Category: sociology

Is Government Decentralization a Good Approach for Countries with Low Literacy Rates?

August 10, 2020

This is a question that many development policy advisors struggle with when making suggestions that could improve human development in low and middle income countries. The assumption is that handing over government responsibility to poorly educated local authorities is a sure recipe for disaster. However, before we dive into arguing about the advantages or disadvantages … More Is Government Decentralization a Good Approach for Countries with Low Literacy Rates?

David Sloan Wilson on economics and new developments in evolutionary theory

January 25, 2016

David Sloan Wilson has an interesting blogpost about modern evolutionary theory and economics in which he compares the ideas in a highly intelligent 1996 speech about this by Paul Krugman with subsequent developments in evolutionary theory. It reminds me a little of the early twentieth century ideas of Kropotkin (see this post on this blog): “Kropotkin … noticed that groupings of species thrived through cooperation. Researching human settlements in Siberia, Kropotkin likewise noted cooperation and mutual aid as the foundation for dealing with the larger struggle for survival against natural challenges.” … More David Sloan Wilson on economics and new developments in evolutionary theory

More Education = Less Terrorism? Studying the Complex Relationship Between Terrorism and Education

January 4, 2016

In the aftermath of terrorist attacks, education is often advocated as an antidote to terrorism, the idea primarily being that education may make individuals less vulnerable to the false promises of extremist ideologies. For instance, in the aftermath of the terrorist attacks on New York City and Washington DC on September 11, 2001, Eli Wiesel … More More Education = Less Terrorism? Studying the Complex Relationship Between Terrorism and Education

The HE Green Paper: (Don’t) Read it and Weep – Part 1: The TEF & Social Mobility

January 4, 2016

Britain’s Conservative government recently released its much-awaited (or much-dreaded) ‘green paper’ on higher education (HE), a consultation document that sets out broad ideas for the sector’s future. Masochistically, I have read this document – so you don’t have to. This first post describes and evaluates the centrepiece of the green paper, the Teaching Excellence Framework … More The HE Green Paper: (Don’t) Read it and Weep – Part 1: The TEF & Social Mobility

The Rise of the Liquid Society

July 26, 2015

The collapse of the old system has already happened and efforts to perpetuate it are only aggravating the problem. People have experienced the reality of this shift in their everyday lives, in their vulnerability to systemic risk and sudden job losses. However governments have remained in denial, trying to apply the ‘one solution’ fits all problems model (i.e. trying to correct a private debt problem by creating more debt). Meanwhile… … More The Rise of the Liquid Society

At What Level does the Culture of Entitlement Becomes Morally Wrong?

January 30, 2015

The term ‘entitlement’ is often used in political discourse to refer to welfare and social net ‘handouts’ that create debate among liberals, realists, socialists and postructuralists alike. These debates focus around the issue of fairness considering that some people work ‘harder’ than others. However, I would like to dissect this term from the definition that … More At What Level does the Culture of Entitlement Becomes Morally Wrong?