Donor Characteristics and the Dispersion of Foreign Assistance
Author(s)
Breuning, M.; Ishiyama, John T.
Abstract
What motivates states to provide foreign aid? Many, sometimes contradictory, answers have been offered. This study seeks to contribute to the debate in two ways: First, while most studies have sought to explain the amount of aid given, we seek to explain the distribution of that aid. Whether aid is concentrated on a few recipients or dispersed widely among many reflects the policy priorities of the donor. Second, previous studies have rarely employed time series cross-section data. We include data for 17 members of the Development Assistance Committee for 13 years (1983-1995) and employ an ordinary least-squares technique with panel-corrected standard errors. We find that the proportion of parliamentary seats held by left parties is the only variable in our model that provides a statistically significant explanation of the dispersion of development aid.
