Latest Publications
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A high degree of cyclical synchronization between central and east European countries (CEECs) and the euro area is generally seen as a pre-requisite for successful EMU enlargement. This paper investigates comovements between CEECs and the euro area. We first establish stylized facts on economic linkages using dynamic correlation and cohesion measures. By means of a large-scale dynamic factor model, we then identify the main structural common euro-area shocks and investigate their transmission to the CEECs in comparison to the current EMU members. We finally carry out a counterfactual experiment which allows us to assess costs and benefits of an accession to EMU for individual CEECs in terms of economic volatilities and implications of an enlargement for synchronization. Overall, our results are mixed. Dynamic business cycle and inflation correlations between CEECs and the euro area are lower on average than between individual EMU members and the euro area, but they are higher than for some small peripheral EMU countries. This is confirmed by our other measure, variance shares of output and inflation explained by common euro-area factors. The proliferation of euro-area shocks to the CEECs does not differ significantly from the propagation to EMU countries in most cases. Based on our counterfactual experiment, we do not find significant stabilizing or destabilizing effects through a common monetary policy and fixed exchange rates. We also find that business cycle synchronization between CEECs and between most CEECs and the euro area will increase. There seems to be considerable heterogeneity across CEECs implying that for some countries, accession to EMU would be more costly than for others. According to our analysis and based on our measures, Poland, Slovenia, Hungary and Estonia are more suitable EMU candidates than other countries.
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(2005): Driving forces behind informal sanctions Econometrica. 2005, 73(6), pp. 2017-2030. ISSN 0012-9682. Available under: doi: 10.1111/j.1468-0262.2005.00644.x
This paper investigates the driving forces behind informal sanctions in cooperation games and the extent to which theories of fairness and reciprocity capture these forces. We find that cooperators' punishment is almost exclusively targeted toward the defectors, but the latter also impose a considerable amount of spiteful punishment on the cooperators. However, spiteful punishment vanishes if the punishers can no longer affect the payoff differences between themselves and the punished individual, whereas the cooperators even increase the resources devoted to punishment in this case. Our data also discriminate between different fairness principles. Fairness theories that are based on the assumption that players compare their own payoff to the group's average or the group's total payoff cannot explain the fact that cooperators target their punishment at the defectors. Fairness theories that assume that players aim to minimize payoff inequalities cannot explain the fact that cooperators punish defectors even if payoff inequalities cannot be reduced. Therefore, retaliation, i.e., the desire to harm those who committed unfair acts, seems to be the most important motive behind fairness-driven informal sanctions.
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This study applies parametric distance functions to estimate the efficiency of foreign banks in Australia, and subsequently employs extreme bounds analysis to establish the determinants of foreign bank efficiency that are robust to model specification. The limited global advantage hypothesis of Berger et al (2000) is supported. Following clients is found to reduce the efficiency of the profit creation process. The market share of the incumbent banks acts as a barrier to entry to efficiency in the retail market, with acquisition of a domestic bank reducing this effect. Internet-based bank product delivery reduces the efficiency of profit creation in the initial phases of operation, and parent profits do not improve efficiency in the host market.
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Die steigende Nachfrage des Beschäftigungssystems nach Absolventen des tertiären Bildungssektors wird begleitet von der Klage darüber, dass die Ausbildung an den Hochschulen zu praxisfern stattfinde und nicht adäquat auf die berufliche Praxis vorbereite. Viele Absolventen erleiden beim Eintritt ins Arbeitsleben einen Praxisschock . Daher stellt sich aus arbeitsmarktökonomischen, personalwirtschaftlichen, pädagogischen und nicht zuletzt aus sozialpolitischen Gründen die Frage, wie das für eine erfolgreiche Landung in der Praxis erforderliche Fahrgestell während des Studiums vermittelt werden kann. Als Lösungsstrategie wird nicht selten insbeson¬dere auch im Zuge der anstehenden Umstellung auf Bachelor- und Masterstrukturen im Hochschulbereich ein verstärkter Praxisbezug in Form von Praxissemestern oder obligatorischen Pflichtpraktika gefordert.
