Self-governance of Caribbean nations: A correlation and comparative study of the island nations of Antigua and Barbuda and Saint Lucia.

摘要

There is a dichotomy in the economic development of the islands in the Caribbean and understanding what creates that disparaging difference among the islands can help the Caribbean community find that independent identity that is sorely lacking. An investigation into the economic stability of individual island nations is a starting point to access and fully comprehend what is profitable in these Caribbean economies and what is not working. The correlation of economic factors and the comparison of island nation economies is a starting point to isolating those resources that are most beneficial to the economies of the Caribbean. Investing in strategies to develop those beneficial resources, can then be marketed to the world as regional products and services. This study compared and correlated the economic development of Antigua and Barbuda and that of Saint Lucia, to access whether one nation has significantly progressed over the other during a 30 year time frame from 1983 to 2012. The Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is used as the measure of economic growth. Several factors that greatly influence the Caribbean economy was used as mediating variables to determine what resource is most influential to each islands economy. The notable factors used in this study are tourism, agriculture, imports, and exports. The data collected, from secondary sources, were measured for statistical correlation and significance using Pearson r, t- Test and p-Value. The tests revealed a high positive correlation of each variable to its respective island nation's GDP. In addition, the comparison of the results achieved for each of the two island nation's in the study revealed that both nation's have a similar correlation to each variable that was used in the study. The study identified that both Antigua and Barbuda and Saint Lucia, depend on tourism, agriculture, imports, and exports to an analogous degree. Comparing and correlating the economic growth of two islands that have achieved independence within the same time frame and who are similar in economic construction was intended to produce results that would identify the economic variables that are significantly contributory to the strength of the economy, those that may need further investing, and those that may need abandonment all together. The test results did not significantly reveal one specific factor that could be identified as the singular component that benefited one nation over another. Continued research is recommended to evaluate further strategies as a means of developing the Caribbean community.