Question

What, if any, are the benefits and costs of economic growth, particularly as measured by real GDP per capita?

Short answer

The cost of economic growth: Economic growth causes problems like climate change, pollution, and other environmental issues. Higher economic growth is leading to a more significant depletion of finite natural resources.

The benefit of economic growth: Economic growth increases the standard of living of society. It enables a country to improve its infrastructure, health facilities, technology, and economic prosperity.

Step-by-step solution

Step 1. Costs of economic growth.

The damage to society caused by modern economic growth is seen as a cost of economic growth. Critics of economic growth argue that the country’s rush to increase real GDP per capita each year brings heavy materialism to society. The natural resources used to get more and more goods to society are growing environmental concerns.

Economic growth has caused climate change, pollution, depletion of natural resources. The ecological system of the society is at risk because of economic growth.

Step 2. Benefits of economic growth.

The increase in the standard of living of the society comes under the benefits of economic growth.Modern economic growth has helped reduce problems like poverty, hunger, unemployment, and many more. Economic growth has increased a nation’s infrastructure, health facilities, advanced technology, and better law and order.

It is a driving force that efficiently creates a more significant number of goods and services to the society for consumption. Economic growth also enables the developing countries to uplift their citizen’s living standards at a rapid pace.