compact cities and economic productivity in mexico this paper examines the contingent nature of agglomeration economies existing empirical evidence that compact cities are more productive is mostly from countries and regions with highly productive

declining city productivity and the growth of rural regions a test of alternative explanations prior to the 1970s the u s witnessed a net flow of migrants from its nonmetropolitan to its metropolitan region since then however a dramatic reversal of this long standing tendency for people to concentrate in metropolitan places has been observed nonmetropolitan places have gained migrants largely as the result of increased outmigration from metropolitan areas an open question has been to what extent the employment profile between metropolitan and nonmetropolitan places parallels that of population this paper introduces a data series compiled from county business patterns that is used to analyze the employment trends for the first time the analysis reveals that not only is total employment growing fastest in nonmetropolitan counties but it also appears that the turnaround in employment growth preceded the reversal in the rate of population increase manufacturing which had faster nonmetropolitan growth rates even during the 195os appears to have led in the development of nonmetropolitan counties this shift of manufacturing has attracted other sectors as well as people to nonmetropolitan places part of the recent growth of nonmetropolitan counties represented nothing more than a continuation of suburbanization or spillover of people and jobs which permitted one more outward bound into adjacent nonmetropolitan counties but there is more to nonmetropolitan development than simply metropolitan spillover nonmetropolitan counties far removed from metropolitan ones are also growing faster than metropolitan counties it is shown that this rural renaissance is part of a general deconcentration

capabilities and industrial policy lessons from the new zealand movie industry this article examines the new zealand government s creation of an internationally successful industry the activities of the new zealand film commission are examined with regard to the effect they had on the entrepreneurs they nurtured factors that contributed to success include the market driven nature of the policy and an emphasis on capability building support is found for the suggestion that government agencies should act like venture capitalists negative aspects of government intervention included political capture and smoke stake chasing

size sprawl speed and the efficiency of cities the efficiency of cities defined here as labour productivity adjusted for differences in industry mix is hypothesised to be a function of the effective size of the labour market of cities defined as the average number of jobs available in less than t minutes to workers in the city this hypothesis is verified on a sample of 23 french cities this effective size of the labour market is further explained by three factors the size of the city the average potential job home distance sprawl and the average speed at which journey to work takes place the same sample of 23 cities is used to determine the elasticities of the effective size of the labour market with respect to each of these three factors

comparing innovation systems a framework and application to china s transitional context abstract this paper proposes a generic framework for analyzing innovation systems anchored around five fundamental activities r d implementation end use education linkage and focused on the performance implications of a system s structure and dynamics rather than simply describing the role and performance of particular actors institutions and policies this approach focuses on system level characteristics including the distribution of these activities within the system the organizational boundaries around them coordination mechanisms evolutionary processes and the effectiveness of the system in introducing diffusing and exploiting technological innovations the framework is applied to a comparison of china s national innovation system under central planning and since reforms revealing the evolving structure and dynamics of this system and current inconsistencies and perverse incentives that policymakers must address to realize their development goals more generally it provides a basis for addressing the implicit assumptions of organizational types roles and convergence among innovation systems emerging in very different contexts whether national regional or industrial

analyzing the functional dynamics of technological innovation systems a scheme of analysis various researchers and policy analysts have made empirical studies of innovation systems in order to understand their current structure and trace their dynamics however policy makers often experience difficulties in extracting practical guidelines from studies of this kind in this paper we operationalize our previous work on a functional approach to analyzing innovation system dynamics into a practical scheme of analysis for policy makers the scheme is based on previous literature and our own experience in developing and applying functional thinking it can be used by policy makers not only to identify the key policy issues but also to set policy goals

how store format choices and market structure affect agglomeration economies and competition among chain stores in the us supermarket industry this article studies how store format choices and market concentration affect agglomeration economies and competition among chain stores using data on supermarket chains in arizona georgia and il

productivity and city size a critique of the evidence a critique of two leading articles in the productivity and city size literature results in revised estimates of the productivity advantages of large cities in particular extant estimates of the elasticity of productivity with city size are revised downward by over 100 percent for the manufacturing sector and about 25 percent for the entire urban economy after revision productivity advantages of larger cities are found to be much larger for the nonmanufacturing sector than for the manufacturing sector hence revitalization policies for large cities should be focused on nonmanufacturing sectors

