New fertility patterns: The role of human versus physical capital

Nicolas Abad, Johanna Etner (), Natacha Raffin and Thomas Seegmuller
Additional contact information
Johanna Etner: EconomiX, Univ Paris Nanterre,
Thomas Seegmuller: Aix Marseille Univ, CNRS, AMSE, Marseille, France, https://www.amse-aixmarseille.fr/en/members/seegmuller

No 2416, AMSE Working Papers from Aix-Marseille School of Economics, France

Abstract: We use an overlapping generations model with physical and human capital, and two reproductive periods to explore how fertility decisions may differ in response to economic incentives in early and late adulthood. In particular, we analyze the interplay between fertility choices—related to career opportunities—and wages, and investigate the role played by work experience and investment in both types of capital. We show that young adults postpone parenthood above a certain wage threshold and that late fertility increases with work experience. The long run trend is either to converge to a low productivity equilibrium, involving high early fertility, investment in physical capital and relatively low income, or to a high productivity equilibrium, where households postpone parenthood to invest in their human capital and work experience, with higher late fertility and higher levels of income. A convergence to the latter state would explain the postponement of parenthood and the mitigation or slight reversal of fertility decrease in some European countries in recent decades.

Keywords: fertility; postponement; work experience; overlapping generations (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: E21 J11 J13 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 54 pages
Date: 2024-05
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-dem, nep-dge, nep-gro and nep-lab
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Working Paper: New fertility patterns: The role of human versus physical capital (2024)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:aim:wpaimx:2416

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