IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/sls/resrep/0506.html

What Explains the Canada-US ICT Investment Intensity Gap?

Author

Listed:
  • Centre for the Study of Living Standards

Abstract

This report investigates the reasons behind the Canada-US gap in ICT investment intensity. It finds that Canada's ICT investment per worker in the business sector stood at 45.1 per cent of the US level in 2004, down from 60.4 per cent in 1987, and that Canada's lower ICT share of GDP reflects a lower share of ICT in total business investment (18.5% vs 30.5% in the US). The report examines a range of explanations for the gap including statistical and methodological differences, industrial structure, firm size, relative costs and prices, managerial attitudes, ICT training, taxes, and competitive intensity.

Suggested Citation

  • Centre for the Study of Living Standards, 2005. "What Explains the Canada-US ICT Investment Intensity Gap?," CSLS Research Reports 2005-06, Centre for the Study of Living Standards.
  • Handle: RePEc:sls:resrep:0506
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://csls.ca/research/what-explains-the-canada-us-ict-investment-intensity-gap/
    Download Restriction: no

    File URL: https://csls.ca/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/csls2005-06-1.pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Sabourin, David Baldwin, John R. Smith, David, 2003. "Impact of Advanced Technology Use on Firm Performance in the Canadian Food Processing Sector," Economic Analysis (EA) Research Paper Series 2003012e, Statistics Canada, Analytical Studies Branch.
    2. Andrew Sharpe, 2003. "Why Are Americans More Productive Than Canadians?," CSLS Research Reports 2003-03, Centre for the Study of Living Standards.
    3. John R. Baldwin & David Sabourin, 2002. "Advanced technology use and firm performance in Canadian manufacturing in the 1990s," Industrial and Corporate Change, Oxford University Press and the Associazione ICC, vol. 11(4), pages 761-789, August.
    4. Bronwyn H. Hall, 2004. "Innovation and Diffusion," NBER Working Papers 10212, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    5. Tarek M. Harchaoui & Faouzi Tarkhani, 2005. "Qu’en est-il des externalités du capital des technologies de l’information?," L'Actualité Economique, Société Canadienne de Science Economique, vol. 81(1), pages 231-253.
    6. Andrew Sharpe, 2003. "Why are Americans More Productive than Canadians?," International Productivity Monitor, Centre for the Study of Living Standards, vol. 6, pages 19-37, Spring.
    7. Frank M. Bass, 1969. "A New Product Growth for Model Consumer Durables," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 15(5), pages 215-227, January.
    8. Audretsch, David B. & Elston, Julie Ann, 2002. "Does firm size matter? Evidence on the impact of liquidity constraints on firm investment behavior in Germany," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 20(1), pages 1-17, January.
    9. Baldwin, John & Lin, Zhengxi, 2002. "Impediments to advanced technology adoption for Canadian manufacturers," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 31(1), pages 1-18, January.
    10. Silvia Fabiani & Fabiano Schivardi & Sandro Trento, 2005. "ICT adoption in Italian manufacturing: firm-level evidence," Industrial and Corporate Change, Oxford University Press and the Associazione ICC, vol. 14(2), pages 225-249, April.
    11. Nadim Ahmad, 2003. "Measuring Investment in Software," OECD Science, Technology and Industry Working Papers 2003/6, OECD Publishing.
    12. Andrew Sharpe, 2004. "Ten Productivity Puzzles Facing Researchers," International Productivity Monitor, Centre for the Study of Living Standards, vol. 9, pages 15-24, Fall.
    13. Chowhan, James, 2005. "Who Trains? High-tech Industries or High-tech Workplaces?," The Canadian Economy in Transition 2005006e, Statistics Canada, Economic Analysis Division.
    14. Erik Brynjolfsson & Lorin M. Hitt, 2000. "Beyond Computation: Information Technology, Organizational Transformation and Business Performance," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 14(4), pages 23-48, Fall.
    15. Aled ab Iorwerth, "undated". "Machines and the Economics of Growth," Working Papers-Department of Finance Canada 2005-05, Department of Finance Canada.
    16. Productivity Commission, 2004. "ICT Use and Productivity: A Synthesis from Studies of Australian Firms," Development and Comp Systems 0410005, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    17. Bruce T. Grimm & Brent R. Moulton & David B. Wasshausen, 2005. "Information-Processing Equipment and Software in the National Accounts," NBER Chapters, in: Measuring Capital in the New Economy, pages 363-402, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    18. Sabourin, David & Baldwin, John R., 1999. "Technology Adoption: A Comparison Between Canada and the United States," Analytical Studies Branch Research Paper Series 1998119e, Statistics Canada, Analytical Studies Branch.
    19. Dirk Pilat, 2005. "Canada's Productivity Performance in International Perspective," International Productivity Monitor, Centre for the Study of Living Standards, vol. 10, pages 24-44, Spring.
    20. Andrew Sharpe, 2005. "The Diffusion and Adoption of Advanced Technologies in Canada: An Overview of the Issues," CSLS Research Reports 2005-05, Centre for the Study of Living Standards.
    21. Sabourin, David & Baldwin, John R. & Diverty, Brent, 1995. "Technology Use and Industrial Transformation: Empirical Perspectives," Analytical Studies Branch Research Paper Series 1995075e, Statistics Canada, Analytical Studies Branch.
    22. Timothy F. Bresnahan & Erik Brynjolfsson & Lorin M. Hitt, 2002. "Information Technology, Workplace Organization, and the Demand for Skilled Labor: Firm-Level Evidence," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 117(1), pages 339-376.
    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. Jasmin Thomas, 2016. "Explaining Industry Differences in IT Investment Per Worker Between Canada and the United States, 2002-2013," CSLS Research Reports 2016-01, Centre for the Study of Living Standards.

