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A Theory of Medical Effectiveness, Differential Mortality, Income Inequality and Growth for Pre-Industrial England

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  • DAVID CROIX
  • ALESSANDRO SOMMACAL

Abstract

The interactions between mortality reductions and income growth are studied, with a special attention at their relationship prior to the Industrial Revolution, when income per head was stagnant. The choice of individual medical spending is modelled, giving a rationale for individual health expenditures even when medicine is not effective in postponing death. The rise of effective medicine is then explained by a learning process function of expenditure on health. The rise in effective medicine is linked to the economic growth of the eighteenth century through life expectancy increases which foster capital accumulation. The rise of effective medicine has also had an effect on the relationship between growth and inequality and on the intergenerational persistence of differences in income. These channels are operative through differential mortality induced by medical effectiveness that turns out to determine a differential in the propensity to save among income groups.

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  • David Croix & Alessandro Sommacal, 2009. "A Theory of Medical Effectiveness, Differential Mortality, Income Inequality and Growth for Pre-Industrial England," Mathematical Population Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 16(1), pages 2-35.
    • Handle: RePEc:taf:mpopst:v:16:y:2009:i:1:p:2-35
    DOI: 10.1080/08898480802619538
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    3. Ken-ichi Hashimoto & Ken Tabata, 2016. "Demographic change, human capital accumulation and R&D-based growth," Canadian Journal of Economics, Canadian Economics Association, vol. 49(2), pages 707-737, May.
    4. Stefano Bosi & Thomas Seegmuller, 2012. "Mortality Differential and Growth: What do we Learn From the Barro-Becker Model?," Mathematical Population Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 19(1), pages 27-50, January.
    5. Patrick Meyer & Gregory Ponthiere, 2020. "Human lifetime entropy in a historical perspective (1750–2014)," Cliometrica, Springer;Cliometric Society (Association Francaise de Cliométrie), vol. 14(1), pages 129-167, January.
    6. Pierre Pestieau & Gregory Ponthiere, 2012. "The Public Economics of Increasing Longevity," Hacienda Pública Española / Review of Public Economics, IEF, vol. 200(1), pages 41-74, March.
    7. Robert Stelter & David de la Croix & Mikko Myrskylä, 2020. "Leaders And Laggards In Life Expectancy Among European Scholars From The Sixteenth To The Early Twentieth Century," LIDAM Discussion Papers IRES 2020024, Université catholique de Louvain, Institut de Recherches Economiques et Sociales (IRES).
    8. David de la Croix, 2010. "Adult Longevity and Economic Take-off from Malthus to Ben-Porath," Chapters, in: Neri Salvadori (ed.), Institutional and Social Dynamics of Growth and Distribution, chapter 8, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    9. Thomas Seegmuller & Stefano Bosi, 2010. "Mortality Differential, Labor Taxation And Growth: What Do We Learn From The Barro-Becker Model?," Working Papers halshs-00472732, HAL.
    10. Hui Tang & Yun Chen & Rongjun Ao & Xue Shen & Guoning Shi, 2022. "Spatial–Temporal Characteristics and Driving Factors of the Coupling Coordination between Population Health and Economic Development in China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(17), pages 1-17, August.

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