The age-productivity gradient: evidence from a sample of F1 drivers

Estimating the effect of aging on productivity is a daunting task. First, it requires clean measures of productivity. Second, unobserved heterogeneity at workers, firms and workers/firms level challenges the identification of the age-productivity gradient in cross-sectional data. Finally, the study of the age-productivity link requires to partial out the role of experience and to account for the selection bias that arises if less able people drop out faster than more able ones. We tackle these issues by focussing on a panel of Gran Prix Formula One drivers and show that the age-productivity link has an inverted U-shape profile, with a peak at around the age of 30-32.