Dieter Pennerstorfer

Dieter Pennerstorfer serves as Associate Professor and Deputy Chair of the Department of Economics at Johannes Kepler University Linz (JKU), within the Kurt Rothschild School of Economics and Statistics (RoSES). He holds his office in the Keplergebäude Building, 1st Floor, Room K125A, with contact information including email dieter.pennerstorfer@jku.at and phone +43 732 2468 7323. His academic journey began with Master Studies in Economics (Mag. rer. soc. oec.) at the Vienna University of Economics and Business (WU Wien) from 1997-2004, followed by PhD studies there from 2004-2008, where he completed his dissertation titled "Strategic interaction and spatial price competition in the retail gasoline market: a spatial econometric analysis."

Pennerstorfer's research focuses on Applied Industrial Organization, Product Differentiation, Spatial Competition, and Spatial Economics. His work consistently examines how spatial considerations affect market structures, competition, and consumer behavior across various sectors. He has developed sophisticated methodologies for analyzing spatial patterns in economic activity, with particular expertise in retail markets, childcare accessibility, healthcare systems, and migration patterns. His approach combines theoretical modeling with rigorous empirical analysis using spatially explicit data, contributing significantly to our understanding of how geography shapes economic outcomes.

His publication record reveals clear trends in spatial economic analysis, with recent work (2021-2025) increasingly focusing on inequality dimensions within spatial contexts - examining income inequality's relationship with product variety, unequal access to childcare services across urban spaces, and the spatial dimensions of refugee labor market integration. Earlier work (2009-2017) established foundational research on spatial competition in retail gasoline markets, demonstrating how location and market structure affect pricing and quality decisions.

Pennerstorfer actively supervises Master's theses in both the Economics (Economic Policy Analysis) and Economic and Business Analytics programs, requiring students to complete his KS Managerial Economics II course. In the Teacher Training Program for Geography and Economic Education, he supervises theses requiring completion of his VU Specialized Course in Economics. His supervision emphasizes quantitative-empirical approaches, though theoretical work and case studies are also accommodated. He teaches multiple courses including Industrial Organization and Digital Economy, Advanced Topics in Competition and Consumer Protection, and Integrative and Problem-Oriented Issues in Geography and Economics, demonstrating his commitment to interdisciplinary economic education.

His research extends beyond publications to active participation in projects like "Strukturwandel, räumlicher Wettbewerb und Wettbewerbsfähigkeit: Die Landwirtschaft in Österreich" (2018-2021) and numerous conference presentations. With 45 research outputs including 28 peer-reviewed articles, 13 working papers, and other scholarly contributions, Pennerstorfer maintains a robust research profile that bridges theoretical economic concepts with real-world spatial applications across multiple economic sectors.