Home  


Economics of Technology and Development
Credit: 4 credits (optional course)
 

Course Objective:
Technology has been recognised as a key driving force behind economic growth and prosperity. There is a growing literature on the economics of technological progress, cutting across theories of industrial organisation, economic development and evolutionary economics. The objective of this course is to introduce students to this important literature, especially from the perspective of developing countries.
 

Course Outline:
1. Concepts and Preliminaries
    a. Technological Progress
    b. Research and Development
2. Innovation and Market Structure
    a. The Schumpeterian Hypothesis
    b. The Arrow Model and other neoclassical constructs
    c. Problems of Appropriability and Patents
    d. Empirical Issues
3. Diffusion and Learning
    a. Models of Diffusion
    b. Strategic Adoption of New Technologies
    c. Network Externalities
    d. Learning through R&D
4. Evolutionary Perspective on Technological Progress
    a. Bounded Rationality and Non-Optimising Behaviour
    b. Incremental Innovation, Path Dependence and Firm level diversity
    c. Co-evolution of Technology and Institutions
5. Technology Generation in Developing Countries
    a. Concept of Minor Innovation
    b. Technological Capability and Learning: know-how and know-why
    c. Appropriate Technology, Environmental Concerns
6. Multinational Corporations, Technology Transfer, Exports
    a. Theories of TNCs
    b. Impact on Host LDCs
    c. Transfer Pricing
    d. Technology Transfer, Spillovers and Technology Development
    e. Exports
7. Technology Policy
    a. Market failure and Need for Policy Intervention
    b. R&D Incentives
    c. IPR Regime

 

References:
Books

  • P. Stoneman (ed.), Handbook of Economics of Innovation and Technological Change, 1995.

  • P. Stoneman, The Economic Analysis of Technological Change, 1983.

  • P. Stoneman, The Economics of Technological Diffusion, 2002.

  • M. Fransman and K. King (eds.), Technological Capability in the Third World.

  • F. Stewart, Technology and Underdevelopment, 1977.

  • R.E. Caves, Multinational Enterprises and Economic Analysis, 1982.

  • J.H. Dunning, International Production and the Multinational Enterprises, 1981.

  • J.H. Dunning, Multinational, Technology and Competitiveness, 1988.
     

Papers (Journals and Book Chapters)

  • P. Dasgupta and J. Stiglitz, “Industrial Structure and Nature of Innovative Activity,” Economic Journal, Vol 90, June 1980.

  • P. Dasgupta and J. Stiglitz, “Entry, Innovation, Exit: Towards a Dynamic Theory of Oligopolistic Industrial Structure,” European Economic Review, Vol 15, 1981.

  •  M.Kamien and N Schwartz, “Market Structure and Innovation: A Survey”, Journal of Economic Literature, 1975.

  • W.M.Cohen and R.Levin, “Empirical Studies of Innovation and market Structure”, in Handbook of Industrial Organisation, Vol 2.

  • F.M. Fischer and P. Temin, “Returns to Scale in Research and Development: What does Schumpeterian Hypothesis Imply?” Journal of Political Economy, Vol 81, 1973.

  • J. Tirole, The Theory of Industrial Organisation, 1988. Chapter 10

  • W.M.Cohen and D Levinthal, “Innovation and Learning: The two faces of R&D,” The Economic Journal, Vol 99, 1989.

  • Special Issue of Journal of Development Economics, Sept 1984. Papers by Bell et al, Katz, Teitel

  • J. Katz (ed), Technology Generation in Latin American Industries, 1987. Chapters 1-4.

  • S. Lall, Learning to Industrialise, 1987. Chapters 1,2,8,9.

  • A.S. Ray and S. Bhaduri, “R&D and Technological Learning in Indian Industry: Econometric Estimation of the Research Production Function”, Oxford Development Studies, 29 (2), 2001.

  • S. Lall, The Multinational Corporation, 1980. Chapters 1, 2, 5, 6.

  • S. Lall, Multinational, Technology and Exports, Chapters 4, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10.