Quantitative analyses of long run human capital development [Elektronische Ressource] : age heaping as an indicator for numeracy / vorgelegt von Dorothee Crayen

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Informations

• Publié par: eberhard_karls_universitat_tubingen
• Publié le: 01 janvier 2009
• Nombre de lectures: 7
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 1 Mo

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I
QUANTITATIVE ANALYSES OF LONG-RUN HUMAN
CAPITAL DEVELOPMENT:
AGE HEAPING AS AN INDICATOR FOR NUMERACY






Inaugural-Dissertation
zur Erlangung des Doktorgrades
der Wirtschaftswissenschaftlichen Fakultät
der Eberhard-Karls-Universität Tübingen



vorgelegt von



Dorothee Crayen
Marburg a.d. Lahn





2008
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Dekan: Professor Dr. Kerstin Pull
Erstkorrektor: Professor Dr. Jörg Baten
Zweitkorrektor: Professor Dr. Laszlo Goerke
Tag der mündlichen Prüfung: 10. März 2009
II
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

First of all, I would like to thank my advisor Joerg Baten. His dedication to research and
to the mentoring of PhD students is unique, and he gave me invaluable guidance. He also
made it possible for me to gain teaching experience, for which I am deeply grateful.
Moreover, his encouragement to present my research to an international audience on
various summer schools, workshops and conferences gave me important professional
feedback and experience. I am particularly indebted to Laszlo Goerke. He has not only
been one of the best teachers I have ever encountered, his unprejudiced approach to
research is exemplary and made a deep impression on me. I am glad he was willing to act
as my second adviser and I am thankful for his valuable comments to my research. I am
greatly appreciative to Josef Molsberger for taking the chair of my disputation and for
giving me valuable feedback.
I recognize, and am grateful for, the financial support of the German Research
Foundation (Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft, DFG). Being part of the DFG Research
Training Group at the Faculty of Economics and Business Administration at Tuebingen
University broadened my knowledge and stimulated my research by creating an
important platform for the presentation and discussion of research. I am also owing
gratitude to the Marie Curie Research Training Network ‘Unifying the European
Experience: Historical Lessons of Pan-European Development’ that granted me a pre-
doctoral fellowship at the Universitat Pompeu Fabra in Barcelona. My paper with Joerg
Baten and Hans-Joachim Voth originated during this research stay. Other parts of my
dissertation have gained a lot from summer schools and workshops organized and funded
by Globaleuronet, by the European Science Foundation, the Marie Curie Research
Training Network, and by the Centre for Economic Policy Research.
Several other people have played a decisive role in my understanding of economic
history, in the process of knowledge accumulation and in my ways of working. By virtue
of his objectivity, diligence and kindness Brian A’Hearn acted as a role model. I enjoyed
every discussion with him and his comments were always insightful. I learned a lot from
Hans-Joachim Voth, who shared his ideas and experience and gave me inestimable
advice. He has got a admirable intuition for asking the right questions and his creativity
inspired my work. I would like to express my gratitude to all the participants of
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conferences, workshops and summer schools who contributed to my dissertation by their
critical questions, their advice and by their ideas that supplied new input for my work.
Special thanks go to Jan Luiten van Zanden, Robert Allen, Gregory Clark, David Mitch,
Tim Leuning and Albert Carreras. The discussions with Peter Koudijs, Karine van der
Beek and Kerstin Enflo were also invaluable to me. I thank Friedrich Breyer, Juergen
Meckl and Manfred Stadler for being supportive from the beginning on, both personally
and professionally. Their perpetual confidence in my person often amazed me and it
means a lot to me.
I am grateful to my peers and colleagues of the Tuebingen research group for
many conversations about my work, and help with the constant challenges I faced in
completing this project. In particular, I wish to thank Normann Mueller, Kirsten
Labuske, Mojgan Stegl, Kerstin Manzel, Dominic Behle, Aravinda Meera Guntupalli,
Alexander Moradi, Nikola Köpke, Margaryta Korolenko, Sonja Rabus, Eva Rosenstock,
Daniel Schwekendiek, Linda Twrdek, Luis Huergo and Dominik Ohly.
Mein ganz besonderer Dank gebührt meiner Familie, deren bedingungslose und
immerwährende Unterstützung mir den Weg in die Forschung und Wissenschaft geebnet
und mir die Kraft gegeben hat, meine Arbeiten auch über anstrengende Phasen hinweg
weiter zu entwickeln und zum Abschluss zu bringen. Knut, ich kann Dir nicht genug
danken für Dein Vertrauen, und den mentalen wie praktischen Beistand. Deine Ruhe und
Geduld geben mir die nötige Sicherheit und Bodenhaftung, ohne die ich sonst nie solche
Leistung bringen könnte. Ich danken meinen Eltern von Herzen, dass sie mir immer
größte Freiheit gelassen, und mich stets bereitwillig und nach allen Kräften unterstützt
haben. Missen möchte ich auch nicht die Unterstützung meiner Geschwister sowie von
Bianca, Christoph, Regine, Horst, Iris, Paul, Ilka, Malte, Lilly, Kathrin, Nina, Tini und
Tine.

IV
TABLE OF CONTENTS

1 INTRODUCTION..................................................................................................... 1
I Motivation and general comments ........................................................................... 1
II Outline..................................................................................................................... 5
2 QUANTIFYING QUANTITATIVE LITERACY: AGE HEAPING
AND THE HISTORY OF HUMAN CAPITAL.................................................. 11
I. Introduction ........................................................................................................... 12
II. Age Heaping......................................................................................................... 16
III. Measuring age-heaping....................................................................................... 21
IV. Evaluating Indices of Age-Heaping.................................................................... 26
V. Numeracy and literacy in the US census ............................................................. 32
VI. A European age heaping dataset, 1300-1800 ..................................................... 37
VII. Age heaping and literacy in pre-industrial Europe............................................ 44
VIII. New estimates of human capital in the very long run...................................... 46
IX. Conclusion .......................................................................................................... 48
References................................................................................................................. 50
Tables........................................................................................................................ 55
Figures....................................................................................................................... 59
Appendix................................................................................................................... 69
3 NEW EVIDENCE AND NEW METHODS TO MEASURE HUMAN
CAPITAL INEQUALITY BEFORE AND DURING THE
INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION: FRANCE AND THE U.S. IN THE
TH TH17 TO 19 CENTURIES ................................................................................... 79
I. Introduction ........................................................................................................... 80
II. Views of the literature on inequality and growth................................................. 83
III. A new method to measure human capital inequality.......................................... 88
IV. The Data.............................................................................................................. 97
V. Regional patterns of inequality in France and the U.S. ..................................... 100
VI. Is there an influence of numeracy inequality on welfare growth?.................... 106
V
VII. Conclusion....................................................................................................... 112
References............................................................................................................... 114
Tables...................................................................................................................... 119
Figures..................................................................................................................... 122
Appendix................................................................................................................. 128
4 POOR, HUNGRY AND STUPID: NUMERACY AND THE IMPACT
OF IGH OOD RICES N NDUSTRIALIZING RITAIN, 1780-H F P I I B
1850........................................................................................................................ 134
I Introduction ..............................................................