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Economic Growth And Evolution: Parental Preference For Quality And Quantity Of Offspring

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  • Jason Collins

    (UWA Business School, The University of Western Australia)

  • Boris Baer

    (Plant Energy Biology ARC Centre of Excellence, The University of Western Australia)

  • Ernst Juerg Weber

    (UWA Business School, The University of Western Australia)

Abstract

This paper presents a quantitative analysis of the model developed in Galor and Moav, Natural Selection and the Origin of Economic Growth (2002), in which agents vary genetically in their preference for quality and quantity of children. We simulate a parametric form of the model, enabling examination of the transition from Malthusian stagnation to modern rates of economic growth. The simulations allow an assessment of the strength of the biological foundations of the model and demonstrate the susceptibility of the modern high-growth state to invasion by cheaters. Extending the model from two to three genotypes suggests the possibility of a return to Malthusian conditions rather than a permanent state of modern growth.

Suggested Citation

  • Jason Collins & Boris Baer & Ernst Juerg Weber, 2011. "Economic Growth And Evolution: Parental Preference For Quality And Quantity Of Offspring," Economics Discussion / Working Papers 11-05, The University of Western Australia, Department of Economics.
    • Handle: RePEc:uwa:wpaper:11-05
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Galor, Oded & Klemp, Marc, 2014. "The Biocultural Origins of Human Capital Formation," IZA Discussion Papers 8433, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    2. Marc Klemp & Jacob Weisdorf, 2019. "Fecundity, Fertility and The Formation of Human Capital," The Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 129(618), pages 925-960.
    3. Quamrul H. Ashraf & Oded Galor & Marc P. B. Klemp, 2020. "The Ancient Origins of the Wealth of Nations," CESifo Working Paper Series 8624, CESifo.
    4. Quamrul H. Ashraf & Oded Galor, 2018. "The Macrogenoeconomics of Comparative Development," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 56(3), pages 1119-1155, September.
    5. Oded Galor & Marc Klemp, 2013. "Be Fruitful and Multiply? Moderate Fecundity and Long-Run Reproductive Success," Working Papers 2013-10, Brown University, Department of Economics.
    6. Boris Gershman, 2016. "Long-Run Development and the New Cultural Economics," Working Papers 2016-06, American University, Department of Economics.
    7. Jason Collins & Boris Baer & Ernst Juerg Weber, 2013. "Population, Technological Progress and the Evolution of Innovative Potential," Economics Discussion / Working Papers 13-21, The University of Western Australia, Department of Economics.
    8. Jason Collins & Boris Baer & Ernst Juerg Weber, 2016. "Evolutionary Biology in Economics: A Review," The Economic Record, The Economic Society of Australia, vol. 92(297), pages 291-312, June.

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