Sofia Wixe

The Impact of Spatial Externalities: Skills, Education and Plant Productivity

Wixe S. The impact of spatial externalities: skills, education and plant productivity, Regional Studies. This paper analyses the role of a broad range of spatial externalities in explaining average labour productivity of Swedish manufacturing plants. The main findings show positive effects from general urbanization economies and labour market matching, as well as a negative effect from within-industry diversity. These results confirm previous research despite methodological differences, which implies wider generalizability. Additionally, the empirical findings support Marshall–Arrow–Romer (MAR) and Porter externalities, i.e. positive effects from specialization and competition. No evidence is found of Jacobs externalities, neither when measured as between-industry diversity nor as within-industry diversity. Finally, plant-specific characteristics play a key role in explaining plant-level productivity.

Which types of relatedness matter in regional growth? Industry, occupation and education

ABSTRACT Which types of relatedness matter in regional growth? Industry, occupation and education. Regional Studies. This paper provides a conceptual discussion of relatedness, which suggests a focus on individuals as a complement to firms and industries. The empirical relevance of the main arguments is tested by estimating the effects of related and unrelated variety in education and occupation among employees, as well as in industries, on regional growth. The results show that occupational and educational related variety are positively correlated with productivity growth, which supports the conceptual discussion put forth in the paper. In addition, related variety in industries is found to be negative for productivity growth, but positive for employment growth.

Innovation and entrepreneurship in the global economy : knowledge, technology and internationalization

Much of the discussion about globalization has been held at a rather superficial macro-economic level. Discussions about globalization dealing with the meso- and micro-economic level, i.e. the level of regions and companies, have been much less common. Many of the discussions of globalization at the meso- and micro-economic level have also been biased in the sense that they have only given a partial picture. One obvious example is that discus¬sions of the role of innovation and entrepreneur¬ship have tended to use a narrow definition of entrepreneurship equal to the start-up of new companies and as a result ignored the high degree of innovation and entrepreneurship within many incumbent companies. The purpose of this paper is to contribute to the meso- and micro-economic literature on innovation and entrepreneurship in the global economy.

Innovation and entrepreneurship in the global economy

Much of the discussion about globalization has been held at a rather superficial macro-economic level. Discussions about globalization dealing with the meso- and micro-economic level, i.e. the level of regions and companies, have been much less common. Many of the discussions of globalization at the meso- and micro-economic level have also been biased in the sense that they have only given a partial picture. One obvious example is that discus¬sions of the role of innovation and entrepreneur¬ship have tended to use a narrow definition of entrepreneurship equal to the start-up of new companies and as a result ignored the high degree of innovation and entrepreneurship within many incumbent companies. The purpose of this paper is to contribute to the meso- and micro-economic literature on innovation and entrepreneurship in the global economy.