RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN HUMAN DEVELOPMENT AND ECONOMIC GROWTH: PANEL DATA ANALYSIS FOR TURKISH REPUBLICS

Abstract

The aim of the study was to determine the relationship between human development level and economic growth on the selected Turkish Republics including the Turkey. The relationship between human development index and economic growth, foreign direct investments and R & D Expenditures were examined by panel data analysis method on the Azerbaijan, Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC), Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, Tajikistan, Turkey and Uzbekistan economy. On the other hand ?n the study, annual data for the 2001-2015 period were used. In econometric application, the stationarity of the series was examined by Hadri-Kurozumi (2012) test, which is one of the new generation unit root tests. The existence of cointegration relations was analyzed by ECM test developed by Westerlund (2007). Finally, AMG (Augmented Mean Group estimator) method was used to estimate long term coefficients. According to the results, a statistically significant and positive relationship was found between human development level and economic growth and R & D Expenditures in the countries included in the analysis. However, there is a statistically significant and negative relationship between human development level and foreign direct investment.