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Measuring productivity increase by long-run prices: The early analyses of G.R. Porter and R. Giffen

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Author Info
Opocher, Arrigo
Abstract

The 19th century economic commentators did not possess a formal measure of the rate at which productivity was increasing during the industrial take-off. Yet they did develop an intuitive method based on the comparative change in prices and wages. This paper reviews the contributions of G.R. Porter and R. Giffen and, in the light of some modern contributions, presents an assessment of their rationality and improvability under current standards. It is argued, in particular, that a proper measure of industrial productivity increase based on the change in real earnings rates is the mathematical dual of a Solovian measure of the industrial Total Factor Productivity growth.

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Paper provided by University Library of Munich, Germany in its series MPRA Paper with number 18272.

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Date of creation: 31 Aug 2009
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Handle: RePEc:pra:mprapa:18272

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Related research
Keywords: productivity growth; TFP: cost function; real wages; income distribution.;

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Find related papers by JEL classification:
D33 - Microeconomics - - Distribution - - - Factor Income Distribution
B16 - Schools of Economic Thought and Methodology - - History of Economic Thought through 1925 - - - Quantitative and Mathematical
D24 - Microeconomics - - Production and Organizations - - - Production; Capital and Total Factor Productivity; Capacity

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  1. Opocher, Arrigo, 2009. "A Dual-Solovian Measure of Productivity Increase and its Early Antecedents," MPRA Paper 15541, University Library of Munich, Germany. [Downloadable!]
  2. Lydall, Harold, 1969. "On Measuring Technical Progress," Australian Economic Papers, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 8(12), pages 1-12, June.
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This page was last updated on 2009-12-13.

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