The transformation of Australian economic and social history

This article reviews the first four books published in a new Australian series entitled ‘Themes in Australian Economic and Social History’. These volumes include: A. Dingle, Aboriginal economy: patterns of experience; R.V. Jackson, The population history of Australia; W. Bate, Victorian gold rushes; A.L. Lougheed, Australia and the world economy. The series is edited by C.B. Schedvin in association with the Economic History Society of Australia and New Zealand and is published by McPhee Gribble Publishers, Melbourne. Each attractively presented book is approximately seventy pages long and is priced at $9.99. Further volumes in this series have been commissioned.     

The development of economic history in Norway

Abstract

It might be a matter of dispute whether economic history is today a subject in its own right in Norway, that is whether there is a significant body of historians who identify with one another and with the problems, techniques and assumptions of economic history. Economic history is not really formally established. In contrast to Denmark and Sweden, there are no departments of economic history in the universities. An important exception is the economic history department at the Norwegian School of Economics and Business Administration in Bergen. At Oslo University there has also been for some time a chair in “economic and social history” in the history department. At the new Norwegian School of Management in Oslo there is also about to be established a “Business History Unit”. Those working with economic history outside these institutions will normally be attached in some way to the history departments of other universities or to the university colleges (distrikts-høgskoler).     

Clé Lesger,The Rise of the Amsterdam Market and Information Exchange – Merchants,Commercial Expansion and Change in the Spatial Economy of the Low Countries,c.1550–1630

Abstract

Between 1930 and 1935, Sverre Steen wrote four volumes of Det norske folks liv og historie [The Life and History of the Norwegian People], covering the period 1500–1814. He has now half completed the task of bringing the work further towards our own time in a comprehensive series entitled ‘Free Norway’. The first three volumes are devoted to political history in the period immediately following 1814. In this, the fourth volume, entitled ‘The Old Society’, Steen examines the social and economic history of the period 1814–1840. Both the title and the arrangement of the book indicate that Steen's intention is to provide a survey of the foundations of Norwegian society before continuing his work in further volumes, not only about ‘Free Norway’, but also about ‘New Norway’.     

Camilla Josephson,Growth and Business Cycles: Swedish Manufacturing Industry 1953–2001

Abstract

Danish historians, like those of other countries, have increasingly devoted their attention in the 20th century to the study of the economic and social aspects of historical evolution, in the belief that these aspects are of fundamental importance to the understanding of political and cultural history—indeed to the deeper understanding of the whole course of history. At present, however, the only complete account of the history of economic life in Denmark is one which appeared in a German series dealing with a number of different European countries. The series included Französische Wirtschaftsgeschichte by Henri Sée, Holländische Wirtschaftsgeschichte by E. Baasch, Norwegische Wirtschaftsgeschichte by O. A. Johnsen, and Allgemeine Wirtschaitsgeschiclite by E. Kulischer.     

THE SUPPLY OF ECONOMIC HISTORY IN AUSTRALASIA: THE AUSTRALIAN ECONOMIC HISTORY REVIEW AT 50

In 2010, the Australian Economic History Review published its 50th volume. To mark the occasion, we present a quantitative analysis of the output of economic and business history that has appeared in its pages since 1956, and review the development of the discipline through its journal editors. Content was until recently overwhelmingly focused on Australia and New Zealand economic and business history, despite the efforts of past editors to attract more scholarship on the wider Asia‐Pacific region. Articles on Asia and the rest of the world have become more common since the late 1990s.     

