Key Features of 1920s prosperity

Question 1

Unemployment figures at the time

Answer 1

Never rose above 3.7%

Question 2

Wages of industrial workers

Answer 2

Paid more - rose by 14% between 1914 and 1929

Average, wages were 2 or 3 times higher than in Europe

Question 3

What happened to the production of industrial goods?

Answer 3

Rose by 50% between 1922 and 1929

Question 4

What was the consumer boom?

Answer 4

The buying of consumer goods by the ordinary population hugely increased.
Between 1912 and 1929 - number of electrical goods sold per year went from 1.4 million to 160 million

Question 5

2 developments that enabled mass producion

Answer 5

Wider scale introduction of electricity

The assembly line factory method

Question 6

What products began to be mass produced for the first time?

Answer 6

Clothing sizes were standardised

Automobiles - Henry Ford
By 1925, Ford produced 1 car every 10 seconds.

Question 7

Number of automobiles on the road in 1920 and 1929

Answer 7

1920 - 7.5 million

1929 - 27 million, approx 1 for every 5 people

Question 8

How did more efficient working methods affect working hours?

Answer 8

Workers workedon averge 44 hours a week by 1929 rather than 47 in 1920

Question 9

By 1924, what % of the motor vehicle market did Ford control?

Answer 9

50%

Question 10

What other industries did the boom in motor vehicle production and ownership also impact?

Answer 10

Road building, petrol, rubber, plate glass.
Services such as garages, motels, petrol stations, and car salesrooms.
The transportation of goods became easier.

Question 11

How did management science help improve industry?

Answer 11

By applying technological and scientific ideas to running a business successfully - time and energy was monitored and enabled to operate more efficiently.

Question 12

What impact did technological advances have on leisure?

Answer 12

More motor vehicles meant more travel to National parks and short holidays.
Tourism developed as an industry.
The radio was a leisure item
People had more free time.
More theatres and cinemas were built.

Question 13

How did advertising change?

Answer 13

Some companies employed psychologists to help them reach a target market.
Campaigns began to use slogans, brand names, celeb endorsements, and consumer aspirations.
Consumer began to believe that they couldn’t survive without a product.
The amount spent on advertising increased 5x from 1914.

Question 14

How did credit work?

Answer 14

Consumers would pay a deposit, and then the rest in regular installments (hire purchase)

Question 15

Wha was this so unstable?

Answer 15

Many consumers and businesses ended up with debts that they couldn’t afford to pay back

Question 16

What % of cars were bought on credit?

Answer 16

75%