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on Evolutionary Economics |
| By: | Francesco Agostinelli (University of Pennsylvania); Matthias Doepke (Northwestern University, London School of Economics); Giuseppe Sorrenti (University of Lausanne); Fabrizio Zilibotti (Yale University) |
| Abstract: | This chapter argues that parenting choices are a central force in the joint evolution of culture and economic outcomes. We present a framework in which parents-motivated by both their childrenÕs future success and their own normative beliefs-choose parenting styles and transmit cultural traits responding to economic incentives. Values such as work ethic, patience, and religiosity are more likely to be instilled when their anticipated returns, economic or otherwise, are high. The interaction between parenting and economic conditions gives rise to endogenous cultural and economic stratification. We extend the model to include residential sorting and social interactions, showing how neighborhood choice reinforces disparities in trust and human capital. Empirical evidence from the World Values Survey supports the modelÕs key predictions. We conclude by highlighting open questions at the intersection of parenting, culture, and inequality. |
| Date: | 2025–06–19 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cwl:cwldpp:2449 |
| By: | Chowdhury, Shyamal K.; Puente-Beccar, Manuela; Schildberg-Hörisch, Hannah; Schneider, Sebastian O.; Sutter, Matthias |
| Abstract: | We investigate how strongly the local environment beyond the family can contribute to understanding the formation of children's economic preferences. Building on precise geolocation data for around 6000 children, we use fixed effects, spatial autoregressive models and Kriging to capture the relation between the local environment and children's preferences. The spatial models explain a considerable part of so far unexplained variation in preferences. Moreover, the "spatial stability" of preferences exceeds the village level. Our results highlight the importance of the local environment for the formation of children's preferences, which we quantify to be as large as that of parental preferences. |
| Keywords: | skill formation, spatial models, kriging, local environment, patience, risk attitudes, prosociality, experiments with children, Bangladesh |
| JEL: | D01 C21 C99 |
| Date: | 2025 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:dicedp:321893 |
| By: | Ece, Onur |
| Abstract: | The absence of a universal, physically grounded definition of life remains a critical shortcoming across biology, astrobiology, and artificial intelligence. While traditional definitions rely on biochemical functions or evolutionary heuristics, none offer a crite- rion applicable across substrates, scales, or domains. This paper proposes a general law: a system is alive if and only if it sustains a positive rate of entropy resistance. Formally, in the quantum regime: Rq (t) =−d/dtTr(ρ(t) ln ρ(t)) >0 where ρ(t) is the system’s density matrix and the trace defines the von Neumann entropy. The law is substrate-independent, operationally measurable, and falsifiable. This formulation offers a unifying condition for terrestrial biology, synthetic organ- isms, coherent quantum systems, and potential extraterrestrial life — without invoking replication, metabolism, or evolution. It reframes life not as a biological artifact but as a thermodynamic process that persistently resists informational and entropic collapse. Life, in this framework, is not explained by physics. It is a distinct phase of physics — defined by its active resistance to the universe’s default trajectory. |
| Date: | 2025–06–23 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:osf:osfxxx:r9826_v4 |
| By: | Pedro Dal Bó; Guillaume Fréchette |
| Abstract: | An extensive experimental literature has documented miscoordination in establishing cooperative relationships when they can be supported in indefinitely repeated games: some people systematically try to cooperate, while others do not. The literature has had little success in finding personal characteristics that correlate systematically with these behaviors. We show that subjects who play the risky but efficient action in a simple coordination game (i.e., play stag in a stag hunt game) are significantly more likely to cooperate in indefinitely repeated games. This suggests that subjects who are less susceptible to strategic uncertainty are more likely to attempt to establish cooperative relationships. |
| JEL: | C7 C9 |
| Date: | 2025–06 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:nbr:nberwo:33980 |
| By: | Albora Giambattista (European Commission - JRC); Diodato Dario (European Commission - JRC); Napolitano Lorenzo (European Commission - JRC) |
| Abstract: | "The economic complexity framework is inspired by evolutionary and institutional literature. It interprets the economy as an interconnected ecosystem by shifting the focus from aggregate quantities like GDP that reveal how much countries or regions produce to a more granular view revealing what they actually do (e.g. in which products they export or the in which technologies they innovate). This approach leverages high-quality trade and patent data as well as advanced techniques from machine learning, network science, and complex dynamical systems to provide a nuanced understanding of a country's economic sophistication and capabilities.These factsheets aim to showcase the potential of the economic complexity framework by providing quantitative insights into policy-relevant issues and to illustrate the kind of insights it can offer policymakers regarding the industrial and innovation landscape of Europe. Each factsheet focuses one EU member state and follows a fixed structure comprising six sections, each consisting of a chart and some accompanying text to aid interpretation. Overall, the factsheets aim to provide a comprehensive overview of the analytical potential of the economic complexity framework, demonstrating its value in informing policy decisions and contributing to economic development. They highlight the importance of understanding the intricate dynamics of industrial and innovation systems to drive strategic economic growth in the EU." |
| Date: | 2025–06 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ipt:iptwpa:jrc140945 |
| By: | MULLER, Aléaume |
| Abstract: | The so-called Cobb–Douglas production function offers a synthetic mathematical formalization of economic activity. Focused primarily on capital and labor, it systematically overlooks the role of natural resources and the environment—an omission that has made it the target of recurring criticism. To examine the validity of these critiques, this article proposes a parallel with Kleiber’s law in biology, which links an organism’s energy consumption to its body mass through the notion of basal metabolic rate. We demonstrate that this analogy opens the way for a reinterpretation of both the Cobb–Douglas function and the Solow model, enabling a perspective that is not only compatible with but also complementary to ecological economics. Moreover, it reveals a deeper homology: in both cases, the functions describe the behavior of dissipative thermodynamic systems, which organize energy flows to sustain their structural integrity. This framework allows for a physical reading of economic production mechanisms—not as abstract aggregates, but as expressions of a universal process of self-organization driven by flows of matter and energy. It enables the integration of thermodynamic constraints into the core of economic theory, in continuity with existing literature, while paving the way for an understanding of the economy as a physically evolving system |
| Date: | 2025–06–21 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:osf:socarx:q8evd_v1 |