Development is often understood as a linear process of change towards Western modernity, a vision that is challenged by this paper, arguing that development efforts should rather be connected to the local stakeholders' sense of their own development. Further, the paper contends that Complexity Theory is more effective than a linear theory of…

The promise, embraced by governments around the world, is that the knowledge economy will provide knowledge workers with a degree of autonomy and permission to think which enables them to be creative and to attract high incomes. What credence should we give to this promise? The current economic crisis is provoking a reappraisal of both economic…

Local, state, and national economies are facing unprecedented levels of international competition. The current fiscal crisis has hampered the ability of many governments in the developed world to directly facilitate economic growth. At the same time, many governments in the developing world are investing significant new resources into local…

Policy discussions about teacher quality and teacher "shortages" often focus on recruitment and retention of young teachers. However, attention has begun to focus on the incentive effects of teacher retirement benefit systems, particularly given their rising costs and the large unfunded liabilities. In this paper we analyze accrual of…

The proceedings of a House Subcommittee on Employment Opportunities hearing, held in Chicago, are provided in this document. Testimony is presented on a proposed bill, H.R. 1938 (the Income and Jobs Action Act), which aims at reducing unemployment by fully implementing the Employment Act of 1946 and the Full Employment and Balanced Growth Act of…

Efforts to restore America's competitive position must proceed from an accurate definition of what competitiveness is. The U.S. competitiveness problem has three dimensions: long-standing structural problems, macroeconomic policies, and the trade and economic policies of foreign countries. The long-term erosion of U.S. competitiveness is suggested…

President Carter's initial programs and choices for economic advisory positions suggest that he will continue to try Keynesian policies, although he has scaled down his aspirations for their success. As these policies encounter difficulties, however, more careful analyses of the causes of inflation and of what expenditures are compatible with…

Argues that the U.S. has run up huge budget deficits by importing more than it exports and by financing government overspending with overseas borrowing. Maintains that deficits threaten the well-being of future generations and that tax increases are inevitable. Includes tables showing Gross National Product and government spending data. (MW)

Reports on the work of Harriet Martineau, an economist who had a major impact on British economic theory and public policy in the mid-1800s. Discusses the background and development of her theories. Describes the impact they had on Thomas Malthus, John Stuart Mill, and other social scientists. (CFR)

The 22 items included in a packet distributed to participants at a 1981 conference on education and the economy are listed in this annotated bibliography, with sources for the items identified. The materials include articles, chapters from books, and monographs, as well as a resource guide and bibliography concerning rural economic and community…

Discusses real business cycle analysis, growth theory, and other economic concepts in the context of the rational expectations revolution in macroeconomics. Focuses on post-1982 research. Concludes that the rejuvenation of growth analysis is an encouraging development because it could lead to changes in welfare policy. (CFR)

The threatened loss of more than $4.5 billion in federal funds over the next 2 years leaves New York State with three options: to increase state taxes drastically, an action that could jeopardize the state's recent emergence from severe economic crisis; to curtail state services significantly; or to devise a creative new strategy including an…

This briefing paper presents statistical evidence from a variety of data sources that the real income of the average U.S. household has been stagnant for a decade; primary causes are also examined. The major reasons identified for income stagnation are (1) declining real wages; (2) a less productive economy (economic growth has slowed down)…

It is the premise of this booklet, one of a series intended to apply economic principles to major social and political issues of the day, that a revolution in the banking and financial services industry is altering not only the fundamental nature of the services offered but the character of the organizations themselves. The purpose of the essay is…

This series of 10 essays, written at various times since the mid-1960s, explores the U.S. economy's proneness to both high inflation and high unemployment during this period. The essays present ideas that the author believes could have reined in price increases in the early stages, and that presently could speed the reduction of inflation and…