Impact of Industrialization on the Developed and Developing Economies (Essay Sample)

IMPACT OF INDUSTRIALISATION ON THE DEVELOPED AND DEVELOPING ECONOMIES.
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Impact of Industrialization on the Developed and Developing Economies
What can better describe industrialization than the rapid transformations inaugurated in the mid-18th century which ushered the transition from the agrarian economy to the massive, urban and technological industrial manufacturing societies? Great Britain is one of the nations accredited to have industrialized the earliest followed by the United States in the 1880s – 1970 and later the Western European countries including Japan and China in the 1960s. Over the recent past, Hong Kong's economy has expanded rapidly thanks to its robust textile export industry. While early industrializers such as Great Britain and USA benefited from government intervention, nations such as Germany, Japan, and other East Asian countries which industrialized late in the decade benefited from infant industry protection and technological innovations. According to Marshall, A. (1920), these interventions were essential for industrialization to take place and that patriotism and military support prevalent in Europe during the 19th century also played a key role in spurring industrialization.
According to Marshall, the free trade policy catalyzed the opening of new markets and manufacturing firms (Marshall, A. 1920, pp.10&89). Alfred Marshall's school of thought points to the fact that he believed that trade restrictions were a stumbling block to industrial development in Great Britain. Adam Smith held the same view but stated that it is technological inventions that helped catalyze industrial development among the early industrializers. Adam Smith suggested that government intervention in the social, economic and financial markets was indispensable for a smooth transition from farms to firms (Smith, A., 1776). Despite the criticism against free trade and protection advanced by Adam Smith, protectionism thrived through the industrial revolution period (Adams, S., 2009).