Alfred Marshall distinguished investment in human beings as the most valuable capital, and this view perhaps inspired the formal economic analysis of education not merely as a consumption good, but rather as a sub-division of neo-classical economics that had begun to place the individuals at the center of any developmental agenda (Chattopadhyay, 2012). The Human Capital theory, while marking a resurgence of the orthodox view, inspired an overt stress and predominance of education in public policy, arguing that the acquisition of intangible forms of capital such as education plays a key role in determining positive outcomes in the labour market (Schultz, 1961; Mincer, 1974; Becker, 1975) by way of enhancing creativity, cognitive skills and the ability to perform. If human-capital theory formed a theoretical micro-economic underpinning for the rational, utility-maximizing individual’s cost-benefit analysis of education (Becker, 1975), the complementary macro-economic new growth theories of the 1980s advocated investment in human capital, and hence, education as necessary for growth in knowledge-based economies through increased productivity and knowledge spill-overs (Romer, 1986). However, Amartya Sen’s work on ‘development as freedom’ in the late 1980s and early 1990s created a paradigm shift in theory and policy for economic development and steered the discourse on human welfare beyond mathematical calculations of rates of return. This paper revisits the debate between human capital and human development theories in guiding the development process.
Human capital theory and its focus
The crux of Human Capital theory is that it views human skills and knowledge as a form of capital subject to a rate of return (Schultz, 1960). Invest...
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...s or public policies and thus fails to provide recommendations to promote capabilities (Denuelin, 2002). Stewart’s analysis of groups and group capabilities shows how affiliation to a group has intrinsic value, instrumental importance in affecting efficiency and resources, and influence on members’ values and choices (Stewart, 2005). Thus, the terms on which an individual belongs to a family, community or society matters as much as the individual’s freedom to do or be (Dean, 2009).
Lastly, by ignoring the prevailing hegemonic assumptions, conflict and hidden oppression, the approach often advances the interests of the powerful in the name of common good, while ignoring those of the subordinate. In doing so, it fails to expose or explain the operative mechanisms of functioning given social inequality and injustices perpetuated by the capitalist system (Fraser, 1997).
Capitalism has widely been regarded as one of the most advanced intellectual achievements of the past few centuries. However, a system which is largely credited for alleviating “human misery” is actually perpetuating it (Goldberg, 6). Capitalism inherently fuels inequality, leading to poverty among the powerless. Jonah Goldberg in his article, Capitalism Has Lifted Billions Out of Poverty, attributed the economic theory to ending poverty, but failed to recognize that capitalism’s lofty goals are merely fulfilled on paper. Equal opportunity must exist for capitalism to end human misery, however the stratification of society ensures that no individual has equal access to the keys to capitalist success.
Socail inequality is a problem that not only happens in one setting, but also is prevalent everywhere around the world. The Year of the Flood and The Cat’s Table are an example of two very different settings but have the same concurring issue of social class inequality with abuse of power, corruption, abuse of privilege, and the motivation to keep social status. Power is a tool that we must use delicately because it can be used in evil and unjust ways to create problems in our society.
The richest of humanity see the most of improvements, and the poorest of humanity see the least of these improvements. Through capitalism the world has changed tremendously in a short amount of time. A host of new technology has been innovated, especially in the last 100 years. Humanity as a whole is much better off than it was before. As an example, most of us are able to take an airplane to travel from one country to another in one day or have fairly easy access to advanced health care. In a word, like Bill Gates said in his article “How to Fix Capitalism”, “Capitalism has improved the lives of billions of people- something that’s easy to forget”(Gates). But, it is not getting better fast enough, and it is not getting better for everyone. A multitude of people live on less than a dollar a day and it can be extremely hard for a person in such a situation to drag themselves out of poverty without help from others. Capitalism has the ability to harness self-interest in a helpful and sustainable way but only on beh...
There are two groups of people, those that belong to the dominant group and those that belong to the subordinate group. Placement of this group can either be temporary or permanent depending on the social context. Temporary Inequality mainly takes into consideration status or power, defined as the relationship of dominance with age or profession. The superior in this case has the quality to impart on the lesser party. The lesser party however retains equal worth as the superior party and equality is developed between both parties. While Permanent Inequality is ALL about status and power. In this group there is firm difference between the worth of the dominant group and the subordinate groups. Dominants groups play their part by influencing and promoting negative associations with the subordinates. Dominant label subordinates as ineffective or incapable as a way to justify barring opportunities for all people. In some cases subordinates will respond to this with internalized oppression. In a system like this subordinates often develop skills and adapt to the ways of the dominant groups, often learning more about the dominant class than vice versa. Even though, many experts in the fields of “subordinate groups” derive from the dominant groups.
There is a common root to most (or perhaps all) grave forms of social injustice: the rejection of human equality and the influence of this rejection on human relationships and institutions.
Various theorists under the umbrella of critical social theory believe that all subordinate groups are oppressed on personal, cultural and institutional levels by visible and invisible structures as well as by conscious and unconscious means. (Mullaly, 2010 ).
Mohammed, J., Bhatti, M., Jariko, G., & Zehri, A. (2013). Importance of Human Resource Investment for Organizations and Economy: A Critical Analysis. Journal Of Managerial Sciences, 7(1), 127-133.
Even though it has incredible benefits a Capitalist society still has its drawbacks. To put it simply Capitalism encourages greed and certain abuses of power will always remain present in the system. Those who constantly attempt to ri...
Marx is able to demonstrate the consequences that result from transforming values into productions suited for profit, as he writes, “This boundless greed after riches, this passionate chase after exchange-value is common to the capitalist and the miser; but while the miser is merely a capitalist gone mad, the capitalist is a rational miser” (Marx 63). There is no sense of abhorrence for a particular individual in Marx’s interpretation of capitalism and instead focuses on the capitalistic economic structure. However, it is through this quote that a sense of inequality starts to emerge. As a result, a hierarchy is produced, creating an enduring structure of capitalism, where those who control the circulation of money are granted unlimited power. This has become evident in recent years, as in 2008, a social power analysis by Dr. John S. Atlee and Tom Atlee was published. In “Democracy: A Social Power Analysis” Altlee describes the power of money and status as he states, “People with lots of money, muscle, status, intelligence, etc., can usually successfully influence other people. In most (but, significantly, not all) circumstances, they have more social power” (Atlee). Economic power is proven to be pivotal in attaining another individual’s attention and status of capability. Thus, the capitalist is free to develop their own sense of
Powercube.net. 2014. Hegemony and invisible power | Understanding power for social change | powercube.net | IDS at Sussex University. [online] Available at: http://www.powercube.net/other-forms-of-power/hegemony-and-invisible-power/ [Accessed: 23 Mar 2014].
...e happy. However, Carl argued that now more than ever people are questioning capitalism. It is important to question and critique our current capitalistic system. The current system in place is alienating workers and places too much emphasis on profit and the modes of production. There are extensive problems and repercussions that must be death within a profit-driven society. We should be working towards a system that is driven by what is needed not what is profitable. A profit-driven system can lead to over-accumulation and production of items that are actually not required because of over-production. We need to undergo change in order to construct a form of social and economic life based on production for need, not production for profit. This means that a system must be created that has a focus on democratic planning, worker-self management, and global solidarity.
Torrington, D. Hall, L. & Taylor, S. (2005) Human Resource Management. Harlow: Financial Times Prentice Hall
However you define the activities of management, and whatever the organisational processes are, an essential part of the process of management is that proper attention be given to the Human Resource function. The human element provides a major part in the overall success of the organisation. Therefore there must be an effective human resource function. In the past, most organisations viewed Human Resource Management (HRM) as an element function, that is an activity that is supportive of the task functions and does not normally have any accountability for the performance of a specific end task. Because of the emphasis on analysis and precision there is a tendency for strategists to concentrate on economic data and ignore the way in which human elements and values can influence the implementation of a strategy. 'Economic analysis of strategy fails to recognise the complex role which people play in the evolution of strategy - strategy is also a product of what people want an organisation to do or what they feel the organisation should be like.?(1).
Iveta, G. (Mar. 2012). Human Resources Key Performance Indicators. Journal of Competitiveness. Vol. 4, Issue 1. Retrieved from http://www.cjournal.cz/files/89.pdf
According to the article entitled,” A Theory of Human Motivation” by A.H. Maslow, Maslow stated that human motivation is defined in several ways. Some of the ways that human motivation is define is :