| The purpose of this study is to examine the impact of technology on economic growth in the Southeast. The Southeast, defined as Alabama, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee, has experienced tremendous growth since the late 1960s. This growth, however, has not been uniform throughout the region. This dissertation will employ endogenous growth theory to explain the variance in growth experienced throughout the region over the 1970--1990 time period. High technology manufacturing and the concordant human capital accumulation, fuel economic growth and can account for the disparities witnessed in the Southeast. A relatively parsimonious model employing measures of technological sophistication and human capital can explain a large percentage of the variance. This model captures the innovative process that takes place at the industry level and provides interested students with a microeconomic foundation for examining economic growth. Two supplemental case studies of the Raleigh-Durham and the Chattanooga metropolitan areas provide a more in-depth look at the impact of technology and human capital on economic growth. The results provide an alternative to neoclassical economic theories, which cannot account for positive returns in a world of factor mobility. |
