Internet job search and unemployment durations

After decades of stability, the technologies used by workers to locate new jobs began to change rapidly with the diffusion of internet access in the late 1990’s. Which types of persons looked for work on line, and did searching for work on line help these workers find new jobs faster? We address these questions using measures of internet job search among unemployed workers in the December 1998 and August 2000 CPS Computer and Internet Supplements, matched with job search outcomes from subsequent CPS files. In our data, internet searchers have observed characteristics that are typically associated with shorter unemployment spells, and do spend less time unemployed. This unemployment differential is however eliminated and in some cases reversed when we hold observable characteristics constant. We conclude that either internet job search is ineffective in reducing unemployment durations, or internet job searchers are negatively selected on unobservables