Developing Knowledge States: Technology and the Enhancement of National Statistical Capacity

TL;DR

This paper investigates how general purpose technologies (GPTs) influence the capacity of developing countries' national statistical systems, finding a strong positive linear relationship without diminishing returns.

Contribution

It provides empirical evidence that GPTs significantly enhance statistical capacity in developing countries, highlighting the importance of technological progress for data quality.

Findings

Strong positive linear relationship between GPTs and statistical capacity

No evidence of diminishing returns in the GPTs-capacity relationship

Technological attainment correlates with improved data collection and processing

Abstract

National statistical systems are the enterprises tasked with collecting, validating and reporting societal attributes. These data serve many purposes - they allow governments to improve services, economic actors to traverse markets, and academics to assess social theories. National statistical systems vary in quality, especially in developing countries. This study examines determinants of national statistical capacity in developing countries, focusing on the impact of general purpose technologies (GPTs). Just as technological progress helps to explain differences in economic growth, states with markets with greater technological attainment (specifically, general purpose technologies) arguably have greater capacity for gathering and processing quality data. Analysis using panel methods shows a strong, statistically significant positive linear relationship between GPTs and national statistical capacity. There is no evidence to support a non-linear function in this relationship. Which is to say, there does not appear to be a marginal depreciating National Statistical Capacity benefit associated with increases in GPTs.