Literacy traps: Society-wide education and individual skill premia

Arbeitspapier

Using a model of O-ring production function, the paper demonstrates how certain communities can get caught in a low-literacy trap in which each individual finds it not worthwhile investing in higher skills because others are not high-skilled. The model sheds light on educational policy. It is shown that policy for promoting human capital has to take the form of a mechanism for solving the coordination failure in people's choice of educational strategy.

Object Details

• Language: Englisch

References and Relationships

• Bibliographic citation: Series: IZA Discussion Papers ; No. 4047

Classification and Topics

• Classification: Wirtschaft ; Production and Organizations: General ; Education: Government Policy ; Wage Level and Structure; Wage Differentials
• Subject: Education ; literacy ; O-ring ; skill formation ; traps ; Analphabetismus ; Gemeinschaft ; Soziale Beziehungen ; Bildungsverhalten ; Bildungspolitik ; Theorie

Contributors, Places and Time

• Event: Geistige Schöpfung
• (who): Atal, Vidya ; Basu, Kaushik ; Gray, John ; Lee, Travis
• Event: Veröffentlichung
• (who): Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA)
• (where): Bonn
• (when): 2009

Further information

• Handle: http://hdl.handle.net/10419/35454
• URN: urn:nbn:de:101:1-20090323165
• Last update: 10.03.2025, 11:42 AM CET