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Health, Human Capital Formation and Knowledge Production: Two Centuries of International Evidence

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  • Jakob Madsen
Abstract
Recent medical research shows that health is highly influential for learning and the ability to think laterally; however, past economic studies have failed to empirically examine the influence of health on learning, schooling, and ideas production; the main drivers of growth in endogenous growth models. This paper constructs a measure of health-adjusted educational attainment among the working age population based on their health status during the time they did their education. Using annual data for 21 OECD countries over the past two centuries it is shown that health has been highly influential for the quantity and quality of schooling, innovations and growth.

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  • Jakob Madsen, 2012. "Health, Human Capital Formation and Knowledge Production: Two Centuries of International Evidence," NBER Working Papers 18461, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    • Handle: RePEc:nbr:nberwo:18461
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    Cited by:

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    2. Pedro Neves & Tiago Sequeira, 2017. "The Production of Knowledge: A Meta-Regression Analysis," CEFAGE-UE Working Papers 2017_03, University of Evora, CEFAGE-UE (Portugal).
    3. Lucas Bretschger & Alexandra Vinogradova, 2017. "Human Development at Risk: Economic Growth with Pollution-Induced Health Shocks," Environmental & Resource Economics, Springer;European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 66(3), pages 481-495, March.
    4. Ngwen Ngangue & Kouty Manfred, 2015. "The Impact of Life Expectancy on Economic Growth in Developing Countries," Asian Economic and Financial Review, Asian Economic and Social Society, vol. 5(4), pages 653-660, April.
    5. Jared C. Carbone & Snorre Kverndokk, 2016. "Individual Investments in Education and Health: Policy Responses and Interactions," CESifo Working Paper Series 6154, CESifo.
    6. Titus J. Galama & Hans van Kippersluis, 2015. "A Theory of Education and Health," CINCH Working Paper Series 1503, Universitaet Duisburg-Essen, Competent in Competition and Health, revised Mar 2015.
    7. Antonin Bergeaud & Gilbert Cette & Rémy Lecat, 2019. "The Circular Relationship Between Productivity Growth and Real Interest Rates," Working papers 734, Banque de France.
    8. Jakob B. Madsen & Md. Rabiul Islam & Xueli Tang, 2020. "Was the post-1870 fertility transition a key contributor to growth in the West in the twentieth century?," Journal of Economic Growth, Springer, vol. 25(4), pages 431-454, December.
    9. Herzer, Dierk, 2020. "How does mortality affect innovative activity in the long run?," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 125(C).
    10. Jangraiz KHAN & Zilakat Khan MALIK, 2015. "Education-Economic Growth Nexus: A Review," Journal of Economic and Social Thought, KSP Journals, vol. 2(2), pages 121-126, June.
    11. Komivi Afawubo & Mawuli kodjovi Couchoro, 2017. "Do remittances enhance the economic growth effect of private health expenditures in West African Economic and Monetary Union?," Economics Bulletin, AccessEcon, vol. 37(2), pages 1247-1264.
    12. Saffiah Mohd Nor & Zahariah Sahudin & Geetha Subramaniam, 2023. "The Effects of Health, Labor and Capital towards Labor Productivity in Manufacturing Industries," Information Management and Business Review, AMH International, vol. 15(1), pages 121-130.
    13. Carbone, Jared C. & Kverndokk, Snorre, 2014. "Individual investments in education and health," HERO Online Working Paper Series 2014:1, University of Oslo, Health Economics Research Programme.
    14. Abdul Jalil & Abdul Rauf & Li Han, 2024. "Financial Development, R&D and Knowledge Production: Empirical Evidence from China," Journal of the Knowledge Economy, Springer;Portland International Center for Management of Engineering and Technology (PICMET), vol. 15(3), pages 14617-14642, September.
    15. James B. Ang & Jakob B. Madsen & Peter E. Robertson, 2015. "Export performance of the Asian miracle economies: The role of innovation and product variety," Canadian Journal of Economics/Revue canadienne d'économique, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 48(1), pages 273-309, February.
    16. Robert Stefko & Beata Gavurova & Viera Ivankova & Martin Rigelsky, 2020. "Gender Inequalities in Health and Their Effect on the Economic Prosperity Represented by the GDP of Selected Developed Countries—Empirical Study," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(10), pages 1-26, May.
    17. Komivi Afawubo & Mawuli Kodjovi Couchoro, 2017. "Do remittances enhance the economic growth effect of private health expenditures in West African Economic and Monetary Union?," Post-Print hal-01716433, HAL.
    18. Tiago Neves Sequeira & Pedro Cunha Neves, 2020. "Stepping on toes in the production of knowledge: a meta-regression analysis," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 52(3), pages 260-274, January.
    19. Dierk Herzer, 2019. "The long-run effect of aid on health: evidence from panel cointegration analysis," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 51(12), pages 1319-1338, March.
    20. Pintu Parui & Klaus Prettner, 2024. "Public provision of healthcare and basic science: What are the effects on economic growth and welfare?," Department of Economics Working Papers wuwp365, Vienna University of Economics and Business, Department of Economics.
    21. Neves, Pedro Cunha & Sequeira, Tiago Neves, 2018. "Spillovers in the production of knowledge: A meta-regression analysis," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 47(4), pages 750-767.
    22. Alberto Bucci & Lorenzo Carbonari & Monia Ranalli & Giovanni Trovato, 2019. "Health and Development," CEIS Research Paper 470, Tor Vergata University, CEIS, revised 24 Mar 2021.
    23. Parui, Pintu, 2023. "Health, basic research, human capital accumulation, and R&D-based economic growth," MPRA Paper 118769, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    24. MAHYAR Hami, 2016. "Economic Growth And Life Expectancy: The Case Of Iran," Studies in Business and Economics, Lucian Blaga University of Sibiu, Faculty of Economic Sciences, vol. 11(1), pages 80-87, April.

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    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • O1 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development
    • O2 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Development Planning and Policy
    • O4 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Growth and Aggregate Productivity

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