On the Working Papers
In 1998 the Department of Economic and Social Geography established a Working Paper series. Its aim is to inform the scientific community about the Department's ongoing research activities in so far as they are not yet published. The Working Papers are widely circulated to libraries and research institutes.
Issues published so far
2024-01 Anna Plum: Characteristics and strategies of resistance: The socio-ecological protest movement "Atlanticazo" in the fight against the offshore project off the coast of Buenos Aires province (Argentina) https://dbe.uni-koeln.de/sites/dep_business_education/wigeo/Veroeffentlichungen/Working_Paper/WP_2024-01.pdf
2022-01 Matthias Pilz, Beke Vogelsang, Martina Fuchs, Natascha Röhrer: Actor networks to promote vocational education in the Mexican tourism sector. https://dbe.uni-koeln.de/sites/dep_business_education/wigeo/Veroeffentlichungen/Working_Paper/WP_2022-01.pdf
2018-01 Eva Catrin Staudinger: Coworking spaces in Cologne https://dbe.uni-koeln.de/sites/dep_business_education/wigeo/Veroeffentlichungen/Working_Paper/WP_2018-01.pdf
2017-01 Martina Fuchs, Martina Fromhold-Eisebith, Hans-Christian Busch, Caroline Mühl: "Urban production": Dynamization of city-regional labour markets through digitalization and Industry 4.0? https://dbe.uni-koeln.de/sites/dep_business_education/wigeo/Veroeffentlichungen/Working_Paper/WP_2017-01.pdf
2014-01 Anke Münch: Regional Environmental Governance: NGOs in the Prespa Region https://dbe.uni-koeln.de/sites/dep_business_education/wigeo/Veroeffentlichungen/Working_Paper/WP_2014-01.pdf
2013-03 Robert Scholz: Co-determination, participation and skills development in mechanical and plant engineering in selected regions of Germany, Sweden and Switzerland https://dbe.uni-koeln.de/sites/dep_business_education/wigeo/Veroeffentlichungen/Working_Paper/WP_2013-03.pdf
2013-02 Thomas Wagner: Financing sustainability investments in small and medium-sized enterprises using the example of the automotive supply industry in North Rhine-Westphalia https://dbe.uni-koeln.de/sites/dep_business_education/wigeo/Veroeffentlichungen/Working_Paper/WP_2013-02.pdf
2013-01 Phyllis Bußler: Project-related urban development in Rio de Janeiro: displacement processes, spatial segregation and social exclusion in the context of preparations for the 2014 FIFA World Cup and the 2016 Olympic Games https://dbe.uni-koeln.de/sites/dep_business_education/wigeo/Veroeffentlichungen/Working_Paper/WP_2013-01.pdf
2011-01 Martina Fuchs: Risks of global value chains: Measures and learning processes in German metal companies after the disaster in Japan in March 2011 https://dbe.uni-koeln.de/sites/dep_business_education/wigeo/Veroeffentlichungen/Working_Paper/WP_2011-01.pdf
2010-05 Robin Kremer: Patent services as a structural element in the German innovation system Patent services as a structural element in the German innovation system. https://dbe.uni-koeln.de/sites/dep_business_education/wigeo/Veroeffentlichungen/Working_Paper/WP_2010-05.pdf
2010-04 Daniel Podolski: Evolution and co-evolution of an automotive cluster using the example of Silesia, Poland https://dbe.uni-koeln.de/sites/dep_business_education/wigeo/Veroeffentlichungen/Working_Paper/WP_2010-04.pdf
2010-03 Martina Fuchs, Hanno Kempermann: Regional activity profiles to secure employment during the 2008/2009 crisis. Examples from the mechanical engineering sector in the association region of eastern Stuttgart and in the district of Siegen-Wittgenstein https://dbe.uni-koeln.de/sites/dep_business_education/wigeo/Veroeffentlichungen/Working_Paper/WP_2010-03.pdf
2010-02 Martina Fuchs, Hanno Kempermann: Regional effects of the 2008/2009 crisis in mechanical engineering https://dbe.uni-koeln.de/sites/dep_business_education/wigeo/Veroeffentlichungen/Working_Paper/WP_2010-02.pdf