Der Beitrag thematisiert am Beispiel der baden-württembergischen Berufsakademie, welche institutionell-organisatorischen und didaktisch-curricularen Anforderungen bei der Konzeption von praxisorientierten Studiengängen zu beachten sind, um sowohl einen individuellen Lernerfolg im Sinne eines Kompetenzaufbaus seitens der Studierenden zu realisieren als auch einen möglichst unmittelbaren Einsatz der erlernten Kompetenzen in betrieblichen Anwendungssituationen sicherzustellen. -
(2005): Lernmotivation in lehrer- und schülerzentrierten Unterrichtssequenzen - Analyse des Unterrichtserlebens mit Hilfe von Selbstberichts- und Videodaten GONON, Philipp, ed. and others. Kompetenz, Kognition und neue Konzepte der beruflichen Bildung. Wiesbaden: VS Verlag für Sozialwissenschaften, 2005, pp. 237-251
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(2005): Analysen systemischer Wechselwirkungen beruflicher Bildungsprozesse : Forschungsstand und Forschungsperspektiven beruflicher Bildung Zeitschrift für Berufs- und Wirtschaftspädagogik. 2005, 101(4), pp. 601-618
In the following article important aspects for the future direction of the empirical research of vocational educatjon are presented. Hereby it is claimed that significant insights can be gained especially through the interaction of macro-research which refers mainly on institutions and microresearch which mostly focuses on teaching-learning processes. Future research projects should therefore not only examine structures and general conditions but should also stress the quality of teaching-learning processes much more. Finally the multilevel interdependences should be analysed in greater depth than they have been so far. The following essay is the result of an interdisciplinary initiative to cluster and re-orientate the research in vocational, education and are based on a proposal of the authors for a Priority Programme of the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (German Research Foundation).
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Equilibrium search theory suggests that the wage distribution in a cross section of workers is closely related to labor market transitions and associated wage changes. Accordingly, job to job transitions are central in explaining the wage distribution. This paper uses the IAB employment subsample to describe the empirics of labor market transitions and the wage structure in Germany. Motivated by search theory, we use the data to explore descriptively labor market transitions and features of the wage structure. We find that labor market transition rates vary substantially over the business cycle and with individual characteristics. Regarding job to job transitions, we find considerable wage changes. Most job changes involve considerable gains, but a number of individuals incurs a remarkable loss. Regarding the wage structure, we find strong effects of job to job transitions, age, and education on wage mobility. Based on our descriptive analysis, we conclude that indeed a close relationship exists between wages and labor market transitions as predicted by search theory. However, the noticeable share of wage losses following job to job changes contradicts a simple search theoretic perspective.
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(2005): Rechnungswesenunterricht am Scheideweg? : Einführung in den Sammelband SEMBILL, Detlef, ed. and others. Rechnungswesenunterricht am Scheideweg. Wiesbaden: Dt. Univ.-Verl., 2005, pp. 1-14. Wirtschaftswissenschaft. ISBN 3-8244-0764-7
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dc.contributor.author: Sembill, Detlef
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This work consists of two parts. In the first part I analyze the influence of personal mobility on the citizens' willingness to run for a political office in their municipality and on the resulting local policy outcome. The model portrays heterogeneous policy preferences that are coupled with different exogenous degrees of interjurisdictional mobility. I show that an increase in mobility can be liable to shift the policy outcome towards the preferred policy of the less mobile citizens. I thus identify an endogenous policy response to personal mobility diametrically opposed to the tax competition effect that has hitherto dominated the discussion of the political consequences of personal mobility. In the second part I develop a model of political yardstick competition in federal states. As a benchmark I use the Besley and Smart (2002) model that focuses on horizontal yardstick competition between province governors. In my model I introduce the federal level of government in order to analyze the additional, vertical, contest that arises if governors not only compete for re-election but also for the presidency. The main result of the analysis is that in a fully-fledged federal system admitting vertical competition new equilibria emerge in which unprincipled governors do not extract any rents from the general public. It thus transpires that federalism is an institution that reduces government appropriation.
