O papel das instituições no crescimento econômico: um estudo internacional

Abstract

This study sought to analyze the determinants of international economic growth based on a growth model augmented by institutions, and comparing countries classified by geopolitical groups. Real GDP per capita was used as dependent variable and proxy for the economic growth of the countries analyzed. As proxies for capital accumulation and human capital accumulation present in the Mankiw-Romer-Weil model, Capital Stock per capita and the Human Capital Index, measured by average years of schooling, were used. The institutional augmentation was done by adding among the production factors an Institutional Quality Index, formulated for the research based on governance indicators provided by the Worldwide Governance Indicators. To determine whether the theoretical fit and adequacy of the model are improved by this augmentation, 86 countries were chosen as the base sample and then separated into two geopolitical groups: 27 OECD member countries and 59 non-member countries, analyzed for the periods 1970 to 2019 and 1996 to 2019. The panel data analysis indicated results mostly in line with the theory of neoclassical and endogenous growth models, especially for the non-OECD club in the period 1970 to 2019. The proposed institutionalist theory also obtained empirical validation, since the formulated variable showed a positive and significant effect on GDP per capita, in addition to increasing the degree of fit of the model and presenting a synergic effect with the Human Capital Index.