History as Evolution

Nathan Nunn

No 27706, NBER Working Papers from National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc

Abstract: In this chapter, I consider the benefits of viewing history through an evolutionary lens. In recent decades, a field of research has emerged, which builds on foundations from biological evolution to study culture within an evolutionary framework. I begin the chapter by discussing the theory behind cultural evolution and the empirical evidence supporting its ability to explain the history of human societies. I then turn to a discussion of how an evolutionary perspective provides important insights into a range of phenomena within economics, including a deeper understanding of human capital, innovation, gender roles, the consequences of warfare, the effects of market competition, why we observe historical persistence and path dependence, and, most importantly, why sustained economic growth is often so elusive. I end by turning to a summary of a growing body of research within economics that has made progress in improving our understanding of cultural evolution and, thus, contributing to evolutionary disciplines outside of economics.

JEL-codes: C73 N01 N10 Z1 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020-08
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-evo, nep-gro, nep-his, nep-hme and nep-pke
Note: DAE DEV EFG POL
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (10)

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