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Government education expenditures and economic growth: a meta-analysis

Author

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  • Awaworyi Churchill Sefa

    (RMIT University, School of Economics, Finance and Marketing, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia)

  • Ugur Mehmet

    (University of Greenwich, London, London, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland)

  • Yew Siew Ling

    (Monash University, Caulfield Campus, Department of Economics, Caulfield East, Victoria, Australia)

Abstract

Using a sample of 237 estimates drawn from 29 primary studies, we conduct a hierarchical meta-regression analysis that examines the association between economic growth and government expenditure on education. We find that the effect of government education expenditure on growth is positive for developed countries. However, when the evidence pertains to less developed countries (LDCs), we find a statistically insignificant association. We also examine the heterogeneity in empirical results and found that factors such as econometric specifications, publication characteristics as well as data characteristics explain the heterogeneity in the literature. We find no evidence of publication selectivity.

Suggested Citation

  • Awaworyi Churchill Sefa & Ugur Mehmet & Yew Siew Ling, 2017. "Government education expenditures and economic growth: a meta-analysis," The B.E. Journal of Macroeconomics, De Gruyter, vol. 17(2), pages 1-17, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:bpj:bejmac:v:17:y:2017:i:2:p:17:n:14
    DOI: 10.1515/bejm-2016-0109
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    2. Łukasz Goczek & Ewa Witkowska & Bartosz Witkowski, 2021. "How Does Education Quality Affect Economic Growth?," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(11), pages 1-22, June.
    3. Agung Suwandaru & Thamer Alghamdi & Nurwanto Nurwanto, 2021. "Empirical Analysis on Public Expenditure for Education and Economic Growth: Evidence from Indonesia," Economies, MDPI, vol. 9(4), pages 1-13, October.
    4. Pedro Bação & Marta Simões, 0. "Is the Welfare State Relevant for Economic Growth? Evidence for Portugal," Comparative Economic Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Association for Comparative Economic Studies, vol. 0, pages 1-27.
    5. Awaworyi Churchill, Sefa & Iqbal, Nasir & Nawaz, Saima & Yew, Siew Ling, 2021. "Unconditional cash transfers, child labour and education: theory and evidence," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 186(C), pages 437-457.
    6. Sefa Awaworyi Churchill & Siew Ling Yew, 2018. "The effect of military expenditure on growth: an empirical synthesis," Empirical Economics, Springer, vol. 55(3), pages 1357-1387, November.
    7. Sefa Awaworyi Churchill & Hoang M. Luong & Mehmet Ugur, 2022. "Does intellectual property protection deliver economic benefits? A multi‐outcome meta‐regression analysis of the evidence," Journal of Economic Surveys, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 36(5), pages 1477-1509, December.
    8. Janina Kotlinska & Joanna Nucinska & Jacek Bednarz, 2021. "Education Financing: Explaining the Expenditure Concentration Gap between the State and Local Governments in Poland 2008-2019," European Research Studies Journal, European Research Studies Journal, vol. 0(2), pages 564-578.
    9. Awaworyi Churchill, S. & Yew, S.L., 2017. "Are government transfers harmful to economic growth? A meta-analysis," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 64(C), pages 270-287.
    10. Natalia I. Doré & Aurora A. C. Teixeira, 2023. "Empirical Literature on Economic Growth, 1991–2020: Uncovering Extant Gaps and Avenues for Future Research," Global Journal of Emerging Market Economies, Emerging Markets Forum, vol. 15(1), pages 7-37, January.
    11. Harman Preet Singh & Ajay Singh & Fakhre Alam & Vikas Agrawal, 2022. "Impact of Sustainable Development Goals on Economic Growth in Saudi Arabia: Role of Education and Training," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(21), pages 1-25, October.
    12. Pedro Bação & Marta Simões, 2020. "Is the Welfare State Relevant for Economic Growth? Evidence for Portugal," Comparative Economic Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Association for Comparative Economic Studies, vol. 62(3), pages 494-520, September.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    economic growth; government education expenditure; human capital;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • H52 - Public Economics - - National Government Expenditures and Related Policies - - - Government Expenditures and Education
    • O4 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Growth and Aggregate Productivity

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