Working Paper: CEPR ID: DP13570
Authors: Jean-Philippe Platteau; Catherine Guirkinger
Abstract: The present paper surveys significant research dealing with some neglected roles of the family and its dynamics in the presence of changes in the economic environment. Attention is thus directed to the response of family systems to changes in resource endowments, outside economic opportunities, the development of markets, and surrounding institutions. Two other original features of our investigation deserve to be emphasized. First, unlike what is generally done in economics, we extensively draw from scholarly works of social scientists, family historians in particular. Second, in order to shed light on family dynamics in present-day developing countries, we assess the state of knowledge about the transformation of family patterns in Europe during a long period stretching back to the early Middle Ages and even earlier.
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JEL Codes: No JEL codes provided
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| Changes in resource endowments (Q33) | Transformations in family structures (J12) |
| Increased land scarcity (R52) | Individualization of family farms (J43) |
| Head's decisions regarding land allocation (Q15) | Efficiency of collective farming (P32) |
| Head's decisions regarding land allocation (Q15) | Efficiency of individual plots (Q15) |
| Introduction of private plots (P31) | Mitigation of moral hazard issues (G52) |
| Mitigation of moral hazard issues (G52) | Improvement of overall productivity (O49) |
| Technical progress (O49) | Likelihood of family farm divisions (J43) |
| Economic opportunities (N91) | Dynamics of family systems (J12) |
| Historical contexts (B15) | Dynamics of family systems (J12) |
| Kinship networks (Z13) | Informal insurance against economic shocks (G52) |