American Economic Review Vol. 103 No. 3 2013
From Stagnation to Sustained Growth: The Role of Female Empowerment
Abstract
This paper explores the role of gender equality over a long-run economic and demographic development path of industrialized countries. Our unified cliometric growth model of female empowerment suggests that changes in gender relations are a key ingredient of economic development. The economy evolves from a Malthusian regime--with slow technological progress, low income and low fertility--to a Modern Growth regime, with high living standards and low fertility. The rise in technological progress, together with improvements in gender equality, generates a positive feedback loop that engages the process of human capital accumulation (economic transition) and triggers the demographic transition.
- DOI
- 10.1257/aer.103.3.545
- Volume
- 103
- Issue
- 3
- Pages
- 545-549
- Language
- en
- Sources
- bibtex:phds-export.bib crossref openalex