Computers And Productivity In France: Some Evidence

Abstract

In this paper, we make a first attempt to explore the relationship between computer use and productivity in French manufacturing and services industries. We match information on computer utilization in the work place collected at the employee level in the years 1987,1991 and 1993, with information on firm productivity, capital intensity and average wage available at the firm level. Being based on the answers of very few interviewed employees (only one for 75% of the firms in our samples), our measure of firm computer use is subject to important sampling errors, and hence our estimates of computer impacts are largely affected by random errors in variables downward biases. Nonetheless we find coherent and persuasive evidence that the computer impacts on productivity are indeed positive and that the returns to the firm should at least be in the same range as the returns to the other types of capital. We also show that the sampling errors in measurement biases can be assessed, and we make the general point that econometric studies of the firm can be effectively and substantially enriched by using information collected from workers, even if very few of them are surveyed per firm.

^*A very preliminary version of this work, based on only one year of data, and only for the manufacturing industries, was presented at the Charleston conference on ‘The Productivity Impacts of Information Technology Investments’ (November 11–13, 1993). In this first stage of our work, we have benefited from the collaboration of Haja ANDRIANJAFY and Dominique GUELLEC, that we gratefully acknowledge. We are also thankful for discussions to participants in various seminars since then, and in particular to Elie BERMAN, Ernst BERNDT. Franck BRIENDO. Eric BROUSSEAU, Michel GOLLAC, Zvi GRILICHES, Bronwyn HALL, Tor KLETTE and Frank LICHTENBERG. Last, but not least, we are specially indebted to the Statistical Office of the ‘Ministère du Travail’ and to INSEE for providing us with the data bases on computer use (TO'ITO) and firm accounts (SUSE) which we had to match for this study. We have not been able to extend and revise this paper in time to be included in the special issue of this Joumal: EINT 3 (3–4), 1995, where many papers presented at the Charleston Conference have been published. Its publication has been delayed since for various reasons, but it has been circulated in the meantime as the NBER Working Paper 5836 (1996).

^*A very preliminary version of this work, based on only one year of data, and only for the manufacturing industries, was presented at the Charleston conference on ‘The Productivity Impacts of Information Technology Investments’ (November 11–13, 1993). In this first stage of our work, we have benefited from the collaboration of Haja ANDRIANJAFY and Dominique GUELLEC, that we gratefully acknowledge. We are also thankful for discussions to participants in various seminars since then, and in particular to Elie BERMAN, Ernst BERNDT. Franck BRIENDO. Eric BROUSSEAU, Michel GOLLAC, Zvi GRILICHES, Bronwyn HALL, Tor KLETTE and Frank LICHTENBERG. Last, but not least, we are specially indebted to the Statistical Office of the ‘Ministère du Travail’ and to INSEE for providing us with the data bases on computer use (TO'ITO) and firm accounts (SUSE) which we had to match for this study. We have not been able to extend and revise this paper in time to be included in the special issue of this Joumal: EINT 3 (3–4), 1995, where many papers presented at the Charleston Conference have been published. Its publication has been delayed since for various reasons, but it has been circulated in the meantime as the NBER Working Paper 5836 (1996).

Notes

^*A very preliminary version of this work, based on only one year of data, and only for the manufacturing industries, was presented at the Charleston conference on ‘The Productivity Impacts of Information Technology Investments’ (November 11–13, 1993). In this first stage of our work, we have benefited from the collaboration of Haja ANDRIANJAFY and Dominique GUELLEC, that we gratefully acknowledge. We are also thankful for discussions to participants in various seminars since then, and in particular to Elie BERMAN, Ernst BERNDT. Franck BRIENDO. Eric BROUSSEAU, Michel GOLLAC, Zvi GRILICHES, Bronwyn HALL, Tor KLETTE and Frank LICHTENBERG. Last, but not least, we are specially indebted to the Statistical Office of the ‘Ministère du Travail’ and to INSEE for providing us with the data bases on computer use (TO'ITO) and firm accounts (SUSE) which we had to match for this study. We have not been able to extend and revise this paper in time to be included in the special issue of this Joumal: EINT 3 (3–4), 1995, where many papers presented at the Charleston Conference have been published. Its publication has been delayed since for various reasons, but it has been circulated in the meantime as the NBER Working Paper 5836 (1996).