Investments in human capital, wage uncertainty, and public policy

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Anderberg, D; Andersson, F
• 署名单位: University of Stirling; Lund University
• 刊物名称: JOURNAL OF PUBLIC ECONOMICS
• ISSN/ISSBN: 0047-2727
• DOI: 10.1016/S0047-2727(01)00198-0
• 发表日期: 2003
• 页码: 1521-1537
• 关键词: wage uncertainty; social insurance; education; prudence

摘要

The importance of risk characteristics of human capital for the design of tax and education policy is explored. Wages are uncertain and education, while increasing the expected wage, may increase or decrease wage variance. The government has strong reasons to encourage human capital formation in the latter case, partly due to the insurance effect of human capital, and partly due to the way the individuals-under a plausible restriction on 'prudence'-respond to changes in risk. The analysis is illustrated using two models of education: one where education helps the individuals make better occupational choices, and a standard risk-augmented Becker-type model. (C) 2003 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.