a productivity growth interpretation of the labour demand shift share model graham d j and spence n 1998 a productivity growth interpretation of the labour demand shift share model reg studies 32 515 525 this paper proposes modifications to the labour demand shift share model set out in this journal by casler 1989 to allow for its implementation and to extend its use to analyses of regional labour productivity growth the paper begins by briefly outlining the theoretical basis for the shift share method provided in casler s paper and then goes on to present a specific reformulation of the model which incorporates input price and technological growth effects on labour demand these additional effects are defined as productivity components within the shift share model and the empirical and theoretical implications of the modifications made are discussed in the paper an empirical example of the results obtained through the modified labour demand shift share model is then provided for selected british regions the paper concludes by outlining potential uses of the modif

amenities and regional differences in returns to worker characteristics average wages in regions in the united states vary considerably in trying to explain these differences in the average wage across regions a number of studies have found that differences in the returns to characteristics of workers such as years of schooling are as important as differences in the skill composition of the labor force 4 6 10 141 these differences in returns are generally interpreted as reflecting regional differences in demand for worker characteristics coupled with barriers to factor mobility this interpretation is based on the argument that the presence of at least one perfectly mobile factor with perfect information will cause spatial convergence in characteristic prices as that particular factor exploits any spatial price differential 4 p 2161 this paper suggests an alternative to this demand based explanation for regional differences in the structure of wages one based on regional differences in the supply of worker characteristics this explanation does not rely on impediments to the movement of workers or firms and is consistent with an equilibrium view of wages in which regional wage differentials are viewed as compensation for local amenities the theoretical model presented in the following section assumes capital and labor are perfectly mobile with perfect information implying that in equilibrium the utility of workers with similar characteristics is the same in all locations this convergence of utility however does not necessarily imply convergence of characteristic prices equilibrium differences in the returns to a specific worker characteristic can exist if worker characteristics affect an individual s valuation of an area s amenities relative to the individual s demand for land

the attenuation of human capital spillovers abstract this paper uses 2000 census data to estimate the relationship of agglomeration and proximity to human capital to wages the paper takes a geographic approach and focuses on the attenuation of agglomeration and human capital effects differencing and instrumental variable methods are employed to address endogeneity in the wage agglomeration relationship and also to deal with measurement error in our agglomeration and human capital variables three key results are obtained first the spatial concentration of employment within five miles is positively related to wage second the benefits of spatial concentration are driven by proximity to college educated workers an instance of human capital spillovers third these effects attenuate sharply with distance

complex innovation policy systems towards an evaluation mix abstract the mix of contemporary innovation policies impacting on a given territory are typically characterised by quite different underlying rationales and instruments complexity is further increased by multi level considerations thus policies with different characteristics and from different administrative levels are continually interacting with one another in complex policy systems these interactions significantly complicate the evaluation of individual policies and raise a series of difficult questions around how their respective evaluation processes should interact to facilitate learning around the performance of policy systems this paper contributes with a simplified definition of an innovation policy system as the conjuncture of policy mix and multi level dimensions from which a series of steps are proposed for arriving at an evaluation mix relevant for the specific characteristics of a given policy space these ideas are explored with respect to the case of the basque country region of spain and signal an agenda for further applied policy research

on the optimality of a gcc monetary union structural var common trends and common cycles evidence this paper examines the suitability of the proposed monetary union among the members of the gulf cooperation council gcc to do so we identify the underlying structural shocks that these economies are subject to and assess the extent to which the shocks are symmetric additionally we test for common trends and common business cycles among the gcc economies we find that while the transitory demand shocks are typically symmetric the permanent supply shocks are asymmetric furthermore we do not find synchronous long run and short run movements in output despite the progress that has been made in terms of integration our findings indicate that the conditions for forming a gcc monetary union have not as yet been met

plant size and industry mix effects on uk regional productivity wage costs and operating surplus roper s 1998 plant size and industry mix effects on uk regional productivity wage costs and operating surplus reg studies 32 325 332 the ability of a region to create wealth depends both on the competitiveness of its individual firms and its industrial structure this paper examines the effect of industry mix and plant size structure on the wealth generating capacity of the uk regions from 1980 91 reflecting the findings of similar us studies the analysis suggests that in general uk regions structural disadvantages act to reinforce rather than counter plant level productivity wage cost and operating surplus profitability differentials thus lagging regions face a three fold disadvantage poorly performing plants disadvantageous industry mix and plant size structure this suggests a need for a strategic approach to policy which must aim to counter regions structural disadvantages as well as to improve the competitiveness of existing plants roper s 1998 les effets de la taille des et

on the path of integration in the gulf region it is examined whether the six countries comprising the gulf cooperation council gcc are sufficiently compatible to form a viable economic and financial block in the gulf region despite long and numerous governmental attempts since the mid 1980s and in spite of public pressures to expedite the process these countries have thus far failed to achieve full economic and financial integration empirical evidence suggests that this apparent failure is unlikely the outcome of economic or financial incompatibility among the countries in the region the results imply that more efforts should be directed at resolving possible sociopolitical differences that may have hampered real progress toward the emergence of a genuine and effective bloc in the gulf region

