We discuss the two-way link between culture and economic growth. We present a model of endogenous technical change where growth is driven by the innovative activity of entrepreneurs. Entrepreneurship is risky and requires investments that affect the steepness of the lifetime consumption profile....

This paper examines whether the drivers of economic growth are the same as those for genuine progress in the case of South Korea. Using data covering the period 1970–2005, the paper first constructs a Genuine Progress Indicator (GPI). An empirical model is then specified and estimated using...

This article revisits 50 years of the development trajectory of India’s Kerala state, well known for its human development attainments. To put the discussion in perspective we use a conceptual framework integrating growth, inequality and well-being. Long accustomed to a low per capita...

What predicts the evolution over time of subjective well-being? We correlate the trends of subjective well-being with the trends of social capital and/or GDP. We find that in the long and the medium run social capital largely predicts the trends of subjective well-being. In the short-term this...

This paper addresses heterogeneity in determinants of economic growth in a data-driven way. Instead of defining groups of countries with different growth characteristics a priori, based on, for example, geographical location, we use a finite mixture panel model and endogenous clustering to...

Maintaining a weak real exchange rate is a widely recommended growth strategy, in part because of the success of Asian exporters, most recently China. Simulations of a simple two-sector open economy growth model based on Matsuyama (1992) suggest that a weaker real exchange rate can lead to a...

We study economic growth in four emerging economies - Brazil, Russia, India, and China (BRIC). Questions addressed are: (a) How do medium term growth determinants differ from short term determinants? (b) What are differences between growth effects of aggregate versus disaggregated exports? And...

This paper applies a two-step Generalized Method of Moments (GMM) to re-examine the causality between defense burden (MB) and real GDP (RY) for 137 countries. The findings indicate that a short-run causality running from MB to RY is found in lower-middle- and high-income countries and that from...

Following Fukuyama's (2001) postulation for future research in economic development, this paper examines the cultural hypothesis regarding national economic prosperity. Culture is found to affect economic performance through two channels; cultural traits that stimulate individual motivation, and...

At present, the international growth model includes important restrictions about the consideration of GDP as a unique tool for measurement. In this sense, taking into consideration the wealth of a country, we must add intangibles such as human development, country image, employment conditions,...