What accounts for the varying long-term growth patterns across developing countries? Why were some economies able to achieve sustained and rapid growth in the past three decades while others failed? In Social Capability and Long-Term Economic Growth, an impressive panel of economists come together to develop a theory of long-term growth, focusing on the dynamic relationship between the social capability to manage scarce resources and long-term growth.

Various theoretical issues concerning social capability are explored, and in-depth case-studies of the development experiences of Asian, Latin American and socialist economies are presented with significant empirical findings. The authors argue that a nation's social capability to manage human resources efficiently is a crucial ingredient for sustaining growth.

This study is a serious response to the important question of how a poor developing country can transform itself into a developed one, and its findings offer valuable insight to the development of a long-term growth theory and to economic development policies.