2011/02/14 by Clive Bell · 1 citation
Economics, Econometrics and Finance · Social Sciences · #Agrarian society #Agriculture #Cold war #Development economics #Economic Theory and Policy #Economic growth #Economics #Functional illiteracy #History #International Development and Aid #Law #Political economy #Political science #Politics #Poverty #Prosperity
paper · doi:10.1057/9780230226203.2366
openalex publication_date 2011/02/14 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/31
As we are often reminded nowadays, economic development – in the sense of regular progress and rising prosperity – was a preoccupation of the classical economists. What has come to be called Development Economics, however, is of much more recent origin. Both during and immediately after World War II, the conditions of poverty, illiteracy, disease and mortality in backward agrarian countries aroused keen interest and concern in the West, inspired by humanitarian considerations and, no doubt, those ensuing from the Cold War. The search for ways whereby their people could escape such misery and enjoy rising prosperity engendered a body of diverse doctrines and strong controversy, which has by no means fully subsided. These keywords were added by machine and not by the authors. This process is experimental and the keywords may be updated as the learning algorithm improves.