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(2005): Evidence of Returns to Education Among Roma in Central and Eastern Europe and Their Policy Implications Managing Global Transitions. 2005, 3(1), pp. 51-69. ISSN 1581-6311. eISSN 1854-6935
In this paper we analyze specific educational issues faced by Roma households using data from the UNDP/ILO survey conducted in Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Romania and Slovakia in 2001. Roma situation is characterized by poverty, low educational achievements, and consequently limited employment opportunities. We believe that the core of this trap is insufficient education, nonpreparedness for entry into the labormarket of amarket economy. This is demonstrated by the existence of vital returns to education estimated for Roma households throughout the region. The patterns are similar over the whole region and hence the need for a systematic and common education policy of Roma is both necessary and beneficial.
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The main subject is the examination of the different strategies employed by Lithuania, Poland and Hungary during the political and economic transformation in order to improve their educational systems. The different original backgrounds are considered as well as the different goals. It is examined in how far the latter were attained.
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(2005): Transformation nicht-gehandelter in handelbare Kreditrisiken FRANZ, Wolfgang, ed. and others. Funktionsfähigkeit und Stabilität von Finanzmärkten. Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck, 2005, pp. 151-174. Wirtschaftswissenschaftliches Seminar Ottobeuren. 34. ISBN 3-16-148776-1
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The phenomenon of child labor is widespread in developing countries and emotionally discussed in the media and public. At present there is a well-developed and fast growing economic literature on child labor which covers the various aspects of child labor. In the first part of the thesis we give a survey about the facts, the institutions and the economic literature dealing with child labor. The economic theory of child labor can be roughly subdivided into the economic theory of child labor in closed and open economies respectively. Summed up, the literature on the normative theory of child labor in closed economies suggests that child labor policies could enhance welfare from a country s point of view but nevertheless many sectors in developing countries are characterized by exploitative child labor even though it is forbidden by law. The question arises why politicians who are supposed to be concerned with social welfare do not combat child labor more severely when the abolition of child labor would be welfare enhancing. In order to answer this question we develop and test in the second part of the thesis a political-economic model that explains lenient enforcement of existing child labor legislation. Assuming a closed-economy overlapping generations model with skilled and unskilled workers, we show that autocratic governments captured by a skilled elite are not interested in enforcing child labor legislation. The reason is an increase in the supply of skilled labor which would lower the wage rate of the ruling skilled elite. The implication of the economic theory of child labor in open economies is that even if international child labor standards do improve world welfare, trade policies will not be the first best measures to enforce these standards even though it is advocated by developed countries . We address this question by developing in the third part of the thesis a political-economic model where a contingent punitive tariff is determined endogenously in a developed country in which child labor does not exist. The contingent punitive tariff is imposed on imports from a developing country if the exporting firm is detected or convicted of using child labor. We find that lobbying of domestic firms and false altruism of domestic consumers may prevent the domestic government from implementing the first best policy.
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(2004): The neural basis of altruistic punishment Science. 2004, 305(5688), pp. 1254-1258. ISSN 0036-8075. eISSN 1095-9203. Available under: doi: 10.1126/science.1100735
Many people voluntarily incur costs to punish violations of social norms. Evolutionary models and empirical evidence indicate that such altruistic punishment has been a decisive force in the evolution of human cooperation. We used H2 15O positron emission tomography to examine the neural basis for altruistic punishment of defectors in an economic exchange. Subjects could punish defection either symbolically or effectively. Symbolic punishment did not reduce the defector's economic payoff, whereas effective punishment did reduce the payoff. We scanned the subjects' brains while they learned about the defector's abuse of trust and determined the punishment. Effective punishment, as compared with symbolic punishment, activated the dorsal striatum, which has been implicated in the processing of rewards that accrue as a result of goal-directed actions. Moreover, subjects with stronger activations in the dorsal striatum were willing to incur greater costs in order to punish. Our findings support the hypothesis that people derive satisfaction from punishing norm violations and that the activation in the dorsal striatum reflects the anticipated satisfaction from punishing defectors.
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(2004): Social norms and human cooperation Trends in Cognitive Sciences. 2004, 8(4), pp. 185-190. ISSN 1364-6613. eISSN 1879-307X. Available under: doi: 10.1016/j.tics.2004.02.007
The existence of social norms is one of the big unsolved problems in social cognitive science. Although no other concept is invoked more frequently in the social sciences, we still know little about how social norms are formed, the forces determining their content, and the cognitive and emotional requirements that enable a species to establish and enforce social norms. In recent years, there has been substantial progress, however, on how cooperation norms are enforced. Here we review evidence showing that sanctions are decisive for norm enforcement, and that they are largely driven by non-selfish motives. Moreover, the explicit study of sanctioning behavior provides instruments for measuring social norms and has also led to deeper insights into the proximate and ultimate forces behind human cooperation.
