【主讲】吴乐旻 助理教授 (北京大学经济学院)
【主题】If Not Malthusian, Then Why?
【时间】2015年3月10日 (周二) 15：30-17：00
【地点】上海财经大学经济学院楼801室
【语言】中文
【摘要】This paper shows that merely the Malthusian mechanism cannot explain the pre-industrial stagnation of living standards. Technological improvement in luxury production, if faster than improvement in subsistence production, would have kept living standards growing. The Malthusian trap is essentially a puzzle of balanced growth between the luxury sector and the subsistence sector. The author argues that the balanced growth is caused by group selection in the form of biased migration. A tiny bit of bias in migration can suppress a strong tendency of growth. The theory reexplains the Malthusian trap and the prosperity of ancient market economies such as Rome and Song. It also suggests a new perspective on the Industrial Revolution.
