Working Paper: NBER ID: w17037
Authors: Quamrul Ashraf; Oded Galor
Abstract: This paper examines the central hypothesis of the influential Malthusian theory, according to which improvements in the technological environment during the pre-industrial era had generated only temporary gains in income per capita, eventually leading to a larger, but not significantly richer, population. Exploiting exogenous sources of cross-country variations in land productivity and the level of technological advancement the analysis demonstrates that, in accordance with the theory, technological superiority and higher land productivity had significant positive effects on population density but insignificant effects on the standard of living, during the time period 1-1500 CE.
Keywords: Malthusian theory; population density; income per capita; technological advancement; Neolithic Revolution
JEL Codes: J1; N0; O0
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| Technological advancement (O00) | Population density (J11) |
| Land productivity (Q24) | Population density (J11) |
| Technological advancement (O00) | Income per capita (D31) |
| Land productivity (Q24) | Income per capita (D31) |
| Neolithic Revolution timing (N53) | Population density (J11) |