Village-Level Modernization in Southeast Asia: The Political Economy of Rice and Water

Raj S. Gandhi is a professor of sociology at the University of Calgary.

It is increasingly apparent that the model of modernization being followed in less developed countries is not generating greater income, employment, or welfare for broad segments of their societies. In fact, public policy often operates against poorer groups in their search for improving livelihoods. But the rate of modernization at all levels in Southeast Asia has accelerated, especially since World War II. This book contains a series of quantitative studies that examine aspects of this acceleration in four major Southeast Asian nations: Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia and the Philippines. They examine how new rice technologies, land use, irrigation projects, fertilizers, crop sharing, and modernization of fisheries have affected the structure of production, employment, income distribution, and social relationships, at both the village and the national levels.

The introduction surveys the main ideological perspectives governing the study of village level development since 1945, and includes a bibliography of major works on the topic. The student of the sociology of development would have been better served if the book had included some chapters directly related to Marxist and neo-Marxist ideology. However, most chapters provide a varied set of insights into how modernization is transforming life and prospects of villagers in various situations throughout Southeast Asia. I would not describe such transformations as fundamental, qualitative-revolutionary changes. Though the book fills a gap in existing development studies, which have generally focused on national or international aspects, it should be read along with a book that is focused on such aspects within clear Marxist and neo-Marxist perspectives.