The social impact of economic growth is analyzed; it is emphasized that such growth may exacerbate social inequalities. Four major economic systems that define the quality of economic growth - industrial, technical, financial, institutional and social - are reviewed. The outcome of social development of the Russian economy since the early 1990s up to 2010 is analyzed, patterns of social sectors functioning of the national economy are identified. A method of analysis of social structure and social efficiency, in which the social system is divided into sectors - education, health, etc. - is proposed. The analysis of social investments effectiveness by the example of health care is made. In this analysis, performance criteria for health and safety features dynamic of health agent are studied. The economic system of social agents is divided into groups according to the ratio of health care. Finally, the level of spending on health interventions is calculated; this is how levels of social well-being of the social system are measured.

This paper is devoted to the analysis of Kaliningrad region’s economy during the regime of special economic zone. For the analysis, we used the methods of structural changes. The study was conducted in major sectors: industry, agriculture, construction, transport and trade. Particular attention is paid to structural changes in the industry and its sectors. The period of analysis is 20 years from 1990 till 2010. As parameters of research we used gross regional product, assets and investments. As a result of research obtained information about the negative structural changes to the product in the industry, and agriculture, the positive dynamics in the sector of the trade and transport. The influence of foreign trade on the region’s economy was studied. The correlation between gross regional product and imports is shown. The authors estimated the influence of the addition of Russia to the WTO to the economy of the Kaliningrad region and give recommendations to overcome the structural contradictions.

The subject matter of the article — the development of the doctrine of “coherent” Regional Development and research of the structural quality of the development of regional systems on the basis of theoretical analysis of institutional factors (parameters) that determine the manufacturability of the regional economy. The purpose of the research — to show the possibilities of technological change and shift of economic growth in a particular regional system, with stringent limits for accelerated development, with an emphasis on industrial regions. To this end, formed a number of structural models and analyze the impact of technological factors on the growth parameters of the regional economy, the definition of conditions for the development of the industrial region. Methodology. The correlation and regression analysis are applied, which allows to establish a statistically significant relationship between the relevant parameters, the econometric models are used to demonstrate the possibility of estimating the growth parameters via the control parameters, including the technological factor. The structural aspect of regional economic growth is taken into account by the division of investment on the old and new technologies. Result and scope of the research. Increasing adaptability of the regional economy is possible at the expense of compounding results in the use of (old) and the application of new technologies. This principle specifies the algorithm of formation of regional development priorities, provides a choice of strategy of technological development of the regional system. Investing resources only in the field of new technologies can dramatically enhance the disparity of regional economic system, the parameters of diversion of resources and the creation of a new resource will determine the pace of growth in the region. Conclusions. Dynamics of investment into old technology provides a major impact on the rate of economic growth in the regions of Russia, despite the fact that investments in new technologies are small in size and did not have an equivalent impact on the economic growth rate in comparison with the old technology. Institutional correction parameters defining the diversion of resources from old technologies and the creation of a new resource development will determine the quality of the new economic growth.

The question of assessing and using the socio-economic potential of Russia is considered within the fundamental monograph prepared on the basis of the Institute of Economics of the Ural Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences. The main achievements of the large research of the problem of the Russian socio-economic potential conducted by a group of authors with the definition of the most rational and important suggestions for the prospects of the Russian economy are allocated. Certain critical comments are noted, and the author’s position is specified concerning the policy of the new industrialization and innovative development within the modern scientific polemic about the subject and tools of economic policy, and also the need of ensuring it by the system efficiency. The main achievement of the presented teamwork of the scientists of the Ural economic school is the development of a methodological framework and hardware (techniques, models) of the diagnostics of the socio-economic potential of the economic system of any level of complexity (despite the main specialization of this school on the regional research) and measuring base. These achievements will give the chance of more exact identification of a condition of the system and definition of the direction of its movement, which will make it possible to affect the mode of this dynamics by the economic policy of regional and federal level.

The subject matter of the article is the description of economic growth. Modern economy is characterized by a high rate of changes. These changes are the limiting parameters of modern development, which requires a modification of the basic models of growth, the substantiation of the expediency and necessity of a rapid development strategy. In a simple mathematical form, the statement of the problem of economic growth in the “green economy” is examined, in which the costs of environmental measures are not considered a priori as hampering economic development (as it is common for a number of modern neoclassical and neo-Keynesian growth models). The methodological basis of the article are the econometric approach and modelling method. The article has a theoretical character. The main hypothesis supposes that the rapid development strategy cannot make an adequate development strategy under certain conditions, but may be acceptable in other its specific conditions. In this sense, the important growth conditions are the availability of resources, the effectiveness of institutions and the current economic structure, the technological effectiveness of economy, as well as the conditions of technological development (“green economy”) and the path of such development. In the article, on the theoretical level of analysis, the substantiation of the adequacy of the rapid development strategy for an economic system is given, whose goal is to achieve the standard of living of the countryleader. Based on the assumptions introduced, the period for which the rapid development strategy might be implemented and the economic lag of the country might be reduced from the country-leader is determined. The conditions that ensure the impact of innovations on the rate of economic development are summarized. The introduced range of dependencies and relations can be useful for the elaboration of the theory of innovation development and for the formation of a new conceptual framework of the model of economic growth of a rapidly changing economic system (competing at high speeds). Based on the analysis of proposed theoretical models for Russia, the following conclusion is made: the rapid development strategy may be effective only if it combines the stimulation and innovations as well as the classic productions, therefore, recreating the earlier lost sectors of economics. This will help to overcome the technological gap.