The analysis in this paper shows that unpredictable variations in economic productivity may have a positive or negative effect on the average growth rate of output. This theoretical ambiguity result is not solely determined by the value of the elasticity of intertemporal substitution (of...

How does risk or uncertainty in the productivity of research affect the growth rate of the economy? To answer this question, a model of endogenous technological change is used where sustained growth stems from intentional investments in R&D from profit-maximizing firms. The uncertainty arises...

Is there a trade-off between fluctuations and growth? The empirical evidence is mixed, with some studies (Kormendi and Meguire (1985)) finding a positive relationship, while others (Ramey and Ramey (1995)) finding the a negative one. Our objective in this paper is to understand how fundamental...