Income Inequality, Economic Freedom, and Economic Growth in Greece: A Multivariate Analysis

  • Conference paper
  • First Online:
Advances in Empirical Economic Research (ICOAE 2022)

Abstract

This empirical research applies the autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) econometric technique to investigate the long- and short-run effects of economic growth and economic freedom on income inequality in Greece between 1980 and 2019. This study advances previous empirical studies by incorporating two auxiliary variables into the aforementioned nexus: population growth and tertiary educational attainment. Considering our findings, it is envisaged that Greek policymakers should consider economic freedom as an important long-term goal when contemplating policies aimed at reducing income inequality. In the short term, however, economic growth appears more effective than economic freedom in promoting income equality. Finally, the two demographic variables, population and educational attainment, emerged as critical determinants in promoting income equality.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Subscribe and save

Springer+ Basic
EUR 32.99 /Month
  • Get 10 units per month
  • Download Article/Chapter or Ebook
  • 1 Unit = 1 Article or 1 Chapter
  • Cancel anytime
Subscribe now

Buy Now

Chapter
EUR 29.95
Price includes VAT (Germany)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
EUR 181.89
Price includes VAT (Germany)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Hardcover Book
EUR 235.39
Price includes VAT (Germany)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free ship** worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

References

  • Adams, R. H., Jr. (2004). Economic growth, inequality and poverty: Estimating the growth elasticity of poverty. World Development, 32(12), 1989–2014.

    Google Scholar 

  • Aghion, P., Caroli, E., & Garcia-Penalosa, C. (1999). Inequality and economic growth: The perspective of the new growth theories. Journal of Economic Literature, 37(4), 1615–1660.

    Google Scholar 

  • Andriopoulou, E., Karakitsios, A., & Tsakloglou, P. (2018). Inequality and poverty in Greece: Changes in times of crisis. In Socioeconomic fragmentation and exclusion in Greece under the crisis (pp. 23–54). Palgrave Macmillan.

    Google Scholar 

  • Andriopoulou, E., Kanavitsa, E., & Tsakloglou, P. (2019). Decomposing poverty in hard times: Greece 2007–2016. Revue d’Economie du Développement, 27(2), 125–168.

    Google Scholar 

  • Andriopoulou, E., Kanavitsa, E., & Tsakloglou, P. (2021). Distributional changes in turbulent times: Greece 2007–2016. Paper prepared for the 36th IARIW Virtual General Conference, August 23–27, 2021.

    Google Scholar 

  • Apergis, N. (2015). Economic freedom and income inequality: Further evidence from 58 countries in the long-run. Financial Theory and Practice, 39(4), 349–370.

    Google Scholar 

  • Apergis, N., & Cooray, A. (2017). Economic freedom and income inequality: Evidence from a panel of global economies—A linear and a non-linear long-run analysis. The Manchester School, 85(1), 88–105.

    Google Scholar 

  • Apergis, N., Dincer, O., & Payne, J. E. (2014). Economic freedom and income inequality revisited: Evidence from a panel error correction model. Contemporary Economic Policy, 32(1), 67–75.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ashby, N. J., & Sobel, R. S. (2008). Income inequality and economic freedom in the US states. Public Choice, 134(3), 329–346.

    Google Scholar 

  • Barro, R. J. (2000). Inequality and growth in a panel of countries. Journal of Economic Growth, 5(1), 5–32.

    Google Scholar 

  • Barro, R. J. (2008). Inequality and growth revisited (No. 11). ADB Working paper series on regional economic integration.

    Google Scholar 

  • Berggren, N. (1999). Economic freedom and equality: Friends or foes? Public Choice, 100(3), 203–223.

    Google Scholar 

  • Berggren, N. (2003). The benefits of economic freedom: A survey. The Independent Review, 8(2), 193–211.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bergh, A., & Bjørnskov, C. (2021). Does economic freedom boost growth for everyone? Kyklos, 74(2), 170–186.

    Google Scholar 

  • Brown, R. L., Durbin, J., & Evans, J. M. (1975). Techniques for testing the constancy of regression relationships over time. Journal of the Royal Statistical Society: Series B (Methodological), 37(2), 149–163.

    Google Scholar 

  • Carter, J. R. (2007). An empirical note on economic freedom and income inequality. Public Choice, 130(1), 163–177.

