Why Are Poor Countries Poor?

"It made me see the world from other perspectives. I engaged in animated, yet professional debates that made me feel like I was an actual economist discussing the future of the world!"

- Luigi Ambrosi, 2012

Course Description

Why are average incomes in the U.S. ten times higher than in Paraguay and over a hundred times higher than in Burundi? Why are such gaps in standards of living so persistent? And how do we measure “standards of living” anyway? What are the lives of the poor in poor countries really like? How does one survive on less than $1 a day? What causes massive inequalities in such countries? In what ways is women’s experience with poverty different from men’s? What is microcredit and to what extent can it help solve the problems of poor countries? What programs have proven most effective at raising educational levels in such countries? What health problems do poor countries face and how can they be addressed?

This course examines the causes of poverty in developing countries and the challenges of devising effective poverty reduction strategies. Students are made aware of economic tools that help to answer many of the above questions and gain insights from behavioral economics, a recent and innovative branch of economics. Students use statistical evidence and examine case studies drawn from the experiences of several African, Latin American, and Asian developing countries. Such case studies help to foster an understanding of the complexity of economic development.

Class activities include teacher-led discussions to help students learn about the most recent theories of economic growth and development, student-centered discussions of readings that offer contrasting points of view on the causes of poverty and the most effective policies to address it, and debates in which teams of students face off on controversial development issues.

Each student researches and gives a presentation concerning the economic problems and opportunities in a developing country of his or her choice.

Instructor(s)