Gregory Clark Specialist in economic history, Date of Birth: 19.09.1957 Country: USA

1. Biography of Gregory Clark
2. Early Life and Education
3. Academic Career
4. Research Interests
5. Theory and Criticism

Biography of Gregory Clark

Gregory Clark is an economist and a historian specializing in economic history. He currently teaches at the University of California, Davis (UC Davis).

Early Life and Education

Gregory Clark was born on September 19, 1957, in Bellshill, Scotland. He is a descendant of Irish immigrants. He obtained his Bachelor's degree in Economics and Philosophy from King's College, Cambridge in 1979 and earned his doctoral degree from Harvard University in 1985.

Academic Career

In addition to his tenure at UC Davis, Gregory Clark has taught at Stanford University and the University of Michigan. He currently holds the position of professor and served as the chair of the department at UC Davis until 2013.

Research Interests

Gregory Clark's research interests lie in long-term economic growth, the theory of the wealth of nations, and economic history of England and India. He is well-known for his theory in economic history, which explores the changes in behavior that made the Industrial Revolution possible. He presented his ideas in the book "A Farewell to Alms: A Brief Economic History of the World," a play on words and allusion to Ernest Hemingway's novel "A Farewell to Arms."

Theory and Criticism

In his book, Clark discusses the divergence of prosperity between rich and poor countries that occurred as a result of the Industrial Revolution in Britain, from the perspective of the evolution of individual behavior. He argues that before 1790, individuals were trapped in a Malthusian cycle where new technologies led to increased productivity and material wealth, but it quickly ended up in the hands of the upper classes. However, in Britain, disease and poverty constantly claimed the lives of the poorest members of society, gradually allowing the sons of the affluent citizens, who were less cruel, more educated, and more productive, to take their positions. Clark refers to this process as "downward social mobility" and claims that it eventually allowed Britain to achieve the productivity growth that enabled the country to escape the grip of the Malthusian trap.

Clark's works and ideas have faced criticism, with one of the most significant arguments being the economic conditions in China. China had comparable conditions to Britain, which should have led to an industrial revolution there as well, but it did not happen. Clark counters this argument by stating that his research showed that the Qing dynasty, which ended in 1912, was socially barren and did not contribute to the emergence of the process of downward social mobility. Critics also question whether changes in individual behavior are an appropriate model for understanding economic history, as opposed to changes in social institutions. Furthermore, Clark's theories are contradicted by the successful economies of modern-day China and India, which are associated with the transition to an open market rather than changes in the population's personal qualities.