Economic growth, as a concept, refers to the overall increase in economic production that results from the accumulation of factors (physical and human) and technological improvements. This is distinct from business cycles which describe the ups and downs in production that result from short-run changes in demand.
The most common way to achieve economic growth is through an increase in the stock of capital goods such as machinery and buildings. However, it is also possible to generate economic growth through increased labor efficiency resulting from improved technology or by increasing the amount of labor that is available. In either case, the rate of growth is highly dependent on the rate at which people save and invest in generating new capital goods and/or labor-saving technology.
One of the greatest challenges associated with economic growth is its impact on human health. Interdisciplinary findings suggest that it reduces risk for some health outcomes but increases risk for others. This may be due to a combination of psychosocial and environmental influences. For example, affluent societies tend to consume more unhealthy foods which contribute to obesity and disease, work longer hours leading to stress and self-medication by drinking and smoking, and are exposed to more pollution which leads to lung conditions such as asthma.
Some growth-doubters counter some of these concerns by pointing out that as a country’s standard of living rises, its citizens will have more money and resources to spend on addressing the negative consequences of economic growth such as pollution and health issues. They also point to the fact that a country experiencing high levels of economic growth has the potential to make much greater social progress than a poor country because it can devote more of its income and wealth to charities, improving the environment and developing pollution-abating technologies, establishing larger “social safety nets” for the most vulnerable and promoting education.
