Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences 2025
7 hours ago
- #economic-growth
- #creative-destruction
- #technological-innovation
- The world has experienced unprecedented economic growth over the past 200 years, driven by technological innovation and creative destruction.
- The Industrial Revolution marked a shift from sporadic growth to sustained economic progress, enabled by continuous innovation.
- Joel Mokyr's research highlights the importance of useful knowledge (propositional and prescriptive) and societal openness to change for sustained growth.
- Philippe Aghion and Peter Howitt developed a model showing how creative destruction drives growth through competition and R&D incentives.
- Economic growth involves more than GDP—it includes improvements in medicine, technology, and quality of life.
- Historical stagnation was common before the Industrial Revolution, as innovations did not lead to continuous improvements.
- Mokyr emphasizes the role of skilled artisans and engineers in transforming ideas into commercial products.
- Aghion and Howitt's model reveals that market competition and R&D investments balance growth and innovation.
- Growth creates winners and losers, necessitating policies to support displaced workers and encourage social mobility.
- Sustained growth is not guaranteed; threats include market dominance, restricted academic freedom, and resistance to change.