A spatial view of automation technologies and their consequences for jobs

Martin Henning

Chapter 15 in Handbook of Labour Mobility, 2026, pp 258-270 from Edward Elgar Publishing

Abstract: This chapter summarises recent quantitative research about the link between contemporary automation technologies and jobs. The chapter sketches important points of confusion in the literature and argues that the notion of levels, both in a spatial and in a functional sense, is key to understanding why previous ideas and evidence do not quite add up. There is increasing recognition of the fact that adoption of automation technologies will vary significantly across space, and most likely their effects too. The chapter outlines ideas concerning the sources of this spatial variation, and some next steps towards a next generation of technology-jobs studies. One principal finding is that service automation is much more promising as a research area than manufacturing when it comes to ascertaining future impacts of automation on jobs and labour mobility.

Keywords: Labour; Automation; Machines; Technology Adoption; Geography (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2026
ISBN: 9781035331680
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