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Is education really underfunded in resource-rich economies? Evidence from a panel of U.S. states

Author

Listed:
  • Alexander James

    (Department of Economics and Public Policy, University of Alaska Anchorage)

Abstract

Existing development literature has argued that natural-resource endowments ``curse'' economic prosperity by reducing expenditures on education. According to this theory, public and private agents lack sufficient foresight to make optimal economic decisions and become poor as a result. Using a panel of U.S. state-level data, this paper offers evidence to the contrary. Public spending on education in resource-rich states greatly exceeds that in resource-scarce ones, and private education services are imperfectly crowded out as a result. More generally, this paper highlights the importance of exploiting both spatial and temporal variation in resource wealth when studying resource-rich economies.

Suggested Citation

  • Alexander James, 2015. "Is education really underfunded in resource-rich economies? Evidence from a panel of U.S. states," Working Papers 2015-01, University of Alaska Anchorage, Department of Economics.
    • Handle: RePEc:ala:wpaper:2015-01
    as

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    File URL: http://www.econpapers.uaa.alaska.edu/RePEC/ala/wpaper/ALA201501.pdf
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
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    Cited by:

    1. Joseph Marchand & Jeremy Weber, 2018. "Local Labor Markets And Natural Resources: A Synthesis Of The Literature," Journal of Economic Surveys, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 32(2), pages 469-490, April.
    2. Hilmawan, Rian & Clark, Jeremy, 2021. "Resource dependence and the causes of local economic growth: An empirical investigation," Australian Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics, Australian Agricultural and Resource Economics Society, vol. 65(03), January.
    3. Michieka, Nyakundi M. & Gearhart, Richard S., 2018. "Resource curse? The case of Kern County," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 59(C), pages 446-459.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Natural Resources; Education; Public Policy; Resource Curse;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • Q32 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Nonrenewable Resources and Conservation - - - Exhaustible Resources and Economic Development
    • Q33 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Nonrenewable Resources and Conservation - - - Resource Booms (Dutch Disease)
    • Q38 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Nonrenewable Resources and Conservation - - - Government Policy (includes OPEC Policy)

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