2010-01 Michael Spiekerkötter: Value chains in the East Westphalian kitchen furniture industry - manufacturer-supplier relationships under consideration of the economic and financial crisis https://dbe.uni-koeln.de/sites/dep_business_education/wigeo/Veroeffentlichungen/Working_Paper/WP_2010-01.pdf
2008-03 Martina Fuchs, Johannes Winter: Skills acquisition in subsidiaries of international companies: Examples from the Polish automotive industry - a project report https://dbe.uni-koeln.de/sites/dep_business_education/wigeo/Veroeffentlichungen/Working_Paper/WP_2008-03.pdf
2008-02 Martina Fuchs, Dorit Meyer: Dynamic skills - multisite and multiscalar: Recruitment of temporary workers by trade unions in Germany https://dbe.uni-koeln.de/sites/dep_business_education/wigeo/Veroeffentlichungen/Working_Paper/WP_2008-02de.pdf
2008-02 wigeo.uni-koeln.de/sites/wigeo/Veroeffentlichungen/Working_Paper/WP_2008-02en.pdfMartina Fuchs, Dorit Meyer: Dynamic Capabilities - Multi-locational & Multi-scalar Attracting Temporary Staff as Union Members in Germany https://dbe.uni-koeln.de/sites/dep_business_education/wigeo/Veroeffentlichungen/Working_Paper/WP_2008-02en.pdf
2008-01 Martina Fuchs, André Scharmanski: The arduous overcoming of path dependencies: The struggle for "rational" decisions by international office real estate investors https://dbe.uni-koeln.de/sites/dep_business_education/wigeo/Veroeffentlichungen/Working_Paper/WP_2008-01.pdf
2006-02 Timo Litzenberger: The Jewelry and Gemstone Industry in Idar-Oberstein - Development and Prospects of a Regional Cluster https://dbe.uni-koeln.de/sites/dep_business_education/wigeo/Veroeffentlichungen/Working_Paper/WP_2006-02.pdf
2006-01 André Scharmanski: Think globally, act locally - the real estate industry in the context of globalization from a theoretical and conceptual perspective dbe.uni-koeln.de/sites/dep_business_education/wigeo/Veroeffentlichungen/Working_Paper/WP_2006-01.pdf
2005-01 Alexandra Endres: Learning in global-local company networks using the example of the suppliers of Volkswagen de México - a project outline Learning happens through interaction. Companies in global-local networks, for example in the automotive industry, interact in a diverse network of relationships on different spatial and organizational levels. Which sources at which levels do they use to generate knowledge? Certain theoretical concepts, e.g. the idea of "tacit knowledge", speak for the importance of spatial proximity. However, selected results from a survey of Volkswagen de México suppliers based in Mexico indicate that global contacts tend to be more important for the companies than local relationships: The local level does appear to be important for recruiting qualified employees or interacting with locally based multinational companies. Local knowledge thus appears to be a necessary basis for appropriately absorbing and applying global knowledge flows. Beyond this, however, there were no indications of a specific, creative contribution of local knowledge to knowledge generation in the companies studied.
2004-02 Keren Luo, Ping Huang, Zhigang Chen: Chinese Migration and Talent Flows in Economic Globalization International migration is only one aspect of globalization, as increasing economic interdependencies also lead to an increase in worldwide migration. Changes in the frequency, scope and scale of international migration of the Chinese population are representative of the progress of China's reform and opening-up policies. It is also an indicator of the extent of China's integration with the global economy and society. In times of knowledge-based economic development, international migration is an important factor for China's economic development and the nation's competitiveness. In the course of globalization, China supports the international migration of its own population on the one hand and tries to attract foreign talent and, in particular, to intensify contact with Chinese living abroad on the other.
