For example, is the growth of countries in Africa affected in some way by what could be long lasting effects produced by colonization? The example doesn't have to be with Africa. I'm just curious to see if the process of colonization itself has lasting effects that span centuries.
I think there is pretty convincing evidence that colonialism consistent and massive impact on economic development. The Colonial Origins of Comparative Development: An Empirical Investigation (Acemoglu, Johnson, Robinson , 2001) shows that the rate of white settler mortality, a measure of whether colonists planned on building societies that could generate wealth, or whether they planned on extracting as much wealth as possible and returning to their home countries closely correlates to current levels of development.
Another interesting look at this can be found in the following book. The State and Social Transformation in Tunisia and Libya, 1830-1980 , Lisa Anderson. The boundary between Libya and Tunisia is an arbitrary line that had little significance before the imposition of colonialism. French colonialism in Tunisia allied with local elites, strengthened the existing administrative and bureaucratic structure that allowed for a strong state and consistent development. The Italians in Libya fought a brutal war against the preceding social order, and so their regime was marked by a determined effort to tear down political and bureaucratic structures. The postcolonial government of Libya inherited this weak state, and the lack of a functional state bureaucracy was a major driver of the economic chaos of the Qadaffi regime, and the current civil war.
Unfortunately, it is difficult to answer your question because colonialism wasn't one thing. British colonialism in Singapore was massively different from Dutch colonialism in Indonesia, was massively different from French Colonialism in Algeria, was massively different from Japanese colonialism in Korea. The effect of colonialism even in carefuly defined areas could be vastly different. British colonialism in Gujarat led ti a strengthening of the security and economic rights of villages near urban areas and river valleys, while British colonialism led to mass expropriations of isolated hill communities and both developments shape the modern economic, and political situation in Gujarat.