Social Systems that Doom a Country: Part 2

This is a continuation of the blog post “Social Systems that Doom a Country”, which examined the differences between the success of liberalized, industrial nations that have enjoyed great economic benefits vs. the difficulty that more autocratic, non-liberalized countries have had in innovating with the modern world.

Low value of education

A highly educated population is one of the cornerstones of modern society. It is what enables all of our advances in medicine, industry, entertainment, and business practices. Education is absolutely one of the most important investments that a country makes, and is on par with highways and internet access, in terms of infrastructural importance. Countries that fail to recognize the importance of education will have the setbacks of lacking a majority of independent, innovative citizens that are able to contribute to the society. A functional system of educational institutions is able to create a self-sustaining and exponential pattern of growth within an economy, while the lack thereof will perpetuate stunted growth and bring about a lack of support for other important social institutions.

Low value of work

In many industrialized nations, there is an inherent sense of pride and prestige that is attached to the work that we do. Indeed, the value of work is part of the foundation of a country that enjoys growth and innovation. Countries that put a low value on the work of its citizens, and fail to properly award the exerted effort to go above and beyond on tasks that benefit society are not prioritizing the growth of their economy, or the livelihood of their citizens. Again, one of the side effects of independence and democracy is the reflection on the self, and how the self supports the collective. Typically, more liberalized economies value the independence that breeds hard work.

Limiting social structure to the family unit

While liberalized economies value independence and the sense of self, it is important to note that these societies tend to do better when every part is working together to lift everyone up. In most industrialized nations, the units of social organization are numerous. However, in many poorer countries, there is a bit more of a tribal mentality that restricts the totality of human empathy to the family unit. While the family unit is important in nearly every society, limiting our social obligations to just our families is terribly inefficient for economic growth.