Using panel data for a maximum of 109 countries over the years 1976-2000, we empirically analyze the impact of decentralization on the occurrence of transnational terror. Taking account of the potential simultaneity between terror and decentralization, our results show that expenditure decentralization robustly reduces the number of terror events in a country, while political decentralization h...

Using unique panel data on individual transactions between buyers and sellers in the spot market for live hogs, we found a large degree of intra-day price dispersion. Motivated by this empirical puzzle, we offer an explanation which is rooted in the bargaining with search theory. We formulate three hypotheses involving the role of farmers’ search cost, bargaining parties’ patience, and asymmetr...

We use unique worker-plant matched panel data to measure differences in wage changes experienced by workers displaced from closing plants. We observe larger losses among women than men, comparing workers who move from the same closing plant to the same new firm. However, we find a significantly smaller gap in hiring firms with female leadership. The results are strongest among women who are dis...

When academic researchers participate in commercialization using for-profit firms there is a potentially costly trade-off – their time and effort are diverted away from academic knowledge production. This is a form of brain drain on the not-for-profit research sector that may reduce academic research productivity and adversely impact university performance and long-run economic growth. In this ...

This article examines the impact of a conditional cash transfer programme in Nicaragua on a range of consumption and productive investment measures. Programme effects are estimated using household panel data collected as part of a randomised evaluation. Despite clear evidence that the programme increased current expenditures, there is only limited evidence that it increased investment. An estim...

In recent years, Chinese government attaches great importance to information and communication technology(ICT) application in agriculture. Driven by market profits and financial privilege, information and communication enterprises, agricultural enterprises, research institutes, universities and relative associations have actively involved in ICT application in agriculture for many years. Theref...

This paper studies firms’ capability to recombine internal and local knowledge. It measures the outcome in terms of total productivity growth. Using Swedish data on commuting time for face-to-face contacts across all 290 municipalities, we employ a time sensitive approach for calculating localized knowledge within a municipality and and its close neighbors. Internal knowledge is captured by reg...

Using panel data on micro-enterprises from Peru, we find evidence suggesting that firm dynamics explain ‘formality’, i.e. the decision to participate in societal institutions. In particular, we find that participation increases with firm size and age, implying transition of firms to formality as they grow. The distinct characteristics of sub-groups, segmented according to life-cycle criteria, f...