Research Policy and Review 31. From Branch Plants to Back Offices: Prospects for Rural Services Growth

Abstract

Services are being touted as a major source of future rural economic development. Such prospects depend on the definition of services and the ability to identify and measure them accurately. Recent literature on services is reviewed and attempts made to answer the questions: what are services and can they be measured accurately; how have rural areas fared with recent growth in services; what are the determinants of rural services growth; is their growth self-generated or is it derivative of other forms of development; what regulates service industry location; and do these factors differ from those for other industries? Policy recommendations about service industry location are also reviewed.