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How Much Did the Liberty Shipbuilders Learn? New Evidence for an Old Case Study

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Author Info
Peter Thompson

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Abstract

This paper offers some new estimates of the contribution of learning to the rapid increases in labor productivity observed in the construction of Liberty ships during World War II. The study exploits new data on physical capital investment and vessel quality constructed from contemporary records held at the National Archives. Estimates of the rate of learning are shown to be sensitive to the inclusion of the new capital data, and data on vessel quality provide evidence that part of the measured productivity increases were secured at the expense of quality.

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Publisher Info
Article provided by University of Chicago Press in its journal Journal of Political Economy.

Volume (Year): 109 (2001)
Issue (Month): 1 (February)
Pages: 103-137
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Handle: RePEc:ucp:jpolec:v:109:y:2001:i:1:p:103-137

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References listed on IDEAS
Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.:
  1. A. M. Spence, 1981. "The Learning Curve and Competition," Bell Journal of Economics, The RAND Corporation, vol. 12(1), pages 49-70, Spring. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  2. Drew Fudenberg & Jean Tirole, 1983. "Learning-by-Doing and Market Performance," Bell Journal of Economics, The RAND Corporation, vol. 14(2), pages 522-530, Autumn. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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Cited by:
(explanations, Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.)

  1. Besanko, David & Doraszelski, Ulrich & Kryukov, Yaroslav & Satterthwaite, Mark, 2007. "Learning-by-Doing, Organizational Forgetting and Industry Dynamics," CEPR Discussion Papers 6160, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
  2. Mihaela Pintea & Peter Thompson, 2005. "Technological Complexity and Economic Growth," Working Papers 0502, Florida International University, Department of Economics. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  3. Ferreira, Pedro Cavalcanti Gomes, 2005. "Sobre a Inexistente Relação entre Política Industrial e Comércio Exterior," Economics Working Papers (Ensaios Economicos da EPGE) 601, Graduate School of Economics, Getulio Vargas Foundation (Brazil). [Downloadable!]
  4. Peter Thompson, 2008. "Learning by Doing," Working Papers 0806, Florida International University, Department of Economics. [Downloadable!]
  5. Adnrew J. Clarke & Alok Johri, 2008. "Pro-cyclical Solow Residuals without Technology Shocks," Department of Economics Working Papers 2008-02, McMaster University. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  6. Tracy R. Lewis & Huseyin Yildirim, 2002. "Managing Dynamic Competition," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 92(4), pages 779-797, September. [Downloadable!]
  7. Coulomb, L. & Neuhoff, K., 2006. "Learning curves and changing product attributes: the case of wind turbines," Cambridge Working Papers in Economics 0618, Faculty of Economics, University of Cambridge. [Downloadable!]
  8. Sumit Agarwal & John C. Driscoll & Xavier Gabaix & David Laibson, 2008. "Learning in the Credit Card Market," NBER Working Papers 13822, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
  9. Peter Thompson, 2003. "How Much Did The Liberty Shipbuilders Forget?," Working Papers 0301, Florida International University, Department of Economics. [Downloadable!]
  10. Andrew Clarke, 2008. "Learning-by-Doing and Productivity Dynamics in Manufacturing Industries," Department of Economics - Working Papers Series 1032, The University of Melbourne. [Downloadable!]
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