The political determinants of economic performance political competition and the sources of growth

Pablo M. Pinto, Jeffrey F. Timmons

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

The authors present and test a theory about the effects of political competition on the sources of economic growth. Using Mankiw, Romer, and Weil's model of economic growth and data for roughly 80 countries, the authors show that political competition decreases the rate of physical capital accumulation and labor mobilization but increases the rate of human capital accumulation and (less conclusively) the rate of productivity change. The results suggest that political competition systematically affects the sources of growth, but those effects are cross-cutting, explaining why democracy itself may be ambiguous. These findings help clarify the debate about regime type and economic performance and suggest new avenues for research.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)26-50
Number of pages25
JournalComparative Political Studies
Volume38
Issue number1
DOIs
StatePublished - Feb 2005

Keywords

  • Economic growth
  • Human capital
  • Investment
  • Political competition
  • Productivity

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Sociology and Political Science

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