The idea of convergence in economics (also sometimes known as the catch-up effect) is the hypothesis that poorer economies' per capita incomes will tend to grow at faster rates than richer economies. As a result, all economies should eventually converge in terms of per capita income.

这是一种学说，认为要么苏联和“类似的国家”在社会和经济上正在或即将变成相似于美国和其他发达资本主义国家；要么后者向前者转变——于是，不论哪一种情况，政治差别以及由此而来的对外政策紧张局势，最终也将消失。