The Austrian Theory of Economic Progress | Shawn Ritenour

What makes a society prosper? Shawn Ritenour lays out the Austrian theory of economic progress, and its quarrel with mainstream growth theory. There is no single cause of prosperity, he argues—four "vehicles" drive it: the division of labor, capital accumulation, technological advance, and entrepreneurship. Conventional models can analyze each in isolation but miss the harder task of synthesis: how they must work together. And they leave out the one factor that coordinates the rest—the entrepreneur, the driving force who directs capital, labor, and technology toward what people actually want. Recorded at the Mises Institute in Auburn, Alabama, on July 22, 2026. Mises University is the world's leading instructional program in the Austrian School of economics, and is the essential training ground for economists who are looking beyond the mainstream. 0:00 Intro: The Austrian Theory of Economic Progress 2:06 Sources and Further Reading 3:40 What Is Economic Progress? Expansion vs. Development 5:27 Productivity and the Four Vehicles of Prosperity 13:14 Capital Accumulation 21:44 Technology 29:30 Entrepreneurship 36:36 Economic Calculation and Entrepreneurial Margins 40:50 Synthesis: Why the Vehicles Must Work Together 45:23 Conclusion: Private Property and Sound Money Find free books, daily articles, podcasts, lecture series, and everything about the Austrian School of Economics at https://Mises.org​​. X ► https://x.com/mises/ Facebook ►   / mises.institute   Instagram ►   / misesinstitute   SoundCloud ►   / misesmedia   Apple Podcasts ► https://podcasts.apple.com/us/artist/... Rumble ► https://rumble.com/c/c-2212754 Odysee ► https://odysee.com/@mises/ Podcasts ► https://mises.org/podcasts