2004-02 Claudia Müller: Entrepreneurship and Technology Transfer by Chinese Return Migrants - A Theoretical and Empirical Contribution to the Reverse Brain Drain Discussion Innovations are considered to be a motor for economic growth. In principle, there are two ways in which developing countries can catch up with industrialized countries in terms of innovation. Either by building up innovation capacities independently or with the help of technology transfer from abroad. China is also characterized by innovation deficits. One of the reasons for this is that China has been affected by a "brain drain", i.e. the emigration of highly qualified people, since 1978. It is only in recent years that an increasing number of former emigrants have returned to China, including many people who set up (technology-oriented) companies. Based on the literature on the effects of foreign direct investment in developing countries and the migration of highly qualified people, this study examines the extent to which highly qualified re-migrant founders can contribute to regional innovation processes in the immigration region. Subsequently, the theoretical statements for the reverse brain drain to China and Shanghai are examined.
2003-03 Rolf Sternberg, Timo Litzenberger: The research output of the Faculty of Business, Economics and Social Sciences at the University of Cologne - a bibliometric comparison of subjects, subject groups and faculties The aim of this paper is to quantify the journal-based research output of the Faculty of Business, Economics and Social Sciences at the University of Cologne and to compare it with eleven reference faculties at German universities. Numerous publication and citation measures based on the SSCI database are used to identify the comparative strengths and weaknesses of the ten faculties examined. Output and productivity indicators are explicitly included in the analysis in order to reflect the different sizes of the faculties and subjects. The results show that Cologne's faculties are ranked in the middle overall, but that individual subjects deviate significantly from this overall result. From the point of view of bibliometrics, it is clear that the publication output of entire faculties can only be adequately recorded if several measures are used.
2003-02 Rolf Sternberg, Timo Litzenberger: Regional Clusters - Operationalization and Consequences for Entrepreneurship The aim of this working paper is the empirical determination and analysis of sectoral clusters and the start-up environment of German regions on the basis of cross-sectional data. For the most concentrated German economic sectors, a new index identifies spatial clusters using data from the Federal Labor Office. A second data set, based on surveys of the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM), is used to analyze the relationship between start-up activities and start-up attitudes in the 97 German spatial planning regions. At this level, this working paper systematically tests the popular, but empirically only sparsely substantiated hypothesis that the presence of one or more sectoral clusters in a region has a positive effect on the quantity of start-up-related activities (number of start-ups) and start-up-related attitudes in the same region. The conclusions drawn from the findings regarding the promotion of clusters (and implicitly the promotion of new businesses) by regional policy are briefly discussed in the conclusion.
2003-01 David Bothe: Environmental Costs due to the Kárahnjúkar Hydro Power Project on Iceland - Results of a Contingent Valuation Survey The construction of the Kárahnjúkar hydro power plant in the Icelandic highlands to supply a planned aluminum smelter is controversial due to its far-reaching effects on the environment. In order to weigh up the welfare effects of the project, the macroeconomic environmental costs of the power plant were determined in a contingent valuation study. In addition, this study was to be used as an example to demonstrate the possibility of an applied environmental assessment in such a case. Due to the special circumstances of the project, in particular the wilderness character of the affected region and the close connection of the power plant with the settlement of other industrial companies, there were special requirements for the study design. The results of a survey of 1000 representatively selected households confirmed the suitability of the chosen approach to provide reliable and valid values in the context of such questions. In addition, the minimum economic environmental costs of the power plant project were estimated at ISK 2,021.0 million.
2002-03 Christine Tamásy: Determinants of the survival of newly founded companies The article determines success factors of newly founded companies. It is based on surveys of firms in the manufacturing and business-related service sectors that were newly founded in the mid-1990s in the three regions of Cologne, Munich and Stuttgart. The criterion for success is the survival of the companies over a period of five years. The logistic regression model shows that, in addition to the founder and the specifics of the company, the regional environment is also an important determinant of the survival of newly founded companies.
