Geography, demography, and early development |
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Authors: | Murat Iyigun |
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Institution: | (1) Department of Economics, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO 80309-0256, USA;(2) Department of Economics, Sabanci University, Orhanu, 81474 Istanbul, Turkey |
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Abstract: | This paper explores the role of geography in early development. It presents a model where the odds of survival are higher
in geographically favorable regions. In such regions, higher life expectancy prompts parents to devote more of their resources
to old-age consumption and enables them to invest relatively more in the quantity and quality of their offspring. Investment
in education, together with population growth, helps geographically-favorable economies to attain high levels of a more educated
population that is necessary for sustained economic growth. The empirical evidence is generally supportive of the view that
geographic attributes influenced regional population levels in Europe and its colonial offshoots around 1500 A.D. and that
they affected population levels and educational attainment in low-income countries of the 1990s.
For useful comments and suggestions I thank the editor, two anonymous referees, Daron Acemoglu, Ann Carlos, Phil Graves, Naci
Mocan, Oded Stark, seminar participants at the University of Colorado at Boulder, the University of Colorado at Denver, and
the 2002 Royal Economic Society Annual Conference. I owe a special debt of gratitude to my advisor Herschel Grossman who passed
away in October 2004 after leaving his mark on many of us in the profession. The standard disclaimer applies.
Responsible editor: Alessandro Cigno. |
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Keywords: | J13 O11 O33 |
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