On Modeling Choice and Frequency of Home-Based Telecommuting

Abstract

A joint model of home-based telecommuting choice and weekly telecommuting frequency is proposed. The model is applied to an empirical analysis by using data from a household survey conducted by the New York Metropolitan Transportation Council. The empirical results underscore the importance of socioeconomic and occupational characteristics of employees in explaining telecommuting behavior. Further, the analysis indicates that failure to accommodate common unobserved factors affecting telecommuting choice and frequency can lead to inconsistent estimation of the effects of exogenous variables and misleading projections of the magnitude of telecommuting.