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No one true path: uncovering the interplay between geography, institutions, and fractionalization in economic development
Author(s) -
Tan Chih Ming
Publication year - 2010
Publication title -
journal of applied econometrics
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.878
H-Index - 99
eISSN - 1099-1255
pISSN - 0883-7252
DOI - 10.1002/jae.1102
Subject(s) - fractionalization , divergence (linguistics) , ethnic group , economic geography , economics , econometrics , development economics , political science , law , philosophy , linguistics
Do institutions rule when explaining cross‐country divergence? By employing regression tree analysis to uncover the existence and nature of multiple development clubs and growth regimes, this paper finds that to a large extent they do. However, the role of ethnic fractionalization cannot be dismissed. The findings suggest that sufficiently high‐quality institutions may be necessary for the negative impact on development from high levels of ethnic fractionalization to be mitigated. Interestingly, I find no role for geographic factors—neither those associated with climate nor physical isolation—in explaining divergence. There is also no evidence to suggest a role for religious fractionalization. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.