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Economic production as chemistry

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  • John F. Padgett
  • Doowan Lee
  • Nick Collier

Abstract

Inspired by the hypercycle model of the origins of chemical life on earth, this paper develops an autocatalytic model of the co-evolution of economic production and economic firms, represented as skills. The production and distribution of goods by firms are only half of what is accomplished in markets. Firms are produced and transformed, via learning, through goods passing through them. Through means of both agent-based and analytic modeling, this article establishes three principles of social organization that provide sufficient foundations for the unconscious evolution of technological complexity: structured topology, altruistic learning and stigmergy. Copyright 2003, Oxford University Press.

Suggested Citation

  • John F. Padgett & Doowan Lee & Nick Collier, 2003. "Economic production as chemistry," Industrial and Corporate Change, Oxford University Press and the Associazione ICC, vol. 12(4), pages 843-877, August.
    • Handle: RePEc:oup:indcch:v:12:y:2003:i:4:p:843-877
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    Cited by:

    1. Jacobides, Michael G. & Knudsen, Thorbjorn & Augier, Mie, 2006. "Benefiting from innovation: Value creation, value appropriation and the role of industry architectures," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 35(8), pages 1200-1221, October.
    2. Moncada, J.A. & Verstegen, J.A. & Posada, J.A. & Junginger, M. & Lukszo, Z. & Faaij, A. & Weijnen, M., 2018. "Exploring policy options to spur the expansion of ethanol production and consumption in Brazil: An agent-based modeling approach," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 123(C), pages 619-641.
    3. Hazhir Rahmandad, 2008. "Effect of Delays on Complexity of Organizational Learning," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 54(7), pages 1297-1312, July.
    4. Lomi, Alessandro & Conaldi, Guido & Tonellato, Marco & Pallotti, Francesca, 2014. "Participation motifs and the emergence of organization in open productions," Structural Change and Economic Dynamics, Elsevier, vol. 29(C), pages 40-57.
    5. Herrmann-Pillath, Carsten, 2018. "The Case for a New Discipline: Technosphere Science," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 149(C), pages 212-225.
    6. Daniel Levinthal & Claus Rerup, 2006. "Crossing an Apparent Chasm: Bridging Mindful and Less-Mindful Perspectives on Organizational Learning," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 17(4), pages 502-513, August.
    7. König, Michael D. & Battiston, S. & Napoletano, M. & Schweitzer, F., 2011. "Recombinant knowledge and the evolution of innovation networks," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 79(3), pages 145-164, August.
    8. Emiliano Brancaccio & Mauro Gallegati & Raffaele Giammetti, 2022. "Neoclassical influences in agent‐based literature: A systematic review," Journal of Economic Surveys, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 36(2), pages 350-385, April.
    9. Gouet, Raúl & López, F. Javier & Maldonado, Lina P. & Sanz, Gerardo, 2014. "Statistical inference for the geometric distribution based on δ-records," Computational Statistics & Data Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 78(C), pages 21-32.
    10. Asef Karimi & Haniye Rezaei & Morteza Akbari & Pantea Foroudi, 2021. "The concept of innovation network: an application of the meta-synthesis approach," Journal of Global Entrepreneurship Research, Springer;UNESCO Chair in Entrepreneurship, vol. 11(1), pages 399-419, December.
    11. Scazzieri, Roberto, 2014. "A structural theory of increasing returns," Structural Change and Economic Dynamics, Elsevier, vol. 29(C), pages 75-88.
    12. Moncada, J.A. & Lukszo, Z. & Junginger, M. & Faaij, A. & Weijnen, M., 2017. "A conceptual framework for the analysis of the effect of institutions on biofuel supply chains," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 185(P1), pages 895-915.
    13. Ben Vermeulen & Andreas Pyka, 2018. "The Role of Network Topology and the Spatial Distribution and Structure of Knowledge in Regional Innovation Policy: A Calibrated Agent-Based Model Study," Computational Economics, Springer;Society for Computational Economics, vol. 52(3), pages 773-808, October.
    14. Ponzi, A. & Yasutomi, A. & Kaneko, K., 2006. "Complex dynamical behaviour in economic production networks," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 61(4), pages 729-749, December.
    15. Jeannette A. Colyvas & Spiro Maroulis, 2015. "Moving from an Exception to a Rule: Analyzing Mechanisms in Emergence-Based Institutionalization," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 26(2), pages 601-621, April.
    16. Santiago Quintero & Diana P. Giraldo & William Orjuela Garzon, 2022. "Analysis of the Specialization Patterns of an Agricultural Innovation System: A Case Study on the Banana Production Chain (Colombia)," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(14), pages 1-12, July.

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