Out from Underdevelopment: Prospects for the Third World

Claiming that the Third World countries are not caught in a hopeless situation, James H. Mittelman analyzes alternative strategies for overcoming underdevelopment. His thesis is that, unlike policies that fully embrace or repudiate global capitalism, a strategy of balancing the ties of dependency offers a clear chance for productive economic growth on terms consistent with the needs and aspirations of ordinary people. The key elements of this strategy are reducing reliance on global capitalism, setting limits to exploitation, and seizing the contradictions driving the world system. To work, restructuring requires a strong political will and mass support.