The period between the 1970s and 1990s was witness to rapid economic growth in East Asia. This was especially true for the four countries termed the “Four Asian Tigers”, which includes Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore and South Korea. The development of international relationships resulted in the inflow of capital and technology from foreign countries and drove economic growth for the Four Asian Tigers. While people were amazed by the rapid economic growth of East Asia, Krugman(1994) pointed out that the “Four Asian Tigers” were just “paper tigers”. This is because the economic growth of “Four Asian tigers” mainly depended on the large amounts of input in labor force and capital, not on the improvement in the technology and economic efficiency. Although the economic growth of “Four Asian Tigers” was rapid, the “real” growth of these regions still remained at a relatively low level. In 1997, the breakout of the Asian financial crisis and the outflow of “hot money” plunged the “Four Asian Tigers” into an economic depression. Krugman’s opinion ended up coming true. There are three main production factors of economic growth, namely physical capital, labor force and total factor productivity (TFP). According to Krugman, the growth of TFP can measure the “real” economic growth of an economy. This paper utilizes growth accounting methodology to calculate the growth rate of TFP in different regions around the world. In order to explore the different types of economic growth in developing and developed countries, one hundred and thirteen countries are selected as the sample in order to make comparisons of economic growth. Apart from the TFP growth calculation, the effect of human capital is also considered in the analysis of economic growth in developing and developed countries. By measuring the contribution of capital per worker, human capital and TFP in economic growth, the main driving force of economic growth in developing and developed countries can be found. Several countries achieved great economic growth between 1980 and 2011. However, the economic growth in some regions still remained at a relatively low level. By comparing the history of economic growth in developing and developed countries, we can discern the reasons why some countries can rapidly improve their economic condition and strengthen their international status.