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The article discusses a study which focused on the development of an economic procedure that integrates a theory-guided analysis of determinants of regional disparities with standard classification approaches. The researchers designed the procedure to resolve limitations that commonly exist in classification schemes including the lack of a theoretically meaningful organization of the variable selection process. They also examined the conditions in the labor market which affect the outcomes of a policy related to an active labor market.

This study draws on conservation of resources theory and transactional stress theory to guide our understanding of how social isolation, financial insecurity, and social support serve as a balance of both risk and protection for late-life depression. Data were from the Leave-Behind Questionnaire in the 2016 (N = 4293) and 2018 (N = 4714) waves of the Health and Retirement Study. We conducted a cross-sectional path analysis via structural equation modeling, including objective and subjective perspectives. The same model was tested in both samples. Both social isolation and financial insecurity were associated with depression. We found several mediating risks and protective factors of these relationships. Objective financial status affected depression through both perceived financial insecurity and perceived social isolation, whereas objective isolation affected depression through perceived social support. This mediation model was -significant after adjusting for confounders. This study underscores the importance of investigating the balance between risk and protection for depression, in the rising number of older adults aging alone in society. Findings suggest that objective and perceived measures offer unique windows into psychological constructs. Considering both objective and subjective perspectives may provide alternative targets for subsequent interventions to improve mental health in later life. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While much of the ethnic and racial segregation literature concentrates on residential neighbourhoods, a growing body of research demonstrates how levels of inter-ethnic mixing vary between home and other spaces, including workplace environments. Using alternative population bases from the 2011 Census for England and Wales, we explore how levels of ethnic segregation and diversity compare for working-age people in residential ('nighttime'), workday ('daytime') and workplace ('employment') environments. Analyses of Middle Layer Super Output Areas reveal that a larger number of these zones had low residential ethnic diversity than had low workday or workplace diversity. We also find higher levels of residential segregation than workplace segregation for all ethnic groups, including the White British (majority) and minoritised groups. Notable differences in segregation between residential and workplace spaces for the Pakistani and Bangladeshi ethnic groups, for example, demonstrate that more commonly applied measures of residential segregation fail to capture the extent of inter-ethnic mixing across spaces, and at different times of the day. Commuting data are analysed to explore the role of daily mobilities in shaping these patterns. The findings nuance understandings of levels of ethnic mixing, and emphasise the need for segregation analyses across multiple spatio-temporal contexts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

New Zealand experienced strong growth in immigration since the 1990s, until the COVID-19 pandemic triggered a two-year phase of near-zero migration. Growing concern about the impact of immigration on various social and economic outcomes has led to a review of the evidence and related policies. One area of concern is the extent to which immigration impacts on the distribution of income - given that inequality increased notably since the 1980s. In this paper we take into account that immigration is spatially selective and compare the contribution of migrant groups (including New Zealand born persons returning from abroad) to income inequality in metropolitan areas with that contribution in non-metropolitan urban areas. We use two different decomposition methods and compare results. We find with both methods that migrant groups made inequality-increasing contributions to overall income inequality. These contributions are larger in metropolitan areas than in other urban. However, changes in the skill distribution, including those brought about by immigration, have more important implications for the distribution of income. High-skilled groups (whether New Zealand born or foreign born) have made inequality-increasing contributions to the distribution of income, particularly in metropolitan areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We investigated negotiated Labour Market Flexibility (LMF) in small hazardous firms in the context of increased immigrant labourers and the non-availability of the local labour force. Extant literature discussed negotiation between the employer and employees, only if the firm satisfies the following conditions: firm-specificity, employee categorisation into core-periphery, and shared ethnic identities between the employees and employer. However, in this study, we broke away from these conditional boundaries, and used the Grounded theory to capture both entrepreneurs' and employees' views. Interestingly, we found a socially constructed interdependence between them, stemming from mutual reciprocity. The findings offer significant implications for substantive theory and practice in the realm of LMF in general, and negotiated flexible work arrangements in particular. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A problem encountered in many contexts is the estimation of matrices or tables from aggregate, heterogeneous, incomplete and contradictory information. In this paper the Adeton method is presented which can be used for this estimation task under quite general conditions. The Adeton method was originally developed to estimate flow matrices of regional labour markets in the Multi-Accounting System (MAS). However, it is applicable for many purposes, e.g. to estimate contingency tables or input-output and other flow matrices. Adeton is based on a Bayesian inference model: Given a prior probability distribution on the set of possible matrices and information about the actual matrix consisting of a set of linear equality and inequality constraints, the complete matrix with highest posterior probability is calculated. The advantage of the Adeton approach is that it is possible to specify soft constraints which are obeyed only up to a certain degree. It is shown that Adeton is an estimation method of entropy optimization type and in this respect is a generalization of the well known Iterative Proportional Fitting Algorithm (used in log-linear models) or of the equivalent RAS method (used in input-output analysis). