Economic Performance Through Time: The Limits to Knowledge

Douglass C. North

Economic History from EconWPA

Abstract: In this essay I propose to explore what we can and cannot learn about the way economies evolve over time. The focus of the essay is on the dynamics of change--political, social, and of course economic; and therefore the key word is time. In section I I outline the process of economic change as I understand it; in section II I specify the questions we must answer in order to understand that process; in the final section I tentatively identify which of those questions I believe are amenable to being answered with sufficient research and which I believe to be beyond our ability to answer. I need hardly add that my conclusions are highly speculative.

Keywords: evolve; change; history; economies (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: N (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 1996-12-17
Note: Type of Document - Word Doc; prepared on IBM PC ; to print on HP Laser; pages: 23
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