Using nonparametric, production-frontier methods, we decompose labor productivity growth into components attributable to technological change (shifts in the world production frontier), technological catch-up (movements toward or away from the frontier), and physical and human capital...

We use nonparametric production-frontier methods to decompose the growth of labor productivity of Chinese provinces in the post-reform period. These techniques, combined with kernel density estimates, allow us to decompose the shift in the distribution of labor productivity without the need for...