Global Transfer of Arms Technology and its Impact on Economic Growth
Author(s)
Li, His-Cheng; Mirmirani, Sam
Abstract
The Malmquist index is used to measure the impact of military technology transfer on economic growth. This index can be decomposed into two components: efficiency change and technical change. Given the aggregate production function, the effect of technology diffusion on growth is measured by efficiency change. The shift in aggregate production function due to innovative activities is measured by technical change. An analysis of 16 American and European countries over the period 1978-1994 reveals that the total impact of arms trade on growth, measured in terms of the Malmquist index, varies across countries. Contrary to common belief, the findings of this study do not suggest that industrial countries have more efficient utilization of foreign military technology than do developing countries. The evidence also shows that the difference in total impact among countries is primarily due to the differences in efficiency change, not technical change.
