http://www.tvhe.co.nz/wp-content/uploads/logo-for-enfold-photoshop.png00jameszhttp://www.tvhe.co.nz/wp-content/uploads/logo-for-enfold-photoshop.pngjamesz2015-08-20 04:04:582015-08-20 04:04:58Work smarter, not harder
2replies
ben says:
Really? That simple? I can think of a couple of other hypotheses that can’t be ruled out based on a chart. Like: European labour market rules that exclude the least-productive (youth, immigrants) also limit hours worked. Or: Leisure is a luxury good.
How have you ruled these (rather obvious) alternative explanations?
I didn’t propose a hypothesis and, as you rightly point out, there are many possible causal explanations. It’s not at all surprising that there is a negative correlation between the two. Obviously, a country could be also more productive but still poorer.
However, the chart is a useful antidote to complaints about lazy Greeks and the need for all of Southern Europe to work as hard as the industrious Germans.
Really? That simple? I can think of a couple of other hypotheses that can’t be ruled out based on a chart. Like: European labour market rules that exclude the least-productive (youth, immigrants) also limit hours worked. Or: Leisure is a luxury good.
How have you ruled these (rather obvious) alternative explanations?
I didn’t propose a hypothesis and, as you rightly point out, there are many possible causal explanations. It’s not at all surprising that there is a negative correlation between the two. Obviously, a country could be also more productive but still poorer.
However, the chart is a useful antidote to complaints about lazy Greeks and the need for all of Southern Europe to work as hard as the industrious Germans.