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Democracy-growth nexus and its interaction effect on human development: A cross-national analysis

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  • Saha, Shrabani
  • Zhang, Zhaoyong

Abstract

This paper examines the democracy-growth nexus and its interactive effect on human development by using cross-national panel data spanning over 20 years incorporating the effect of democratization process. We find evidence that the effect from democracy to human development is nonlinear and varies depending on the levels of growth and democracy. The results confirm that the interaction effect of democracy-growth nexus has a positive impact on human development but the effect is sensitive to democratization process and the level of a country's economic development. It is established that democracy is more crucial in developed countries, whereas economic growth is vital in developing countries. The findings imply that the role of democracy in enhancing human development should not be overemphasized as economic growth is vital in the developing countries.

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  • Saha, Shrabani & Zhang, Zhaoyong, 2017. "Democracy-growth nexus and its interaction effect on human development: A cross-national analysis," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 63(C), pages 304-310.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:ecmode:v:63:y:2017:i:c:p:304-310
    DOI: 10.1016/j.econmod.2017.02.021
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    2. Uddin, Md Akther & Ali, Md Hakim & Masih, Mansur, 2017. "Political stability and growth: An application of dynamic GMM and quantile regression," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 64(C), pages 610-625.
    3. Boateng, Elliot & Agbola, Frank W. & Mahmood, Amir, 2021. "Foreign aid volatility and economic growth in Sub-Saharan Africa: Does institutional quality matter?," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 96(C), pages 111-127.
    4. Alanda Venter & Roula Inglesi-Lotz, 2023. "Examining the Interlinkage between CO2 Emissions and Inclusive Human Development: Unveiling the Significance of Effective Institutions," Working Papers 202334, University of Pretoria, Department of Economics.
    5. Ali, Qamar & Raza, Ali & Narjis, Saadia & Saeed, Sahrish & Khan, Muhammad Tariq Iqbal, 2020. "Potential of renewable energy, agriculture, and financial sector for the economic growth: Evidence from politically free, partly free and not free countries," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 162(C), pages 934-947.
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    7. Mukherjee, Deepraj & Dutta, Nabamita, 2018. "What determines governance across nations: Do economic and social globalization play a role?," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 69(C), pages 103-113.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Democracy; Human development; Economic growth;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • F63 - International Economics - - Economic Impacts of Globalization - - - Economic Development
    • O1 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development
    • O5 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economywide Country Studies

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