Many investors favor dividend stocks for their ability to reduce volatility, create capital gains in down markets, and provide steady income for long-term shareholders. However, it is well known that growth stocks have outperformed income stocks by a wide margin since 2007.

Some academic studies have suggested that this performance gap between growth and dividend/value stocks may be due to the structural changes in the U.S. economy over the last 40 years. Specifically, the U.S. has shifted away from agriculture and manufacturing to more of a service- and knowledge-based economy.

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Source Fool.com