The current state of development sociology in South Africa and its contribution to development studies

Like sociology, development sociology is currently torn between several perspectives, each of which accentuates a completely different view of the discipline. The systems, conflict and humanist perspectives are providing dominant theoretical approaches in the search for an appropriate theory. It is maintained that the current theoretical controversy impedes the development of such a theory.

Systems theory corresponds with neo‐evolutionary development theories and these are largely influenced by the works of Talcott Parsons. Neo‐Marxist development theory, on the other hand, follows the general argument of conflict theory, the accent being on the dialectic relationship between development and underdevelopment. Development theory related to humanism is still in an embryonic stage.

A plea is made for an attempt to design a Weberian‐based orientation which will embrace the current perspectives in order to develop a workable alternative for Southern Africa.     

A model of the Dutch labour market (AMO-K)

Summary So far, the labour market has not received any special attention from macro-econometric model builders. In this article an attempt has been made to describe the labour market in detail, paying attention to such important phenomena as the friction between labour supply and demand, the heterogeneity of labour, the dependence of labour supply on the labour-market situation, the Phillips mechanism and the impact of real wages on labour demand. To make it suitable for policy simulations, the model has been extended to a complete macro-econometric model, taking account of the fact that both labour and capital limit the production possibilities.This paper summarises an extensive Dutch report on the construction of a model for the Netherlands labour market. The title of the original report is AMO-K: Een arbeidsmarktmodel met twee categorieën arbeid; (AMO-K, A labour-market model with two categories of labour) ; it was published by the Netherlands Economic Institute (NEI) in Rotterdam in the so-called Olive Series, 1982-2, pp. 403ff. Some details of the model presented in that report were changed after its publication; see G. den Broeder, AMO-K 81-12, Tussenrapport betreffende de verdere ontwikkeling van het arbeidsmarktmodel (Interim report on the further development of the labourmarket model), Rotterdam, September 1983. Since then, only minor changes have been carried through. The model reproduced in this paper is the modified version. The model was developed within the National Programme of Labour-Market Research (NPAO) (now defunct), the NPAO organisation having granted a commission to the NEI in Rotterdam.     

Income distribution,economic structure and employment in South Africa

This paper discusses the impact of a redistribution of current income from the White to the Black population on the distribution of sectoral output, and total employment by means of a semi‐closed input‐output model.

The results show that a redistribution of current income towards Black households — which no doubt will have positive social and political repercussions — has a non‐negative effect on GDP and a definite positive effect on the performance of sectors with a high private consumption expenditure component, as well as on total employment.     

Practicing in a fish bowl

Intent on recovering "overpayments" to doctors, private insurers are turning to on-site practice audits. Here's a survival guide for these quasi-legal skirmishes.