These problems are by no means limited to the developing
world. After a generation of rapid growth, most of the
capitalist states in Europe and North America began in
the late 1980s to suffer through a general slowdown in
economic performance. This slowdown has in turn given
rise to a number of related problems, several with serious
social and political implications. These problems include
an increase in the level of unemployment; government
belt-tightening policies to reduce social services and welfare
and retirement benefits; and in many countries, an
accompanying growth in popular resentment against mi-
nority groups or recent immigrants, who are seen as responsible
for deteriorating economic prospects.
World History
