Re-thinking economic development in peripheral regions

Economic development in peripheral or non-urban spaces has long been charac teristic of so-called 'branch plant' and 'back office' economies. This conc lusion has been premised on the explanatory potential of the product cycle model (PCM). The PCM suggests preliminary product and process innovations o ccur in core urban areas. Under that model, the diffusion of economic activ ities across space occurs only when the production process has been streaml ined and routinized. Additionally, the geographic concept of spatial agglom eration has underscored the explanatory account of the PCM. In concert, the PCM and agglomeration illustrate the urban or core bias of traditional eco nomic geography. This paper will reconsider regional development in periphe ral areas within the context of an emerging new economic geography. Several themes of new economic geography, including the role of the state, the spa tial division of labor, producer services, information technologies, and am enities, will be used to construct a proposed cumulative framework.