Superpowers Lesson 7: Wallersteins World System Theory Flashcards
What does this theory propose about how development should be viewed?
Development should be viewed within a global economic context, rather than focussing on individual countries
What are the 3 categories of this theory?
- Core regions
- Semi-periphery regions
- Periphery regions
What countries come under the core region?
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries and the USA and EU superpowers
What countries come under the semi-periphery regions?
NICs of Latin America and Asia, including all BRICS countries
What countries come under the periphery regions?
The rest of the developing world e.g. many African countries like Kenya, Congo, Somalia etc
Why is this theory more widely accepted than other?
-Has flexibility, since it considers how countries change over time
Which other theory does Wallerstein criticise the most, and why?
Frank’s dependency theory
Theory is too static and suggests countries permanently stuck in an undeveloped state
What is the criticism about this model?
It is really just an analysis of the world’s patterns of power and wealth, rather than a detailed explanation of them