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An Institutional Perspective on Religious Freedom and Economic Growth

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  29 March 2017

Ilan Alon ,
Shaomin Li  and
Jun Wu
Ilan Alon*
Affiliation:
University of Agder
Shaomin Li*
Affiliation:
Old Dominion University
Jun Wu*
Affiliation:
Savannah State University
*
Address correspondence and reprint requests to: Ilan Alon, University of Agder, School of Business and Law, Post Box 422, 4604 Kristiansand, Norway. E-mail: ilan.alon@uia.no; or to: Shaomin Li, Old Dominion University, Norfolk, VA 23529. E-mail: sli@odu.edu; or to: Jun Wu, College of Business Administration, Savannah State University, 3219 College Street, Savannah, GA, 31401. E-mail: wuj@savannahstate.edu.
Address correspondence and reprint requests to: Ilan Alon, University of Agder, School of Business and Law, Post Box 422, 4604 Kristiansand, Norway. E-mail: ilan.alon@uia.no; or to: Shaomin Li, Old Dominion University, Norfolk, VA 23529. E-mail: sli@odu.edu; or to: Jun Wu, College of Business Administration, Savannah State University, 3219 College Street, Savannah, GA, 31401. E-mail: wuj@savannahstate.edu.
Address correspondence and reprint requests to: Ilan Alon, University of Agder, School of Business and Law, Post Box 422, 4604 Kristiansand, Norway. E-mail: ilan.alon@uia.no; or to: Shaomin Li, Old Dominion University, Norfolk, VA 23529. E-mail: sli@odu.edu; or to: Jun Wu, College of Business Administration, Savannah State University, 3219 College Street, Savannah, GA, 31401. E-mail: wuj@savannahstate.edu.
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Abstract

The increase in religion-related conflicts around the world emphasizes the urgent need for a better understanding of the role of religion and religious freedom on socio-economic development, both theoretically and empirically. While studies on the role of religion on economic development have existed as early as Weber (1905), there is a dearth of studies on the effect of religious freedom on economic growth, and the existing studies overlook possible negative impacts on economies by unrestricted religious freedom. Drawing on institutional theory, we propose that different types of religious restrictions can exert either positive or negative effects on economic growth. We test our propositions using a comprehensive dataset on religious freedom covering 198 countries for seven years from 2007 to 2013.

Type
Articles
Information
Politics and Religion , Volume 10 , Issue 3 , September 2017 , pp. 689 - 716
Copyright
Copyright © Religion and Politics Section of the American Political Science Association 2017 

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