Gary Becker’s concept of human capital
Becker made people the central focus of economics. The second in our series on big economic ideas
WHY do families in rich countries have fewer children? Why do companies in poor countries often provide meals for their workers? Why has each new generation spent more time in school than the one that came before? Why have earnings of highly skilled workers risen even as their numbers have also increased? Why should universities charge tuition fees?
This article appeared in the Schools brief section of the print edition under the headline “The people’s champion”
From the August 5th 2017 edition
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Finding living planets
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On the origin of “species”
The term, though widely used, is hard to define
Making your way in the world
An individual’s life story is a dance to the music of time