This file is part of IDEAS, which uses RePEc data


[ Papers | Articles | Software | Books | Chapters | Authors | Institutions | JEL Classification | NEP reports | Search | New papers by email | Author registration | Rankings | Volunteers | FAQ | Blog | Help! ]

Elasticities of Substitution and Complementarity

Author info | Abstract | Publisher info | Download info | Related research | Statistics
Author Info
Stern, David I

Additional information is available for the following registered author(s):

Abstract

This paper develops a classification scheme of the many different definitions of elasticities of substitution and complementarity in the production case based on duality, gross and net substitution, elasticity type, and four different basic concepts of substitution and complementarity is developed. The classic Berndt-Wood dataset is used to show how the various elasticities differ. This variation is considerable and shows that the correct elasticity should be used for the intended purpose – there is no one true elasticity of substitution. The paper also reintroduces and clarifies Pigou’s contributions to the debate on the elasticity of substitution after seventy years of obscurity in which they have not been cited.

Download Info
To download:

If you experience problems downloading a file, check if you have the proper application to view it first. Information about this may be contained in the File-Format links below. In case of further problems read the IDEAS help page. Note that these files are not on the IDEAS site. Please be patient as the files may be large.

File URL: http://mpra.ub.uni-muenchen.de/12454/
File Format:
File Function:
Download Restriction: no

Publisher Info
Paper provided by University Library of Munich, Germany in its series MPRA Paper with number 12454.

Download reference. The following formats are available: HTML (with abstract), plain text (with abstract), BibTeX, RIS (EndNote, RefMan, ProCite), ReDIF
Length:
Date of creation: 31 Dec 2008
Date of revision:
Handle: RePEc:pra:mprapa:12454

Contact details of provider:
Postal: Schackstr. 4, D-80539 Munich, Germany
Phone: +49-(0)89-2180-2219
Fax: +49-(0)89-2180-3900
Web page: http://mpra.ub.uni-muenchen.de
More information through EDIRC

For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its listing, contact: (Ekkehart Schlicht).

Related research
Keywords: Microeconomics; history of economic thought; production; substitution; elasticity;

Other versions of this item:

Find related papers by JEL classification:
B21 - Schools of Economic Thought and Methodology - - History of Economic Thought since 1925 - - - Microeconomics
D24 - Microeconomics - - Production and Organizations - - - Production; Capital and Total Factor Productivity; Capacity

This paper has been announced in the following NEP Reports:

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. Subhash C. Sharma, 2002. "The Morishima Elasticity of Substitution for the Variable Profit Function and the Demand for Imports in the United States," International Economic Review, Department of Economics, University of Pennsylvania and Osaka University Institute of Social and Economic Research Association, vol. 43(1), pages 115-135, February. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  2. Diewert, W. E., 1973. "Functional forms for profit and transformation functions," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 6(3), pages 284-316, June. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  3. Blackorby, Charles & Russell, R Robert, 1989. "Will the Real Elasticity of Substitution Please Stand Up? (A Comparison of the Allen/Uzawa and Morishima Elasticities)," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 79(4), pages 882-88, September. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  4. Stern, David I, 1995. "Measurement Unit Invariant Coefficients in Multiplicative-Logarithmic Functions," Applied Economics, Taylor and Francis Journals, vol. 27(5), pages 451-54, May.
  5. Kim, H Youn, 2000. "The Antonelli versus Hicks Elasticity of Complementary and Inverse Input Demand Systems," Australian Economic Papers, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 39(2), pages 245-61, June. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  6. Syrquin, Moshe & Hollender, Gideon, 1982. "Elasticities of Substitution and Complementarity: The General Case," Oxford Economic Papers, Oxford University Press, vol. 34(3), pages 515-19, November. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  7. Lau, Lawrence J., 1978. "Applications of Profit Functions," Histoy of Economic Thought Chapters, in: Fuss, Melvyn & McFadden, Daniel (ed.), Production Economics: A Dual Approach to Theory and Applications, volume 1, chapter 3 McMaster University Archive for the History of Economic Thought. [Downloadable!]
  8. Samuelson, Paul A, 1974. "Complementarity-An Essay on the 40th Anniversary of the Hicks-Allen Revolution in Demand Theory," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 12(4), pages 1255-89, December. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  9. Sato, Ryuzo & Koizumi, Tetsunori, 1973. "On the Elasticities of Substitution and Complementarity," Oxford Economic Papers, Oxford University Press, vol. 25(1), pages 44-56, March. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  10. Thompson, Peter & Taylor, Timothy G, 1995. "The Capital-Energy Substitutability Debate: A New Look," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 77(3), pages 565-69, August. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  11. Kim, H Youn, 1992. "The Translog Production Function and Variable Returns to Scale," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 74(3), pages 546-52, August. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  12. Blackorby, Charles & Russell, R Robert, 1981. "The Morishima Elasticity of Substitution; Symmetry, Constancy, Separability, and Its Relationship to the Hicks and Allen Elasticities," Review of Economic Studies, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 48(1), pages 147-58, January. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  13. Hicks, John, 1970. "Elasticity of Substitution Again: Substitutes and Complements," Oxford Economic Papers, Oxford University Press, vol. 22(3), pages 289-96, November. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  14. Paolo Bertoletti, 2005. "Elasticities of Substitution and Complementarity: A Synthesis," Journal of Productivity Analysis, Springer, vol. 24(2), pages 183-196, October. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
Full references

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. Charles Blackorby & Daniel Primont & R. Russell, 2007. "The Morishima gross elasticity of substitution," Journal of Productivity Analysis, Springer, vol. 28(3), pages 203-208, December. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
  2. Eric Heyer & Florian Pelgrin & Arnaud Sylvain, 2004. "Translog ou Cobb-Douglas? Le rôle des durées d'utilisation des facteurs," Working Papers 04-19, Bank of Canada. [Downloadable!]
  3. Alberto Behar, 2005. "Does training benefit those who do not get any? Elasticities of complementarity and factor price in South Africa," Economics Series Working Papers 244, University of Oxford, Department of Economics. [Downloadable!]
Statistics
Access and download statistics

Did you know? IDEAS uses the data collected within the RePEc project, the largest online bibliographic database in Economics.

This page was last updated on 2009-11-24.

This information is provided to you by IDEAS at the Department of Economics, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, University of Connecticut using RePEc data on a server sponsored by the Society for Economic Dynamics.