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Understanding productivity growth in the industrial revolution

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  • Nicholas Crafts

Abstract

Recent research relating to productivity growth during the British industrial revolution is reviewed. This confirms that there was a gradual acceleration rather than a ‘take‐off’. The explanation for the speeding‐up of technological progress remains controversial but the evidence base has improved considerably. In the face of a surge in population growth, slow growth of real wages during the industrial revolution may be seen as a good outcome which was underpinned by improved growth potential. Slow total factor productivity growth from the 1870s suggests that British technological capabilities at the end of the industrial revolution were still quite limited.

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  • Nicholas Crafts, 2021. "Understanding productivity growth in the industrial revolution," Economic History Review, Economic History Society, vol. 74(2), pages 309-338, May.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:ehsrev:v:74:y:2021:i:2:p:309-338
    DOI: 10.1111/ehr.13051
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    5. Matteo Cervellati & Gerrit Meyerheim & Uwe Sunde, 2023. "The empirics of economic growth over time and across nations: a unified growth perspective," Journal of Economic Growth, Springer, vol. 28(2), pages 173-224, June.
    6. Seltzer, Andrew J. & Wadsworth, Jonathan, 2023. "The impact of public transportation and commuting on urban labor markets: evidence from the New Survey of London Life and Labour, 1929–1932," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 120895, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.

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