The determinants of population and employment growth in small Queensland regions

This paper investigates the determination of population and employment changes for the 125 Local Government Areas of Queensland over the 1996-06 period. The intention is to determine the flow of causality from employment to population growth and/or vice versa. Unlike previous similar studies, the role of geographic location is formally investigated using techniques from the field of spatial data analysis. Overall, results of previous research are confirmed, in that there is some evidence of bi-directional causality. However, spatial effects are found to be important in the process of regional growth, with regional economic performance in part, determined by the outcomes experienced in neighbouring regions.