Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/257197 
Year of Publication: 
2021
Citation: 
[Journal:] Economies [ISSN:] 2227-7099 [Volume:] 9 [Issue:] 1 [Article No.:] 39 [Publisher:] MDPI [Place:] Basel [Year:] 2021 [Pages:] 1-22
Publisher: 
MDPI, Basel
Abstract: 
This study mainly examines the relationship between generalized/horizontal/social trust and economic growth in countries in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, considering the substantial decline in their trust values since 2005. The study utilizes a multiple linear regression model based on panel data comprising 104 countries over the period from 1999 to 2020. Trust data were obtained from the last four waves of the World Values Survey (WVS). A Pooled Ordinary Least Squares (POLS) estimation technique was used, and interaction terms between trust and several dummy variables were employed. The results show an overall positive and significant relationship between trust and economic growth in the general model and for all country classifications, except for MENA, where the overall relationship is negative but almost negligible. Trust has the highest impact on growth in transition economies, followed in order by developing Asia, developed, developing/Sub-Saharan Africa, developing America, and then MENA countries. Further investigations reveal that the overall negative/reversed effect of trust on economic growth in MENA is only during waves 6 and 7, where the coefficients are sizable.
Subjects: 
Arab Spring
democracy
developing countries
economic growth
generalized trust
horizontal trust
MENA
social capital
social trust
WVS
Persistent Identifier of the first edition: 
Creative Commons License: 
cc-by Logo
Document Type: 
Article

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