ABSTRACT
This part introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters. The part illustrates divergent approaches to analysis of the economic growth effects of government policies. It discusses a number of interesting questions, foremost among them the issue of why government policies affecting economic growth vary so greatly among nations. The part explores the substantial difficulty with which existing economic models of growth and explains differences in growth, both across nations and over time, and discusses some implications of several general hypotheses about the origins of policies affecting growth. It examines the public and private interest rationales in the context of government deposit insurance for banks. The discussion centered upon efforts by government to reduce negative ancillary effects of policies, and whether these efforts inherently are self-limiting or endlessly expansionary. The part concludes with histories of deposit insurance adoption in Canada and the United States are consistent with the private interest model of government behavior.
