The spectacular success of the Newly Industrializing Economies (NIEs) of Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Singapore has prompted debate on whether an East Asian growth model exists. This success has been the subject of much discussion in the development studies profession and the already voluminous literature continues to grow rapidly.

In one of the first books to synthesize work on the region, Anis Chowdhury and Iyanatul Islam discern two competing paradigms in the literature: the neoclassical approach which interprets the East Asian economic miracle as the predictable outcome of "good" economic policies, and the statist perspective which draws attention to the central role of the government in guiding East Asian economic development. The book blends studies of country-specific experiences with an examination of fundamental themes in development studies. The authors identify the deficiencies in current knowledge of such issues as trade and financial liberalization, the appropriate role of the state in late industrialization, and the future evolution of the East Asian NIEs in an era of democratization.