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• We scrutinize a global database of estimated returns to agricultural R&D investments. • Reported R&D returns differ substantially between developed and developing countries. There is widespread professional consensus that agricultural research and development (R&D) realizes high economic returns, though there are concerns as to whether the returns have been declining over the past few decades and are unevenly distributed among different regions in the world. This study examines both the time trend (i.e., increasing or decreasing) and regional developmental differences in the reported returns to agricultural R&D. Using a newly updated and expanded global database of estimated returns to agricultural R&D and a robust statistical methodology, we find that after accounting for methodological changes and other study attributes that have varied over time, the contemporary returns to agricultural R&D investments are as high as ever. We also conduct a Oaxaca decomposition to assess the relative importance of differences among countries in study attributes (e.g., what research was evaluated, by whom, and how) versus differences in how these attributes relate to the IRR (e.g., model parameter estimates). We find that the regional differences in study attributes tend to result in higher IRR estimates in developed countries, whereas developing versus developed country differences in the marginal effects of the attributes on the estimated IRRs tend to result in higher estimates in developing countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Deceleration of economic growth is a characteristic feature of developed countries. Percentage gross domestic product (GDP) growth rate in the old Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries has decreased approximately 2–3 times over the last 50 years, and countries have managed successfully to adopt this trend. The largest reduction of GDP growth rate was observed in countries such as Japan where the biocapacity exceedance was the largest. In addition, the analysis of long-term changes of GDP and self-reported life satisfaction in developed countries supports Easterlin's paradox indicating that richer people do not feel more satisfied with their lives; however, people from countries with higher per capita GDP feel more satisfied. At the same time, a statistically insignificant correlation was detected between GDP growth rate and life satisfaction, supporting a conclusion that in the developed countries further economic growth does not increase people's well-being. This suggests that decelerating the rate of economic growth gradually approaching the zero growth (steady state) phase is the natural way towards sustainability and it does not contradict the well-being objective in developed countries, especially ones with high biocapacity exceedance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It has been argued that Raven's tests are problematic in the context of Sub-Saharan Africa. No discussion of Raven's in South Sudan, one of the least developed countries in Africa, has been presented. We present all known administrations of Raven's to South Sudanese samples. We find that Raven's in South Sudan is problematic. The scores are so low that they may imply that the subjects had little understanding of the test and simply guessed the answers. It is argued that the undeveloped nature of South Sudan means that a test based around shapes and analytic thinking is unsuitable. It is likely to heavily under-estimate their average intelligence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyzes the impact of information and communication technologies (ICT) on economic growth in developing, emerging and developed countries. The main question is whether the gains from investments in ICT differ between developing, emerging and developed countries. The analysis is based on a high-quality sample of 59 countries for the period 1995–2010. Various panel data regressions confirm the previously reported positive relationship between ICT capital and GDP growth. For the combined sample of all 59 countries, the estimated output elasticity of ICT is larger than the ICT factor compensation share suggesting excess returns to ICT capital. The regressions for the subsamples of developing, emerging and developed countries do not reveal statistically significant differences in the output elasticity of ICT between these three groups of countries. Thus, the results indicate that developing and emerging countries are not gaining more from investments in ICT than developed economies, calling into question the argument that these countries are ‘leapfrogging’ through ICT. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary Using data from the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM), we examine data from developed and developing countries to estimate the “growth penalty” over 2003–11 when a country’s entrepreneurship deviates from its optimal level. We account for heterogeneity among countries in the optimal entrepreneurship rate, in the growth penalty from deviating from that optimum, and in other factors affecting growth. Notwithstanding that developing countries have more of their population running nascent small firms than in developed countries, a marginal increase in the entrepreneurship rate in developing countries has a positive effect on growth. On the contrary, in developed countries, there is no evident growth penalty. Supplemental results suggest that is because in developed countries as a whole, entrepreneurship is now close to its optimal level, whereas in developing countries the optimal rates of entrepreneurship are much higher. We also explore how the growth penalty varies with characteristics of the country, allowing us to test theories regarding the relationship between entrepreneurship and growth. We show that higher levels of R&D capability decrease the growth penalty of having too few entrepreneurs, suggesting that entrepreneurship and R&D are substitutes. Availability of venture capital also increases the growth penalty, but only in developing countries, where our data on venture capital best proxy its availability to start-ups. