University of Chicago Press The Economics of Poverty Traps (National Bureau of Economic Research Conference Report)

About the Author Christopher B. Barrett is the Stephen B. and Janice G. Ashley Professor of Applied Economics and Management, professor of economics, and International Professor of Agriculture at Cornell University, where he also serves as deputy dean and dean of academic affairs at the S.C. Johnson College of Business. Product Description What circumstances or behaviors turn poverty into a cycle that perpetuates across generations? The answer to this question carries especially important implications for the design and evaluation of policies and projects intended to reduce poverty. Yet a major challenge analysts and policymakers face in understanding poverty traps is the sheer number of mechanisms―not just financial, but also environmental, physical, and psychological―that may contribute to the persistence of poverty all over the world. The research in this volume explores the hypothesis that poverty is self-reinforcing because the equilibrium behaviors of the poor perpetuate low standards of living. Contributions explore the dynamic, complex processes by which households accumulate assets and increase their productivity and earnings potential, as well as the conditions under which some individuals, groups, and economies struggle to escape poverty. Investigating the full range of phenomena that combine to generate poverty traps―gleaned from behavioral, health, and resource economics as well as the sociology, psychology, and environmental literatures―chapters in this volume also  present new evidence that highlights both the insights and the limits of a poverty trap lens. The framework introduced in this volume provides a robust platform for studying well-being dynamics in developing economies.  Review "The book is dense and diverse in substance and method, nicely blends theory and empirics, and attains homogeneously high quality. It will be of interest to all economists and social scientists concerned by development issues."-- "Economic Issues"