The "Out of Africa" Hypothesis, Human Genetic Diversity, and Comparative Economic Development

Quamrul Ashraf and Oded Galor

No 6330, IZA Discussion Papers from Institute of Labor Economics (IZA)

Abstract: This research argues that deep-rooted factors, determined tens of thousands of years ago, had a significant effect on the course of economic development from the dawn of human civilization to the contemporary era. It advances and empirically establishes the hypothesis that in the course of the exodus of Homo sapiens out of Africa, variation in migratory distance from the cradle of humankind to various settlements across the globe affected genetic diversity and has had a direct long-lasting effect on the pattern of comparative economic development that could not be captured by contemporary geographical, institutional, and cultural factors. In particular, the level of genetic diversity within a society is found to have a hump-shaped effect on development outcomes in the pre-colonial era, reflecting the trade-off between the beneficial and the detrimental effects of diversity on productivity. Moreover, the level of genetic diversity in each country today (i.e., genetic diversity and genetic distance among and between its ancestral populations) has a similar non-monotonic effect on the contemporary levels of income per capita. While the intermediate level of genetic diversity prevalent among the Asian and European populations has been conducive for development, the high degree of diversity among African populations and the low degree of diversity among Native American populations have been a detrimental force in the development of these regions. Further, the optimal level of diversity has increased in the process of industrialization, as the beneficial forces associated with greater diversity have intensified in an environment characterized by more rapid technological progress.

Keywords: Neolithic Revolution; population density; comparative development; human genetic diversity; Out of Africa hypothesis; land productivity; Malthusian stagnation (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: N10 N30 N50 O10 O50 Z10 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 100 pages
Date: 2012-01
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-afr and nep-dev
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (31)

Published - published in: American Economic Review, 2013, 103 (1), 1-46

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Related works:
Journal Article: The 'Out of Africa' Hypothesis, Human Genetic Diversity, and Comparative Economic Development (2013)
Working Paper: The "Out of Africa" Hypothesis, Human Genetic Diversity, and Comparative Economic Development (2012)
Working Paper: The "Out of Africa" Hypothesis, Human Genetic Diversity, and Comparative Economic Development (2012)
Working Paper: The 'Out of Africa' Hypothesis, Human Genetic Diversity, and Comparative Economic Development (2011)
Working Paper: The "Out of Africa" Hypothesis, Human Genetic Diversity, and Comparative Economic Development (2011)
Working Paper: The "Out of Africa" Hypothesis, Human Genetic Diversity, and Comparative Ecomomic Development (2010)
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