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What remains of the Cambridge critique of capital theory, if reswitching and reverse capital deepening are empirically rare and theoretically unlikely?

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  • Bertram Schefold

    (Fachbereich Wirtschaftswissenschaften, Johann Wolfgang Goethe-Universität, Frankfurt am Main, Germany)

Abstract

The paper summarises the main results of the Cambridge controversy on capital theory and discusses its actual relevance. The paradoxes that had first been regarded as most relevant (reswitching and reverse capital deepening) have turned out to be empirically rare, and this can be explained theoretically, but both neoclassical and anti-neoclassical Wicksell effects are ubiquitous. The number of efficient techniques that turn up on the envelope of the wage curves of a spectrum of techniques can be shown to be quite small both empirically and theoretically, which constitutes a new critique. It has implications for employment policies.

Suggested Citation

  • Bertram Schefold, 2020. "What remains of the Cambridge critique of capital theory, if reswitching and reverse capital deepening are empirically rare and theoretically unlikely?," European Journal of Economics and Economic Policies: Intervention, Edward Elgar Publishing, vol. 17(2), pages 220-240, September.
  • Handle: RePEc:elg:ejeepi:v:17:y:2020:i:2:p220-240
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Kersting, Götz & Schefold, Bertram, 2021. "Best techniques leave little room for substitution. A new critique of the production function," Structural Change and Economic Dynamics, Elsevier, vol. 58(C), pages 509-533.
    2. Luis Daniel Torres-González, 2020. "The Characteristics of the Productive Structure Behind the Empirical Regularities in Production Prices Curves," Working Papers 2016, New School for Social Research, Department of Economics.
    3. Tsoulfidis, Lefteris, 2021. "Capital Theory Debates: New Developments and Direction," Centro Sraffa Working Papers CSWP51, Centro di Ricerche e Documentazione "Piero Sraffa".
    4. Petri, Fabio, 2021. "What Remains of the Cambridge Critique? On Professor Schefold's Theses," Centro Sraffa Working Papers CSWP50, Centro di Ricerche e Documentazione "Piero Sraffa".
    5. Tsoulfidis, Lefteris, 2022. "Effective Rank and Dimensionality Reduction: from Complex Disaggregation Back to a Simple World," Centro Sraffa Working Papers CSWP57, Centro di Ricerche e Documentazione "Piero Sraffa".
    6. Torres-González, Luis Daniel, 2022. "The Characteristics of the Productive Structure Behind the Empirical Regularities in Production Prices Curves," Structural Change and Economic Dynamics, Elsevier, vol. 62(C), pages 622-659.
    7. Jacobo Ferrer-Hernández & Luis Daniel Torres-González, 2021. "Eigenvalues and Eigenlabors: On Iliadi’s, Mariolis’, Soklis’, and Tsoulfidis’ Explanation of the Empirical Regularities in Price Curves," Working Papers 2119, New School for Social Research, Department of Economics.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    capital theory; production function; reswitching; Sraffa; employment;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • B24 - Schools of Economic Thought and Methodology - - History of Economic Thought since 1925 - - - Socialist; Marxist; Scraffian
    • C62 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Mathematical Methods; Programming Models; Mathematical and Simulation Modeling - - - Existence and Stability Conditions of Equilibrium
    • C67 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Mathematical Methods; Programming Models; Mathematical and Simulation Modeling - - - Input-Output Models
    • D57 - Microeconomics - - General Equilibrium and Disequilibrium - - - Input-Output Tables and Analysis

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