Technical progress determinants in Celso Furtado’s ideas: from Desenvolvimento e Subdesenvolvimento (1961) to Criatividade e dependência (1978)

Abstract

This paper aims to discuss the differences in the treatment of technical pro-gress determinants, therefore, productivity and economic growth in Celso Furtado’s work. Two of his major books are compared in detail: Desenvolvimento e subdesen­volvimento [Development and underdevelopment] from 1961, and Criatividade e de­pendência na civilização industrial [Creativity and dependency in the industrial civili­zation] from 1978. The general argument is that the differences in Furtardo’s interpretation related to technical progress determinants in these two books are an important aspect of the author’s ideas’ evolution and can illuminate the impor-tant changes in his theoretical perspectives that occurred during the 1970s.

Keywords

• celso furtado
• keynesian theory
• creativity
• technical progress
• innovation