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! ]

A Microfoundation for Production Functions: Assignment of Heterogenous Workers to Heterogenous Jobs

Author info | Abstract | Publisher info | Download info | Related research | Statistics
Author Info
Dupuy, Arnaud () (ROA, Maastricht University)

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

Abstract

In very different fields of economics, economic inference and policy evaluation require economists to parametrize a production function that links measures of input factors to measures of output. While doing so, strong assumptions are implicitly made about microeconomic variables governing the shape of the aggregate production function. In this paper, I develop an assignment model that provides a microeconomic foundation for aggregate production functions. The shape of the production function depends crucially on the distribution of workers and jobs and the type of technological changes depends crucially on the evolution of these distributions. Sufficient and necessary conditions are provided for the production function to be of the Constant Ratio of Elasticities of Substitution form, a form nesting the broadly used Constant Elasticity of Substitution form. This model provides a way to evaluate how stringent assumptions about the type of production function or technological change are by comparing the implied distribution of jobs and its evolution over time to observations of the distribution of jobs and its evolution over time.

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 page. Note that these files are not on the IDEAS site. Please be patient as the files may be large.

File URL: http://ftp.iza.org/dp3312.pdf
File Format: application/pdf
File Function:
Download Restriction: no

Publisher Info
Paper provided by Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA) in its series IZA Discussion Papers with number 3312.

Download reference. The following formats are available: HTML (with abstract), plain text (with abstract), BibTeX, RIS (EndNote, RefMan, ProCite), ReDIF
Length: 30 pages
Date of creation: Jan 2008
Date of revision:
Handle: RePEc:iza:izadps:dp3312

Contact details of provider:
Postal: IZA, P.O. Box 7240, D-53072 Bonn, Germany
Phone: +49 228 3894 223
Fax: +49 228 3894 180
Web page: http://www.iza.org

Order Information:
Postal: IZA, Margard Ody, P.O. Box 7240, D-53072 Bonn, Germany
Email:

For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its listing, contact: (Mark Fallak).

Related research
Keywords: microfoundations of production function; tasks assignment; technical change;

Find related papers by JEL classification:
D2 - Microeconomics - - Production and Organizations
D3 - Microeconomics - - Distribution
J3 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs
O3 - Economic Development, Technological Change, and Growth - - Technological Change

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. Teulings, Coen N, 1995. "The Wage Distribution in a Model of the Assignment of Skills to Jobs," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 103(2), pages 280-315, April. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
Full references

Cited by:
(explanations, 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. Borghans Lex & Weel Bas ter, 2008. "Understanding the Technology of Computer Technology Diffusion: Explaining Computer Adoption Patterns and Implications for the Wage Structure," Research Memoranda 009, Maastricht : ROA, Research Centre for Education and the Labour Market. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  2. Dupuy, Arnaud, 2008. "The Assignment of Workers to Tasks, Wage Distribution and Technical Change: A Critical Review," IZA Discussion Papers 3379, Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA). [Downloadable!]
Statistics
Access and download statistics

Did you know? Data contributors to RePEc receive monthly emails with details about downloads and abstract views of their works.

This page was last updated on 2009-11-23.

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.