What role do East Asian states play in the world economy? Can the world-systems model originally designed for studying development in Europe and North America be applied to East Asia? To what extent has the rivalry between the United States and Japan had an impact on the development of East Asia? Examining these and other key questions, the authors offer a clear, comprehensive analysis of the economic development of East Asia. Offering a unique perspective, this book examines the origins and transformation of East Asia from a world-systems analysis. In contrast to the literature's focus on market, culture, state, and dependency, East Asia and the World Economy points to the crucial role of geopolitical and regional factors in East Asian development. The authors provide a cohesive review of the world-systems model as it applies to East Asia, exploring its intellectual heritage, the historical context through which it arose, its basic assumptions, and its policy implications. To illustrate how this model works in East Asia, the authors examine the economies of Hong Kong, Taiwan, China, North Korea, and Japan. The result is a fascinating study that demonstrates how the world-systems model provides a more focused explanation of East Asia's peculiar pattern of development. For scholars and students in the fields of political science, economics, Asian studies, international affairs, and development studies, this book is a must. "This book applies world-systems analysis to explain the peculiar pattern of East Asian development over the past two centuries. . . . It offers a fresh and fascinating approach to the study of economic and political evolution in the East asian nations. The volume is well organized and written for both scholars and students. It will make an excellent text for an undergraduate course in East Asian Economics and politics." --Choice CONTENTS: I. Theoretical Introduction // 1. Current Perspectives on East Asian Development // II. Incorporation // 2. The Decline of the Chinese Empire / 3. The Great Escape of Japan // III. Regionalization // 4. Japan and Its Colonial Empire / 5. The Sino-Japanese War and the Chinese Communist Revolution // IV. Ascent // 6. The Social Trajectories of China and North Korea / 7. The "Corization" of Japan / 8. The Semiperipherization of the NIEs (Hong Kong, South Korea, Taiwan) // V. Centrality // 9. United States - Japan Hegemonic Rivalry / 10. The Chinese Triangle of Mainland - Taiwan - Hong Kong / 11. Conclusion / Index ABRIDGED CONTENTS: I. Theoretical Introduction / II. Incorporation / III. Regionalization / IV. Ascent / V. Centrality