pszewczyk

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Peter
Szewczyk

W toku | Work in progress

  • Misallocations go a long way: evidence from firm-level data

    We analyze the link between resource misallocation and subsequent long-run economic growth. We use two unique and novel sources of data for Poland and measure misallocation inherited from the period of central planning, i.e. period where input prices did not determine the use of inputs at firm, industry and country level. We assess sectoral, regional and cohort dimension of the inputs misallocation. We then show that undercapitalization was more prevalent that overcapitalization, and that it was due mostly to the firm and sector level variation in factor inputs. Given this insight, subsequent reallocation of the resources required shifting of inputs not only between firms, but also between sectors: a process which is relatively more prone to frictions due to specialization and information. When analyzing the link to the rate of growth once market mechanisms were reinstated, we find that regions with more misaligned firms (especially in terms of undercapitalization) experienced lower subsequent economic growth. This result proves highly robust, even three decades since the market mechanisms were reinstated.

    Joanna
    Tyrowicz
    Jan
    Hagemejer
    Peter
    Szewczyk
  • Do cultural differences affect voluntary payment decisions? Evidence from guided tours

     We provide an empirical explanation for cross-country differences in the size of the voluntary payments made for a good offered in a Pay-What-You-Want payment scheme. Using a sample of almost 500 international travellers from 50 nations participating in a guided tour that uses a voluntary payment method, we analyse the relationship between the size of the average voluntary payments and national values defined by Hofstede’s Cultural Dimensions (1983) as well as selected values from the World Value Survey (WVS). Strong correlations between certain cultural values and average payment sizes are found.  

    Anna
    Kukla-Gryz
    Peter
    Szewczyk
    Katarzyna
    Zagórska