GOKAN Toshitaka
| GOKAN Toshitaka |
| [Belonging・Position] | Economic Integration Studies Group, Development Studies Center ・Senior Research Fellow |
| [Research Field] | Spatial Economics, Multinational Firms |
| [email] |
Toshitaka_Gokan 
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| Japanese page |
Previous research
I started working as a researcher at Institute of Developing Economies-JETRO in 2006. Since then, I have been conducting research related to the geographic configuration of firm activities. My research to date can be largely divided into two areas. The first area is analysis based on the theory of spatial economics and urban economics. My co-authors and I have examined how trade and communication costs interact to shape the way that firms organize their activities across space. I have also joined a research group that conducts numerical analysis using IDE-GSM, a geographical simulation model based on spatial economics. My second major area of research is index-based analysis of the geographic distribution of economic activities. My co-authors and I have examined the relationship between geographic factors and the productivity of foreign firms, state-owned enterprises, and private firms in Vietnam as well as the differences in agglomeration of firms among industries in Thailand, Laos, and Cambodia.
Current research projects
I am conducting research projects related to economic geography. I am analyzing the impact of the shift to working from home on urban structure and land rents, using the framework of urban economics. I am also analyzing the relationship between e-commerce and regional inequality, using the same framework with heterogeneous firms. In addition to these projects, I am examining the impact of transport modes such as railways and highways that directly connect one location to another on industrial agglomeration. Furthermore, I am involved in research projects usingi IDE-GSM, a geographical simulation model.