Editors: Horst Gischer (Otto von Guericke University Magdeburg, gischer@ovgu.de) and Fritz Helmedag (TU Chemnitz, fritz.helmedag@wirtschaft.tu-chemnitz.de)
Under conditions of “perfect” competition, as described in many economics textbooks, only buyers enjoy the created (maximum) exchange advantage in the form of consumer surplus. Suppliers make no profit, as they must accept the cost-covering prices. However, the existence of (macro-economically sustainable) profits is evidence enough to demonstrate that perfect competition, considered ideal, is based on unrealistic assumptions. The “marginal cost equals price rule”, often cited as a hallmark of allocative efficiency, is of great ideological importance but empiri - cally irrelevant.
Moreover, the existing distribution of profits reflects conditions that suggest the exercise of economic power. Due to certain conditions (increasing returns to scale, network effects, etc.), dominant suppliers can seal off “their” markets from competitors. The planned issue 2/2026 of the Quarterly Journal of Labor and Economic Research, entitled “Power and Markets”, will analyze markets characterized by power-driven limited competition, identify its causes, and discuss possible corrective measures.
Theoretical as well as empirical contributions are encouraged. The length should not exceed approximately 25 printed pages, and submissions are possible in German or English. Publication will be based on a peer-reviewing pro - cess. Proposals for contributions are requested by August 15, 2025. Decisions on the acceptance of proposals will be made promptly, but no later than August 30, 2025. The deadline for manuscript submission is December 1, 2025.
Please send proposals to the responsible editors of the issue:
Prof. Dr. Horst Gischer (Otto von Guericke University Magdeburg), email: gischer@ovgu.de,
Prof. Dr. Fritz Helmedag (TU Chemnitz), email: fritz.helmedag@wirtschaft.tu-chemnitz.de
or the Editor in Chief of the Quarterly Journal of Labor and Economic Research
Prof. Dr. Dorothea Schäfer (iaw Bremen), email: vaw@uni-bremen.de.
About the Quarterly Journal of Labor and Economic Research (VAW)
The Quarterly Journal of Labor and Economic Research (VAW) address current, important topics in economic policy and labor market developments and examine them from an applied scientific perspective. Committed to this guiding principle, VAW bundles application-oriented research in a thematic issue on current labor and economic
policy problems as well as on key economic policy issues of the future. German-speaking and international researchers are welcome. In addition to its application and practice orientation, the journal is also committed to the goals of plurality, knowledge transfer, and relevance. Following in the tradition of the earlier Quarterly Journal of Economic Research, the Quarterly Journal of Labor and Economic Research (VAW) aims to provide guidance on complex economic policy issues. Labor-related topics such as labor demand, training and continuing education, and specific aspects of human resources policy are examined, as are financial and transformation issues. The goal remains to continue to explore new perspectives and practical solutions in these areas.
Thanks to funding from the ZBW – Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, VAW will be published in Diamond Open Access format starting in 2025. This means that authors incur no publication costs, and the articles are freely available to readers.
