Abstract
SUMMARY At present regional economics does not yet possess the theoretical tools needed to solve the problems of unequal regional growth arising in the context of the development of backward countries. According to the so-called ‘Equalization Doctrine’ the elimination of the spatial differences in economic growth is possible only by the adoption of a policy tackling with all regions and sectors in one all-embracing action. Regarding the limited resources of the developing countries, however, this advice seems not to be of practical value.-With this state of affairs it is tempting to enquire for inducement-mechanisms conveying impulses of economic development from ‘leading regions’ or ‘growing points’ of a country to its lagging areas. Starting from HIRSCHMAN'S general ideas on unbalanced development, the author embarks on a discussion of PERROUX’‘Theory of Development-poles’. An attempt is made to make PERROUX’ hypothesis more workable in defining effects of economic, institutional, psychological, and geographical polarization. The role of these effects as inducement-mechanisms stimulating regional economic development is broadly analyzed. Special attention is paid in this context to the complementarity-effects which are characterized as being powerful sequences of industrialization either in their working via technological interrelations or via market-decisions. Comments concerning the possibilities of promoting small-scale industries in the ‘polarized region’ and some remarks on the maximization of polarization-effects by optimizing the development-pole's set of industries constitute the final part of this essay in unbalanced regional development.
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