Technology has accelerated the process of development and dependency. Discuss. (UPSC CSE Mains 2020 - Sociology, Paper 1)
Dependency theory is a school of thought in contemporary social science which seeks to contribute to an understanding of underdevelopment, an analysis of its causes, and to a lesser extent, paths toward overcoming it.
- Technology is part and parcel of people’s daily lives today. Cell phones, iPods, tablets, televisions, computers, and the internet are among the most common forms of technology in use today. Technology has changed the way of modern life. It has enhanced communication, facilitated online business, strengthened militaries, and enhanced work both at home and in offices. As much as it brings immense benefits, man has become over-dependent on technology.
- Technological dependence could be considered the opposite of self-reliance. One transparent indicator of its existence is a situation in which the major source of a country''s technology is abroad. When a country imports from a single country, it has a very high degree of technological dependence. From these considerations alone, one is easily convinced of the state of technological dependence of the least developing countries.
- The analyses of pattern of development which emerged from the phase of import – substituting industrialization argued that import of technology constituted now one of the main links of the chain of relationship which kept the economy of the Latin-American countries subordinated to advanced economies. The importance of technological link was greater for those countries which had industrialized more (e.g. Brazil, Mexico), and together with imports of capital goods, foreign finance and the industrial role of multinational corporations (MNCs), composed the web of the "new pattern of dependence."
- The underdevelopment of local capital goods industry and reliance on imported technology was seen as limiting the process of capitalist development of the periphery.
- The Dependency Theory utilise three major hypotheses on the issue of technological development of so-called underdeveloped and developing countries. These can be summarised as follows:
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- First, in a sharp contrast to the development of the rich Western countries, technological development of underdeveloped and developing countries necessitates subordination to the core countries of the West.
- Second, the peripheral nations experience their greatest technological development when their ties to the core are weakest.
- Third, when the core countries get out of their crisis situation, they try to fully integrate peripheral countries into the world capitalist economic system.
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