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General Purpose Technologies

In: Handbook of the Economics of Innovation

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  • Bresnahan, Timothy

Abstract

This chapter selectively surveys the literature on general purpose technologies (GPTs), focusing on incentives and aggregate growth implications. The literature on classical GPTs (steam, electricity, computers) and on classical great economic transformations (industrial revolutions, the information age) are linked to the theoretical and empirical literatures. The implications of GPT analysis for understanding the history of productivity growth in the late twentieth century are taken up on the concluding remarks.

Suggested Citation

  • Bresnahan, Timothy, 2010. "General Purpose Technologies," Handbook of the Economics of Innovation, in: Bronwyn H. Hall & Nathan Rosenberg (ed.), Handbook of the Economics of Innovation, edition 1, volume 2, chapter 0, pages 761-791, Elsevier.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:haechp:v2_761
    DOI: 10.1016/S0169-7218(10)02002-2
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    general purpose technology; innovation; technical change; L0; L1; O3;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • L0 - Industrial Organization - - General
    • L1 - Industrial Organization - - Market Structure, Firm Strategy, and Market Performance
    • O3 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Innovation; Research and Development; Technological Change; Intellectual Property Rights

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