IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/kap/jproda/v63y2025i3d10.1007_s11123-024-00747-x.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Nonparametric analysis of separable production technologies with intermediate inputs

Author

Listed:
  • Laurens Cherchye

    (University of Leuven (KU Leuven))

  • Bram Rock

    (Université Libre de Bruxelles and Department of Economics, University of Leuven (KU Leuven))

Abstract

We introduce a nonparametric methodology for analyzing production technologies characterized by weakly separable structures involving intermediate inputs. Weakly separable production functions allow for modeling production stages where raw inputs aggregate into intermediate inputs before interacting with other factors of production. We establish nonparametric testable conditions for cost minimizing behavior that accommodate production with intermediate inputs. These conditions offer practical tools for empirical analysis of separable production processes. We show that they provide a useful basis for measuring productive efficiency and for identifying shadow prices of intermediate inputs. Additionally, we discuss potential extensions to handle jointly used raw inputs, multiple final outputs, and scenarios with limited price and quantity information.

Suggested Citation

  • Laurens Cherchye & Bram Rock, 2025. "Nonparametric analysis of separable production technologies with intermediate inputs," Journal of Productivity Analysis, Springer, vol. 63(3), pages 245-254, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:kap:jproda:v:63:y:2025:i:3:d:10.1007_s11123-024-00747-x
    DOI: 10.1007/s11123-024-00747-x
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://link.springer.com/10.1007/s11123-024-00747-x
    File Function: Abstract
    Download Restriction: Access to full text is restricted to subscribers.
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1007/s11123-024-00747-x?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to look for a different version below or search for a different version of it.

    Other versions of this item:

