On Aggregating Human Capital Across Heterogeneous Cohorts

Jakub Growiec , Christian Groth

Abstract

Based on a general framework for computing the aggregate human capital stock under heterogeneity across population cohorts, the paper derives aggregate human capital stocks in the whole population and in the labor force, and relates these variables to average years of schooling and average work experience. Under the scenarios considered here, the "macro-Mincer" (log-linear) relationship between aggregate human capital and average years of schooling is obtained only in cases which are inconsistent with heterogeneity in years of schooling and based on empirically implausible demographic survival laws. Our numerical results indicate that the macro-Mincer equation can be a reasonable approximation of the true relationship only if returns to schooling and work experience are roughly constant across countries
OriginalsprogEngelsk
UdgivelsesstedCph.
UdgiverDepartment of Economics, University of Copenhagen
Antal sider28
StatusUdgivet - 2012
NavnUniversity of Copenhagen. Institute of Economics. Discussion Papers
Nummer13
Vol/bind2012
ISSN0902-6452

Emneord

  • Det Samfundsvidenskabelige Fakultet
  • human capital
  • aggregation
  • heterogeneity
  • population cohort
  • Mincer equation

Citationsformater