Health and Development : What Can Research Contribute?

This survey of the state of research on relations between health and economic development discusses first research on how development affects health and then research on how health affects development. Central assumptions include: (A) Health is produced by households, along with a number of other valued goods, as a function of the resources the household has and the constraints and opportunities it faces; the process of development affects health in part by changing those resources, constraints and opportunities. (B) Development depends in part on investment in human capital; improvement in health of individuals is thus likely to influence the amount and process of development. (C) Both health and other aspects of development are affected by public policies. Public policies are affected by many political, economic and social interests; policies are also and can also be affected by better information and thus by better research