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Quantity or Quality: The Impact of Labor-Saving Innovation on US and Japanese Growth Rates, 1960-2004

Author

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  • Ryuzo Sato

    (The Center for Japan-US Business and Economic Studies, New York University and Faculty of Economis, University of Tokyo)

  • Tamaki Morita

    (National Graduate Institute for Policy Studies)

Abstract

This article deals with both theoretical and empirical analyses of the post-war period (1960-2004) for the United States and Japan. We investigated three factors contributing to growth: the growth rates of capital, labor, and labor-saving innovation. It is shown that in Japan, the growth rate of the labor force has been much less important than its quality improvement-i.e., labor-saving technical change-while in the US, the growth rate of labor and population has contributed more than their quality improvement. The policy implication here is Japan's declining population can be compensated for by additional quality improvement of the existing labor force.

Suggested Citation

  • Ryuzo Sato & Tamaki Morita, 2007. "Quantity or Quality: The Impact of Labor-Saving Innovation on US and Japanese Growth Rates, 1960-2004," CIRJE F-Series CIRJE-F-483, CIRJE, Faculty of Economics, University of Tokyo.
    • Handle: RePEc:tky:fseres:2007cf483
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Ryuzo Sato, 1999. "Production, Stability and Dynamic Symmetry," Books, Edward Elgar Publishing, number 1925.
    2. R. Sato & M. J. Beckmann, 1968. "Neutral Inventions and Production Functions," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 35(1), pages 1-2.
    3. Ryuzo Sato, 1996. "Growth Theory and Technical Change," Books, Edward Elgar Publishing, number 1171.
    4. Kyoji Fukao & Hyeog Ug Kwon, 2006. "Why Did Japan'S Tfp Growth Slow Down In The Lost Decade? An Empirical Analysis Based On Firm‐Level Data Of Manufacturing Firms," The Japanese Economic Review, Japanese Economic Association, vol. 57(2), pages 195-228, June.
    5. Daron Acemoglu, 2002. "Directed Technical Change," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 69(4), pages 781-809.
    6. Basu, Susanto & Fernald, John G., 2002. "Aggregate productivity and aggregate technology," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 46(6), pages 963-991, June.
    7. R. Sato & M. Beckmann, 1968. "Neutral Inventions and Production Functions: an Addendum," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 35(3), pages 366-366.
    8. Rainer Klump & Harald Preissler, 2000. "CES Production Functions and Economic Growth," Scandinavian Journal of Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 102(1), pages 41-56, March.
    9. Jorgenson, Dale W. & Motohashi, Kazuyuki, 2005. "Information technology and the Japanese economy," Journal of the Japanese and International Economies, Elsevier, vol. 19(4), pages 460-481, December.
    10. Daron Acemoglu, 2003. "Labor- And Capital-Augmenting Technical Change," Journal of the European Economic Association, MIT Press, vol. 1(1), pages 1-37, March.
    11. Yuhn, Ky-hyang, 1991. "Economic Growth, Technical Change Biases, and the Elasticity of Substitution: A Test of the De La Grandville Hypothesis," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 73(2), pages 340-346, May.
    12. J. R. Hicks, 1963. "The Theory of Wages," Palgrave Macmillan Books, Palgrave Macmillan, number 978-1-349-00189-7.
    13. Sato, Ryuzo & Ramachandran, Rama, 1987. "Factor Price Variation and the Hicksian Hypothesis: A Microeconomic Model," Oxford Economic Papers, Oxford University Press, vol. 39(2), pages 343-356, June.
    14. Sato, Ryuzo, 1970. "The Estimation of Biased Technical Progress and the Production Function," International Economic Review, Department of Economics, University of Pennsylvania and Osaka University Institute of Social and Economic Research Association, vol. 11(2), pages 179-208, June.
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    Cited by:

    1. Ryuzo Sato & Tamaki Morita, 2009. "Macro Dynamics and Labor-Saving Innovation: US vs. Japan," Springer Books, in: Takashi Kamihigashi & Laixun Zhao (ed.), International Trade and Economic Dynamics, pages 477-495, Springer.
    2. Weijiang Liu & Mingze Du & Yuxin Bai, 2021. "Mechanisms of Environmental Regulation’s Impact on Green Technological Progress—Evidence from China’s Manufacturing Sector," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(4), pages 1-23, February.
    3. Zhao, Pan & Hu, Guoheng & Jin, Peizhen, 2023. "Biased technical change, capital deepening, and efficiency of environmental regulations: Evidence from the Chinese provinces," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 191(C).
    4. Georges Daw, 2024. "Impact of technical change via intermediate consumption: exhaustive general equilibrium growth accounting and reassessment applied to USA 1954–1990," Portuguese Economic Journal, Springer;Instituto Superior de Economia e Gestao, vol. 23(1), pages 55-87, January.
    5. Hafiz Syed Mohsin Abbas & Samreen Gillani & Saif Ullah & Muhammad Ahsan Ali Raza & Atta Ullah, 2020. "Nexus Between Governance and Socioeconomic Factors on Public Service Fragility in Asian Economies," Social Science Quarterly, Southwestern Social Science Association, vol. 101(5), pages 1850-1868, September.
    6. Zhu, Xuehong & Zeng, Anqi & Zhong, Meirui & Huang, Jianbai, 2021. "Elasticity of substitution and biased technical change in the CES production function for China's metal-intensive industries," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 73(C).
    7. Madziwa, Lawrence & Pillalamarry, Mallikarjun & Chatterjee, Snehamoy, 2023. "Integrating flexibility in open pit mine planning to survive commodity price decline," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 81(C).

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