Abstract
dc:description.abstractIncreased access to communications infrastructure is theorized to influence both the productiveness of the agricultural sector and the direction of technical change. The purpose of this thesis is to empirically examine the effects of the level of communications infrastructure on agricultural production and the direction of technical change. A Cobb-Douglas production function was used to estimate an inter-country production function for fifty developing countries over a fifteen year period, 1970 to 1985. The production function estimates were then used to assess the influence of the communications variables, roads and radios, on the level of agricultural production and the direction of technical change. Increased levels of radios and roads increased the level of agricultural production in developing countries. Increased levels of radios did not significantly affect technical change. However, increased levels of roads led to an increase in the labor-saving bias associated with research expenditures.
Degree
thesis:*- Name thesis:degree_name
- Master of Science
- Level thesis:degree_level
- masters
- Discipline thesis:degree_discipline
- Agricultural Economics
- Department dc:contributor.department
- Agricultural Economics
- Grantor dc:publisher
- Virginia Tech
- Year dc:date.issued
- 1993
Author and committee
dc:creator, dc:contributor.*- Author dc:creator
-
- Deaton, Brady J.
- Chair dc:contributor.committeechair
-
- Norton, George W.
- Committee members dc:contributor.committeemember
-
- Driscoll, Paul J.
- Alwang, Jeffrey R.
Rights
dc:rights- Statement dc:rights
-
- In Copyright
- Licence dc:rights.uri
- Language dc:language.iso
- en
Identifiers
dc:identifier.*- Dc Identifier Other
- etd-12052009-020226
- OAI identifier oai:identifier
- oai:vtechworks.lib.vt.edu:10919/46149