A Model of an Agricultural Household: Theory and Evidence

Abstract

A model addressing agricultural responses to public interventions is described. The model is confined to the short run, and it allows an assessment of the policy significance of changes in five variables that are exogenous to the household. The first variable is the price of the main agricultural output, emphasizing the elasticities of both output and market surplus; the second is the wage rate for agricultural labor, focusing on the elasticities of household labor supply and demand for hired labor; the third is the size of the family labor force, which is essential for estimating shadow wage rates; the fourth is the number of dependents, in order to permit an assessment of family planning policies; and the final variable is technology. The main features of the model are the role of the labor market, household production, household consumption, and the aggregate effect of household responses. Applicaton of the model to the Muda River Valley demonstrates that it is appropriate to a number of policy isues ranging from output price intervention to technological innovaton. Specifically, the model indicates that the economic cost of rural to urban migration is small when compared to the marginal productivity of the migrant before his departure.

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