Daniela-Luminita Constantin

English

Research Papers in Economics

 
 
 
 
BOOK REVIEW 
 
Roberta Capello and Peter  ijkamp (Eds.), Handbook of Regional Growth  
and Development Theories – Edward Elgar, 2009 
 
by Daniela Luminita Constantin, Academy of Economic Studies of Bucharest 
 
“Regional  Economics  is  back  on  the  stage”!  This  wonderful  statement,  inspiring  pride  and 
confidence,  is  the  starting  sentence  of  the  stunning  Handbook  of  Regional  Growth  and 
Development Theories recently launched by the prestigious Edward Elgar Publishing. 
 
The editors, Professor Roberta Capello from Politecnico di Milano and Professor Peter 
 ijkamp from VU University Amsterdam – two top scholars of the world’s regional science 
community, offer us a collection of cutting-edge theories explaining regional growth and local 
development in the twenty-first century. 
 
This comprehensive, original reference work is the result of the conceptual, critical and forward-
looking contributions developed by an unrivalled group of regional scientists, who have given an 
in-depth treatment of the most advanced theories, measurement methods and policy issues in 
regional growth. 
 
The volume is organized in five parts, reflecting the new, challenging directions of investigation 
proposed by the authors. 
 
Part  I is built around the new concepts of space and  growth, which lay  the foundations for 
current regional growth and development theories. Chapter 1, written by Philip McCann and 
Frank van Oort, offers a historical review on theories of agglomeration and regional growth 
based on evolutionary and institutional economic geographical conceptualisations. The authors 
show  that  the  fusion  of  new  and  old  ideas  raises  new  questions,  poses  new  challenges  and 
identify new directions for future research. 
 
Chapter 2, authored by Roberta Capello, presents in detail the wide range of notions of space as 
they  can  be  found in  various  theories,  revealing  their  interpretative  capacity. The  need  of a 
convincing model able to combine micro-territorial, micro-behavioural and intangible elements 
of the development process is discussed, at the same time with macroeconomic models. The 
chapter  concludes  that  “it  is  necessary  to  demonstrate  the  territorial  micro-foundations  of 
macroeconomic growth models” (p.48) considering it a big challenge to regional economists in 
the years to come. 
 Roberta Capello and Peter Nijkamp (Eds.), Handbook of Regional Growth and Development 
Theories – Edward Elgar, 2009 by Daniela-Luminita Constantin  
111 
In Chapter 3 Gunter Mayer and Michaela Trippl look at the spatial distribution of regional 
growth,  analysing the  implications  of  different  growth  theories on  the  spatial  distribution of 
economic activities and long-term dynamics of regional economy. The views expressed by the 
neoclassical  model,  endogenous  growth  and  new  economic  geography  (NEG)  are  mainly 
considered. 
 
In Chapter 4 Kieran Donaghy provides a selective survey of different aspects of the relationship 
between  trade  and  regional  growth  as  they  are  explained  by  various  theories  of  trade, 
agglomeration and fragmentation, indicating where the frontiers of research on this subject lie.  
 
In Chapter 5 Alfredo Minerva and Gianmarco Ottaviano address the agglomeration benefits 
and transportation costs from the perspective of endogenous growth theories, focusing on the 
effects of infrastructure on the costs of exchanging goods and ideas (transportation costs and 
communication costs, respectively). They provide a unified framework summarising the main 
insights of NEG on the relation between infrastructure, economic growth and agglomeration. 
 
Part II is devoted to advances in regional development theories, aiming to shed more light on the 
influence  of  the  production  factors  endowment.  Chapter  6,  written  by  Jeffrey  Cohen  and 
Catherine  Morrison  Paul,  concentrates  on  the  empirical  representation  of  agglomeration 
economies, discussion the potential of the econometric models based on production theory to 
analyse the productive impacts of corresponding externalities in terms of causes, productivity 
and growth effects. 
 
Chapter 7, authored by Roberto Camagni, deals with the relationship between territorial capital 
and  regional  development.  The  concept  of territorial  capital  is  developed  within  a  cognitive 
approach  to  regional  development,  which  supports  the  idea  that  “growth  strategies  for  each 
region, city or territory must necessarily rely on local assets and potentials and their full and wise 
exploitation” (p.119). 
 
