EXPLAINING THE ECONOMIC PERFORMANCE OF NATIONS: Essays in Time and Space (Economists of the Twentieth Century series) - Tapa dura

`. . . this book is highly recommended. It is thoroughly researched, well-written and covers interesting ground. The final, autobiographical chapter is well worth reading: Maddison has had a far more varied and at times dramatic career than most economists could ever hope for.' -- Dick Howard, The Business Economist `. . . this is a highly useful volume, bringing together many of the papers that any serious student of growth will need to consult on a regular basis.' -- Stephen Broadberry, Business History `. . . it contains many interesting papers of high quality. . .' -- Jan Fagerberg, The Manchester School `It is much more than just an interesting life story. This is a collection of articles which already has a great impact on the profession's thinking about economic growth and development, and will continue to do so in the future.' -- Bart van Ark, The Economic Journal

Angus Maddison has made a major contribution to our understanding of the comparative, historical and quantitative aspects of economic growth. This important collection of his work - including a number of original new essays - offers an authoritative analysis of the economic performance of nations. Drawing extensively on quantitative and qualitative evidence, Professor Maddison provides a clear view of why growth rates differ, why real income and productivity spreads are so wide, and why the pace of growth has varied over time. The first section features essays which provide an analytical framework for causal analysis of growth performance, this is followed by papers on investment and capital stock estimation, savings behaviour and measurement of economic performance levels. There are three essays on the roots of economic `backwardness' and the final section deals with the effect of economic and social policy on the performance of advanced capitalist countries. These essays offer a depth of historical and interspatial perspective which is unrivalled. In addition to focusing on the influences of institutions, ideology and colonialism, Professor Maddison's analysis makes sophisticated use of the growth accounting approach. A specially-written autobiographical essay has also been included.