Theory in frontier development and agrarian change: Competing views and scope for integrated approaches

This paper analyzes the main theoretical approaches on agricultural frontier development, mainly in the context of the Brazilian Amazon. Different labels have been coined to depict frontier attributes (e.g., productive and speculative frontiers, contested frontiers, populist and capitalist frontiers), and each is being framed within a different perspective of understanding. Three main explanatory perspectives have been adopted by scholars to analyze frontier expansion. The first is neoclassical economics which has a primary focus on agents’ behaviors, resources allocation decisions, and adopted farming systems. The second is political economy and political ecology, both traditions linked through their shared concerns with structures. Finally, although not an explanatory perspective per se, there is a growing tradition of spatial analysis. While the first two shed light on the underlying causes of deforestation and the main triggers of agricultural expansion and change, the latter does on its proximate causes.