Generational Transitions and the Timing of Technology Adoption

Increases in input prices are often cited as the impetus to the investment in resource conserving technologies. We demonstrate that in addition to price changes, adoption of new production technologies may be triggered by discrete events, such as generational transitions, that change the relative value of existing and potential production activities. Though increases in price may encourage investment in new technologies, results indicate the actual timing of investment is more closely linked to the occurrence of discrete events