Should the Modernization Hypothesis Survive Acemoglu, Johnson, Robinson, and Yared? Some More Evidence

Hugo J. Faria, Hugo M. Montesinos-Yufa and Daniel R. Morales

Econ Journal Watch, 2014, vol. 11, issue 1, 17-36

Abstract: An important dimension of the “modernization hypothesis” is the claim that there is a long-run positive relation between socio-economic development and political democracy. This research strand of the modernization hypothesis, however, has been challenged in a series of papers by Daron Acemoglu, Simon Johnson, James Robinson, and Pierre Yared. Employing econometric specifications that condition on lagged democracy, income, education, time effects, and a proxy for the level of capitalist institutions, and applying the System Generalized Method of Moments estimator to a sample that spans recent decades, we find, in congruence with the modernization hypothesis, that income and education predict democracy.

Keywords: Modernization hypothesis; political development; capitalism; system GMM estimator (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: C33 D72 O10 P10 P16 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2014
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:ejw:journl:v:11:y:2014:i:1:p:17-36

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