Effect of Government Size on the Economic Growth in Iran

The world is changing at a rapid pace and our viewpoint too. Moreover, the impact of government policy on social and economic growth is changing at the same pace. Many researchers have attempted to estimate the impact of government expenditures on economic growth. In this regard, they have used either a particular statistical model or Ram’s model (1986) employing a production function which criticized because of statistical limitations. The purpose of this article is to introduce an alternative theoretical framework based on the conventional demand theory applied by Bairam (1990). The annual time series data from 1974 to 2005 is employed to examine the effect of government size on economic growth in Iran. The empirical findings indicate that the government expenditures have a positive effect on economic growth which is consistent with the theory used in this paper and also it is in harmony with the empirical results of the similar studies.