Neoclassical growth theory is the dominant perspective for explaining economic growth. At its core are four implicit assumptions: 1) economic output can become decoupled from energy consumption; 2) economic distribution is unrelated to growth; 3) large institutions are not important for growth; and 4) labor force structure is not important for growth. Drawing on a wide range of data from the economic history of the United States, this book tests the validity of these assumptions and finds no empirical support. Instead, connections are found between the growth in energy consumption and such disparate phenomena as economic redistribution, corporate employment concentration, and changing labor force structure. The integration of energy into an economic growth model has the potential to offer insight into the future effects of fossil fuel depletion on key macroeconomic indicators, which is already manifested in stalled or diminished growth and escalating debt in many national economies. This book argues for an alternative, biophysical perspective to the study of growth, and presents a set of "stylized facts" that such an approach must successfully explain. Aspects of biophysical analysis are combined with differential monetary analysis to arrive at a unique empirical methodology for investigating the elements and dependencies of the economic growth process.

Presents the contributions that early development theory can make to growth economics in answering why some countries are richer than others and why some economies grow faster than others.

Modern economies never come to rest. From institutions to activities of production, trade, and consumption, everything is locked in processes of perpetual transformation – and so are our daily lives. Why and how do such transformations occur? What can economic theory tell us about these changes and where they might lead? Ulrich Witt’s book discusses why evolutionary concepts are necessary to answer such questions. While economic evolution is in many respects unique, it nonetheless needs to be seen within the broader context of natural evolution. By exploring this complex relationship, Rethinking Economic Evolution demonstrates the significance of an evolutionary economic theory.

This is a collection of work on the theory of economic growth, from a classical perspective.

This book presents a general theory of the economics of prosperity. Drawing upon both historic and contemporary Austrian economic thinking, it looks beyond merely identifying various isolated causes of economic growth and development to describe and explain the process of economic progress. It brings together various economic principles related to production, exchange, the market division of labor, capital, technology, entrepreneurship, and economic calculation, and a further understanding of how different institutional settings and specific policies all affect the process of economic progress. It also provides a helpful critique of modern growth theory. The author argues that economic prosperity is not monocausal. It is the happy consequence of a highly developed division of labor, taking advantage of an expanding capital structure, embodied in technically advanced capital goods, all wisely invested by entrepreneurs. All these sources of prosperity require the social institutions of private property and sound money to function well together, facilitating economic progress and human civilization. The Economics of Prosperity provides a comprehensive explanation of the myriad of factors influencing economic growth and development for scholars, policy makers and economists.

In this volume a group of eminent economists and other social scientists seek to present an innovative new approach to economic development, drawing in part from certain heterodox intellectual traditions within economics as well as from the other social sciences. The intention is to point the way theoretically to a much more sophisticated understanding of economic development. The ultimate prize, they show, by grounding theory in a more accurate analysis of social change, is policies that really will deliver higher economic growth and greater social justice worldwide.

Energy drives the economy, economics informs policy, and policy affects social outcomes. Since the oil crises of the 1970s, pundits have debated the validity of this sequence, but most economists and politicians still ignore it. Thus, they delude the public about the underlying influence of energy costs and constraints on economic policies that address such pressing contemporary issues as income inequality, growth, debt, and climate change. To understand why, Carey King explores the scientific and rhetorical basis of the competing narratives both within and between energy technology and economics. Energy and economic discourse seems to mirror Newton’s 3rd Law of Motion: For every narrative there is an equal and opposite counter-narrative. The competing energy narratives pit "drill, baby, drill!" against renewable technologies such as wind and solar. Both claim to provide secure, reliable, clean, and affordable energy to support economic growth with the most benefit to society, but how? To answer this question, we need to understand the competing economic narratives, techno-optimism and techno-realism. Techno-optimism claims that innovation overcomes any physical resource constraints and enables the social outcomes and economic growth we desire. Techno-realism, in contrast, states that no matter what energy technologies we use, feedbacks from physical growth on a finite planet constrain economic growth and create an uneven distribution of social impacts. In The Economic Superorganism, you will discover stories, data, science, and philosophy to guide you through the arguments from competing narratives on energy, growth, and policy. You will be able to distinguish the technically possible from the socially viable, and understand how our future depends on this distinction.