    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. Andrew Sharpe, 2005. "The Diffusion and Adoption of Advanced Technologies in Canada: An Overview of the Issues," CSLS Research Reports 2005-05, Centre for the Study of Living Standards.
    2. Andrew Sharpe, 2005. "What Explains the Canada-US ICT Investment Gap?," International Productivity Monitor, Centre for the Study of Living Standards, vol. 11, pages 21-38, Fall.
    3. Surendra Gera & Wulong Gu, 2004. "The Effect of Organizational Innovation and Information and Communications Technology on Firm Performance," International Productivity Monitor, Centre for the Study of Living Standards, vol. 9, pages 37-51, Fall.
    4. Francesco D. Sandulli & Paul M.A. Baker & José I. López-Sánchez, 2014. "Jobs mismatch and productivity impact of information technology," The Service Industries Journal, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 34(13), pages 1060-1074, September.
    5. Adel Ben Khalifa, 2022. "Inter- and Intra-firm Diffusion of Technology: the Example of Software, Hardware, and Network Communications Empirical Evidence for Tunisian Manufacturing Firms," Journal of the Knowledge Economy, Springer;Portland International Center for Management of Engineering and Technology (PICMET), vol. 13(1), pages 236-263, March.
    6. Richard Dion & Robert Fay, 2008. "Understanding Productivity: A Review of Recent Technical Research," Discussion Papers 08-3, Bank of Canada.
    7. Fındık, Derya & Tansel, Aysit, 2013. "Resources on the stage: a firm level analysis of the ict adoption in Turkey," MPRA Paper 65956, University Library of Munich, Germany, revised 05 Aug 2014.
    8. Hervas-Oliver, Jose-Luis & Sempere-Ripoll, Francisca & Boronat-Moll, Carles, 2012. "Process innovation objectives and management complementarities: patterns, drivers, co-adoption and performance effects," MERIT Working Papers 2012-051, United Nations University - Maastricht Economic and Social Research Institute on Innovation and Technology (MERIT).
    9. Ajoy Ketan Sarangi & Rudra Prakash Pradhan, 2020. "ICT infrastructure and economic growth: a critical assessment and some policy implications," DECISION: Official Journal of the Indian Institute of Management Calcutta, Springer;Indian Institute of Management Calcutta, vol. 47(4), pages 363-383, December.
    10. Gu, Wulong Gera, Surendra, 2004. "The Effect of Organizational Innovation and Information Technology on Firm Performance," The Canadian Economy in Transition 2004007e, Statistics Canada, Economic Analysis Division.
    11. Atzeni, Gianfranco E. & Carboni, Oliviero A., 2008. "The effects of grant policy on technology investment in Italy," Journal of Policy Modeling, Elsevier, vol. 30(3), pages 381-399.
    12. Stefanie Haller & Iulia Siedschlag, 2011. "Determinants of ICT adoption: evidence from firm-level data," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 43(26), pages 3775-3788.
    13. Gianfranco E. Atzeni & Oliviero A. Carboni, 2006. "The Effects of Subsidies on Investment: an Empirical Evaluation on ICT in Italy," Revue de l'OFCE, Presses de Sciences-Po, vol. 97(5), pages 279-302.
    14. Fındık, Derya & Tansel, Aysit, 2013. "Resources on the stage: a firm level analysis of the ict adoption in Turkey," MPRA Paper 65956, University Library of Munich, Germany, revised 05 Aug 2014.
    15. Fabiano Schivardi & Tom Schmitz, 2020. "The IT Revolution and Southern Europe’s Two Lost Decades [Lack of Selection and Limits to Delegation: Firm Dynamics in Developing Countries]," Journal of the European Economic Association, European Economic Association, vol. 18(5), pages 2441-2486.
    16. Bashir, Sadaf & Sadowski, B. M., 2014. "General purpose technologies: A survey, a critique and future research directions," 25th European Regional ITS Conference, Brussels 2014 101443, International Telecommunications Society (ITS).
    17. Anna Giunta & Francesco Trivieri, 2007. "Understanding the determinants of information technology adoption: evidence from Italian manufacturing firms," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 39(10), pages 1325-1334.
    18. Giuliana Battisti & Heinz Hollenstein & Paul Stoneman & Martin Woerter, 2007. "Inter And Intra Firm Diffusion Of Ict In The United Kingdom (Uk) And Switzerland (Ch) An Internationally Comparative Study Based On Firm-Level Data," Economics of Innovation and New Technology, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 16(8), pages 669-687.
    19. Erik Brynjolfsson & Wang Jin & Kristina McElheran, 2021. "The power of prediction: predictive analytics, workplace complements, and business performance," Business Economics, Palgrave Macmillan;National Association for Business Economics, vol. 56(4), pages 217-239, October.
    20. Van der Wee, Marlies & Verbrugge, Sofie & Sadowski, Bert & Driesse, Menno & Pickavet, Mario, 2015. "Identifying and quantifying the indirect benefits of broadband networks for e-government and e-business: A bottom-up approach," Telecommunications Policy, Elsevier, vol. 39(3), pages 176-191.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;

    NEP fields

    This paper has been announced in the following NEP Reports:

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    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:sls:resrep:0506. 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: CSLS (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/cslssca.html .

    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.