Structural and locational influences affecting export performance in South Island export manufacturing firms : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Geography at Massey University

Abstract

Industrialisation may be defined as 'the growth in the proportion of the workforce employed in factories or manufacturing' (Blyth , 1974, 2), Generally there is no single accepted theory of industrialisation, instead there is a wide spectrum of theories and models concerning industrialisation and its relationship to economic development at both the national and subnational scale. Industrialisation is assumed by most as the key to economic progress. Maizels (1970) argues that industrialisation raises the physical output per head in the agricultural and then subsequently in the manufacturing sector. Historically, this sets in motion the process of urbanisation and over time the urban population becomes employed in manufacturing. The manufacturing sector then expands and exports follow as a logical consequence.