Qualifying Exam Theories - Essay Example

Qualifying exam theories Introduction Poverty is global and the various solutions being proposed are also global in nature. There are many theories that are aimed at understanding the reasons or causes of poverty and these theories while help explain the causes and consequences, also help in combating poverty on the global scale. Poverty is seen as the lack of sustainability between the government and the masses at economic, political and social levels. This can be understood to be leading to disconnect between the ruled and the ruler, where the consequence is an imbalance in all spheres of life. International organizations backed by World Bank have been advocating poverty alleviation through economic policies that are international in nature but have the potential to influence national policies (Introduction to international relations: Social constructivism, 2012, p 170). There is an emerging ‘global anti-poverty agenda’ that has changed the rules the way people, government and other public organizations are tackling poverty (Noel, 2006). There are several theories that have emerged to explain and tackle poverty; however, all theories seem to agree upon the issue of tackling the problem as inherent and arising in the social structure, which is also seen to be the best solution seems (Altatis, 2012). Liberalism: Is the individual liberty which the government under the law secures to its citizens and is said to propose private ownership of property based on division of labor (Hayek, 1982). Constructivism: Is based on the theory of learning where people have differences in their perceptions and learning mechanisms and tend to perceive their environment differently (Constructivism, 2012). Neoliberalism: Is based on the core ideas of liberalism but also separates itself from liberalism in taking it in the direction of endorsing conservative reactions (Kuttner, 2000). Positivism: “Is a position that holds that the goal of knowledge is simply to describe the phenomena that we experience” (Trochim, 2006). Poverty and liberalism Liberalism postulates freedom of thought and expression and opposes conservative and authoritarian views. It is a doctrine aimed at helping the outward welfare of men and does not take into account the inner welfare. It is concerned with the outward conduct of men. This doctrine recognizes that inner welfare cannot come from outward, materialistic possession. However, it posits equality of material possessions based on division of labor and individual capability to labor and materialistic possession. Outer well being as advocated by liberalism and its proponents is very much needed for man as it gives every individual a chance and the right to equal opportunity. This theory is based on equality of men in line with the natural law and law of enlightenment and demands equality of political and civil rights to all men. It is based on the assumption that differences between men are artificial and that all men are created equal, and hence need to be given equal rights (Mises, 2012). With equality under law, each individual will have the right and freedom to work to his capacity to be able to attain social equality. Although private ownership is said to create differences in terms of material possession, liberalism with its stress on materialistic equality and equality in treatment under law; does enable each individual to try to have a better life based on his capacity to labor. As division of labor also helps distribute wealth, it is up to the individual to labor to his capacity to attain equality. And division of labor helps individuals attain equality through much less effort by increasing productivity than when an individual strives to create all by himself (Mises, 2012). Liberalism has different connotations. Adam Smith’s “liberal plan of equality, liberty, and justice” had political connotations while B. de Spinozas idea of “a free man living according to the dictates of reason alone” has a mental attitude. Constructive or continental liberalism derives from Voltaire and J.‑J. Rousseau’s theory of enlightenment and René Descartes and Thomas Hobbes’s enlightenment derives from a rationalistic approach to equality within the purview of liberalism (Hayek, 1982). All of these different connotations of liberalism are aimed at creating materialistic equality under law. Poverty, liberalism and socialism Socialism or communism aims at equality of rights to material property and is opposed to liberalism that does not believe in equal distribution of property under law. Socialism proposes that all men on the basis of equality should have the right to equal property and opportunity which is in contrast to the ideas of liberalism which advocates equality but seems to contradict itself when it comes to distributing wealth equally as it explains that the division of labor and the individual capability to labor are being ignored under socialist ideas. While division of labor can ensure equality under law, private ownership of property is allowed and needed to safe guard the individual’s capabilities. Poverty and constructivism Constructivism is based on the assumption that individuals construct their environment based on their understanding of the information in their surroundings through the lens of prior knowledge and subjective mental representations (Constructivism, 2012). Individuals tend to perceive their surroundings subjectively based their awareness or consciousness of their world. This theory opposes the idea of materialism and proposes that social relations are more important to men (Introduction to International Relations: Social Constructivism, 2012). The meaning of the environment is important to the individual and tends to cater to the inner or emotional needs of the individual through constructivism. This theory of learning enables individuals to learn subjectively and expand their knowledge about their surroundings to enhance their well being (Introduction to International Relations: Social Constructivism, 2012). Individuals through the process of learning exercise their right to freedom and peace while also increasing their knowledge for overall well being instead of just materialistic gains. This can also effect relations and change one’s environment for the better as increased awareness can aid improvement in one’s social position. Vygotsky’s Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD), Piaget and Dewey’s ideas of awareness of surroundings are the major theories of constructivism. Vico suggested that men make their own surroundings and Giddens proposed that individuals create