Abstract
ADDRESS THE SOCIAL ASPECTS OF DEVELOPMENT
Modern societies are ambivalent about the future: belief in the benefits of further technological development is coupled with strong concerns about the breakdown of social ties. Is the progressive atomisation of social life the only future scenario? How can we counteract the negative emotions associated with the prospect of progressive digitalisation Research by the Institute of Psychology of the Polish Academy of Sciences shows that policies that support the social aspects of society's development (promoting togetherness and cooperation) make it possible to look more optimistically to the future and strive for future well-being. The creation of appropriate social policies and the active building of social ties are essential to offset the negative effects of industrialisation and to enhance the sustainable well-being of present and future societies. Consequently, measures should be taken to promote communitarianism and cooperation, with a view to eradicating poverty, eliminating inequalities, providing education, building trust and supporting the reconciliation of work and family life. To build a sustainable future, it is essential to create societies that are not only economically prosperous, but also supportive, sustainable, morally developed and resilient.
ADOPT A CULTURALLY SENSITIVE APPROACH TO DEVELOPMENT
Visions of the good life vary widely across societies, reflecting a diversity of models of human flourishing. There is no one-size-fits-all recipe for social progress; the Scandinavians have a different vision for their societies from the Japanese, and these systems differ from the American or Chinese models. This diversity is not only acceptable, it is desirable. The institutions that govern our societies should adopt a culturally sensitive approach to social development, recognising and respecting the unique indigenous vision of each society. This proposal argues for the explicit inclusion of societal voices in social development policy-making, thereby democratising the discourse on this crucial issue.
MEASURE DEVELOPMENT IN WAYS THAT REFLECT LOCAL VALUES
The quality of policy makers’ work depends on the measurement tools they have at their disposal and on which they rely. The proposed culturally sensitive paradigms of societal development can help to construct new measures of societal development, but they can also be applied to existing measures. For example, the current main alternative to GDP - Human Development Index (HDI) - can become a culturally sensitive measure (CS-HDI) if it incorporates the preferences of societies.
Modern societies are ambivalent about the future: belief in the benefits of further technological development is coupled with strong concerns about the breakdown of social ties. Is the progressive atomisation of social life the only future scenario? How can we counteract the negative emotions associated with the prospect of progressive digitalisation Research by the Institute of Psychology of the Polish Academy of Sciences shows that policies that support the social aspects of society's development (promoting togetherness and cooperation) make it possible to look more optimistically to the future and strive for future well-being. The creation of appropriate social policies and the active building of social ties are essential to offset the negative effects of industrialisation and to enhance the sustainable well-being of present and future societies. Consequently, measures should be taken to promote communitarianism and cooperation, with a view to eradicating poverty, eliminating inequalities, providing education, building trust and supporting the reconciliation of work and family life. To build a sustainable future, it is essential to create societies that are not only economically prosperous, but also supportive, sustainable, morally developed and resilient.
ADOPT A CULTURALLY SENSITIVE APPROACH TO DEVELOPMENT
Visions of the good life vary widely across societies, reflecting a diversity of models of human flourishing. There is no one-size-fits-all recipe for social progress; the Scandinavians have a different vision for their societies from the Japanese, and these systems differ from the American or Chinese models. This diversity is not only acceptable, it is desirable. The institutions that govern our societies should adopt a culturally sensitive approach to social development, recognising and respecting the unique indigenous vision of each society. This proposal argues for the explicit inclusion of societal voices in social development policy-making, thereby democratising the discourse on this crucial issue.
MEASURE DEVELOPMENT IN WAYS THAT REFLECT LOCAL VALUES
The quality of policy makers’ work depends on the measurement tools they have at their disposal and on which they rely. The proposed culturally sensitive paradigms of societal development can help to construct new measures of societal development, but they can also be applied to existing measures. For example, the current main alternative to GDP - Human Development Index (HDI) - can become a culturally sensitive measure (CS-HDI) if it incorporates the preferences of societies.
| Translated title of the contribution | Wspólne cele, różne wartości : Jak w kulturowo wrażliwy sposób rozwijać dobrostan i zaangażowanie społeczne w obliczu globalnych wyzwań? |
|---|---|
| Original language | Multiple languages |
| Publication status | Published - 2024 |
Bibliographical note
The story and the content of this report has been prepared by the team of the PR Hub agency based on a series of interviews carried out with research teams. The aim of the report is to describe research findings in a plain language understandable and potentially interesting for lay intellectuals.The recommendations and interpretations presented in this report have been developed by the project management in collaboration with the PR Hub agency. Others involved in the project, in particular the leaders of the local teams in the research consortium, had no influence on the content of the report.
Funding
This project was funded through the GRIEG competition for interdisciplinary research projects, financed by Northern Financial Mechanism 2014-2021 (grant no. 2019/34/H/HS6/00597). The project budget is €1.5 mln. The programme is operated by the National Science Centre Poland. Some of the conclusions presented in this report are based in part on research financed by the National Science Center, the beneficiary of which is the Institute of Psychology of the Polish Academy of Sciences (projects #2020/37/B/HS6/03142 and #2020/38/E/HS6 /00357).
