The Place of Path Dependence in an Evolutionary Perspective on the Economic Landscape

Martin, Ron; Sunley, Peter

doi:10.4337/9781849806497.00010

Cited by 105 publications

(113 citation statements)

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“…These results are consistent with the arguments that early innovation events drive the subsequent direction of change and create powerful exclusion effects. Progress along one path-dependent trajectory hinders progress along other trajectories (19,25,26). The same payoff-driven learning strategies were observed within partially connected groups, but initial isolation enhanced exploration and often caused subgroups to progress along alternative pathdependent trajectories.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 60%

Partial connectivity increases cultural accumulation within groups

Derex

Boyd

2016

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

210

266

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Complex technologies used in most human societies are beyond the inventive capacities of individuals. Instead, they result from a cumulative process in which innovations are gradually added to existing cultural traits across many generations. Recent work suggests that a population's ability to develop complex technologies is positively affected by its size and connectedness. Here, we present a simple computer-based experiment that compares the accumulation of innovations by fully and partially connected groups of the same size in a complex fitness landscape. We find that the propensity to learn from successful individuals drastically reduces cultural diversity within fully connected groups. In comparison, partially connected groups produce more diverse solutions, and this diversity allows them to develop complex solutions that are never produced in fully connected groups. These results suggest that explanations of ancestral patterns of cultural complexity may need to consider levels of population fragmentation and interaction patterns between partially isolated groups. cultural evolution | innovation | population size | social network | technological trajectory P eople everywhere rely on technology for their survival (1). In even the simplest foraging societies, essential tools are beyond the inventive capacities of individuals; they result from a cumulative process by which innovations are gradually added to existing cultural traits across many generations (2). Recent work suggests that a population's ability to develop complex technologies is positively affected by its size and connectedness (3-5). Large interaction networks allow individuals to learn from many others, and theory predicts that increased opportunities to learn socially reduces the rate of cultural loss and increases the rate at which people improve existing cultural traits. This prediction is supported by evidence from both field and laboratory studies (5-10). However, some authors have been reluctant to embrace this idea, pointing out discrepancies between measures of population size and observed cultural complexity (11)(12)(13)(14). It seems likely that factors other than social network size affect the evolution of cultural complexity, and these factors may obscure the effect of the population size under some conditions.One possibility is that social network structure matters as well. Economists have recently investigated how levels of connectedness in networks affect a group's ability to solve problems of varying complexity (15,16). In agreement with previous work in cultural evolution, they found that high levels of connectivity help groups to solve simple tasks. However, they also suggest that wellconnected networks perform poorly at solving complex tasks (15,16). The complexity of a problem can be represented by mapping all possible solutions onto a measure of performance, which results in what has been called a fitness landscape (17). Simple problems are associated with smooth landscapes, each with a unique optimum that will be reached b...

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 60%

Partial connectivity increases cultural accumulation within groups

Derex

Boyd

2016

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

210

266

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“…More recent studies have analysed how business populations evolve as well as the importance of selection mechanisms (Essletzbichler & Rigby 2010). The other main approach in evolutionary economic geography is 'path dependence theory', which focuses on the meso level and how systems such as industries, clusters, and innovation systems evolve (Martin & Sunley 2010).…”

Section: Guest Editorialmentioning

confidence: 99%

In the footprints of evolutionary economic geography

Fløysand

Jakobsen²

2016

Norsk Geografisk Tidsskrift - Norwegian Journal of Geography

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“…(David, 2007) Indeed, whilst on the one hand David describes path dependence as a key characteristic of historical or evolutionary processes, on the other he wants to retain the idea of equilibrium (albeit multiple equilibria): in fact he has recently called his approach 'path dependent equilibrium economics' . So we are back with the problem of reconciling evolution and equilibrium (Martin & Sunley, 2010;Martin, 2010aMartin, , 2010b. The solution in David's work is to interpret economic evolution as 'punctuated equilibrium': an historically contingent event triggers off the path dependent movement towards (selection of) one of a number of possible equilibria, in which, once reached, the system remains 'locked', until disrupted by an external shock.…”

Section: Evolutionary Economic Geography and Negmentioning

confidence: 99%

Rethinking (New) Economic Geography Models: Taking Geography and History More Seriously

Garretsen¹,

Martin

2010

Spatial Economic Analysis

Self Cite

100

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Two aspects of New Economic Geography models are often singled out for criticism, especially by geographers: the treatment of geography, typically as a pre-given, fixed and highly idealized abstract geometric space; and the treatment of history, typically as 'logical' time (the movement to equilibrium in a model's solution space) rather than real history. In this paper we examine the basis for these criticisms, and explore how far and in what ways NEG models might be made more credible with respect to their representation of geography and history, and particularly whether and to what extent the work of geographers themselves provides some insights in this regard. We argue that the conceptualization of space and time is in fact a challenge for both NEG theorists and economic geographers, and that, notwithstanding their ontological and epistemological differences, both groups would benefit from an interchange of ideas on this front.Réinventer les (nouveaux) modèles de géographie économique: comment prendre la géographie et l'histoire plus au sérieux RÉSUMÉ Deux aspects particuliers des mode`les de la nouvelle ge´ographie e´conomique sont souvent l'objet de critiques, notamment de la part des ge´ographes, a`savoir: le traitement de la ge´ographie, ge´ne´ralement comme un espace ge´ome´trique abstrait pre´de´termine´, fixe et extrêmement ide´alise´, et le traitement de l'histoire, ge´ne´ralement comme un cre´neau 'logique' (un mouvement vers l'e´quilibre dans un espace a`solution du modèle) et non pas comme l'histoire re´elle. Dans la pre´sente communication, nous nous penchons sur le fondement de ces critiques, et nous examinons dans quelle mesure les modèles de la NEG pourraient devenir plus plausibles sur le plan de la façon dont ils repre´sentent la ge´ographie et l'histoire, notamment si le travail des ge´ographes apporte de nouveaux e´le´ments sur cette question, et dans quelle mesure. Nous soutenons que la conceptualisation de l'espace et du temps constitue, en fait, un de´fi tant pour les the´oriciens de la NEG que pour les ge´ographes e´conomiques, et qu'au-delà de leurs diffe´rences ontologiques et e´piste´mologiques, un e´change d'ide´es sur ce sujet serait be´ne´fique pour ces deux groupes. Spatial Economic Analysis, Vol. 5, No. 2, June 2010Reconsideració n de modelos de (Nueva) Geografía Econó mica: Tomando más en serio la geografía y la historia EXTRACTO A menudo, existen dos aspectos particulares de los modelos de Nueva Geografía Econo´mica que reciben críticas, especialmente por parte de los geo´grafos: el tratamiento de la geografía, típicamente como un espacio geome´trico abstracto altamente idealizado, fijo y predeterminado; y, el tratamiento de la historia, típicamente como un tiempo 'lo´gico' (el movimiento hacia el equilibrio en el espacio de solucio´n de un modelo), en lugar de como historia real. En este estudio examinamos la base de estas críticas y exploramos hasta que´punto y de que´formas, los modelos NEG podrían hacerse ma´s creíbles con respecto a su representacio´n de la geogr...

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The Place of Path Dependence in an Evolutionary Perspective on the Economic Landscape

Cited by 105 publications

References 99 publications

Partial connectivity increases cultural accumulation within groups

Partial connectivity increases cultural accumulation within groups

In the footprints of evolutionary economic geography

Rethinking (New) Economic Geography Models: Taking Geography and History More Seriously

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