Development and underdevelopment are the main determinants of life-chances worldwide, arguably more so than social class. Marxism, as the underlying theory for social revolution, needs to have a clear understanding of the dynamics of development and social progress. Exploring the intersection of Marxism and development, this book looks at Marx’s original conception of capitalist development and his later engagement with under-developed Russia. The author also reviews Lenin’s early critique of the Russian populists' rejection of capitalism compared with his later analysis of imperialism as a brake on development in the non-European world. The book then considers Rosa Luxemburg, who arguably provides a bridge between these theorists and those that follow with her analysis of imperialism as a necessity for capitalism to incorporate non-capitalist lands. Turning then to the non-European world, the author examines the Latin American dependency theories, the post-development school and the recent indigenous development theories advanced by Andean Marxism. Finally, Munck addresses the relationship between globalization and development. Does this relationship suggest that it has not been capitalism but a lack of capitalism that has led to under-development?

This title represents the most forward thinking and comprehensive review of development economics currently available.

In a subtle but powerful reading of the shifting relationships between development, hegemony, and social transformation in post-independence Latin America, Ronaldo Munck argues that Latin American subaltern knowledge makes a genuine contribution to the current search for a social order which is sustainable and equitable.

Productive transformation requires seizing the opportunities available and opening new ones in a competitive world. Rethinking Productive Development examines the market failures impeding transformation and the government failures that may make the policy remedies worse than the market illness. To address market failures, the authors propose a simple conceptual framework based on the scope and nature of the policy approach. They then systematically analyze country policies through this lens in key areas such as innovation, new firms, financing, human capital, and internationalization to show the power of this way of thinking. Still, the book warns that policymakers cannot be sure what the right policy interventions are and must set up a process to discover them that calls for public-private collaboration. Recognizing that the risk of capture needs to be checked and that even the best policies will fail without the technical, organizational, and political capacity to implement them, the book concludes with ideas on how to design institutions fostering the right incentives and how to grow public sector capabilities over time.

Consisting of country case studies and comparative analyses from Latin American and US based political economists, this volume examines the recent history of foreign investment for development in Latin America in the context of the current backlash against 'Washington Consensus' policies. These essays form the broad conclusion that foreign direct investment fell far short of generating the necessary linkages for sustainable economic development.

First published in 1987, this volume stresses the importance of development studies for sociology, as P. W. Preston argues that this field of study is emerging from the technical social scientific ghetto back into the mainstream of the ‘classical tradition’ of social theorizing, represented by Marx, Weber and Durkheim. Preston discusses the position of development studies in relation to the wider group of the social sciences in general and to sociology in particular. Using examples mainly from the study of Southeast Asia, he looks at the diversity of available ‘modes of social theoretic engagement’ and considers the work of the colonial administrator scholar, the humanist academic scholar, and the scholar who theorises on behalf of the planners, discusses the mode of political writing, and Marxian analyses of development; and considers the particular problems surrounding the elites of post-colonial ‘nation states’.