Recalculating...: How Uncertainty in Local Labour Market Definitions Affects Empirical Findings

Andrew Foote, Mark Kutzbach and Lars Vilhuber

Applied Economics, 2021, vol. 53, issue 14, 1598-1612

Abstract: This paper evaluates the use of commuting zones as a local labour market definition. We revisit the seminal paper by Tolbert and Sizer and demonstrate the sensitivity of definitions to two features of the methodology: a cluster dissimilarity cut-off, or the count of clusters, and uncertainty in the input data. We show how these features impact empirical estimates using a standard application of commuting zones and an example from related literature. We conclude with advice to researchers on how to demonstrate the robustness of empirical findings to uncertainty in the definition of commuting zones.

Date: 2021
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Working Paper: Recalculating...: How Uncertainty in Local Labor Market Definitions Affects Empirical Findings (2017)
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DOI: 10.1080/00036846.2020.1841083

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