Industry Productivity Growth: A Network Perspective

• Published in: Business Systems Research Vol. 6; no. 2; pp. 41 - 51
• Main Authors: Teng, Joe, Wu, Dazhong, Smith, Fran
• Format: Journal Article Paper
• Language: English
• Published: Zagreb De Gruyter Open 01-09-2015; University of Zagreb, Faculty of Business and Economics; Udruga za promicanje inovacija i istraživanja u ekonomiji "Irenet"; Sciendo
• Subjects: customer-supplier industry network; Economic analysis; industry network; Influence; Innovations; Input output analysis; M21; multi-productivity; network centrality; network perspective; Productivity; R&D; Research & development; Retailing industry; Suppliers; Supply chains; Technological change
• ISSN: 1847-9375; 1847-8344; 1847-9375
• DOI: 10.1515/bsrj-2015-0010

This study investigates the determinants of industrial productivity growth from a network perspective.
The research focuses on the influence on a focal industry’s productivity growth by its partner industries’ productivity growth, and the impact of the focal industry’s position in the supply chain network.
The paper models the economy as a customer-supplier industry network and empirically investigates how a focal industry’s multifactor productivity is influenced by the productivities of industries that are connected to it, and how this influence is moderated by its position in the network.
Based on a balanced panel dataset of 55 industries from the United States Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) input-output accounts, the results indicate that a focal industry’s productivity growth is positively associated with its partner industries’ productivity growth, and that industries with higher centrality in the network tend to have higher productivity growth.
The study concludes with a discussion on the implications of the findings and the contribution to the productivity literature. Several directions for further research were identified.