Earnings Functions, Specific Human Capital, and Job Matching: Tenure Bias Is Negative

Margaret Stevens ()

Journal of Labor Economics, 2003, vol. 21, issue 4, 783-806

Abstract: This article investigates the hypothesis that when measures of specific human capital (such as job tenure) are included in earnings functions, there may be a sample selection bias because of job-matching effectsbecause workers with high unobserved match quality receive and accept high wage offers. We develop a model for wage offers in a labor market characterized by both specific human capital and job matching. The model provides a theoretical basis for empirical earnings functions containing specific capital, and it demonstrates that sample selection bias reduces the estimated return to specific human capital and tenure.

Date: 2003
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (19)

Downloads: (external link)
http://dx.doi.org/10.1086/376958 main text (application/pdf)
Access to the online full text or PDF requires a subscription.

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:ucp:jlabec:v:21:y:2003:i:4:p:783-806

Access Statistics for this article

More articles in Journal of Labor Economics from University of Chicago Press
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Journals Division ().