Accounting for the “Little Divergence”: What drove economic growth in pre-industrial Europe, 1300–1800?
利用新数据检验关于“小分流”成因的多种假说，发现人力资本形成是增长驱动力，制度变化（如议会兴起）与增长密切相关，宗教（新教传播）通过影响人力资本间接起作用。
We test various hypotheses about the causes of the Little Divergence, using new data and focusing on trends in GDP per capita and urbanization. We find evidence that confirms the hypothesis that human capital formation was the driver of growth, and that institutional changes (in particular the rise of active Parliaments) were closely related to economic growth. We also test for the role of religion (the spread of Protestantism): this has affected human capital formation, but does not in itself have an impact on growth.