2002-02 Rolf Sternberg: Knowledge Creation by New Firms - The Regional Perspective The paper concentrates on the effects of start-ups on local knowledge generation. First, it analyzes whether new firms are really more knowledge-intensive than older ones. Secondly, it focuses on the relationship between the individual qualifications of the founder and the success of the start-up. Thirdly, it is argued that the regional anchoring of knowledge created by start-ups is decisive for any kind of regional effects. The paper uses various data sources (e.g. GEM, ERIS) and the results refer to German regions. Firstly, the results show that very young companies are not more knowledge-intensive than older ones. Secondly, the propensity to start a business increases with the level of education of the individual, albeit with considerable differences between German regions. Thirdly, although new companies are more strongly anchored intra-regionally, they generate lower employment effects.
2002-01 Heiko Bergmann: Entrepreneurial attitudes and start-up attempts in ten German regions. An empirical analysis on the basis of the theory of planned behavior The theory of planned behavior has already been successfully used to explain start-up intentions. However, as there is no direct correlation between the intention to start a business and actually starting one, a slightly modified approach is proposed. This paper examines whether the actual attempt to start a new business can be explained in terms of the theory of planned behavior. Furthermore, the contribution of the regional level to the explanation of such start-up attempts is examined. Logistic regression models show that the theory of planned behavior can be applied to the explanation of start-up attempts with certain limitations. Region-specific factors have no direct influence on the number of start-up attempts, but they do have an indirect effect, as attitudes and the perceived control of action are significantly influenced by the region of origin.
2001-03 Dirk Möller: Human capital portfolios as a determinant of international labor migration - the example of Poland and Germany International labor migration is usually attributed to wage and income differentials. If such differences are observed between two areas, this leads to fears, such as among the German workforce, of losing their jobs to Poland, for example, as soon as they are able to migrate to work in an enlarged European single market to the east. In order to answer the question of which groups of workers actually feel an incentive to react to wage differentials by emigrating, this paper addresses the attachment of individual human capital components to a company, a region or a nation, for example, or their devaluation in the event of cross-border migration. This makes it possible to specify migration incentives for employees in various occupations and to make more detailed statements about which groups of workers must expect increased competition on the German labor market if Poland is granted freedom of movement for workers. Analytically, the work is based on human capital and segmentation theory.
2001-02 Rolf Sternberg: Prospects for economic geography research in Germany in the light of the "New Economic Geography" This article draws conclusions from the current debate in and around economic geography for economic geography research in Germany. Following the SWOT approach of strategic planning, strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats for economic geography in Germany are discussed. The author argues that the current debate about the (new) economic geography should be used both within and outside the discipline itself, for a new content orientation that should recognize economics as the most important neighbouring discipline, but at the same time should self-confidently propagate the differences between economic geography and the economic sciences in the view of space. On the other hand, a cultural turn within economic geography is warned against.
2001-01 Marc Brüser: European funds for local initiatives - The role of local actors in implementing Swedish 5b-programmes In the years 1995 to 1999 the European Union promoted the development of rural areas in Sweden by means of structural fund programs according to objective 5b. This working paper examines the importance of local actors in the implementation of these programs in four of the five Swedish 5b regions. The results of a written survey conducted in September 2000 serve as the empirical basis for the study. 850 contact persons of 5b projects were interviewed. The analysis shows that local actors were of great importance for the implementation of Swedish 5b programs. The assumption that local actors are more hindered by the co-financing requirement and the bureaucracy of the application process than larger municipal or regional actors is not confirmed. Projects of local private actors do not appear to achieve the efficiency of municipal or regional actors in the creation of new permanent jobs. However, they outperformed them in the activation of voluntary work. The working paper evaluates the Swedish 5b work, despite some recognized weaknesses, as suitable for making better use of local actors as development potential than has been the case to date.
