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Seoul Journal of Economics - Vol. 27 , No. 4
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Seoul Journal of Economics - Vol. 27, No. 4, pp. 421-443
Abbreviation: SJE
ISSN: 1225-0279 (Print)
Print publication date 30 Nov 2014
Received 27 Mar 2014 Revised 13 Oct 2014 Accepted 14 Oct 2014

Post-Malthusian Population Model of the British Industrial Revolution in a Lewis’ Unlimited Supply of Labor Model
Shin-Haing Kim ; Donghyu Yang
Professor Emeritus of Economics, Department of Economics, Seoul National University, Seoul 151-742, Korea (shk@plaza.snu.ac.kr)
Professor of Economics, Department of Economics, Seoul National University, Seoul 151-742, Korea (dyang@snu.ac.kr)

JEL Classification: J11, N10

Abstract

To explain the “post-Malthusian” population equilibrium of the British Industrial Revolution, this study proposes a two-sector economy that produces both agricultural foods and manufacturing goods. A Lewis model is used to discuss the interrelations among population increase, capital accumulation, and structural change of the British economy in the 19th century. We place capital accumulation at the center of the model to explain the growth in population size. Structural changes in the economy that are induced by capital accumulation favor the employment of labor in the manufacturing sector and trigger population increase. We examine this hypothesis by applying Granger causality tests to such variables as population size, capital accumulation, trade volume, and structural change in the British economy during the Industrial Revolution.

Keywords: Britain's Industrial Revolution, Lewis's model, Capital accumulation, Population increase
Acknowledgments

We are grateful to two anonymous referees for helpful suggestions.

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