Ontwikkelingslanden in het wereldsysteem. Een kwantitatieve analyse

Samenvatting

In this article, a causal model is developed that explains the unequal level of economic development of Third World countries on the basis of structural variables. This model is based upon previous conceptual analysis using the framework of world system theory and on empirical research involving world system variables. The appropriateness of the model is tested by applying a multi-sample LIS-REL analysis to data from 84 developing countries from the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. The model fits the data for the entire 1965-92 period rather well. In an attempt to analyse the changes of the world system over the last three decades, the assumption of the 'restricted' solution - the model parameters do not change over the 1965-92 period - was relaxed. Hypotheses concern the change of 'classical' to 'modern' dependence, the 'third wave' of democratization in the Third World, and the tendency of Third World countries to diversify their production and become less reliant on primary commodities. The expected change from classical to modern dependence is corroborated by the data. No such change is apparent where political repression is concerned. Finally, the causal chain of primary commodity concentration, exploitation, domestic capital formation and economic development exhibits significant changes over the 1965-1985 period. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]; Copyright of Mens en Maatschappij is the property of Amsterdam University Press and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)