Firm heterogeneity, technological adoption, and urbanization: Theory and measurement

Arbeitspapier

This paper develops a model of firm heterogeneity, technological adoption, and urbanization. In the model, welfare is measured by household real income, and urbanization is measured by population density. I use the model to derive statistics that measure the effect of a new technology on productivity, welfare, and urbanization. The empirical application of the paper estimates these effects using nineteenth-century firmlevel data on mechanical steam power in the Canadian manufacturing sector, and townshiplevel population data. The results indicate that the introduction of steam power increased productivity by 22.8 percent, and welfare by 6.0 percent. By comparing the model predicted change in urbanization to observed population density growth, I find that the introduction of mechanical steam power accounts for approximately 6.2 percent of the observed variation in urbanization during this period.

Angaben zum Objekt

• Sprache: Englisch

Verweise und Beziehungen

• Erschienen in: Series: Bank of Canada Staff Working Paper ; No. 2017-27

Klassifikation und Themen

• Klassifikation: Wirtschaft ; Industrialization; Manufacturing and Service Industries; Choice of Technology ; General Equilibrium and Welfare Economic Analysis of Regional Economies ; Economic History: Manufacturing and Construction: U.S.; Canada: Pre-1913
• Thema: Economic models ; Productivity ; Regional economic developments

Beteiligte, Orts- und Zeitangaben

• Ereignis: Geistige Schöpfung
• (wer): Chernoff, Alex W.
• Ereignis: Veröffentlichung
• (wer): Bank of Canada
• (wo): Ottawa
• (wann): 2017

Weitere Informationen

• DOI: doi:10.34989/swp-2017-27
• Handle: http://hdl.handle.net/10419/197952
• Letzte Aktualisierung: 10.03.2025, 11:42 MEZ