Joseph Alois Schumpeter (February 8, 1883 –
January 8, 1950) was an Moravian-born economist and political scientist, who was Austrian and later became an American citizen.[1] He is one of
the most influential economists who lived in the first half of 20th century.
Summary
Born in Triesch, Moravia (then part of Austria-Hungary, now Třešť in the Czech
Republic), Schumpeter was always a brilliant student and praised by his teachers. He began his career studying Law at the
University of Vienna under the great Austrian capital theorist Eugen von Böhm-Bawerk, taking
his PhD in 1906. In 1909, after some study trips, he became a professor of
economics and government at the University of Czernowitz (a German-language
university in Austria, now in Ukraine), in 1911, at the University of Graz, where he remained until World War I. In
1919-1920, he served as the Austrian Minister of Finance, with some success, and in 1920-1924, as President of the private
Biederman Bank. That bank collapsed in 1924 and left Schumpeter in bankruptcy. From 1925-1932, he held a chair at the
University of Bonn, Germany. Having to leave central
Europe because of the rise of the Nazis, he moved to Harvard (where he had already lectured in 1927-1928 and 1930), where he taught from 1932 to 1950. During his Harvard times, he was not generally considered to be a very
good classroom teacher, but he acquired a school of loyal followers. His prestige among colleagues was likewise not very high,
because his views seemed outdated and not in touch with then-fashionable Keynesianism. This period as a Harvard professor was characterized by very hard work but also by
little real recognition of his core ideas.
Although Schumpeter encouraged some young mathematical economists and was even
the president of the Econometric Society (1940-41), Schumpeter was not a
mathematician but rather an economist and tried instead to integrate sociological
understanding into his economic theories. From current thought it has been argued that Schumpeter's ideas on business cycles and economic development could not be
captured in the mathematics of his day - they need the language of non-linear dynamical
systems to be partially formalized.
Most important work
The history of economic analysis
Schumpeter's vast erudition is apparent in his posthumous History of Economic Analysis, although some of his judgments
seem quite idiosyncratic and sometimes cavalier. For instance, Schumpeter thought that the greatest 18th century economist was Turgot, not
Adam Smith, as many consider. Schumpeter criticized John Maynard Keynes and David Ricardo for
the "Ricardian vice." According to Schumpeter, Ricardo and Keynes reasoned in terms of abstract models, where they would freeze
all but a few variables. Then they could argue that one caused the other in a simple monotonic fashion. This led to the belief
that one could easily deduce policy conclusions directly from a highly abstract theoretical model.
Business cycles
Schumpeter's relationships with the ideas of other economists were quite complex in his most important contributions to
economic analysis - the theory of business cycles and development. Following neither
Walras nor Keynes, Schumpeter starts in The Theory of Economic Development with a treatise of circular flow which, excluding any innovations and innovative activities, leads to a stationary
state. The stationary state is, according to Schumpeter, described by Walrasian
equilibrium. The hero of his story, though, is, in fine Austrian fashion, the entrepreneur.
The entrepreneur disturbs this equilibrium and is the cause of economic development, which proceeds in cyclic fashion along
several time scales. In fashioning this theory connecting innovations, cycles, and development, Schumpeter kept alive the Russian
Nikolai Kondratiev's ideas on 50-year cycles, Kondratiev waves.
Schumpeter suggested a model in which the four main cycles, Kondratieff (54 years), Kuznets (18 years), Juglar (9 years) and
Kitchin (about 4 years) can be added together to form a composite waveform. A Kondratieff wave could consist of three lower
degree Kuznets waves. Each Kuznets wave could, itself, be made up of two Juglar waves. Similarly two (or three) Kitchin waves
could form a higher degree Juglar wave. If each of these were in phase, more importantly if the downward arc of each was
simultaneous so that the nadir of each was coincident it would explain disastrous slumps and consequent depressions.
Schumpeter and Keynesianism
So in Schumpeter's theory Walrasian equilibrium is not adequate to capture the key mechanisms of economic development.
Schumpeter also thought that the institution enabling the entrepreneur to purchase the resources needed to realize his or her
vision was a well-developed capitalist financial system, including a whole range of
institutions for granting credit. One could divide economists among (1) those who
emphasized "real" analysis and regarded money as merely a "veil" and (2) those who thought monetary institutions are important
and money could be a separate driving force. Both Schumpeter and Keynes were among the latter. Nevertheless, Schumpeter, who was
a liberal, at least in the classical European sense, rejected Keynesianism.
