Score contribution per author:
α: calibrated so average coauthorship-adjusted count equals average raw count
We derive a structural index for labor market density based on the Ellison-Glaeser index for industry concentration. The labor market density index serves as a proxy for the number of workers that are potentially available for jobs in a particular area. The index is based on observed home-work location patterns. It is particularly useful for testing theories where the scale of the market matters. We apply this index to a standard wage equation and find that it explains almost half of the cross-region wage variance. © 2003 President and Fellows of Harvard College and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.