Publications

The KCG has various series of publications to provide research findings and policy implications to different interested groups, e.g., students, academics, policy makers and the public.

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(1), 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[…]

KCG Working Paper No. 16: Foreign Direct Investment & Petty Corruption in Sub-Saharan Africa: An Empirical Analysis at the Local Level

11th July 2019
KCG Secretary
Publications
Publications
Authors: Julian Donaubauer, Peter Kannen and Frauke Steglich

Inspired by a recent and ongoing debate about whether foreign direct investment (FDI) represents a blessing for or an impediment to economic, social, and political development in FDI host countries this paper addresses two issues[…]

Research Report on Trade for Development in Ghana Published Today

5th June 2019
KCG Secretary
Publications
Publications
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A new research report “Can Trade Foster Development? Firm-level Evidence for Small- and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) in Ghana” as a key output of the KCG research project “How can Trade Contribute to Development? Micro-based Evidence for Ghana” is published and available online today. The research project has been funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and by Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ GmbH). The report was prepared by Prof. Holger Görg Ph.D. (KCG Managing Director) and Cecília Hornok, Ph.D. (KCG Fellow), in cooperation with Prof. Dr. Charles Ackah from the Institute of Statistical, Social and Economic[…]

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[…]