Identifying Human Capital Externality: Evidence from China
| Title: | Identifying Human Capital Externality: Evidence from China |
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| Format: | Journal Article |
| Publication Date: | December 2016 |
| Published In: | Journal of Management Science and Engineering |
| Description: | Using data from two well-known individual surveys in China, we estimate human capital externality. We find a positive and statistically significant effect of city-level human capital on individual earnings. Fixed-effects estimates show a one-year increase in city average education could increase individual earnings between 7.3% and 8.9%. Our IV estimate indicates a 7.6% increase. This finding confirms a long-held belief by economists that there are external benefits of education that are not captured by the individuals who invested in human capital. By extension our finding also offers a justification for an active role of the government in promoting education. We also find that the estimated effect of human capital externality is larger in coastal cities than in non-coastal cities and is larger in the non-state sector than in the state sector. We ascribe these heterogeneities to differences in institutional and technological environments across cities and sectors. |
| Ivan Allen College Contributors: | |
| External Contributors: | Yungling Liang, Zhiqiang Liu |
| Citation: | Identifying Human Capital Externality: Evidence from China”, Yunling Liang, Zhiqiang Liu*, Haizheng Li, Journal of Management Science and Engineering, Vol. 1(1), pp. 75-93, 2016. |
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