Author Description

Sponsored by the East-West Center in Honolulu, this volume brings together papers by a distinguished group of Korean and Japanese experts to examine the similarities and differences between the development experiences of Japan and Korea. In an attempt to identify the common factors which could account for the phenomenally successful economic development of the two countries, the contributors explore six topics and their roles in economic development: trade, government, the impact of imported technology, financial systems and policies, agriculture, and the educational and social basis of development. As the first volume to present an extended comparison of the two economies in a single source, The Economic Development of Japan and Korea will be of significant interest to scholars in development economics, Asian studies, and international economics. The contributors demonstrate that although there are both similarities and differences in the economic development of Japan and Korea, the two can be regarded as having followed the same general pattern of development. Both countries are resource-poor and have relied on trade as the engine of development. In addition, both governments have played an active role in economic development, in marked contrast to the situation in the West. By exploring in turn the role played by such factors as export trade, public policy, and education, the contributors show that the success of Japan and Korea can be attributed to the right combination of a private market system and the autonomous state. Their conclusions have important implications for the governments of other developing countries struggling with problems and issues inherent in attempts to foster sustained economic growth.