Books > History > History of specific subjects > Economic history
|
Buy Now
Regulation and the Revolution in United States Farm Productivity (Hardcover, New)
Loot Price: R2,580
Discovery Miles 25 800
You Save: R579
(18%)
|
|
Regulation and the Revolution in United States Farm Productivity (Hardcover, New)
Series: Studies in Economic History and Policy: USA in the Twentieth Century
Expected to ship within 12 - 17 working days
|
The introduction of New Deal regulation coincided with the start of
a revolution in U.S. farm productivity. Compared with small gains
in the three decades prior to 1930, farmers after 1935 maintained
an exceptionally high rate of productivity growth. In Regulation
and the Revolution in United States Farm Productivity, Sally Clarke
argues that regulation worked in tandem with farmers' competitive
markets to create a dynamic process for productivity growth.
Competition, Clarke finds, cannot alone explain the rapid diffusion
of technology. Prior to 1930, farmers in the Corn Belt delayed
purchases of the tractor, the most important technology, despite
the cost savings it promised. Aside from competition, farmers
responded to their investment climate, which Clarke defines as the
interaction of diverse elements: unstable prices, the structure of
farms, and the role of different actors - implement manufacturers,
creditors, agricultural researchers. In the 1920s, tractors
demanded large sums of cash at a time when farmers' investment
climate hampered such financial commitments. As a result, many
families delayed purchases and missed potential productivity
savings. The New Deal changed this climate. Regulation stabilized
prices, introduced new sources of credit, and caused implement
manufacturers and private creditors to revise their business
strategies. Despite the Depression, farmers invested in expensive
technology and acquired significant new gains in productivity.
After the Depression, the rapid growth in productivity entailed
drastic changes in the farm sector: a small number of competitors
survived but most ultimately quit. Regulation shaped these
outcomes. For as long as prices fellafter World War II, credit and
price regulation helped aggressive farmers invest in land and
technology. Ironically, these same policies created conditions
under which those who gave up their livelihood rarely experienced
foreclosure. Instead, in the 1970s when prices rose, those farmers
who remained exposed themselves to a new crisis, which had severe
results in the ensuing decade.
General
Is the information for this product incomplete, wrong or inappropriate?
Let us know about it.
Does this product have an incorrect or missing image?
Send us a new image.
Is this product missing categories?
Add more categories.
Review This Product
No reviews yet - be the first to create one!
|
|
Email address subscribed successfully.
A activation email has been sent to you.
Please click the link in that email to activate your subscription.