Knowledge and Development: A Cross-Section Approach
This paper assesses the effects of knowledge on economic growth. By using an array of indicators, each of which represents an aspect of knowledge, as independent variables in cross-section regressions that span 92 countries for the period 1960 to 2...
| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Policy Research Working Paper |
| Language: | English en_US |
| Published: |
World Bank, Washington, D.C.
2013
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/2004/08/5071856/knowledge-development-cross-section-approach http://hdl.handle.net/10986/14163 |
| Summary: | This paper assesses the effects of
knowledge on economic growth. By using an array of
indicators, each of which represents an aspect of knowledge,
as independent variables in cross-section regressions that
span 92 countries for the period 1960 to 2000, they show
that knowledge is a significant determinant of long-term
economic growth. In particular, the authors find that the
stock of human capital, the level of domestic innovation and
technological adaptation, and the level of information and
communications technologies (ICT) infrastructure all exert
statistically significant positive effects on long-term
economic growth. More specifically with regard to the growth
effects of the human capital stock, they find that an
increase of 20 percent in the average years of schooling of
a population tends to increase the average annual economic
growth by 0.15 percentage point. In terms of innovation, the
authors find that a 20 percent increase in the annual number
of USPTO patents granted is associated with an increase of
3.8 percentage points in annual economic growth. Lastly,
when the ICT infrastructure, measured by the number of
telephones per 1,000 persons, is increased by 20 percent,
they find that annual economic growth tends to increase by
0.11 percentage point. |
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