IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/ico/wpaper/154.html
   My bibliography  Save this paper

Path Dependence

Author

Listed:
  • Claudius Graebner Radkowitsch

    (Institute for Comprehensive Analysis of the Economy, Johannes Kepler University Linz, Austria
    Department of Pluralist Economics, Europa-University Flensburg, Germany)

  • Jakob Kapeller

    (Institute for Comprehensive Analysis of the Economy, Johannes Kepler University Linz, Austria
    Institute for Socio-Economics, University of Duisburg-Essen, Germany)

Abstract

This short paper explains the theory of path dependence and clarifies its relation to concepts such as positive feedback or lock-in, arguing that path dependence is a core theoretical element of political economy in general, and institutional and evolutionary economics in particular. We first clarify the core conceptual elements of path dependence, show how it is relevant in a wide variety of problems and approaches, and situate these diverse applications in a common theoretical understanding that can be synthesized as a general mechanism. We then discuss the different ways in which path dependence has been theorized in evolutionary-institutional economics and related schools of thought. Finally, we present some archetypical models of path dependent processes.

Suggested Citation

  • Claudius Graebner Radkowitsch & Jakob Kapeller, 2024. "Path Dependence," ICAE Working Papers 154, Johannes Kepler University, Institute for Comprehensive Analysis of the Economy.
    • Handle: RePEc:ico:wpaper:154
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.jku.at/fileadmin/gruppen/108/ICAE_Working_Papers/wp154.pdf
    File Function: First version, 2024
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    Other versions of this item:

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Prebisch, Raúl, 1950. "The economic development of Latin America and its principal problems," Sede de la CEPAL en Santiago (Estudios e Investigaciones) 29973, Naciones Unidas Comisión Económica para América Latina y el Caribe (CEPAL).
    2. Nicholas Kaldor, 1980. "The Foundations of Free Trade Theory and their Implications for the Current World Recession," International Economic Association Series, in: Edmond Malinvaud & Jean-Paul Fitoussi (ed.), Unemployment in Western Countries, chapter 4, pages 85-100, Palgrave Macmillan.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Claudius Graebner & Jakob Hafele, 2020. "The emergence of core-periphery structures in the European Union: a complexity perspective," ICAE Working Papers 113, Johannes Kepler University, Institute for Comprehensive Analysis of the Economy.
    2. Waterbury, John, 1999. "The Long Gestation and Brief Triumph of Import-Substituting Industrialization," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 27(2), pages 323-341, February.
    3. Kutuk, Yasin, 2022. "Inequality convergence: A world-systems theory approach," Structural Change and Economic Dynamics, Elsevier, vol. 63(C), pages 150-165.
    4. Justin Yifu Lin, 2017. "Industrial policies for avoiding the middle-income trap: a new structural economics perspective," Journal of Chinese Economic and Business Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 15(1), pages 5-18, January.
    5. Blanco, Luisa & Grier, Robin, 2012. "Natural resource dependence and the accumulation of physical and human capital in Latin America," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 37(3), pages 281-295.
    6. Assist. Prof. Dr. Eglantina Hysa & Oltiana Nikolli, M.A., 2014. "Trade Effect On Economic Growth Of Balkan Countries," Revista Tinerilor Economisti (The Young Economists Journal), University of Craiova, Faculty of Economics and Business Administration, vol. 1(23), pages 109-120, November.
    7. Cuevas, Mario & Lée, Sigfrido & Pineda, Bismarck, 2010. "Industrial Policy in Guatemala: A Case of Policy Inertia under Changing Paradigms," IDB Publications (Working Papers) 3027, Inter-American Development Bank.
    8. David Colman, 2010. "Agriculture's terms of trade: issues and implications," Agricultural Economics, International Association of Agricultural Economists, vol. 41(s1), pages 1-15, November.
    9. Justin Yifu Lin & David Rosenblatt, 2012. "Shifting patterns of economic growth and rethinking development," Journal of Economic Policy Reform, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 15(3), pages 171-194, September.
    10. Mohsen Bahmani-Oskooee & Tsangyao Chang & Zahra (Mila) Elmi & Omid Ranjbar, 2018. "Re-testing Prebisch–Singer hypothesis: new evidence using Fourier quantile unit root test," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 50(4), pages 441-454, January.
    11. Marc Badia†Miró & Anna Carreras†Marín & Christopher M. Meissner, 2018. "Geography, policy, or productivity? Regional trade in five South American countries, 1910–50," Economic History Review, Economic History Society, vol. 71(1), pages 236-266, February.
    12. Cécile Couharde & Vincent Géronimi & Armand Taranco, 2012. "Les hausses récentes des cours des matières premières traduisent-elles l'entrée dans un régime de prix plus élevés ?," Revue Tiers-Monde, Armand Colin, vol. 0(3), pages 13-34.
    13. Olle Östensson & Anton Löf, 2017. "Downstream activities: The possibilities and the realities," WIDER Working Paper Series 113, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    14. Teixidó-Figueras, J. & Duro, J.A., 2014. "Spatial Polarization of the Ecological Footprint Distribution," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 104(C), pages 93-106.
    15. Tromben, Varinia & Jiménez, Juan Pablo, 2006. "Fiscal policy and the commodities boom: the impact of higher prices for non-renewables in Latin America and the Caribbean," Revista CEPAL, Naciones Unidas Comisión Económica para América Latina y el Caribe (CEPAL), December.
    16. Aaron Yao Efui Ahali & Ishmael Ackah, 2015. "Are They Predisposed to the Resources Curse? Oil in Somalia," International Journal of Energy Economics and Policy, Econjournals, vol. 5(1), pages 231-245.
    17. Paola Perez-Aleman & Flavia Chaves Alves, 2017. "Reinventing industrial policy at the frontier: catalysing learning and innovation in Brazil," Cambridge Journal of Regions, Economy and Society, Cambridge Political Economy Society, vol. 10(1), pages 151-171.
    18. Andre Nassif & Carmem Aparecida Feijo & Eliane Araújo, 2016. "Structural change, catching up and falling behind in the BRICS: A comparative analysis based on trade pattern and Thirlwall’s Law," PSL Quarterly Review, Economia civile, vol. 69(279), pages 373-421.
    19. Giovanni Dosi & Andrea Roventini & Emmanuele Russo, 2020. "Public Policies And The Art Of Catching Up," Working Papers hal-03242369, HAL.
    20. A. Patrick Behrer & Edward L. Glaeser & Giacomo A. M. Ponzetto & Andrei Shleifer, 2021. "Securing Property Rights," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 129(4), pages 1157-1192.

    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • B15 - Schools of Economic Thought and Methodology - - History of Economic Thought through 1925 - - - Historical; Institutional; Evolutionary
    • B25 - Schools of Economic Thought and Methodology - - History of Economic Thought since 1925 - - - Historical; Institutional; Evolutionary; Austrian; Stockholm School
    • B52 - Schools of Economic Thought and Methodology - - Current Heterodox Approaches - - - Historical; Institutional; Evolutionary; Modern Monetary Theory;
    • B55 - Schools of Economic Thought and Methodology - - Current Heterodox Approaches - - - Social Economics
    • C69 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Mathematical Methods; Programming Models; Mathematical and Simulation Modeling - - - Other

    NEP fields

    This paper has been announced in the following NEP Reports:

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:ico:wpaper:154. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Teresa Griesebner (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/igjkuat.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.