IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/zbw/zewdip/300673.html
   My bibliography  Save this paper

Product differentiation and quality in production function estimation

Author

Listed:
  • Hahn, Nadine

Abstract

Production functions provide a mapping from the firms' input quantity and productivity to output quantity. This mapping only generates unbiased estimates if input and output quality variation within and between observation units is accounted for. I review and classify state-of-the-art methods to address quality and price variation in production function estimation. Even if inputs and outputs are observed in quantities, unobserved quality variation might bias production function estimates for industries with differentiated products. To account for quality variation, I introduce product characteristics to the estimation procedure and provide an application to the European car industry.

Suggested Citation

  • Hahn, Nadine, 2024. "Product differentiation and quality in production function estimation," ZEW Discussion Papers 24-049, ZEW - Leibniz Centre for European Economic Research.
    • Handle: RePEc:zbw:zewdip:300673
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.econstor.eu/bitstream/10419/300673/1/1897214855.pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Serguey Braguinsky & Atsushi Ohyama & Tetsuji Okazaki & Chad Syverson, 2015. "Acquisitions, Productivity, and Profitability: Evidence from the Japanese Cotton Spinning Industry," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 105(7), pages 2086-2119, July.
    2. Daniel A. Ackerberg & Kevin Caves & Garth Frazer, 2015. "Identification Properties of Recent Production Function Estimators," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 83, pages 2411-2451, November.
    3. de Roux, Nicolás & Eslava, Marcela & Franco, Santiago & Verhoogen, Eric, 2020. "Estimating Production Functions in Differentiated-Product Industries with Quantity Information and External Instruments," IZA Discussion Papers 14006, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    4. Triplett, Jack E, 1969. "Automobiles and Hedonic Quality Measurement," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 77(3), pages 408-417, May/June.
    5. De loecker, Jan & Syverson, Chad, 2021. "An Industrial Organization Perspective on Productivity," CEPR Discussion Papers 16513, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Geoffrey Barrows & Hélène Ollivier & Ariell Reshef, 2023. "Production Function Estimation with Multi-Destination Firms," CESifo Working Paper Series 10716, CESifo.
    2. Albert Banal-Estanol & Jo Seldeslachts & Xavier Vives, 2022. "Ownership Diversification and Product Market Pricing Incentives," Discussion Papers of DIW Berlin 2023, DIW Berlin, German Institute for Economic Research.
    3. Joel Stiebale & Florian Szücs, 2022. "Mergers and market power: evidence from rivals' responses in European markets," RAND Journal of Economics, RAND Corporation, vol. 53(4), pages 678-702, December.
    4. CHANG Pao-Li & MAKIOKA Ryo & NG Bo Lin & YANG Zhenlin, 2023. "Estimating Firm-level Production Functions with Spatial Dependence in Output, Input, and Productivity," Discussion papers 23016, Research Institute of Economy, Trade and Industry (RIETI).
    5. Robert Kulick, 2017. "Ready-to-Mix: Horizontal Mergers, Prices, and Productivity," Working Papers 17-38, Center for Economic Studies, U.S. Census Bureau.
    6. Maican, Florin & Orth, Matilda, 2018. "Inventory Behavior, Demand, and Productivity in Retail," CEPR Discussion Papers 13308, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    7. Beetsma, Roel & Jensen, Svend E. Hougaard & Pinkus, David & Pozzoli, Dario, 2024. "Do Pension Fund Equity Investments Raise Firm Productivity? Evidence From Danish Data," Working Papers 2-2024, Copenhagen Business School, Department of Economics.
    8. Stiebale, Joel & Vencappa, Dev, 2018. "Acquisitions, markups, efficiency, and product quality: Evidence from India," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 112(C), pages 70-87.
    9. Maican, Florin & Orth, Matilda, 2021. "Determinants of economies of scope in retail," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 75(C).
    10. Zeng, Shuwei & Du, Xiaodong & Gould, Brian, "undated". "Input/Output Measures and Implication for Productivity Estimates," 2017 Annual Meeting, July 30-August 1, Chicago, Illinois 261217, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association.
    11. Fieler, Ana Cecília & Harrison, Ann E., 2023. "Escaping import competition in China," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 145(C).
    12. Jamil, Nida & Chaudhry, Theresa Thompson & Chaudhry, Azam, 2022. "Trading textiles along the new silk route: The impact on Pakistani firms of gaining market access to China," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 158(C).
    13. Lutz, Benjamin Johannes, 2016. "Emissions trading and productivity: Firm-level evidence from German manufacturing," ZEW Discussion Papers 16-067, ZEW - Leibniz Centre for European Economic Research.
    14. Michael Rubens, 2023. "Market Structure, Oligopsony Power, and Productivity," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 113(9), pages 2382-2410, September.
    15. Tomaso Duso & Alexander Schiersch, 2022. "Let's Switch to the Cloud: Cloud Adaption and Its Effect on IT Investment and Productivity," Discussion Papers of DIW Berlin 2017, DIW Berlin, German Institute for Economic Research.
    16. Zara Liaqat, 2018. "Differing Impact of Liberalisation: The Case of Vertically Integrated Clothing Firms," The Pakistan Development Review, Pakistan Institute of Development Economics, vol. 57(3), pages 283-306.
    17. Pham, Hoang, 2023. "Trade reform, oligopsony, and labor market distortion: Theory and evidence," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 144(C).
    18. Ali, Nesma & Stiebale, Joel, 2021. "Foreign direct investment, prices and efficiency: Evidence from India," DICE Discussion Papers 363, Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf, Düsseldorf Institute for Competition Economics (DICE).
    19. Zeng, Shuwei & Gould, Brian & Thorne, Fiona & Laepple, Doris, "undated". "EU Milk Quota Elimination: Has the Productivity of Irish Dairy Farms Been Impacted?," 2017 Annual Meeting, July 30-August 1, Chicago, Illinois 261218, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association.
    20. Yuyu Chen & Mitsuru Igami & Masayuki Sawada & Mo Xiao, 2021. "Privatization and productivity in China," RAND Journal of Economics, RAND Corporation, vol. 52(4), pages 884-916, December.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Production Functions; Product Differentiation; Quality Control Functions;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D22 - Microeconomics - - Production and Organizations - - - Firm Behavior: Empirical Analysis
    • D24 - Microeconomics - - Production and Organizations - - - Production; Cost; Capital; Capital, Total Factor, and Multifactor Productivity; Capacity
    • C38 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Multiple or Simultaneous Equation Models; Multiple Variables - - - Classification Methdos; Cluster Analysis; Principal Components; Factor Analysis
    • B41 - Schools of Economic Thought and Methodology - - Economic Methodology - - - Economic Methodology
    • L62 - Industrial Organization - - Industry Studies: Manufacturing - - - Automobiles; Other Transportation Equipment; Related Parts and Equipment

    NEP fields

    This paper has been announced in the following NEP Reports:

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:zbw:zewdip:300673. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/zemande.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.