Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/20569 
Year of Publication: 
2004
Series/Report no.: 
IZA Discussion Papers No. 1303
Publisher: 
Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA), Bonn
Abstract: 
Social surveys are often used to estimate unemployment duration distributions. Survey nonresponse may then cause a bias. We study this using a unique dataset that combines survey information of individual workers with administrative records of the same workers. The latter provide information on unemployment durations and personal characteristics of all survey respondents and non-respondents. We develop a method to empirically distinguish between two explanations for a bias in results based on only survey data: (1) selectivity due to related unobserved determinants of unemployment durations and non-response, and (2) a causal effect of a job exit on non-response. The latter may occur even in fully homogeneous populations. The methodology exploits variation in the timing of the duration outcome relative to the survey moment. The results show evidence for both explanations. We discuss implications for standard methods to deal with non-response bias.
Subjects: 
non-response bias
unemployment measurement
hazard rate
sample selection
event history
JEL: 
C14
C23
C81
C41
J64
C42
Document Type: 
Working Paper

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