Market Frictions Technology Adoption and Economic Growth

Abstract

This paper develops an endogenous growth model with labor market matching and technology adoption. While labor market search and entry frictions lengthen technology diffusion, exogenous technology arrival may creatively destruct jobs in the short run. Such interrelationships give rise to multiple equilibria (global and local indeterminacy) under which a small autonomous technological improvement may create a large growth effect. We characterize the effects of exogenous technology arrival on equilibrium matching, adoption effort, wage and the overall dispersion of wages. Social inefficiency arises as a result of individuals' failure to account for free-rider, thick-matching, job-destruction effects in making technology adoption decision.