Dependency Theory and Uneven Development

Dr. Ingrid Kvangraven provides a detailed introduction into dependency theory, providing 'traditional' definitions as well as more modern hollistic definitions that capture the nuances of the body of research.

Economic policy discourse in the Global South was once dominated by dependency theory. By explicitly acknowledging that there exists a crucial distinction between "periphery" of poor and underdeveloped states to a "core" of wealthy states in terms of global production, dependency theory is particularly well-suited to explain why globalization might benefit a few countries and could impoverish many others.

In this webinar, Dr. Kvangraven reconstructs dependency theory in its most basic assumptions, defends it against common criticisms such as the epistemological and empirical evidence provided to discredit the theory. The presentation shows how dependency theory can be applied to explain uneven development in the 21st century with insights from case studies such as South Korea and Indonesia.

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Comment from our editors:

Accessible and concise introduction to dependency theory for all that want go beyond the Washington Consensus understanding of international economic relations. Also a prime example on how to properly reconstruct a theory and make its underlying assumptions explicit.

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