Genesis of Human Capital Theory in the Context of Digitalization

The paper aim is to consider the genesis of human capital theory in the context of the major economic doctrines from the18th century to the present day marked by the establishment of the digital economy. The authors considered scientific works devoted to the history of economic doctrines and scientific articles about issues related to the formation of human capital at different stages of economic theory development. The authors present the following classification of human capital formation: (1) classic economic, (2) institutional, and (3) modern. The classical economic approach is based on the works of the founders of classical economic thought of the 18th century such as Adam Smith, William Petty, Jean-Baptiste Say, Karl Marx, Irving Fisher, and others. In that period of time, "human capital" was often equated with "human resources" whereas the theory of human capital itself was subject to considerable criticism. The institutional approach is formed based on economists' works in the period of the neoclassical economic theory developed in the late 19th and mid-20th century. The theory of human capital was formed in the 1960-70s of the 20th century that was greatly influenced by such institutionalists as T. Schultz, Gary S. Becker, Jacob Mincer and others. The institutional approach offers an assessment of human capital through investments in education, training, health care costs, mobility. One of the key features of the institutional approach to developing "human capital" is the empirically proven impact of this economic category on national economic advancement. The modern approach to human capital development is determined by the growing importance of digital skills and competencies, ICT-literacy, e-skills, the ability to adapt to rapid changes, and also "digital literacy" manifested in a mindset that enables users to perform intuitively in digital environments, and to both easily and effectively access the wide range of knowledge embedded in such environments. Thus, the paper attempts to provide a historical overview of efforts to define "human capital". The main result of the paper is the systematization of approaches to human capital formation based on the historical period.