It is now widely recognized that information technology (IT) was critical to the dramatic acceleration of U.S. labor productivity growth in the mid-1990s. This paper traces the evolution of productivity estimates to document how and when this perception emerged. Early studies concluded that IT...

Economists have long debated the best way to explain the sources of productivity growth. Neoclassical theory and 'new growth' theory both regard investment - broadly defined to include purchases of tangible assets, human capital expenditures, and research and development efforts - as a critical...

Although firms have invested billions of dollars in information technology to boost their productivity, many analysts continue to question whether these investments do in fact lead to productivity gains. An industry-level analysis of productivity performance provides robust evidence of a link,...

This paper analyzes and extends the growing econometric literature on the economic impact of information technology (IT). I begin with a "meta-analysis" to systematically examine the results of twenty empirical studies and show that much of the observed variation in estimates of the output...

Strikingly high rates of labor productivity growth in China, India, and other emerging economies have prompted concerns that U.S. workers and firms are losing ground to their competitors in world markets. A closer look at the evidence, however, suggests that rapid foreign productivity growth...

This paper examines the link between information technology (IT) and the U.S. productivity revival in the late 1990s. Industry-level data show a broad productivity resurgence that reflects both the production and the use of IT. The most IT-intensive industries experienced significantly larger...

Economists, business analysts, and policymakers have all focused considerable attention on U.S. productivity growth in recent years. This paper presents a broad overview of productivity both labor and total factor and discusses why it is such an important topic. We begin with the official U.S....

Following the 1995-2000 period of more rapid output growth and lower inflation in the United States, economists have strenuously debated whether improvements in economic performance can be sustained. The recession that began in March 2001 intensified the debate, and the economic impacts of the...

Economists have long debated the best way to explain the sources of productivity growth. Neoclassical theory and "new growth" theory both regard investment—broadly defined to include purchases of tangible assets, human capital expenditures, and research and development efforts—as a critical...