In Chapter 8 Alessandra Faggian and Philip McCann demonstrate there are two quite different 
sets of human capital impacts on regions: the first, which mirrors the national impact, has an 
influence  on  the  aggregate  productivity  in  the  economy,  while  the  second,  which  differs 
significantly from the national impact, can result in a major spatial reallocation of factors. The 
conclusions show that the regions will flourish when the two impacts coincide and struggle in the 
opposite situation. 
 
In Chapter 9 Johannes Bröcker and Piet Rietveld bring into discussion the complex relation 
between  infrastructure  and  regional  development,  highlighting  interesting  future  research 
directions.  For  example,  they  comment  upon  the  temporal  perspective,  arguing  that  it  is 
important to distinguish between shot-term  effects, dominated by  construction activities, and 
mid- and long-term effects, dominated by productivity effects. 
 
Chapter 10, elaborated by Manfred M. Fischer and Peter  ijkamp, provides a deep review of 
the literature devoted to entrepreneurship in relation with those factors that prompt it in the space 
economy. The authors objectively consider that the literature on this subject has not reached a 
mature  equilibrium,  still  being  in  a  development  stage.  The  methodological  and  technical Roberta Capello and Peter Nijkamp (Eds.), Handbook of Regional Growth and Development 
Theories – Edward Elgar, 2009 by Daniela-Luminita Constantin  
111 
problems associated with the research on this topic are discussed and robust, forward-looking 
solutions are proposed. 
 
Part 3 is about development theories, with a particular emphasis on innovation, knowledge and 
space.  In  Chapter  11  David  Audretsch  and  Taylor  Aldridge  aim  to  explain  “why  the 
emergence  of  knowledge  as  a  source  of  comparative  advantage  has  rendered  a  shift  in  the 
organization of economic activity for both the spatial and enterprise levels” (p.201). They use 
insights provided by knowledge spillover theory of entrepreneurship for an integrated approach 
of the organization of economic activity in the geographic space and small firm enterprises. 
 
In  Chapter  12  Daria  Denti  reviews  the  influential  and  path-breaking  contributions  of  the 
economic  literature  devoted  to  the  linkages  between  R&D  and  economic  performance  of 
countries and regions. Her main conclusion is that the presence of spillovers, as one of the main 
factors characterising R&D as a commodity, is identified in both theory and empirical research, 
revealing  a  wide  menu  of  trajectories  through  which  R&D  externalities  may  influence  an 
economy. 
 
Chapter 13, elaborated by Börje Johansson and Charlie Karlsson examines the main models 
which  describe and explain the  role  of  knowledge in  regional  development  and  provides  an 
assessment  of  the  empirical  studies  that  analyse  the  way  Knowledge  influences  growth  and 
development in functional regions. Based on solid arguments the authors distinguish four areas 
for regional policies that relate to a region’s knowledge resources, namely knowledge policies, 
household milieu policies, facility policies and firm milieu policies. 
 
In  Chapter  14  Henri  de  Groot,  Jacques  Poot  and  Martijn  Smit  explore  the  theoretical 
background behind the empirical analysis of the growth in cities and propose a meta-analysis of 
agglomeration  externalities,  innovation  and  growth,  pointing  at  several  directions  of  future 
research:  the  sectoral,  temporal  and  spatial  heterogeneity  of  specialisation,  competition  and 
urban  growth  effects,  the  regional  aggregation  level  at  which  agglomeration  forces  are 
operational, etc.  
 
Chapter 15, authored by Amitrajeet Batabyal and peter  ijkamp, aims at a systematic review 
of the key themes of the literature on sustainable development and regional growth. It is both 
retrospective and forward-looking, concentrating on fundamental areas of interest such as natural 
resources, environmental regulation, geographic information systems formation, regional climate 
change. 
 
