Labour Productivity, ICT and Complementary Factors in the CEE Region

Aleksandra Skorupińska

Internet Interdisciplinary Institute, Open University of Catalonia

Łukasz Arendt

Department of Economic Policy, Faculty of Economics and Sociology, University of Lodz


Abstract

The paper discusses the role of Information and Communication Technologies for labour productivity in the Central and Eastern European countries, taking into account the consequences of the latest global economic crisis. It focuses on the factors (ICT complementarities) influencing the ICT diffusion trajectories, and thus having impact on labour productivity. The fixed effects models and least squares dummy variable (LSDV) regression was implemented with the use of panel data for 21 European Union member countries. The analysis revealed that only some complementary factors to ICT investments appeared significant to affect labour productivity in the CEE Region. It also showed that sources of labour productivity are sensitive to cyclical changes in the economy.


Keywords:

labour productivity, ICT, complementarities, CEE countries


Ark B. van, Piątkowski M. 2004. Productivity, innovation and ICT in Old and New Europe. International Economics and Economic Policy, 1(2-3): 215-246.

Arvanitis S. 2005. Computerization, workplace organization, skilled labour and firm productivity: Evidence for the Swiss business sector. Economics of Innovation and New Technology, 14(4): 225- 249.

Arvanitis S., Loukis E.N. 2009. Information and communication technologies, human capital, workplace organization and labour productivity: A comparative study based on firm-level data for Greece and Switzerland. Information Economics and Policy, 21(1): 43-61.

Barro R.J., Sala-i-Martin X. 2004. Economic Growth. MIT Press, Cambridge.

Black S.E., Lynch L.M. 2001. How to Compete: The Impact of Workplace Practices and Information Technology on Productivity. The Review of Economics and Statistics, 83(3): 434-445.

Black S.E., Lynch L.M. 2004. What's driving the new economy?: the benefits of workplace innovation. The Economic Journal, 114(493): 97- 116.

Bresnahan T.F., Brynjolfsson E., Hitt L.M. 2002. Information Technology, Workplace Organization, and the Demand for Skilled Labour: Firm- Level Evidence. The Quarterly Journal of Economics, 117(1): 339-376.

Brynjolfsson E. 2005. VII pillars of IT productivity. Optimize, 4(5): 26-35.

Brynjolfsson E., Hitt L.M. 2003. Computing Productivity: Firm-Level Evidence. The Review of Economics and Statistics, 85(4): 793-808.

Brynjolfsson E., Saunders A. 2010. Wired for Innovation. How Technology is Reshaping the Economy. Cambridge, Massachusetts, London: MIT Press.

Cardona M., Kretschmer T., Strobel T. 2013. ICT and Productivity: Conclusions from the Empirical Literature. Information Economics and Policy, 25(3): 109-125.

Caroli E., van Reenen J. 2001. Skill-Biased Organizational Change? Evidence from a Panel of British and French Establishments. The Quarterly Journal of Economics, 116(4): 1449-1492.

Caselli F., Coleman W.J. 2001. Cross-Country Technology Diffusion: The Case of Computers. American Economic Review, 91(2): 328-335.

DAVID P. 1990. The Dynamo and the Computer: An Historical Perspective on the Modern Productivity Paradox. American Economic Review, 80(2): 355-361.

David P. 2002. Understanding Digital Technology's Evolution and the Path of Measured Productivity Growth: Present and Future in the Mirror of the Past. In: Understanding the Digital Economy. Data, Tools, and Research. Eds. E. Brynjolfsson, B. Kahin. MIT Press, Cambridge, Massachusetts - London, p. 49-95.

Dedrick J., Kraemer K.L., Shih E. 2013. Information Technology and Productivity in Developed and Developing Countries. Journal of Management Information Systems, 30 (1): 97-122.

Haltiwanger J., Jarmin R.S. 2002. Measuring the Digital Economy. In: Understanding the Digital Economy. Data, Tools, and Research. Eds. E. Brynjolfsson, B. Kahin. MIT Press, Cambridge, Massachusetts - London, p. 13-33.

Jorgenson D.W., Griliches Z. 1967. The Explanation of Change Productivity. The Review of Economics and Studies, 34(3): 249-283.

Jorgenson D.W., Vu K. 2005. Information Technology and the World Economy. Scandinavian Journal of Economics, 107(4): 631-650.

Jung J., Mercenier J. 2014, Routinization-Biased Technical Change and Globalization: Understanding Labor Market Polarization. Economic Inquiry, 52(4): 1446-1465.

Kling R., Lamb R. 2002. IT and Organizational Change in Digital Economies: A Sociotechnical Approach. In: Understanding the Digital Economy. Data, Tools, and Research. Eds. E. Brynjol-fsson, B. Kahin. MIT Press, Cambridge, Massachusetts - London, p. 295-324.

Milgrom P., Qian Y., Roberts J. 1991. Complementarities, Momentum, and the Evolution of Modern Manufacturing. American Economic Review, 81(2): 84-88.

Milgrom P., Roberts J. 1990. The Economics of Modern Manufacturing: Technology, Strategy and Organization. American Economic Review, 80(3): 511-528.

Milgrom P., Roberts J. 1995. Complementarities and fit Strategy, Structure, and Organizational Change in Manufacturing. Journal of Accounting and Economics, 19(2-3): 179-208.

Moulton B.R. 2002. GDP and the Digital Economy: Keeping up with the Changes. In: Understanding the Digital Economy. Data, Tools, and Research. Eds. E. Brynjolfsson, B. Kahin. MIT Press, Cambridge, Massachusetts - London, p. 34-48.

Niebel T. 2014. ICT and Economic Growth - Comparing Developing, Emerging and Developed Countries. Paper presented at IARIW 33rd General Conference, Rotterdam, Holland, 24-30 August. Retrieved May 1, 2015, from http://www.iariw.org/papers/2014/NiebelPaper.pdf.

Piątkowski M. 2004. The Impact of ICT on Growth in Transition Economies. MPRA Paper, 29399. Retrieved May 1 2015, from http://mpra.ub.uni-muenchen.de/29399/1/MPRA-paper-29399.pdf.

Pohjola M. 2000. Information Technology and Economic Growth. A Cross-Country Analysis. In: Information Technology and Economic Development. Eds. M. Pohjola. Oxford University Press, Cambridge, p. 242-256.

Solow R. 1957. Technical Change and the Aggregate Production Function. Review of Economics and Statistics, 39(3): 312-320.

Solow R. 1987. We'd Better Watch Out. New York Times Book Review, July 12.

Yang S., Brynjolfsson E. 2001. Intangible Assets and Growth Accounting: Evidence from Computer Investments. MIT Center for Digital Business, 136. Retrieved May 1 2015, from http://ebusi- ness.mit.edu/research/papers/136%20erikb,%20Intangible%20assets.pdf.
Download


Published
2016-12-30

Cited by

Skorupińska, A., & Arendt, Łukasz. (2016). Labour Productivity, ICT and Complementary Factors in the CEE Region. Olsztyn Economic Journal, 11(4), 385–397. https://doi.org/10.31648/oej.2941

Aleksandra Skorupińska 
Internet Interdisciplinary Institute, Open University of Catalonia
Łukasz Arendt 
Department of Economic Policy, Faculty of Economics and Sociology, University of Lodz



License

An Author declares that his paper has not been published before (under the same or another title, or is a part of another publication) and does not infringe copyrights of other persons**. At the same time, the Author transfers to the Publisher the exclusive right to publish and to circulate this work in print in the form of a non-serial journal publication and in a form of an electronic publication.

Author's statement

The journal is available on Creative Common license CC-BY-NC-ND