Paola Rota - Academia.edu (original) (raw)

Papers by Paola Rota

Research paper thumbnail of Wheel having an interlocking tire and rim, and a method for producing the same

Research paper thumbnail of What Do We Gain by Being Discrete? An Introduction to the Econometrics of Discrete Decision Processes

SSRN Electronic Journal, 2000

... Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei Corso Magenta, 63, 20123 Milano, tel. ... and Sakellaris (1998) ... more ... Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei Corso Magenta, 63, 20123 Milano, tel. ... and Sakellaris (1998) find that investment has a non0linear relation to q, Abel and Eberly (1999) allow for irreversibility and fixed costs in a model of heterogeneous capital goods and Caballero and Engel ...

Research paper thumbnail of Empirical Representation of Firms' Employment Decisions by an (S,s) Rule

SSRN Electronic Journal, 2000

... Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei Corso Magenta, 63, 20123 Milano, tel. +39/02/52036934 – fax +39/... more ... Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei Corso Magenta, 63, 20123 Milano, tel. +39/02/52036934 – fax +39/02/52036946 E-mail: letter@feem.it CF 97080600154 Page 2. 1 ... Caballero and Engel (1992, 1993 and 1994) suggest analysis of factor adjustment by a hazard ...

Research paper thumbnail of Dynamic Labor Demand with Lumpy and Kinked Adjustment Costs

SSRN Electronic Journal, 2000

Research paper thumbnail of Estimating Labor Demand with Fixed Costs*

International Economic Review, 2004

Research paper thumbnail of Entry and Exit Flexibility: Asymmetries in the Italian Labour Market

conditions and superior opportunities for promotion through the internal labour market which rema... more conditions and superior opportunities for promotion through the internal labour market which remains largely closed to "outsiders". Workers in the secondary sector (the outsiders) have jobs with lower status, are poorly paid, have poor working conditions, little job security and very limited promotion or training opportunities. In Italy, duality manifests itself mostly acutely in a high level of youth unemployment.

Research paper thumbnail of How Much Does Hiring and Firing Cost? Survey Evidence from a Sample of Italian Firms

Labour, 1998

We analyse the Italian labour market, which is typically considered to be highly regulated. We fo... more We analyse the Italian labour market, which is typically considered to be highly regulated. We focus on the costs imposed on firms by the institutional environment in which they operate, and on the adjustment strategies that they pursue as a result. We have followed two complementary approaches: the analysis of the development of the laws relating to hiring and firing, together with a set of interviews of 61 manufacturing firms. This also allows us to quantify the extent of turnover costs on the total labour costs. Hiring costs, which include recruiting and training, range between 2.0 and 2.6 months of labour costs; firing costs range from less than half a monthly labour cost to 20 months of labour costs in cases of conflict.

Research paper thumbnail of Unidimensionality, asymmetry and (S,s) rules in labour demand

Applied Economics, 2007

We analyse the conditions under which an (S,s) rule may be implemented in the case of labour dema... more We analyse the conditions under which an (S,s) rule may be implemented in the case of labour demand. The (S,s) rule implies a specific ordering of choices: downward adjustment, nonadjustment and upward adjustment with the decision of inaction lying crucially in the middle. This requires an exact negative relation between the choice-specific error terms. The particular ordering of choices implied

Research paper thumbnail of Capital heterogeneity: Does it matter? Fundamental Q and investment on a panel of Italian firms

In this paper we study the determinants of investment decisions at the firm level with heterogene... more In this paper we study the determinants of investment decisions at the firm level with heterogeneous capital goods. We exploit a newly developed panel dataset of small and medium-sized firms which allows us to distinguish between purchases, sales, and net acquisitions of capital goods. We distinguish between equipment and structures and test the assumption of convex adjustment costs. Since our firms are mostly unlisted, the standard Q model based on stock market valuation is no longer appropriate. Instead, we use the fundamental Q approach proposed by and and extend it to the case of several capital inputs. The results show that the standard convex costs model fits very well equipment and but not structures. We find evidence for non-convexities in the case of structures.

