Search results for " Difference-in-difference"
showing 6 items of 6 documents
The Covid-19 containment effects of public health measures:A spatial difference-in-differences approach
2021
Abstract The paper studies the containment effects of public health measures to curb the spread of Covid‐19 during the first wave of the pandemic in spring 2020 in Germany. To identify the effects of six compound sets of public health measures, we employ a spatial difference‐in‐differences approach. We find that contact restrictions, mandatory wearing of face masks and closure of schools substantially contributed to flattening the infection curve. The significance of the impact of restaurant closure does not prove to be robust. No incremental effect is evidenced for closure of establishments and the shutdown of nonessential retail stores.
Will the last be the first? School closures and educational outcomes
2023
Governments have implemented school closures and online learning as one of the main tools to reduce the spread of Covid-19. Despite the potential benefits in terms of containment of virus diffusion, the educational costs of these policies may be dramatic. This work identifies these costs, expressed as decrease in test scores, for the whole universe of Italian students attending the 5th, 8th and 13th grade of the school cycle during the 2021/22 school year. The analysis is based on a difference-in-difference model in relative time, where the control group is the closest generation before the Covid-19 pandemic. Results suggest a national average loss between 1.8-4.0% in Mathematics and Italia…
More hours, more jobs? The employment effects of longer working hours
2014
Increases in standard hours of work have been a contentious policy issue in Germany. Whilst this might directly lead to a substitution of workers by hours, there may also be a positive employment effect due to reduced costs. Moreover, the response of firms may differ between firms that offer overtime and those that do not. For a panel of German plants (2001–2006) drawn from the IAB Establishment Panel, we are the first to analyse the effect of increased standard hours on employment. Using difference-in-difference methods we find that, consistent with theory, overtime plants showed a significant positive employment response, whilst for standard-time plants there is no difference between plan…
R&D subsidies and productivity in SMEs
2015
This paper examines the effect of R&D subsidies on labour productivity. We use firm-level data on Finnish SMEs from 2000 to 2012 and apply a combined matching and difference-in-differences method to control for selection bias. We find no significant positive effect on labour productivity over the five-year period after a subsidy is granted. However, the results vary over time and indicate a 2–4 % negative effect on SMEs’ annual productivity growth one to 2 years after the subsidy year. Nevertheless, subsidies generate a positive employment effect and enhance firm survival. Additional scrutiny reveals that subsidies positively affect the human capital level of low-skill firms. peerReviewed
The Covid-19 containment effects of public health measures - A spatial difference-in-differences approach
2020
AbstractSince mid-March 2020 the Federal and state governments in Germany agreed on comprehensive public health measures to curb the spread of SARS-CoV-2 infections leading to the Covid-19 disease. We study the containment effects of these policy interventions on the progression of the pandemic in the first containment phase in spring 2020 before the easing of restrictions may become effective by the end of April. To exploit both the temporal and spatial dimension in the dissemination of the virus, we conduct a spatial panel data analysis for German NUTS-3 regions. Specifically, we employ a spatial difference-in-differences approach to identify the effects of six compound sets of public hea…
Ex-post evaluation of Territorial Integrated Projects in Italy: an empirical analysis at firm level
2013
This paper focuses on the evaluation of an incentive program for firms implemented in southern Italy during the last decade. In the framework of the policy instruments aimed to reduce territorial disparities, and to support local development, territorial integrated projects (TIP) constituted a new operational mode to implement the Regional Operational Programmes. A TIP is defined as a ?set of inter-sectorial actions, closely consistent and linked among them, which converge towards the common objective of territorial development and justify a unitary implementation approach'. The resources allocated for each TIP may be aimed at three types of interventions such as infrastructures, public act…