Social savings is a growth accounting technique to evaluate the historical implications of new technology on economic growth. Developed in the late 1950s by American economic historian and scientist Robert Fogel, the methodology works to estimate the cost-savings of the new technology compared with the next best alternative. The first oral presentation was at the 1960 Purdue Cliometrics meeting, and the first published version was in the Journal of economic history in 1962.
A recent survey can be found in "economic and history: surveys in Cliometrics", edited by David Greasley and Les Oxley and published by Wiley-Blackwell in 2011. The relevant chapter is entitled "social savings" and is by Tim Leunig, London School of Economics.
Read more about Social Savings: Calculation, Railroads and American Economic Growth
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