Marxist, Bourgeois

and Dependency
Theories of
Development
 Marx’s stages of development

1. Primitive Communalism

Productive forces were crude, undeveloped. Ownership of means of production were

communal

Relations of production were collective

Labour productivity was low, no surplus, equal distribution of products.

No classes and therefore no states. People organized in clan or family.

2. Feudalism

Based on class antagonism

Consisted of landowners and the serfs.

Landlords exploited the serfs and serfs struggled to free themselves

Contradiction and class struggle led to disintegration of feudalism.

3. Capitalism

Emerged as a result of industrial revolution in Europe

Emergence of commodity production

Relations of production are exploitative: capitalists own means of production and

exploited workers.

Expanded through export of capital

The contradiction between capital and labour leads to the downfall of capitalism

4. Socialism

Established after the overthrow of capitalist system

Establishes the dictatorship of the working class

All means of production are in the hands of the working class

Relations of production are non-explotative

5. Communism

Supposed to the highest level of social development

Absence of exploitative relations of production

In a communist economy, investment and consumption are primarily determined by the

national plan.

From Marxist perspective development is seen as the unfolding in human history of the
progressive emancipation of peoples and nations from the control of nature and from the
control of other people and nations.

Weaknesses of Marxist Theory

Marxist theory is often criticized by bourgeois theorists for concentrating too much on
conflict-class struggle and change and too little on what produces stability in society

The theory is descriptive and predictive of social life

The universality of the theory makes it difficult to be put in practice in different third world
countries. It does not highlight the unique and varying situation of the developing
countries.
 Bourgeois Theory: Rostow’s

Rostow’s Stages of Growth Theory

The model claims that economic modernization occurs in five basic stages, in changeable
time period.

Rostow argues this is a universal historical categorization of stages of growth that all
societies necessarily go through with similar experiences.

1. Traditional Society

Output consumed by producers rather than traded

Trade carried out by barter; goods exchanged for other goods

Agriculture → dominating sector; labor-intensive

Low level of science and technology limited production

Family and clan/tribal connections played a large role in social organization. The unit of
production was the family

2. Pre-conditions for Take-off (Transitional Stage)

Emergence of entrepreneurial and managerial class. Development of a financial sector

and increase in investment. Infrastructural development. Modern business using new and
sophisticated methods of production

3. Take-off into sustained growth

Increasing industrialization, production and employment switches from agriculture to

manufacturing. Evolution of new political and social institutions supporting the
industrialization.Growth becomes self-sustaining as investment leads to increasing
incomes in turn generating more savings to finance further investment.

4. Drive to Maturity

The economy starts spreading into new areas. Technological innovation provides
expanded range of investment opportunities. The economy starts producing a wide range
of goods and services and there is less reliance on imports. This diversity leads to greatly
reduced rates of poverty and rising standards of living, as the society no longer needs to
sacrifice its comfort in order to make certain sectors more productive.

5. Age of High Mass Consumption

The economy is oriented towards mass consumption. There is increased productivity to

satisfy society’s demands. The economy produces goods and services which people
desire. Society is now devoted to the pleasures of consumer choice, the pursuit of
security, and the enjoyments of the arts and leisure.

Weaknesses of the Stages of Growth Theory

 Attempts to universalize the experience of a particular country (Britain) in a specific

period of time (16th to 20th century)
 External factors such as colonization / imperialism can hinder the process of
development in the colonized nations
 Descriptive; no analysis of how the pre-conditions for take-off are to emerge
 Empirically not supported
 Bourgeois Theory: Nurkse’s

Nurkse’s Vicious circle of Poverty

According to Nurkse a society is poor because it is poor.

A society with low income has low levels of savings and consumption.

The low levels of savings means low investment while the low levels of consumption
means not enough market to induce investment even if capital for investment was
available

This low investment in turn means little ability of the society to expand its productive
capacity or transform the quality of the productive forces as a whole.

This finally leads to a continuation of low incomes in the economy and then the circle
begins again.

Nurkse’s on balanced growth

Export pessimism: exports cannot be depended upon as the source of growth

Massive injection of new technology, machines, production processes is the key to

development

Hence need for domestic industrialization

Large scale industrial investments (i.e. expanded supply) would also generate large scale
demand, hence leading to:

BALANCED GROWTH

Weaknesses of Nurkse’s theory

Like that of Rostow, Nurkse’s theory only succeeds in indicating the extent of
poverty/backwardness of the underdeveloped countries it does not contribute much to the
understanding of the causes of poverty
 Dependency Theory

Features of the Dependency Theorization

The existence of a Capitalist World System

In this capitalist system countries are divided into Metropoles and Satellites (Frank) or
Core and Semi-periphery and Periphery (Wallerstein)

Core Countries/ are the Rich Industrialized Countries of the West, whose GDP and per
capita income exceed 7% per annum

Peripheries are those countries whose annual rate of growth is less than 5-7% and are
primary producers of goods and services

Semi-peripheries: Newly industrialized countries, China, Singapore, Taiwan, South Korea

(Asian Tigers), Cuba, Brazil, Venezuela, Mexico, Indonesia, Egypt, Portugal, Spain and
Italy.

Features cont’d

The capitist system operates where peripheries/Satellites provide raw material for the
Core/Metrpole countries who manufacture and sells it. Thus the basis of dependency and
Underdevelopment

How Dependency Occurs

Emergence of Europe’s drive to capital accumulation, 1500

Led to the colonization of Latin American, Caribbean, African and East Asian States.

The Extraction of Wealth (Natural Resources and Capital) from the colonies resulting in
stagnation

Subsequent transfer of wealth to Europe facilitating industrialization and development

(Walter Rodney: How Europe Underdeveloped Africa)

The persistent of culture of dependency even after colonialism. Third World-Producers/

First World Manufacturers
Andre Gunder Frank

Ideas: Monopoly control of trade. Unequal exchange between Metropole and Satellite
resulted in the extraction of Surplus Value (Potter and Binns et al, 1999).

“Development and Underdevelopment are opposite sides of the coin: the development of
the industrialized world was and is made possible only by the corresponding
underdevelopment of the Third World” (Randall and Theobald, 1985, p. 107)

Immanuel Wallerstien

Ideas: The existence of a total system or network driven by the endless accumulation of
profits “the perpetual and widening inequity among states is explained by capitalism and
the international division of labour and the production” (Kegley 2006, 141)

The International division of labour leads to the development of countries as core,

periphery and semi-periphery

Assumption of Dependency

“In general, the theory of dependency holds that both political and economic dependency
are inversely and significantly related to economic prosperity, that is the more dependent
countries are also less prosperous” (Craig, 1996 thesis)

In order for these backward countries to develop they must disassociate themselves from
all relations with the First World.

Weaknesses of Dependency Theory

See economic growth as the main component of development

So much stress was put on the external obstacles to development.

The ultimate causes of under development are not identified apart from the fact that they
originate from the center.
Impractical ideas: If Third World Countries totally dissociate themselves from first they will
not gain development. The relationship between Third world and First World is not
dependent but interdependent.

Neglects the role of contemporary internal political and economic conditions.

Does not explain the relevance of the Situation of the New International Division of
Labour.

Summary

The Marxists attempt to explain the causes of underdevelopment but do not come up with
substantive suggestions of eliminating underdevelopment.

The Bourgeois theorists successfully depict the existing situation of underdevelopment in

developing countries. They do not give reasons for the emergence of underdevelopment
nor its persistence.

The Dependency theorists also contribute significantly to the general debate of

underdevelopment, particularly the external exploitative relations between developing
countries and the developed countries. They neglect the role of internal political and
economic conditions.

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