. Specifically, we ask whether there are behavioral differences between mothers in East and West Germany, whether these differences …

use the separation of Germany into the communist GDR and the democratic FRG and its reunification in 1990 as a natural … experiment. Relying on household data that are representative for Germany, our empirical results strongly indicate that … conspicuous consumption is relatively more important in East Germany. Importantly, a significant gap in conspicuous consumption …

lending decisions to small and medium- sized firms. A comparison of the terms of lending between the former East German and … West German states yields a lending gap given by higher loan prices and collateral requirements in East Germany. This gap …

Italy and Germany have similar geographical differences in productivity – North more productive than South in Italy …; West more productive than East in Germany – but have adopted different models of wage bargaining. Italy sets wages based on … nationwide contracts that allow for limited local wage adjustments, while Germany has moved toward a more flexible system that …

reduce inequality. We study the local and aggregate effects of collective bargaining in Italy and Germany. The two countries … West more productive than the East in Germany – but have adopted different models of wage bargaining. Italy sets wages … based on nationwide contracts that allow for limited local wage adjustments, while Germany has moved toward a more flexible …

(Raumordnungsregionen) in Germany based on the second wave of the Panel on Household Finances (PHF) conducted by the Deutsche Bundesbank in …. Although the paper is particularly focused on Germany, the approach proposed is applicable to surveys with a similar data …