This volume investigates the intersection of economic research and national urban development strategies to determine how public policy can effectively address regional disparities. The editors, Gordon C. Cameron and Lowdon Wingo, compile a series of academic papers and conference discussions to analyze the role of government intervention in urban growth. The text provides a framework for evaluating how economic data informs the planning and implementation of regional policies.

Experts identify this collection as a historical record of early 1970s urban policy discourse. Readers frequently note the academic density of the prose, which reflects the formal conference setting of the original presentations.