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Population Growth and Human Capital: A Welfarist Approach

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  • Thomas I. Renström
  • Luca Spataro

Abstract

type="main"> In this paper, we investigate the relationship between economic and population growth in an endogenous growth model driven by human capital accumulation Because we allow for endogenous population growth, we adopt the population criterion “Relative Critical Level Utilitarianism”, which allows the critical level utility to depend on parents' well-being. In this scenario, we investigate the equilibrium relationship between economic growth and population growth and we provide the conditions for the economic take-off to occur. A simulation analysis calibrated on developing countries shows that the model has the potential to explain the dynamics of the latter variables experienced by those countries.

Suggested Citation

  • Thomas I. Renström & Luca Spataro, 2015. "Population Growth and Human Capital: A Welfarist Approach," Manchester School, University of Manchester, vol. 83, pages 110-141, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:manchs:v:83:y:2015:i::p:110-141
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    Cited by:

    1. Luca Spataro & Luciano Fanti & Pier Mario Pacini, 2017. "Savings, fertility and public policy in an OLG small open economy," Discussion Papers 2017/230, Dipartimento di Economia e Management (DEM), University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy.
    2. Thomas Ziesemer & Anne von Gässler, 2021. "Ageing, human capital and demographic dividends with endogenous growth, labour supply and foreign capital," Portuguese Economic Journal, Springer;Instituto Superior de Economia e Gestao, vol. 20(2), pages 129-160, May.
    3. Dalibor Gottwald & Libor Švadlenka & Hana Pavlisová, 2016. "Human Capital and Growth of E-postal Services: A cross-country Analysis in Developing Countries," Post-Print hal-01307145, HAL.
    4. Spataro, Luca & Fanti, Luciano & Pacini, Pier Mario, 2019. "Saving, fertility and public policy in an overlapping generations small open economy," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 81(C), pages 16-29.
    5. Thomas I. Renström & Luca Spataro, 2021. "Optimal taxation in an endogenous growth model with variable population and public expenditure," Journal of Public Economic Theory, Association for Public Economic Theory, vol. 23(4), pages 639-659, August.

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    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • D6 - Microeconomics - - Welfare Economics
    • J11 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Demographic Trends, Macroeconomic Effects, and Forecasts
    • O41 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Growth and Aggregate Productivity - - - One, Two, and Multisector Growth Models

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