The authors address the issue of estimation and inference in dependent nonstationary panels of small cross-section dimensions. The main conclusion is that the best results are obtained applying bootstrap inference to single-equation estimators, such as fully modified ordinary least squares and dynamic ordinary least squares. Seemingly unrelated regression estimators perform badly, or are even u...

We consider a bivariate Poisson model that is based on the lognormal heterogeneity model. Two recent applications have used this model. We suggest that the correlation estimated in their model frameworks is an ambiguous measure of the correlation of the variables of interest, and may substantially overstate it. We conclude with a detailed application of the proposed method using the data employ...

Cross sectional estimation of convergence regressions is known to be hazardous if there is convergence towards heterogeneous steady state values. In this paper, Monte Carlo methods are used to investigate the implications of this parameter heterogeneity problem. The cross sectional and pooled OLS estimators are compared with a panel estimator which is unaffected by heterogeneity. If there is he...

We consider a number of unit root tests for micro panels where the number of individuals is typically large, but the number of time periods is often very small. As we discuss, the presence of a unit root is closely related to the identification of parameters of interest in this context. Calculations of asymptotic local power and Monte Carlo evidence indicate that two simple t-tests based on ord...

Self-Employment Dynamics, State Dependence and Cross-Mobility Patterns This paper analyzes the mobility between self-employment, wage employment and nonemployment. Using data for men in West Germany, we find strong true state dependence in all three states. Moreover, compared to wage employment, non-employment increases the probability of self-employment significantly, and self-employment goes ...

We study the effect of political ideology on sustainable development, measured as investment in genuine wealth, in a dynamic panel of 79 countries between 1981 and 2013. We find that a switch from a left-wing or centrist government to a right-wing government has a robust positive and statistically significant effect on investment in genuine wealth. We find no evidence of opportunistic cycles in...

This paper empirically investigates the impact of macroeconomic uncertainty on the spreads of credit default swaps (CDS). While existing literature acknowledges the importance of the levels of macroeconomic factors in determining CDS spreads, we show that the second moments of these factors—macroeconomic uncertainty—predict CDS spreads even in the presence of traditional macroeconomic factors s...