Considerable attention has been devoted in the United States and elsewhere to the analysis of the factors that result in different rates of economic development in peripheral rural areas versus more densely settled urban enclaves. Of particular interest have been the roles of federal government-sponsored development programs and local initiatives as stimulants of economic growth. This project will analyze the ways in which central and local development strategies have influenced the rapid expansion of export-oriented, small- and medium-sized economic establishments over the last decade in western Jutland, the most peripheral part of Denmark. A qualitative evaluation of at least a dozen hypotheses will be based on data on economic activity, surveys of establishment executives, and interviews with many of those executives as well as business leaders in related fields, labor leaders, government officials, educators, and other analysts. Through analysis of these sources, new insights should be formed on the role of public policies as well as the impact of other factors on the success of a rapidly growing set of economic activities. This project will provide much new information about the conditions and processes that have influenced economic growth in Jutland in the last decade, but it also will provide a solid basis for generalization to other locales in order to determine the degree to which elements of the Danish experience can be generalized. The methodology will be replicable, permitting extension of this work to other locales where the same or different strategies have been or might be employed. Among the areas about which this research is likely to provide new information and perspectives are more peripheral parts of the U.S., including the Mississippi Delta region, the Mexican border region, and the Pacific Northwest.
