Introduction to the Sociology of Rural Development

Social change that occurs with rural development in the developing world is as important as economic change. But all too often economic aspects of development have been stressed without due regard to the sociological dimension. In this book, originally published in 1977, Norman Long uses empirical studies by sociologists and social anthropologists as a focus for his discussions of general theoretical and methodological issues. The book discusses the usefulness of various theories as analytical tools in the study of social change. The topics include modernization approaches; the role of cultural factors in development; Marxist perspectives concerning dependency and the articulation of modes of production; studies of entrepreneurship and decision-making processes, and the sociological dimension of planned change. The author emphasizes the relation between macro- and micro-level analysis.