Introduction to Economic Growth

by Charles I. Jones, Dietrich Vollrath

The long-awaited revision of the text that brought growth theory to the classroom.Introduction to Economic Growth is the only text to synthesize the journal literature in a way that makes this important field accessible to undergraduates. Charles I. Jones and new co-author Dietrich Vollrath have updated and revised the text to reflect recent advances in Economic Growth Theory in clear, direct language.

Genres: Economics, Nonfiction

320 pages, Kindle Edition

First published December 1, 1997

Reviews

[Fleur_de_soie · Rating 4 out of 5]

　　Very good undergraduate/entry level text.
　　Gives you a quite lot of food for thinking and intuition behind the econ model.
　　The exercises following each chapter is also focused on intuition, easy in maths and models. Teaches you how to solve models and exercises. I did all of them.
　　
　　I use it as a catch-up effort for my PhD level Macro of Innovation course. It makes models more understandable for me. I especially like the way it was organized: start with asking question and end with answering them using the stuff you learn in the book. I also very like the way the author ask questions. One after one, with good logic and sensible intuition.

[Rishabh · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is brief summarization of the neoclassical macroeconomic growth models, until the 1990's. The first chapter starts with a series of 'stylised facts' on the long term growth trends of several countries, and the rest of the book presents several mathematical models to explain those facts. The first model is the classic Solow model, followed by the endogenous models by Romer, Lucas, the AK model, amongst others. The rating is based on the organisation and presentation of the book, and not on the theoretical explainations offered by the models, which I believe are severely flawed.

[Igor · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short and readable textbook on the theories of economic growth. Compared to similar textbooks on the subject, this one has relatively simple math.

[David Conway · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic textbook for anyone who's interested in the topic (and is comfortable with high school math).

[Behrooz Parhami · Rating 4 out of 5]

Economic growth refers to an increase in the total value of goods and services produced by an economy over one year. Growth is usually measures by the change in a country’s real GDP, that is, GDP adjusted for inflation. Short-term growth can be influenced by increased demand or government spending. Long-term growth is driven by technological advances, increased capital investment, and improved labor productivity. Economic growth is considered important because it leads to higher living standards, job creation, greater investment in public services, and technological progress. Possible down sides are environmental degradation, heightened inequality, and accumulation of debt.

Mathematical models of growth range from simple to highly complicated. Jones & Vollrath present a simple model in Chapter 6, which among other properties, suggests exponential growth, whose rate may be different for each country. Technology transfer and global trade tend to reduce the differences. In Figure 6.1 (p. 154), the authors plot the real per-capita GDP for the US and the UK over 14 decades, beginning with the 1870s. Both plots are essentially straight lines on a chart with a logarithmic vertical axis. The curve for the UK starts higher, but is sinks below that of the US by 1940. After the end of WW II, the two growth rates are virtually identical. The plot for the US clearly shows the negative impact of the Great Depression and the positive bump produced by WW II, which effectively cancelled the 1930s drop. Newer versions of this diagram, found on-line, show sharp COVID drops for both countries.

In the final Chapter 11, the authors reiterate the significance of economic growth to our understanding of why some nations are rich and others poor, technological progress as the engine of growth, and growth miracles (Hong Kong, Japan, China). Of course, an element of luck also affects economic growth. Natural resources and favorable geography are just two examples.

[Josh · Rating 4 out of 5]

So it's a highly technical introduction, but still fascinating even if you don't do all the maths.

Lots of great takeaways: a) the importance of high investment rates b) high correlations between trade openness and growth- there's a great graph of the correlation between these two c) the importance of education for growth, particularly emphasised in some of the developing countries, contra Caplan d) a clear explanation of transition effects and steady-state growth rates e) the value of market size.

Lots of great graphs and figures on the importance of growth and real GDP divergence; a great endnote full of recommendations on what to read further, plus relevant footnotes; and clear explanations of all the major growth models.

[Yolwin · Rating 5 out of 5]

amazing

[vaneh · Rating 1 out of 5]

i don't know math so i didn't enjoy this, i hope someday i can

[M · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good introduction to my macro course. However, sometime a little over simplistic, and uses different notation from what I am used to. Mathematical appendices really good, especially the one about taking logs and deriving.