What are the long-term economic effects of a more equal distribution of wealth? We exploit variation in historical inheritance rules for land in Germany. In some German areas, inherited land was to be shared or divided equally among children, while in others land was ruled to be indivisible....

The differences between mainstream and 'heterodox' theories and policies have become increasingly blurred, and this dynamic has also affected heterodox analyses of development. Being trapped by the primacy of the statistics-based methodological imperative, much heterodox thinking on development...

This paper aims to collaborate with the discussion about the factors that try to explain the economic behavior in Latin America countries, considering the importance of some attributes related to social capital (ie interpersonal trust, which leads to association and civic commitment, performing...

Most analysts of the modern Latin American economy hold to a pessimistic belief in historical persistence -- they believe that Latin America has always had very high levels of inequality, suggesting it will be hard for modern social policy to create a more egalitarian society. This paper argues...

Debt among African nations is a widespread and pervasive problem particularly among developing nations. Debt has significant, profound and long-lasting consequences for the social, economic and political development of African nations. All too often poorer nations have been forced to set aside...

Why has the expansion of women's economic and political rights coincided with economic development? This paper investigates this question, focusing on a key economic right for women: property rights. The basic hypothesis is that the process of development (i.e., capital accumulation and...

Channeling human resources into the right occupations has historically been a key to economic prosperity. Occupational choices are not only driven by the material rewards associated with the various occupations, but also by the esteem that they confer. We propose a model of endogenous growth in...

Channeling human resources into the right occupations has historically been a key to economic prosperity. Occupational choices are not only driven by the material rewards associated with the various occupations, but also by the esteem that they confer. We propose a model of endogenous growth in...