Here’s a clear, UPSC-ready differentiation between Andre Gunder Frank’s “Development of Underdevelopment” and Immanuel Wallerstein’s “World-Systems Theory”, in Notion-compatible format and with sharp conceptual boundaries 👇

1. Thinker & Intellectual Context

Andre Gunder Frank

• Neo-Marxist, Dependency School
• Writing mainly in 1960s–70s
• Focus: Latin America & Third World

Immanuel Wallerstein

• Historical sociologist, World-Systems School
• Writing from 1970s onwards
• Focus: Global capitalist system since 16th century

2. Core Question Asked

Frank

Why are some countries underdeveloped despite long exposure to capitalism?

Wallerstein

How does the capitalist world economy systematically reproduce inequality at a global scale?

3. Basic Unit of Analysis

Frank