The Interdependence of Development Theory and Development Practice
From the philosophy of the ancient Greek we pick this special word “theoria” that came to define and interpret phenomena, life processes and social behavior. Theory from the Greek “Theoria” is the word we are relating-to which by then referred to looking at, viewing, referring to, contemplation and speculation. This time around we integrate theory with another term ‘development’ to get a full phrase “development theory” which represents the various theories that have been designed to illustrate how desirable change can be achieved in society.
Before we delve deep into understanding the relationship between development theory and development practice, we need to understand what development we are talking about. Development being a term covering diverse fields, it is imperative that we specify which development we are talking about. We are looking at development in terms of improvement in people’s welfare, quality of life, social wellbeing and or the ability of a country to satisfy the population’s needs and wants.
This process takes political, social and economic transformation of the whole community at large based on human interactions and interactivities. Now it should be noted that development as a process of human transformation is not an accident per say, it involves set procedures and assumptions that govern the process. These assumptions just like development have evolved over time just as Rapley J (2007) asserts that “development has come a long way in the past six decades”.
The assumptions that form the foundation of the theories of development determine the operations development practitioners are meant to take. It is against this background that we argue that “theory informs practice and also practice informs theory” thus making development theory and development practice complimentary or just like the statement in question says “two sides from the same coin.”
The purpose of this essay is to analyse the relationship between development theory
Before we delve deep into understanding the relationship between development theory and development practice, we need to understand what development we are talking about. Development being a term covering diverse fields, it is imperative that we specify which development we are talking about. We are looking at development in terms of improvement in people’s welfare, quality of life, social wellbeing and or the ability of a country to satisfy the population’s needs and wants.
This process takes political, social and economic transformation of the whole community at large based on human interactions and interactivities. Now it should be noted that development as a process of human transformation is not an accident per say, it involves set procedures and assumptions that govern the process. These assumptions just like development have evolved over time just as Rapley J (2007) asserts that “development has come a long way in the past six decades”.
The assumptions that form the foundation of the theories of development determine the operations development practitioners are meant to take. It is against this background that we argue that “theory informs practice and also practice informs theory” thus making development theory and development practice complimentary or just like the statement in question says “two sides from the same coin.”
The purpose of this essay is to analyse the relationship between development theory
References: Buchanan, D. R. (1994) Reflections on the relationship between theory and practice. Health Education Research, 9, 273–283. Garry Jacobs and Harlan Cleveland (November 1, 1999): Social Development Theory http://www.icpd.org/development_theory/SocialDevTheory.htm Jackie Green (2000): The Role of Theory in Evidence-based Health Promotions Practice. Oxford University Press John Rapley (2007) Understanding Development: Theory and Practice in the Third World THIRD EDITION Lynne Rienner Publishers, USA Niel Thompson (2000): Theory and Practice in Human Services. Open University Press