Research paper thumbnail of Investment and Time to Plan and Build: A Comparison of Structures vs. Equipment in A Panel of Italian Firms

Journal of the European Economic Association, 2008

Time to build" models of investment expenditures play an important role in many traditional and m... more Time to build" models of investment expenditures play an important role in many traditional and modern theories of the business cycle, especially for explaining the dynamic propagation of shocks. We estimate the structural parameters of a time-to-build model using firm-level investment data on equipment and structures. For equipment expenditures, we find no evidence of time-to-build effects beyond one period. For structures, by contrast, there is clear evidence of time to build in the range of 2-3 years. The contrast between equipment and structures is intuitively reasonable and consistent with previous results. The estimates for structures also indicate that initial-period expenditures are low, and increase as projects near completion. These results provide empirical support for including "time to plan" effects for investment in structures. More generally, these results suggest a potential source of specification error for Q models of investment and production-based asset pricing models that ignore the time required to plan, build and install new capital.

Research paper thumbnail of Non-convexities in the adjustment of different capital inputs: A firm-level investigation

European Economic Review, 2008

P i e r o F e r r i M a r z i o G a l e o t t i Giancarlo Graziola Riccardo Leoni Andrea Salanti ... more P i e r o F e r r i M a r z i o G a l e o t t i Giancarlo Graziola Riccardo Leoni Andrea Salanti • La Redazione ottempera agli obblighi previsti dall'art.1 del D.L.L. 31.8.1945, n.660 e successive modificazioni. • Le pubblicazioni del Dipartimento di Scienze Economiche dell'Università di Bergamo, consistenti nelle collane dei Quaderni e delle Monografie e Rapporti di Ricerca, costituiscono un servizio atto a fornire la tempestiva divulgazione di ricerche scientifiche originali, siano esse in forma definitiva o provvisoria.

Research paper thumbnail of Investment and Time to Plan and Build: A Comparison of Structures vs. Equipment in A Panel of Italian Firms

Journal of the European Economic Association, 2008

Time to build" models of investment expenditures play an important role in many traditional and m... more Time to build" models of investment expenditures play an important role in many traditional and modern theories of the business cycle, especially for explaining the dynamic propagation of shocks. We estimate the structural parameters of a time-to-build model using firm-level investment data on equipment and structures. For equipment expenditures, we find no evidence of time-to-build effects beyond one period. For structures, by contrast, there is clear evidence of time to build in the range of 2-3 years. The contrast between equipment and structures is intuitively reasonable and consistent with previous results. The estimates for structures also indicate that initial-period expenditures are low, and increase as projects near completion. These results provide empirical support for including "time to plan" effects for investment in structures. More generally, these results suggest a potential source of specification error for Q models of investment and production-based asset pricing models that ignore the time required to plan, build and install new capital.

Research paper thumbnail of Wheel having an interlocking tire and rim, and a method for producing the same

Research paper thumbnail of What Do We Gain by Being Discrete? An Introduction to the Econometrics of Discrete Decision Processes

SSRN Electronic Journal, 2000

... Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei Corso Magenta, 63, 20123 Milano, tel. ... and Sakellaris (1998) ... more ... Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei Corso Magenta, 63, 20123 Milano, tel. ... and Sakellaris (1998) find that investment has a non0linear relation to q, Abel and Eberly (1999) allow for irreversibility and fixed costs in a model of heterogeneous capital goods and Caballero and Engel ...

Research paper thumbnail of Empirical Representation of Firms' Employment Decisions by an (S,s) Rule

SSRN Electronic Journal, 2000

... Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei Corso Magenta, 63, 20123 Milano, tel. +39/02/52036934 – fax +39/... more ... Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei Corso Magenta, 63, 20123 Milano, tel. +39/02/52036934 – fax +39/02/52036946 E-mail: letter@feem.it CF 97080600154 Page 2. 1 ... Caballero and Engel (1992, 1993 and 1994) suggest analysis of factor adjustment by a hazard ...

Research paper thumbnail of Dynamic Labor Demand with Lumpy and Kinked Adjustment Costs

SSRN Electronic Journal, 2000

Research paper thumbnail of Estimating Labor Demand with Fixed Costs*

International Economic Review, 2004

Research paper thumbnail of Entry and Exit Flexibility: Asymmetries in the Italian Labour Market

conditions and superior opportunities for promotion through the internal labour market which rema... more conditions and superior opportunities for promotion through the internal labour market which remains largely closed to "outsiders". Workers in the secondary sector (the outsiders) have jobs with lower status, are poorly paid, have poor working conditions, little job security and very limited promotion or training opportunities. In Italy, duality manifests itself mostly acutely in a high level of youth unemployment.

