Geography Reference
In-Depth Information
18 An evolutionary approach to localized learning
and spatial clustering
Anders Malmberg and Peter Maskell
1. Introduction
Economic geographers approach the spatial aspects of economic development from dif-
ferent angles. They pursue macro analyses of the economic growth of spatial entities such
as cities, regions or nations. But they also conduct micro- or meso-level analyses of the
development of i rms or systems of related i rms, such as industries, networks or clusters.
In either case, the main concern is often the relation between economic specialization on
the one hand, and economic performance on the other.
Thus, macro-level economic geography departs from questions like: Why do some
regions (cities, nations) prosper while others don't? Why is there regional specialization
- between as well as within countries - and how are such patterns reproduced? Natural
resources and demography have an impact, alongside institutional settings, knowledge
structures and the general macroeconomic environment. The most inl uential models
dealing with uneven regional development emphasize processes of cumulative causation
and the fact that a region that, for one reason or the other, has taken the lead will gradu-
ally tend to strengthen its position, partly at the expense of surrounding, less developed
regions (Hirschman, 1958; Krugman, 1991; Myrdal, 1957; Ullman, 1958).
Micro- and meso-level analyses, on the other hand, focus on the location of the i rm
and ask questions like: How is the performance and competitiveness of a i rm af ected
by the conditions that prevail in its immediate environment? Why do similar and related
i rms tend to agglomerate in certain places? A key factor here is the impact of spatial
proximity between i rms on various interaction processes (rivalry, collaboration, imita-
tion) that allegedly lead to new knowledge and competitiveness. Supply and skills of
local labor, appropriateness of the physical infrastructure and institutional framework
are other important attributes of attractive business locations.
Even though space is the constituent aspect of economic geography, the core questions
of the discipline are also intimately related to time. Dif erent regions have various capa-
bilities at their disposal - resources, institutions, infrastructures, skills, norms and values
- and these make up the basis for their development prospects. The capabilities of a
region often date back in history as combinations of chance events, natural endowments,
and the ef ects of previous human activity. Some specii c feature in the local environment
may determine a i rm's choice of location, but the presence of the i rm will also af ect this
environment and inl uence the cost and quality of the inputs available.
In this sense a geographical location - be it a city, a region or a nation - can be thought
of as having a memory that directs the path of subsequent development. Over time, par-
ticular choices, themselves framed by past decisions, open up new strands of economic
development, but preclude others (Arrow, 1962). The downside tends to be expressed
in terms of lock-in to a fated path where development is constrained within a gradually
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