Parallel Development? Productivity Growth Following the Diffusion of Electric Motors and ICT

This paper investigates labor productivity growth and the contribution to labor productivity growth in Swedish manufacturing during the diffusion of electric motors and ICT. The paper distinguishes between technology-producing, intensive and less intensive technology-using industries during these technological breakthroughs. The results show that labor productivity growth and the overall contribution to labor productivity growth was considerably higher in technologyproducing industries following the diffusion of ICT. Moreover, the results presented here show no evidence that industries that were early adopters of electric motors and ICT, on average, would have contributed more to productivity growth in Swedish manufacturing.