Characteristics of Failed Countries

This is an article from 1998, but I only saw a reference to it recently on More Than Zero.

Whether analyzing military capabilities, cultural viability, or economic potential, these seven factors offer a quick study of the likely performance of a state, region, or population group in the coming century.

...These key "failure factors" are:

• Restrictions on the free flow of information.
• The subjugation of women.
• Inability to accept responsibility for individual or collective failure.
• The extended family or clan as the basic unit of social organization.
• Domination by a restrictive religion.
• A low valuation of education.
• Low prestige assigned to work.

Discussion Question. Development economics tends to try to identify factors that enable a country to succeed, and this has proven difficult. Does it help to turn the question inside out and focus on factors that correlate with failure?