An Economic Inquiry Into the Nonlinear Behaviors of Nations : Dynamic Developments and the Origins of Civilizations

This book applies an economic approach to examine the driving forces behind the dynamic behaviors of developing nations. Taking into account initial conditions and environmental and external factors often oversimplified by historians and anthropologists, Guo finds that the rise and fall of civilizations and nations followed an anti-Darwinian process: physical weakness, rather than strength, induced humans to adapt. Cultures facing unfavorable physical and environmental conditions developed complex societies to overcome these challenges, while favorable conditions did not incentivize major economic and cultural change. Over centuries of economic growth and development, nations and civilizations’ adaptive behaviors have followed a cyclical path at both the country level and in an international context. This interdisciplinary book incorporates elements of history, anthropology, and development into an astute economic analysis that changes the way we think about the origins and evolutions of civilizations. Front Matter....Pages i-xvii Introduction....Pages 1-7 Front Matter....Pages 9-9 Culture as an Anti-Darwinian Process....Pages 11-37 Good Environment, Bad Environment....Pages 39-69 Living in the Lands Threatened....Pages 71-106 Are There Any Optimal Strategies for Nations?....Pages 107-135 Front Matter....Pages 137-137 Civilization as a Cyclical Human Process....Pages 139-172 China: Short Cycles, Long Cycles....Pages 173-205 Western World: A Longer Cycle....Pages 207-243 In Cycle We Trust....Pages 245-276 Back Matter....Pages 277-294