Development and Multiple Perspectives on Change

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Topic 2

• Development and Multiple Perspectives on Change

• Assoc Prof Dr Sharifah Norazizan Syed Abd Rashid
  APPM
• Department of Social and Development Science
• Faculty of Human Ecology, UPM
• sharifah_at_putra.upm.edu.my

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Content

• Concept of Development
• - Definitions
• - Theories
• - Changing and Contemporary Perspectives
• - Changing Trends
• - A Summary
• - Discussion
• - References

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Conceptual Surroundings of Development

• Synonym for change
• - usually considered as a positive change,
  beneficial alteration, achievement of a better
  (material) life

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Other Parallel Concepts

• Progress, Advancement, Growth
• Progress derives from the idea of moving on,
  advancing.
• Progress has a connotation of structural changes
  which are based on superindividual factors.
• Development is more consciously accomplished
  change.

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The Conceptual Schema

• goal
  path source

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Structure of the Concept

• a) Source
• - progress (unintentional), 'natural'
• - development human, 'cultural
• b) Path
• - directionality linear/cyclic,
  progression/regression
• - cumulativity knowledge of previous
  generations as a basis of development/ alienation
  as a basis of decline
• - irreversebility
• c) Goal
• - certain social system (homogenisation/pluralisa
  tion)
• - growth of virtues (happiness, freedom,
  equality, responsibility)
• - perfection

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Definitions of Development

• For almost every writer a different definition
  of development exists.
• Important to first distinguish between
• a. Development as a state or condition-static
• b. Development as a process or course of change-
  dynamic

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Meaning of Development-Todaro

• Development is not purely an economic phenomenon
  but rather a multi-dimensional process involving
  reorganization and reorientation of entire
  economic AND social system
• Development is process of improving the quality
  of all human lives with three equally important
  aspects. These are

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Todaros Three Objectives of Development

• Raising peoples living levels, i.e. incomes and
  consumption, levels of food, medical services,
  education through relevant growth processes
• Creating conditions conducive to the growth of
  peoples self-esteem through the establishment of
  social, political and economic systems and
  institutions which promote human dignity and
  respect.
• Increasing peoples freedom to choose by
  enlarging the range of their choice variables,
  e.g. varieties of goods and services

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Alternative Interpretations of Development
(Mabogunje)

• Development as Economic Growth
• Too often commodity output as opposed to people
  is emphasized-measures of growth in GNP. Note
  here the persistence of a dual economy where the
  export sector contains small number of workers
  but draws technology as opposed to traditional
  sector where most people work and is dominated by
  inefficient technology

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Alternative Interpretations of Development

• Development as Modernization- emphasizes process
  of social change which is required to produce
  economic advancement examines changes in social,
  psychological and political processes
• How to develop wealth oriented behavior and
  values in individuals profit seeking rather than
  subsistence and self sufficiency
• Shift from commodity to human approach with
  investment in education and skill training

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Alternative Interpretations of Development

• Development as Distributive Justice - view
  development as improving basic needs
• Interest in social justice which has raised three
  issues
• Nature of goods and services provided by
  governments
• Matter of access of these public goods to
  different social classes
• How burden of development can be shared among
  these classes
• Target groups include small farmers, landless,
  urban under-employed and unemployed

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Marxist View of Development

• Emphasizes Mode of Production - elements and
  activities necessary to produce and reproduce
  real, material life
• Capitalist (market economy) mode depends on wage
  labor whose labor power produces a surplus which
  is accumulated and appropriated by the
  employer-result is often class conflict in
  capitalist societies

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Sustainable Development

• Defined as development that is likely to achieve
  lasting satisfaction of human needs and
  improvement of the quality of life and
  encompasses
• Help for the very poorest who are left with no
  option but to destroy their environment to
  survive
• Idea of self-reliant development with natural
  resource constraints
• Cost effective development using different
  economic criteria to the traditional i.e.
  development should not degrade environment
• Important issues of health control, appropriate
  technologies, food self-reliance, clean water and
  shelter for all
• People centered activities are necessary- human
  beings are the resources in the concept

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Development Philosophy

• Maslows Hierarchy of Needs

• Physical needs.
• Physical and emotional security.
• Social needs.
• Status, respect, power.
• Self-actualization.

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Basic Needs

• Sturcturing the core values of development with
  the hierarchy of needs ?
• basic goods and services necessary for a minimum
  standard of living
• primacy, sufficient conditions satisfaction of
  basic individual needs for everybody
• secondary aim, necessary conditions global
  economic equality, rising per capita incomes
• WB 1972 redistribution of growth and meeting
  basic needs
• - development cooperation and money distribution
  to small projects
• International Labor Organisation (1976)
  Employment, Growth and Basic Needs

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History of Development Thought

• Modernization Theory

• Western nations as the example.
• Development physical and economic growth.
• The global society physically and culturally.
• Centralized planning coming from Western nations.
• Capital intensive technology.
• Individual blame approach to lack of
  modernization.

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History of Development Thought

• Dependency Theory

• Economic leakage.
• Perpetual status.
• Environmental degradation.
• Social disruption.
• Loss of economic, political, cultural autonomy.
• Technological imperative.
• Pessimism about the opportunities for growth.