Clio en de computer Clio and the computer

Summary In this farewell address, delivered on the occasion of his retirement from the chair of economic history in the University of Amsterdam, the author deals with the movement among economic historians in the United States, called New Economic History. This movement is characterised by the endeavours to introduce new methods in economic historiography by making use of economic theory and statistics. Although the author agrees that there is room for a critical attitude as to the way in which economic history has so far mainly been studied, he is of opinion that the importance of the said movement should not be exaggerated. He draws attention to the fact that there is only room for applying theoretical models and econometrics as far as modern periods of economic growth are concerned. He also points out that the economic historian should not confine his investigations to measuring economic growth. Economic historians have also to deal with a number ofimponderabilia: social, cultural, religious, legal, psychological and other developments. In the third place the New Economic History is by no means as new as his adherents seem to think. The economists of the so-called Historical School have already extended more than a century ago their studies to historical developments. The study of the trade cycle, which can roughly been said to have been started in the twenties of the present century, is a remarkable example of a combination between economic history and economic theory. The change in the methods employed by economic historians has been already on the way for a considerable time. There is therefore no reason to call the application of the methods recommended by the adherents of the so-called New Economic History as a new phenomenon. The author agrees, however, with the view that there should be a closer collaboration between economic historians, economists and statisticians.tekst (bier en daar gewijzigd of aangevuld) van bet afscheidcollege, door mij op 29 September 1967 gegeven in de aula der Universiteit van Amsterdam.     

Introduction

Abstract

The Scandinavian Economic History Review was started 50 years ago in 1952 albeit the first issue did not appear until the summer of 1953. Professor Ernst Söder-lund of the University of Stockholm was the initiator and first editor of the journal. According to Söderlund's words in the first issue: “The Scandinavian Economic History Review has a dual purpose to fulfill: the publication of the research of Scandinavian historians and that of other historians whose subjects lie within the field of Scandinavian economic and social history. Despite the difficulties inherent in the presentation of material concerned with local and national institutions for which there are no foreign counterparts and for which-the terminology of a foreign language is understandably deficient, we regard the international nature of social and economic history as a sufficient reason for attempting the publication of this journal in an international language.”¹     

Time for a Nordic business history initiative?

The current state of Nordic business history is by certain estimates better than ever. Nordic business historians publish extensively in leading international journals and have a strong presence at international business history conferences. Still, in this discussion article we raise a yellow flag of warning for the future of Nordic business history. We argue that the subject field is challenged along three important dimensions: (i) lack of relevant teaching, (ii) continued reliance on commissioned history and (iii) limited recruitment. The article discusses these challenges and seeks to place them in a historical perspective. For each challenge, we develop a set of concrete proposals to address the problems identified. A common theme in our proposed solutions is to intensify Nordic collaboration, particularly through the establishment of common, externally funded Nordic research projects. To create meeting grounds for the development of such projects, The Scandinavian Society for Economic and Social History – the formal collaborative body for Nordic economic historians and the owner of Scandinavian Economic History Review – should be reinvigorated.     

Judiskt liv i Stockholm och Norden: ekonomi,identitet och assimilering 1850–1930

Abstract

The Viking Age has a remarkable place in Scandinavian economic history. The source material for this study is copious and takes the form of lots of silver coins minted during the Viking Age in many different places, chiefly in the Caliphate, the Byzantine Empire, Central Europe and England and exported to Scandinavia, particularly to Gotland, where they were hoarded and sometimes buried. Those which have been recovered, some two hundred thousand, are now preserved in various museums, chiefly in the unique collection in Kungl. myntkabinettet, Statens museum för mynt-, medalj- och penninghistoria, (The Royal Coin Cabinet, National Museum of Monetary History), Stockholm.     