Schumpeter and capitalism's demise
Schumpeter's most popular book in English is probably Capitalism, Socialism and Democracy. This book opens with a
treatment of Karl Marx. On the surface level, this piece seems to support socialism.
Schumpeter's reasoning was that an overt defense of capitalism would prompt the book only to be read by those who already
supported capitalism. Therefore, he believed that he must masquerade as a supporter of socialism to entice the young socialist to
read his work. In the end, he hoped to awaken self-recognition in the reader to the flaws of socialism. [2] Schumpeter is sympathetic to Marx's conclusion that capitalism will
collapse, although Schumpeter concludes capitalism will be replaced by socialism for
non-Marxist reasons. It is in this book that Schumpeter characterized capitalism with the famous phrase "creative destruction," in which the old ways of doing things are endogenously destroyed and
replaced by the new.
Schumpeter thinks that the success of capitalism will lead to a form of corporatism and a
fostering of values that are hostile to capitalism, especially among intellectuals. The intellectual and social climate needed to
allow entrepreneurship to thrive will not exist in advanced capitalism; it will be
replaced by socialism in some form. There will not be a revolution, but merely a trend in parliaments to elect social democratic parties of one stripe or
another. He argued that capitalism will collapse from within as democratic majorities vote for the creation of a welfare state
and place restrictions upon entrepreneurship that will burden and destroy the capitalist structure. Schumpeter emphasizes that he
is analyzing trends, not engaging in political advocacy. Some contend that John Kenneth
Galbraith was influenced in his The New Industrial State by Schumpeter's views on corporations. In Schumpeter's
vision, the class of intellectuals also contributes to the demise. The term intellectuals denotes here people who are able to
express opinions on societal matters they are not directly responsible for. They can stand up for the interests of strata, that
they themselves do not belong to. It is a great advantage of capitalism, that more and more people can acquire (higher)
education, compared with pre-Capitalist eras, when education was a privilege of the few. The jobs of executive personnel are
limited, however, and discontent rises with unemployment. The intellectuals are able to organise protest among the population
and, naturally, develop critical ideas.
In Schumpeter's view, socialism would ensure a production oriented towards the needs of the people – without some problematic
innate tendencies of Capitalism like conjecture fluctuation, unemployment and waning acceptance of the system.[3]
Schumpeter and democratic theory
In the same book, Schumpeter expounded a theory of democracy which sought to challenge what
he called the 'classical doctrine'. He disputed the idea that democracy was a process by which the electorate identified the
common good, and politicians carried this out for them. He argued this was unrealistic, and that people's ignorance and
superficiality meant that in fact they were largely manipulated by politicians, who set the agenda. This made a 'rule by the
people' concept both unlikely and undesirable. Instead he advocated a minimalist model, much influenced by Max Weber, whereby democracy is the mechanism for competition between leaders, much like a market structure.
Although periodical votes from the general public legitimize governments and keep them accountable, the policy program is very
much seen as their own and not that of the people, and the participatory role for individuals is severely limited.
Schumpeter and entrepreneurship
The concept of entrepreneurship cannot be fully understood without his
contributions, being probably the first scholar to develop its theories. He gave two theories, sometimes called Mark I and Mark
II. In the first one, the early one, Schumpeter argued that the innovation and technological change of a nation comes from the
entrepreneurs, or wild spirits. He came up with the German word Unternehmergeist, meaning entrepreneur-spirit. He
believed that these individuals are the ones who make things work in the economy of the country. In Mark II, later in the
United States as professor at Harvard, he pointed out that the ones who really move the innovation and economy are the big
companies which have the resources and capital to invest in research and development. Both arguments might be complementary
today.
The English literature preferred to use the French word entrepreneurship, but perhaps the German one would be more correct to
understand the entrepreneur studies.
His legacy
For some time after his death, Schumpeter's views were most influential among heterodox
economists, especially European, who were interested in industrial organization, evolutionary
theory, and economic development, and who tended to be on the other end of the political spectrum of Schumpeter and were
often also influenced by Keynes, Karl Marx, and Thorstein Veblen. Robert Heilbroner was one of Schumpeter's most renowned pupils, who wrote extensively about him in
"The Worldly Philosophers". Another outstanding student of Schumpeter's was the economist Nicholas Georgescu-Roegen. Today, Schumpeter is a protagonist of the mainstream, not in
academic economics ("standard textbook economics"), but in economic policy, management studies, industrial policy, and the entire
area of innovation. The concept of entrepreneurship
cannot be fully understood without his contributions, being probably the first scholar to develop its theories. The
European Union's innovation program, and its main development plan, the Lisbon Strategy, are based on Schumpeter.
