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Natural Selection and the Evolution of Life Expectancy

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Author Info
Oded Galor
Omer Moav

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Abstract

This research advances an evolutionary growth theory that captures the pattern of life expectancy in the process of development, shedding new light on the sources of the remarkable rise in life expectancy since the Agricultural Revolution. The theory suggests that social, economic and environmental changes that were associated with the transition from hunter-gatherer tribes to sedentary agricultural communities and ultimately to urban societies affected the nature of the environmental hazards confronted by the human population, triggering an evolutionary process that had a significant impact on the time path of human longevity.

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File URL: http://www.ifw-kiel.de/VRCent/DEGIT/paper/degit_11/C011_062.pdf
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Publisher Info
Paper provided by DEGIT, Dynamics, Economic Growth, and International Trade in its series DEGIT Conference Papers with number c011_062.

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Length: 37 pages
Date of creation: Jun 2006
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Handle: RePEc:deg:conpap:c011_062

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Related research
Keywords: Life Expectancy Growth Technological Progress Evolution Natural Selection Malthusian Stagnation

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Find related papers by JEL classification:
I12 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Health Production
J13 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Fertility; Family Planning; Child Care; Children; Youth
N3 - Economic History - - Labor and Consumers, Demography, Education, Income, and Wealth
O10 - Economic Development, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - General

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References listed on IDEAS
Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.:
  1. Nils-Petter Lagerloef, 2000. "From Malthus to Modern Growth: The Three Regimes Revisited," Econometric Society World Congress 2000 Contributed Papers 1248, Econometric Society. [Downloadable!]
  2. Galor, Oded & Weil, David, 1999. "From Malthusian Stagnation to Modern Growth," CEPR Discussion Papers 2082, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  3. Oded Galor & Omer Moav, 2002. "Natural Selection And The Origin Of Economic Growth," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, MIT Press, vol. 117(4), pages 1133-1191, November. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  4. David N. Weil, 2005. "Accounting for the Effect of Health on Economic Growth," Working Papers 2005-07, Brown University, Department of Economics. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  5. Becker, Gary S, 1976. "Altruism, Egoism, and Genetic Fitness: Economics and Sociobiology," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 14(3), pages 817-26, September. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  6. Rodrigo R. Soares, 2004. "Mortality Reductions, Educational Attainment, and Fertility Choice," Econometric Society 2004 North American Winter Meetings 9, Econometric Society. [Downloadable!]
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  7. Robert W. Fogel, 1994. "Economic Growth, Population Theory, and Physiology: The Bearing of Long-Term Processes on the Making of Economic Policy," NBER Working Papers 4638, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  8. Raouf Boucekkine & David de la Croix & Omar Licandro, 2003. "Early Mortality Declines at the Dawn of Modern Growth," Scandinavian Journal of Economics, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 105(3), pages 401-418, 09. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  9. Cervellati, Matteo & Sunde, Uwe, 2002. "Human Capital Formation, Life Expectancy and the Process of Economic Development," IZA Discussion Papers 585, Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA). [Downloadable!]
  10. Iyigun, Murat F., 2002. "Geography, Demography, and Early Development," Royal Economic Society Annual Conference 2002 105, Royal Economic Society. [Downloadable!]
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  11. Hans-Peter Kohler & Joseph L. Rodgers & Kaare Christensen, 1999. "Is Fertility Behavior in Our Genes? Findings from a Danish Twin Study," Population and Development Review, The Population Council, Inc., vol. 25(2), pages 253-288. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  12. Holger Strulik, 2005. "Geography, Health, and Demo-Economic Development," Discussion Papers 05-15, University of Copenhagen. Department of Economics. [Downloadable!]
  13. Kalemli-Ozcan, Sebnem & Ryder, Harl E. & Weil, David N., 2000. "Mortality decline, human capital investment, and economic growth," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 62(1), pages 1-23, June. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  14. Ehrlich, Isaac & Lui, Francis T, 1991. "Intergenerational Trade, Longevity, and Economic Growth," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 99(5), pages 1029-59, October. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  15. Arthur J. Robson, 2002. "Evolution and Human Nature," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 16(2), pages 89-106, Spring. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  16. Boyer, George R, 1989. "Malthus Was Right after All: Poor Relief and Birth Rates in Southeastern England," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 97(1), pages 93-114, February. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  17. Michel BenaÔm & J–rgen W. Weibull, 2003. "Deterministic Approximation of Stochastic Evolution in Games," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 71(3), pages 873-903, 05. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  18. Samuel Bowles, 1998. "Endogenous Preferences: The Cultural Consequences of Markets and Other Economic Institutions," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 36(1), pages 75-111, March. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  19. Hansson, Ingemar & Stuart, Charles, 1990. "Malthusian Selection of Preferences," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 80(3), pages 529-44, June. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  20. Alberto Bisin & Thierry Verdier, 2000. ""Beyond The Melting Pot": Cultural Transmission, Marriage, And The Evolution Of Ethnic And Religious Traits," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, MIT Press, vol. 115(3), pages 955-988, August. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  21. Matteo Cervellati & Uwe Sunde, 2005. "Human Capital Formation, Life Expectancy, and the Process of Development," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 95(5), pages 1653-1672, December. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  22. Jacob L. Weisdorf, 2004. "From stagnation to growth: Revisiting three historical regimes," Journal of Population Economics, Springer, vol. 17(3), pages 455-472, 08. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  23. Joel Mokyr, 1998. "Induced technical innovation and medical history: an evolutionary approach," Journal of Evolutionary Economics, Springer, vol. 8(2), pages 119-137. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
Full references

