Modernization theory pathologized Middle Eastern people as lacking empathy
Evidence
Daniel Lerner, author of the highly influential book The Passing of Traditional Society: Modernizing the Middle East, argued that people who live in modern societies are distinguished by their personalities, which he explained in psychological terms. Modern individuals have “empathy,” which allows them to see themselves in the shoes of others and therefore to visualize and make possible social mobility. Traditional individuals do not have this capacity and are therefore in need of Western influence to help them shed their old, static ways. — Deepa Kumar, Islamophobia and the Politics of Empire, 250
Categorization
- XREF: Directly parallels the vault’s existing claims about Islamophobia constructing colonized subjects as psychologically deficient needing Western tutelage; sharpens the Aziz/Razack/Rana cluster with a named theorist and text. — connects to: Lerner claimed modern people possess psychological empathy that traditional people lack — Deepa Kumar, Islamophobia and the Politics of…, 250; Modernization theory blamed underdevelopment on internal cultural flaws within societies; Modernization theory pathologized resistance to Western influence as laggard traditionalism, not rational choice — Deepa Kumar, Islamophobia and the Politics of…, 262 (+5 more)
- QUESTION: Lerner’s ‘empathy’ argument is a striking specific — worth verifying how influential The Passing of Traditional Society actually was in US policy circles.
Broader Connections
- Modernization theory blamed underdevelopment on internal cultural flaws within societies
#expands(0.85) - Modernization theory attributed underdevelopment to internal cultural deficits in the colonized
#expands(0.85) — Deepa Kumar, Islamophobia and the Politics of Empire, 248 - Modernization theory repackaged Orientalist racism in social-science guise
#corroborates(0.80) - US economic imperialism generated modernization theory rooted in racist assumptions about Muslims
#corroborates(0.80) — Deepa Kumar, Islamophobia and the Politics of Empire, 745 - Modernization theory pathologized resistance to Western influence as laggard traditionalism, not rational choice
#exemplifies(0.75) — Deepa Kumar, Islamophobia and the Politics of Empire, 262 - Politicized perception of Arabs stems from prejudice, Zionism, and lack of neutral cultural position
#expands(0.72) — Edward W. Said, Orientalism, 99 - The Orientals-cannot-self-govern claim runs from Oriental despotism through modernization theory
#corroborates(0.70)