Final answer:
The incorrect statement is that the largest concentration of the least-developed countries is in Latin America, when in fact, it is in Sub-Saharan Africa. Recent trends suggest a pattern of convergence, with low-income countries like China and India growing faster than high-income countries.
Step-by-step explanation:
In assessing worldwide patterns of development, it's important to analyze different aspects such as per capita income, and the GDP growth rate among different economic groups of countries. Within this context, the incorrect statement from the options provided is "The largest concentration of the least-developed countries in the world today is in Latin America." This statement is not accurate as the largest concentration of the least-developed countries is actually in Sub-Saharan Africa, not Latin America.
It is true that per capita income in the United States is higher than in China and that on average, population growth is higher in peripheral countries than in core states. Also, several Asian countries like the "Asian Tigers" (South Korea, Taiwan, Singapore, and Hong Kong) have seen significant improvements in their per capita income and levels of development over the past four decades.
Contrary to the pattern in the past, recent trends suggest a convergence with low-income countries experiencing faster GDP growth than middle-income, which in turn grow faster than high-income countries, as evidenced by the rapid growth in countries like China and India compared to slower growth in high-income countries such as the United States, France, Germany, Italy, and Japan.