The Division of Labor Under Homogeneity: A Critique of Mises and Rothbard

Authors: Block, Walter¹; Hansen, PerHenrik²; Klein, PeterG.

Source: The American Journal of Economics and Sociology, Volume 66, Number 2, April 2007 , pp. 457-464(8)

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Abstract:

Even the most passionate defenders of free trade, such as Mises and Rothbard, claim that trade cannot occur under conditions of strict homogeneity of land, labor, and capital. We show that specialization, trade, and the division of labor can emerge even when resources are initially homogenous, due to “natural heterogeneity,” economies of scale, and learning.

Document Type: Research article

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1536-7150.2007.00520.x

Affiliations: 1: Loyola University, New Orleans 2: Department of Economics, Copenhagen Business School, Denmark

Publication date: 2007-04-01