DP4738 Growth, History and Institutions

Author(s): Graziella Bertocchi

Publication Date: November 2004

Keyword(s): growth , history , institutions

JEL(s): H00 , N00 , O00

Programme Areas: International Macroeconomics , Public Policy

Initiatives: Economic History

Link to this Page: www.cepr.org/pubs/dps/DP4738.asp

We illustrate the ongoing research line on Growth, History, and Institutions, which adds to economic growth analysis a historical and an institutional dimension, both at the theoretical and the empirical level. We present applications of this research strategy to the impact of colonization on growth, the extension of the franchise and the welfare state, the evolution of educational systems, the relationship between industrialization and democratization, and international migration. We propose a new standard, starting from 1870, as the future reference period for theoretical and empirical research on growth. We conclude with policy implications of the Growth, History, and Institutions research line.