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Productivity and Efficiency Measurement in Our “New Economy”: Determinants, Interactions, and Policy Relevance

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Abstract

Interpreting and using productivity and efficiency measures requires establishing the determinants and implications of observed performance. This is not a simple task, however, given the complex interactions among economic entities in modern markets. Identifying and quantifying performance drivers often involves parametric estimation of models with explicit performance factors build into functions representing technology and behavior. Here I overview some such studies in the literature on food system economic performance, to emphasize the potential to empirically represent a more complex web of technological and market phenomena than in standard productivity analyses, to enhance the measures' interpretability and relevance for policy guidance.

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  1. Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics, University of California, Davis, One Shields Avenue, Davis, CA, 95616

    Catherine J. Morrison Paul

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Morrison Paul, C.J. Productivity and Efficiency Measurement in Our “New Economy”: Determinants, Interactions, and Policy Relevance. Journal of Productivity Analysis 19, 161–177 (2003). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1022849332429

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