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Identifying Sorting - In Theory

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  • Jan Eeckhout

    () (Department of Economics, University of Pennsylvania)

  • Philipp Kircher

    () (Department of Economics, University of Pennsylvania)

Abstract

We argue that using wage data alone, it is virtually impossible to identify whether Assortative Matching between worker and firm types is positive or negative. In standard competitive matching models the wages are determined by the marginal contribution of a worker, and the marginal contribution might be higher or lower for low productivity firms depending on the production function. For every production function that induces positive sorting we can find a production function that induces negative sorting but generates identical wages. This arises even when we allow for non-competitive mismatch, for example due to search frictions. Even though we cannot identify the sign of the sorting, we can identify the strength, i.e., the magnitude of the cross-partial, and the associated welfare loss. While we show analytically that standard fixed effects regressions are not suitable to recover the strength of sorting, we propose an alternative procedure that measures the strength of sorting in the presence of search frictions independent of the sign of the sorting.

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Bibliographic Info

Paper provided by Penn Institute for Economic Research, Department of Economics, University of Pennsylvania in its series PIER Working Paper Archive with number 09-007.

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Length: 30 pages
Date of creation: 02 Jan 2009
Date of revision:
Handle: RePEc:pen:papers:09-007

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Related research

Keywords: sorting; assortative matching; identification; linked employer-employee data; interpretation of fixed-effects;

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References

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  1. Gautier, Pieter A & Teulings, Coen N, 2005. "How Large are Search Frictions?," CEPR Discussion Papers 5229, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
  2. Rute Mendes & Gerard J. van den Berg & Maarten Lindeboom, 2007. "An Empirical Assessment of Assortative Matching in the Labor Market," Carlo Alberto Notebooks 62, Collegio Carlo Alberto.
  3. Jan Eeckhout & Philipp Kircher, 2008. "Sorting and Decentralized Price Competition," PIER Working Paper Archive 08-020, Penn Institute for Economic Research, Department of Economics, University of Pennsylvania.
  4. Alp E. Atakan, 2006. "Assortative Matching with Explicit Search Costs," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 74(3), pages 667-680, 05.
  5. Sattinger, Michael, 1975. "Comparative Advantage and the Distributions of Earnings and Abilities," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 43(3), pages 455-68, May.
  6. Jean-Marc Robin & Costas Meghir & Jeremy Lise, 2008. "Matching, Sorting and Wages," 2008 Meeting Papers 273, Society for Economic Dynamics.
  7. Becker, Gary S, 1973. "A Theory of Marriage: Part I," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 81(4), pages 813-46, July-Aug..
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