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Growth Theory and Industrial Revolutions in Britain and America

Author

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  • Knick Harley

    (University of Western Ontario)

Abstract
Long run economic growth has again become a major focus of economic theory. A perception of technological change as an economic process with externalities has motivated the development of aggregate models that generate different steady state growth paths. Economic history has also long been interested in long-run economic growth. This paper engages in a dialog between growth theory and the historical literature on the industrial revolution in Britain and America’s surge to international economic leadership in the late nineteenth century. It concludes that economists’ recent thinking about the microeconomics of technological change has provided fruitful material for the economic historian of growth. Unfortunately, the models of endogenous growth, on the other hand, present too aggregated a view of the economy to prove helpful when confronted with the details of economic history.

Suggested Citation

  • Knick Harley, 2003. "Growth Theory and Industrial Revolutions in Britain and America," Discussion Papers 03-32, University of Copenhagen. Department of Economics.
    • Handle: RePEc:kud:kuiedp:0332
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    File URL: http://www.econ.ku.dk/english/research/publications/wp/2003/0332.pdf/
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

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    2. Yuan, Shengjun & Musibau, Hammed Oluwaseyi & Genç, Sema Yılmaz & Shaheen, Riffat & Ameen, Anam & Tan, Zhixiong, 2021. "Digitalization of economy is the key factor behind fourth industrial revolution: How G7 countries are overcoming with the financing issues?," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 165(C).
    3. Sakib, S M Nazmuz, 2023. "Super Advanced S M Nazmuz Sakib’s Economic Growth and Development Index (SASEGDI)," OSF Preprints h2frz, Center for Open Science.
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    5. C. Knick Harley, 2013. "Slavery, the British Atlantic Economy and the Industrial Revolution," Oxford Economic and Social History Working Papers _113, University of Oxford, Department of Economics.
    6. C Knick Harley, 2013. "Slavery, the British Atlantic Economy and the Industrial Revolution," Oxford University Economic and Social History Series _113, Economics Group, Nuffield College, University of Oxford.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    industrial revolution; growth; late nineteenth century America;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • N0 - Economic History - - General
    • N1 - Economic History - - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics; Industrial Structure; Growth; Fluctuations

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