A Unified Analytical Framework for Classical Theories of Economic Growth

Antonio Paradiso, Claudio Sardoni and Andrea Teglio
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Antonio Paradiso: Ca’ Foscari University of Venice
Claudio Sardoni: Sapienza University of Rome

No 2026: 12, Working Papers from Department of Economics, University of Venice "Ca' Foscari"

Abstract: This article develops a discrete-time model of economic growth inspired by classical thought, which unifies within a single formal framework the fundamental insights of Adam Smith, David Ricardo, and Thomas Robert Malthus. On the analytical level, the model allows for: (i) deriving a compact relationship between the output growth rate and the effective net profit rate, as well as an economic relevance condition that precludes degenerate trajectories; (ii) characterizing the distribution of income between profits and rents as a function of technological parameters (labor productivity, land–labor ratio, unit rent), highlighting the role of the reinvested profit share; (iii) specifying three variants—Smithian, Ricardian, and Malthusian— obtained solely by modifying the rule governing labor productivity formation and/or population dynamics. The model provides a unified formal framework to represent and compare the three main classical perspectives on growth, elucidating the connection between intertemporal dynamics and income distribution through a tool suitable for both theoretical analysis and numerical simulation.

Keywords: Classical economic growth; Growth regimes; Structural change; Nonlinear dynamics; Malthusian trap (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: B12 C62 N13 O11 O41 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 55 pages
Date: 2026
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-hpe
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