The Neolithic Revolution from a Price-Theoretic Perspective
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The Neolithic Revolution from a Price-Theoretic Perspective. / Guzmán, Ricardo Andrés; Weisdorf, Jacob Louis.
Department of Economics, University of Copenhagen, 2010.Research output: Working paper › Research
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TY - UNPB
T1 - The Neolithic Revolution from a Price-Theoretic Perspective
AU - Guzmán, Ricardo Andrés
AU - Weisdorf, Jacob Louis
PY - 2010
Y1 - 2010
N2 - The adoption of agriculture during the Neolithic period triggered the first demographic explosion in history. When fertility returned to its original level, agriculturalists were more numerous, more poorly nourished, and worked longer hours than their hunter-gatherer ancestors. We develop a dynamic price-theoretic model that rationalizes these events. In the short run, people are lured into agriculture by the increased labor productivity of both adults and children. In the long run, the growth in population overrides the productivity gains, and the later generations of agriculturalists end up being worse off than the hunter-gatherers. Counter-intuitively, the increase in the labor productivity of children causes the long-run reduction in welfare. In the long run, the increase in adult labor productivity only contributes to population growth.
AB - The adoption of agriculture during the Neolithic period triggered the first demographic explosion in history. When fertility returned to its original level, agriculturalists were more numerous, more poorly nourished, and worked longer hours than their hunter-gatherer ancestors. We develop a dynamic price-theoretic model that rationalizes these events. In the short run, people are lured into agriculture by the increased labor productivity of both adults and children. In the long run, the growth in population overrides the productivity gains, and the later generations of agriculturalists end up being worse off than the hunter-gatherers. Counter-intuitively, the increase in the labor productivity of children causes the long-run reduction in welfare. In the long run, the increase in adult labor productivity only contributes to population growth.
KW - Faculty of Social Sciences
KW - børnearbejde
KW - Neolithic revolution
KW - hunter-gatherers
KW - child labour
KW - child labor
KW - Thomas Malthus
M3 - Working paper
BT - The Neolithic Revolution from a Price-Theoretic Perspective
PB - Department of Economics, University of Copenhagen
ER -
ID: 19430512