PART I: INTRODUCTION
1. Underdevelopment and Diversity in the Global South
Defining the Developing World
Naming the Developing World
Delineating the Developing World
Economic, Social, and Political Characteristics
Political Characteristics
A Brief History of Economic Development
The Industrial Revolution
Modern Economic Growth in the Developing World
Goals and Organization: Who or What Causes Global Poverty?
Causes of Underdevelopment: A Framework
Case Study: Why Is the Democratic Republic of Congo the Poorest Country on Earth?
The South: Kleptocracy and Cultural Fragmentation
The West: Stolen Aid, Colonial Abuses, and Slavery
The Natural World: Geography and the Resource Curse
Thinking Critically about Development
2. Human Development and Underdevelopment
Defining Human Development
The Human Development Approach
The Complex Relationship between Economic and Human Development
Health Snapshot: Description and Causes of the Developing World’s Shortcomings
Key Health Indicators: Life Expectancy and Child Mortality
The Immediate Cause of Poor Health Outcomes
Health Trends: Tracking Improvements in LDCs through Time
Causes of Convergence: The Declining Cost of Good Health
Education Snapshot: The Nature and Causes of the Developing World’s Deficit
Key Education Indicators: Attainment and Achievement
The Immediate Causes of Poor Educational Outcomes
Education Trends: Tracking Improvements in LDCs through Time
Higher Enrollments and Better Quality
Causes of Convergence: Better Government and Parental Commitment
Case Study: What Are India’s Failures and Successes in Human Development?
Health and Education Challenges
Health and Education Successes
Thinking Critically about Development
3. The Benefits and Costs of Economic Development
The Cultural Costs of Development
The Cost: The Westernization and Homogenization of Cultures
The Cost: Deteriorations in Social Connectedness and Personal Character
The Response: Prosperity as a Universal Desire
The Response: Minimal or Beneficial Cultural Change
The Equity Costs of Development
The Cost: Deepening Global Inequality
The Cost: Deepening Domestic Inequalities
The Response: The Complicated Relationship between Development and Inequality
The Environmental Costs of Development
The Cost: Environmental Degradation
The Response: The Benefits of Development for the Environment
The Psychological Costs of Development
The Cost: Insecurity, Alienation, and Unhappiness
The Response: Revisiting the Ethics and Evidence on Happiness
Case Study: Has Economic Growth Brought Happiness to China?
Thinking Critically about Development
PART II: THE WEST: INTERNATIONAL CONTEXTS
4. Slavery and Colonialism
Features of the Trade in Africa
Features of the Trade in Latin America
Causes of Underdevelopment: The Long-Term Damage of Slavery
Consequences for Latin America and the Caribbean
Critique: Questioning the Magnitude of Slavery’s Effects
The Importance of the Western Colonial Era for the Contemporary South
A Brief History of the Colonial Era
Causes of Underdevelopment: Western Colonialism’s Consequences
Colonialism’s Institutional Legacy
Colonialism’s Cultural Legacy
Critique of Colonial Legacy Arguments
Case Study: Do Slavery and Colonialism Explain Nigeria’s Development Failure?
The West: Slavery and Colonialism’s Consequences
The South: Domestic Problems in Independent Nigeria
The Natural World: The Burden of Geography and the Paradox of Oil Wealth
Thinking Critically about Development
5. Globalization and Neocolonialism
From the First Global Century to Import Substitution
Causes of Underdevelopment: Dependency and Other Early Theories of Global Exploitation
Latin American Structuralism
Falling Behind in the First Global Century
Critiques of Structuralism, Dependency Theory, and WST
Capital Market Liberalization
Causes of Underdevelopment: Newer Concerns about Globalization
Sweatshops and the Race to the Bottom
Critique: Defending Globalization
The Benefits of Free Trade
Labor Exploitation or Enrichment?
The Nature of Foreign Debt
Case Study: Is Neocolonialism Why Brazil Is Always the “Country of the Future”?
The West: Failures of Openness
The South: Shortcomings of Domestic Institutions
The Natural World: The Illusion of Abundance
Thinking Critically about Development
6. Foreign Aid and the Bretton Woods Institutions
Understanding Key Concepts and Players in the Aid Regime
A Brief History of Foreign Aid
Causes of Underdevelopment: The Case for Aid Skepticism
Donor Paternalism and Lack of Accountability
Donor Fragmentation and Aid Volatility
Recipient Absorptive Capacity and Governance
Recipient Economic Problems
Defending Foreign Aid and Its Record
Foreign Aid’s Many Successes
Learning from Past Mistakes
The Bretton Woods Institutions: The IMF and World Bank
A Brief History of the IMF and World Bank
Causes of Underdevelopment: Imposing Market Fundamentalism
Foisting Capitalism on the Developing World
Critique: Defending the Bretton Woods Institutions
Loans and Conditionalities as a Choice
The Ethics of Conditionalities
The Case for Market Policies
Case Study: Has Foreign Aid Made Pakistan Poorer?