Book reviews

Books reviewed: John Hatcher and Mark Bailey, Modelling the middle ages: the history and theory of England’s economic development Christine M. Newman, Late medieval Northallerton: a small market town and its hinterland, c. 1470–1540 Adam Fox, Oral and literate culture in England, 1500–1700 Frederick Valletta, Witchcraft, magic and superstition in England, 1640–70 David W. Howell, The rural poor in eighteenth‐century Wales Peter Borsay, The image of Georgian Bath, 1700–2000 Torsten Berg and Peter Berg, eds., R. R. Angerstein’s illustrated travel diary, 1753–1755: industry in England and Wales from a Swedish perspective Anne Orde, Religion, business and society in north‐east England: the Pease family of Darlington in the nineteenth century Arthur J. McIvor, A history of work in Britain, 1880–1950 Roger Davidson, Dangerous liaisons: a social history of venereal disease in twentieth‐century Scotland Neil Forbes, Doing business with the Nazis: Britain’s economic and financial relations with Germany, 1931–1939 Ronald Hyam and Wm. Roger Louis, (eds.), The Conservative government and the end of empire, 1957–1964, 2 parts. Part I: High policy, political and constitutional change. Part II: Economics, international relations, and the Commonwealth C. Edmund Clingan, Finance from Kaiser to Führer: budget politics in Germany, 1912–1934 Girolamo Imbruglia, (ed.), Naples in the eighteenth century: the birth and death of a nation state Alice Teichova, Herbert Matis, and Jaroslav Pátek, (eds.), Economic change and the national question in twentieth‐century Europe Ton Notermans, Money, markets, and the state: social democratic economic policies since 1918 David Abulafia, (ed.), The new Cambridge medieval history, V: c. 1198‐c. 1300 Elise S. Brezis and Peter Temin, (eds.), Elites, minorities and economic growth Kenneth Morgan, Slavery and servitude in North America, 1607–1800 Kenneth Morgan, Slavery, Atlantic trade and the British economy, 1660–1800 John J. McCusker and Kenneth Morgan, The early modern Atlantic economy Allan Kulikoff, From British peasants to colonial American farmers David Blanke, Sowing the American dream: how consumer culture took root in the rural Midwest Bruce Curtis, The politics of population: state formation, statistics and the census of Canada, 1840–1875 Jeremy Baskes, Indians, merchants, and markets: a reinterpretation of the repartimiento and Spanish‐Indian economic relations in colonial Oaxaca, 1750–1821 Birgit Sonesson, Puerto Rico’s commerce, 1765–1865: from regional to worldwide market relations Claude Marcovits, The global world of Indian merchants, 1750–1947: traders of Sind from Bukhara to Panama Nasir Tyabji, Industrialisation and innovation: the Indian experience Tirthankar Roy, The economic history of India, 1857–1947 Simon Ville, The rural entrepreneurs: a history of the stock and station agent industry in Australia and New Zealand David B. Abernethy, The dynamics of global dominance: European overseas empire, 1415–1980 Neil De Marchi and Craufurd D. W. Goodwin, (eds.), Economic engagements with art, annual supplement to vol. 31, History of Political Economy Pat Hudson, History by numbers: an introduction to quantitative approaches     

Women's opportunities in Swedish society

Abstract

Research in economic history has been accompanied by rapidly developing research in social history. Demographic history, the family and social change, together with popular movements, have been taken up as objects of study. The three Swedish studies discussed here arise from projects in these fields. The studies of Sten Carlsson and Kerstin Moberg form part of projects in the Department of History at the University of Uppsala on ‘the family in demographic and social change in Sweden after 1800’ and on ‘functions of the class society: popular movements’. Gunhild Kyle's study is part of a project in the Department of History at the University of Gothenburg on ‘women in industrial society’.     

Using ESPN 30 for 30 to teach economics

Education in economics has trended away from “chalk and talk” toward alternative pedagogical approaches in recent years. This article documents one such approach used to illustrate economic concepts, the use of film clips from ESPN 30 for 30. This series can be used to augment traditional principles' classes or as real world examples of concepts discussed in upper division economic courses. The ESPN 30 for 30 film series merges three different areas of interests: film, sports, and history. Through these diverse spectrums, ESPN 30 for 30 films provides instructors with another resource to use in classrooms and creates an environment that facilitates active learning activities.     

