In this paper we develop a structural empirical model that allows us to estimate the impact of R&D on firm profitability through two channels. In the first channel, R&D investment by the firm can impact the firm's production efficiency and lower its marginal cost. This productivity channel...

Economic theory predicts that outsourcing public services to private firms will reduce costs, but the effect on quality is ambiguous. We explore quality differences between publicly and privately owned ambulances in a setting where patients are as good as randomly assigned to ambulances of...