Authors
Russell S Sobel, Andrea M Dean
Publication date
2008/10/1
Journal
Economic Inquiry
Volume
46
Issue
4
Pages
676-695
Publisher
Blackwell Publishing Inc
Description
This paper explores the widely accepted view that Wal‐Mart causes significant harm to the traditional, small “mom and pop” business sector of the U.S. economy. We present the first rigorous econometric investigation of this issue by examining the rate of self‐employment and the number of small employer establishments using both time series and cross‐sectional data. We also examine alternative measures and empirical techniques for robustness. Contrary to popular belief, our results suggest that the process of creative destruction unleashed by Wal‐Mart has had no statistically significant long‐run impact on the overall size and profitability of the small business sector in the United States. (JEL L81, D59, C21)
Total citations
Scholar articles
RS Sobel, AM Dean - Economic Inquiry, 2008
AM Dean, RS Sobel - Regulation, 2008