In analyzing the disparities of the regional developments in the volume of employment in Germany, in the recent empirical literature so called shift-share-regression-models are frequently applied. However, these models usually neglect spatial interdependencies, even though such interdependencies...

Against the background of the current economic research which concentrates particularly on individual and structural factors, this paper examines if and to what extent social norms (in terms of attitudes towards gender roles and work commitment) can make a complementary statement in explaining...

The German Renewable Energy Law (EEG) has been a very successful instrument in raising the share of the renewable energies that are not yet competitive. However, a detrimental consequence of this policy is that, through specific feed-in tariffs, it hinders the competition among particular...

The literature on the wage curve provides considerable evidence in favor of a negative relationship between unemployment and wages. It is thus often seen as a refutation of the Harris-Todaro model, who point to a positive relationship. This paper shows that both strands of literature are special...

Regional labor markets are characterized by huge disparities of unemployment rates. Models of the New Economic Geography explain how disparities of regional goods markets endogenously arise but usually assume full employment. This paper discusses regional unemployment disparities by introducing...

The New Economic Geography predicts a positive effect of market access on wages, as represented by the wage equation. Several studies provide empirical evidence in favor of the wage equation. However, a key problem is the endogeneity of market access: it is challenging to identify the causal...