Research paper thumbnail of How Much Does Hiring and Firing Cost? Survey Evidence from a Sample of Italian Firms

Labour, 1998

We analyse the Italian labour market, which is typically considered to be highly regulated. We fo... more We analyse the Italian labour market, which is typically considered to be highly regulated. We focus on the costs imposed on firms by the institutional environment in which they operate, and on the adjustment strategies that they pursue as a result. We have followed two complementary approaches: the analysis of the development of the laws relating to hiring and firing, together with a set of interviews of 61 manufacturing firms. This also allows us to quantify the extent of turnover costs on the total labour costs. Hiring costs, which include recruiting and training, range between 2.0 and 2.6 months of labour costs; firing costs range from less than half a monthly labour cost to 20 months of labour costs in cases of conflict.

Research paper thumbnail of Unidimensionality, asymmetry and (S,s) rules in labour demand

Applied Economics, 2007

We analyse the conditions under which an (S,s) rule may be implemented in the case of labour dema... more We analyse the conditions under which an (S,s) rule may be implemented in the case of labour demand. The (S,s) rule implies a specific ordering of choices: downward adjustment, nonadjustment and upward adjustment with the decision of inaction lying crucially in the middle. This requires an exact negative relation between the choice-specific error terms. The particular ordering of choices implied

Research paper thumbnail of Capital heterogeneity: Does it matter? Fundamental Q and investment on a panel of Italian firms

In this paper we study the determinants of investment decisions at the firm level with heterogene... more In this paper we study the determinants of investment decisions at the firm level with heterogeneous capital goods. We exploit a newly developed panel dataset of small and medium-sized firms which allows us to distinguish between purchases, sales, and net acquisitions of capital goods. We distinguish between equipment and structures and test the assumption of convex adjustment costs. Since our firms are mostly unlisted, the standard Q model based on stock market valuation is no longer appropriate. Instead, we use the fundamental Q approach proposed by and and extend it to the case of several capital inputs. The results show that the standard convex costs model fits very well equipment and but not structures. We find evidence for non-convexities in the case of structures.

Research paper thumbnail of Investment and Time to Plan and Build: A Comparison of Structures vs. Equipment in A Panel of Italian Firms

Journal of the European Economic Association, 2008

Time to build" models of investment expenditures play an important role in many traditional and m... more Time to build" models of investment expenditures play an important role in many traditional and modern theories of the business cycle, especially for explaining the dynamic propagation of shocks. We estimate the structural parameters of a time-to-build model using firm-level investment data on equipment and structures. For equipment expenditures, we find no evidence of time-to-build effects beyond one period. For structures, by contrast, there is clear evidence of time to build in the range of 2-3 years. The contrast between equipment and structures is intuitively reasonable and consistent with previous results. The estimates for structures also indicate that initial-period expenditures are low, and increase as projects near completion. These results provide empirical support for including "time to plan" effects for investment in structures. More generally, these results suggest a potential source of specification error for Q models of investment and production-based asset pricing models that ignore the time required to plan, build and install new capital.

Research paper thumbnail of Non-convexities in the adjustment of different capital inputs: A firm-level investigation

European Economic Review, 2008

P i e r o F e r r i M a r z i o G a l e o t t i Giancarlo Graziola Riccardo Leoni Andrea Salanti ... more P i e r o F e r r i M a r z i o G a l e o t t i Giancarlo Graziola Riccardo Leoni Andrea Salanti • La Redazione ottempera agli obblighi previsti dall'art.1 del D.L.L. 31.8.1945, n.660 e successive modificazioni. • Le pubblicazioni del Dipartimento di Scienze Economiche dell'Università di Bergamo, consistenti nelle collane dei Quaderni e delle Monografie e Rapporti di Ricerca, costituiscono un servizio atto a fornire la tempestiva divulgazione di ricerche scientifiche originali, siano esse in forma definitiva o provvisoria.

Research paper thumbnail of Investment and Time to Plan and Build: A Comparison of Structures vs. Equipment in A Panel of Italian Firms

Journal of the European Economic Association, 2008

Time to build" models of investment expenditures play an important role in many traditional and m... more Time to build" models of investment expenditures play an important role in many traditional and modern theories of the business cycle, especially for explaining the dynamic propagation of shocks. We estimate the structural parameters of a time-to-build model using firm-level investment data on equipment and structures. For equipment expenditures, we find no evidence of time-to-build effects beyond one period. For structures, by contrast, there is clear evidence of time to build in the range of 2-3 years. The contrast between equipment and structures is intuitively reasonable and consistent with previous results. The estimates for structures also indicate that initial-period expenditures are low, and increase as projects near completion. These results provide empirical support for including "time to plan" effects for investment in structures. More generally, these results suggest a potential source of specification error for Q models of investment and production-based asset pricing models that ignore the time required to plan, build and install new capital.