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We analyse whether wage differences between cities and rural areas in western Germany are due to unobserved differences in regional price levels. Since regional prices are available for only 10% of the regions we use multiple imputation to generate prices for all regions. Our results show that the nominal agglomeration wage differential is 25%, whereas the real differential is 19%. If we control for the composition of the labour force and jobs, the real wage differential is 4%. If we additionally control for differences in regional building land prices the agglomeration wage differential vanishes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Collective bargaining is central to wage-setting and working conditions, but knowledge about what exactly has been concluded in collective bargaining agreements (CBAs) in Europe is limited. In light of the debate about a European Minimum Wage this information gap is evident. This article aims to explore the feasibility of an EU-wide CBA data collection. We conclude that such a database could cover all CBAs for nine countries, all multi-employer CBAs for another nine countries and a selection of CBAs for two countries. Data collection for the remaining countries has to rely on CBAs collected from social partners. Realisation of an EU-wide CBA Database seems a doable but challenging task. When CBA texts would be collected and coded, the content of CBAs could be compared across member states. The Wage Indicator CBA Database is an example of a cross-country coding scheme for CBA texts. Text-mining options are explored as a promising way forward as to reduce coding efforts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the impact of homogamy on the distribution of household income in New Zealand at the national level and across different sized cities. We focus on homogamy by age, education, hours worked, employment status, and migration status. We present a new index of homogamy that takes account of maximum potential homogamy. Our index is less sensitive to categories with small population shares than the commonly used concentration ratios. We compare the inequality impact of actual matching with that of randomized matching by means of the additional randomization method. Contrary to public perception, homogamy of the highly educated has declined relative to random matching. Nonetheless, homogamy has had an inequality‐increasing impact on the distribution of income and this effect has grown over time: from around 5% of the mean log deviation (MLD) measure of income inequality in 1986 to 16% in 2013. Allowing for simulated labor supply responses reduces this effect by less than 1%. Spatially, the effect of homogamy is larger and increases more in metropolitan areas than in other urban areas. In Auckland, New Zealand's largest city (around a third of the population), homogamy accounted for a fifth of MLD inequality by 2013, up from 6% in 1986. Educational homogamy plays the biggest role in this process, but the effects of hours worked, employment status and migration status are relatively important too. Homogamy by age has little effect on income inequality. Using the Gini index as an alternative inequality measure yields similar results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the research project on data anonymity, the possibilities and difficulties of restoring the identity of respondents, whose data have been anonymized, were tested in realistic simulations. In this paper the results of an application of a) a matching procedure and of b) a method based on discriminate analysis are reported. In the experiments carried out, empirical data of a handbook about German scientists and scholars and the German microcensus were used. A check of the results by an independent data-trustee demonstrated that a real intruder has more difficulties achieving an identification than is frequently assumed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates the relationship between innovation and employment by analyzing the factors that drive job creation processes and particularly by scrutinizing the role of innovation on the skill structure of regional labor demand. The study utilizes Finnish regional innovation (proxied with R&D expenditures) and employment data for 2000–2013. The results show statistically significant positive employment effects from local innovation activities and knowledge spillovers from other regions only on the demand for high-skilled employees. For low-skilled employees, the employment effects of local innovation activities are significantly negative, while there is no impact from knowledge spillovers from other regions. These effects are robust also for different lag structures. The findings are significant in terms of their policy implications for supporting employment; Finnish innovation policy should consider the negative impacts of innovation on low-skilled employees more explicitly. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article extends understandings of circular migration among young migrants (aged 16–35) by focusing on the two key concepts of human capital and life satisfaction. Drawing on a large-scale quantitative primary data set, the YMOBILITY survey, key skills and competencies that facilitate circular migration are identified. It is widely assumed that achieving higher levels of subjective well-being is a primary motivational factor behind migratory decisions. However, there is little conclusive evidence to suggest that migration and mobility lead to increased levels of happiness. We argue that tacit competencies, defined as skills, ideas and experiences that people have but are not codified, are especially valued by circular migrants as facilitators of multiple migratory processes and are of importance to levels of life-satisfaction among young circular migrants. In order to assess circular migration as a life-strategy, the relationship between human capital outcomes and levels of life satisfaction among circular migrants is examined. Our analysis identifies important disparities in human capital and life satisfaction outcomes according to socio-economic and geographic background. It offers insight into the significance of life-course effects on the levels of life-satisfaction among young circular migrants and suggests new theoretical approaches to the study of contemporary migration in Europe. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Human capital investments are frequently suggested as a policy measure to cope with smaller and older labor forces caused by demographic change across Europe. However, the availability and composition of human capital is fundamentally intertwined with demographic structures, especially at a regional level. This article analyzes how aging is related to the regional composition of human capital for German regions between 2000 and 2010. The findings show that labor force aging is associated with lower educational attainment and that older labor forces have higher shares of traditional vocational degrees. On a national level, education expansion still sufficiently compensates for the effects of population aging, but regional human capital composition shows distinct trends. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cities around the world are central locations for economic activity, industrial production, research and innovation. Urban environment is a favourable locus for entrepreneurship and living, accumulating a significant share of regional and national administrative, financial and human resources, concentrating advanced public infrastructure and social sector services. In the process of regional development, the integration and coherence between cities strengthen, the functions are redefined, and the specialisation deepens, while the role of the central city(-ies) is reinforced. Consideration of inter-city intraagglomeration socioeconomic integrity and functional interconnectivity is vital for efficient governance. However, the blurred boundaries of urban agglomerations impede elaboration of place-specific development policies on urban and regional growth. Our study is aimed at delimitation of urban agglomeration structure around the Rostov-on-Don - one of the ten largest cities of Russia and the administrative centre of the Southern federal district. Results suggest that Rostov agglomeration continues to evolve with a different level of integrity between city clusters of the three agglomeration arcs. We find that industrial clustering and transportation network determine the developmental trajectory of the urban agglomeration, shaping its spatial configuration and causing pathdependency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Historical, socio‐cultural, ideological and political factors have long shaped Vietnam's formal industrial relations system. This has led to the development of a state‐centred structure in which the official trade union has a high level of formal status but little real influence in an economy whose primary employer was the state. Since the end of the Vietnam War in 1975, the country has experienced a gradual shift towards a market economy through its policy of economic reform (doi moi). Although there is evidence of escalating divisions between workers and managers, the communist government continues to maintain a direct and dominant influence on the industrial relations system. Such influence highlights questions about the legitimacy of institutional and governmental control over formal labour representatives. In this article, we hope to offer a theory‐based explanation of this phenomenon. Key points During doi moi many labour policies have not been closely linked to the process of enhancing competitiveness, protection of political security, or social order and safety.The Vietnamese state is facing great tension between the three theory‐based anchors of this paper: accumulation (encouraging economic performance and competitiveness), pacification (maintaining social order, and defusing conflict at the workplace to keep its leadership in place) and legitimation (pursuing social equity and fostering voice at work as responses to the reality of pluralist workplace).In attempting to maintain a balance between these three functions, the Vietnamese government, compared to a democratic government, does not negotiate with any opposing party, nor deal with different opinions.The economic pressure either from international forces or from the pluralist economic system when it operates is a permanent and ongoing challenge for the government. Vietnam industrial relations has been liberalizing since doi moi but it is still far from a democratized system. Eexternal pressures in the future may well increase the probability of trade union reform, as Vietnam seeks further links with the global economy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Technological progress has widely been acknowledged as a key driver in the achievement of environmental sustainability, and a new concern has recently arisen for assessing the role of differences in regional innovation performances with respect to the pursuit of pollution targets. We investigate the impact of innovative activities on environmental efficiency at the regional level, adopting a spatial panel data approach to account for dependence between geographical observations and to get deeper insights into spatial knowledge spillovers arising from agglomeration economies. The spatial panel analysis covers 103 Italian provinces (equivalent to NUTS3 regions) on four major air pollutants (i.e., CO2, CH4, NMVOC, CO) over the 1995–2010 period. Our findings show that the state of local technology development, proxied by patents, has a positive impact on GDP emission efficiency and that its magnitude is higher for more localized pollutants as a result of larger spillover effects. Finally, to analyze the Italian North‐South dualism of emission levels of pollutants, we offer a spillover effect study to emphasize the remarkable difference among effects in the territory. This calls