Development Experience; a Comparative Study of Developing Versus Developed Countries Based on Social Fabric Matrix Approach

Based on the social fabric matrix (SFM) approach, this paper examines and compares the development experience of six groups of countries, namely: industrially developed countries, emerging economies in Eastern Asia, developing countries in Western Asia, developing countries in Latin America, transitional economies in Eastern Europe, and African developing countries. Emphasizing the trends of science and technology in these groups, we also review Iranian development experience in comparison to that of the selected countries in order to deduce implications for policy making. According to the findings of this study, the optimum course of development is one which accounts for the benefit of all players. The government's role is a combination of reducing partly the planner's benefit of relying on funds of non-rival rents; as well as increasing partly the benefits of collaboration for the planned parties. Hence, the government needs to posses characteristics adapting to the beneficiaries as well as tools for control. Taking into account the cultural and ethnical context of Iranian economy, the implication would be that a third player, i.e. a local civil player must be assigned in order to improve the basis of cooperation among planners and planned persons.