Human Capital Persistence and Development

Rudi Rocha, Claudio Ferraz and Rodrigo Soares

No 9101, IZA Discussion Papers from Institute of Labor Economics (IZA)

Abstract: This paper examines the role of human capital persistence in explaining long-term development. We exploit variation induced by a state-sponsored settlement policy that attracted a pool of immigrants with higher levels of schooling to particular regions of Brazil in the late 19th and early 20th century. We show that municipalities that received settlements experienced increases in schooling that persisted over time. One century after the policy, localities that received state-sponsored settlements had higher levels of schooling and income per capita. We provide evidence that long-run effects were driven by persistently higher supply and use of educational inputs and shifts in the structure of occupations towards skill-intensive sectors.

Keywords: development; human capital; education; immigration (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: N36 O15 O18 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 60 pages
Date: 2015-06
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-gro, nep-his, nep-hrm, nep-lam and nep-mig
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

Forthcoming - published in: American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, 2017, 9 (4), 105-136

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Related works:
Journal Article: Human Capital Persistence and Development (2017)
Working Paper: Human Capital Persistence and Development (2015)
Working Paper: Human Capital Persistence and Development (2015)
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