Analyzing the Importance of Forward Orientation in Financial Development-Economic Growth Nexus: Evidence from Big Data

The authors analyze how the citizens' attitude toward the future, obtained using big data, affects the relationship between the nation's financial development and economic growth. The relationship between financial development and economic growth has been ambiguous, as the literature supports both positive and negative effects of financial development on economic growth. We find that the individual's attitude toward the future, as captured by the Future Orientation Index, plays a significant role in affecting this relation. In particular, the Future Orientation Index interacts with financial development and weakens the negative effect of financial development on nation's economic growth, especially in high-income countries.