Schumpeter grant of the Austrian Federal Ministry of Science and Research
The Schumpeter Grant to study the Master in Public Administration program at Harvard University, John F. Kennedy School of
Government, is granted by the ÖAD on behalf of and financed by the Austrian Federal Ministry of Science and Research for 1 person
each year. The duration is 12 months, in case of a successful course of study the grant can be renewed for a maximum of 10
months.
Grant benefit paid
Monthly grant 1,090 Euro; monthly study cost subsidy up to a maximum of 2/3 of the tuition fees or maximum of 10,900.00 Euro,
respectively; no travel costs allowance
Selection procedure
1. Pre-selection based on the documents submitted. Evaluation of course of study (duration and grades), motivation
2. Interviews by a committee in Vienna: Evaluated items are the project and its relevance for the future professional and
academic development, respectively, of the candidate, course of study (duration and grades), professional qualifications (e.g.
publications), additional qualifications, general personal impression, grades for the Austrian administration system.
3. Proof of admission at the KSG
- Junior researchers / employees at universities
Grant benefit paid
Monthly grant amounting to the net salary, study cost subsidy up to a maximum of 3/4 of the tuition fees or maximum of
15,000.00 Euro, respectively; no travel costs allowance
Selection procedure
Interviews by a committee in Vienna: Evaluation of the project and its relevance for the future professional and academic
development, respectively, of the candidate, professional qualifications (e.g. publications), additional qualifications, general
personal impression
Notes
- ^ Schumpeter, Joseph A." Encyclopædia Britannica. 2007. Encyclopædia
Britannica Online. 12 Aug. 2007 <http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9066242>.
- ^ Muller, Jerry Z. The Mind and the Market. Anchor Books, New York.
2003.
- ^ It is interesting to note, that Schumpeter's theories of the transition of
capitalism into socialism has – according to some analysts – been ‘nearly right’ in some cases: Where Schumpeter was Nearly
Right - The Swedish Model and Capitalism, Socialism and Democracy by Magnus Henrekson, Ulf Jakobsson. Available at http://swopec.hhs.se/iuiwop/papers/iuiwop0533.pdf
Major Works
- "Über die matematische Methode der theoretischen Ökonomie", 1906, ZfVSV.
- "Das Rentenprinzip in der Verteilungslehre", 1907, Schmollers Jahrbuch
- Wesen und Hauptinhalt der theoretischen Nationalökonomie (transl. The Nature and Essence of Theoretical
Economics), 1908.
- "On the Concept of Social Value", 1909, QJE
- Wie studiert man Sozialwissenschaft, 1910 (transl. by J.Z. Muller, "How to Study Social Science", Society,
2003)
- "Marie Esprit Leon Walras", 1910, ZfVSV.
- "Über das Wesen der Wirtschaftskrisen", 1910, ZfVSV
- Theorie der wirtschaftlichen Entwicklung (transl. The Theory of Economic Development: An inquiry into profits,
capital, credit, interest and the business cycle) , 1911.
- Economic Doctrine and Method: An historical sketch, 1914.
- "Das wissenschaftliche Lebenswerk Eugen von Böhm-Bawerks", 1914, ZfVSV.
- Vergangenkeit und Zukunft der Sozialwissenschaft, 1915.
- The Crisis of the Tax State, 1918.
- "The Sociology of Imperialism", 1919, Archiv für Sozialwissenschaft und Sozialpolitik
- "Max Weber's Work", 1920, Der österreichische Volkswirt
- "Carl Menger", 1921, ZfVS.
- "The Explanation of the Business Cycle", 1927, Economica
- "Social Classes in an Ethnically Homogeneous Environment", 1927, Archiv für Sozialwissenschaft und Sozialpolitik.
- "The Instability of Capitalism", 1928, EJ
- Das deutsche Finanzproblem, 1928.
- "Mitchell's Business Cycles", 1930, QJE
- "The Present World Depression: A tentative diagnosis", 1931, AER.
- "The Common Sense of Econometrics", 1933, Econometrica
- "Depressions: Can we learn from past experience?", 1934, in Economics of the Recovery Program
- "The Nature and Necessity of a Price System", 1934, Economic Reconstruction.
- "Review of Robinson's Economics of Imperfect Competition", 1934, JPE
- "The Analysis of Economic Change", 1935, REStat.
