Program: Graduate Programs – Master of Science Degree in Population Studies

Course Title: Development Theories, Perspectives and Practices (DTPP) (DST611)

Credit hour: 7 ETCS
Instructor: Alemu Azmeraw (PhD)
Course Description

The course Development Theories, Perspectives and Practices (DTPP)’ (DST611) is designed to
be a common course for both regular and extension programs in the College of Development
Studies (CDS), AAU., ‘

It is aimed at examining development thinking and its evolution over time. It provides an
overview of the conceptual prelude of, growth, progress, economic growth, development,
economic development, development theories, development perspectives, development practices
as well as cross-cutting issues and concepts. The course also explores development actors, such
as national governments, non-governmental organizations, markets and multilateral institutions.
Though the historical emergence and growth of the idea of development is older than mid-20 th
century, for practical purposes, our discussions shall starkly focus at explaining and
understanding the differing changes in the meaning and dimensions of the concept of
development, debates and discourses over development and theories of development since mid-
20th century. Put differently, the conception of development in the post-World War II period
provides a very peculiar evidence as to how the war torn Europe was reconstructed through
development cooperation under the Marshal plan.. Since then, theoretical development and
practical development cooperation turned its face towards what has largely been termed as the
‘third world.’ The understanding, commitment and widespread endorsement of multilateral
institutionalism, has been another phenomena that was also facilitating the progress of the
conceptual and practical application of development. Development as a concept and/or as a
discourse was explained arguably by many scholars to be a highly contested concept. Hence, it is
perceived as politicized and used to maintain Western hegemonic power over the rest of the
world.

The course on development theory and practice will vividly aimed to explain sub-sections that in
combination are aimed to help students perceive changes that humanity achieved over time.
Accordingly, the course will start explaining social evolution and social changes from clan and
lineage where societal overall level of development and stratification was largely at its infancy
and homogenous to the current more sophisticated high level of social stratification and
development in its modern sense. Secondly, the course will discuss global phenomena, like
slavery, colonialism, anti-colonialism movements and the two world wars as historical contexts
for the emergence of development theories in general and economic development theories in
particular to explain the development process of the global south. Thirdly, this course will discuss
general development theories in the sense of their assumptions and claims and explanatory
purposes as well as major criticisms. Putting in specific terms, this section will briefly cover
development theories, such as modernization, dependency, world system, post development,
human development and democratic and/or developmental state. The course will also try to

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highlight the practice of development, actors as well as the cross-cutting issues related to the
latter.
Course Requirements
Four course requirements are set to be fulfilled by students registered to take the course. Firstly,
this course requires students to have a minimum of 80% of class attendance, i.e., physical
presence in class sessions and participate in class discussions that we may have in the coming
several sessions. Second, students are required to read the various references identified critically
useful for this course. Effective performance in this course, therefore, requires spending hours
wading through the literature. This means we need to do readings both for class discussions and
article and book chapter reviews as well as for individual term paper assignment on issues of their
choice. The term papers shall be edited very well and be free from minor editorial errors, such as
spelling, grammatical and mechanical editorial faults. Your paper must show citations and provide
standard reference list with acceptable style. The papers need to show (1) you need to have clearly
understandable and unambiguous topic (2) the research problem you need to examine; (2) the
research objectives to be achieved; (3) the research questions to be answered; (4) you need to
include any relevant methods of analysis; and (5) should be based on Ethiopian development
context and practices. (6) Finally, putting conclusive remarks and recommendations and lists of
references. Overall, you are expected to submit within a range of 8-12 pages.
Finally, everyone needs to sit for final exam depending on his or her attendance record.

Course assessment
1. Participation and attendance (5)
2. Book chapter and/or article review/summary on major development theories (10%)
3. Individual/group term paper on any development issues of students choice (15%)
4. Final exam (20)
__________________________________
Total 50%

Course objectives

After completing this Course students will be able to:

 Understand the evolution of main traditions of thinking about and defining development
from the perspectives of various social sciences and humanity disciplines
 Examine the diversity of current ideas and thoughts about development from the
perspectives of various social sciences and humanities
 Understand and explain historical context claims and criticisms of theories and ideas that
orient development approaches and interventions adopted in various societies.
 Explain development actors and development practices
 Identify and explain the linkages between gender, population, environment and
development.