Part IV brings into discussion the most advanced methods for measuring regional growth and 
development.  Chapter  16,  written  by  Ryohei   akamura  and  Catherine  Morrison  Paul, 
focuses  on  the  measurement  of  economic  agglomeration  in  the  context  of  the  clustering  of 
regional economic activity. After commenting upon various agglomeration measures proposed in 
the  literature  the  authors  provide  alternative  methodologies  for  the  direct  measurement  of 
agglomeration. 
 Roberta Capello and Peter Nijkamp (Eds.), Handbook of Regional Growth and Development 
Theories – Edward Elgar, 2009 by Daniela-Luminita Constantin  
111 
In the following chapter, 17, Roberto Ezcurra and Andrés Rodrigues Pose offer an overview 
of the main developments in the measurement of the regional divide, with reflections on several 
methodological issues appeared over the attempts to quantify the magnitude of spatial disparities. 
 
In Chapter 18 Robert Stimson, Alistair Robson and Tung Kai Shyy propose a measure of 
regional endogenous change which is readily calculable from secondary  analysis of regional 
employment data available in the Australian census. The chapter concludes with some reflections 
on the emergence of a new paradigm for economic development analysis and planning. 
 
Chapter  19,  authored  by  Cem  Ertur and  Julie  Le  Gallo,  deals with  the  main econometric 
specifications capturing spatial heterogeneity, followed by examining how these specifications 
can  be  extended  to  allow  further  for  spatial  autocorrelation  in  the  models  of  heterogenous 
reaction. 
 
In Chapter 20 Kieran Donaghy provides a survey on computable general equilibrium (SCGE) 
modeling  in  space.  Its  primary  objective  is  to  convey  a  sense  of  the  scope  of  the  SCGE 
modeling, accompanied by a discussion on new directions in which SCGE modeling might be 
taken. 
 
In  Chapter  21  Jan  Oosterhaven  and  Karen  Polenske  refer  to  regional  and  multi-regional 
impact analyses and the development of computer programming packages helping the analyses 
to conduct such studies in a reasonable time. They conclude that “new spatial theories are needed 
before analysts can make significant advances on applications and that there is no real substitute 
to survey-based, inter-industry, interregional information and modeling” (p.436). 
 
Part V deals with regional growth and development policies. The first chapter (22) in this part, 
written by T.R. Lakshmanan and Ken Button, focuses on different institutional mechanisms 
that serve for the coordination of regional economic activities in modern capitalistic economies, 
with  deep  insights  into the  logic  and  functions  of  economic  institutions. They  underline the 
requirements of the institutions needed by the modern, knowledge-based society at all levels of 
spatial interest. 
 
In  Chapter  23 Jouke van  Dijk,  Henk  Folmer  and  Jan Oosterhaven  discuss  the  rationale, 
foundations  and  measurement  of  regional  policy  effects  from  the  perspective  of  several 
dilemmas,  such  as  “place  prosperity  versus  people  prosperity”,  “interregional  equity  versus 
national efficiency”, etc.. They highlight the interdependence between the framework for the 
choice of policy goals and policy instruments and the political choice which is dependent upon 
the institutional and socio-economic setting as well as a series of norms and values. 
 
Then, in Chapter 24, Maria Abreu and Maria Savona analyse new regional policies for less 
developed  regions  using  India  as  a  case  study.  A  special  emphasis  is  put  on  the  policy 
interventions carried out at regional level for counterbalancing the effects of trade liberalization. 
 
In the final chapter, 25, Peter Friedrich and Chang Woon  am discuss the significance of 
special economic zones for the public intervention in relation with the economic decline. They Roberta Capello and Peter Nijkamp (Eds.), Handbook of Regional Growth and Development 
Theories – Edward Elgar, 2009 by Daniela-Luminita Constantin  
111 
stress the necessity of an improved stage theory to show the processes of development and not 
merely a characterization of development stages based on some indicators. 
 
The  whole  book  is  so  brimful  of  ideas,  methodologies  and  case  studies  that  will  certainly 
stimulate fruitful debates and further insights in the international regional science research arena. 
It  is  a  source  of  reference  and  information  for  both  scholars  and  students,  which  deserves 
widespread circulation and recognition. 
 
I  express  my  humble  admiration  and  congratulations  to  the  editors  and  all  contributors, 
accompanied by sincere thanks to the Marketing Department of the Edward Elgar Publishing for 
the gracefully enabled privilege of reviewing this authoritative handbook. 
 
 
 
 
 

BOOK REVIEW Roberta Capello and Peter Nijkamp (Eds.), Handbook of Regional Growth and Development Theories – Edward Elgar, 2009

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