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The Human Capital Stock: A Generalized Approach: Comment*

* This paper is a replication of an original study

Author

Listed:
  • Francesco Caselli
  • Antonio Ciccone

Abstract

Jones (2014) examines development accounting with imperfect substitutability between different types of skills in the production of output. He finds that human capital variation can account for the totality of the variation in income across countries. We show that this finding is entirely due to an assumption that the relative wage of skilled workers is solely determined by attributes of workers (once the supply of skilled workers is accounted for). If skill premia are predominantly determined by technology, institutions, and other features of the economic environment, human capital differences explain none of the variation in income per worker.

Suggested Citation

  • Francesco Caselli & Antonio Ciccone, 2019. "The Human Capital Stock: A Generalized Approach: Comment," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 109(3), pages 1155-1174, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:aea:aecrev:v:109:y:2019:i:3:p:1155-74
    Note: DOI: 10.1257/aer.20171787
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Yashiv, Eran, 2020. "Moving from a Poor Economy to a Rich One: The Contradictory Roles of Technology and Job Tasks," IZA Discussion Papers 13131, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    2. Trenczek, Jan & Wacker, Konstantin M., 2023. "Human Capital Misallocation and Output per Worker Differences: Beyond Cobb-Douglas," GLO Discussion Paper Series 1331, Global Labor Organization (GLO).
    3. Eran Yashiv, 2020. "Moving from a Poor Economy to a Rich One: The Contradictory Roles of Technology and Job Tasks," Discussion Papers 2010, Centre for Macroeconomics (CFM).
    4. Jerzmanowski, Michał & Tamura, Robert, 2023. "Aggregate elasticity of substitution between skills: estimates from a macroeconomic approach," Macroeconomic Dynamics, Cambridge University Press, vol. 27(6), pages 1597-1627, September.
    5. Jan Trenczek & Konstantin M. Wacker, 2023. "Accounting for cross-country output differences: A sectoral CES perspective," Working Papers 2023.09, International Network for Economic Research - INFER.
    6. Bilqees Ghani & Muhammad Zada & Khalid Rasheed Memon & Rezwan Ullah & Afraseyab Khattak & Heesup Han & Antonio Ariza-Montes & Luis Araya-Castillo, 2022. "Challenges and Strategies for Employee Retention in the Hospitality Industry: A Review," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(5), pages 1-26, March.
    7. Ma, Xiao & Nakab, Alejandro & Zhang, Yiran, 2023. "Skill Acquisition and the Gains from Trade: A Cross-country Quantitative Analysis," MPRA Paper 117808, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    8. Alexander Monge-Naranjo & Juan M. Sanchez & Raul Santaeulalia-Llopis & Faisal Sohail, 2019. "Should Capital Flow from Rich to Poor Countries?," Review, Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, vol. 101(4), pages 277-295.
    9. Katharine G. Abraham & Justine Mallatt, 2022. "Measuring Human Capital," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 36(3), pages 103-130, Summer.
    10. Campbell, Susanna G. & Üngör, Murat, 2020. "Revisiting human capital and aggregate income differences," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 91(C), pages 43-64.
    11. Rainer Kotschy & Uwe Sunde & Tommaso MonacelliManaging Editor, 2018. "Can education compensate the effect of population ageing on macroeconomic performance?," Economic Policy, CEPR, CESifo, Sciences Po;CES;MSH, vol. 33(96), pages 587-634.
    12. Pena, Werner & Siegel, Christian, 2023. "Routine-biased technical change, structure of employment, and cross-country income differences," CEPR Discussion Papers 18366, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    13. David J. Deming & Mikko I. Silliman, 2024. "Skills and Human Capital in the Labor Market," NBER Working Papers 32908, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    14. Behar, Alberto, 2025. "The elasticity of substitution between skilled and unskilled labor in developing countries: A directed technical change perspective," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 174(C).
    15. Jean Mercenier & Ebru Voyvoda, 2021. "On barriers to technology adoption, appropriate technology and European integration," Review of World Economics (Weltwirtschaftliches Archiv), Springer;Institut für Weltwirtschaft (Kiel Institute for the World Economy), vol. 157(3), pages 669-702, August.
    16. Mark Bils & Bariş Kaymak & Kai-Jie Wu, 2024. "Labor Substitutability among Schooling Groups," American Economic Journal: Macroeconomics, American Economic Association, vol. 16(4), pages 1-34, October.
    17. Bharti, Nitin Kumar & Li, Yang, 2024. "The making of China and India in the 21st Century: Long-run human capital a accumulation from 1900 to 2020," ZEW Discussion Papers 24-078, ZEW - Leibniz Centre for European Economic Research.
    18. Amparo Castello-Climent & Rafael Domenech, 2024. "Convergence in human capital and income," Economics Bulletin, AccessEcon, vol. 44(2), pages 652-661.
    19. Carl-Johan Dalgaard & Jakob B. Madsen & Holger Strulik, 2021. "Physiological constraints and the transition to growth: implications for comparative development," Journal of Economic Growth, Springer, vol. 26(3), pages 241-289, September.
    20. Amparo Castelló-Climent & Rafael Doménech, 2024. "Global | Convergencia de capital humano e ingresos [Global | Convergence in human capital and income]," Working Papers 24/07, BBVA Bank, Economic Research Department.
    21. Sangmin Aum & Dongya Koh & Raül Santaeulàlia-Llopis, 2018. "Growth Facts with Intellectual Property Products: An Exploration of 31 OECD New National Accounts," Working Papers 1029, Barcelona School of Economics.

    Replication

    This item is a replication of:
  • Benjamin F. Jones, 2014. "The Human Capital Stock: A Generalized Approach," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 104(11), pages 3752-3777, November.

    • More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • E24 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Consumption, Saving, Production, Employment, and Investment - - - Employment; Unemployment; Wages; Intergenerational Income Distribution; Aggregate Human Capital; Aggregate Labor Productivity
    • I26 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Returns to Education
    • J24 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity
    • J31 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs - - - Wage Level and Structure; Wage Differentials

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    This item is featured on the following reading lists, Wikipedia, or ReplicationWiki pages:
    1. The Human Capital Stock: A Generalized Approach Comment (AER 2019) in ReplicationWiki

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