Connecting formal education and practice to agricultural innovation in Denmark (1860s–1920): a note on sources and methods

Abstract

It is generally found that human capital has had positive effects on industrial development and economic growth. But the relationship between formal education, work practice, industrial development and economic growth, and changes over time, remains unclear, largely because of a lack of empirical evidence. This note argues that an investigation of the Danish dairy industry can contribute to further our understanding of the impacts and limitations of formal education and practice. It describes unique sources that can be used to construct a database, which in turn can be used to make an empirically solid investigation of whether, and how, knowledge learned at school and through practice contributed to technological changes, diffusion of technology and increased productivity in the Danish dairy industry from the 1860s to 1920, a period when this industry went through a technological and industrial transformation. The purpose of this planned investigation will be to fill a gap in Danish historiography, but also to contribute to the wider literature about the role of education and practice in innovation with empirical evidence, and by further developing concepts of knowledge and technology.