This history of theories and theorists of economic growth elucidates the economic theory, economic history, and public policy observations of the renowned scholar W. W. Rostow. Looking at the economic growth theories of the classic economists up to 1870, Rostow compares Hume and Adam Smith, Malthus and Ricardo, and J.S. Mill and Karl Marx. He then examines the period 1870-1939 and its economic theorists, including Schumpeter, Colin Clark, Kuznets, and Harrod, and surveys the three forms of growth analysis in the postwar era: formal models, statistical morphology, and development theories. This authoritative overview also includes an agenda of unresolved problems in growth analysis and a description of the five major tasks statesmen will confront over the next several generations.

In this completely revised second edition, the authors explore what can be learned from a rigorous comparison of the patterns of urban concentrations of residents and employment in Western Europe and the United States. Using a wide range of methodological techniques, including economic theory, econometrics, regional science, and institutional historical analysis, the essays analyze the factors underlying urban economic development, with particular emphasis on the role and effectiveness of public policy.