From the Book - First edition.
Why Egyptians filled Tahrir Square to bring down Hosni Mubarak and what it means for our understanding of the causes of prosperity and poverty
1. So close and yet so different
Nogales, Arizona, and Nogales, Sonora, have the same people, culture, and geography. Why is one rich and one poor?
2. Theories that don't work
Poor countries are poor not because of their geographies or cultures, or because their leaders do not know which policies will enrich their citizens
3. The making of prosperity and poverty
How prosperity and poverty are determined by the incentives created by institutions, and how politics determines what institutions a nation has
4. Small differences and critical junctures: the weight of history
How institutions change through political conflict and how the past shapes the present
5. "I've seen the future, and it works": growth under extractive institutions
What Stalin, King Shyaam, the Neolithic Revolution, and the Maya city-states all had in common and how this explains why China's current economic growth cannot last
How institutions evolve over time, often slowly drifting apart
How a political revolution in 1688 changed institutions in England and led to the Industrial Revolution
8. Not on our turf: barriers to development
Why the politically powerful in many nations opposed the Industrial Revolution
How European colonialism impoverished large parts of the world
10. The diffusion of prosperity
How some parts of the world took different paths to prosperity from that of Britain
How institutions that encourage prosperity create positive feedback loops that prevent the efforts by elites to undermine them
How institutions that create poverty generate negative feedback loops and endure
13. Why nations fail today
Institutions, institutions, institutions
How a few countries changed their economic trajectory by changing their institutions
15. Understanding prosperity and poverty
How the world could have been different and how understanding this can explain why most attempts to combat poverty have failed.
Preface: Why Egyptians filled Tahrir Square to bring down Hosni Mubarak and what it means for our understanding of the causes of prosperity and poverty
So close and yet so different : Nogales, Arizona, and Nogales, Sonora, have the same people, culture, and geography. Why is one rich and one poor?
Theories that don't work : poor countries are poor not because of their geographies or cultures, or because their leaders do not know which policies will enrich their citizens
The making of prosperity and poverty : how prosperity and poverty are determined by the incentives created by institutions, and how politics determines what institutions a nation has
Small differences and critical junctures: the weight of history : how institutions change through political conflict and how the past shapes the present
"I've seen the future, and it works" : growth under extractive institutions : what Stalin, King Shyaam, the Neolithic Revolution, and the Maya city-states all had in common and how this explains why China's current economic growth cannot last
Drifting apart : how institutions evolve over time, often slowly drifting apart
The turning point : how a political revolution in 1688 changed institutions in England and led to the Industrial Revolution
Not on our turf : barriers to development : why the politically powerful in many nations opposed the Industrial Revolution
Reversing development : how European colonialism impoverished large parts of the world
The diffusion of prosperity : how some parts of the world took different paths to prosperity from that of Britain
The virtuous circle : how institutions that encourage prosperity create positive feedback loops that prevent the efforts by elites to undermine them
The vicious circle : how institutions that create poverty generate negative feedback loops and endure
Why nations fail today : institutions, institutions, institutions
Breaking the mold : how a few countries changed their economic trajectory by changing their institutions
Understanding prosperity and poverty : how the world could have been different and how understanding this can explain why most attempts to combat poverty have failed.