation status of the future register census