We use the Swedish Job Applicant Database to empirically investigate whether being unemployed per se reduces the probability to get contacted by a firm. This database contains personal characteristics and preferences over the type of job the applicant wants to find. The data is submitted both by...

This paper estimates the macroeconomic effect of labor market programs on labor force participation. Labor market programs could counteract business-cycle variation in the participation rate that is due to the discouraged-worker effect, and they could prevent labor force outflow. An equation...

We study the derminants of plant closures i Swedish manufacturing using linked employer-employee data. From our theoretical framework we derive and empirically test hypothesis regarding the linkages between the probability of plant failure and: 1) industry-specific characteristics of production...

This paper proposes an application of standard evaluation techniques to obtain an early indication of the efficiency of a social program. An explicit distinction is made between participation and treatment since non-participants in many cases can find treatment outside of the program. By...

The interpretation and measurement of the innovation performance of territorial units represent well established research areas. Nevertheless the way this issue is usually addressed raises several questions. In present paper we are dealing with two of these problematic fields: the level of...

This paper evaluates and compares the direct effects of two Swedish active labour market programmes for youth, namely youth practice and labour market training. Effectiveness of the programmes is measured by subsequent annual earnings, re-employment probability, and probability of regular...

The Swedish experiences of the 1990s provide a unique example of how largescale active labour market programmes (ALMPs) have been used as a means to fight high unemployment. This paper discusses the mechanisms through which ALMPs affect (un)employment and surveys the empirical studies of the...

Return to employment, after a period of unemployment, is analyzed for a large sample of Swedish occupationally disabled workers. A piece-wise constant model is used, extended to allow for Gamma heterogeneity. Three competing exits from unemployment are accounted for; regular employment,...

The paper studies the effects of changes in the age structure on aggregate labour market performance using a panel of Swedish local labour markets. The methodology of Shimer (2001) is used for studying the effects of youth cohort size and is extended to include the full age distribution. The...

In this paper we apply a bivariate probit model to investigate the implications of bank lending policy. In the first equation we model the bank's decision to grant a loan, in the second the probability of default. We confirm that banks provide loans in a way that is not consistent with default...