2000-04 Dirk Möller: The significance of entrepreneurial location selection for the (stock market) success of Kamps AG - a small-scale analysis using the example of Cologne The shares of the Kamps AG bakery have increased six-fold in value since their issue in spring 1998. In stock market circles, the national and international expansion strategy is cited as the reason for this. This article identifies the contribution of the location structure on a local scale. In an empirical section, it is shown for a sub-area of Cologne that Kamps AG succeeds in imposing higher prices than its competitors. This market power is derived from a dominance in spatially relevant markets. It arises - among other things - from the concentration of sales outlets in a number of sub-areas (and this applies to both the national and the local scale level) and within these sub-areas at important frequency points. In extreme cases, Kamps acts as a quasi-monopolist and, as a rule, as a partial oligopolist.
2000-03 Claus Otten: Influencing factors on nascent entrepreneurs at Cologne universities This working paper presents the interdisciplinary research project "Grüncol! - Start-ups from Cologne Universities". One part of the project is the analysis of nascent entrepreneurs in the pre-foundation phase. The article examines constitutive factors of start-ups and quantifies the potential of nascent entrepreneurs on the basis of primary statistical data. Subsequently, some influencing factors on this population are considered and analyzed descriptively. The nascent entrepreneurs are compared with those students and academic staff who have no intention of starting a business. Personal factors in particular, such as age and gender, but also the professional experience gained, exert a greater influence on the propensity to start a business than, for example, environmental factors. The article concludes with possible recommendations for action for regional players.
2000-02 Rolf Sternberg, Olaf Arndt: The Firm or the Region - What Determines European Firms' Innovation Behavior? The article deals with determinants of the innovation behavior of European firms and aims to evaluate the relative influence of internal and external region-specific factors. It tests the hypothesis that - contrary to the findings of several recent studies on regional and national innovation systems - firm-internal determinants are more important than region-specific determinants. A second hypothesis states that in high-tech regions dominated by a few very large companies, the innovation behavior of the remaining SMEs is shaped by regional rather than company-internal factors. The first of the two hypotheses is confirmed by the empirical analyses, the second is not. The empirical analysis is based in particular on the European Regional Innovation Survey (ERIS), which contains comprehensive innovation data from eleven European regions and eight countries.
2000-01 Timea Szerenyi: Concepts of Sustainable Regional Development in North Rhine-Westphalia As part of the Collaborative Research Centre 419 at the University of Cologne, the model is being operationalized. A large number of projects for the implementation of sustainable regional development are currently being developed by state and federal ministries in North Rhine-Westphalia. Using the example of the Regional Agenda Oberberg, the model region Märkischer Kreis and the model city Münster, it is shown that for the impact analysis of the presented programs for the region and for other regions there is a lack of uniform standards for success control; these so-called sustainability indicators must refer to the sustainability model, which is currently being developed within the framework of the special research area.
1999-05 Olaf Arndt: Are intra-regionally networked companies more successful? An empirical analysis of the embeddedness hypothesis on the basis of industrial companies in ten European regions Stable cooperative relationships between companies in the form of regional networks are today regarded as particularly conducive to innovation and growth at the microeconomic and regional level. Based on this hypothesis, this article focuses on the question of whether manufacturing companies with strong intra-regional ties are more successful in terms of business development and innovation activities than those with hardly any regional ties. Based on extensive surveys in ten European regions, the results confirm that despite numerous interdependencies on a national and international scale, small companies in particular cooperate in close proximity. It also shows that the more knowledge-intensive the innovation activities of the companies are, the more necessary and success-promoting is the factor of geographical proximity in particular and network integration in general.
