The power of a single number : a political history of GDP / Philipp Lepenies ; translated by Jeremy Gaines.

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

Widely used since the mid-twentieth century, GDP (gross domestic product) has become the world's most powerful statistical indicator of national development and progress. Practically all governments adhere to the idea that GDP growth is a primary economic target, and while criticism of this measure has grown, neither its champions nor its detractors deny its central importance in our political culture.

In The Power of a Single Number , Philipp Lepenies recounts the lively history of GDP's political acceptance--and eventual dominance. Locating the origins of GDP measurements in Renaissance England, Lepenies explores the social and political factors that originally hindered its use. It was not until the early 1900s that an ingenuous lone-wolf economist revived and honed GDP's statistical approach. These ideas were then extended by John Maynard Keynes, and a more focused study of national income was born. American economists furthered this work by emphasizing GDP's ties to social well-being, setting the stage for its ascent. GDP finally achieved its singular status during World War II, assuming the importance it retains today. Lepenies's absorbing account helps us understand the personalities and popular events that propelled GDP to supremacy and clarifies current debates over the wisdom of the number's rule.

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Publishers Weekly Review

In this brief but absorbing book, Lepenies, guest professor for social science at the Free University of Berlin, details how GDP became the "most powerful statistical figure in human history." He traces the concept of calculating a national income back to 17th-century Englishman William Petty. GDP (originally known as GNP, or gross national product) first gained international traction during WWII, when allies America, Canada, and Great Britain met to "harmonize" the calculation. Lepenies devotes special attention to his native Germany, relating how West Germany adopted the statistic in the immediate postwar period in order to receive Marshall Plan funds. In postwar America, meanwhile, GDP's acceptance by industry and the political establishment grew along with the economy. Lepenies asserts that the popularity of GDP has endured mainly because it can be determined quickly, making it more useful for governments than other, longer-term measurements. His coverage of proposed alternatives only highlights how difficult it will be to "break the power of the single number." This little book about a big number will impress readers who might never have previously considered the statistics underlying our lives. (May) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.

CHOICE Review

Gross domestic product (GDP) measures the market value of the economy's output of goods and services in a single year. When economists, public intellectuals, newspaper editorial writers, and politicians opine on the state of the economy, they present their views in the context of changes that take place in the GDP, usually expressed on a per capita basis. Lepenies (Free Univ. of Berlin, Germany) chronicles the intellectual history of GDP and makes a case for its significance. The concept and measurement of GDP originated in the 17th century with the work of William Petty (1623-87). His efforts were largely dismissed, but by the 20th century, GDP took center stage in macroeconomic analysis, and many organizations began compiling data to estimate the GDP of economies as well as the global economy. The scholar who revived GDP and argued that it is indispensable in macroeconomic analysis was Colin Clark (1905-89), a chemist with an interest in economics. The torch was taken up in the mid-20th century by Richard Stone (Clark's student) and James Mead in Great Britain and Simon Kuznets in the US. They all greatly advanced the science and art of GDP. Summing Up: Recommended. Lower-division undergraduates through faculty. --Farhad Rassekh, University of Hartford