- "Professor Taussig on Wages and Capital", 1936, Explorations in Economics.
- "Review of Keynes's General Theory", 1936, JASA
- Business Cycles: A theoretical, historical and statistical analysis of the Capitalist process, 1939.
- "The Influence of Protective Tariffs on the Industrial Development of the United States", 1940, Proceedings of
AAPS
- "Alfred Marshall's Principles: A semi-centennial appraisal", 1941, AER.
- "Frank William Taussig", 1941, QJE.
- Capitalism, Socialism and Democracy, 1942.
- "Capitalism in the Postwar World", 1943, Postwar Economic Problems.
- "John Maynard Keynes", 1946, AER.
- "The Future of Private Enterprise in the Face of Modern Socialistic Tendencies", 1946, Comment sauvegarder l'entreprise
privée
- Rudimentary Mathematics for Economists and Statisticians, with W.L.Crum, 1946.
- "Capitalism", 1946, Encyclopaedia Britannica.
- "The Decade of the Twenties", 1946, AER
- "The Creative Response in Economic History", 1947, JEH
- "Theoretical Problems of Economic Growth", 1947, JEH
- "Irving Fisher's Econometrics", 1948, Econometrica.
- "There is Still Time to Stop Inflation", 1948, Nation's Business.
- "Science and Ideology", 1949, AER.
- "Vilfredo Pareto", 1949, QJE.
- "Economic Theory and Entrepreneurial History", 1949, Change and the Entrepreneur
- "The Communist Manifesto in Sociology and Economics", 1949, JPE
- "English Economists and the State-Managed Economy", 1949, JPE
- "The Historical Approach to the Analysis of Business Cycles", 1949, NBER Conference on Business Cycle Research.
- "Wesley Clair Mitchell", 1950, QJE.
- "March into Socialism", 1950, AER.
- Ten Great Economists: From Marx to Keynes, 1951.
- Imperialism and Social Classes, 1951 (reprints of 1919, 1927)
- Essays on Economic Topics, 1951.
- "Review of the Troops", 1951, QJE.
- History of Economic Analysis, (published posthumously, ed. Elisabeth Boody Schumpeter), 1954.
- "American Institutions and Economic Progress", 1983, Zeitschrift fur die gesamte Staatswissenschaft
- "The Meaning of Rationality in the Social Sciences", 1984, Zeitschrift fur die gesamte Staatswissenschaft
- "Money and Currency", 1991, Social Research.
- Economics and Sociology of Capitalism, 1991.
References
- Cheung, Edward "Baby Boomers, Generation X and Social Cycles" "The latest findings on Schumpeter's Creative Destruction."
- Harris, S. E. (ed.), 1951. Schumpeter: Social Scientist. Harvard University Press.
- Robbins, L. C., 1955, "Schumpeter's History of Economic Analysis," Quarterly Journal of Economics 69: 1-22.
- Muller, Jerry Z., 2002. The Mind and the Market: Capitalism in Western Thought. Anchor Books.
- Groenewegen, Peter, 2003. Classics and Moderns in Economics: Essays on Nineteenth And Twentieth Century Economic Thought:
Vol. 2. Routledge. Chpt. 22, pp 203+.
- McCraw, Thomas K., 2007. Prophet of Innovation: Joseph Schumpeter and Creative Destruction. Belknap Press.
- Carayannis, E. G. and Ziemnowicz, C., 2007. Rediscovering Schumpeter. Palgrave Mcmillan. ISBN 978-1403942418.
- Harry Dahms 1995. "From Creative Action to the Social Rationalization of the Economy:
Joseph A. Schumpeter's Social Theory." Sociological Theory 13 (1): 1-13.
- Richard Swedberg, Schumpeter: A Biography. Princeton: Princeton Uni Press, 1991.
- Michaelides, P. and Milios, J. (2005), Did Hilferding Influence Schumpeter?, History of Economics Review, Vol. 41, Winter,
pp. 98-125.
- Michaelides, P. and Milios, J. (2004), Hilferding’s Influence on Schumpeter: A First Discussion, European Association for
Evolutionary Political Economy Proceedings of the 16th Annual International Conference, Crete, Greece, 28-31 October
(CD-ROM).
- Michaelides, P., Milios, J. and Vouldis, A. (2007), Schumpeter and Lederer on Economic Growth, Technology and Credit,
European Association for Evolutionary Political Economy, Proceedings of the 19th Annual International Conference, Porto, 2007,
1-3 November (CD-ROM)...
See also
External links
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