Evolution and the Growth Process:Natural Selection of Entrepreneurial Traits

This research suggests that a Darwinian evolution of entrepreneurial spirit played asignificant role in the process of economic development and the dynamics of inequality withinand across societies. The study argues that entrepreneurial spirit evolved non-monotonicallyin the course of human history. In early stages of development, risk-tolerant, growthpromoting traits generated an evolutionary advantage and their increased representationaccelerated the pace of technological progress and the process of economic development. Inmature stages of development, however, risk-averse traits gained an evolutionary advantage,diminishing the growth potential of advanced economies and contributing to convergence ineconomic growth across countries....