developing

Knowledge

2022

We explain what development is, what are the types of developments that exist and some of its main characteristics.

Development is a complex concept that is defined according to very different criteria.

What is development?

The term development has different meanings depending on the areas of knowledge that interest us. For example in biology, is used to refer to the process of growth and maturation of a Living being, especially at the stage that involves sexual maturation. On the other hand, in social Sciences, we speak of development to refer to the change in the productive conditions of a society, which brings about an improvement in the conditions of life for the citizens.

In the latter case, it is a complex concept, which is defined and evaluated according to very different criteria, such as access to the education, the decrease in crime, access to goods and services, etc. In this sense, the purpose of any type of security policies ConditionIn principle, they aim to achieve the highest degree of development in the different areas of life: the economic, the social, the organizational, etc.

Based on this criterion, in addition, a traditional distinction has been made between the developed world, made up of the so-called First World or industrialized countries, and the so-called Third World, made up of developing or underdeveloped countries.

Human development

Human development is an indicator of the quality of life that citizens have.

Human development is understood as the degree of satisfaction of the basic human needs and respect for human rights fundamentals that a given society has achieved. In other words, it is an indicator of the quality of life possessed by the citizens of a given country or region, based on their ability to actively and effectively participate in the construction of a prosperous society in material and spiritual terms.

The most important of the organizations in the world in charge of measuring and studying human development is the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), which defines it as "the process of expanding the capacities of people who expand their options and opportunities ”, which takes into consideration simpler variants such as economic development, social development and sustainable development. Is organization, attached to the UN, is responsible for preparing the Human Development Index (HDI) with which the different qualities of life are measured and compared between the countries of the world.

Social development

When it comes to social development, it refers to the improvement of the conditions of human capital and social capital of a given society, that is, the increase in its well-being and in its production and living conditions. A society with a higher rate of social development will have individuals with greater potential in labor matters, with greater capacities to consumption goods and services, as well as the satisfaction of their specific needs, so that this concept is also linked to the economic development of said society.

However, what distinguishes social development from purely economic development has to do with the political, social and technological aspects of a society, which are often so interrelated that it is difficult to study them separately. Thus, the investment in education, in access to technologies and in political stability and access to participation and social organization, are fundamental elements to guarantee a population their social development.

Economic development

Economically developed countries tend to have favorable trade balances.

The economic development it is, compared to the previous examples, simpler to define. It is about the ability of a country to generate wealth, in order to maintain the social and human well-being of its population. There are doctrines dedicated to the study of economic development, known as Development economics, and which define economic growth as the most important factor for the economic development of any society. The latter is defined, in turn, as the notable increase in income and therefore of the consumption capacity of the members of society.

There are various ways of achieving economic development, generally linked to the type of majority economic activity in the country and the operation of its financial circuit, that is, the production and investment of wealth. Economically developed countries tend to have favorable trade balances (they export more than they import) and therefore are more independent from market fluctuations, when they are not the ones who just regulate it.

On the other hand, economically underdeveloped countries tend to depend a lot on the import of goods and services, they have economies weak and unstable, that fluctuate according to the market and that place them in a subaltern situation with respect to the rest of the world.

Sustainable development

Also called sustainable development or lasting development, it is about alternative forms of socioeconomic development, that is, different from the traditional model, since they contemplate the needs of the environment and the responsibility of the species regarding future generations.

This concept emerged at the end of the 20th century, when the evidence of environmental deterioration as a consequence of the emergence of industrial society and the indiscriminate exploitation of natural resourcessuch as the loss of biodiversity, the impoverishment of soils and the global warming, among others.

In addition, sustainable development tries to defend human social and spiritual values ​​that are considered key, such as the democracy, the peace, the equality and the I respect for human rights.

Organizational development

Organizational development allows making strategic change decisions.

The organizational development is a concept that belongs to the field of management. It is about the study of the functioning, improvement and effectiveness of human relations within a given organization, emphasizing human capital and the dynamization of processes from the institutional framework. Thanks to this, the quality of working life of those who are part of the organization can be determined, they can take decisions of strategic change, and the organizational model of a business, institution or group human.

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