International Studies Quarterly · 1981 · 18 citations · 0 references
Social SciencesEconomicsHistoryEconomic DevelopmentEconomic HistoryWorld HistoryColonial EconomyImperial HistoryInequalityInterwar PeriodNineteenth-century EuropeWorld SystemsCapitalist World-economyColonial Economic HistoryGlobal Economic HistoryHistorical CapitalismImperial EconomyImperialism TheoryWorld EconomyWorld-systems Methodology
The origins of current world inequality are to be found in the nineteenth century, particularly in the period 1870–1914. The development of the world economy in this period is described, including the unique political-economic role of Great Britain within the world-system. A theory of imperialism based on the laissez-faire capitalist business cycle is developed which is intended to explain both British expansion and the accumulation of capital in the core, which is the single most salient feature of world inequality.