This paper considers a general class of stochastic dynamic choice models with discrete and continuous decision variables. This class contains a variety of models that are useful for modeling intertemporal household decisions under risk. Our examples are drawn from the field of development...

We exploit plot data from the agricultural module of the third Malawi Integrated Household Survey (IHS-3) to investigate how organic cultivation techniques contribute to productivity of non-subsidized local maize and what to expect from using organic inputs on a larger scale. We approximate...

This discussion paper resulted in an article in 'Economic Development and Cultural Change', 2011, 60, 121-154. <P> In this paper we focus on the timing of marriages of women, whose marriages are associated with bride wealth payments, which are transfers from (the family of) the groom to the bride's...</p>

Following formal privatisation of farm land and assets in CentralEurope, the change in agriculturalproduction structures has been both more limited and different thanwas initially expected. In this paper, thetheoretical reasons underlying those expectations are reviewed. Analternative...

Russian agriculture in transition (1991-1998) was characterised by a production collapse due to aloss in quality and quantity of acreage, disinvestments, falling purchasingpower, and increasedimports. Neither traditional agriculture nor the nascent family farm sector havebeen able to ensure...

This paper presents results of a meta-regression analysis on empirical estimates of capital-energy substitution. Theoretically it is clear that a distinction should be made between Morishima substitution elasticities and cross-price elasticities. The former represent purely technical...

This paper contributes to the productivity literature by using results from firm-level productivity studies to improve forecasts of macro-level productivity growth. The paper employs current research methods on estimating firm-level productivity to build times-series components that capture the...

Teams, in both firms and in sports, jointly produce a product. While a fixed task is assigned to each member of a team, the individual team productivity of a worker or player is difficult to conceptualize. This is particularly true, if this concept is aimed to be operable on observable data. In...

This discussion paper led to a publication in the <I>International Journal of Forecasting</I> (2013). Vol. 29, pages 676-694.<P> We extend the class of dynamic factor yield curve models for the inclusion of macro-economic factors. We benefit from recent developments in the dynamic factor literature for...</p></i>

Automobile gasoline demand can be expressed as a multiplicative function of fuel efficiency, mileage per car and car ownership. This implies a linear relationship between the price elasticity of total fuel demand and the price elasticities of fuel efficiency, mileage per car and car ownership....