The Macroeconomics of Fertility in Small Open Economies: A Test of the Becker-Barro Model for the Netherlands and New Zealand

Becker and Barro (1988) formulated a theoretical model which identified a range of macroeconomic variables which can temporarily or permanently affect fertility in small open economies. While they suggested that their model provided a plausible explanation for the large shifts in fertility in western economies during this century, no formal econometric investigation was carried out. This paper tests the Becker-Barro model with relevant data which covers most of the 20th century for two small open economies, namely The Netherlands and New Zealand. The results show that government subsidies for... Mehr ...