Technological Change, Human Capital Structure, and Multiple Growth Paths
Kim, Yong Jin; Lee, Jong-Wha | March 2009
Abstract
This paper presents a theoretical model to analyze the effects of technology change on growth rates of income and human capital in the uncertain environments of technology. The uncertainty comes from two sources; the possibility of a technology advance and the characteristics of new technologies. We set up an overlapping generations model in which young agents invest in both width and depth of human capital in order to adopt new technologies. The model develops explicitly the micro-mechanism of the role of human capital in adopting new technologies as well as that of the process of human capital production in uncertain environments. In our model, a higher level for width of human capital relative to the level of depth leads one country to a higher growth path. We also show that an economy can have different growth paths depending on the initial structure of human capital and the uncertainty about the nature of new technologies. In particular, new technologies with more uncertain characteristics may adversely affect human capital accumulation and income growth, leading the economy to a low growth trap.
Citation
Kim, Yong Jin; Lee, Jong-Wha. 2009. Technological Change, Human Capital Structure, and Multiple Growth Paths. © Asian Development Bank. http://hdl.handle.net/11540/1797. License: CC BY 3.0 IGO.ISSN
1655-5252
Keywords
Development In East Asia
Development Planning
Development Research
Technology Development
Aid And Development
Asian Development Bank
Comprehensive Development Framework
Development Cooperation
Development Management
Development Planning
Development Strategies
Development strategy
Development models
Economic development
New technology
Rural planning
Aid coordination
Industrial projects
Infrastructure projects
Natural resources policy
Educational development
Economic development projects
Economic forecasting
Economic development projects
Municipal government
Technology transfer
Exchanges of patents and technical information
Technical education
Technology
Communication in rural development
Communication in community development
Economic development projects
Development banks
Economic forecasting
Environmental auditing
Cumulative effects assessment
Human rights and globalization
Transfer Technocracy
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