for closer attention to the local relevance of the pollution damage when environmental impact of innovation strategies is to be evaluated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Building on experiences collected in the course of an evaluation of a German cluster policy programme, the Leading-Edge Cluster Competition (LECC, evaluation 2008–2014), this paper scrutinizes central problems that arise in the evaluation of the impacts of large-scale innovation policy programmes. We find that our relatively modest knowledge with regard to the actual effects and impact patterns of comparable programmes is not necessarily due to methodological weaknesses of the evaluation studies, but rather to inherent structural programme characteristics. The present state-of-the-art evaluation methodology does not sufficiently allow us to take into consideration these characteristics. Challenges in the evaluation of technology programs relate closely to different facets of complexity. Our analysis shows that three aspects of programme effects deserve more attention in evaluation research: Emergence and non-linearity, uncertainty, and time patterns of the observed effects. Using the example of the LECC, our paper demonstrates how evaluators' work is affected by these phenomena. The results lead to the question of whether there are methodological alternatives that are suitable for future evaluations of complex innovation programmes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to stimulate growth and competitiveness, many EU member states have implemented cluster-based development strategies. Several works underline the benefits of policy-driven clusters, but understanding how clusters can create value for their members is still an open issue. This work contributes to the literature by investigating 13 Competitiveness Clusters in Croatia, a special type of policy-driven clusters developed within the country's smart specialization strategy, using original data from a survey on 250 cluster members. Our results indicate the existence of very different attitudes towards the rationale for the initiative. In particular, while some members are more interested in lobbying activities, others see networking and innovation as the most important objectives of clusters. Findings also show that the evaluation of cluster management, governance and performance varies according to the desired objectives. Overall the Competitiveness Clusters initiative in Croatia did not meet members' expectations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Gender segregation in vocational education and training (VET) in different occupations is observed in many European countries. This occupational gender segregation depends on – among other factors – the initial occupational aspirations of adolescents. While previous research has mainly focused on individual-level explanations and on the family context, this study investigates the influence of local VET – and labour markets – on adolescent boys' and girls' occupational aspirations. More precisely, we look at: (1) the occupational structure of local VET and labour markets and (2) competition for VET opportunities. Using data from the German National Educational Panel Study of youth in grade 9 (age 15/16), we find that boys' aspirations are oriented towards occupational opportunities in the local labour market and that they vary with competition. Girls' aspirations are less likely to be gender-typical – neither female nor male – if there is low competition. However, with higher competition, girls also orient their aspirations towards occupational opportunities. Even if effect sizes of local context are small, we do find empirical evidence that contexts matter. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigates the complex and multi‐faceted ways in which Vietnamese accountants have (re)constructed their occupational identity within a context of ongoing socio‐political and economic development. The concept of 'identity work' and Bourdieu's notions of field, habitus and capital guide the investigation, with the evidence base comprising a series of interviews with Vietnamese accountants. Three interpretive schemes are identified as 'operating principles' that characterise accountants' identity construction. These patterns are outcomes of the negotiations of accountants with their respective institutional environment in which accountants' negotiating power is fuelled by their experience (habitus) and capital (economic, social and cultural capital). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For more than two decades, theories on regional clusters have inspired economic and structural policies at the European, national and regional levels. Based on the assumption that clusters generate innovation, policy-makers at all levels of governance have adopted instruments and mechanisms to stimulate, resource and sustain clusters. Despite the considerable attention paid to the clustering phenomenon, empirical evidence on to what extent firms’ innovation activities benefit from operating in clusters is scarce and inconclusive. This paper contributes to the micro-foundation of clustering effects by examining the characteristics and activities of cluster firms in relation to their innovativeness. Bridging innovation, management and cluster theories, it is argued that structural and relational embeddedness, relational capital and absorptive capacity influence clustered firms' innovativeness. Partial least-squares structural equation modelling of data from 104 firms in two software and information technology service sector clusters reveals that firms’ structural embeddedness (i.e. frequency of interactions) in clusters and external networks facilitates innovation cooperation. Firms’ absorptive capacity reinforces this positive effect of cluster-internal interactions on innovation cooperation. Results also suggest a substitution effect of trust as relational control mechanisms for formal control mechanisms within the cluster. However, the study finds no significant impact of firms’ innovation cooperation within the cluster (i.e. relational embeddedness) on their innovation success. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We extend the heterogeneous coefficients spatial autoregressive panel model (HSAR) from Aquaro, Bailey, and Pesaran (2015) to the case of a heterogeneous coefficients matrix exponential spatial specification (HMESS). The HSAR is capable of producing parameter estimates for each region in the sample, that follow a spatial autoregressive process. Spatial autoregressive processes apply geometric decay of influence to higher‐order neighboring regions. The HMESS takes a similar approach as the HSAR to produce estimates for each region in the sample, but relies on a matrix exponential function to apply exponential decay to higher‐order neighbors. The MESS introduced by LeSage and Pace (2007) for the case of cross‐sectional spatial data samples has some potential computational advantages over the spatial autoregressive specification. In addition, the spatial dependence parameter in the MESS ranges from minus to plus infinity, which allows for use of normal priors assigned to this parameter in a Bayesian setting. We extend the cross‐sectional MESS to the case of a heterogeneous coefficients model, and describe Bayesian Markov Chain Monte Carlo estimation. We illustrate the HMESS model with a panel wage curve relationship using quarterly unemployment and wage rates from 261 counties centered on the Bakken shale oil region in North Dakota and Montana. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research has debated to what extent policy measures can facilitate or contribute to the development of clusters. This article contributes to this debate by questioning how the government can create a cluster that is self-organizing and vibrant but also maintain sufficient influence to continue using the cluster as a policy instrument. Taking the perspective of cluster members, the article investigates how members perceive the ambiguous role of the government in a government-supported cluster. It analyses to what extent cluster members value a government-supported cluster and whether they perceive the government as one that facilitates or hinders them in self-organizing the cluster. Empirical evidence is derived from a case study of a French cluster established as a result of a cluster policy initiative and which has recently been required to fulfil a new set of objectives by the same government. The findings suggest that government-supported clusters can self-organize if members are given the opportunity, but with the consequence that it becomes difficult for the government to fully control such clusters. To continue steering the cluster’s development, the government would have to leverage the technology gatekeepers’ power by designing policies that allow gatekeepers to translate government objectives into meaningful objectives for themselves. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The 'life cycle' approach has become popular in studies on industrial clusters. However, some concerns have been raised over the inherent determinism of this approach and its tendencies to focus exclusively on cluster internal dynamics while neglecting the role of external factors and socio-economic contingencies. This paper addresses these criticisms by investigating the long-term development of Castel Goffredo, a traditional textile cluster in Italy. In our analysis, we identify and characterize the main stages of the life cycle and its antecedents. We single out the main triggering factors behind each of these stages and show that a variety of factors, both external and internal to the cluster, contributed to its development. Our findings confirm that an 'adaptive' cycle approach, which focuses also on contingencies and external factors, appear to be appropriate for investigating the long-term evolution of clusters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The environmental sector is supposed to yield a dual benefit: its goods and services are intended to tackle environmental challenges and its establishments should create new jobs. However, it is still unclear in empirical terms whether that really is the case. This paper investigates to what extent employment growth in establishments with green products and services is higher compared to other establishments. Furthermore, the main factors determining labour demand in this field are analysed. We use linked employment and regional data for Germany. The descriptive results show that the environmental sector is characterised by disproportionately high employment growth. The application of a generalised linear mixed model reveals that especially innovation and industry agglomeration foster employment growth in establishments in the environmental sector. Establishments without green products and services show a smaller increase in employment, even if they are also innovative. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

In the UK, the transparency agenda is forcing data stewardship organisations to review their dissemination policies and to consider whether to release data that is currently only available to a restricted community of researchers under licence as open data. Here we describe the results of a study providing evidence about the risks of such an approach via a simulated attack on two social survey datasets. This is also the first systematic attempt to simulate a jigsaw identification attack (one using a mashup of multiple data sources) on an anonymised dataset. The information that we draw on is collected from multiple online data sources and purchasable commercial data. The results indicate that such an attack against anonymised end user licence (EUL) datasets, if converted into open datasets, is possible and therefore we would recommend that penetration tests should be factored into any decision to make datasets (that are about people) open. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper studies the spatial dynamics of French agricultural cooperatives using the recently developed exploratory spatial data analysis tool. Analysis at the level of French districts in 1995 and 2005 shows strong evidence for global and local spatial autocorrelations in the geographical distribution of agricultural cooperatives. The presence of spatial disparities between French districts is confirmed by the detection of such specific spatial patterns as district clusters, a group of neighbouring districts with the same high or low level of agricultural cooperative activities. A typology of all the different Regions is developed to examine the specific spatial patterns of the agricultural cooperative activities. The results indicate that major organizational changes in cooperatives do not significantly modify the initial dynamics concerning the location of activities. