Institutions, Human Capital and Development

46 Pages Posted: 3 Mar 2014 Last revised: 19 Jun 2023

See all articles by Daron Acemoglu

Daron Acemoglu

Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) - Department of Economics; Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR); National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER)

Francisco Gallego

Pontificia Universidad Catolica de Chile

Francisco A. Gallego

Pontificia Universidad Catolica de Chile

James A. Robinson

Harvard University - Department of Government; Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR); National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER)

Multiple version iconThere are 3 versions of this paper

Date Written: February 2014

Abstract

In this paper we revisit the relationship between institutions, human capital and development. We argue that empirical models that treat institutions and human capital as exogenous are misspecified both because of the usual omitted variable bias problems and because of differential measurement error in these variables, and that this misspecification is at the root of the very large returns of human capital, about 4 to 5 times greater than that implied by micro (Mincerian) estimates, found in some of the previous literature. Using cross-country and cross-regional regressions, we show that when we focus on historically-determined differences in human capital and control for the effect of institutions, the impact of institutions on long-run development is robust, while the estimates of the effect of human capital are much diminished and become consistent with micro estimates. Using historical and cross-country regression evidence, we also show that there is no support for the view that differences in the human capital endowments of early European colonists have been a major factor in the subsequent institutional development of these polities.

Suggested Citation

Acemoglu, Daron and Gallego, Francisco and Gallego, Francisco A. and Robinson, James A., Institutions, Human Capital and Development (February 2014). NBER Working Paper No. w19933, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2403657

Daron Acemoglu (Contact Author)

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Francisco Gallego

Pontificia Universidad Catolica de Chile

Francisco A. Gallego

Pontificia Universidad Catolica de Chile ( email )

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James A. Robinson

Harvard University - Department of Government ( email )

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