Research ArticleOpen AccessGoogle Scholar indexed
The Dynamics of Wealth Inequality under Endogenous Fertility: A Remark on the Barro-Becker Model with Heterogenous Endowments
THEMA and University of Cergy-Pontoise, Cergy, France
IRES and CORE, Catholic University of Louvain, Louvain-La-Neuve, Belgium;GREQAM, Aix-Marseille University, Marseille, France
CNRS and GREQAM, Paris, France
- 1 THEMA and University of Cergy-Pontoise, Cergy, France
- 2 IRES and CORE, Catholic University of Louvain, Louvain-La-Neuve, Belgium;GREQAM, Aix-Marseille University, Marseille, France
- 3 CNRS and GREQAM, Paris, France
Theoretical Economics Letters·Volume 01 (2011)·Pages 3–7·Published 31 May 2011·DOI10.4236/tel.2011.11002
Copy link · social · email
Abstract
Implicit in the seminal contribution of Barro-Becker [1], the lack of persistence of inequality in the pre- sence of endogenous fertility is one of the most striking features of the models à la Barro-Becker. In this pedagogical note, we show how to uncover and interpret the latter property using standard optimization in contrast to the dynamic programming under homogeneity usually invoked in this literature.
KeywordsEndogenous FertilityHeterogeneous HouseholdsOptimal Growth
- F. Alvarez, “Social Mobility: The Barro-Becker Children Meet the Laitner-Loury Dynasties,” Review of Economic Dynamics, Vol. 2, No. 1, 1999, pp. 65-103. doi:10.1006/redy.1998.0052
- R. J. Barro and G. S. Becker, “Fertility Choice in a Model of Economic Growth,” Econometrica, Vol. 57, No. 2, 1989, pp. 481-501. doi:10.2307/1912563
- G. S. Becker and R. J. Barro, “A Reformulation of the Economic Theory of Fertility,” Quarterly Journal of Eco- nomics, Vol. 103, No. 1, 1988, pp. 1-25. doi:10.2307/1882640
- G. S. Becker and R. J. Barro “A Reformulation of the Economic Theory of Fertility,” The Quarterly Journal of Economics, Vol. 103, No. 1, 1988, pp. 1-25. doi:10.2307/1882640
- S. Bosi and T. Seegmuller, “Mortality Differential and Growth: What Do We Learn from the Barro-Becker Mo- del?” Mathematical Popula-tion Studies, Forthcoming, 2010.
- F. Caselli and J. Ventura, “A Representative Consumer Theory of Distri-bution,” American Economic Review, Vol. 90, No. 4, 2000, pp. 909-926. doi:10.1257/aer.90.4.909
- S. Chatterjee, “Transitional Dynamics and the Distribution of Wealth in a Neoclassical Growth Model,” Journal of Public Economics, Vol. 54, No. 1, 1994, pp. 97-119. doi:10.1016/0047-2727(94)90072-8
- C. Gar-cia-Pe?alosa and S. J. Turnovsky, “The Dynamics of Wealth Inequality in a Simple Ramsey Model: A Note on the Role of Production Flexibility,” Macroeconomic Dy-namics, Vol. 13, No. 2, 2009, pp. 250-262. doi:10.1017/S1365100508070508