Inventors among the Impoverished Sophisticate
(2024) In Journal of Economic History 84(4). p.1175-1207- Abstract
This paper examines the identity and origins of Swedish inventors prior to WWI, drawing on the universe of patent records linked to census data. We document that the rise of innovation during Sweden's industrialization can largely be attributed to a small industrial elite belonging to the upper-Tail of the economic, educational, and social status distribution. Analyzing children's opportunities to become inventors, we show that inventors were disproportionately drawn from privileged family backgrounds. However, innovation was a path to upward mobility for the middle-and working-class children that managed to overcome the barriers to entry.
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
https://lup.lub.lu.se/record/d25874de-07ac-449b-9b24-aa42cebbea1c
- author
- Berger, Thor LU and Prawitz, Erik
- organization
- publishing date
- 2024-12
- type
- Contribution to journal
- publication status
- published
- subject
- in
- Journal of Economic History
- volume
- 84
- issue
- 4
- pages
- 33 pages
- publisher
- Cambridge University Press
- external identifiers
-
- scopus:85209222793
- ISSN
- 0022-0507
- DOI
- 10.1017/S0022050724000433
- language
- English
- LU publication?
- yes
- id
- d25874de-07ac-449b-9b24-aa42cebbea1c
- date added to LUP
- 2025-02-13 14:42:37
- date last changed
- 2025-04-04 14:42:09
@article{d25874de-07ac-449b-9b24-aa42cebbea1c,
abstract = {{<p>This paper examines the identity and origins of Swedish inventors prior to WWI, drawing on the universe of patent records linked to census data. We document that the rise of innovation during Sweden's industrialization can largely be attributed to a small industrial elite belonging to the upper-Tail of the economic, educational, and social status distribution. Analyzing children's opportunities to become inventors, we show that inventors were disproportionately drawn from privileged family backgrounds. However, innovation was a path to upward mobility for the middle-and working-class children that managed to overcome the barriers to entry.</p>}},
author = {{Berger, Thor and Prawitz, Erik}},
issn = {{0022-0507}},
language = {{eng}},
number = {{4}},
pages = {{1175--1207}},
publisher = {{Cambridge University Press}},
series = {{Journal of Economic History}},
title = {{Inventors among the Impoverished Sophisticate}},
url = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/S0022050724000433}},
doi = {{10.1017/S0022050724000433}},
volume = {{84}},
year = {{2024}},
}