Imperialism and Underdevelopment: a Reader

Tropical Underdevelopment

Most recent cross-country analyses of economic growth have neglected physical geography as a determinant of economic growth. This paper reviews the distinctive development challenges faced by economies situated in tropical climates. Using geographic information system (GIS) mapping, the paper presents evidence that production technology in the tropics has lagged behind temperate zone technology...

Commercial Imperialism?

We exploit the recent declassification of CIA documents and examine whether there is evidence of US power being used to influence countries’ decisions regarding international trade. We measure US influence using a newly constructed annual panel of CIA interventions aimed at installing and supporting leaders during the Cold War. Our presumption is that the US had greater influence over foreign l...

Gender, culture and imperialism

Recent years have witnessed a small avalanche of critical historical work on British imperial culture across the social sciences and not least within geography. The inspiration behind the critical interest in empire, knowledge and power was undoubtedly Edward Said’s groundbreaking and provocative Orientalism. Waves of debate have permeated throughout the social sciences and humanities in respon...

Imperialism and the Communist International

Development and Underdevelopment in Britain and Ireland

Many people, covering many academic disciplines, have an interest in what they would refer to as development, and approach it from the direction of what they conceive to be underdevelopment. This type of labelling customarily follows on from some narrower interest; either in a particular region (for example Africa, Asia, Latin America); or in a particular place (e.g. Nigeria, Brazil, China); or...