Oil Booms and Business Busts

Why Resource Wealth Hurts Entrepreneurs in the Developing World

Nonfiction, Social & Cultural Studies, Political Science, Politics, Labour & Industrial Relations, International, International Relations
Cover of the book Oil Booms and Business Busts by Nimah Mazaheri, Oxford University Press
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Nimah Mazaheri ISBN: 9780190630522
Publisher: Oxford University Press Publication: May 2, 2016
Imprint: Oxford University Press Language: English
Author: Nimah Mazaheri
ISBN: 9780190630522
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Publication: May 2, 2016
Imprint: Oxford University Press
Language: English

Oil Booms and Business Busts looks at how government policymaking shapes a puzzling phenomenon in economic development--the "curse" of natural resources. It investigates how oil and mineral wealth shapes a government's policies toward the business environment, entrepreneurs, and innovative activities. Other similar work either ignores the role of government policymaking in oil wealth, treats it as another effect of the rentier state, or dismisses it as illogical and incoherent. One might expect that in light of such abundances governments would encourage entrepreneurship and new businesses to compete and grow in the market, but Nimah Mazaheri shows that resource wealth instead incentivizes policymakers to focus on satisfying the interests of existing elites. They, more than oil-poor nations, institute barriers that impede the activities of domestic firms and entrepreneurs, with the result being unimpressive economic performance over the past half-century. This is the first book to examine how oil wealth affects non-elite actors who own the small and medium-sized firms that absorb a majority of the economic and labor force of these countries. Looking at two of the most important oil-producing countries in the world, Iran and Saudi Arabia, the book provides an original theory about the factors that shape a logic of policymaking in oil producing states. To extend his theory Mazaheri also looks at India, which is one of the world's main coal producers. He does this to show the effects of the gain and loss of a massive resource windfall on state policymaking toward the private sector. Ultimately Mazaheri argues that such policymaking impedes the development of a middle class and therefore democratization--a factor that can have overarching political repercussions for governmental stability.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

Oil Booms and Business Busts looks at how government policymaking shapes a puzzling phenomenon in economic development--the "curse" of natural resources. It investigates how oil and mineral wealth shapes a government's policies toward the business environment, entrepreneurs, and innovative activities. Other similar work either ignores the role of government policymaking in oil wealth, treats it as another effect of the rentier state, or dismisses it as illogical and incoherent. One might expect that in light of such abundances governments would encourage entrepreneurship and new businesses to compete and grow in the market, but Nimah Mazaheri shows that resource wealth instead incentivizes policymakers to focus on satisfying the interests of existing elites. They, more than oil-poor nations, institute barriers that impede the activities of domestic firms and entrepreneurs, with the result being unimpressive economic performance over the past half-century. This is the first book to examine how oil wealth affects non-elite actors who own the small and medium-sized firms that absorb a majority of the economic and labor force of these countries. Looking at two of the most important oil-producing countries in the world, Iran and Saudi Arabia, the book provides an original theory about the factors that shape a logic of policymaking in oil producing states. To extend his theory Mazaheri also looks at India, which is one of the world's main coal producers. He does this to show the effects of the gain and loss of a massive resource windfall on state policymaking toward the private sector. Ultimately Mazaheri argues that such policymaking impedes the development of a middle class and therefore democratization--a factor that can have overarching political repercussions for governmental stability.

More books from Oxford University Press

Cover of the book The Weight of All Flesh by Nimah Mazaheri
Cover of the book How Everyone Became Depressed: The Rise and Fall of the Nervous Breakdown by Nimah Mazaheri
Cover of the book Redemption Songs by Nimah Mazaheri
Cover of the book Agricultural and Food Controversies by Nimah Mazaheri
Cover of the book Public Goods, Public Gains by Nimah Mazaheri
Cover of the book New Directions in American Reception Study by Nimah Mazaheri
Cover of the book The Redemptive Self by Nimah Mazaheri
Cover of the book Romance's Rival by Nimah Mazaheri
Cover of the book A History of Western Choral Music, Volume 1 by Nimah Mazaheri
Cover of the book The Testimony of the Spirit by Nimah Mazaheri
Cover of the book Ancient Literacies by Nimah Mazaheri
Cover of the book Inalienable Rights by Nimah Mazaheri
Cover of the book The West's East by Nimah Mazaheri
Cover of the book The Wonder of Their Voices by Nimah Mazaheri
Cover of the book Protestantism after 500 Years by Nimah Mazaheri
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy