Jevons paradox: what it is, why it occurs, and examples

There is a general belief that the more efficient something is, the less used it is since it is not required spend as much time or resources on it each time it is used compared to previous versions of the same product or service.

Although common sense would convince us that this is so, it seems that the reality is quite another. When something is improved, it ends up being even more used.

This maxim is what defends the Jevons paradox, a phenomenon that although it was conceptualized more than a century and a half ago can be observed in countless situations. Let's take a closer look at what it is.

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What is the Jevons paradox?

In economics, the Jevons paradox occurs when a situation occurs in which technological progress or the application of a Government policy increases the efficiency of a given resource, thus reducing the cost associated with its consumption, but the consumption ratio of the same resource increases considerably, due to the fact that the demand for it also grows.

This collides with the belief that if something becomes more effective, its use is going to be reduced because as it works better it requires less use.

We owe this idea to the English economist William Stanley Jevons, who in the mid-nineteenth century observed that the technological improvements that had managed to increase the efficiency in the use of coal had brought as a rebound effect an increase in the consumption of this resource, being increasingly used in more factories. This economist argued that, contrary to what common sense and intuition may suggest, economic progress does not necessarily imply a reduction in the consumption of its resources in a way global.

Despite being a nineteenth-century idea, Jevons' paradox has been reexamined in modern times by economists interested in how improvements in a certain technology or in the use of a resource brings with it a notorious rebound effect in the form of consumption increased.

In fact, this paradox can be seen today in multiple aspects of modern life, manifesting in seemingly unrelated things like number of roads, low light bulbs consumption or low-calorie foods, examples that we will explain in more detail a few more paragraphs ahead.

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History of this concept

Jevons paradox was first described by the English economist for whom it is named, William Staney Jevons, specifically in his 1865 book "The Coal Question" Coal").

Jevons observed that in the England of his time the consumption of coal increased after the introduction of James Watt's steam engine., a machine that was much more efficient than the one designed by Thomas Newcomen, requiring less coal for each use.

Thanks to Watt's innovation, coal became a better-used resource, meaning that with less quantity, more energy was obtained with which to feed the entire industry that was emerging in Great Brittany. Given this fact, as coal was more productive, more and more factories were introducing steam engines, causing the global consumption of this resource would skyrocket, despite the fact that less coal was needed each time the coal machine was used. steam.

Jevons argued that improvements in fuel efficiency tend to increase fuel use, not reduce it.. Proof of this is that in the Great Britain of its time, after the introduction of Watt's steam engine, the consumption of Coal became so high that there was concern that reserves that were already shrinking at a rapid rate would be depleted. vertiginous.

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Examples of this paradox

The main cause behind this paradox is that an increase in the efficiency of the resource used, be it a fuel or anything else, it brings with it a decrease in the cost of using that resource. By reducing the cost or price of that good or service, an increase in the quantity demanded per action of the law of supply and demand itself is caused.

The increase in demand produces a rebound effect and it is considered that if this effect implies an increase of more than of 100% of the consumption of a certain product or service, it would be considered that the Jevons paradox is being fulfilled.

To understand all this in a more palpable way we are going to see real examples in which this paradox is manifested.

1. Energy saving light bulb

To better understand this paradox, we can relate it to something everyday, something that is present very safe in the life of each and every one of us: light bulbs, specifically those of low consumption. We all know them, they are bulbs that not only consume less energy than the more traditional ones, but also last longer than ordinary bulbs.

Our logic tells us that, as they are light bulbs that consume less energy, we will end up consuming less global energy, but the truth is that the electricity bill is increased. The reason: for the excuse that since they consume "little", we leave them on unnecessarily And, of course, as they are used without control, the consumption of electricity will not be reduced. It would be practically the same to have ordinary light bulbs but make a rational use of them as having low consumption light bulbs and wasting them unnecessarily.

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2. More efficient cars

It has been observed that drivers tend to travel more with their cars when they are more fuel efficient, thus producing a rebound effect in the form of an increase in fuel demand. As it costs them less to travel, drivers use their car more and consequently have to refuel more frequently.

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3. Light Food

It may be surprising, but the Jevons paradox can also be observed in the world of food, especially in the Light world. This type of food is characterized by being sold as low in calories, and it really has few calories compared to a non-Light food, something that is you can find out so easily by reading the table of values ​​of a light food versus a normal one, such as diet biscuits and biscuits normal.

But despite being hypocaloric, Light food does not help to maintain the figure, in fact they can make the person fat. The reason is that whoever buys these types of products ends up eating them in large quantities with the excuse that as they are less caloric, it is difficult to gain weight. This causes him to eat so many amounts that it far exceeds the amount of calories he would ingest while eating the same food in its normal version.

4. More roads

It used to be believed that building new roads and highways could effectively combat traffic jams. Ironically, traffic experts have seen just the opposite happen, that the more roads there are, the more used they are and, even, there are more traffic jams.

As people know that there are more roads and they have more routes to get to different points, are more motivated to take their vehicle and end up doing it en masse, which is why they get stuck tracks.