Caselli, Francesco ORCID: 0009-0001-5191-7156 and Cunningham, Tom (2009) Leader behavior and the natural resource curse. CEP discussion papers (913). London School of Economics and Political Science. Centre for Economic Performance, London, UK.
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Abstract
We discuss political economy mechanisms which can explain the resource curse, in which an increase in the size of resource rents causes a decrease in the economy’s total value added. We identify a number of channels through which resource rents will alter the incentives of a political leader. Some of these induce greater investment by the leader in assets that favour growth (infrastructure, rule of law, etc.), others lead to a potentially catastrophic drop in such activities. As a result, the effect of resource abundance can be highly non-monotonic. We argue that it is critical to understand how resources affect the leader’s "survival function", i.e. the reduced-form probability of retaining power. We also briefly survey decentralised mechanisms, in which rents induce a reallocation of labour by private agents, crowding out productive activity more than proportionately. We argue that these mechanisms cannot be fully understood without simultaneously studying leader behaviour.
Item Type: | Monograph (Discussion Paper) |
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Official URL: | http://cep.lse.ac.uk/_new/publications/year.asp |
Additional Information: | © 2009 the authors |
Divisions: | Centre for Economic Performance Economics |
Subjects: | H Social Sciences > HC Economic History and Conditions |
JEL classification: | O - Economic Development, Technological Change, and Growth > O1 - Economic Development > O11 - Macroeconomic Analyses of Economic Development P - Economic Systems > P2 - Socialist Systems and Transitional Economies > P26 - Political Economy; Property Rights O - Economic Development, Technological Change, and Growth > O1 - Economic Development > O13 - Agriculture; Natural Resources; Energy; Environment; Other Primary Products |
Date Deposited: | 07 Oct 2009 16:28 |
Last Modified: | 01 Oct 2024 03:18 |
URI: | http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/id/eprint/25430 |
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