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Varian, Hal R, 1982. "The Nonparametric Approach to Demand Analysis," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 50(4), pages 945-973, July.
    2. Afriat, Sidney N, 1972. "Efficiency Estimation of Production Function," International Economic Review, Department of Economics, University of Pennsylvania and Osaka University Institute of Social and Economic Research Association, vol. 13(3), pages 568-598, October.
    3. Cherchye, Laurens & Demuynck, Thomas & De Rock, Bram & Hjertstrand, Per, 2015. "Revealed preference tests for weak separability: An integer programming approach," Journal of Econometrics, Elsevier, vol. 186(1), pages 129-141.
    4. Laurens Cherchye & Thomas Demuynck & Bram Rock & Kristof Witte, 2014. "Non‐parametric Analysis of Multi‐output Production with Joint Inputs," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 124(577), pages 735-775, June.
    5. Diewert, W. E. & Parkan, C., 1985. "Tests for the consistency of consumer data," Journal of Econometrics, Elsevier, vol. 30(1-2), pages 127-147.
    6. repec:hal:spmain:info:hdl:2441/f0uohitsgqh8dhk9820172631 is not listed on IDEAS
    7. repec:spo:wpmain:info:hdl:2441/f0uohitsgqh8dhk9820172631 is not listed on IDEAS
    8. Färe, Rolf & Karagiannis, Giannis, 2014. "Benefit-of-the-doubt aggregation and the diet problem," Omega, Elsevier, vol. 47(C), pages 33-35.
    9. Richard Blundell & Jean-Marc Robin, 2000. "Latent Separability: Grouping Goods without Weak Separability," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 68(1), pages 53-84, January.
    10. R. Allen & A. Athanassopoulos & R.G. Dyson & E. Thanassoulis, 1997. "Weights restrictions and value judgements in Data Envelopment Analysis: Evolution, development and future directions," Annals of Operations Research, Springer, vol. 73(0), pages 13-34, October.
    11. Hal R. Varian, 1983. "Non-parametric Tests of Consumer Behaviour," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 50(1), pages 99-110.
    12. Hanoch, Giora & Rothschild, Michael, 1972. "Testing the Assumptions of Production Theory: A Nonparametric Approach," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 80(2), pages 256-275, March-Apr.
    13. Sickles,Robin C. & Zelenyuk,Valentin, 2019. "Measurement of Productivity and Efficiency," Cambridge Books, Cambridge University Press, number 9781107036161, Enero-Abr.
    14. Victor V. Podinovski & Robert G. Chambers & Kazim Baris Atici & Iryna D. Deineko, 2016. "Marginal Values and Returns to Scale for Nonparametric Production Frontiers," Operations Research, INFORMS, vol. 64(1), pages 236-250, February.
    15. Laurens Cherchye & Bram Rock & Dieter Saelens & Marijn Verschelde, 2024. "Productive efficiency analysis with incomplete output information," Journal of Productivity Analysis, Springer, vol. 62(3), pages 291-301, December.
    16. Laurens Cherchye & Bram De Rock & Frederic Vermeulen, 2011. "The Revealed Preference Approach to Collective Consumption Behaviour: Testing and Sharing Rule Recovery," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 78(1), pages 176-198.
    17. Varian, Hal R, 1984. "The Nonparametric Approach to Production Analysis," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 52(3), pages 579-597, May.
    18. Laurens Cherchye & Thomas Demuynck & Bram Rock & Kristof Witte, 2014. "Non‐parametric Analysis of Multi‐output Production with Joint Inputs," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 124(577), pages 735-775, June.
    19. Laurens Cherchye & Bram De Rock & Frederic Vermeulen, 2011. "The Revealed Preference Approach to Collective Consumption Behaviour: Testing and Sharing Rule Recovery," Review of Economic Studies, Oxford University Press, vol. 78(1), pages 176-198.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Daniel J. Henderson, 2025. "In Memoriam: R. Robert Russell, 1938–2023," Journal of Productivity Analysis, Springer, vol. 63(3), pages 241-243, June.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Laurens Cherchye & Bram Rock & Dieter Saelens & Marijn Verschelde, 2024. "Productive efficiency analysis with incomplete output information," Journal of Productivity Analysis, Springer, vol. 62(3), pages 291-301, December.
    2. Cherchye, Laurens & Demuynck, Thomas & De Rock, Bram & Hjertstrand, Per, 2015. "Revealed preference tests for weak separability: An integer programming approach," Journal of Econometrics, Elsevier, vol. 186(1), pages 129-141.
    3. Ian Crawford & Bram De Rock, 2014. "Empirical Revealed Preference," Annual Review of Economics, Annual Reviews, vol. 6(1), pages 503-524, August.
    4. Mike Tsionas & Valentin Zelenyuk, 2021. "Goodness-of-fit in Optimizing Models of Production: A Generalization with a Bayesian Perspective," CEPA Working Papers Series WP182021, School of Economics, University of Queensland, Australia.
    5. Aguiar, Victor H. & Kashaev, Nail & Allen, Roy, 2023. "Prices, profits, proxies, and production," Journal of Econometrics, Elsevier, vol. 235(2), pages 666-693.
    6. Dieter Saelens, 2022. "Unitary or collective households? A nonparametric rationality and separability test using detailed data on consumption expenditures and time use," Empirical Economics, Springer, vol. 62(2), pages 637-677, February.
    7. Laura Blow & Martin Browning & Ian Crawford, 2008. "Revealed Preference Analysis of Characteristics Models," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 75(2), pages 371-389.
    8. Smeulders, Bart & Crama, Yves & Spieksma, Frits C.R., 2019. "Revealed preference theory: An algorithmic outlook," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 272(3), pages 803-815.
    9. Cherchye, Laurens & De Rock, Bram & Kerstens, Pieter Jan, 2018. "Production with storable and durable inputs: Nonparametric analysis of intertemporal efficiency," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 270(2), pages 498-513.
    10. Thomas Demuynck & John Rehbeck, 2023. "Computing revealed preference goodness-of-fit measures with integer programming," Economic Theory, Springer;Society for the Advancement of Economic Theory (SAET), vol. 76(4), pages 1175-1195, November.
    11. Cherchye, Laurens & Rock, Bram De & Walheer, Barnabé, 2015. "Multi-output efficiency with good and bad outputs," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 240(3), pages 872-881.
    12. Laurens Cherchye & Bram De Rock & Frederic Vermeulen & Selma Walther, 2021. "Where did it go wrong? Marriage and divorce in Malawi," Quantitative Economics, Econometric Society, vol. 12(2), pages 505-545, May.
    13. Cherchye, L.J.H. & Crawford, I. & de Rock, B. & Vermeulen, F.M.P., 2011. "Aggregation without the Aggravation? Nonparametric Analysis of the Representative Consumer," Other publications TiSEM e6102eac-a248-49dc-ae8e-1, Tilburg University, School of Economics and Management.
    14. Sam Cosaert & Veerle Hennebel, 2023. "Parental Childcare with Process Benefits," Economica, London School of Economics and Political Science, vol. 90(357), pages 339-371, January.
    15. Cherchye, Laurens & De Rock, Bram & Hennebel, Veerle, 2014. "The economic meaning of Data Envelopment Analysis: A ‘behavioral’ perspective," Socio-Economic Planning Sciences, Elsevier, vol. 48(1), pages 29-37.
    16. Cherchye, Laurens & De Rock, Bram & Walheer, Barnabé, 2016. "Multi-output profit efficiency and directional distance functions," Omega, Elsevier, vol. 61(C), pages 100-109.
    17. Ding, Jingjing & Dong, Wei & Liang, Liang & Zhu, Joe, 2017. "Goal congruence analysis in multi-Division Organizations with shared resources based on data envelopment analysis," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 263(3), pages 961-973.
    18. Laurens Cherchye & Thomas Demuynck & Bram Rock & Kristof Witte, 2014. "Non‐parametric Analysis of Multi‐output Production with Joint Inputs," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 124(577), pages 735-775, June.
    19. Heufer, Jan & Hjertstrand, Per, 2019. "Homothetic preferences revealed," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 157(C), pages 602-614.
    20. Laurens Cherchye & Thomas Demuynck & Bram De Rock & Marijn Verschelde, 2018. "Nonparametric identification of unobserved technological heterogeneity in production," Working Paper Research 335, National Bank of Belgium.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:kap:jproda:v:63:y:2025:i:3:d:10.1007_s11123-024-00747-x. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.springer.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.