ABSTRACT
The conventional wisdom’s understanding of long- run equilibrium paths of growth and development as well as of equilibrium product market development has been challenged by the pioneering theoretical research of Paul David (1985) and Brian Arthur (1989, 1990) on path dependency. 1 They argue that in a world of increasing returns to scale, there may be a multiplicity of possible equilibrium solutions to identical economic problems and for the dominant solution to be suboptimal. The prevalent economic outcome in terms of product type, industry, or labor market institutions, for example, can itself be a product of some seemingly inconsequential and random event that, through the process of increasing returns, ultimately gives this outcome a first mover advantage over other possible outcomes even if the latter happen to be more economically efficient.
