
Full Answer
What is the significance of the Solow model?
The remarkable feature of Solow model is that it provides deep insight into the nature and type of expansion experienced by the two sectors of under-developed countries. The interpretation of under- development is explained with the help of a diagram 3 given as next:
What are the three components of the Solow growth model?
growth rate, the savings rate, and the rate of technological progress. The Solow Growth Model, developed by Nobel Prize-winning economist Robert Solow, was the first neoclassical growth model and was built upon the Keynesian Harrod-Domar model. The Solow model is the basis for the modern theory of economic growth.
What is the Solow model of capital investment?
The Solow model believes that a sustained rise in capital investment increases the growth rate only temporarily: because the ratio of capital to labour goes up. However, the marginal product of additional units of capital may decline (there are diminishing returns) and thus an economy moves back...
What is the difference between Harrodian and Solow’s model?
The system can adjust to any given rate of growth of labour force and eventually approach a state of steady proportional expansion” i.e. Unlike Harrodian model, Solow’s model also does not apply to development’ problem of under-developed countries.

What is α in Solow model?
α : represents saving (and investment) per capita. (n + d)k: represents the amount of investment needed to keep per capita. capital constant given: n: population growth.
What is N and G in Solow model?
Solow Growth Model: Steady-State Growth Path. 7. o K kAL. ≡ must grow at n + g (or numerator and denominator of k must grow.
What is n in Solow model?
n: population growth. d: depreciation. The level of per capita capital at which.
What are the variables in Solow model?
The model takes as given (exogenous) the investment rate; the depreciation rate; and the growth rates of the workforce, human capital, and technology. The endogenous variables are output and physical capital stock.
What is Alpha in the Cobb Douglas production function?
Alpha is simply the percentage of capital I use in my production process, whilst beta is the percentage of labour used.
What is balanced growth path in Solow model?
. The Solow model implies that the economy converges to a balanced growth path – a situation where each variable of the model is growing at a constant rate. Next, we consider a Solow model with technical progress.
What is level effect in Solow model?
1. Solow model that parameters such as savings rate has only level effect. 2. Solow model implies there is a steady–state level of per capita income to which the economy must converge. 3.
Why is the Solow model used?
The Solow Model features the idea of catch-up growth when a poorer country is catching up with a richer country – often because a higher marginal rate of return on invested capital in faster-growing countries.
Who developed the economic growth model?
Understanding The Solow Economic Growth Model. Robert Solow developed the neo-classical theory of economic growth and Solow won the Nobel Prize in Economics in 1987. He has made a huge contribution to our understanding of the factors that determine the rate of economic growth for different countries. Growth comes from adding more capital and labour ...
What is the defect of Solow's model?
Solow’s model is that it totally ignores the problem of composition of capital stock and assumes capital as a homogeneous factor which is unrealistic in the dynamic world of today. Prof. Kaldor has forged a link between the two by making learning a function of investment.
What are the main features of the Harrod-Domar model?
(i) Being a pioneer of neo-classical model, Solow retains the main features of Harrod-Domar model like homogeneous capital, a proportional saving function and a given growth rate in the labour forces.
Does Solow's model have investment function?
There is a absence of investment function in Solow’s model and once it is introduced, problem of instability will immediately reappear in the model as in the case of Harrodian model of growth.
Does Solow's model apply to development?
Unlike Harrodian model, Solow’s model also does not apply to development’ problem of under-developed countries. Most of the under-developed countries are either in pre take-off or ‘take-off condition and this model does not analyse any policy formulation to meet the problems of under-developed countries.
Is Solow's model homogeneous or malleable?
Solow’s model is based on the unrealistic assumption that capital is homogeneous and malleable. But capital goods are highly heterogeneous and may create the problem of aggregation. In short, it is not easy to arrive at the path of steady growth when there are varieties of capital goods in the market. 5.
Does Solow take into account the actual growth?
Solow takes up only the problem of balance between warranted growth (Gw) and natural growth (Gn) but it does not take into account the problem of balance between warranted growth and the actual growth (G and Gw).
What is the Solow model?
The Solow growth model believes that a rise in capital accumulation and labour force will increase the economic growth rate, but only temporarily because of diminishing returns. For example, imagine if an economy only has one worker. If you add one more worker, output will increase dramatically. But if the economy has thousands ...
What are the implications of the Solow model?
What are the implications of this model? 1 The Solow model predicts that the gap between rich and poor countries will narrow, a concept called the catch-up growth. This is because poor countries have less capital to start with, so each additional unit of capital will have a higher return than in a rich country. This helps to explain why China’s GDP grew at 9% on average over the last three decades, while the UK only grew at around 2% 2 The theory also explains why Germany and Japan, despite losing in the Second World War, managed to grow faster than the US and UK during 1950-1960 period. This is because many capital stocks in those countries were destroyed during the war, so any new addition of capital would have a high return and significantly increase economic development.
