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Human capital, trade, and economic growth

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Abstract

Human Capital, Trade, and Economic Growth. — Human capital, because of its special role in innovative activity and technological progress, has formed the bedrock of the new theories of endogenous growth. However, it not only serves as an engine of growth but also as a productive input along with labor and physical capital. In this study, the authors find evidence of the importance of both roles of human capital. They also find that the relationship between growth and the external effects of human capital vary according to trade regime. When literacy rates are relatively high, open economies grow about 0.65 to 1.75 percentage points more than closed economies.

Zusammenfassung

Humankapital, Handel und Wirtschaftswachstum. — Wegen seiner besonderen Rolle bei Innovationen und technologischem Fortschritt bildet das Humankapital die Grundlage der neuen Theorien über endogenes Wachstum. Es dient aber nicht nur als Antriebskraft für das Wachstum, sondern ist auch ein produktiver Input wie Arbeit und physisches Kapital. In dieser Untersuchung finden die Autoren Anhaltspunkte für die Bedeutung der beiden Rollen des Humankapitals. Sie stellen außerdem fest, daß die Beziehung zwischen Wachstum und den externen Effekten des Humankapitals mit der Art des Außenhandelsregimes variiert. Bei relativ hohem Alphabetisierungsgrad wachsen offene Volkswirtschaften um 0,65 bis 1,75 Prozentpunkte schneller als geschlossene Volkswirtschaften.

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Authors
  1. David M. Gould
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  2. Roy J. Ruffin
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Gould, D.M., Ruffin, R.J. Human capital, trade, and economic growth. Weltwirtschaftliches Archiv 131, 425–445 (1995). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02707911

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