Constructing a comprehensive data set covering Dutch firms over the years 2002-2008 I am the first to investigate the relationship between trade status, firm size and firm-level productivity in the Netherlands, thereby focusing particularly on small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs). The...

The set of equilibrium networks in the two-way flow model of network formation (Bala and Goyal, 2000) is very sensitive to the introduction of decay. Even if decay is small enough so that equilibrium networks are minimal, the set of equilibrium architectures becomes much richer, especially when...

Experimental economics has provided evidence for fairness concerns, but their relative strength and even their stability is still under debate. We reconcile the seemingly inconsistent results by presenting a theory of marginal fairness concerns. The key assumption is that fairness concerns are...

In this study, the effects of temporal and locational flexibility or work on the frequency and length of sickness absenteeism are analysed. Using a Dutch survey of public sector employees, we show that increased temporal and locational flexibility is negatively associated with sickness...

Keynesian theory predicts output responses upon a fiscal expansion in a small open economy to be larger under fixed than floating exchange rates. We analyse the effects of fiscal expansions using a New Keynesian model and find that the reverse holds in the presence of sovereign default risk. By...

Many employees nowadays make use of arrangements which provide them with flexibility in the duration, schedule and location of their work in order to combine work and private life. Previous research has established, however, that working part-time for instance comes at a cost and has a negative...

This paper investigates the cost efficiency and competitive behaviour of the non-life – or property and casualty – insurance market in the Netherlands over the period 1995-2012. We focus on the 2006 health care reform, where public health care insurance has been included in the...

In economic agglomeration studies, the distinction of various externalities circumstances related to knowledge spillovers remains largely unclear. This paper introduces human capital, innovation and several types of entrepreneurship as potential drivers of regional economic performance with an...

This paper presents a game-theoretic rationale for the beneficial effect of a common enemy on cooperation. In a defence game against a common natural threat, the value of the public good of defence is equal to the sum of the players’ defensive efforts. The game therefore takes the form of...