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In this article, Garrison Gove will explain the outdated geopolitical concept of the Three-World model.
The Three-WorldS Model
The Three-WorldS Model
By Garrison Gove
If I were to ask you to describe a third-world country, what would you say? You would probably mention rampant disease, widespread poverty, and political instability. Now, let’s try to describe a first-world country. You would mention low poverty, political stability, and easy access to food, education, and transportation. But what about the second world? And where did these terms originate?
In 1952, French demographer Alfred Sauvy developed the Three-World Model, which he compared to the three estates in pre-revolutionary France:
The First World consisted of capitalist nations aligned with the United States in opposition to the Soviet Union, such as the United States, Canada, most nations of Western Europe, Japan, and South Korea. These nations were defined by democratic governments, capitalist economies, and high standards of living.
The Second World consisted of Communist nations aligned with the Soviet Union against the United States, such as the Soviet Union, China, Cuba, North Korea, and Vietnam. These nations often had authoritarian governments, were undergoing rapid industrialization, and often had lower standards of living than their first-world counterparts.
The Third World was used to broadly classify nations that were not aligned with either of the two major superpowers. Most of these nations were former colonies located in Latin America, the Middle East, and Africa. Many of these nations were impoverished and non-industrialized.
In 1969, French priest and anti-poverty activist Joseph Wresinksi coined the term Fourth World, which referred to uncontacted tribes, people living outside of the modern industrial norm, or residents of a First World country experiencing living conditions similar to that of a Third World country. This term has not adopted the same widespread use as that of First or Third World.
The "three worlds" of the Cold War. The First World is in blue, the Second World is in red, and the Third World is in green.
Following the end of the Cold War, these classifications took on new meanings. With the Soviet Union no longer existing, the term “Second World” disappeared from common vocabulary. Meanwhile, the terms “First World” and “Third World” became synonymous with “developed country” and “developing country” respectively. However, this association is not necessarily accurate. Countries such as Mexico, India, and Brazil, despite being considered “Third World”, all boast rising economies and are considered emerging economic powers. Likewise, countries like Finland, Sweden, and Ireland are all highly developed countries, yet were technically considered part of the “Third World” during the Cold War era.
So, if the Three-World model is not an accurate classification of nations, what is? The International Monetary Fund offers the following alternative:
Developed countries: Post-industrial or highly-industrialized countries such as the United States, Canada, Western Europe, Japan, Australia, and New Zealand
Developing countries: countries that still have an industrial-based economy, yet are close to post-industrial markets, such as China, India, Russia, South Africa, and Latin America
Underdeveloped countries: countries that still rely on agrarian economies, such as most of Africa, Southeast Asia, Haiti, and Yemen
The countries of the world as classified by the International Monetary Fund. Developed countries are in blue, developing countries are in yellow, and underdeveloped countries are in red.
The United Nations also uses the Human Development Index, which ranks nations based on the following categories:
Very high development: United States, Canada, Western Europe, Israel, Japan, Australia, South Korea, New Zealand, Hong Kong, Saudi Arabia, Argentina, and Chile.
High development: Mexico, Costa Rica, Panama, Iran, China, Russia, Eastern Europe, most of South America, Algeria, Libya, and Tunisia
Medium development: India, Mongolia, Indonesia, Southeast Asia, and most of Central America and Africa
Low development: Most of Africa and Haiti
The United Nations' Human Development Index. Countries range from very high development (dark green) to high development (light green), medium development (orange), and low development (red). Source:
It should be noted that classifying nations based on income and development is highly subjective. For example, living conditions in India or Mexico might be considered poor by someone from the United States or Norway, but not by someone from Niger or Haiti. Therefore, proceed with caution when classifying another country as "third-world" or "underdeveloped." People from these countries may respond with offense or outrage.
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