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This article shows how the impulses of the transformation process in eastern Germany have spread through the economy and the labour market. The form of transformation has long-term effects on the form of control over the economy; it is managed largely from western firms. This fact has manifold consequences for the innovation behaviour of plants, among others, which in turn is further related to productivity and thus to the labour market. We argue that this transfers further to persistently lower wages and higher unemployment rates in eastern compared with western Germany. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines the channels through which offshoring affects employment in a representative sample of German establishments, using a difference-in-differences matching approach. Offshoring is measured by an increase in the share of foreign to total intermediate inputs at the plant-level. We identify a positive productivity effect and isolate a negative downsizing effect from offshoring on employment, by exploiting differences between offshoring plants that do and do not simultaneously restructure. Furthermore, we cannot find evidence of negative indirect employment effects on domestic suppliers or competitors. ( JEL F16, J23, F23, C21) [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Zeitschrift für Soziologie is the property of De Gruyter and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Research collaborations between universities and industry (U-I) are considered to be one important channel of potential localized knowledge spillovers (LKS). These collaborations favour both intended and unintended flows of knowledge and facilitate learning processes between partners from different organizations. Despite the copious literature on LKS, still little is known about the factors driving the formation of U-I research collaborations and, in particular, about the role that geographical proximity plays in the establishment of such relationships. Using collaborative research grants between universities and business firms awarded by the UK Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC), in this article we disentangle some of the conditions under which different kinds of proximity contribute to the formation of U-I research collaborations, focussing in particular on clustering and technological complementarity among the firms participating in such partnerships. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

We study interfirm relations among ceramic tableware manufacturers in the city of Lampang, Thailand. Data consist of face-to-face interviews with the principals of thirty-four manufacturers, and with representatives of supporting institutions. We find that specialization in production and knowledge sharing are complementary; that knowledge sharing is substantially discretionary, rather than taking the form of passive spillovers; and that a weak knowledge base, built on firm-based training within vertically integrated mass producers, constrains the development of flexible specialization, despite the efforts of numerous local and external actors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT Population change has been studied in the fields of human ecology, population geography, environmental sociology, transportation planning, and regional economics, which make unique contributions to theorizing and modeling population change. Drawing upon this diverse literature, we develop an integrated framework for understanding population change in this review paper. The proposed framework is composed of five putative influences (demographic characteristics, socio-economic conditions, transportation accessibility, natural amenities, and land development) analyzed across three dimensions-these influential factors of population change conditioned by spatial dynamics and temporal variation. We also proposed a practical procedure for tackling the complexity between population change and influential factors. This integrated framework has potential to complement existing population research approaches employed within individual disciplines. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT This study systematically examines the impact of fundamental elements of urban economic structure on sectoral employment growth in German cities ('urban growth'). We test four elements simultaneously - sectoral specialisation, diversification of economic activities, urban size and the impact of local competition. To account for the effect of varying spatial delimitations in the analysis of urban growth, we further differentiate between cities and planning regions as geographical units. Our regression results show a U-shaped relationship between localisation economies and urban growth and positive effects of local competition on urban growth. With respect to diversification, we find positive effects on urban growth on the city level, but insignificant results on the level of the planning regions. The impact of urban size also differs between free cities and planning regions; in the former, a U-shaped relationship is found, whereas the effect is inversely U-shaped for the latter. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper uses local labour market area (LLMA) data to investigate the dynamics of employment in the information technology (IT) sector in Italy between 2001 and 2005. The aim is to test if agglomeration forces might significantly affect local IT employment growth. The OLS results are broadly consistent with those of earlier studies. In particular, IT employment growth is enhanced by industrial diversity (Jacobs externalities) and by plant size (economies of scale). At the same time, LLMAs with higher IT concentrations are associated with lower employment growth rates. As a robustness check, quantile regression analysis is performed. This additional set of results reveals that the role of agglomeration forces is different across IT growth levels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Zeitschrift für Arbeitsmarktforschung is the property of Springer Nature and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)