KCG Journal Articles

Trade Liberalization and Labor Market Adjustments: Does Rent Sharing Matter?

16th July 2019
KCG Secretary
Authors: Pham Dinh Long, Pham Thi Bich Ngoc and Holger Görg (Forthcoming, , Emerging Markets Finance and Trade)

Using a firm level data set, this paper investigates the impact of trade liberalization on employment and wages in Vietnamese manufacturing during 2003 - 2008. Different from the previous researches, we consider indirect effects of trade liberalization via real output for the employment[…]

Counter-arguing as Barriers to Environmentally Motivated Consumption Reduction: A Multi-country Study

12th July 2019
KCG Secretary
Authors: Wassili Lasarov, Robert Mai, Nieves Garcia de Frutos, José Manuel Ortega Egea and Stefan Hoffmann (International Journal of Research and Marketing, 2019, Vol. 36 (2), 281-305)

This research extends previous literature on environmentally motivated consumption reduction (EMCR) with a cross-cultural investigation across 28 European countries. The paper elucidates how European consumers' knowledge and perceived seriousness of climate change inhibit the activation of counter-arguments, with implications for EMCR. More[…]

Hungry Bellies Have No Ears. How and Why Hunger Inhibits Sustainable Consumption

12th July 2019
KCG Secretary
Authors: Stefan Hoffmann, Robert Mai, Wassili Lasarov, Jan Krause and Ulrich Schmidt (Ecological Economics, Vol. 160, 96-104)

While reports state that consumers are increasingly willing to consume more sustainably, no study has considered how the activation of very basic human needs, such as the state of hunger, affects sustainable food consumption. The authors expect that hungry consumers display a lower preference for sustainable food items and that this hunger-induced[…]

Nudges, Transparenz und Autonomie: eine normativ gehaltvolle Kategorisierung von Maßnahmen des Nudgings

12th July 2019
KCG Secretary
Authors: Ludger Heidbrink and Andrea Klonschinski (Vierteljahreshefte zur Wirtschaftsforschung, 2018, Vol. 87, 15-27)

The debate on the legitimacy of nudging is hampered by the absence of a clear definition of what a nudge is. Given that the attempt to limit the term “nudge” to interventions exploiting cognitive biases has not been accepted in the literature[…]

Which Boats are lifted by a Foreign Tide? Direct and Indirect Wage Effects of Foreign Ownership

4th June 2019
KCG Secretary
Authors: Sourafel Girma, Holger Görg and Erasmus Kersting (Journal of International Business Studies, 2019, Vol 50 (6), 923-947)


The attraction of foreign direct investment (FDI) is considered to be of particular importance for emerging economies because it represents a channel through which international convergence in standards of living may be achieved. One important effect of FDI is its impact on wages, both within the targeted firm (direct) and the local firms within the same geographic region and sector (indirect). In this paper we investigate the question whether multinational enterprises[…]

How Borrowing Constraints Hinder Migration: Theoretical Insights from a RUM Model

2nd April 2019
KCG Secretary
Authors: Léa Marchal and Claire Naiditch (Forthcoming, Scandinavian Journal of Economics)

We provide a theoretical framework to analyze how financial constraints hinder migration. Introducing wealth heterogeneity and borrowing constraints into a RUM model of migration, we find evidence of multilateral resistance to migration stemming from borrowing constraints[…]

Die Effekte deutscher Direktinvestitionen im Empfängerland vor dem Hintergrund des Leistungsbilanzüberschusses: Empirische Evidenz mit Mikrodaten für Frankreich

21st February 2019
KCG Secretary
Autoren: Holger Görg und Léa Marchal (Perspektiven der Wirtschaftspolitik, Band 20, Heft 1)

Deutschland hat seit Jahren einen Leistungsbilanzüberschuss, der international kritisiert wird. Die Bedeutung der deutschen Direktinvestitionen im Ausland ist dabei in den letzten Jahren stark angestiegen. Vor diesem Hintergrund untersucht diese Studie die Effekte von Direktinvestitionen auf Unternehmen im Gastland. Dazu werden Unternehmensdaten für Frankreich verwendet. Insgesamt liefert die Studie zwei wirtschaftspolitisch relevante Ergebnisse. Zum einen haben deutsche Übernahmen von französischen Unternehmen im Durchschnitt keine negativen Auswirkungen auf Produktivität, Qualifikationsstruktur und Handelsaktivität der übernommenen Unternehmen. Zum anderen zeigt sich[…]

Chinese Direct Investment in Europe – Challenges for EU FDI Policy

31st January 2019
KCG Secretary
Authors: Frank Bickenbach and Wan-Hsin Liu ( CESifo Forum, 2018, 4, Vol. 19)

Chinese foreign direct investment (FDI) into the European Union (EU) has increased substantially over the last decade. Whereas the EU generally welcomes inward FDI, FDI from China has been often accompanied by concerns. In view of these developments, the EU now faces the challenge of reforming its FDI policy in such a way as to simultaneously (i) defend the EU’s current openness to FDI (including from China); (ii) address the security concerns that have been raised for some types of FDI[…]