Proximate, intermediate and ultimate causality: Theories and experiences of growth and development
Adam Szirmai
#2012-032
For a better understanding of development, we are interested in why in
the long run some countries or societies forge ahead, while others
stagnate or fall behind. We are especially interested in the conditions
under which growth and catch- up can be realised in developing
countries. In section 1 of this paper, we develop a framework of
proximate, intermediate and ultimate sources of growth and development
which serves to structure the analysis and measurement of economic
development. Sections 2 to 6 offer a review of classical and modern
theories of development and stagnation, in the context of the framework
of proximate and ultimate causality developed in section 1. Special
attention is paid to the interactions between institutions and growth in
different theoretical traditions. Section 7 presents empirical time
series on long-run economic trends in a sample of 31 developing
countries representing 80 percent of the population of the developing
world. These series focus on proximate causality and on socio-economic
outcomes and highlight some of the key issues discussed in the
theoretical overview in sections 2-6.
JEL: O10, O43, N1O
Keywords: Theories of Economic Development, Economic Growth, Proximate
Causality, Intermediate Causality, Ultimate Causality