Section: Human Geography

12) According to Rostow's development model, the process of development begins when: 

1. a high percentage of national wealth is allocated to nonproductive activities
2. an elite group initiates innovative activities
3. take-off industries achieve technical advances
4. workers become more skilled and specialized 

Developed in the 1950s, this model exemplifies the liberal development ideology, as opposed to structuralist theory, Under the model, all countries develop in a five-stage process. The development cycle is initiated by investment in a takeoff industry that allows the country to grow a comparative advantage, which sparks greater economic gain that eventually diffuses throughout the country's economy. Drawbacks to this model include its not identifying cultural and historic differences in development trajectories because it is based on North American and western European development histories.