Examine the problems of defining and measuring development
Sociologists have been divided on the issue of defining and measuring development. Development can be measured in many ways. For example, the Gross Domestic Product, the Human Development Index, the Quality of Life Index, the Gross National Happiness Index and the Millennium Development Goals. Development is also defined in many ways, for example the three world theory, the northern and southern hemisphere and the economically developed countries.
Gross Domestic Product (GPD) is a way of measuring development which focuses on economic growth. GDP is the total value of all goods and services the country produces. A high GDP indicates a productive economy, where wealth will filter down to improve standard of life for society. However, critics note that this does not account for the distribution of wealth within a country so wealth could be concentrated in the elite groups oppose to being equally issued. Furthermore, the approach is based on Western capitalist ideologies that see wealth as synonymous with the well-being, ignoring the potential negative effects of rapid and unrestricted accumulation of profit. The data can be unreliable which would make it incomparable between countries.
Another way in which to measure development is Human Development Index (HDI). This is a combination of scores of education, wealth and life expectancy between 0 (least developed) and 1 (most developed). The HDI is not completely comprehensive and does not disclose inequalities within a nation. The index lacks depth, detail and is oversimplified which challenges the validity. It does not include other factors of development for example, birth rates.
The Quality of Life Index (QLI) also measures development. QLI is a survey which uses nine factors to determine a nation’s score. These factors are health, family life, community life, material well-being, political stability, climate, job security, political freedom and gender equality. QLI measures something which is arguably subjective as it would be hard to quantify these factors into objective scores if they are personal opinions. Due to this, it would be hard to operationalise and measure.
Furthermore, the Gross National Happiness (GNH) survey tries to measure development. The GNH is a survey in Bhutan were asked question about the following; psychological, wellbeing, health, use of time, community validity, education, culture, environment and the government. This index is not reliable as the governments may be able to manipulate and define the GNH in a way that suits them. It measures something which is subjective so, is also, hard to operationalise and measure. Due to its subjectivity, the index is deemed as unscientific as it has no factual evidence.
Millennium Development Goals (MDG) also measures development. The MDG are 8 goals created by the United Nations in the 1990’s that we’re hoped to be achieved by the new millennium. These goals were to eradicate extreme poverty and hunger, to achieve universal primary education, to promote gender equality and empower women, to reduce child mortality, to improve maternal health, to combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other disease, to ensure environmental sustainability and to develop a global partnership for development. Although many welcomed the MDG, many goals still have not been achieved suggesting that the United Nations did not go far enough in demanding greater responsibility from those who govern developing nations to ensure success. Also, between 1990 and 2012, global emissions of carbon dioxide has increased by over 50% and more than 880 million people are estimated to be living in slums today, compared to 792 million in 2000. This further indicates that MGD was not a success due to poor governing from developing countries.
Development is defined in a variety of ways such as first, second and third worlds which only focuses on political differences, not economical. The first and second world countries refer to the capitalist and communist blocs. The third world refers to countries that did not align themselves during the cold wall. The theory is oversimplified and outdated as the breakup of the Soviet Union left the second world somewhat empty so it lacks historical validity. The system is based on value judgements, for example, the dominant ideology of the world is capitalism which is the first world. This suggests that capitalism is the best system which makes the theory ethnocentric as it suggests a hierarchy of worlds.
Development can also be defined from the split of the south and north hemisphere, south being poor and north being rich. This is based on the geographical pattern of affluence. This theory is based on an oversimplification. Also, the location of Australia in the south contradicts the definition.
Another approach to classifying development creates more types of a country. For example more economically developed countries such as Britain, Japan and the US; less economically developed countries are some of the poorest nations such as Bangladesh and Sierra Leone; least economically developed countries such as Rwanda and Mali; newly developed countries such as Brazil and Mexico. These categories give the impression of homogenous. Also, it is economically deterministic.
In the answer I have examined the problems with defining and measuring development. I can conclude by saying that the main problems with defining development are that most theories are homogenous as they tend to categorise different countries into one group. Also, many theories oversimplify an otherwise complex definition. The main problems with measuring development are that most theories are ethnocentric as they base the measuring systems on western ideologies. Also, most systems test things that are not objective so it is hard for it to be operationalised and measure.