structures based on their actions derived from their understanding of their surroundings which are a result of their past experiences and knowledge gained through these experiences. This understanding is said to aid interrelations between the different individuals across the globe to increase the level of overall well being and not just materialistic well being (Introduction to International Relations: Social Constructivism, 2012). Poverty, constructivism and socialism While socialism proposes equality of men, not all men have the capability to understand their surroundings similarly as each individual interprets it differently according to his knowledge and experiences as proposed by constructivism. The differences between men in terms of possession and utilization of wealth may be understood as stemming from this difference in thinking and apprehension of his surroundings. Poverty and neoliberalism Neoliberalism aims at “reconstructing public authority through social deregulation and precarious wage work in institutionalized labor market by an ‘iron fist’ to check affects of social insecurity” (Waquant, 2001, pp 401,402). Neoliberalism aims to stick to the core ideas of liberalism while suggesting creative approaches to deriving solutions to problems (Kuttner, 2000). Neoliberalsim led to governments constructing new and innovative solutions like market deregulation and privatization; to problems that initially took a more liberal approach (Bako, 2011). Solutions like market deregulation and privatization have led to better tackling of inequality issues and also help in making a more sustainable environment for trade. Equal opportunity and wages among other advantages of neoliberalistic outlook tend to create a more or less similar environment for all individuals who then have the opportunity at their disposal to take advantage of the surroundings to create their unique experiences. The economic environment and other political conditions have led to the rise of neoliberalism. Proponents of neoliberalism include political exponents like Margaret Thatcher and George W. Bush and institutional proponents like Bretton Woods Institutions that include the World Bank and International Monetary Fund and individual academicians like Milton Friedman. These exponents of neoliberalism have tried to tackle economic instability through ‘iron fist’ of state to operate in the market that is highly insecure (Neoliberalism: History and Meaning, 2012). Poverty, neoliberalism and socialism Neoliberalism has successfully shattered the chains of casual labor market to check indiscrepencies in exercising liberalism and has even proposed certain equality measures among the people through privatization and market deregulation. However, it is not so practical in creating equality among men as socialism as the latter tends to base its arguments on equality irrespective of capability to labor while the former is based on division of labor and the individual’s capacity to labor. Poverty and positivism Positivism is characterized by objective approach to individual rights and equality and tends to consider the cause and effect of essentialism (Goode, 2008). It is concerned with the epistemology of gaining knowledge and stress on knowing what can be observed and measured (Trochim, 2006). According to this theory, knowledge gained can be explained only through one’s experience and this knowledge gained can be through a scientific method that aims to explain and measure knowledge (Positivism, 2012). An individual’s level of understanding and gaining of knowledge can be different in different circumstances and each individual differ in their level of understanding based on their experiences and environment. This creates differences in knowledge obtained by each individual and hence the differences in one’s capability to labor too. Wealth created by each individual also differs in terms of knowledge gained, which can be measured and used to explain the differences in wealth creation under division of labor. Auguste Comte has been a major proponent of positivism as he explained human thought processes in terms of theological, metaphysical and positivistic stages (Clines, 2012). Thomas Hobbes, Jean Jacques and Francis Hutcheson are other proponents of the theory of positivism in which they advocate natural law against man-made law. The major connotation of positivism is the legal connotation that has been redefined by these proponents and others like Jeremy Bentham to propose social norms and laws (Legal Positivism, 2012). Poverty, positivism and socialism Socialism proposes equality in all aspects of wealth creation while positivism caters to equality based on natural laws that are based off scientific methods that explain gaining of knowledge by an individual. Since no man has the same capability to acquire knowledge, the socialist view of equality to all may not be applicable to positivistic approach of equality as measurement of knowledge gained by an individual is also possible. However, since natural laws are same across, having social norms of equality can help individuals gain a higher status of knowledge acquiring to reduce differences further in life. Conclusion The different theories like liberalism, constructivism, positivism and neoliberalism have been discussed in the context of poverty which is the most rampant problem in all societies across the globe. The theories are defined, explained in the context of the concept’s meaning and are compared and contrasted with socialism to better understand how each stands vis-à-vis socialism or communism. It is inferred that each of the theories bring their unique set of meaning to equality in terms of wealth possession and also attempt to reduce poverty while tackling the myriad problems associated with bringing equality among men. References Atlatis, PC. (2012). Global Poverty- Realism, Liberalism, Marxism, and Constructivism. Knoji Consumer Knowledge. Retrieved from: http://economics.knoji.com/global-poverty-realism-liberalism-marxism-and-constructivism/. Bako, O. (2011). Neoliberalism and Its Effect On Canadian Women In Poverty. The Lyceum. Vol. 1, No. 1. Clines, A. (2012). Positivism. Retrieved from: http://positivists.org/43.html. Constructivism. (2012). Learning Theories.com. Retrieved from: http://www.learning-theories.com/constructivism.html. Goode. (2008). Positivism. Retrieved from: http://www.umsl.edu/~keelr/200/positism.html. Hayek, AF. (1982). New Studies in Philosophy, Politics, Economics and the History of Ideas: Liberalism. Routledge & Keagan Paul. London and Henley. 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