In jüngster Zeit wird vielfach die These aufgestellt, dass sich Deutschland von einer Industrieökonomie zu einer so genannten Basarökonomie wandele, in der Güter verschiedenster Provenienz vertrieben, aber nur noch wenige hergestellt würden. Die Ursache dafür seien die zu hohen Lohnkosten...

We evaluate a randomized experiment of a statistical support system developed to assist caseworkers in Swiss employment offices in choosing appropriate active labour market programmes for their unemployed clients. The support system was piloted in several employment offices in which, randomly,...

This paper examines whether contacts between caseworkers in public employment offices and employers impact on the reemployment chances of the unemployed they counsel. This analysis is made possible through a large administrative dataset on unemployed combined with an extensive survey of...

This paper examines whether the chances of job placements improve if unemployed persons are counselled by caseworkers who belong to the same social group, defined by gender, age, education, and nationality. Based on an unusually informative dataset, which links Swiss unemployed to their...

This paper investigates the extent to which test performance is affected by shocks to non-cognitive skills. 440 students took a low stakes mathematics test. About half of them were exposed to positive affirmation while being given test instructions, whereas the other half served as controls. The...

This paper investigates the effects of retirement on various health outcomes. Data stem from the first three waves of the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing (ELSA). With this informative data, non-parametric matching methods can be applied to identify causal effects. It is found that...

Aktive Arbeitsmarktpolitik in der Schweiz wird der deutschen gegenübergestellt. Beide Länder haben viele Gemeinsamkeiten bezüglich Zielsetzung, Instrumenten und institutionellen Reformen von aktiver Arbeitsmarktpolitik. In der Schweiz stand jedoch bereits schon früher eine informative...

Mit der hartnäckigen Tendenz zur Deflation verliert die Geldpolitik, die den Euroraum bislang entscheidend stabilisiert hat, an Wirksamkeit. Sie bedarf dringend der Flankierung durch die Finanzpolitik, die mittels höherer Investitionen die Wirtschaft im Euroraum stimuliert und so die...