Technology, computers and wages: evidence from a developing economy

Increasing returns to schooling are documented for developed and some developing countries. The growing demand for skills is associated with recent technological developments, including the introduction of computers in the workplace. Research in developed countries documents a premium for computer use. However, there is recent evidence suggesting that computer skills by themselves do not command a wage premium. This paper reviews the literature and uses data from a survey of university graduates in Vietnam. The results support the unobserved heterogeneity explanation for computer wage premiums. The results suggest that computers may make the productive workers even more productive.