    Google Scholar 

  • Chancel, L., Piketty, T., Saez, E., & Zucman, G. (2022). World Inequality Report 2022. Available at: https://wir2022.wid.world/www-site/uploads/2022/03/0098-21_WIL_RIM_RAPPORT_A4.pdf

  • De Haan, J., Lundström, S., & Sturm, J. E. (2006). Market-oriented institutions and policies and economic growth: A critical survey. Journal of Economic Surveys, 20(2), 157–191.

    Google Scholar 

  • Dobson, S., & Ramlogan-Dobson, C. (2012). Why is corruption less harmful to income inequality in Latin America? World Development, 40(8), 1534–1545.

    Google Scholar 

  • Dwiputri, I. N., Arsyad, L., & Pradiptyo, R. (2018). The corruption-income inequality trap: A study of Asian countries (No. 2018-81). Economics Discussion Papers.

    Google Scholar 

  • Elliott, G., Rothenberg, T. J., & Stock, J. H. (1996). Efficient tests for an autoregressive unit root. Econometrica, 64(4), 813–836.

    Google Scholar 

  • Eurostat. (2022). Database. https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/web/main/data/database. Accessed at April 18, 2022.

  • Fawaz, F., Rahnama, M., & Valcarcel, V. J. (2014). A refinement of the relationship between economic growth and income inequality. Applied Economics, 46(27), 3351–3361.

    Google Scholar 

  • Fraser Institute (2022). Available at: https://www.fraserinstitute.org/economic-freedom/economic-freedom-basics

  • Glaeser, E. L. (2005). Inequality (Working Paper No. 11511). National Bureau of Economic Research, Cambridge, MA.

    Google Scholar 

  • Glomm, G., & Kaganovich, M. (2008). Social security, public education and the growth–inequality relationship. European Economic Review, 52(6), 1009–1034.

    Google Scholar 

  • González Gordón, I., & Resosudarmo, B. P. (2019). A sectoral growth-income inequality nexus in Indonesia. Regional Science Policy & Practice, 11(1), 123–139.

    Google Scholar 

  • Graafland, J., & Lous, B. (2018). Economic freedom, income inequality and life satisfaction in OECD countries. Journal of Happiness Studies, 19(7), 2071–2093.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gwartney, J. D., Holcombe, R. G., & Lawson, R. A. (2006). Institutions and the impact of investment on growth. Kyklos, 59(2), 255–273.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hall, J. C., Sobel, R. S., & Crowley, G. R. (2010). Institutions, capital, and growth. Southern Economic Journal, 77(2), 385–405.

    Google Scholar 

  • Han, V., Ocal, O., & Aslan, A. (2022). A revisit to the relationship between globalization and income inequality: Are levels of development really paramount? Quality & Quantity, 1–18. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11135-022-01402-z

  • Heritage Foundation. (2022). Heritage Foundation’s report. Available at: https://www.heritage.org/index/pdf/2022/book/2022_IndexOfEconomicFreedom_FINAL.pdf

  • Islam, M. R. (2018). Wealth inequality, democracy and economic freedom. Journal of Comparative Economics, 46(4), 920–935.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jalil, A. (2012). Modeling income inequality and openness in the framework of Kuznets curve: New evidence from China. Economic Modelling, 29(2), 309–315.

    Google Scholar 

  • Karakotsios, A., Katrakilidis, C., Dimitriadis, D., & Christoforidis, T. (2020). Examining the relationship between income inequality, taxation and economic freedom: A panel cointegration approach. Economics and Business Letters, 9(3), 206–215.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kemp, M. C., & Tran-Nam, B. (2012). The gains from international trade and international aid in the presence of public goods. Global Journal of Economics, 1(01), 1250008.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kufenko, V., & Geloso, V. (2021). Who are the champions? Inequality, economic freedom and the Olympics. Journal of Institutional Economics, 17(3), 411–427.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kuznets, S. (1955). International differences in capital formation and financing. In Capital formation and economic growth (pp. 19–111). Princeton University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lee, J. W., & Lee, H. (2018). Human capital and income inequality. Journal of the Asia Pacific Economy, 23(4), 554–583.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lee, C. C., & Wang, E. Z. (2021). Economic complexity and income inequality: Does country risk matter? Social Indicators Research, 154(1), 35–60.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lee, C. C., Lee, C. C., & Lien, D. (2020). Income inequality, globalization, and country risk: A cross-country analysis. Technological and Economic Development of Economy, 26(2), 379–404.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lütkepohl, H. (1982). Non-causality due to omitted variables. Journal of Econometrics, 19(2–3), 367–378.

