Die Dis cus si on Pape rs die nen einer mög lichst schnel len Ver brei tung von neue ren For schungs arbei ten des ZEW. Die Bei trä ge lie gen in allei ni ger Ver ant wor tung der Auto ren und stel len nicht not wen di ger wei se die Mei nung des ZEW dar.Dis cus si on Papers are inten ded to make results of ZEW research prompt ly avai la ble to other eco no mists in order to encou ra ge dis cus si on and sug gesti ons for revi si ons. The aut hors are sole ly respon si ble for the con tents which do not neces sa ri ly repre sent the opi ni on of the ZEW.Download this ZEW Discussion Paper from our ftp server:ftp://ftp.zew.de/pub/zew-docs/dp/dp08045.pdf
Non-technical SummaryGiven the demographic development, which is characterized by an increasing life expectancy and a simultaneous decrease in birthrates, the age structure of the working population has been changing. The employment rate of individuals between 55 and 64 years has increased, particularly during the last five years, whereas the employment rate of individuals between 15 and 24 years has decreased in the same time period.In an economy where knowledge is one of the important production factors and information processing is based on information and communication technologies (ICT), an efficient relationship between human capital and ICT usage is crucial for the successful performance and competitiveness of firms. As several studies show that older workers are less likely and less qualified to use ICT compared to younger employees, the question whether firms of the ICT-intensive service sectors with a high share of older workers are less likely to adopt new technologies arises. The results of this paper show that firms with a higher share of younger employees are more likely to adopt new technologies, and that the older the workforce is, the less likely is the adoption of new technologies.Furthermore, there seem to be complementarities between the human capital of younger and older workers. Younger workers are more comfortable with the use of ICT and may learn more quickly. Older employees are more experienced and have a better knowledge of the intra-firm structure and the operating process. Thus, a heterogenous rather than a homogenous age structure of the workforce may be a supportive factor for the adoption of new technologies. The results of this paper however reveal that the distribution of the age of the workforce has no significant impact on the probability of adopting new technologies.Previous studies find a complementary relationship between the use of ICT and modern human resource practices. Furthermore, the use of innovative workplace practices may provide a better environment for the adoption of new technologies. On the other hand, there is some empirical evidence that innovative workplace practices are negatively related to the employment of older workers. Since innovative workplace practices seem to have adverse relationships with ICT and new technologies on the on the one hand and the employment of older workers on the other hand this paper...