The West: The Failures of Aid and the IMF
The South: The Worst of Continuity and Change
The Natural World: The Paradox of Flooding amidst Dryness
Thinking Critically about Development
PART III: THE SOUTH: DOMESTIC FACTORS
7. Culture and Identity
Understanding Culture and Social Identity
Causes of Underdevelopment: The Culturalist School
Max Weber and the Protestant Ethic
Religion and Natural Culture
Critique of Culturalist Claims
Culture as Consequence, Not Cause
Mischaracterizing Culture in LDCs
Causes of Underdevelopment: The Costs of Cultural Diversity
Underprovision of Public Goods and Fragmented Markets
Poor Governance and Conflict
Critique: Diversity as Consequence, Not Cause
Case Study: Are Iraqis Poor Because of Islam and Its Ethnic Cleavages?
The South: Islam and Sectarian Divisions
The West: The British Mandate and War with the United States
The Natural World: Oil and Sand
Thinking Critically about Development
8. States, Markets, and Development Models
State-Led Development in Thought
State-Led Development in Practice
Causes of Underdevelopment: Failures of the State-Led Model
Critique: Successes of State-Led Development
Causes of Underdevelopment: Failures of Socialism
Critique: Socialism’s Successes
The Market-Oriented Strategy
Neoclassical Economic Thought
The Market-Oriented Strategy in Practice
Causes of Underdevelopment: Shortcomings of the Market-Oriented Strategy
Critique: Successes of the Washington Consensus
Debating State Capitalism
Case Study: Did India’s Postcolonial Development Model Delay Its Economic Rise?
The South: India’s State-Led Development Model
The West: Exploiting the “Jewel in the British Crown”
The Natural World: Topography and Transport Costs
Thinking Critically about Development
9. Economic Institutions and Informality
Property Markets and Informal Ownership
Urban Slums and Rural Land
Causes of Property Informality
Causes of Underdevelopment: Informal Property Markets
New Institutional Economics and Property Rights
Critique: Is Formality Worth It?
Informal Work, Firms, and Finance
Labor and Business Informality
Causes of Underdevelopment: Challenges of Informal Firms and Finance
The Drawbacks of Informal Work
Shortcomings of Informal Finance
Critique: Formalization as a False Solution
Case Study: Does Informality Explain Peru’s Delayed Development?
The South: Informal Economic Activity
The West: Spanish Colonialism and British Neocolonialism
The Natural World: Pizarro Wins the Lottery
Thinking Critically about Development
10. Political Institutions and Governance
Political Instability and Regime Change
The Relationship between Political Regimes and Prosperity
The Judiciary and the Bureaucracy
Judicial and Bureaucratic Quality around the World
Causes of Underdevelopment: Bad Political Institutions
Inclusive Institutions as the Solution
Economic Development First
The Authoritarian Advantage
Case Study: Does China’s Authoritarianism Explain Why It Is Poorer Than the West?
The South: Serial Authoritarianism
The West: A Century of Humiliation
The Natural World: Inhospitable Terrain
Thinking Critically about Development
11. Violence and State Failure
Political and Criminal Violence
Causes of Underdevelopment: The Costs of Violence and State Failure
The Costs of Armed Conflict
The Price of Criminal Violence
Critique: Reconsidering the Costs of Violence
Case Study: Is Somalia Poor because of Civil War?
The South: Civil War in the World’s Least Governed State
The West: The Legacy of Foreign Intervention
The Natural World: Climate and Nomadism
Thinking Critically about Development
12. Gender Inequality
The Gender Gap in Education
The Gender Gap in Political Empowerment
Causes of Underdevelopment: Disempowered Women and Girls
Critiques of the Instrumentalist View
Female Health, Physical Security, and Fertility
Excess Female Mortality and Missing Women
Reproduction and Fertility
Causes of Underdevelopment: High Fertility
Critique: Doubting the Costs of High Fertility
Case: Is Afghanistan’s Treatment of Women the Cause of Its Poverty?
The South: Mistreatment of Women and Girls
The West: Legacy of a Global Pawn
The Natural World: Dry, Mountainous, and Landlocked
Thinking Critically about Development
PART IV: THE NATURAL WORLD: PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY
13. Geography and Economic Prosperity
Geographic Commonalities of the Developing World
Causes of Underdevelopment: Physical Geography and Climate
The Tropical Disadvantage
Natural Barriers to Economic Exchange
Critique of Geographical Determinism
Critique of Jeffrey Sachs
Critique of Jared Diamond
Causes of Underdevelopment: Natural Resources
Dutch Disease and a Lack of Industry
Critique: A Resource Blessing?
Case Study: Is Geography Destiny in Mexico?
The Natural World: Mexico’s Geographical Disadvantages
The West: Colonial and Postcolonial Exploitation
The South: Instability and Autocracy
Thinking Critically about Development
14. Environmental Change and Development
Communal Environmental Problems
Degradation of Natural Capital
Why Community Environmental Problems Are Worse in LDCs
Causes of Underdevelopment: A Malthusian Trap
Critique: Recent History versus Neo-Malthusianism
Climate Change and Development
Causes of Underdevelopment: The Economic Burden of Climate Change
Causes of Underdevelopment: The Economic Burden of Climate Change
Case Study: Will Malthusian Traps End Indonesia’s Rise?
The Natural World: Indonesia’s Malthusian Crisis?
The South: Poor Government and Female Disempowerment
The West: Pathologies of Globalization
Thinking Critically about Development