Visualising defence and war in economic history journals (1989–2018)

ABSTRACT

Economics usually takes for granted a peaceful world with peaceful market transactions, where war and conflict are anomalies to the current state of business life. However, as History shows violence is a pervasive phenomenon. How is the current state of the art of research on war and defence in economic history journals? This paper provides an overview of research published on this topic by a selection of economic history journals since the fall of Berlin wall. By means of bibliometric and cluster analysis, and using visualising analytical tools, we show the production, main topics, authors, sources, etc. on this research area, and compare with the treatment received in economic journals. The main findings are that publications in economic history journals have increased in the last decades; cover a list of themes broader than that in economic journals; give an increasing importance to quantitative techniques; cite sources from the same area as well as from the top economic journals; and show a relative lack of appeal to neighbouring disciplines. Although economics and economic history influence each other, the direction of the scientific knowledge is going mostly from economics towards economic history rather than the opposite.     

Increased international integration is a prerequisite for more and better research in economic history

Abstract

In the article “Is Swedish Research in Economic History Internationally Integrated?” ¹ Daniel Waldenström, Is Swedish Research in Economic History Internationally Integrated?, Scandinavian Economic History Review, vol. LIII, 2005:2, 50–77 , I present new facts on the past international publications and conference participation activity of Swedish economic historians. In contrast to claims made in a recent large public investigation, my data show that Swedish economic historians have not published extensively in international journals, or books, in recent years. This can in part be explained by the custom to write predominantly monographs, to write mostly in Swedish, and to use hardly any quantitative methods or theory-based economic analysis. Naturally, I am well aware that there may also be some other factors at work, and that empirical investigations of this kind are always open to objections. Problems regarding sample selection, variable definitions and so forth cannot be avoided, and to focus mainly on journal article publications in a field where books and anthologies play an important role raises some concern. ² See, e.g., the discussion in my article on these issues relating to the works by Diana Hicks and others. However, my article does not advocate any methodological dogmatism and acknowledges that economic history research can be conducted and presented in many different ways, using several different methodologies. The important thing is to recognise that there is great potential in combining such an open-minded methodological attitude with an active interest and participation in the research that appears in the many international peer-reviewed journals. This would not be to import some foreign (American) methods or views of the field so much as trying to revive the true Swedish economic history in the spirit of Eli F. Heckscher. In my view, this is the most consistent strategy to ensure both more and better future Swedish research in economic history.     

Reflections on the Business History Tradition: Where has it Come from and Where is it Going to?

The question of what constitutes the discipline of business history has been the focus of ongoing debate for several decades. The output of business history researchers is diverse ranging from company histories to the application of theoretical frameworks used to interpret the many facets of business development. This article, in introducing this special edition of the Australian Economic History Review, provides an overview of the development of the business history discipline and the contribution it has made to understanding the operation of business enterprises and the markets in which they operate.     

Democracy, History, and Economic Performance: A Case-Study Approach

Crossnational statistical studies show a positive relationship between the length of time a country has been democratic and its economic performance. Old democracies grow faster, ceteris paribus, and also demonstrate advantages in some economic policies thought to be conducive to growth. However, the causal connections between regime history and economic policy and performance remain opaque. Arguments are highly speculative, for the causal pathways are usually difficult to measure and are not readily testable in a large-N cross-country format. In order to illuminate possible interconnections between regime history and economic performance we identify three countries in the developing world whose recent history may be regarded as illustrative: Brazil, India, and Mauritius. Our analysis of these cases focuses on the achievement of policy consensus and policy reform, both of which are commonly regarded as critical to economic performance. Intensive study of our chosen cases suggests multiple mechanisms by which democratic experience might translate into greater success on these policy dimensions.     

