The DOI matches its Crossref record.
Economic Growth in a Cross Section of Countries
Open accessAbstract
For 98 countries in the period 1960–1985, the growth rate of real per capita GDP is positively related to initial human capital (proxied by 1960 school-enrollment rates) and negatively related to the initial (1960) level of real per capita GDP. Countries with higher human capital also have lower fertility rates and higher ratios of physical investment to GDP. Growth is inversely related to the share of government consumption in GDP, but insignificantly related to the share of public investment. Growth rates are positively related to measures of political stability and inversely related to a proxy for market distortions.
Overview
The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.
Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.
Integrity signals
Registry
Cites
Statistics
Verification
Claims the paper makes
The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.
Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.
Self-check
Percentages, sums and reported differences re-computed from the paper’s own numbers.
The self-check needs the paper’s full text.
Citations
Cited by
Does Social Capital Have an Economic Payoff? A Cross-Country Investigation
Knack, S., & Keefer, P. (1997) · The Quarterly Journal of Economics · doi:10.1162/003355300555475 · Cited by 7,484
Government Spending in a Simple Model of Endogeneous Growth
Barro, R. J. (1990) · Journal of Political Economy · doi:10.1086/261726 · Cited by 6,340
Self-citationAfrica's Growth Tragedy: Policies and Ethnic Divisions
Easterly, W., & Levine, R. (1997) · The Quarterly Journal of Economics · doi:10.1162/003355300555466 · Cited by 5,649
Estimating long-run relationships from dynamic heterogeneous panels
Pesaran, M. H., & Smith, R. (1995) · Journal of Econometrics · doi:10.1016/0304-4076(94)01644-f · Cited by 5,479
The economic costs of conflict: a case study of the Basque Country
Abadie, A., & Gardeazabal, J. (2003) · American Economic Review · doi:10.1257/000282803321455188 · Cited by 4,517
A new data set of educational attainment in the world, 1950–2010
Barro, R. J., & Lee, J. W. (2013) · Journal of Development Economics · doi:10.1016/j.jdeveco.2012.10.001 · Cited by 4,333
Self-citationFinance and the sources of growth
Beck, T., Levine, R., & Loayza, N. (2000) · Journal of Financial Economics · doi:10.1016/s0304-405x(00)00072-6 · Cited by 3,711
GMM Estimation with Cross Sectional Dependence
Conley, T. G. (1999) · Journal of Econometrics · doi:10.1016/s0304-4076(98)00084-0 · Cited by 2,685
Inequality and Growth in a Panel of Countries
Barro, R. J. (2000) · Journal of Economic Growth · doi:10.1023/a:1009850119329 · Cited by 2,676
Self-citationEconomic Shocks and Civil Conflict: An Instrumental Variables Approach
Miguel, E., Satyanath, S., & Sergenti, E. (2004) · Journal of Political Economy · doi:10.1086/421174 · Cited by 2,460
Income distribution, political instability, and investment
Alesina, A., & Perotti, R. (1996) · European Economic Review · doi:10.1016/0014-2921(95)00030-5 · Cited by 2,303
Learning about a New Technology: Pineapple in Ghana
Conley, T. G., & Udry, C. R. (2010) · American Economic Review · doi:10.1257/aer.100.1.35 · Cited by 2,180
Determinants of Economic Growth: A Cross-Country Empirical Study
Cooper, R. N., & Barro, R. J. (1997) · Foreign Affairs · doi:10.2307/20048292 · Cited by 2,001
Self-citationHuman Capital, Fertility, and Economic Growth
Becker, G. S., Murphy, K. M., & Tamura, R. (1990) · Journal of Political Economy · doi:10.1086/261723 · Cited by 1,988
Entrepreneurship, Innovation and Economic Growth: Evidence from GEM data
Wong, P. K., Ho, Y. P., & Autio, E. (2005) · Small Business Economics · doi:10.1007/s11187-005-2000-1 · Cited by 1,643
Does financial development cause economic growth? Time-series evidence from 16 countries
Demetriades, P. O., & Hussein, K. A. (1996) · Journal of Development Economics · doi:10.1016/s0304-3878(96)00421-x · Cited by 1,539
Hausmann, R., Pritchett, L., & Rodrik, D. (2005) · Journal of Economic Growth · doi:10.1007/s10887-005-4712-0 · Cited by 1,317
Pritchett, L. (1997) · Journal of Economic Perspectives · doi:10.1257/jep.11.3.3 · Cited by 1,228
Financial development and economic growth
De Gregorio, J., & Guidotti, P. E. (1995) · World Development · doi:10.1016/0305-750x(94)00132-i · Cited by 1,216
Human Capital and Regional Development *
Gennaioli, N., La Porta, R., Lopez-de-Silanes, F., & Shleifer, A. (2013) · The Quarterly Journal of Economics · doi:10.1093/qje/qjs050 · Cited by 1,082
Financial development, property rights, and growth
Claessens, S., & Laeven, L. (2003) · The Journal of Finance · doi:10.1046/j.1540-6261.2003.00610.x · Cited by 338
Financial Development and Economic Growth: Assessing the Evidence
Arestis, P., & Demetriades, P. (1997) · The Economic Journal · doi:10.1111/1468-0297.00193 · Cited by 989
I Just Ran Four Million Regressions
Sala-i-Martin, X. (1997) · doi:10.3386/w6252 · Cited by 960
Klasen, S., & Lamanna, F. (2009) · Feminist Economics · doi:10.1080/13545700902893106 · Cited by 887
Equity markets and growth: Cross-country evidence on timing and outcomes, 1980–1995
Rousseau, P. L., & Wachtel, P. (2000) · Journal of Banking & Finance · doi:10.1016/s0378-4266(99)00123-5 · Cited by 772
WHAT IS HAPPENING TO THE IMPACT OF FINANCIAL DEEPENING ON ECONOMIC GROWTH?
ROUSSEAU, P. L., & WACHTEL, P. (2011) · Economic Inquiry · doi:10.1111/j.1465-7295.2009.00197.x · Cited by 718
Ethnic diversity and economic development
Montalvo, J. G., & Reynal-Querol, M. (2005) · Journal of Development Economics · doi:10.1016/j.jdeveco.2004.01.002 · Cited by 712
The Natural Resource Curse: A Survey
Frankel, J. (2010) · doi:10.3386/w15836 · Cited by 655
Blunt Instruments: Avoiding Common Pitfalls in Identifying the Causes of Economic Growth
Bazzi, S., & Clemens, M. A. (2013) · American Economic Journal: Macroeconomics · doi:10.1257/mac.5.2.152 · Cited by 640
Does Mother Nature Corrupt? Natural Resources, Corruption, and Economic Growth
Leite, C., & Weidmann, J. (1999) · IMF Working Papers · doi:10.5089/9781451850734.001 · Cited by 604
Entrepreneurship, institutional economics, and economic growth: an ecosystem perspective
Acs, Z. J., Estrin, S., Mickiewicz, T., & Szerb, L. (2018) · Small Business Economics · doi:10.1007/s11187-018-0013-9 · Cited by 582
Samargandi, N., Fidrmuc, J., & Ghosh, S. (2015) · World Development · doi:10.1016/j.worlddev.2014.11.010 · Cited by 647
Kar, M., Nazlıoğlu, Ş., & Ağır, H. (2011) · Economic Modelling · doi:10.1016/j.econmod.2010.05.015 · Cited by 535
Economic Growth, Civil Wars, and Spatial Spillovers
MURDOCH, J. C., & SANDLER, T. (2002) · Journal of Conflict Resolution · doi:10.1177/0022002702046001006 · Cited by 534
How Important Are Financing Constraints? The Role of Finance in the Business Environment
Ayyagari, M., Demirgüç-Kunt, A., & Maksimovic, V. (2008) · The World Bank Economic Review · doi:10.1093/wber/lhn018 · Cited by 508
The innovation–economic growth nexus: Global evidence
Hasan, I., & Tucci, C. L. (2010) · Research Policy · doi:10.1016/j.respol.2010.07.005 · Cited by 496
Social capital and growth in European regions: an empirical test
Beugelsdijk, S., & van Schaik, T. (2005) · European Journal of Political Economy · doi:10.1016/j.ejpoleco.2004.07.004 · Cited by 407
Human capital and industrialization: Evidence from the age of enlightenment
Squicciarini, M. P., & Voigtländer, N. (2015) · The Quarterly Journal of Economics · doi:10.1093/qje/qjv025 · Cited by 384
Barro, R. J. (2015) · The Economic Journal · doi:10.1111/ecoj.12247 · Cited by 323
Self-citationModel Averaging and Its Use in Economics
Steel, M. F. J. (2020) · Journal of Economic Literature · doi:10.1257/jel.20191385 · Cited by 321
Did colonization matter for growth?
Bertocchi, G., & Canova, F. (2002) · European Economic Review · doi:10.1016/s0014-2921(01)00195-7 · Cited by 272
Asiaphoria Meets Regression to the Mean
Pritchett, L., & Summers, L. (2014) · doi:10.3386/w20573 · Cited by 224
Arregle, J., Miller, T. L., Hitt, M. A., & Beamish, P. W. (2013) · Strategic Management Journal · doi:10.1002/smj.2051 · Cited by 214
The evolution of comparative advantage: Measurement and welfare implications
Levchenko, A. A., & Zhang, J. (2016) · Journal of Monetary Economics · doi:10.1016/j.jmoneco.2016.01.005 · Cited by 211
Fiscal consequences of armed conflict and terrorism in low- and middle-income countries
Gupta, S., Clements, B., Bhattacharya, R., & Chakravarti, S. (2004) · European Journal of Political Economy · doi:10.1016/j.ejpoleco.2003.12.001 · Cited by 201
The Forgotten Rationale for Policy Reform: The Productivity of Investment Projects
Isham, J., & Kaufmann, D. (1999) · The Quarterly Journal of Economics · doi:10.1162/003355399555972 · Cited by 191
Choong, C.-K., Baharumshah, A. Z., Yusop, Z., & Habibullah, M. S. (2010) · Japan and the World Economy · doi:10.1016/j.japwor.2009.07.001 · Cited by 182
Does central bank independence really matter?
Haan, J. D., & Kooi, W. J. (2000) · Journal of Banking & Finance · doi:10.1016/s0378-4266(99)00084-9 · Cited by 176
Does entrepreneurship promote economic growth in Africa?
Adusei, M. (2016) · African Development Review · doi:10.1111/1467-8268.12190 · Cited by 147
Bilateral Trade in the Shadow of Armed Conflict
Long, A. G. (2008) · International Studies Quarterly · doi:10.1111/j.1468-2478.2007.00492.x · Cited by 124
Stock market development and economic growth in Africa
Ngare, E., Nyamongo, E. M., & Misati, R. N. (2014) · Journal of Economics and Business · doi:10.1016/j.jeconbus.2014.03.002 · Cited by 123
Lafuente, E., Acs, Z. J., Sanders, M., & Szerb, L. (2020) · Small Business Economics · doi:10.1007/s11187-019-00140-1 · Cited by 109
Is Economics Research Replicable? Sixty Published Papers from Thirteen Journals Say 'Usually Not'
Chang, A. C., & Li, P. (2015) · doi:10.2139/ssrn.2669564 · Cited by 217
AFRICA'S PROSPECTS FOR ENJOYING A DEMOGRAPHIC DIVIDEND
Bloom, D. E., Kuhn, M., & Prettner, K. (2017) · Journal of Demographic Economics · doi:10.1017/dem.2016.19 · Cited by 103
Financial intermediation and economic growth: Does income matter?
