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  4. September 2018
  5. The Macrogenoeconomics of Comparative Development

The Macrogenoeconomics of Comparative Development

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Abstract

The importance of evolutionary forces for comparative economic performance across societies has been the focus of a vibrant literature, highlighting the roles played by the Neolithic Revolution as well as the prehistoric "out of Africa" migration of anatomically modern humans in generating worldwide variations in the composition of human traits. This essay provides an overview of the literature on the macrogenoeconomics of comparative development, underscoring the significance of evolutionary processes and human population diversity in generating differential paths of economic development across societies. Furthermore, it examines the contribution of Nicholas Wade's recent hypothesis, regarding the evolutionary origins of comparative development, to this important line of research.

Citation

Ashraf, Quamrul H., and Oded Galor. 2018. "The Macrogenoeconomics of Comparative Development." Journal of Economic Literature, 56 (3): 1119-55. DOI: 10.1257/jel.20161314

Additional Materials

JEL Classification

  • N10 Economic History: Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics; Industrial Structure; Growth; Fluctuations: General, International, or Comparative
  • N30 Economic History: Labor and Consumers, Demography, Education, Health, Welfare, Income, Wealth, Religion, and Philanthropy: General, International, or Comparative
  • O11 Macroeconomic Analyses of Economic Development
  • Z10 Cultural Economics; Economic Sociology; Economic Anthropology: General