"Theory of the firm, selected readings/edited by G. C. Archibald"
- Middlesex Penguin Books 1973
- 463 : ill
'To the professional economist these Readings are unbelievably good value for money. But they can also be recommended wholeheartedly to the amateur' Higher Education Review
In this book of Readings, Professor Archibald brings together papers which représent the main work being done in the field. Key methodological as well as theoretical problems are tackled in depth.
In neo-classical general equilibrium theory, firms are
completely described by their production functions..
Appropriately, Part One discusses the estimation of production functions and long-run costs. In Part Two pricing and market structure are analysed assuming profit-maximization (Stigler's
classic article on oligopoly and the 'kinky demand-curve' is included here). Part Three provides an exposition of the measurement and effects of monopoly. Part Four is devoted to income distribution and relative shares.. Alternatives to profit maximization, such as Baumol's sales maximization hypothesis, the behaviour of a management utility function, are examined in Part Five. The growth and size of firms are covered in Part Six. Part Seven looks at linear programming and its relation to 'conventional' economic analysis.