Zak Taylor, Georgia Institute of Technology, Sam Nunn School of International Affairs
24 October 2012 @ 16:30
- Past event
“Why are Some Countries Better at Science and Technology than Others?”
abstract
In order to be effective, must a nation’s political-economic institutions “fit” the cultural values of the society in which they are situated? Many countries, especially in the developing world, adopt foreign institutions with mixed levels of success. Often these institutions are chosen based on their theoretical operation or past performance, but with little thought given to the fact that they may have originated and succeeded in distinctly different cultures. I recently published an article, in a highly ranked scholarly business journal, which uses statistical analysis to demonstrate that a strong correlation does exist between cultural values and national innovation rates in the long-run. I am currently working on the next step, which tests the hypothesis that free market institutions and policies work more effectively in national cultures which emphasize individuality and risk-taking; whereas interventionist institutions and policies work better in more collectivist, risk-averse cultures.