A REVIEW OF SELECTED LITERATURE IN THE ECONOMICS OF DIVISION OF LABOR FROM 5TH CENTURY TO WWII: PART I

First of all, one point seems in order regarding the title: this article is not intended to be comprehensive in its coverage. Rather, it focuses on a deliberately and highly selected body of studies on the division of labor ranging from ancient Greeks to WWII as represented by those reproduced in Sun (2005a), with particular attention paid to what I believe has been relatively unknown even among economists of specialization. A more systematic examination, covering hundreds of studies on the division of labor by ancient Greeks, ancient Chinese, medieval Islamic scholars, medieval Latin scholasticists and Anglo-Europeans of recent centuries is found in Sun (2005b). But what is the (commonly accepted definition of) division of labor? The one that Peter Groenewegen uses for the entry ???division of labor??? in New Palgrave's Dictionary of Economics (1987, p.901) may be accepted by overwhelmingly most, if not all, economists: ???The division of labor may be defined as the division of a process or employment into parts, each of which is carried out by a separate person.??? That is, individuals cooperate, consciously or not, to undertake a divisible process or employment. As such, there naturally emerge two fundamental questions: Why, and how does the separation of employment among persons bear upon important economic and social consequences? In fact, the studies to be surveyed below that emerged over twenty-five centuries or so up to WWII basically centre round the above questions. We will first of all map out the evolution of ideas about division of labor up to the classical political economy in Sections I and II. For the body of economic analysis was considerably enriched since then, with different schools/perspectives simultaneously developing and sometimes competing with one another, we will focus on three themes, explored respectively by three most influential schools that have made contributions of lasting value to the economics of the division of labor. Section III examines the idea of mutual interdependence between increasing returns to the division of labor and the extent of the market originating from Smith, substantiated by Wakefield, Mill, Marshall and culminating in Young (1928). Section IV focuses on the division of labor in society and the division of labor in manufacture, on which Marx offers important insights, foreshadowing some modern theories of the firm well into 1990s. Analyses of unfavorable sociological consequences of the division of labor are also briefly surveyed in this section. Section V examines literature on the overarching theme of the spontaneous order, which can be traced back to Mandeville and was later on elaborated by the Scottish Enlightenment men, and the Austrians especially Hayek. Indeed, the Austrians not only developed a general theory of the spontaneous order but also applied it to analyses of many issues that are concomitant with the division of labor, in particularly the origin of money and the socio-economics of dispersed knowledge. Finally, Section VI concludes.

Exploiting Gossen's Second Law: A Simple Proof of the Euler Equation and the Maximum Principle

We offer simple and intuitive proofs of the Euler equation and the maximum principle based on Gossen's Second Law, one of the best known results in economics.Euler equation, Gossen's second law, Marginal utility, Maximum principle.

International Demonstration Effect and Domestic Division of Labour: A Simple Model

The implications of the international demonstration effect (IDE) for the development of underdeveloped economies have long been studied and debated. Yet few formal analyses exist in the literature, especially regarding its implications for the growth of domestic markets and the division of labour in developing economies. We offer an analysis of endogenous specialization under IDE, the first of its kind, showing that, far more complicated than the scenario held by conventional wisdom, IDE makes more difficult the emergence of the market underpinning the domestic division of labour, but facilitates the expansion of the market once the market has been developed.External habit formation; specialization and division of labour; international demonstration effect; economic development; emergence and extent of the market.

FINITE LIFE EXPECTANCY AND THE AGE-DEPENDENT VALUE OF A STATISTICAL LIFE

In this short paper, we investigate the behavior of the age-dependent value of a statistical life (VSL) within a lifecycle framework with a finite maximal possible lifespan. Some existing results, obtained under the unrealistic assumption of an infinite life expectancy, are reversed. In particular, we show that when the market interest rate is equal to (or less than) the sum of age-specific mortality rate and the discounting rate in time preference at any age over the remaining lifetime, then VSL declines. We also show that an inverted-U shape of VSL profile over the life cycle emerges under realistically plausible circumstances. An innovation is that we characterize the changes in optimal consumption and instantaneous utility with age, showing that such changes are proportionate to the difference between the sum of age-specific mortality rate and the discounting rate in time preference and the market interest rate, which may prove to be useful in addressing other issues related to VSL.Value of life; life expectancy; interest rates; time preference; mortality.