Development Geography

Development geography studies spatial patterns and processes of economic and social development and the geography of global inequality.

Scope

It covers theories of development and underdevelopment, the geography of global inequality, livelihoods, and the politics of development interventions.

Core questions

• Why are some places developed and others not?
• How does development vary spatially?
• What are the geographies of global inequality?
• How do development interventions affect places?

Key concepts

• Underdevelopment
• Dependency
• Uneven development
• Capabilities
• Livelihoods
• Global inequality

Key theories

Interdependent development

Brookfield critiqued modernization and dependency views, stressing interdependence and local context.

Development as freedom

Sen reframed development as the expansion of human capabilities and freedoms.

History

Development geography engaged modernization and dependency debates, critiqued top-down development, and adopted capability and livelihood approaches (Sen), now addressing globalization and postcolonial critique.

Debates

Modernization versus dependency

Whether underdevelopment results from internal lag or from exploitative global relations.

Key figures

• Harold Brookfield
• Amartya Sen

Seminal works

• brookfield-1975
• sen-1999

Frequently asked questions

What does development geography study?

The spatial patterns and processes of development and the geography of global inequality between and within regions.