Publications:

• Female Self-Employment: Prevalence and Performance Effects of Having a High-Income Spouse (with Magnus Henrekson), [View] Small Business Economics, forthcoming. Abstract: Little is known about self-employment as a career choice for women who marry a high-income spouse. We show that Swedish women who are married to a high-income spouse are, on average, highly educated and more likely to pursue self-employment than those married to a spouse in the middle of the income distribution. Using rich Swedish register data, we compare the likelihood of self-employment before and after marriage for women who marry a spouse in the top 1, 0.5 and 0.1 percent to those who marry a spouse in the middle of the income distribution. The likelihood of entering self-employment increases by 128–176 percent for women who marry a spouse in the top of the income distribution, and the shift into self-employment is associated with a lower income. The effect of marrying a high-income spouse is larger for women than for men.

• Gender Differences in Optimism (with Niklas Elert), [Download] Applied Economics, 51(47): 5160-5173, 2019. Abstract: This paper examines gender differences in optimism about the economy. We measure optimism using Swedish survey data in which respondents stated their beliefs about the country's future economic situation. We argue that this measure of optimism is preferable to common measurements in the literature since it avoids confounding individuals' economic situation with their perception of the future and it can be compared to economic indicators. In line with previous research, we find that men are more optimistic than women; however, men are also more prone to be wrong in their beliefs about the future economic situation. Furthermore, in sharp economic downturns, the gender differences in optimism disappear. This convergence in beliefs can be explained by the amount of available information on the economy.

• Employment Protection and Labor Productivity, [Download] Journal of Public Economics, 157: 138-157, 2018. Abstract: Current theoretical predictions of how employment protection affects firm productivity are ambiguous. In this paper, I study the effect of employment protection rules on labor productivity using Swedish register data. A reform of employment protection rules in 2001 enabled small firms with fewer than eleven employees to exempt two workers from the seniority rules. I treat this reform as a natural experiment. My results indicate that increased labor market flexibility increases labor productivity. This increase is explained by total factor productivity and capital intensity rather than the educational level of workers.

• Sensitivity to Shocks and Implicit Employment Protection in Family Firms [Download] Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, 119(C):18-31, 2015. Abstract: In this study I find that employment in family firms is less sensitive to performance and product market fluctuations. I show this by investigating aggregate fluctuations at the industry level as well as idiosyncratic firm level shocks. By differentiating between temporary and permanent shocks at the firm level, I find that family firms appear to be less anxious to translate temporary shocks into changes in employment. This supports the idea that family firms are able to offer their employees implicit employment protection. Family firms are believed to have longer time horizons, and are as owners more easily identified with their company and its actions. These are features that could make family firms more cautious in terms of adjusting their employment. Unlike previous contributions, I am able to identify all family firms, both private and public, by using full population data from tax registers.

• An International Cohort Comparison of Size Effects on Job Growth [Download] Small Business Economics, 44(4): 821-844, 2015. (with Anyadike-Danes, M., Gottschalk, S., Hölzl, W., Johansson, D., Maliranta, M., and Myrann, A.)

• High-Growth Firms and Family Ownership [Download] Journal of Small Business and Entrepreneurship, 26(4): 365-385, 2013. (with Daunfeldt, S-O., and Johansson, D.)

• Using Self-employment as Proxy for Entrepreneurship: Some Empirical Caveats [Download] International Journal of Entrepreneurship and Small Business, 17(3): 290-303, 2012. (with Johansson, D., and Stenkula, M.)

• A Note on Employment and Gross Domestic Product in Swedish Family-Owned Businesses: A Descriptive Analysis [Download] Family Business Review, 24(4): 362 –371, 2011. (with Johansson, D., and Sjögren, H.)

• Effective Corporate Tax Rates and the Size Distribution of Firms [Download] Journal of Industry, Competition and Trade, 10(3-4): 297-317, 2010. (with Heshmati, A., and Johansson, D.)

PublicationsWithout Peer Review:

• Bjuggren, C. M., Olsson, M., and Skedinger, P. (2018), Turordningsregler – lagstiftning med konsekvenser eller spel för gallerierna? [Download] [Seniority rules – a legislation of importance or a just charade?], Ekonomisk Debatt 46(3), 5–16.

• Bjuggren, C. M., and Johansson, D. (2009). Privat och offentlig sysselsättning i Sverige 1950-2005 [Download], [Private and Public Employment in Sweden 1950-2005], Ekonomisk Debatt, 37(1): 41–53.