THEORETICAL PERSPECTIVES ON DEVELOPMENT MODERNIZATION THEORY (W.W. Rostow, Samuel Huntington, Daniel Lerner, etc.)

W.W. Rostow (1916-2003) Rostow: American economist and political advisor to the Lyndon Johnson government in the 1960s (see obituary on Courseware) The Stages of Economic Growth: A Non-Communist Manifesto (1960) All countries pass through 5 stages on the road to economic development 1- Traditional societies 2- Preconditions for take-off 3- The take-off 4- The drive to maturity 5- Age of high mass consumption

The stages 1- Traditional societies: Modern science non-existent, agricultural economy, little industry, fatalist value system, very low productivity, social organization based on family and clan Which countries belong in that category? 2- “Pre-conditions for take-off: A period of transition: Investment in communications, transport and raw materials. Trade increases. “Traditional” and “modern” economic sectors exist side by side (duality) When did Europe pass through this stage? When did non-Western societies pass through it?

The Stages, cont’d 3- “Take-off”: Period when resistance to steady growth is overcome New industries emerge; agricultural productivity increases; investment and savings rise (from 5 to 10 percent of national income) When did Europeans go through that stage? What about non-western societies?

The Stages, cont’d 4- “The drive to maturity”: Long period of sustained progress Industries expand, modern technology is applied How long? 5- “Age of high mass consumption”: Durable consumer goods and services become the leading sectors Per capita consumption and income increase More resources for social welfare 6- “Beyond consumption” What comes next?

Rostow’s “dynamic theory of production” Leading sectors of investment Income and population levels Tastes and demands Technologies Quality of entrepreneurship “Strategic choices have to be made by societies about how to allocate their resources”

Daniel Lerner: The Passing of Traditional Society (1958) Lerner: American anthropologist and communication studies scholar who conducted research in the Middle East during the 1950s “Modernization” in the Middle East (not Americanization, Europeanization or Westernization) Modernization is a model that evolved in the West (power, wealth, skills, rationality) The same model appears everywhere in the world with some variations.

Lerner’s model of modernization The West: social change is considered normal Physical mobility (migration) led to social mobility Mobile personality High levels of “empathy” (projection and introjection) (Empathy is a crucial skill for moving out of tradition)

Lerner’s model of modernization First proposition: High empathic personality is characteristic in modern societies which are industrial, urban, literate and participant (Mass media fosters empathic skills by enabling vicarious experience)

Lerner’s model of modernization Second proposition: Modern media systems flourish only in societies that are modern by other tests  Modern society is characterized by “media systems” Traditional society is characterized by “oral systems”

Phases of modernization acc. to Lerner 1- Urbanization (an index for industrialization): “Conditions for take-off toward participation” 2- Literacy (both an index and agent of modernization): Urban products are consumed by rural people

Phases of modernization 3- Media participation (this requires empathic skills): Media participation raises participation in other sectors of the social system as well 4- Political participation: democratic governance comes after the creation of a participant society

Hurdles to modernization (acc. to Lerner) Over-urbanization Top-down government efforts to modernize Rising expectations, but limited resources

Lerner: the model of “transition” from tradition to modernity Traditional person: static Transitional person: He has an aptitude for empathy; he has an attitude of desire; he is defined by what he wants to become; he has opinions, and he wants to participate Modern person: static

Samuel Huntington (1927-2008) Another influential proponent of modernization theory was the American political scientist Samuel Huntington. More recently, he gained notoriety for his book The Clash of Civilizations (1998). Notice the parallels between his thinking (next two slides) and that of Lerner and Rostow.

“The bridge across the Great Dichotomy between modern and trational societies is the Grand Process of Modernization” What’s the difference between “modern” and “traditional” societies? Greater control over natural and social environments by the modern man What’s the difference between “modern man” and “traditional man”? Traditional man is passive, acquiescent, has no quest to change or control his environment Modern man believes in change and that man can control his natural and social environment

Aspects of modernization acc. to Huntington Revolutionary Complex Systemic Global Lengthy Phased Homogenizing Irreversible Progressive

Critiques of modernization theory How useful are the concepts of modernity and tradition? Tradition: a “residual” category  Heterogenenous, changeless Modernity: everything good is modern! What’s the difference between modern and western?

Critiques of modernization theory Can modernization theory explain the process of change from tradition to modernity? (What is the motor force of modernization?) Modernization: a transitional process Tradition and modernity are hypothetical starting and end points

Critiques of modernization theory Does the present of developing/modernizing countries really resemble the past of European societies? Is it really possible for all countries to go through the stages described by Rostow and Lerner?

Although controversial, modernization theory is alive and well today in novel forms. Modernization perspective is theoretically weak in explaining social change; but its continued attraction lies in its descriptive power

Dependency theory Andre Gunder Frank: “The development of underdevelopment” Third World countries are not developing as foreseen by modernization theory Causes of underdevelopment: not all internal; there are also important external factors Development of underdevelopment, or Dependent development

Dependency theory Underdevelopment is not caused by “traditional” structures or shortage of capital. The development of capitalism generates both economic development and underdevelopment. Europe’s colonial and imperialist relations with Latin America since the Conquest resulted in underdevelopment.

Dependency theory “A chain of metropoles and satellites” Europe was the metropolis of the world economy It created satellites in Latin America (national and urban levels) Satellites: extract capital and economic surplus from its own satellites and channel it to the metropolis

Frank’s hypotheses on dependency 1- “Metropoles” develop; “satellites” underdevelop 2- Satellites experience greatest capitalist development if and when their ties to the metropole are the weakest 2a- When the metropole incorporates new regions, previous development and industrialization is choked off 3- The most underdeveloped regions are the ones which had the closest ties to the metropole in the past  Capitalist development brings about uneven development; it leads to dependent development

Criticism against dependency theory: Not all regions of the third world remained underdeveloped Not all reasons of underdevelopment are external