Explaining International Fertility Differences

S-Tier
Journal: Quarterly Journal of Economics
Year: 2009
Volume: 124
Issue: 2
Pages: 771-807

Authors (2)

Score contribution per author:

4.022 = (α=2.01 / 2 authors) × 4.0x S-tier

α: calibrated so average coauthorship-adjusted count equals average raw count

Abstract

Why do fertility rates vary so much across countries? Why are European fertility rates so much lower than American fertility rates? To answer these questions we extend the Barro—Becker framework to incorporate the decision to accumulate human capital (which determines earnings) and health capital (which determines life span). We find that cross-country differences in productivity and taxes go a long way toward explaining the observed differences in fertility and mortality.

Technical Details

RePEc Handle
repec:oup:qjecon:v:124:y:2009:i:2:p:771-807.
Journal Field
General
Author Count
2
Added to Database
2026-01-25