Premium
Understanding productivity growth in the industrial revolution †
Author(s) -
Crafts Nicholas
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
the economic history review
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.014
H-Index - 49
eISSN - 1468-0289
pISSN - 0013-0117
DOI - 10.1111/ehr.13051
Subject(s) - industrial revolution , productivity , economics , technological revolution , technological change , slow growth , total factor productivity , population growth , outcome (game theory) , face (sociological concept) , population , labour economics , economic growth , economy , market economy , political science , macroeconomics , sociology , demography , law , social science , microeconomics
Recent research relating to productivity growth during the British industrial revolution is reviewed. This confirms that there was a gradual acceleration rather than a ‘take‐off’. The explanation for the speeding‐up of technological progress remains controversial but the evidence base has improved considerably. In the face of a surge in population growth, slow growth of real wages during the industrial revolution may be seen as a good outcome which was underpinned by improved growth potential. Slow total factor productivity growth from the 1870s suggests that British technological capabilities at the end of the industrial revolution were still quite limited.