Cited by:
(explanations, Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.)

  1. José A. M. Borghans & Lex Borghans & Bas ter Weel, 2005. "Is There a Link between Economic Outcomes and Genetic Evolution? Cross-Country Evidence from the Major Histocompatibility Complex," IZA Discussion Papers 1838, Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA). [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  2. Dalgaard, Carl-Johan & Strulik, Holger, 2007. "A Bioeconomic Foundation of the Malthusian Equilibrium: Body Size and Population Size in the Long-Run," Diskussionspapiere der Wirtschaftswissenschaftlichen Fakultät der Universität Hannover dp-373, Universität Hannover, Wirtschaftswissenschaftliche Fakultät. [Downloadable!]
  3. Raouf, BOUCEKKINE, 2007. "A theory of dynamics and inequalities under epidemics," Université catholique de Louvain, Département des Sciences Economiques Working Paper 2007022, Université catholique de Louvain, Département des Sciences Economiques. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  4. Strulik, Holger, 2007. "Geography, Health, and the Pace of Demo-Economic Development," Diskussionspapiere der Wirtschaftswissenschaftlichen Fakultät der Universität Hannover dp-361, Universität Hannover, Wirtschaftswissenschaftliche Fakultät. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  5. Strulik, Holger, 2008. "Degrees of Development - How Geographic Latitude Sets the Pace of Industrialization and Demographic Change," Diskussionspapiere der Wirtschaftswissenschaftlichen Fakultät der Universität Hannover dp-384, Universität Hannover, Wirtschaftswissenschaftliche Fakultät. [Downloadable!]
  6. Francesco Ricci & Marios Zachariadis, 2006. "Determinants of Public Health Outcomes: A Macroeconomic Perspective," DEGIT Conference Papers c011_045, DEGIT, Dynamics, Economic Growth, and International Trade. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  7. Francesco Ricci & Marios Zachariadis, 2008. "Longevity and Education: A Macroeconomic Perspective," University of Cyprus Working Papers in Economics 1-2008, University of Cyprus Department of Economics. [Downloadable!]
  8. Bruno L. S. Falcao & Rodrigo R. Soares, 2007. "The Demographic Transition and the Sexual Division of Labor," NBER Working Papers 12838, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
  9. Hazan, Moshe & Zoabi, Hosny, 2005. "Does Longevity Cause Growth?," CEPR Discussion Papers 4931, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
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