{"title":"Joel Mokyr","description":"\u003cp\u003eJoel Mokyr explores the forces underlying economic and technological development, offering readers insightful analyses that bridge history, economics, and social change. His works delve into the cultural and intellectual underpinnings that drive prosperity and innovation across societies.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eWith a focus on the evolution of ideas and institutions, Mokyr's books engage those interested in understanding how human progress is shaped by knowledge and belief systems. His writing challenges conventional perspectives, making complex themes accessible to a thoughtful readership.\u003c\/p\u003e","products":[{"product_id":"two-paths-to-prosperity-by-guido-tabellini-9780691265940","title":"Two Paths to Prosperity","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eHow the social organisation of Europe and China shaped their divergent economic and political trajectories over the past millennium.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIn the eleventh century, when Europe was still backward and poor, China was a rich and sophisticated civilisation. Yet Europe became the birthplace of democracy and the Industrial Revolution, driving the Great Enrichment, while China stagnated until the end of the twentieth century and was always ruled by autocracies. \u003cem\u003eTwo Paths to Prosperity\u003c\/em\u003e traces the emergence of two very different social organisations in premodern China and Europe—the clan and the corporation—showing how they were key factors in the economic and political divergence of these two great civilisations.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIn this landmark book, three leading economists offer a bold new account of why Europe and China evolved along such different trajectories. In the early Middle Ages, public goods like risk sharing, religious worship, education, and conflict resolution were provided by nonstate organizations in both societies. China increasingly relied on kin-based cooperation within clans, while weaker kinship ties in Europe gave rise to corporations such as guilds, universities, and self-governing towns. Despite performing similar functions, clans and corporations were built on very different principles—with lasting consequences until today.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eProviding a novel answer to a fundamental question in economic and political history, \u003cem\u003eTwo Paths to Prosperity\u003c\/em\u003e shows how extended kinship in Chinese society facilitated the consolidation of autocracy and hindered innovation and economic development, and how corporations in Europe influenced emerging state institutions and set the stage for the Industrial Revolution.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Hachette Aotearoa New Zealand","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47559089553644,"sku":"9780691265940","price":79.99,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/9780691265940-two-paths-to-prosperity.jpg?v=1776929394"},{"product_id":"a-culture-of-growth-by-joel-mokyr-9780691180960","title":"A Culture of Growth","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWhy did Enlightenment culture spark the Industrial Revolution? During the late eighteenth century, innovations in Europe triggered the Industrial Revolution and the sustained economic progress that spread across the globe. While much has been made of the details of the Industrial Revolution, what remains a mystery is why it took place at all. Why did this revolution begin in the West and not elsewhere, and why did it continue, leading to today's unprecedented prosperity?\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIn this groundbreaking book, celebrated economic historian Joel Mokyr argues that a \u003cem\u003eculture of growth\u003c\/em\u003e specific to early modern Europe and the European Enlightenment laid the foundations for the scientific advances and pioneering inventions that would instigate explosive technological and economic development. Bringing together economics, the history of science and technology, and models of cultural evolution, Mokyr demonstrates that culture—the beliefs, values, and preferences in society that are capable of changing behaviour—was a deciding factor in societal transformations.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eMokyr looks at the period 1500–1700 to show that a politically fragmented Europe fostered a competitive \"market for ideas\" and a willingness to investigate the secrets of nature. At the same time, a transnational community of brilliant thinkers known as the \"Republic of Letters\" freely circulated and distributed ideas and writings. This political fragmentation and the supportive intellectual environment explain how the Industrial Revolution happened in Europe but not China, despite similar levels of technology and intellectual activity. In Europe, heterodox and creative thinkers could find sanctuary in other countries and spread their thinking across borders. In contrast, China's version of the Enlightenment remained controlled by the ruling elite.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eCombining ideas from economics and cultural evolution, \u003cem\u003eA Culture of Growth\u003c\/em\u003e provides startling reasons for why the foundations of our modern economy were laid in the mere two centuries between Columbus and Newton.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Hachette Aotearoa New Zealand","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47595412422892,"sku":"9780691180960","price":74.99,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/9780691180960-a-culture-of-growth.jpg?v=1777897628"}],"url":"https:\/\/bookhero.co.nz\/collections\/joel-mokyr.oembed","provider":"Book Hero","version":"1.0","type":"link"}