We use the synthetic control method to analyze the effect of face masks on the spread of Covid‐19 in Germany. Our identification approach exploits regional variation in the point in time when wearing of face masks became mandatory in public transport and sales shops. Depending on the region we...

We use the synthetic control method to analyze the effect of face masks on the spread of Covid-19 in Germany. Our identification approach exploits regional variation in the point in time when face masks became compulsory. Depending on the region we analyse, we find that face masks reduced the...

The paper studies the containment effects of public health measures to curb the spread of Covid‐19 during the first wave of the pandemic in spring 2020 in Germany. To identify the effects of six compound sets of public health measures, we employ a spatial difference‐in‐differences...

Modern cluster theory provides reasons for positive external effects that accrue from the interaction of spatially proximate firms operating in common and related fields of economic activity. In this paper, we examine the impact of R&D‐intensive clusters as a key factor of regional...

Modern cluster theory provides reasons for positive external effects that accrue from the interaction of spatially proximate firms operating in common and related fields of economic activity. In this paper, we examine the impact of R&D-intensive clusters as a key factor of regional...

This paper investigates the effects of tuition fees on the university enrollment and location decision of high school graduates in Germany. After a Federal Constitutional Court decision in 2005, 7 out of 16 German federal states introduced tuition fees for higher education. In the empirical...

In this paper, we study the long- and short-run relationship between regional public debt and economic performance for a sample of German federal states over the period of four decades (1970-2010). By choosing a sample of regional entities with comparable institutional settings, we complement...

In the light of new theoretical and empirical work on the Permanent Income Hypothesis we tackle earlier findings for German data, which reject its validity given a large fraction of liquidity constrained consumers. Starting from a standard short run approach we do not find evidence for excess...

We analyse the effect of public Research and Development (R&D) subsidies on private sector innovativeness for a cross-section of East German firms applying different matching estimations, which are primary based on an estimate of a propensity score. To do so, we use a until now unexplored...

Numerous studies have focused on the role of EU regional policy in fostering growth and convergence among European regions, why conducting another one? We argue that two facts are still lacking in the actual academic debate in order to get a sound empirical identification strategy and reliable...