Cognitive and Economic Development
Presenter Biography
I am an Associate Professor of Economics at PSU specializing in health issues in developing countries and econometrics. My best known work is about the impact of geography and malaria on economic development.
Institution
PSU
Program/Major
Economics
Degree
PhD
Presentation Type
Presentation
Event Website
https://pdxscholar.library.pdx.edu/econ_fac/162/
Start Date
4-4-2024 4:38 PM
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.
Keywords
Early childhood cognitive development, economic growth, health, worker productivity
Abstract
A burgeoning literature finds that early childhood risk factors have large causal effects on individuals' cognitive development, education and earnings, but has not assessed the impact on the economy as a whole.
Cognitive ability is the foundation of human capital and the capacity to learn. The risk factors for poor cognitive development are very high in many countries. Each risk factor also causes child mortality, making child survival a viable proxy for good cognitive development conditions. The cognitive development of current workers happened decades earlier when they were children, providing a predetermined correlate. Controlling for country characteristics, income levels and worker health among other variables, child survival from a generation ago is one of the strongest correlates of economic growth in both low and high income countries. Unusually clear microeconomic causal evidence together with a strong correlation with economic growth suggests that early cognitive development may play a significant role in economic development.
Cognitive and Economic Development
A burgeoning literature finds that early childhood risk factors have large causal effects on individuals' cognitive development, education and earnings, but has not assessed the impact on the economy as a whole.
Cognitive ability is the foundation of human capital and the capacity to learn. The risk factors for poor cognitive development are very high in many countries. Each risk factor also causes child mortality, making child survival a viable proxy for good cognitive development conditions. The cognitive development of current workers happened decades earlier when they were children, providing a predetermined correlate. Controlling for country characteristics, income levels and worker health among other variables, child survival from a generation ago is one of the strongest correlates of economic growth in both low and high income countries. Unusually clear microeconomic causal evidence together with a strong correlation with economic growth suggests that early cognitive development may play a significant role in economic development.
https://pdxscholar.library.pdx.edu/publichealthpdx/2024/Presentations/7