Albert Hirschman and His Controversial Research Report

• DOI: 10.2139/ssrn.1945822
• Publication Date: 2012-01-05T19:05:29Z
• Authors: Ana Maria Bianchi
• Keywords: jel:B20; jel:B31; Hirschman, World Bank, economic development, development economics; 0502 economics and business; 05 social sciences; 1. No poverty; jel:O1

During the early nineteen sixties, Albert Hirschman negotiated with International Bank of Reconstruction and Development, part World group, financial support that he needed for an extended visit to several WB development projects scattered throughout poor areas world. The document where reports his was matter much controversy between IBRD staff Hirschman. One major points disagreement latter's refusal employ technique cost-benefit analysis, then very popular at WB, as a measure success project. claimed one-dimensional scale unable grasp various indirect effects project, which, argued, were so varied escape detection by one or even criteria uniformly applied all projects. He illustrated this proposition many concrete examples extracted from able visit.