Development

• The term development is often considered vague and abstract, with multiple interpretations depending on context.

• Broadly, development refers to improvements in a country’s economic and social conditions.

• It especially involves better management of natural and human resources to generate wealth and enhance quality of life.

• According to Dudley Seers, development should aim to realize the full potential of the human personality, despite differing value judgments on its meaning.

• Seers outlined several key conditions necessary for meaningful development:

  • Access to physical necessities, particularly food.

  • Employment (including informal work, housework, or study).

  • Equality, as a goal in itself.

  • Participation in governance and political processes.

  • National independence, both economic and political.

  • Adequate levels of education, especially literacy.

• In human-scale development, people are the principal actors, not mere recipients of policy decisions.

• This approach emphasizes diversity, autonomy, and community-specific needs, transforming people from objects to subjects of development.

• Traditional development has typically followed a top-down model, leaving little room for popular participation or grassroots decision-making.

• Empowerment of people goes beyond just alleviating poverty—it involves enhancing basic human capabilities and freedoms.

• True development enables individuals to become agents of their own progress, focusing on freedom, dignity, and agency.

• This approach aligns with Amartya Sen’s capability approach, which views development as the expansion of people’s freedoms to lead the kind of life they value.

Definitions of Development

• According to Michael Todaro, development is not merely an economic phenomenon, but a multi-dimensional process involving the reorganisation and reorientation of the entire economic and social system.

• Todaro views development as a process aimed at improving the quality of all human lives, not just economic growth.

• He identified three core objectives of development:

  • Raising people’s standard of living, which includes increasing income, improving consumption levels, ensuring access to food, medical services, and education through appropriate economic growth processes.

  • Creating conditions for the growth of self-esteem, which involves establishing social, political, and economic systems and institutions that promote human dignity, respect, and social justice.

  • Increasing people’s freedom of choice, by expanding the range of choice variables, such as varieties of goods and services, educational opportunities, employment options, and lifestyle choices.

• Todaro’s approach emphasizes that development must be people-centered, focusing on human well-being rather than mere GDP growth.

• His framework aligns with Amartya Sen’s capability approach, which defines development as the expansion of people’s freedoms and capabilities to lead lives they have reason to value.

• Freedom, dignity, and agency are central to Todaro’s vision of development, making it a holistic and inclusive process.

• Todaro’s model highlights the interdependence of economic progress, social equity, and individual empowerment in achieving sustainable development.

Sociological Perspective on Development

• Common sense often views development as a natural, inevitable process that “just happens,” focusing mainly on material benefits or disadvantages.

• For example, a Westernised teenager in India may see the growth of Western-style restaurants as development, while a lorry driver might view higher wages and better roads as signs of development.

• However, this perspective often overlooks how development affects human behavior and social life.

• The sociological perspective studies how development occurs and how it shapes daily life and the future, providing a deeper understanding beyond material changes.

• Though not explicitly using the term “development,” early sociological thinkers laid its conceptual groundwork:

  • Auguste Comte’s Law of Three Stages emphasized material and social progress as linear and internally driven.

  • Herbert Spencer’s evolutionary theory, Émile Durkheim’s shift from mechanical to organic solidarity, Karl Marx’s historical materialism (progress through class struggle), and Max Weber’s analysis of modern capitalism all contributed foundational ideas.

• After World War II, with intellectual revolutions and decolonization, development gained prominence as a sociological theme.

• From a Symbolic Interactionist perspective, development symbolizes progress, modernization, and improvement, but also environmental degradation, social displacement, and inequality.

• These negative associations gave rise to ideas like sustainable development.

• From a Functionalist perspective, development causes industrialization and modernization, triggering social changes such as the shift from joint to nuclear family systems.

• This change is an example of a latent function (unintended consequence) of industrialization, as theorized by Robert Merton.

• From a Conflict perspective, development often improves the status of women, enabling greater economic independence and social freedom outside marriage.

• Increased independence of women is linked to higher divorce rates, seen as women’s resistance to male domination, paralleling Marx’s concept of proletariat struggle against bourgeoisie.

• Overall, the sociological view of development highlights its complex impacts on society, culture, and power relations, beyond mere economic growth.