the gulf co operation council a slow path to integration this paper assesses the progress towards the intra regional integration among the gcc countries we find that although there is limited trade integration in the region as a whole there are specific countries for example bahrain and oman that are significantly integrated with at least one trade partner from within the region the paper argues that the gcc region will have to create a consensus on the trade barriers on the imports from outside the region if progress towards the intra regional integration is to be increased

urban diversity and economic growth at the risk of some simplification it is possible to identify four periods of intense study of cities by economists each of these has led to an increased understanding of the economics of urban areas and the unique role played by cities in the modem economy the first of these periods occurred in the decade after world war i only about ten years after the truck revolutionized the transport of goods within urban areas this period included the first systematic empirical analysis of the forces affecting the location of firms and households within cities robert murray haig 1926 and a number of other microeconomists at columbia analyzed the spatial pattems of manufacturing activity in lower manhattan and in the rest of new york city haig jmd his colleagues devoted considerable attention to where things belong in an urban area p 402 providing the first systematic economic analysis of urban spatial structure for example they analyzed the garment industry concluding that it was destined by nature to disperse north of 14th street and predicting that it would follow the estabhshed spatial pattem of the cooperage barrelmaking industry standardization in size and quality of barrels had meant that identical barrels could be made throughout the new york metropolitan area even in new jersey and the introduction of the truck meant that they could be transported cheaply throughout the region and exported the second of these periods though not in chronological order began in the mid 1960s it formalized many of the insights about location incentives within urban areas which had been uncovered a half century before mixed them with the logic of heinrich von thunen s 1826 ancient theories about agricultural crops and land values and applied them to the hotisehold sector the works of william alonso 1964

innovation policy rationales lessons and challenges innovation policy has emerged as a new field of economic policy during the last few decades this paper explores the rationales for national innovation policies as laid out in the existing literature on the subject and considers what the lessons and challenges for theory and practice in this area are innovation policy attempts to influence innovation activity often with the purpose of increasing economic growth but it can also have more specific aims such as preventing unwarranted climate change improving national health and so on the increasing attention given to innovation policy at the national level from the 1990s onwards went hand in hand with the development of a new systemic understanding of innovation which in a better way than before accounted for the stylised facts of innovation activity as identified by empirical work the system approach as the paper shows came to have a significant influence on the subsequent policy discourse drawing on recent advances in innovation systems theory a synthetic framework for the analysis of innovation policy is developed and used to highlight issues of particular relevance for the conduct of innovation policy and future scholarly work in this area less

firm location and city size reduced productivity advantages as a factor in the decline of manufacturing in urban areas abstract this paper develops a model of firm location and city size that arrives at theoretical conclusions that differ from those of other authors comparative statics results suggest that changes in national wage levels and productivity levels create no determinate dis advantage for large cities relative to small ones as sites for manufacturing activity increased wage and reduced productivity premiums of large cities however result in unambiguous disadvantages statistical analysis indicates that the productivity advantages of large cities have declined in as many as eight two digit manufacturing industries that provide more than one third of metropolitan production worker employment

compulsive policy making the evolution of the german feed in tariff system for solar photovoltaic power abstract in recent years policy approaches that build upon the notion of innovation systems have enjoyed increasing attention in science technology and innovation policy but while the usefulness of systemic thinking in policy making has been demonstrated in a large number of empirical settings we still lack a detailed understanding of the dynamics at play when policy makers address systemic problems in this paper we show how complex interdependencies and the uncertain nature of technological change shape the process of targeted policy interventions in socio technical systems toward this end we analyzed the evolution of the german feed in tariff fit system for solar photovoltaic power a highly effective and widely copied policy instrument targeted at fostering the diffusion and development of renewable energy technologies we find that the policy has been subject to a considerable amount of changes many of which are the result of policy makers addressing specific system issues and bottlenecks interestingly however often these issues themselves were driven by unforeseen technological developments induced by previous policy interventions we argue that the pattern of policy serving as both a solution to and a driver of technological bottlenecks shows strong similarities with what rosenberg 1969 called compulsive sequences in the development of technical systems by shedding more light on how the characteristics of socio technical systems affect policy interventions our framework represents a first step toward more closely integrating the literature on innovation systems with the work on policy learning

design of innovation policy through diagnostic analysis identification of systemic problems or failures activities in innovation systems are the determinants of the development and diffusion of innovations examples are rd it provides a framework for identification of systemic problems or failures in innovation systems