Economic Geography

Economic geography studies the spatial distribution and organization of economic activity — where production, trade, and development occur and why.

Scope

It covers location and agglomeration, regional development and uneven growth, global production networks, and the geography of labour and industry.

Core questions

• Why does economic activity concentrate in particular places?
• What drives regional inequality?
• How do global production networks organize space?
• How do labour and capital shape geographies of production?

Key concepts

• Agglomeration
• Uneven development
• Spatial division of labour
• Industrial location
• Global production networks
• Core-periphery

Key theories

Spatial divisions of labour

Massey analysed how rounds of investment produce layered geographies of production and inequality.

New economic geography

Krugman modelled how increasing returns and transport costs drive agglomeration and core-periphery patterns.

History

Economic geography moved from location theory to radical/critical analysis of uneven development (Massey) and, in parallel, the formal new economic geography (Krugman), now studying global production networks and regional economies.

Debates

Formal modelling versus critical political economy

Whether spatial economy is best analysed with formal models or critical social theory.

Key figures

• Doreen Massey
• Paul Krugman

Seminal works

• massey-1984
• krugman-1991

Frequently asked questions

What is the new economic geography?

Krugman's formal approach explaining the spatial concentration of activity through increasing returns and transport costs.