Reviews

John Langdon . Horses, oxen and technological innovation: the use of draught animals in English farming from 1066 to 1500. Peter Spufford . Handbook of medieval exchange. Wilfred R. Prest . The rise of the barristers: a social history of the English bar, 1590-1640. J. V. Beckett . The aristocracy in England, 1660-1914. Neil Mc Kendrick and R. B. Outhwaite (Eds.). Business life and public policy: essays in honour of D. C. Coleman. Pat Hudson . The genesis of industrial capital: a study of the West Riding wool textile industry, c. 1750-1850. Barbara Smith (Ed.). Truth, liberty, religion; essays celebrating two hundred years of Manchester College. Martin Doughty (Ed.). Building the industrial city. R. P. T. Davenport -Hines (Ed.). Markets and bagmen: studies in the history of marketing and British industrial performance, 1830-1939. Negley Harte . The University of London, 1836-1986: an illustrated history. C. J. Wrigley (Ed.). A history of British industrial relations: volume II Harold L. Smith (Ed.). War and social change: British society in the Second World War. D. C. Coleman . History and the economic past: an account of the rise and decline of economic history in Britain. B. Elbaum and W. Lazonick (Eds.). The decline of the British economy. T. W. Moody and W. E. Vaughan (Eds.). A new history of Ireland: IV eighteenth-century Ireland, 1691-1800. Martha C. Howell . Women, production and patriarchy in late medieval cities. Pierre Goubert . The French peasantry in the seventeenth century. K. Honeyman and J. Goodman . Technology and enterprise: Isaac Holden and the mechanization of woolcombing in France, 1848-1914. Manfred Pohl . Entstehung und Entwicklung des Universalbankensystems: Konzentration und Krise ah wichtige Faktoren. Andreas Kunz . Civil servants and the politics of inflation in Germany, 1914-1924. Beiträge zu Inflation und Wideraufbau in Deutschland und Europa William C. Mc Neil . American money and the Weimar Republic: economics and politics on the eve of the great depression. Volker R. Berghahn . The Americanization of West German industry, 1945-1973. A. F. Freris . The Greek economy in the twentieth century. Thomas M. Doerflinger . A vigorous spirit of enterprise: merchants and economic development in revolutionary Philadelphia. Stephanie Jones . Two centuries of overseas trading: the origins and growth of the Inchcape Group. Francesca Bray . The rice economies: technology and development in Asian societies. Kang Chao . Man and land in Chinese history: an economic analysis. David Harvey . Consciousness and the urban experience: studies in the history and theory of capitalist urbanization. Charles Hadfield . World canals: inland navigation past and present. Priyatosh Maitra . Population, technology and development. Lloyd Bonfield , Richard M. Smith and Keith Wrightson (Eds.). The world we have gained: histories of population and social structure. Essays presented to Peter Laslett on his seventieth birthday. Raymond W. Goldsmith . Comparative national balance sheets: a study of twenty countries, 1688-1978.     

The Rise and Decline of Mancur Olson's View of The Rise and Decline of Nations

The evolution of Mancur Olson's views regarding The Rise and Decline of Nations, the second of his three main books, is examined. It expands and extends to history and to the world the arguments presented in his earlier work, The Logic of Collective Action. Although Olson never abandons the idea that the accumulation of interest groups in a democratic society can lead to its economic stagnation, how this comes about and can be overcome changes somewhat by the time of his final book, Power and Prosperity, which focuses on the problems of transition economies and proper political governance. A sign of the greater complexity of his later views emerges in his analysis of the U.S. South, presented in his 1983 presidential address to the Southern Economic Association.     

Does Audit Market Concentration Harm the Quality of Audited Earnings? Evidence from Audit Markets in 42 Countries*

Audit regulators around the world have expressed concern over market dominance by Big 4 accounting firms and the potential adverse effect it may have on the quality of audited financial statements. We use cross‐country variation in the audit market structure of 42 countries to examine two separate aspects of Big 4 dominance: (1) Big 4 market concentration as a group relative to non–Big 4 auditors; and (2) concentration within the Big 4 group in which one or more of the Big 4 firms is dominant relative to the other Big 4 firms. We find that in countries where the Big 4 (as a group) conduct more listed company audits, both Big 4 and non–Big 4 clients have higher quality audited earnings compared to clients in countries with smaller Big 4 market shares. In contrast, in countries where there is a greater concentration within the Big 4 group, we find that Big 4 clients have lower quality audited earnings compared to countries with more evenly distributed market shares among the Big 4. Thus concentration within the Big 4 group appears to be detrimental to audit quality in a country and of legitimate concern to regulators and policymakers. However, Big 4 dominance per se does not appear to harm audit quality and is in fact associated with higher earnings quality, after controlling for other country characteristics that potentially affect earnings quality.     

