The issue of poverty traps is assessed using quantile regression. For that an augmentation of the usual convergence regressions by quadratic and cubic terms is used with emphasis on curve fitting rather than parameter estimation. The results show that the generic mechanism leading to poverty traps predominantly applies to countries with relatively low levels of income per capita or per worker t...

This paper considers some methodological aspects of Joan Robinson’s contribution to post-Keynesian growth theory. Joan Robinson’s criticisms of equilibrium analysis, of the conflation of logical and historical time and of the uses (and misuses) of mathematical formalisation are scathing. But while many of her points are well taken, parts of her argument appear questionable. As a result, her met...

In this paper we present and analyze a stylized model of endogenous growth with international technology spillover effects from the North to the South. The model allows for endogenous structural change and environmental degradation that reduces world output. We find that within this framework the costless technological spillovers foster structural change in both more and less advanced economies...

This paper analyses a RBC model in continuous time featuring deterministic incremental development of technology and stochastic fundamental inventions arriving according to a Poisson process. Other than in standard RBC models, shocks are uncorrelated, irregular and rather seldom. In two special cases analytical solutions are presented. In the general case a delay differential equation (DDE) has...

We study a multi-sector model of growth with differences in TFP growth rates across sectors and derive sufficient conditions for the coexistence of a balanced aggregate growth path, with all aggregates growing at the same rate, and structural change, characterized by sectoral labor reallocation. The conditions needed are weak restrictions on the utility and production functions: goods should be...

This paper develops an endogenous growth model of a dual economy where human capital accumulation is the source of economic growth. The dualism between the rich individuals and the poor individuals exists in the mechanism of human capital accumulation. Rich individuals allocate labour time not only for their own production and knowledge accumulation but also to train the poor individuals. Stead...

In this paper we specialize the Ngai-Pissarides model of growth and structural change [American Economic Review 97 (2007), 429-443] to the case of three sectors, representing the primary (agriculture, mining), secondary (construction, manufacturing) and tertiary (services) sectors. On that basis we explore the dynamic properties of the model along the transition path to the steady-state equilib...

How does technological progress occur? Is the nature of innovation stable over time? We shed new light on these questions through a mixture of empirics and theory. We begin with an empirical analysis of patents granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Offi ce. This analysis reveals several striking facts that emphasize the increasing importance of novel combinations of technologies for...

This paper investigates the relationship between growth and inequality from a demographic point of view. In an extended model of the accidental bequest with endogenous fertility, we analyze the effects of a decrease in the old-age mortality rate on the equilibrium growth rate as well as on the income distribution. We show that the relationship between growth and inequality is at first positive ...

In this paper we extend the Lucas (1988) endogenous growth model to include sector-specific external effects and depreciation in both sectors. We derive analytically, the restrictions on the parameter space that are necessary and sufficient for the existence of balanced growth paths and equilibria. We demonstrate that in contrast to the original model, with the addition of an external effect an...