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(2004): Third-party punishment and social norms Evolution and Human Behavior. 2004, 25(2), pp. 63-87. ISSN 1090-5138. eISSN 1879-0607. Available under: doi: 10.1016/S1090-5138(04)00005-4
We examine the characteristics and relative strength of third-party sanctions in a series of experiments. We hypothesize that egalitarian distribution norms and cooperation norms apply in our experiments, and that third parties, whose economic payoff is unaffected by the norm violation, may be willing to enforce these norms although the enforcement is costly for them. Almost two-thirds of the third parties indeed punished the violation of the distribution norm and their punishment increased the more the norm was violated. Likewise, up to roughly 60% of the third parties punished violations of the cooperation norm. Thus, our results show that the notion of strong reciprocity extends to the sanctioning behavior of “unaffected” third parties. In addition, these experiments suggest that third-party punishment games are powerful tools for studying the characteristics and the content of social norms. Further experiments indicate that second parties, whose economic payoff is reduced by the norm violation, punish the violation much more strongly than do third parties.
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Die Studie analysiert den Zusammenhang zwischen beruflichen Weiterbildungsinvestitionen (Weiterbildung on-the-job ) und Art der Auflösung von Beschäftigungsverhältnissen einschließlich der Inzidenz und Höhe geleisteter Abfindungszahlungen für West- und Ostdeutschland im Zeitraum 1990 bis 2002. Dabei zeigen sich in der deskriptiven Analyse deutliche Unterschiede zwischen Weiterbildungsteilnehmern und Nichtteilnehmern auf der Basis eines SOEP-Samples aller aufgelösten Beschäftigungsverhältnisse. Bei Weiterbildungsteilnehmer liegen relativ häufiger Eigenkündigungen und Auflösungsverträge vor als bei der Vergleichsgruppe der Nichtteilnehmer, während Arbeitgeberkündigungen bei Weiterbildungsteilnehmern relativ seltener zu beobachten sind. Bei Betriebsstilllegungen hingegen sind keinerlei nennenswerte deskriptive Unterschiede festzustellen. Zudem beobachten wir deutlich höhere Abfindungszahlungen in Westdeutschland für die Gruppe der Weiterbildungsteilnehmer, während die Unterschiede in Ostdeutschland zwischen beiden Gruppen weit weniger ausgeprägt sind. Kontrolliert man jedoch im Rahmen verschiedener ökonometrischer Ansätze für individuelle Determinanten der Weiterbildungsteilnahme, so lassen sich hinsichtlich der Inzidenz und Höhe der geleisteten Abfindungen keine signifikanten Unterschiede zwischen Weiterbildungsabsolventen und jeweiliger Kontrollgruppe mehr ausmachen. In diesen empirischen Ergebnissen spiegeln sich vermutlich sowohl die in der theoretischen Literatur erörterten teils widersprüchlichen Einflussgrößen als auch die arbeitsgerichtliche Praxis bei Kündigungsschutzprozessen in Deutschland wider.
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(2004): Auf Leben und Tod : steigende Lebenserwartung und Sozialversicherung Perspektiven der Wirtschaftspolitik. 2004, 5(2), pp. 227-241. ISSN 1465-6493. eISSN 1468-2516
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This paper identifies the decreasing heterogeneity in labor as one of the driving forces of secular trade liberalization. A decrease in the sector-specificity of human capital gives rise to a decline of protectionist demands since the workers stakes in trade policy resemble more and more the social welfare consequences of trade policy. Since the process of labor homogenization appears to be irreversible we arrive at the conclusion that protectionist trade polices will soon become an obsolescent model.
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(2004): Gesundheitspolitische Alternativen : Neue Ergebnisse theoretischer und empirischer Forschung Vierteljahrshefte zur Wirtschaftsforschung. 2004, 73(4), pp. 507-509. ISSN 0340-1707. eISSN 1861-1559. Available under: doi: 10.3790/vjh.73.4.507
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dc.contributor.author: Spieß, C. Katharina; Wagner, Gert G.