Does skill-biased technical change diffuse internationally?

Arbeitspapier

This paper studies the question whether skill-biased technical change diffuses internationally and that way contributes to the increasing relative skill demand in other countries. So far, the role of skill-biased technology diffusion has hardly been studied empirically. Using new sectoral data for a panel of 40 emerging and developed countries, 30 industries (covering manufacturing and service industries) and 13 years (1995-2007), the analysis shows that skill-biased technology diffusion is statistically and economically important in explaining skill-biased technical change. Countries further away from the skill-specific technological frontier subsequently show higher skill-specific productivity growth. For that, the bilateral distance between two countries proves to be an important mediating factor, whereas intersectoral trade linkages, so far, explain only a small part of it. The main results hold for both, developed and emerging countries.

Object Details

• Language: Englisch

References and Relationships

• Bibliographic citation: Series: ZEW Discussion Papers ; No. 15-088

Classification and Topics

• Classification: Wirtschaft ; Trade and Labor Market Interactions ; Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity ; Industrialization; Manufacturing and Service Industries; Choice of Technology ; Technological Change: Choices and Consequences; Diffusion Processes ; Input-Output Models
• Subject: skill-biased technical change ; technology diffusion ; distance ; inputoutput linkages ; industry-level data ; emerging and developed countries

Contributors, Places and Time

• Event: Geistige Schöpfung
• (who): Schulte, Patrick
• Event: Veröffentlichung
• (who): Zentrum für Europäische Wirtschaftsforschung (ZEW)
• (where): Mannheim
• (when): 2015

Further information

• Handle: http://hdl.handle.net/10419/126560
• URN: urn:nbn:de:bsz:180-madoc-405187
• Last update: 10.03.2025, 11:44 AM CET