We present evidence for a highly significant interaction between state dependence in individual unemployment risk and the business cycle. The disadvantage from having been unemployed in the previous period is smaller in times of relatively high unemployment and larger in times of low...

This paper analyzes the determinants of computer use by male employees and estimates the impact of computer use on the employment status for older workers, based on individual data from the German Socio-Economic Panel (GSOEP). In line with previous research on the diffusion of new technologies,...

A number of contributions have found evidence for motherhood being a critical life event for women's employment careers. This study presents a detailed model for the du- ration of maternity leave in which young mothers can make a transition into a number of states related to employment and...

The paper revisits the local determinants of crime using a spatial model distinguishing between resident and non-resident offenders. Employing data for German municipalities, the model is estimated by means of a spatial GMM approach. Focusing on resident offenders legal earnings opportunities...

Living arrangements have undergone considerable change in recent decades. In most Western countries marriage is no longer the exclusive context of family formation. In the United States (US) for instance, the number of unmarried couples nearly doubled in the 1990s, from 3:2 million couples in...

We estimate peer effects for fourth graders in six European countries. The identification relies on variation across classes within schools. We argue that classes within primary schools are formed roughly randomly with respect to family background. Similar to previous studies, we find sizeable...

This paper investigates the impact of early noncognitive skills on social outcomes in adolescence. The child's attention span, approach, prevailing mood and distractibility in early childhood may be crucial predictors for school achievements, health risk behavior, delinquency and autonomy as...

This paper examines educational outcomes of pupils selected to secondary school types by different tracking regimes in a German state: Pupils are alternatively streamed after fourth grade or after sixth grade. Regression results indicate that, estimated on the mean, there are no negative effects...

This paper analyzes the regional dimension of the German digital divide. It considers the impact of regional characteristics on differences in the share of Internet use between German counties. In addition, it studies the influence of regional factors as well as individual characteristics on the...