The overall objective of this thesis is to contribute to the existing knowledge of efficiency measurements through the exploration of efficiency modelling issues and practical applications of different efficiency analysis frameworks. More specifically, this objective will be achieved through a...

The first chapter investigates the factors that explain the level of technical efficiency of a firm. In an empirical analysis, a unique sample of about 35,000 firms in 256 industries from the German Cost Structure Census over the years 1992-2004 is used. The technical efficiency of the firms is...