Economic Growth
66-832
Prof. Elise S. Brezis
Graduate course
First Semester, 2009-10
The list of readings is more extensive than what will be covered in class. Students will be
responsible primarily for what is covered in class. There will be one exam and one
presentation.
Overall textbooks (for background reading only)
Weil, D. Economic Growth. 2007.
Barro, R. and X. Sala-I-Martin, (BSM) Economic Growth, 1995 or 2003.
Landes D. 1998. The Wealth and Poverty of Nations: Why some are so Rich and Some so
Poor. Norton.
Introduction and the Neoclassical Model
BSM Ch1.
Solow, R.M. 1956. “A Contribution to the Theory of Economic Growth.” Quarterly
Journal of Economics, 70, 65-94.
Lucas, R. E. 1988. “On the Mechanics of Economic Development.” Journal of Monetary
Economics, 22, 3-42.
Convergence, Divergence and Leapfrogging
Bernard and C. Jones “Comparing apples to oranges: Productivity convergence and
Measurement across industries and Countries” American Economic Review December
1996
Brezis E, P. Krugman and D. Tsiddon “Leapfrogging in International Competition”,
American Economic Review, 1993. 1211-19.
Goodfriend and McDermott 1998. Industrial Development and the Convergence Question
American Economic Review 88(5) 1277-1289.
Jones C. “Convergence Revisited” Journal of Economic Growth July 1997
Total Factor Productivity
Chang TH. 2002. What Explains the Industrial Revolution in East Asia? Evidence from
the Factor markets” American Economic Review
Krugman, P. 1994. “The Myth of Asia’s Miracle” Foreign Affairs 73: 62-78.
Mankiw, Romer and Weil “A contribution to the Empirics of Economic Growth”.
Quarterly Journal of Economics May 1992, 407-38.
Pritchett L. 1997. Divergence, Big Time” Journal of Economic Perspective.
Young Alwyn 1995 “The tyranny of numbers: confronting the statistical realities of the
East Asian growth experience” Quarterly Journal of Economics May 110: 641-80.
Productivity, Technology and Growth
Aghion, P. and P. Howitt. 1992. “A Model of Growth through Creative Destruction.”
Econometrica, 60, 323-351.
Azariadis, C. and A. Drazen. 1990. “Threshold Externalities in Economic Development.”
Quarterly Journal of Economics, 105, no. 2: 501-26.
Romer, P.M. 1986. “Increasing Returns and Long Run Growth.” Journal of Political
Economy, 94, 1002-1037.
Romer, P.M. 1990. “Endogenous Technological Change.” Journal of Political Economy,
98, 71-103.
Inequality and Growth
Acemoglu, D. and J.A. Robinson. 1998. “Why did the West Extend the Franchise?
Democracy, Inequality and Growth in Historical Perspective.” Discussion Paper- Center
for Economic Policy Research.
Barro, R. 2000. “Inequality and Growth in a Panel of Countries.” Journal of Economic
Growth, 5:5-32.
Banerjee, A. and Duflo E. 2001. “Inequality and Growth: What can the Data say?” Paper
Presented at the WIDER Conference on Growth and Poverty, Helsinki, 25-26 May.
Benabou, R. 1996. “Inequality and Growth.” NBER Macroeconomics Annual, 11, 11-74.
Birdsall Ross and Sabot. 1995. “Inequality and growth reconsidered lessons form East
Asia” World Bank Economic Review 9(3) 477-508.
Deininger, K. and L. Squire. 1996. “A New Dataset Measuring Income Inequality.” The
World Bank Economic Review, 10(3): 565-91.
Durlauf, S.N. 1996. “A Theory of Persistent Income Inequality.” Journal of Economic
Growth, 1, 75-94.
Forbes, K. 2000. “A Reassessment of the Relationship Between Inequality and Growth.”
American Economic Review, 90, 869-887.
Kuznets, 1955. “Economic Growth and Income Inequality”. American Economic Review,
45: 1-28.
Persson, T. and G. Tabellini. 1994. “Is inequality harmful for growth? Theory and
Evidence”. American Economic Review, 84:600-21.
Human capital, Education and Economic Growth
Autor D., L. Katz and A. Krueger. 1998. “Computing Inequality: Have computer changed
the Labor Market?” Quarterly Journal of Economics, 113: 1169-1214.
Becker, G. 1962. “Investment in Human Capital: A Theoretical Analysis.” Journal of
Political Economy, 70, 9-49.
Becker, G. 1964 [1993]. Human Capital- A Theoretical and Empirical Analysis, with
Special Reference to Education. University of Chicago Press.
Bils M. and P. Klenow. 2000. “Does Schooling Cause Growth” American Economic
Review, 90: 1160-83.
Brezis, E.S. and F. Crouzet. 2004. ““The Role of Higher Education Institutions:
Recruitment of Elites and Economic Growth” in T. Eicher, eds. Institutions and
Economic Growth, MIT Press.
Brezis, E.S. and G. Eizman. 2004. “The Effect of Signaling on Human capital and
Economic Growth”, mimeo, ACEP.
Hall R. and C. Jones. 1999. “Why do Some Countries Produce so much more Output per
Worker than Others?” Quarterly Journal of Economics, 114: 83-116.
Jones C. 2002. “sources of US Economic Growth in a world of Ideas” American
Economic Review 92: 220-39.
Pritchett L. 2001. “Where has all the Education Gone?” World bank Economic Review
15: 367-91.
Schultze, T.W. 1960. “Capital Formation by Education”, Journal of Political Economy
68: 571-83.
Schultze, T.W. 1961. “Education and Economic Growth”, In N.B. Henry, ed., Social
Forces Influencing American Education. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
Population and Growth
Brezis, E. “Social Classes, Demographic Transition and Economic Growth”, European
Economic Review, 2001, 45: 707-717.
Galor, O. and D. Weil, 2000. “Population, technology and Growth: From the
Malthusian regime to the demographic transition”, American Economic Review 90:
806-28.
Trade, Globalization and Growth
Irwin D. 2002. Free Trade under Fire Princeton University Press.
Lucas R. 1990. “Why doesn’t Capital flow from Rich to Poor Countries?” American
Economic Review May: 92-96
O’Rourke K and J.Williamson. 1999. Globalization and History. MIT Press
Rivera Batiz and P Romer “Economic Integration and Endogenous Growth” Quarterly
Journal of Economics 1991. 531-555
Rivera-Batiz, L.A., and P.M. Romer. 1991. “International Trade with Endogenous
Technological Change.” European Economic Review, 35, 971-1004.
Williamson J “Globalization, Convergence and History”, Journal of Economic History
June 1996, p. 277-306
Culture, Social Capital and Economic Growth
Glaeser E. D. Laibson and Sacaerdote. 2002. “The Economic Approach to social
Capital”. Economic Journal 112:437-58.
Knack S. and P. Zak. 2001. “Trust and Growth” Economic Journal 111: 295-321.