The Impact of Training on Unemployment Duration in West Germany -Combining a Discrete Hazard Rate Model with Matching Techniques-

In this study we are concerned with the impact of vocational training on the individual's unemployment duration in West Germany. The data basis used is the German Socio-Economic Panel (GSOEP) for the period from 1984 to 1994. To resolve the intriguing sample selection problem, i.e. to find an adequate control group for the group of trainees, we employ a matching algorithm which was developed in the statistical literature. This matching algorithm uses as the main matching variable the individual propensity score to pariticipate in training, which is obtained by estimating a random effects probit model. On the basis of the matched sample a discrete time hazard rate model is utilized to assess the impact of vocational training on unemployment duration. Our results indicate, that training raises the transition rate of unemployed into employment in the short as well as in the long run.