1999-04 Gero Stenke: Governance Structures and SME/Large-Firm Relationships in an Innovative Milieu - Evidence from a European Core Region The article attempts to determine the governance structure of the innovative milieu in the German high-tech region of Munich and to define the function of Siemens AG within this structure in more detail. Governance is understood as the ability of the actors to restructure their contacts within the milieu, which requires certain power and hierarchical relationships. In this context, three categories of governance systems are distinguished, ranging from a situation in which there is no hierarchy to a situation in which power is distributed extremely unequally between the regional actors. The empirical basis is a written survey of several hundred small and medium-sized companies in the Munich region that are either involved in innovative networks with Siemens or have no contact with the Siemens Group. The indicators used in the empirical analysis are variables relating to the legal and economic independence of the companies, the size and geographical scope of the networks, the type of links (informal/formal) and the functions that Siemens performs within the Munich milieu. It was found that although a certain hierarchy exists, which is dominated by Siemens AG, the inter-company contacts have a socio-cultural background and the company networks are so differentiated that it is not possible to speak of one-sided dependencies. Instead, it can be assumed that Siemens makes a significant contribution to maintaining the milieu by acting as a central, coordinating actor.
1999-03 Timea Szerenyi: Indicator systems of sustainable regional development on different spatial scales Sustainability and sustainable development are operationalized with the help of sustainability indicators and systems. They are used as instruments (often as part of a Local Agenda 21) to monitor progress towards sustainable development. Sustainability indicators are developed at international, national and regional level. Empirical examples of implemented sustainability indicator systems at different spatial scales show a concentration on the environmental sector. Further development of these approaches for the economic and social sectors can be found in isolated cases, but requires further research. The data basis for the development and establishment of sustainability indicator systems is often inadequate; sustainability indicators reveal shortcomings in established measurement and reporting systems. The transferability of sustainability indicators and systems to regions in North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) is only partially possible due to regional specifics.
1999-02 Rolf Sternberg, Christine Tamásy: Success Factors for Young, Innovative Firms The article identifies success factors for young, innovative firms. The success criterion used is the average growth in the number of employees per year since the company was founded. The analysis takes into account characteristics of the founder, the company, regional conditions and institutional context factors as possible factors influencing success. First, the direction and significance of the correlation between the success of the young innovative companies and individual influencing factors is determined for all variables of the respective success factor group. Subsequently, selected predictors are integrated into a regression model. It becomes clear that the groups of success factors do not act independently of each other, with characteristics of the founder influencing success in particular. The article concludes with possible consequences for policy and assesses the general validity of the research results.
1999-01 Timea Szerenyi: On the operationalization of sustainability and sustainable development The concept of sustainability and sustainable development consists of the integration of economic, ecological and social dimensions into a comprehensive overall system. Despite the popularity of these terms, a consensual operationalization is still lacking. Against this background, there is a growing demand for an operationalization of sustainability and sustainable development. Sustainability indicators must be based on the guiding principle of sustainable development and have specific characteristics. They therefore represent one of several instruments for supporting the political decision-making process, for improving public information and for communicating complex interrelationships and trend developments in key areas of sustainability. It is examined whether and under which conditions reliable sustainability indicators can be developed and which possible model frameworks, methodological approaches and criteria should be considered.
1998-01 Rolf Sternberg: Innovative Linkages and Proximity - Empirical Results from Recent Surveys of Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises in German Regions In the debate on knowledge-based regional development, for example, the concept of innovative milieus and the network hypothesis emphasize the importance of intraregional networks between innovation actors. Within this group of innovation actors, innovative companies and research institutions are considered most important when it comes to regional economic development through intraregional linkages. The paper aims to make an empirical contribution to this debate on the basis of extensive surveys in three German regions. It focuses on the role that the geographical proximity of cooperation partners plays in the development of innovative linkages between small and medium-sized manufacturing firms and other types of partners such as research institutions or suppliers. The results essentially confirm the hypothesis of a strong and increasing importance of intra-regional linkages between innovation actors.