ZEW Discussion Papers

In a number of industries, the success and sustainability of a new rm's business strategy is tied to its sequential decisions to enter multiple markets. In all these industries, rms face the key challenge to…

Since the deregulation of the U.S. airline industry in 1978, a substantial number of new carriers emerged; particularly those following a low cost strategy. Given those airlines’ rapid growth and market success…

Any solution to the problem of voluntary cooperation in international climate policy does not only have to overcome the notorious free rider incentives, but also has to comply with the notions of "equity" and…

Parental investments are crucial for the children’s skill development, especially in the early years of the life-cycle. In this paper, we examine how parental health, which may cause variation in investments to…

The not-invented-here (NIH) syndrome refers to internal resistance in a company against externally developed knowledge. Although previous research has shown that firms can benefit significantly from external…

The lack of skilled labour is a major threat to the innovative capacity of highly developed economies. Particularly in emerging technological fields, companies hunt for qualified workers. On the one hand, in…

The ageing of the workforce increases the importance of life-long learning for competitiveness. Most contributions on continuing training focus on lower participation of older employees. This paper in contrast…

Reforms, such as a higher pension age, are highly unpopular although they are a demographic necessity. Hence, a sound understanding of reform resistance is desirable. Preceding studies have explored numerous…

The empirical literature on the economics of patents employs a large array of patentbased measures to proxy economic characteristics of patents such as the "sciencebase", "importance" or "value" of patented…