According to a standard argument, higher income inequality fosters redistributive activities of the government in favor of the median income earner. This paper shows that if redistribution is achieved by a public provision of goods and services rather than by transfers, higher income inequality...

This paper discusses the relationship between medical innovations and ageing from a health economics perspective and surveys empirical evidence on medical R&D incentives, R&D costs of pharmaceuticals, and the cost-effectiveness of health innovations. Particular focus is on the endogeneity of...

Migration policies need to consider how immigration affects investment behavior and productivity, and how these effects vary with the type of migration. College-educated immigrants may do more to stimulate foreign direct investment and research and development than low-skilled immigrants, and...

R&D-based growth theory suggests that a larger population size raises either the long-run rate of economic growth ("strong scale effect") or the level of per capita income ("weak scale effect"), with far-reaching policy implications. However, for modern times there is little empirical support...

This paper theoretically and empirically analyzes the interaction of emigration of highly skilled labor, an economy`s income gap to potential host economies of expatriates, and optimal public infrastructure investment. In a model with endogenous education and R&D investment decisions we show...

This paper uses a two-country model with integrated markets for high-skilled labor to analyzethe opportunities and incentives for national governments to provide higher education.Countries can differ in productivity, and education is financed through a wage tax, so thatbrain drain affects the...

The theory of endogenous technical change has deeply contributed to our understanding ofthe fundamental sources of economic growth and development. In this chapter we surveyimportant contributions in the field by focussing on the basic structure of endogenous growthmodels with horizontal as well...

Taxes on inheritances may induce heirs to discontinue family firms. Becausefirm dissolution incurs transaction costs, a preferential tax treatment of transferredfamily businesses seems to be desirable from a macroeconomic viewpoint.The support of dynastic succession, however, entails also a cost...