Gunnar Myrdal

Myrdal, (Karl) Gunnar 

Born Dec. 6, 1898, in Gustafs. Swedish economist. Professor at the Higher Commercial School in Stockholm (1933–50 and again from 1960); consultant to the Swedish government on economic questions (1933–38); minister of trade and commerce (1945–47); executive secretary of the UN Economic Commission for Europe (1947–57).

Myrdal’s many works on international economic relations contain theoretical validations and practical recommendations for strengthening economic ties between the developed capitalist countries and the developing nations. He is an advocate of expansion of economic contacts with the socialist states. His books are distinguished by rich factual material and an original interpretation of vital economic and political problems. Myrdal’s views on the socioeconomic development of Third World countries are widely known in the West and are considered authoritative.

A number of Myrdal’s recent works accurately depict the difficulties that developing countries are experiencing in overcoming the economic backwardness inherited from colonialism. However, Myrdal’s evaluation of the potentials for further economic development of Third World countries is based on a denial of the noncapitalist path; this reflects the inconsistency and bourgeois narrowness of his scholarly concepts. In his works, Myrdal idealizes the bourgeois system and underestimates the fundamental contradictions between imperialist states.

WORKS

Monetary Equilibrium. London, 1939.
The Political Element in the Development of Economic Theory. London, 1953.
Economic Theory and Underdeveloped Regions. London, 1957.
Beyond the Welfare State. New Haven, 1960.
Challenge to Affluence. London, 1963.
The Challenge of World Poverty: A World Antipoverty Program in Outline. New York, 1970.
Aufsätze und Reden. Frankfurt am Main, 1971.
In Russian translation:
Mirovaia ekonomika: Problemy i perspektivy. Moscow, 1958.
Sovremennye problemy “tret’ego mira.” Moscow, 1972.