    Google Scholar 

  • Malinen, T. (2012). Estimating the long-run relationship between income inequality and economic development. Empirical Economics, 42(1), 209–233.

    Google Scholar 

  • Meschi, E., & Vivarelli, M. (2009). Trade and income inequality in develo** countries. World Development, 37(2), 287–302.

    Google Scholar 

  • Milner, M., Jr. (1987). Theories of inequality: An overview and a strategy for synthesis. Social Forces, 65(4), 1053–1089.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ng, S., & Perron, P. (2001). Lag length selection and the construction of unit root tests with good size and power. Econometrica, 69(6), 1519–1554.

    Google Scholar 

  • Perez, S. A., & Matsaganis, M. (2018). The political economy of austerity in Southern Europe. New Political Economy, 23(2), 192–207.

    Google Scholar 

  • Persson, T., & Tabellini, G. (1994). Does centralization increase the size of government? European Economic Review, 38(3–4), 765–773.

    Google Scholar 

  • Pesaran, M. H., Shin, Y., & Smith, R. P. (1999). Pooled mean group estimation of dynamic heterogeneous panels. Journal of the American statistical Association, 94(446), 621–634.

    Google Scholar 

  • Pesaran, M. H., Shin, Y., & Smith, R. J. (2001). Bounds testing approaches to the analysis of level relationships. Journal of Applied Econometrics, 16(3), 289–326.

    Google Scholar 

  • Policardo, L., & Carrera, E. J. S. (2018). Corruption causes inequality, or is it the other way around? An empirical investigation for a panel of countries. Economic Analysis and Policy, 59, 92–102.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sarkhosh-Sara, A., Nasrollahi, K., Azarbayjani, K., & Bakhshi Dastjerdi, R. (2020). Comparative analysis of the effects of institutional factors and Piketty’s Hypothesis on inequality: Evidence from a panel of countries. Journal of Economic Structures, 9(1), 1–28.

    Google Scholar 

  • Scully, G. W. (2002). Economic freedom, government policy and the trade-off between equity and economic growth. Public choice, 113(1), 77–96.

    Google Scholar 

  • Shahbaz, M. (2010). Income inequality-economic growth and non-linearity: A case of Pakistan. International Journal of Social Economics., 37, 613–636.

    Google Scholar 

  • Shahbaz, M., Rehman, I. U., & Mahdzan, N. S. A. (2014). Linkages between income inequality, international remittances and economic growth in Pakistan. Quality & Quantity, 48(3), 1511–1535.

    Google Scholar 

  • Simpson, M. (1990). Political rights and income inequality: A cross-national test. American Sociological Review, 682–693.

    Google Scholar 

  • Solt, F. (2020). Measuring income inequality across countries and over time: The Standardized World Income Inequality Database. Social Science Quarterly, 101(3), 1183–1199. SWIID Version 9.2, December 2021. (Pre-print available here.).

    Google Scholar 

  • Sulemana, I., & Kpienbaareh, D. (2018). An empirical examination of the relationship between income inequality and corruption in Africa. Economic Analysis and Policy, 60, 27–42.

    Google Scholar 

  • Teixeira, A. A., & Loureiro, A. S. (2019). FDI, income inequality and poverty: A time series analysis of Portugal, 1973–2016. Portuguese Economic Journal, 18(3), 203–249.

    Google Scholar 

  • Tsitouras, A., Koulakiotis, A. D., Makris, G., & Papapanagos, H. (2017). International trade and foreign direct investment as growth stimulators in transition economies: Does the impact of institutional factors matter? Investment Management and Financial Innovations, 14(4), 148–170. https://doi.org/10.21511/imfi.14(4).2017.13

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Webster, A. L. (2013a). Is there feed-back between economic freedom and economic growth: A comparative granger-causality test based on quartiles. Applied Econometrics and International Development, 13(1), 11–24.

    Google Scholar 

  • Webster, A. L. (2013b). The relationship between economic freedom and income equality in the United States. International Business & Economics Research Journal (IBER), 12(5), 469–476.

    Google Scholar 

  • World Bank. (2021). World development indicators. World Bank.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Antonis Tsitouras .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2023 The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG

About this paper

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this paper

Tsitouras, A., Papapanagos, H. (2023). Income Inequality, Economic Freedom, and Economic Growth in Greece: A Multivariate Analysis. In: Tsounis, N., Vlachvei, A. (eds) Advances in Empirical Economic Research. ICOAE 2022. Springer Proceedings in Business and Economics. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-22749-3_30

Download citation

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Navigation