What is the catch up growth model?
The Solow model predicts that the gap between rich and poor countries will narrow, a concept called the catch-up growth. This is because poor countries have less capital to start with, so each additional unit of capital will have a higher return than in a rich country.
What is the solow growth model?
Model of economic growth that considers population, savings and advances in technology. This model of economic growth uses principles from microeconomics and considers long-term growth for the economy within a nation. There are many other economic models that expand upon the solow growth model by adding more considerations and using the equations.
Purpose of the solow growth model
These are some reasons economists created and use the solow growth model:
Solow growth model examples
When solving the solow growth model, you need figures for the depreciation, population, per-laborer production and savings. You can use these figures to solve for the variable k, which represents the capital-labor ratio.
How to solve the solow growth model
When solving the solow growth model, you may solve the equation for the variable k. The variable k represents the capital-labor ratio. You can follow these steps to solve the solow growth model:
What is the Solow model?
The Solow Growth Model, sometimes referred to as the Solow-Swan model or the Neoclassical growth model, offers a simple explanation of how a country's economy expands in the long-run. It is not a short-run model, and should not be confused as such, because it has nothing to say with regard to business-cycle booms and recessions.
Does real world evidence support the endogenous growth theory?
Real world evidence does not support this prediction, and shows that higher long-term growth rates are indeed associated with higher saving rates. The most well-known of the technology-focused models is called: Endogenous Growth Theory.
Is the Solow model too simplistic?
You may have noticed that the Solow growth model so far presented appears a little too simplistic given that it has placed all of the emphasis for growth on capital per worker. The bigger picture does, however, include a sort of catch-all metric that accounts for growth that is not attributed to capital per worker - and that is known as the Solow residual.

Solving The Solow Growth Model
Implications of The Solow Growth Model
- There is no growth in the long term. If countries have the same g (population growth rate), s (savings rate), and d (capital depreciation rate), then they have the same steady state, so they will converge, i.e., the Solow Growth Model predicts conditional convergence. Along this convergence path, a poorer country grows faster. Countries with differ...
Additional Resources
- Thank you for reading CFI’s guide on Solow Growth Model. To keep learning and advancing your career, the following resources will be helpful: 1. Economic IndicatorsEconomic IndicatorsAn economic indicator is a metric used to assess, measure, and evaluate the overall state of health of the macroeconomy. Economic indicators 2. Gini CoefficientGini CoefficientThe Gini coefficie…
What Is The Solow Growth Model?
What Are The Factors Affecting Economic Growth?
- Capital and labour force
The Solow growth model believes that a rise in capital accumulation and labour force will increase the economic growth rate, but only temporarily because of diminishing returns. For example, imagine if an economy only has one worker. If you add one more worker, output will increase dra… - Technology
Once the steady-state is reached and the resources in a country are used up, the economic growth rate can only be increased through innovation and improvements in technology.
What Are The Implications of This Model?
- The Solow model predicts that the gap between rich and poor countries will narrow, a concept called the catch-up growth. This is because poor countries have less capital to start with, so each addi...
- The theory also explains why Germany and Japan, despite losing in the Second World War, managed to grow faster than the US and UK during 1950-1960 period. This is because many …
- The Solow model predicts that the gap between rich and poor countries will narrow, a concept called the catch-up growth. This is because poor countries have less capital to start with, so each addi...
- The theory also explains why Germany and Japan, despite losing in the Second World War, managed to grow faster than the US and UK during 1950-1960 period. This is because many capital stocks in tho...
What Is The Solow Growth Model?
- Model of economic growth that considers population, savings and advances in technology. This model of economic growth uses principles from microeconomics and considers long-term growth for the economy within a nation. There are many other economic models that expand upon the solow growth model by adding more considerations and using the equations. ...
Purpose of The Solow Growth Model
- These are some reasons economists created and use the solow growth model: 1. Understand technological advances and economic growth:By measuring and solving for each aspect of the solow growth model, economists can understand how each variable affects others. 2. Explain economic growth and standard of living in a nation:This model can show economic growth and t…
Solow Growth Model Examples
- When solving the solow growth model, you need figures for the depreciation, population, per-laborer production and savings. You can use these figures to solve for the variable k, which represents the capital-labor ratio. Once you have the capital-labor ratio, you may use it to determine other figures like the steady-state consumption level or steady-state investment level…
How to Solve The Solow Growth Model
- When solving the solow growth model, you may solve the equation for the variable k. The variable k represents the capital-labor ratio. You can follow these steps to solve the solow growth model: