"Can the theories that Alfred D. Chandler developed in his book 'Scale and Scope: The dynamics of industrial capitalism' be applied to patterns of economic growth in the second half of the 20th century?"

The first 200 words of this essay...

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. Introduction 1

2. Chandler's theory 1

3. Methodology and selection of study objects 3

4. Description of developments 4

Country level 4

Industry level 5

Firm level 6

5. Compare these patterns to Chandler's predictions 6

Country level 6

Industry and firm level 8

6. Future growth industries 9

7. Conclusion 10

Reference List 11

Appendix A - 900 largest German firms 12

Appendix B - Growth industries in the USA 16

Appendix C - selected GDPs in 1950 17

1. INTRODUCTION

"Scale and Scope: The dynamics of industrial capitalism" (henceforth Scale and Scope) by Alfred D. Chandler (1990) is one of the central books in economic history. Like only few books, it explains many economic developments in the period from the 1880s until deep into the 20th century. By focusing on this period, the period of the so-called second industrial revolution, Chandler investigates a period with immense changes in business and economic environment. Therefore, even though the period is time wise relatively narrow, it still provides enough evidence to develop strong theories. The book develops theories that have