(Why Nations Fail) co-authored by Daron Acemoglu and James A. Robinson.
Core viewpoints
The authors argue that a nation's wealth and poverty are largely unrelated to culture, climate, geographical features, or the health of its people; the key factors are human-made political and economic institutions. The book divides institutions into inclusive and extractive institutions. Under inclusive institutions, everyone has the opportunity to participate and enjoy the benefits, leading to a vibrant and creative nation with a flourishing economy; extractive institutions, on the other hand, concentrate power and resources in the hands of a few, depriving the majority of their achievements, resulting in insufficient productive incentives and national poverty.
Main content
- Historical case analysis:
Through the study of a large amount of historical evidence from the Roman Empire, Maya city-states, medieval Venice, the Soviet Union, Latin America, England, Europe, the United States, and Africa, it demonstrates the performance of different systems in various countries and their profound impact on national development. For example, after the Glorious Revolution, Britain established inclusive political and economic institutions, creating conditions for the Industrial Revolution and moving towards the path of becoming a great power; meanwhile, some countries in South America have long been under extractive institutional rule, with resources plundered, people suffering, and development difficult.
- Path dependency:
Emphasizes that the pathways of institutional formation in history can have a profound impact on a country's long-term development; even if the starting points are similar, different institutional choices can lead to vastly different developmental paths.
- Critical moments and institutional change:
Points out that major historical events such as wars, revolutions, and economic crises can disrupt the original power structure, providing opportunities for institutional change, but the direction of institutional change is not always beneficial for national development; extractive institutions may further consolidate their rule at critical moments, preventing the transition to inclusive institutions.
Significant implications
Provides a new analytical framework for understanding the rise and fall of nations and the differences in economic development, breaking traditional 'geographical determinism' and 'cultural determinism,' reminding people to value institutional building, which offers certain insights for policymakers and prompts deep reflection and broad discussion in academia and society on national development issues.