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Exploration of Wisdom Ages: Firm survival

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  • Backman, Mikaela

    (Centre of Excellence for Science and Innovation Studies (CESIS), Jönköping International Business School, & Centre for Entrepreneurship and Spatial Economics (CEnSE))

  • Karlsson, Charlie

    (Centre of Excellence for Science and Innovation Studies (CESIS), Jönköping International Business School, & Centre for Entrepreneurship and Spatial Economics (CEnSE))

Abstract

Studies confirm a tendency where elder individuals are more prone to become entre¬preneurs. Their motives are numerous ranging from feeling social included to maintain the same income level. Interesting as such, this paper contributes to the existing literature by taking this one step further and examine the surviving of new and existing firms that are run by elder individuals (one-em¬ployee firms) or have a high share of elderly individuals. Elderly individuals are defined as those above the age of 55 or 64. The results show that the average marginal effect on the prob-ability of survival from individuals above 55 and 64 differs across firm size. Elderly individuals negatively influence the survival of smaller firms (below ten employees). For larger firms the negative effect from elderly individuals is smaller, zero or even positive. Exploring the data, we find that “elderly firms”, defined as firms that have a majority of employees above the age of 55 or above the age of 64, have a lower survival rate and lower average number of employees but a higher value added per employee.

Suggested Citation

  • Backman, Mikaela & Karlsson, Charlie, 2013. "Exploration of Wisdom Ages: Firm survival," Working Paper Series in Economics and Institutions of Innovation 339, Royal Institute of Technology, CESIS - Centre of Excellence for Science and Innovation Studies.
    • Handle: RePEc:hhs:cesisp:0339
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    ageing; firm survival; employer-employee matched data;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J14 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Economics of the Elderly; Economics of the Handicapped; Non-Labor Market Discrimination
    • L26 - Industrial Organization - - Firm Objectives, Organization, and Behavior - - - Entrepreneurship
    • R12 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - General Regional Economics - - - Size and Spatial Distributions of Regional Economic Activity; Interregional Trade (economic geography)
    • R30 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - Real Estate Markets, Spatial Production Analysis, and Firm Location - - - General

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