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates the economic efficiency–oil consumption relationship in 42 countries during the period 1986–2006. In a first stage by using DEA window analysis countries' economic efficiencies are obtained. In a second stage an econometric analysis based on robust GMM estimators reveals an inverted ‘U’-shape relationship between oil consumption and economic efficiency. In order to capture heterogeneities among countries' development stages the analysis has been separated into two groups (advanced economies and developing/emerging economies). The results show that advanced economies have much higher turning points compared to emerging and developing economies. It appears that oil consumption increases countries' economic efficiency. In addition the consumption patterns of oil products and its derivatives have changed through years and among countries. The different turning points from the econometric analysis indicate the dependence of oil consumption in advanced economies (higher turning points) is driven mainly by household purchasing activities and their standards of living (transport, housing and water, food, etc.). Finally, it appears that oil consumption is the main driver behind the progress of industrialization and urbanization regardless of the country's development stage. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: This paper introduces a new framework for projecting potential growth of the world economy, emphasizing the contribution of information technology. We first analyze the sources of economic growth for the world economy, seven regions, and fourteen major economies during four periods—1989–1995, 1995–2000, 2000–2004, and 2004–2008. The contribution of investment in information technology has increased in all regions, but especially in industrialized economies and Developing Asia. We then project the potential growth rates of labor productivity and GDP for 122 economies over the ten-year period 2009–2019. Relative to historical growth for 1989–2008, we project lower growth rates for productivity and GDP. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Among adults of industrial nations, growth stunting (<−2 SD height Z score) is associated with worse indicators of adult well-being (e.g., income). Does adult stunting also inflict private costs in traditional societies? Adult stunting penalties or height premiums might only emerge when traditional societies modernize. Here we estimate the association between adult stunting and indicators of adult well-being using data from a panel study in progress among the Tsimane’, a foraging–farming society of native Amazonians in Bolivia. Subjects included 248 women and 255 men ≥age 22 measured annually during 5 consecutive years (2002–2006). Nine outcomes (wealth, monetary income, illness, access to credit, mirth, schooling, math skills, plant knowledge, forest clearance) were regressed separately against a stunting dummy variable and a wide range of control variables. We found no significant association between any of the indicators of own well-being and adult stunting. Additional analysis showed that stunting bore an association only with poorer mid-arm muscle area. Height premiums and stunting penalties, though evident and marked in modern societies, might not be common in all traditional societies. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Summary: This paper explores how the choice of a country’s exchange rate regime may affect exchange rate misalignment for developing and developed countries. A measure of misalignment is obtained by using a panel cointegration vector estimator. This paper finds that for developing countries, an intermediate exchange rate regime (a regime falling somewhere between a pure float and a hard peg) is most effective in preventing exchange rate misalignment. Additionally, the choice of an exchange rate regime as a means to limit misalignment matters for developing countries, but does not seem to matter for developed countries. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The main goal of this article is to explain why the fixed workweek appeared. To this purpose we differentiate between “jobs” and “hours per job”. We consider an economy where hours and number of workers are substitutes in production but in which hiring a worker entails a fixed cost plus a variable cost per hour worked. As a consequence, firms would like workers to work as many hours as possible. In an unregulated economy, workers work more hours that they would like to at the on-going wage rate. This situation characterizes the economy of today’s industrialized countries in the 19th century. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: In contrast to the relative stagnation of economic growth in industrialized countries with mature economies, the so-called BRIC countries have shown conspicuous economic growth in the early 21st century. Brazil, Russia, India, and China currently depend on their geographic advantages for economic development, as they possess abundant natural resources and collectively account for 28.9% of the world''s land area and 43.2% of its population. However, as the development trajectories for industrialized countries suggest, sustainable development in BRICs requires innovation for effective utilization of potential resources. Given that the co-evolutionary dynamism between innovation and institutional systems is paramount to innovation driven economies, sustainability of BRICs'' economic growth is subject to such co-evolution. Institutional systems are similar to soil in that they cultivate emerging innovation. Recent dramatic advances in information and communication technology (ICT) in BRICs have had a significant impact on the advancement of their institutional systems. Therefore, ICT is expected to trigger co-evolution that will lead to sustainable development in BRICs by means of effective utilization of potential resources. This paper attempts to demonstrate the foregoing hypothetical expectations by means of an empirical analysis comparing co-evolutionary structures in 40 countries and also ICT''s triggering role in the four BRIC countries. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Energy arguably plays a vital role in economic development. Hence many studies have attempted to test for causality between energy and economic growth; however, no consensus has emerged. This paper, therefore, tests for causality between energy and GDP using a consistent data set and methodology for over 100 countries. Causality from energy to GDP is found to be more prevalent in the developed OECD countries compared to the developing non-OECD countries; implying that a policy to reduce energy consumption aimed at reducing emissions is likely to have greater impact on the GDP of the developed rather than the developing world. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]