Social progress and mental health

Two key words come quickly to mind when one thinks of social progress: the word development and the word help. These concepts seem to pervade the literature regarding conditions in the non-Western world, and among the disadvantaged in general. And they appear to underlie a large proportion of the planning and programs related to those areas and peoples. It would be useful to examine these concepts from time to time, given the enormous influence they have and given that they are used, individually or together, to justify all sorts of action and sanction a number of questionable traditions and practices. A critical analysis is not attempted here. Instead I would like simply to substitute other words or phrases for these two central ideas, and thus indicate some of their inadequacies and weaknesses, while attempting to point new directions. Social progress, for example, might be a good substitute for the concept development. Or the word might substitute. More definitely than the word development the word evolution implies growth in the realms of social organization, education, ideas, and values. Further, it puts as much

Action (physics · Disadvantaged · Epistemology · Linguistics · Political science · Sociology · Word (group theory · Community Health and Development · Health disparities and outcomes · Health, psychology, and well-being · Law · Psychology

• Development For What

  Open Access•Denis Goulet, Denis A Goulet•Comparative Political Studies•1968

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