April 2006

IZA DP No. 2080: The Returns to Computer Use Revisited, Again

Benoit Dostie, Rajshri Jayaraman, Mathieu Trépanier

published in: Applied Economics, 2010, 42 (30), 3903 - 3912

Using North American data, we revisit the question first broached by Krueger (1993) and re-examined by DiNardo and Pischke (1997) of whether there exists a real wage differential associated with computer use. Employing a mixed effects model to correct for both worker and workplace unobserved heterogeneity using matched employer-employee panel data, we find that computer users enjoy an almost 4 per cent wage premium over non-users. Failure to correct for the worker selection effect leads to a more than twofold overestimate of this premium, as does failure to correct for workplace unobserved heterogeneity.