This edited volume discusses the development theory advanced by the
Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) in the
1940s, and its transformations through the second half of the twentieth
century. In this time frame, the authors identify two approaches:
structuralism (1950-1980) and neo-structuralism (1980-onwards). The
contributors describe the transition in terms of economic theory and
policy; the conceptualization of the State; and the consideration of
space on regional and global scales. They argue that structuralism is
still relevant for understanding the current problems of development if
a careful and appropriate recovery and update of its main ideas and
concepts is made in relation to the current context of globalization and
internationalization of production and finance.