SPD212 L2 (Small) PDF Lecture Notes

SPD212 Philosophies and concepts for development and social policy LECTURE 2 Concept of Development u Theoretical issues in terms of individual and collective forms of development u Many areas: u Cognitive u Social u Moral u Political u Religious u...

SPD212 Philosophies and concepts for development and social policy LECTURE 2 Concept of Development u Theoretical issues in terms of individual and collective forms of development u Many areas: u Cognitive u Social u Moral u Political u Religious u Aesthetic Concept of Development u Development is often seen as a synonym for growth, maturation, and self-realization u Development can be used instead of all of the above terms, but not vice versa u Development carries a connotation of qualitative or structural change u While there is an argument for continuous change, there is no argument against qualitative change in either example Concept of Development u Connection between development and stages u Crisis-like transitions unnecessary u Development may be smooth and gradual u At one or more times during the process there is an outcome that can be seen as qualitatively different from earlier stages u Earlier stages are necessary (but not necessarily sufficient) conditions for later ones u Concept of development does not imply fixed end state or pre-formed pattern Concept of Development u Development: a process of more or less gradual change, resulting in one or more qualitatively different stages for which the prior stages are necessary conditions Models of Development u Mechanistic model of development u Organismic model of development u Narrative model of development Models of Development u Mechanistic model of development u Compares human activities to processes that take place in a machine u Parts can be separately described and explained u A behavior is described in reference to causal prior events (e.g. genetic predisposition and environmental factors) Mechanistic Model of Development u Compares human activities to processes that take place in a machine u Components can be separately described and explained u A behavior is described in reference to causal prior events (e.g. genetic predisposition and environmental factors) Mechanistic Model of Development u Deductive-nomological explanation: an event is considered to be explained if it can be deduced from other events with the help of universal law u Universal law: under specific conditions, certain events necessarily follow one another u E.G. 1. If A then B, 2. A, therefore 3. B (modus ponens) Mechanistic Model of Development u If the factors are known, accurate predictions can be made u Factors can change, therefore predictions can be uncertain Mechanistic Model of Development u Development is described in terms of internal and external causes and viewed as a process that follows the laws of nature u May overlook individual undergoing change Organismic Model of Development u Compares human development to a biological organism u Biological organisms have certain structures and organization u These different structures have functions that contribute to attaining some goal (e.g. reproduction, survival, well-being, etc.) Organismic Model of Development u Explanations of development are functional in nature u The focus is on the purpose of phenomena, rather than the cause u Phenomenon A is explained by showing that it is functional to Phenomenon B u B is not necessarily the result of A u A has a role to play in regard to B u Predictability is not as exact as the mechanitic model Organismic Model of Development u Development is viewed as being due to active adaptation to the environment in accordance with goals and needs of organism, rather than the outcome of genetic predispositions and environmental conditions u Focuses on the individual undergoing development u Views individual as goal-directed and capable adapting to environment Narrative Model of Development u Compares human development to a story u In order to understand development, one must understand the context in which development took place u Each narrative is dependent on the interpretation u Does not deny causal or functional relations, but does not regard them as important Narrative Model of Development u Cannot make exact predictions because context does not determine outcome u Focuses on a person’s individuality and rationality u Subject plays important role in finding meaning and interpretation u Human development is viewed as a qualitative change in narrative structure – a fundamental change in how expressions are organized Models of Development u Mechanistic model: deductive-nomological explanation u Organismic model: functional explanation u Narrative model: hermeneutic explanation (interpretation)