Seoul Journal of Economics
[ Article ]
Seoul Journal of Economics - Vol. 37, No. 4, pp.215-242
ISSN: 1225-0279 (Print)
Print publication date 30 Nov 2024
Received 12 Jun 2024 Revised 16 Oct 2024 Accepted 20 Oct 2024
DOI: https://doi.org/10.22904/sje.2024.37.4.002

How South Korea Escaped from the Malthusian Trap: Evidence from the Galor-Weil Model

İbrahim Bakırtaş ; Emre Yardımcı
Prof. Dr. İbrahim Bakırtaş, Department of Economics, Aksaray University, Aksaray, Turkiye ibakirtas@aksaray.edu.tr
Emre Yardımcı, Department of Economics, Aksaray University, Aksaray, Turkiye emre.yardimci@aksaray.edu.tr

JEL Classification: J13, I25, F63

Abstract

This study analyzes how South Korea escaped the Malthusian trap using the Galor-Weil (2000) model. This study contributes to the literature on two points. First, it categorizes the education that enables quantity-quality tradeoffs into secondary and tertiary education. Second, this model was analyzed for the first time in South Korea. According to the empirical findings, education reduces fertility and mortality rates, but tertiary education is necessary for technological progress. South Korean society has changed its structure from quantity to quality and escaped the Malthusian trap as a consequence of its education policies.

Keywords:

Malthusian Trap, Quantity-Quality tradeoff, Economic Growth

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