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A CONTRIBUTION TO THE THEORY OF FERTILITY AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  14 June 2019

Luca Gori  and
Mauro Sodini
Luca Gori*
Affiliation:
University of Pisa
Mauro Sodini
Affiliation:
University of Pisa
*
Address correspondence to: Luca Gori, Department of Law, University of Pisa, Via Collegio Ricci, 10, I–56126 Pisa (PI), Italy. Phone: +39 050 22 12 847. e-mails: [email protected] or [email protected].
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Abstract

The aim of this research is to build on a theory for explaining economic development in a (neoclassical) growth model with endogenous fertility. The economy is inhabited by overlapping generations of rational and identical individuals and identical competitive firms producing with a constant-returns-to-scale technology and no externalities. From a theoretical perspective, the distinguishing feature of this work is that endogenous fertility per se explains the existence of low- and high-development regimes. It provides different reasons (history driven or expectations driven) why some countries enter development trajectories with high GDP and low fertility and others experience underperformances with low GDP and high fertility. The model is also capable to reproduce fertility fluctuations and explain the baby busts and baby booms observed in the last century in some developed countries.

Keywords

Economic developmentEndogenous fertilityLocal and global indeterminacyOLG model
Type
Articles
Information
Macroeconomic Dynamics , Volume 25 , Issue 3 , April 2021 , pp. 753 - 775
Copyright
© Cambridge University Press 2019

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