We survey recent microeconometric research on investment and employment that has used panel data on individual firms or plants. We focus on model specification and econometric estimation issues, but we also review some of the main empirical findings. We discuss advantages and limitations of microeconomic data in this context. We briefly review the neoclassical theory of the demand for capital a...

In this paper we estimate the employment effects of a reduction in weekly normal hours in West German manufacturing on the basis of an econometric models using industry panel data. We distinguish between unskilled, skilled and high-skilled workers and show that labor demand elasticities with respect to real wages differ significantly between these three skill groups. Given wages, the direct emp...

This paper uses panel data on pensioners’ subjective evaluations of their financial positions to construct equivalence scales for pensioners. A pensioner couple is estimated to require an income 44% higher than a comparable single pensioner to reach the same standard of living. This is significantly less than the equivalence scale value implied by the ratio of state pension rates, the McClement...

It has been hypothesized that Medicare Part D, which provides prescription drug insurance for Medicare beneficiaries, may partially offset government spending on Part A and B services. The research literature broadly supports this hypothesis, but some uncertainty remains regarding the magnitude of the effect. Furthermore, little is known about the extent to which changes in beneficiary health m...

This paper analyzes the delays and therefore the unpredictability of foreign aid in Africa. As many African countries are dependant to foreign aid, it’s important to understand to what extent aid delays matters for the absorptive capacity and therefore influences aid effectiveness. As the aid literature on absorptive capacity was mainly focused on dutch disease, decreasing returns and instituti...