Social Conditions and Economic Performance: The Bond Between Social Structure and Regional Growth in Western Europe

Andrés Rodríguez‐Pose
Authors registered in the RePEc Author Service: Andrés Rodríguez-Pose

International Journal of Urban and Regional Research, 1998, vol. 22, issue 3, 443-459

Abstract: This article tries to assess, by resorting to the use of cluster analysis techniques, the relationship between economic growth and social structure at a regional level in western Europe. It is argued that the processes of socio‐economic restructuring and structural change have rendered the traditional factors determining the location of economic activity more mobile. Hence, since regional disparities tend to persist, the connection between growth and the underlying social conditions has become more visible. The empirical results of the analysis show that there is a robust association between economic growth and the local social forces, and that this relationship is not only evident in the so‐called ‘new growth spaces’, as pinpointed by most of the literature on structural change, but in almost any type of region. Moreover, the results reveal that there is no unique social mix associated with low or high growth, and that similar levels of economic growth might be achieved in very different social environments. Utilisant des techniques d’analyse de groupe, cet article essaie d’évaluer la relation entre la croissance économique et la structure sociale à un niveau régional en Europe occidentale. Je soutiens que les processus de restructuration socio‐économique et le changement structurel ont rendu plus mobiles les facteurs traditionnels qui déterminent où les activités économiques sont situées. Le lien entre la croissance et les conditions sociales fondamentales est donc rendu plus apparent puisque les disparités régionales tendent à persister. Les résultats empiriques de l’analyse montrent qu’il y a une forte association entre la croissance économique et les forces sociales locales, et que cette relation n’est pas seulement évidente dans les soi‐disant ‘nouveaux espaces de croissance», comme il est indiqué dans de nombreux écrits sur le changement structurel, mais dans presque tous les types de régions. De plus, les résultats révèlent qu’aucun mélange social n’est associéà un niveau bas ou à un niveau élevé de croissance, et que des niveaux de croissance similaires peuvent être achevés dans des environnements sociaux très différents.

Date: 1998
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