By Tim Gu
I find indications that an increase in a country’s oil endowment results in an increase in its population growth rate, an increase in its fertility and birth rates, and a decrease in its mortality rate. To explain these results, I conjecture that an increase in oil endowment results in reduced female labor force participation, which increases the population growth rate. Additionally, I find no significant, negative relationship between a country’s per capita GDP growth rate and its oil endowment, when variations in the population growth rate are controlled. This result and others affect the interpretation of the “resource curse” concept.
Advisor: Michael Alexeev, Robert F. Conrad
