This file is part of IDEAS, which uses RePEc data


[ Papers | Articles | Software | Books | Chapters | Authors | Institutions | JEL Classification | NEP reports | Search | New papers by email | Author registration | Rankings | Volunteers | FAQ | Blog | Help! ]

Competition, Agency and Productivity

Author info | Abstract | Publisher info | Download info | Related research | Statistics
Author Info
Mark Rogers () (Harris Manchester College, Oxford and Melbourne Institute of Applied Economic and Social Research, The University of Melbourne)

Additional information is available for the following registered author(s):

Abstract

This paper tests a set of hypotheses relating to agency and Schumpeterian views on how competition affects performance. A survey data set of Australian workplaces is used, with the change in labour productivity growth as the dependent variable. The results show strong support for the idea that intense competition raises productivity growth in managerial workplaces, but not in non-managerial workplaces (i.e. where the principal owner also works). Testing the agency theories in more detail we find no evidence that the number of competitors, the price elasticity of demand or a proxy for bankruptcy (pre-tax losses) are the mechanisms behind the process. For non-managerial workplaces the results indicate support for the idea that greater demand uncertainty reduces productivity growth. In contrast, for managerial workplaces greater demand uncertainty tends to raise productivity growth.

Download Info
To download:

If you experience problems downloading a file, check if you have the proper application to view it first. Information about this may be contained in the File-Format links below. In case of further problems read the IDEAS help file. Note that these files are not on the IDEAS site. Please be patient as the files may be large.

File URL: http://melbourneinstitute.com/wp/wp2003n20.pdf
File Format: application/pdf
File Function:
Download Restriction: no

Publisher Info
Paper provided by Melbourne Institute of Applied Economic and Social Research, The University of Melbourne in its series Melbourne Institute Working Paper Series with number wp2003n20.

Download reference. The following formats are available: HTML, plain text, BibTeX, RIS (EndNote), ReDIF
Length: 24 pages
Date of creation: Jul 2003
Date of revision:
Handle: RePEc:iae:iaewps:wp2003n20

Contact details of provider:
Postal: Melbourne Institute of Applied Economic and Social Research, The University of Melbourne, Victoria 3010 Australia
Phone: +61 3 8344 2100
Fax: +61 3 8344 2111
Email:
Web page: http://www.melbourneinstitute.com/
More information through EDIRC

For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its listing, contact: (Woei T Liew).

Related research
Keywords:

Other versions of this item:

Find related papers by JEL classification:
L1 - Industrial Organization - - Market Structure, Firm Strategy, and Market Performance

This paper has been announced in the following NEP Reports:

References listed on IDEAS
Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.:
  1. Martin Stephen, 1993. "Endogenous Firm Efficiency in a Cournot Principal-Agent Model," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 59(2), pages 445-450, April. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  2. Meyer, Margaret A & Vickers, John, 1995. "Performance Comparisons and Dynamic Incentives," CEPR Discussion Papers 1107, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
  3. David Scharfstein, 1988. "Product-Market Competition and Managerial Slack," RAND Journal of Economics, The RAND Corporation, vol. 19(1), pages 147-155, Spring. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  4. Sanghoon Ahn, 2002. "Competition, Innovation and Productivity Growth: A Review of Theory and Evidence," OECD Economics Department Working Papers 317, OECD Economics Department. [Downloadable!]
  5. Scherer, F M & Huh, Keun, 1992. "R&D Reactions to High-Technology Import Competition," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 74(2), pages 202-12, May. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  6. Vickers, John, 1995. "Concepts of Competition," Oxford Economic Papers, Oxford University Press, vol. 47(1), pages 1-23, January. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  7. Aw, B. -Y. & Hwang, A. R., 1995. "Productivity and the export market: A firm-level analysis," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 47(2), pages 313-332, August. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  8. Symeonidis, George, 2001. "Price Competition, Innovation and Profitability: Theory and UK Evidence," CEPR Discussion Papers 2816, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  9. Oliver D. Hart, 1983. "The Market Mechanism as an Incentive Scheme," Bell Journal of Economics, The RAND Corporation, vol. 14(2), pages 366-382, Autumn. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  10. George Symeonidis, 1996. "Innovation, Firm Size and Market Structure: Schumpeterian Hypotheses and Some New Themes," OECD Economics Department Working Papers 161, OECD Economics Department. [Downloadable!]
  11. Philippe Aghion & Nicholas Bloom & Richard Blundell & Rachel Griffith & Peter Howitt, 2002. "Competition and innovation: an inverted U relationship," IFS Working Papers W02/04, Institute for Fiscal Studies. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  12. Hagedoorn, John, 1996. "Innovation and Entrepreneurship: Schumpeter Revisited," Industrial and Corporate Change, Oxford University Press, vol. 5(3), pages 883-96.
  13. Nickell, Stephen & Nicolitsas, Daphne & Dryden, Neil, 1997. "What makes firms perform well?," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 41(3-5), pages 783-796, April. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
  14. Harry Bloch & James Ted McDonald, 2000. "Import Competition and Labour Productivity," Melbourne Institute Working Paper Series wp2000n09, Melbourne Institute of Applied Economic and Social Research, The University of Melbourne. [Downloadable!]
  15. Eve Caroli & John Van Reenen, 2001. "Skill-Biased Organizational Change? Evidence From A Panel Of British And French Establishments," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, MIT Press, vol. 116(4), pages 1449-1492, November. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
  16. Bronwyn H. Hall & Jacques Mairesse, 1995. "Exploring the Relationship Between R&D and Productivity in French Manufacturing Firms," NBER Working Papers 3956, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
  17. Charles R. Hulten, 2000. "Total Factor Productivity: A Short Biography," NBER Working Papers 7471, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  18. Rachel Griffith, 2001. "Product market competition, efficiency and agency costs: an empirical analysis," IFS Working Papers W01/12, Institute for Fiscal Studies. [Downloadable!]
  19. Schmidt, Klaus M, 1997. "Managerial Incentives and Product Market Competition," Review of Economic Studies, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 64(2), pages 191-213, April. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
  20. Demsetz, Harold, 1973. "Industry Structure, Market Rivalry, and Public Policy," Journal of Law & Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 16(1), pages 1-9, April.
  21. Geroski, P A, 1990. "Innovation, Technological Opportunity, and Market Structure," Oxford Economic Papers, Oxford University Press, vol. 42(3), pages 586-602, July. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  22. George Symeonidis, 2001. "Price Competition, Innovation and Profitability: Theory and UK Evidence," Economics Discussion Papers 530, University of Essex, Department of Economics. [Downloadable!]
  23. Nickell, Stephen & Nicolitsas, Daphne & Patterson, Malcolm, 2001. " Does Doing Badly Encourage Management Innovation?," Oxford Bulletin of Economics and Statistics, Department of Economics, University of Oxford, vol. 63(1), pages 5-28, February. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
Full references

Statistics
Access and download statistics

Did you know? IDEAS was sponsored from 1997 to 2002 by the Université du Québec à Montréal.

This page was last updated on 2008-8-3.

This information is provided to you by IDEAS at the Department of Economics, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, University of Connecticut using RePEc data on a server sponsored by the Society for Economic Dynamics.