“Dependency” theorists believe that moving surplus labor from agriculture to industry where that labor will earn profit that can be reinvested for further growth is the key to overall economic growth and developement. Is this true or false? Explain why.
Why not?
I believe that is called the "industrial revolution".
It worked of course, but has drawbacks in practice in terms of smog, ocean acidification, depletion of fossil fuel sources etc.
The statement seems to be false. "Dependency" theorists argue against the idea that moving surplus labor from agriculture to industry is the key to overall economic growth and development. Instead, they propose that this strategy perpetuates a state of dependence on more developed nations.
To verify this, we can first briefly understand the perspective of "dependency" theorists. Dependency theory, a school of thought in economics and sociology, emerged in the 1950s and 1960s as a critique of traditional development theories. It focuses on the relationship between developed and developing nations, emphasizing the exploitative nature of this relationship and how it perpetuates underdevelopment in the latter.
Dependency theorists argue that underdeveloped nations produce and export primary products (such as raw materials) to developed nations, who, in turn, export manufactured goods back to the underdeveloped nations. They argue that this arrangement leads to a dependency on the more developed nations, as it keeps the underdeveloped nations trapped in a cycle of low-value production and limited technological progress.
Considering this perspective, dependency theorists criticize the idea that shifting surplus labor from agriculture to industry alone will lead to overall economic growth and development. They contend that this strategy fails to address the structural constraints imposed on underdeveloped nations by the global economic system, and instead reinforces their dependent status.
In summary, according to the perspective of "dependency" theorists, the statement is false. They advocate for a deeper analysis of global power structures and argue that a mere shift of labor from agriculture to industry will not be sufficient to achieve sustainable economic growth and development.