Introduction

Abstract

The main goal of this monograph is to generalize our earlier work on production frontiers and performance measurement to the intertemporal case. Analysis of multi period data using activity analysis models is already widespread, of course. One obvious example is our own work on measurement of productivity using activity analysis models to construct Malmquist type productivity indexes. Although many periods are analyzed, and the change in technology over time is measured, these represent a fairly limited type of intertemporal models — one is essentially comparing a series of static models. There is no interdependence or connection over time among inputs, outputs or technology. This type of analysis is the analog of comparative statics.