Long-run Causes of Comparative Development: An Interpretation of the Recent Evidence

Stephen Smith

Working Papers from The George Washington University, Institute for International Economic Policy

Abstract: What explains the extreme variations in development achievement, among LDCs, and between developing and developed countries? This paper present a schematic framework for the interpretation of some influential recent contributions to the study of the majo long-run causes of comparative development. The major emphasis is placed on what has been learned recently about the role of institutions in relation to other factors, through the use of centuries rather than decades of data.

Keywords: comparative development; institutions; geography; colonialism; inequality; property rights; economic opportunity (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: N10 O17 O43 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 21 pages
Date: 2008
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gwi:wpaper:2008-13

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