Estimation des effets de proximité dans le processus de convergence régionale : une approche par l'économétrie spatiale sur 92 régions européennes (1980-1995)

The aim of this paper is to analyze the consequences of spatial dependence on regional growth and the convergence process. Based on a sample of 92 European regions over the 1980-1995 period, we show that the unconditional ?-convergence model is misspecified due to the presence of spatial autocorrelation. Spatial econometric methods lead to a spatial error model. This specification highlights a geographic spillover effect. Indeed, we show that the growth rate of a region is positively influenced by the growth rates of contiguous regions. Classification JEL : C51, R11, R15.<np pagenum="204"/>