Comparative Models of Development

Challenges to the American-Western System

Howard J. Wiarda, who was the Dean Rusk Professor of International Relations at the School of Public and International Affairs at the University of Georgia, outlines a paradigm shift in world politics that has been driven by two overarching trends: the shift from a U.S. and Western-favored model of development to different models and the decline of a Western system of world order. In examining these two trends, he seeks to answer questions such as: Why are the gaps increasing rather than shrinking between the rich and the poor, both within countries and between the developed countries and developing ones? Why have some countries and regions adapted to the newer pressures of globalization, democratization, and new markets, and others have not? Why does the Middle East, Southeast Asia, Sub-Saharan Africa, and much of Latin America still lag behind while others are forging ahead? By taking a regional view of development and international relations, the author challenges the view that one theoretical framework can explain the economic, social, and foreign policy approaches of all countries.