InputOutputAnalysen

InputOutputAnalysen is the German-language term for input-output analysis, a quantitative framework used to study interdependencies between sectors of an economy or region. Built on the input-output model introduced by Wassily Leontief in the 1930s, it represents the economy as a network of industries that supply inputs to one another and to final demand.

In the standard model, each sector j uses inputs from other sectors i; the technical coefficient aij equals the amount of input from sector i required to produce one unit of output in sector j. The total output x satisfies x = Ax + f, where A is the matrix of coefficients and f is the final-demand vector. Hence x = (I − A)^{-1} f, with the Leontief inverse (I − A)^{-1} capturing the total effect on outputs across all sectors from a change in final demand.

Applications include measuring economic impacts of policy changes, infrastructure investments, export shocks, or changes in consumer demand, at national or regional levels. Multipliers derived from the Leontief inverse—often called Type I (without induced effects) and Type II (including induced effects via income)—are used to quantify indirect and induced effects. The framework can be extended to environmental analysis (environmental input-output analysis), incorporate a social accounting matrix, or model multi-regional linkages.

Limitations include its static nature, assumption of fixed technology and returns to scale, and linear, price-insensitive behavior. It relies on detailed, consistent IO tables, which may be dated or incomplete for some regions. Despite these caveats, InputOutputAnalysen remains a foundational tool in regional science, policy analysis, and environmental economics.