REASSESSING THE WIRTSCHAFTSWUNDER: RECONSTRUCTION AND POSTWAR GROWTH IN WEST GERMANY IN AN INTERNATIONAL CONTEXT

This paper presents a test of the reconstruction thesis, a paradigm of postwar growth in West Germany, to explain long run growth, 1950-80, in a sample of 16 rich OECD countries, in competition with the technology gap argument. The regression results suggest that both causes of growth contribute substantially to convergence growth in this sample. The notion of reconstruction growth--its definition, theory and length of operation--is critically discussed. It is suggested that the dynamics of reconstruction growth which result from the disproportionality between human and physical capital, caused by warindued shocks and destruction, may best be understood by appeal to the mechanics of the newer growth theories. Copyright 1990 by Blackwell Publishing Ltd