Browsing by Author "A. Hibbs Jr., Douglas"

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    Biogeography and Long-Run Economic
    (2000) A. Hibbs Jr., Douglas; Olsson, Ola; Department of Economics
    The transition from a hunter-gather economy to agricultural production, which made possible the endogenous technological progress that ultimately led to the industrial revolution, is one of the most important events in the thousands of years of humankind's economic development. In this paper we present theory and evidence showing that exogenous geography and initial condition biogeography exerted decisive influence on the location and timing of transitions to sedentary agriculture, to complex social organization and,eventually, to modern industrial production. Evidence from a large cross-section of countries indicates that the effects of geographic and biogeographic endowments on contemporary levels of economic development are remarkably strong.
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    Wage Dispersion and Productive Efficiency: Evidence For Sweden
    (2000) Locking, Håkan; A. Hibbs Jr., Douglas; Department of Economics
    The effects of wage dispersion on productive efficiency is a topic rich in theoretical conjecture, a common object of Scandinavian polemical debate and at the same time an issue almost barren of systematic econometric evidence. The Swedish record of enormous compression of relative wages under the institutional regime of centralized solidarity bargaining, followed by substantial de-compression of wages after central bargaining broke down, supplies observations well suited for empirical testing of theories and assertions about the response of productive efficiency to shifts in wage distribution. Results presented in this paper obtained from regression experiments based on distribution-augmented production and labor productivity functions yield no support of 'fairness, morale and cohesiveness' theories implying that wage leveling within workplaces and industries may enhance productivity. We do find substantial evidence, however, that reduction of inter-industry wage differentials contributed positively to aggregate output and productivity growth, most likely for the structural reasons first emphasized by leading Swedish trade union economists almost a half century ago.