Seven, Ü., & Yetkiner, H. (2016) · Economic Systems · doi:10.1016/j.ecosys.2015.09.004 · Cited by 96
Growth equations: a quantile regression exploration
Mello, M., & Perrelli, R. (2003) · The Quarterly Review of Economics and Finance · doi:10.1016/s1062-9769(03)00043-7 · Cited by 93
Qamruzzaman, M., & Jianguo, W. (2018) · Financial Innovation · doi:10.1186/s40854-018-0103-3 · Cited by 92
Human Capital Persistence and Development
Rocha, R., Ferraz, C., & Soares, R. R. (2017) · American Economic Journal: Applied Economics · doi:10.1257/app.20150532 · Cited by 86
Growth, history, or institutions
Bertocchi, G., & Guerzoni, A. (2012) · Journal of Peace Research · doi:10.1177/0022343312452420 · Cited by 85
Political Stability - A Condition for Sustainable Growth in Romania?
Radu, M. (2015) · Procedia Economics and Finance · doi:10.1016/s2212-5671(15)01324-6 · Cited by 75
Adeleye, B. N., Bengana, I., Boukhelkhal, A., Shafiq, M. M., & Abdulkareem, H. K. K. (2022) · Social Indicators Research · doi:10.1007/s11205-021-02867-5 · Cited by 65
An, J., Huang, D., Lin, C., & Tai, M. (2025) · PNAS Nexus · doi:10.1093/pnasnexus/pgaf089 · Cited by 58
FDI and ICT effects on productivity growth
Yazdan, G. F., & Hossein, S. S. M. (2013) · Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences · doi:10.1016/j.sbspro.2013.10.104 · Cited by 51
Financial development, oil dependence and economic growth: Evidence from the Republic of Yemen
Badeeb, R. A., & Lean, H. H. (2017) · Studies in Economics and Finance · doi:10.1108/sef-07-2014-0137 · Cited by 48
Can aging population affect economic growth through the channel of government spending?
Temsumrit, N. (2023) · Heliyon · doi:10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e19521 · Cited by 44
Purewal, K., & Haini, H. (2022) · Economic Change and Restructuring · doi:10.1007/s10644-020-09316-2 · Cited by 41
Seti, T. M., Mazwane, S., & Christian, M. (2025) · Journal of Risk and Financial Management · doi:10.3390/jrfm18020078 · Cited by 39
Khan, A. A., Hidthir, M. H. B., Mansur, M., & Ahmad, Z. (2025) · Cogent Economics & Finance · doi:10.1080/23322039.2025.2476093 · Cited by 24
Anowor, O. F., Ichoku, H. E., Onodugo, V. A., Ochinanwata, C., & Uzomba, P. C. (2023) · Cogent Economics & Finance · doi:10.1080/23322039.2022.2160128 · Cited by 18
What Do Changes in State Test Scores Imply for Later Life Outcomes?
Doty, E., Kane, T., Patterson, T., & Staiger, D. (2022) · doi:10.3386/w30701 · Cited by 11
Amin, S. (2021) · Society and Business Review · doi:10.1108/sbr-01-2020-0007 · Cited by 9
The impact of stock market development on economic growth: A GMM approach
Ngoc Bui, T., & Thi Doan, T.-T. (2021) · Investment Management and Financial Innovations · doi:10.21511/imfi.18(3).2021.07 · Cited by 7
Brain Drain and Productivity Growth: Evidence From South Africa, 1947–2019
Fedderke, J., & Dong, X. (2026) · Economics of Transition and Institutional Change · doi:10.1111/ecot.70031
Metadata
- Authors
- Barro, R. J.
- Venue
- The Quarterly Journal of Economics
- Publisher
- Oxford University Press (OUP)
- Published
- 1991-05
- Volume
- 106
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 407
- ISSN
- 0033-5533 (ISSN-L)
- OpenAlex
- W2910573377
- Cited by
- 9,263
- References
- 0
- FWCI
- 186.80
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
About these checks
Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.
Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.
Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.
What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›
Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review
Data sources
Bibliographic data: Semantic Scholar, OpenAlex, Crossref.
Contains information from the Semantic Scholar Academic Graph Datasets, made available under the ODC Attribution License (ODC-BY 1.0).
Semantic Scholar’s data is described in: Kinney, R., et al. (2023). The Semantic Scholar Open Data Platform. arXiv:2301.10140.