From lived experience to economic models: a mixed methods analysis of competitive policies in Gioia Tauro and Genoa, Italy

Abstract

Competitive policies represent a major resource allocation within the local economic development budgets of cities. Nevertheless, the outcomes of these policies have received only a cursory analysis related to their effects on the positions of cities within global economic networks. Detailed case studies of competitive policies in two ports: Gioia Tauro and Genoa, suggest that competitive policies are closely tied to a much broader range of economic outcomes and demonstrate significant local variation in terms of the distribution of costs and benefits. Although current models developed within geographical economics have proved insufficient for theorizing this complexity, there is evidence that models built around an agent-based framework are capable of representing this complexity while providing a testing ground for hypotheses developed within the case studies. Broadening our understanding of competitive policies and improving our methods for judging them represents an important policy goal given the ubiquity of these policies and their uncritical implementation in cities across the world.