期刊名称：Discussion Paper / Département des Sciences Économiques de l'Université Catholique de Louvain
印刷版ISSN：1379-244X
出版年度：2001
卷号：1
出版社：Université catholique de Louvain
摘要：We argue the inequality and growth are linked through differential fertility and the accumulation of human capital. We build an overlapping-generations model in which dynasties differ in their initial endowment with human capital. Growth, the income distribution, and fertility are endogenous. Due to a quantity-quality tradeoff, families with less human capital decide to have more children and invest less in education. When initial inequality is high, large fertility differentials lower the growth rate of average human capital, since poor families who invest little in education make up a large fraction of the population in the next generation. A calibrated model shows that this fertility-differential effect is quantitatively important. We also provide empirical evidence to confirm the links between inequality, differential fertility and growth suggested by the model.
