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Altruism, Fertility and Risk

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  • Cordoba, Juan Carlos
  • Liu, Xiying

Abstract

This paper studies fertility choices and fertility policies when children's earning abilities are random and parents are altruistic. We characterize equilibrium allocations arising in endowment economies with either complete or incomplete markets. Both models can replicate a number of empirical regularities, such as inequality, social mobility and fertility decreasing with ability, but the incomplete markets model provides a number of more plausible predictions. We find that fertility policies are generally welfare detrimental in our models even when fertility is inefficiently high.

Suggested Citation

  • Cordoba, Juan Carlos & Liu, Xiying, 2014. "Altruism, Fertility and Risk," Staff General Research Papers Archive 37481, Iowa State University, Department of Economics.
    • Handle: RePEc:isu:genres:37481
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Mikhail Golosov & Larry E. Jones & Michèle Tertilt, 2007. "Efficiency with Endogenous Population Growth," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 75(4), pages 1039-1071, July.
    2. Gaviria, Alejandro, 2002. "Intergenerational mobility, sibling inequality and borrowing constraints," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 21(4), pages 331-340, August.
    3. Matthias Doepke, 2004. "Accounting for Fertility Decline During the Transition to Growth," Journal of Economic Growth, Springer, vol. 9(3), pages 347-383, September.
    4. S. Rao Aiyagari, 1994. "Uninsured Idiosyncratic Risk and Aggregate Saving," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 109(3), pages 659-684.
    5. Schoonbroodt, Alice & Tertilt, Michèle, 2014. "Property rights and efficiency in OLG models with endogenous fertility," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 150(C), pages 551-582.
    6. Cordoba, Juan Carlos & Ripoll, Marla, 2011. "A Contribution to the Economic Theory of Fertility," Staff General Research Papers Archive 33899, Iowa State University, Department of Economics.
    7. Omer Moav, 2005. "Cheap Children and the Persistence of Poverty," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 115(500), pages 88-110, January.
    8. Krusell, Per & Mukoyama, Toshihiko & Smith Jr., Anthony A., 2011. "Asset prices in a Huggett economy," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 146(3), pages 812-844, May.
    9. Liao, Pei-Ju, 2013. "The one-child policy: A macroeconomic analysis," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 101(C), pages 49-62.
    10. Fernando Alvarez, 1999. "Social Mobility: The Barro-Becker Children Meet the Laitner-Loury Dynasties," Review of Economic Dynamics, Elsevier for the Society for Economic Dynamics, vol. 2(1), pages 65-103, January.
    11. Hosseini, Roozbeh & Jones, Larry E. & Shourideh, Ali, 2013. "Optimal contracting with dynastic altruism: Family size and per capita consumption," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 148(5), pages 1806-1840.
    12. Juan Carlos Córdoba & Marla Ripoll, 2016. "Intergenerational Transfers and the Fertility–Income Relationship," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 126(593), pages 949-977, June.
    13. Huggett, Mark, 1993. "The risk-free rate in heterogeneous-agent incomplete-insurance economies," Journal of Economic Dynamics and Control, Elsevier, vol. 17(5-6), pages 953-969.
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    Cited by:

    1. Córdoba, Juan Carlos & Liu, Xiying & Ripoll, Marla, 2016. "Fertility, social mobility and long run inequality," Journal of Monetary Economics, Elsevier, vol. 77(C), pages 103-124.
    2. Cordoba, Juan Carlos & Liu, Xiying, 2018. "Efficiency with Endogenous Population and Fixed Resources," ISU General Staff Papers 201811010700001062, Iowa State University, Department of Economics.
    3. Liu, Xiying, 2015. "Optimal population and policy implications," ISU General Staff Papers 201501010800005546, Iowa State University, Department of Economics.
    4. Córdoba, Juan Carlos & Liu, Xiying & Ripoll, Marla, 2016. "Fertility, social mobility and long run inequality," Journal of Monetary Economics, Elsevier, vol. 77(C), pages 103-124.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Idiosyncratic risk; Bewley model; Fertility; uninsurable risk; complete markets; incomplete markets;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D11 - Microeconomics - - Household Behavior - - - Consumer Economics: Theory
    • D31 - Microeconomics - - Distribution - - - Personal Income and Wealth Distribution
    • D51 - Microeconomics - - General Equilibrium and Disequilibrium - - - Exchange and Production Economies
    • D61 - Microeconomics - - Welfare Economics - - - Allocative Efficiency; Cost-Benefit Analysis
    • I3 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty
    • J1 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics

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