Technological Progress and the Solow Growth Model Labour-augmenting technological progress at rate g affects the Solow growth model in much the same way as did population growth at rate n. Now that k is defined as the amount of capital per effective worker, increases in the number of effective workers because of technological progress tend to decrease k. In the steady state, investment sf(k) exactly offsets the reductions in k due to depreciation, population growth, and technological progress.