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History of Development Thought

• Post-Modernism/Post Industrialism

• Rejection of the philosophy that people can have
  rational control over their natural and social
  surroundings.
• The emancipation of humanity is not achievable.
• There is no single truth of development.
• Universal values do not exist.
• Development is in the eye of the beholder?

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History of Development Thought

• Neo-Liberalism

• Rise of globalization in the mid-1970s.
• Increased interest in comparative advantage.
• Free-market ideology.
• Lack of state interference.
• New modernity, wherein the state assumes
  responsibility for its citizens.

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Current Trends of DevelopmentDevelopment from
Below

• Bottom up approaches (as opposed to top-down) to
  peoples participation are important in this view
• How are various social groups and classes
  affected by rural-urban, core-periphery and other
  spatial interactions?
• Growing importance of decentralization of
  decision-making and authority from center to
  periphery

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Current Trends of DevelopmentDevelopment from
Below

• Voluntarism
• creativist idea of individuals (contra
  consumerism of passive recipients)
• Avoidance of bureaucracy
• Self-reliance as objective (contra as means for
  modernization)
• aims and values from within
• no forerunners to follow

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Current Trends of DevelopmentDevelopment from
Below

• Empowerment
• capacitation
• Participation
• Indigenous knowledge
• populism
• critique of science and theory
• Aversion (dislike) of systematization
• Trickle-up
• grass-root development agency
• distrust of experts

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Current Trends in Development

• Participatory, People-Centered Development

• Decisions about development goals, objectives,
  and the means to achieve these goals and
  objectives are decided by the people.
• Development must be sustainable (i.e.,
  ecologically sound, cost-effective, local
  control).
• Modest and achievable goals. No utopias.
• Feedback on goals, objectives, methods of
  development.

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Current Trends in Development

• Participatory, People-Centered Development

• Appropriate technology.
• Sustainable technology.
• Informed technology.
• Control over technology.
• Place-based technology.
• Adaptive technological change.

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Current Trends in Development

• Participatory, People-Centered Development

• Decentralized decision making.
• Participatory decision making.
• Iterative decision making.
• People as the planned beneficiaries.
• Informed experimentation and action.

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Current Trends in Development

• Participatory, People-Centered Development

• Interdisciplinary focus.
• Integration of economic and social change.
• Addresses problems rather than symptoms.
• Goal of reduced welfare dependency.
• Emphasis on volunteerism.
• Emphasis on cultural diversity.

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Current Trends in Development

• Participatory, People-Centered Development

• Create awareness.
• Focus on defined needs, goals, objectives.
• Monitoring and evaluation.

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• Obstacles to Participatory Development

• Customs and traditions.
• Lack of skills.
• Apathy.
• Depression.
• Tensions among competing groups.
• Macroeconomic and social forces.
• Resources for a more labor-intensive approach.

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Current Trends in Development

• Participatory, People-Centered Development

• Women in development.
• Gender in development.

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Feminist Approach

• Criticism to development theories
• gender-blindness in dimensions of development
  (noiseless intrahousehold)
• Development interventions not only marginalize
  women, but also harm them
• Women are half of the world's people, who perform
  two-thirds of the world's working hours, receive
  one-tenth of the world's income, and own
  one-hundredth of the world's property

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Some Common Development Theories

• Old view that absence of development caused by
  certain physical environments, particular
  cultural traditions and value systems-environmenta
  l and cultural determinism.
• Lack of natural resources certainly impediment to
  development but not Why has Japan succeeded?

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Other Common Explanations of Underdevelopment

• Instability and other adverse internal
  situations- political factors
• Some truth to this as extended periods of
  turbulence are not conducive to development-
  central African nations with tribal rivalries and
  ethnic cleansing
• Poor physical environment- lack of rainfall, poor
  soils also may pose barriers to development
• Colonialism As Scapegoat
• - Indigenous population exploited
• - Traditional way of life and self sufficient
  mode of production have been destroyed

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History of Development ThoughtA Summary

• Modernization The poor should emulate us.
• Dependency The poor cannot emulate us.
• Post-modernism There is nothing to emulate!
• Neo-liberalism Globalization will cure all ills.

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Popular Development, Space and Place

• Bottom up approaches (as opposed to top-down) to
  peoples participation are important in this view
• How are various social groups and classes
  affected by rural-urban, core-periphery and other
  spatial interactions?
• Growing importance of decentralization of
  decision-making and authority from center to
  periphery

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Popular Development and Power

• How does the power structure affect development?
• Examine sources of empowerment, inequality and
  discrimination
• Need to devise more people centered approaches
  which stress empowerment and participation
• Empowerment as participatory development seeks to
  engender self-help and self-reliance but also
  effective collective decision-making

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Discussion

• Define Development, its aims and objectives?
• Outline the theories of Development?
• What is the current trend of development and how
  does it differ from the traditional approach?
• How would you describe the current trend of
  development in your country?

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References

• Anne Phillips (1977), The Concept of
  'Development, Review of African Political
  Economy, No. 8, Capitalism in Africa (Jan. -
  Apr., 1977), pp. 7-20 (article consists of 14
  pages), Taylor Francis, Ltd.
• Adam Szirmai (2005), The Dynamics of
  Socio-Economic Development, An Introduction.
  Cambridge University Press. 2nd Edition.

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THANK YOU