This highly original book develops a systematic zero-net-profit comparative statics theory of the firm that challenges many widely held views in microeconomics. It builds a bridge between the marginalist long-run theory of the firm and Sraffian theory to create a unified theoretical framework that explains how firms react to exogenous shocks resulting in new equilibrium positions of the whole economy. The central message of the book is that too often economists expect more from the microeconomic laws of input demand and output supply than they can really give. The authors show that the zero-net-profit condition requires a more articulated analysis that sometimes yields qualitative results contrary to those of familiar economic laws. Written for academic researchers and graduate students, the book will be of particular interest to those working on the microeconomics of industry equilibrium, comparative statics and Sraffian economics.

This engaging book contains a set of original contributions to the much-debated issues of long-run economic growth in relation to institutional and social progress.It explores the mutual relationships between living standards, social habits, education and health systems, labour market regulation and participatory rules on one hand, and the growth of the economy on the other. These mutual relationships underpin the differences between long-run growth rates in different countries, and in their variations through time. The book also analyses fundamental historical, empirical and theoretical aspects of the many self-reinforcing mechanisms of growth, such as poverty traps or industrial take-offs. It offers a lively representation of the reasons why no lasting economic growth is possible without wider institutional, intellectual and ethical progress. Uncommitted to a specific overall economic theory, the contributors freely discuss their understanding of specific aspects of this complex subject. This stimulating integrated analysis of the main social drivers of economic growth will strongly appeal both to academic and practising economists, and to postgraduate students interested in growth theory and social studies.

This highly original book develops a systematic zero-net-profit comparative statics theory of the firm that challenges many widely held views in microeconomics. It builds a bridge between the marginalist long-run theory of the firm and Sraffian theory to create a unified theoretical framework that explains how firms react to exogenous shocks resulting in new equilibrium positions of the whole economy. The central message of the book is that too often economists expect more from the microeconomic laws of input demand and output supply than they can really give. The authors show that the zero-net-profit condition requires a more articulated analysis that sometimes yields qualitative results contrary to those of familiar economic laws. Written for academic researchers and graduate students, the book will be of particular interest to those working on the microeconomics of industry equilibrium, comparative statics and Sraffian economics.