Class Year
2020
Document Type
Student Research Paper
Date of Creation
Fall 2016
Department 1
Political Science
Abstract
In this paper, I explore the effect that proximity to terrorist-controlled areas has on countries’ economies. I posit that there exists a correlation between the aforementioned proximity and GDP growth rates, and hypothesize that the closer a country is to an area with high levels of terrorism, the more likely it is that its economy will be negatively affected. I begin by examining the nature of the correlation between terrorism and economic growth; following this, I explore the direct ways in which terrorism affects economic growth. Next, I delve into the recent economic history of countries around three areas: the Nigeria area, the Afghanistan-Pakistan area, and the Iraq-Syria area. From my examinations of the GDP growth rates of the countries around these areas, I find no uniform relationship between the countries’ proximity to their respective areas and their GDP growth rates. To help explain this apparent lack of correlation, I look at other factors that influence GDP growth rates and note that these factors may be overshadowing the effects of terrorism. I conclude that there is no uniform relationship between a country’s proximity to high levels of terrorism and its GDP; although terrorism can have effects on countries’ economies, those effects are often negligible compared to other economic factors.
Copyright Note
This is the author's version of the work. This publication appears in Gettysburg College's institutional repository by permission of the copyright owner for personal use, not for redistribution.
Recommended Citation
Mouritsen, Sofia E., "The Proximity-Based Effect of Terrorism on Countries' Economies" (2016). Student Publications. 464.
https://cupola.gettysburg.edu/student_scholarship/464
Comments
Written for POL 103: Intro International Relations.