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Malthusian Model: Core Concepts and Economic Relationships
Endogenous and Exogenous Variables in the Malthusian Model
The Malthusian model illustrates the use of endogenous and exogenous variables. The model's internal logic determines the values of its endogenous variables, which are living standards and population size. In contrast, the state of technology is an exogenous variable; its value is set externally by the modeller to analyze its impact on the model's equilibrium.
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Social Science
Empirical Science
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CORE Econ
Economics
Economy
Introduction to Microeconomics Course
The Economy 2.0 Microeconomics @ CORE Econ
Related
Population Growth and Production Functions: Defining Output and Labor Relationships
Malthusian Subsistence Equilibrium: Mechanism and Dynamics
What they are, what they are for, and what they are about.
Theories
Malthusianism
The Malthusian Poverty Trap: Mechanism and Economic Acceptance
Why Didn't Pre-Industrial Technological Progress Increase Living Standards?
Malthus's Law
Role of Assumptions in the Malthusian Model
Malthusian Assumption: Diminishing Average Product of Labour
Malthusian Assumption: Population Growth and Living Standards
Malthusian Trap: Evidence from London Wages and British Population (1264-2001)
Endogenous and Exogenous Variables in the Malthusian Model
Limitation of the Malthusian Model: Explaining Technological Origins
Consider a pre-industrial economy where living standards are at a basic subsistence level. A new, more resilient crop is introduced, which significantly increases the amount of food that can be grown on the existing, fixed amount of farmland. Based on a framework where population tends to grow when incomes rise and the average output per worker declines as more people work the land, what is the most likely long-term outcome of this agricultural improvement?
An economy is in a stable state where incomes are at a basic subsistence level. A one-time technological improvement occurs, such as the invention of a more efficient plow. According to the economic model that explains this 'poverty trap', arrange the following events in the logical sequence that would occur after the technological improvement.
Deconstructing the Pre-Industrial Poverty Trap
Interpreting Historical Economic Data
According to the economic model that explains long-term stagnation in pre-industrial societies, a one-time, permanent improvement in technology ultimately results in a larger population living at the same subsistence-level income as before.
An economic model explains why living standards remained stagnant for centuries before the industrial revolution. Match each cause described in the left column with its most direct effect according to this model's logic.
The Malthusian Feedback Loop
In the economic model explaining pre-industrial poverty traps, the core principle stating that average output per worker will fall as more labor is applied to a fixed amount of land is known as the _________.
Analyzing a Population Shock in a Pre-Industrial Economy
Consider an economic model for a pre-industrial society where two key relationships exist: 1) as more people work a fixed amount of land, the average output per person falls, and 2) when living standards rise above a basic subsistence level, the population tends to grow, which in turn pushes living standards back down. Now, imagine a permanent societal change where people choose to have fewer children, effectively breaking the link between rising living standards and population growth. What is the most likely long-term consequence of this change for the society's living standards, assuming no change in technology?
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Consider an economic model designed to explain long-run living standards. The model operates as follows:
- The level of available technology is taken as a given input.
- The size of the population determines the total output produced, according to the given technology.
- Total output and population size together determine the average income per person.
- The average income per person, in turn, causes the population to either increase or decrease.
Based on the internal logic of this model, which of the following statements provides the most accurate analysis of how these components relate to one another?
Analyzing a Historical Economic Shock
In an economic model of a pre-industrial society, several factors interact. The model assumes a fixed amount of land and a given level of farming techniques. The size of the population determines the total amount of food produced. The amount of food per person then determines whether the population grows or shrinks in the next period. Match each variable from this model to the description of its role.
Identifying Variable Types in an Economic Model
Consider an economic model where the size of the population and the average income per person are determined by the interactions within the model itself. According to this model's logic, a spontaneous discovery of a more resilient crop variety that boosts harvests is an example of a variable determined within the model.
Analyzing Variable Roles in a Pre-Industrial Economic Model
Evaluating Modeling Choices for Economic History
In an economic model of a pre-industrial society, living standards and population size are determined by the interactions within the model. Initially, the level of technology is treated as a fixed input, determined outside the model. A researcher modifies the model so that the level of technology in any given year is now determined by the size of the population in the preceding year. Which statement best evaluates the effect of this modification on the model's structure?
In an economic model designed to understand how a society's population and income levels interact, a factor like a sudden improvement in farming techniques, which is introduced by the modeler to see its effects, is known as a(n) ________ variable.
Evaluating a Model of a Pre-Industrial Agricultural Society