Book Description

Development Begins at Home: Problems and Prospects of the Sociology of Development examines the challenges posed by development to the field of sociology. The book first reviews colonialism and the emergent One World in terms of the history of ideas; discusses attitudes towards development; and examines the definitions of development. These are followed by separate chapters on the contributions of sociology to development studies. The considerable wealth of sociology in dealing with change and, to a lesser extent, with development is identified. Subsequent chapters examine points of departure for current and prospective work in the sociology of development. One is the profile of underdevelopment, sociologically understood, along with the matching configuration of development goals. Another is the true meaning of social development, as opposed to economic development. The main finding is that development may well cause the general outlook of sociology to change. The prospect is for a sociology of human dignity in the social nexus.