Human
Evolution and Economic Development
¨
Review in Science Daily, 2002
Overview
This research develops an evolutionary growth theory about
the interplay between the evolution of mankind and economic growth since the emergence
of the Homo sapiens. For the major part of human existence mankind was engaged
in a persistent struggle for existence. Diminishing returns to labor, along
with a positive effect of the standard of living on population growth, held
income per capita near subsistence level. Improvements to the technological
environment or in the availability of land led to larger but not wealthier
populations.
This pressure to adapt to changing environments, conceivably
affected the composition of the population as well. Over time, the lineages of
individuals whose characteristics were complementary to the changing
technological environment gained an evolutionary advantage. They generated
higher income, devoted more resources to child rearing, and their fraction within
the population gradually rose.
The Agricultural Revolution and the establishment of
individual, rather than tribal, property rights expedited the selection process
and gradually increased the representation of traits that were complementary to
the growth process (e.g., entrepreneurial spirit, higher life expectancy,
preference for child quality). It triggered a positive feedback between
technological progress and education and ultimately bringing about the
Industrial Revolution and a period of sustained economic growth.
Moreover, contrary to theories that reject a possible role
for human genetics in influencing economic development, some of this research
demonstrates the importance of genetic factors by highlighting the effects of
diversity in genetic traits, while abstaining entirely from conceptual
frameworks that posit a hierarchy of such traits in terms of their
conduciveness to the process of economic development.