Dependency, The State, And Development In Asia.

A review of the existing literature on the dependency perspective shows that the development experience of Asian countries has been ignored in the process of theory-building. By explaining economic development under dependent conditions in Asian countries, the present study seeks to develop an alternative model for the Third World development, which bring both external constraints and internal factors into consideration. The study tested the two major hypotheses of dependency theory: that economic dependency leads to retarded economic development and increased inequality in the distribution of income. This was done using cross-national quantitative techniques. The analyses also added new variables for the character of the state, to test a modified version of dependency theory. The quantitative analyses was supplemented with case studies of Sri Lanka and South Korea, showing how historical conditions affect both the character of the state and the role it plays in managing development. The major findings of this study indicate that the model of dependency in a modified form is more useful in analyzing Asian development experience than the orthodox dependency perspective. Asian development took on its own unique character, attributable primarily to the exceptionally strong but varying role of the state in managing capitalist development. This shows that state intervention in aspects of the development can be fruitful in Asian nations. The study concludes with suggestions for developing more sensitive indicators of the state in future global analyses of economic development.Ph.D.Social SciencesSocial structureUniversity of Michigan, Horace H. Rackham School of Graduate Studieshttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/128108/2/8801358.pd