In this paper we introduce a state-space approach to the econometric modelling of cross-sectional specific trends (temporal variation in individual heterogeneity) and time varying slopes in the context of panel data regressions. We show that our state-space panel stochastic frontier model nests...

Despite its economic development, the average length of trials in Italy is one of the highest in the world. In this paper we analyze the efficiency of the Italian courts of justice for the period 2003 to 2008. Results show that technical efficiency (lack of best practice adoption) is almost 40%...

In this paper an encompassing empirical strategy is presented which is able to decompose an indicator of industrial structural inefficiency into its sources components. The main purpose of the analysis is to bring a number of ideas floating in the efficiency literature together in the same...

It is well known that binary indexes are not generally suitable for making multiple comparisons of quantities and/or prices because they fail a transitivity test. A common solution to the problem involves a geometric averaging procedure attributed to Elteto and Koves (1964) and Szulc (1964)....

In this paper we focus on scale elasticity measure based on directional distance function for multi-output-multi-input technologies, explore its fundamental properties and show its equivalence with the input oriented and output oriented scale elasticity measures. We also establish duality...

In this article we extend the aggregation theory in efficiency and productivity analysis by deriving solutions to the problem of aggregation of individual scale efficiency measures, primal and dual, into aggregate primal and dual scale efficiency measures of a group. The new aggregation result...

In this paper we introduce a scale elasticity measure based on directional distance function for multi-output-multi-input technologies and explore its fundamental properties. Specifically, we derive necessary and sufficient condition for equivalence of the scale elasticity measure based on the...

The meta-frontier framework has been used extensively for evaluating the technical efficiency of heterogeneous production units that can be classified into different groups. This paper shows how the framework can also be used to make total factor productivity (TFP) comparisons within and across...

The Bureau of Labor Statistics measures productivity change using an index formula that fails a transitivity test. This means the Bureau is likely to report productivity changes even when outputs and inputs in different (non-adjacent) periods are identical. I use alternative formulas that i)...

In this paper we address an issue of equivalence of primal and dual measures of scale efficiency in general production theory framework. We find that particular types of homotheticity, which we refer to as scale homotheticity, provide necessary and sufficient condition for such equivalence....