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Latin America's Economic Development: Confronting Crisis, 2nd Edition

James L. Dietz, editor
 
ISBN: 978-1-55587-600-5
$24.95
1995/402 pages/LC: 95-9032

"A well-organized compilation of superb articles ... deserves to be considered for adoption by any instructor who teaches an advanced undergraduate or a graduate course on Latin America’s economy or by students interested in the same.... it should also be required reading by anyone who would like to understand Latin America from a non-orthodox perspective and who would like to have an introduction to institutional and structuralist economic thought.... Included in the volume are lively and interesting analyses of many current issues.... Students, faculty, researchers, and activists will want to read the entire volume once they have read the first chapter."—Janet M. Tanski, Journal of Economic Issues

From the reviews of the first edition:

"Intended primarily for classroom use, this eminently readable volume succeeds in its objectives. . . . Convincingly demonstrates that neoclassical economic thinking is not the only way to understand the problematic of Latin American development."—Latin American Research Review

DESCRIPTION

This revised edition of Latin America's Economic Development continues to provide a heterodox perspective on Latin America's economic problems, with institutional and neostructuralist views dominating. The selections richly convey that there are viable alternatives to the neoliberal approach dominating so much of policymaking, as well as academic debate, since the 1980s.

The book addresses fundamental areas of concern: the relationship between economic growth and equity; import substitution vs. export-oriented strategies; the role of transnational corporations; new objectives for both market and state; employment and unemployment; inflation; debt; and the impact of neoliberal adjustment policies. Chapters new to the second edition touch particularly on persistent inflation, populist economic policies, women in the work force, poverty, structural adjustment, and the neostructuralist alternative to neo- liberalism.

The section introductions identify key issues in the readings and, where appropriate, suggest approaches to the problems explored.

This is the perfect book for use as a core text in combination with other collections, or as a complement to a text such as Cardoso and Helwege's Latin America's Economy.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

James L. Dietz is professor of economics at California State University, Fullerton. His many publications include Economic History of Puerto Rico and Progress Toward Development in Latin America: From Prebisch to Technological Autonomy (coedited with Dilmus James).

CONTENTS

  • AN OVERVIEW AND INTRODUCTION
  • A Brief Economic History—the Editor.
  • ECONOMIC GROWTH, DEVELOPMENT AND EQUITY.
  • The Reality of Power and the Poverty of Economic Doctrine—J.H. Street.
  • From Growth to Basic Needs—P. Streeten.
  • Equity and Development—N. Lustig.
  • The Magnitude of Poverty in Latin America—J. Carlos Feres and A. León.
  • INSTITUTIONALIST AND STRUCTURALIST PERSPECTIVES.
  • Economic Development: An Institutionalist Perspective—C. E. Ayres.
  • Raúl Prebisch and the Origins of the Doctrine of Unequal Exchange—J.L. Love.
  • Terms of Trade and Center-Periphery Relations—J. Antonio Ocampo.
  • THE DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY: ISI OR EXPORT ORIENTED?
  • The Import-Substitution Strategy of Economic Development—R. J. Alexander.
  • Import Substitution in Latin America in Retrospect—R. J. Alexander.
  • Challenges and Opportunities Posed by Asia's Superexporters: Implications for Manufactured Exports from Latin America—G. Ranis.
  • Overcoming Underdevelopment: What Has Been Learned from the East Asian and Latin American Experiences—J.L. Dietz.
  • THE ROLE OF TRANSNATIONAL CORPORATIONS
  • Transnational Corporations, Dependent Development, and State Policy in the Semiperiphery: A Comparison of Brazil and Mexico—G. Gereffi and P. Evans.
  • How to Divest in Latin America and Why—A.O. Hirschman.
  • INFLATION AND THE IMPERATIVE OF MACROECONOMIC BALANCE.
  • Price Trends in Latin America: 1961-1990—F. Pazos.
  • The Macroeconomics of Populism—R. Dornbusch and S. Edwards.
  • Macroeconomic Equilibria and Development—J. Ramos.
  • EMPLOYMENT AND THE GENDER DIVIDE.
  • The Latin American Labor Market, 1950-1990—R. Infante and E. Klein.
  • Unequal Participation by Women in the Work Force—I. Arriagada.
  • NEOLIBERAL POLICIES AND THE NEOSTRUCTURALIST RESPONSE..
  • From Inward-Looking Development to Development from Within—O. Sunkel.