Abstract
Technological change was unskilled-labor-biased during the early industrial revolution, but is skill-biased today. This implies a rich set of non-monotonic macroeconomic dynamics which are not embedded in extant unified growth models. We present historical evidence and develop a model which can endogenously account for these facts, where factor bias reflects profit-maximizing decisions by innovators. In a setup with directed technological change, and fixed as well as variable costs of education, initial endowments dictate that the early industrial revolution be unskilled-labor-biased. Increasing basic knowledge then causes a growth takeoff, an income-led demand for fewer but more educated children, and a transition to skill-biased technological change in the long run.
Journal Information
The Journal of Economic Growth serves as the principal outlet for theoretical as well as empirical research in economic growth and dynamic macroeconomics. The journal publishes high quality research examining neoclassical and endogenous growth models, growth and income distribution, human capital, fertility, trade, development, migration, money, the political economy, endogenous technological change, overlapping-generations models, and economic fluctuations. The editorial board consists of prominent researchers in the fields of economic growth, dynamic macroeconomics, international economics, urban economics, migration, and development.
Publisher Information
Springer is one of the leading international scientific publishing companies, publishing over 1,200 journals and more than 3,000 new books annually, covering a wide range of subjects including biomedicine and the life sciences, clinical medicine, physics, engineering, mathematics, computer sciences, and economics.
Rights & Usage
This item is part of a JSTOR Collection.
For terms and use, please refer to our Terms and Conditions
Journal of Economic Growth © 2013
Springer
Request Permissions
What economic advantages did Britain enjoy in the 18th century?
[3]
Abundant and accessible coal deposits,
Access to water transportation,
Sources of capital for investment.
Cotton cloth was valued by European consumers in the 18th century because it:
was comfortable and convenient.
Improvements in transportation, such as railroads and steamships,
[4]
Lowered transportation costs,
Linked industrial centers with overseas resources,
Facilitated the movement of people as well as goods,
Facilitated delivery of manufactured products to consumers.
What were some significant labor-saving inventions in the production of cotton cloth?
[4]
The flying shuttle,
The steam-driven spinning mule,
The power loom,
The cotton gin.
From the perspective of the worker, the factory system meant:
harsh discipline and close supervision.
From the perspective of the consumer, the factory system meant:
cheaper manufactured goods.
Rural laborers new tot he factory had difficulty adjusting to the:
rigid timetables of industrial work.
The Luddites were threatened by industrialization of what industry in particular?
The British maintained their head start in industrialization:
by forbidding the export of machinery and expertise.
Which government gave the most workers' rights, pensions, and social security than other industrializing nations of the late 19th century?
One advantage of the industrial corporation over the joint-stock company was the:
limited liability for investors.
What are some examples of vertical organization?
[3]
Standard Oil's control of all phases of petroleum production and distribution,
The Krupp firm's integration of mines, steel mills, and munitions plants,
US Steel's control of mines, steel mills, and railroad manufacture.
The population of the industrial world grew dramatically in the 19th century, in part because:
improved transportation networks resulted in cheaper food and therefore better diets.
By 1900, birthrates had sharply declined in most industrialized countries because:
[4]
Raising children was more expensive in an industrial society than in an agricultural one,
Declining infant mortality meant that more of the children born were likely to survive,
Improved health and nutrition improved overall death rates,
Married couples actively practiced birth control.
What was typical inducement for Europeans to emigrate abroad in the 19th century?
Famine in Ireland,
Difficult political, social, and economic circumstances in Europe generally,
Anti-Semitism in Russia,
Economic opportunities in the United States.
Middle-class family life in the new industrial society was characterized by:
gender division of labor and space.
In Britain, one outcome of the laws against child labor in the late 19th century was that:
all children were required to attend public school.
In their critique of industrial capitalism, Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels claimed that:
only a communist revolution would overcome the abuses of capitalism and create a just and equal society.
In response to socialist demands for social and economic reform, most governments:
[4]
treated unions as illegal organizations,
Supported business and prosecuted strikers,
Passed laws restricting child labor,
Extended the vote to the working class.
Social reforms enacted by Germany in the late 19th century included:
[4]
Retirement pensions,
Minimum wage,
Unemployment insurance,
Medial insurance.