Book Reviews

Books reviewed: England’s Jewish solution: experiment and expulsion, Jenny Kermode The Reformation in English towns, 1500-1640, Felicity Heal Women waging law in Elizabethan England, Cynthia Herrup Prayer book and people in Elizabethan and early Stuart England, Jacqueline Eales The French-speaking Reformed community and their church in Southampton, 1567-c. 1620, Ole Peter Grell Failed legislation, 1660-1800, David Eastwood The account book of Clement Taylor of Finsthwaite, 1712-1753, K. D. M. Snell The solidarities of strangers: the English poor laws and the people, 1700-1948, Felix Driver Science in the service of empire: Joseph Banks, the British state and the uses of science in the age of revolution, David Armitage Made in Lancashire: a history of regional industrialisation, S. D Chapman Scotland in the nineteenth century, W. Hamish Fraser The British malting industry since 1830, D. J. Oddy Population, economy and family structure in Hertfordshire in 1851: vol. 1, the Berkhamsted region, Marguerite W. Dupree Deutsche Direktinvestitionen in Gro bbritannien, 1871-1918, Richard Tilly Strikes and solidarity: coalfield conflict in Britain, 1889-1966, Rodney Hills History in our hands: a critical anthology of writings on literature, culture and politics from the 1930,s, John Newsinger A Breton landscape, Brian Roberts Luxury trades and consumerism in Ancien Régime Paris: studies in the history of the skilled workforce, Laurence Fontaine Seductive journey: American tourists in France from Jefferson to the Jazz Age, Alastair J. Durie Civic charity in a golden age: orphan care in early modern Amsterdam, Alexander Cowan The Dutch in the Atlantic economy, 1580-1880: trade, slavery and emancipation, Johannes Postma Bergbaureviere als Verbrauchszentren im vorindustriellen Europa: Fallstudien zu Beschaffung und Verbrauch von Lebensmitteln sowie Roh- und Hilfsstoffen, Thomas Sokoll Central Europe in the twentieth century: an economic history perspective, Max-Stephan Schulze The Balkan economies c.1800-1914: evolution without development, Marvin Jackson Gold and spices: the rise of commerce in the middle ages, Penelope Galloway The legacy of scholasticism in economic thought: antecedents of choice and power, Diana Wood The role of precious metals in European development: from Roman times to the eve of the industrial revolution, C. E. Challis Essays in the economic history of the Atlantic world, R. C. Nash Strong wine: the life and legend of Agoston Haraszthy, John Wills Defining the national interest: conflict and change in American foreign policy, Fiona Venn The fall of the Packard Motor Company, Mark s. Foster The Americanisation of European business: the Marshall Plan and the transfer of US management models, Carlo Morelli The evolution of retirement: an American economic history, 1880- 1990, Neil A. Wynn The Keynesian arithmetic in war-time Canada: development of the national accounts, 1939-1945, Hugh Rockoff The rise of capitalism on the pampas: the estancias of Buenos Aires, 1785-1870, Colin M. Lewis World of possibilities: flexibility and mass production in western industrialization, Kristine Bruland Decolonization and African society: the labour question in French and British Africa, Gareth Austin Reorient: global economy in the Asian age, N F R Crafts Representing convicts: new perspectives on convict forced labour migration, Bill Jones The World Bank: its first half century, Paul Seabright International banking in an age of transition: globalisation, automation, banks and their archives, Judith Wale Political parties, growth and equality: conservative and social democratic economic strategies in the world economy, Alan Booth Max Weber and the idea of economic sociology, Keith Tribe The works of Nikolai D. Kondratiev. Vol. 1: Economic statics, dynamics and conjunctures, Roger Middleton