tion
changes, research and development, work force skills and
effort, and management quality) which affect the production
Productivity data based on the multifactor productivity
concept are available for the American economy. Such data,
however, are not available for the economies of most other
countries. In making international productivity comparisons,
therefore, it is necessary to use other measures. The produc-
tivity data which are available for most countries are based on
labor productivity measurements. Labor productivity is the
output per hour of labor input.3 Output is measured in terms
of the value of goods and services produced, as value is mea-
2J. W. Kendrick, Productivity: Concepts and Practices" (New
York: McGraw-Hill Book Company, 1983), p. 70.
ð 9 3 Š
Output may also be measured in terms of the quantity of
products and services produced. In one sense, this approach is
superior to the use of value as stated in constant prices. The
use of a value-based measure incorporates monetary factors and
product sale prices into the productivity equation. Such fac-
tors tend to distort the productivity of workers. On the other
...