The Role of Democracy in Economic Growth

Merrick Hall Room 201

The question of economic growth and its relationship with a country’s political regime is not one that is new in political science and international relations. Many social scientists have investigated the veracity of this hypothesis and therefore have conducted several studies to validate and/or invalidate this commonly held belief within the community. In fact, different patterns of economic development have been identified in different parts of the world. And, clearly, there is not a one size fits all answer. There is evidence of authoritarian regimes with exponential growth, while there are also democracies struggling to bring their economy to a point where it flourishes to the benefit of their population. Moreover, many other types of political regimes are experiencing different phases in their economy. Therefore, concerns arise about whether authoritarianism really affects a country’s economic growth and makes it less likely to experience growth. This was my subject of investigation for my independent study and that is what I will be presenting at the Student Symposium.