Reliability criteria bolster product classification decisions: A reply to Jones

We empirically test the robustness of the Easingwood approach to classify early product life cycle forms for infrequently purchased major products. Our results indicate that the key classification parameters could be unstable to variations in the sample size used for estimation, thereby producing more than one classification for several products. We demonstrate that the problem of multiple classifications can be effectively addressed by using the more rigorous criteria of joint confidence regions (as opposed to point estimates) of classification parameters. The benefit of such rigorous classification is that it increases researcher confidence in Easingwood's classification system.     

Von Thünen's model of the dual economy

We are indebted to Heinz König, John Mellor, and Hans van Beek, and to three anonymous referees of the journal for helpful comments, and to Victoria Dalko for her able research assistance. Financial assistance from the Foerder Institute for Economic Research and the International Food Policy Research Institute is gratefully acknowledged. A version of the paper also appears as Working Paper No. 989 of the Foerder Institute and Discussion Paper No. A 269 of the University of Bonn.     

Relative productivity and factor-intensity in the manufacturing sectors of the U.S. and the U.K. during the nineteenth century

Summary The main objective of the paper is to examine the relationship between relative factor-costs and relative factor-intensity in the American and British textile sectors during the nineteenth century. The empirical attempt is made within an explicit theoretical framework (a model). This framework is based primarily onimplicit analytical arguments made by E. Rothbarth and H. J. Habakkuk while explaining the causes for the superiority of American industrial efficiency as compared with the British. It is shown that various indicators for the textile sectors during most of the second half of the nineteenth century favor a higher capitalintensity in the U.S.This work is part of a Ph.D. thesis written for the University of Rochester Department of Economics. The author is deeply indebted to S. Engerman for his valuable help and comments. He has also benefited from comments by E. Drandakis, G. S. Maddala, F. J. de Jong and T. K. Kumar. Needless to say, the author takes full responsibility for the content of this paper. Currently the author is an Assistant Professor at Florida State University, Tallahassee, Florida, U.S.A.