Research topic: Causes of Great Depression and Recovery Strategies applied
This research will study one of the most catastrophic economic events in the 20th century namely
the Great Depression. Focus in this case would be on the causes and how the economy recovered
over time. In analyzing the causes of the Great Depression, the research would look into how
different factors interacted to result to this life-changing event. That is, the research would
attempt to decipher or establish if there is a single factor that led to the Great Depression or the
event was as a result and accumulation of many mishaps in handling the economy. Given the
fragile nature of the economy, this research would also look into how the economy of the United
States managed to recover and the various entities that influenced the recovery process. The
main focus would be on the government and the role it plays in the sustainability of the
economy. As a result, the research would analyze the specific actions that the federal government
undertook and how all these actions accumulatively affected the economy overtime therefore
leading to its recovery. Generally, this research would analyze how the government worked
together with other sectors to revive the economy during this difficult season. The aim of this
research topic would be to provide more information about this historical event to help in
understanding its relevance to history thereby preventing its repeat.
Research Thesis: Economist have indicated that the starting point of the Great depression can the
traced back as far as September 4th 1929 and the combined causes of the event were the stock
market crash, reduced purchasing bank failures, American economic policy in Europe all which
are identified as caused of the Great depression.
The importance of this part that it helps to focus the research topic by identifying an area of
focus in the broad topic. This thesis is geared to guide the research in highlighting the key
elements of the topic therefore achieving the objectives of the research process. By tracing the
series of events that resulted to the Great Depression, this research would then offer an analysis
on the possible course of action that would have either avoided the matter or at least mitigated
against the negative effects followed by this long period of economic collapse. Generally, this
research takes the case0effect route to understanding the significant historical event namely the
Great Depression.
Research Question: Despite numerous studied and theories on what cause the Great Depression,
economists and experts have never agreed on a single cause that can be traced back to as the
source of the Great depression. Is its possible that the Great Depression was caused by a single
factor or was it an accumulative process resulting from the interaction of different factors within
the economy and environment? Additionally, were the measures implemented by the
government suitable and timely or is there more that could have been done to mitigate the impact
of this event?
This is a two-part question that seeks to investigate both the cause and recovery aspect of the
Great depression. This research question is tailored to cater for the objectives of the research
process which to identify the interactions between the economic elements and people which can
be traced to the collapse of the economy. Additionally, by covering the recovery process by
analyzing the government action, this question would guide in formulating strategies or coming
up with recommendations that would help mitigate current economic issues for better recovery in
case of an economic collapse.
Explanation of Historical Significance
The study on the Great Depression continues to be relevant because most economist disagree on
the specific cause. Over time, many theories have developed but there is so sole, globally agreed-
upon explanation as to why the Great Depression occurs or how and why the economy
recovered. One of the common reasons associated or highlighted as the cause of the Great
Depression is the stock market crash that took place in 1929. And while this event was a
significant factor as the crash destroyed considerable wealth that affected the spending capacity
of consumers. However, as significant as the stock market is to the economy, it is highly unlikely
that the stock market crash alone could have resulted to the Great depression. The Great
Depression remains to be one of the worst economic catastrophes in the universe and the 20th
century. Impact was felt far and wide across the United States as production of goods and
services decreased to one-third and the unemployment rate reached an all-time high of 25 percent
of the labor market. Additional impacts included the stock market losing 80 percent of its value
and the failure of about 7,000 banks. Even with decrease of prices of basic commodities such as
food, few people could still afford to buy it and many families went hungry. The sheer
magnitude resulting from the economic collapse during the Great depression makes the event a
important teachable event about essential elements of the economy. Understanding the causes or
trail of events leading to the Great depression can help learn about how the economy can be
sustained therefore, preventing the occurrence of a similar events. That is, an individual can learn
about the important elements in the economy and how they interact for a sustainable economy.
Most importantly, learning about the Great depression can help to understand the role of the
government in the economy and how this can help in the recovery from economic crisis. The
current pandemic has significantly affected the functioning of the economy threatening the
stability of the economy. Therefore, by understanding the Great Depression, the relevant
stakeholders would have the knowledge to mitigate on the identified key elements of the
economy to prevent the same fate from repeating itself. Afterall, history serves a key reason of
providing valuable information to prevent similar fates by implementing necessary strategies to
change the flow of events.
Bibliography
Primary Sources
Federal Home Loan Bank Board. "Annual Report Of The Federal Home Loan Bank Board",
1933-1952.
Friedman, Milton, and Anna J. Schwartz, Monetary Statistics of the United States: Estimates,
Sources, Methods. New York: Columbia University Press, 1970.
Health, Monroe and McIntoch, Clarence F., Great American Documents, Volume XI, Pacific
Coast Publisher, California, 1965.
Secondary Sources
Books
Barber, William J., Herbert Hoover, the Economist, and American Economic Policy, 1921-1933,
New York: Cambridge University Press, 1985.
Robins, Lionel, the Great Depression, New York, Macmillan, 1943.
Rothbard, Murray N. America’s Great Depression, The Ludwigvon Mises Institute, USA. Fifth
edition, 2000.
Articles
Caldwell, Jean, and Timothy G. O Driscoll. "What caused the great depression?" Social
Education 71, no. 2 (2007): 70.
Peicuti, Cristina. "The great depression and the great recession: A comparative analysis of their
analogies." (2014): 55-78.
Verick, Sher, and Iyanatul Islam. "The great recession of 2008-2009: causes, consequences and
policy responses." (2010).
Sources for this research paper would be form both primary and secondary resources. The
primary sources used are published sources and provide first-hand information relevant to the
research topic. Secondary sources on the other hand draws from primary sources through
analysis. The combination of these sources would allow for better analysis and more detailed
research process to comprehensively answer the research question.
