Skip to Main Content
HBS Home
  • About
  • Academic Programs
  • Alumni
  • Faculty & Research
  • Baker Library
  • Giving
  • Harvard Business Review
  • Initiatives
  • News
  • Recruit
  • Map / Directions
Working Knowledge
Business Research for Business Leaders
  • Browse All Articles
  • Popular Articles
  • Cold Call Podcast
  • Managing the Future of Work Podcast
  • About Us
  • Book
  • Leadership
  • Marketing
  • Finance
  • Management
  • Entrepreneurship
  • All Topics...
  • Topics
    • COVID-19
    • Entrepreneurship
    • Finance
    • Gender
    • Globalization
    • Leadership
    • Management
    • Negotiation
    • Social Enterprise
    • Strategy
  • Sections
    • Book
    • Podcasts
    • HBS Case
    • In Practice
    • Lessons from the Classroom
    • Op-Ed
    • Research & Ideas
    • Research Event
    • Sharpening Your Skills
    • What Do You Think?
    • Working Paper Summaries
  • Browse All
    An Exploration of Technology Diffusion
    22 Apr 2008Working Paper Summaries

    An Exploration of Technology Diffusion

    by Diego A. Comin and Bart Hobijn
    How long are technology adoption lags? Can cross-country differences in technology adoption lags account for a significant fraction of cross-country GDP disparities? Diego Comin of Harvard Business School and Bart Hobijn of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York develop a new benchmark to understand the diffusion process of individual technologies and the consequences that this has for aggregate growth. This benchmark provides a rationale for the evolution of diffusion measures that include how many units of technology each adopter has adopted in addition to the traditional extensive margin. The model is estimated to obtain measures of adoption lags for 15 technologies in 166 countries. Key concepts include:
    • Adoption lags are large. On average, countries have adopted technologies 47 years after their invention.
    • There is substantial variation across technologies and countries.
    • Over the past two centuries, newer technologies have been adopted faster than old ones.
    • The remarkable development records of Japan between 1870 and 1970 and of the so-called East Asian Tigers in the second half of the 20th century all coincided with a catch-up in the range of technologies used with respect to industrialized countries.
    • Adoption lags account for at least 25 percent of cross-country per capita income differences.
    LinkedIn
    Email

    Author Abstract

    We develop a model that, at the aggregate level, is similar to the one sector neoclassical growth model, while, at the disaggregate level, has implications for the path of observable measures of technology adoption. We estimate our model using data on the diffusion of 15 technologies in 166 countries over the last two centuries. We evaluate the implications of our estimates for aggregate TFP and per capita income. Our results reveal that, on average, countries have adopted technologies 47 years after their invention. There is substantial variation across technologies and countries. Over the past two centuries, newer technologies have been adopted faster than old ones. The cross-country variation in the adoption of technologies accounts for at least a quarter of per capita income differences.

    Paper Information

    • Full Working Paper Text
    • Working Paper Publication Date: April 2008
    • HBS Working Paper Number: 08-093
    • Faculty Unit(s): Business, Government and International Economy
      Trending
        • 31 Jan 2023
        • Op-Ed

        Can Insurance Technology Solve the Uninsured Driver Problem?

        • 17 Jan 2023
        • In Practice

        8 Trends to Watch in 2023

        • 27 Jan 2023
        • Op-Ed

        Have We Lost Sight of Integrity?

        • 31 Jan 2023
        • Research & Ideas

        It’s Not All About Pay: College Grads Want Jobs That ‘Change the World’

        • 20 May 2019
        • Research & Ideas

        Activist CEOs Are Rising Up—and Their Customers Are Listening

    Find Related Articles
    • Innovation and Invention
    • Globalization

    Sign up for our weekly newsletter

    Interested in improving your business? Learn about fresh research and ideas from Harvard Business School faculty.
    This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.
    ǁ
    Campus Map
    Harvard Business School Working Knowledge
    Baker Library | Bloomberg Center
    Soldiers Field
    Boston, MA 02163
    Email: Editor-in-Chief
    →Map & Directions
    →More Contact Information
    • Make a Gift
    • Site Map
    • Jobs
    • Harvard University
    • Trademarks
    • Policies
    • Accessibility
    • Digital Accessibility
    Copyright © President & Fellows of Harvard College