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Course Out line

Course Title and code: Development Theories, Perspectives and Practices

Unit One: Concepts, Dimensions and Objectives of Development

1.1 Meanings and definitions

 The meaning of development in a historical lens (from 1950/60s till the present) …
consider the changes in meanings as per the changes in economic development
perspectives
 Concepts: development, growth, economic growth, economic development
 Objectives of development (areal, integrated, sustainable, community development )
 Core values of development ( life sustenance, self-esteem & freedom from servitude)
 Dimensions and/or typologies of development
 Development paradigm

1.2 Livelihoods, Poverty, Inequality and Development

 Livelihoods and livelihood frameworks

 The concept and measurement of poverty
 The concept and measurement of Inequality
 Economic growth, poverty and inequality
 Measurement of growth/development
 Indicators of development
 Policy measures to reduce poverty and inequality

Unit Two: Evolutionary Societal changes and Development

 Social evolution related concepts: Progress, change, growth, social change, growth,
modernity, development
 Sociological thoughts on social change and development
 Perspectives of social change and development
 Pioneer sociological thinkers and their ideas from the view point of development

Unity three: Development Theories

3.1 Broader Historical Contexts

 Global political economy in the aftermath of the WWII (the cold war and ideological
competition….)
 Aid and development: as new tools to sustain Western hegemony over the rest of the world
 Brief history of development studies and the emergence of development studies as a
discipline

3.2 Development Theories

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  Classical and neoclassical development/economic development theories (liberalism and
neoliberalism)
 Structural change development theories
 Modernization theory
 Dependency theory
 World systems theory
 Human development theory
 Post development theory
 Indigenous knowledge (Africa and Ethiopia)
 Developmental state/democratic developmental state
Unit four: Development process and Cross-Cutting Issues
4.1 The Development Process
 Political economy of development
 State and institutions in development
 Market and institutions in development
 Trajectory of the development process (across decades and its implications on
development outcomes)
4.2: Cross-cutting issues
 Globalization and development
 Environment and development
 Food in/security, livelihood and development
 Gender and development
 Population and development
 Tourism and development
 Water and development
Unit five: Development actors and Development Practice
5.1 Development Actors
 National states as actors of development: their roles
 Non-State Actors of Development
 Multinational Institutions (IMF, WB, UNDP)
 Markets and related institutions
5.2 Development Practices
5.3 International development practice

 Western European development practice to attain their current level of development

 East Asian Development Practice (Japan, Korea, Taiwan, Singapore, …
 Latin American and African development practice
5.3.1 National development practice
 Ethiopian development practices (imperial, military and current governments
development practices)

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  National development Strategies & practices of Ethiopia

References

The following references could potentially be used for your group term papers

Blaikie, Piers (2000). Development, post-, anti-, and populist: a critical review. Environment and
Planning A, 32: 1033-1050.
Cowen, M.P. and R.W. Shenton (1996). Doctrines of Development. London: Routledge.
Escobar, Arturo (1995). Encountering Development. Princeton: Princeton University Press.
Frank, Andre Gunder (1966). The Development of Underdevelopment. Monthly Review,
September.
Harvey, David (2005). A Brief History of Neoliberalism. Oxford University Press.
Kay, Cristóbal (1989). Latin American Theories of Development and Underdevelopment.
London: Routledge.
Larrain, Jorge 1989. Theories of Development: Capitalism, Colonialism and Dependency.
London: Polity Press.
Lehmann, David (1997). An opportunity lost: Escobar’s deconstruction of development. Journal
of Development Studies, 33(4): 568-578.
Peet, Richard with Elaine Hartwick (1999). Theories of Development. New York: Guilford.
Perreault, Thomas and Patricia Martin (2005). Geographies of neoliberalism in Latin America.
Environment and Planning A, 37: 191-201.
Prugl, Elisabeth and Audrey Lustgarten 2006. Mainstreaming gender in international
organizations. In Jane S. Jaquette and Gale Summerfield (eds.), Women and Gender
Equity in Development Theory and Practice. Duke University Press, pp. 53-70.
Redclift, Michael (2005). Sustainable development (1987-2005): An oxymoron comes of age.
Sustainable Development, 13: 212-227.
Rist, Gilbert (1997). The History of Development: From Western Origins to Global Faith.
London: Zed Books.
Rostow, Walt Whitman (1960). The Economic Stages of Growth: A Non-Communist Manifesto.
Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Stiglitz, Joseph E. 2003. Globalization and its Discontents. New York: Norton.