Introduction and Overview

Abstract

A traditional concern of economists has been the long-run growth and development of the economy. The determinants of the wealth of nations and the long-term prospects of economic evolution were central topics in the writings of A. Smith, D. Ricardo, T.R. Malthus, and J.S. Mill. Their discussions of the propagation of population, capital accumulation, income distribution, et cetera, were also devoted to the understanding of the process of economic growth. In classical economics, growth originated from the dynamic interaction between land, labor and capital — but mostly with land (natural resources) supposed to be available in a fixed amount, a restraint acting with ultimately dismal consequences for the state of the economy.