Structural lag between dated norms and modern reality explains why norms lag economies

Evidence

Any period of transformative change results in a temporary mismatch or structural lag between dated normative practices and contemporary social reality. Even in developing countries, the historic transition to the information era has seen intellect supplant brawn in many aspects of modern work. Serial dramas show how educated daughters, not just sons, can be productive providers. The dramas try to foster a better normative match to the challenges and opportunities of this new era. Societies with burgeoning populations need not wait until they become economically sound to bring birthrates down—nor can they afford to. Indeed, no country can achieve much national progress until it can bring its rate of population growth under control. — Albert Bandura, Moral Disengagement, 2902

Categorization

• DEFINE: “Structural lag” is a useful named concept for why social norms trail material conditions, worth retaining as a reusable term.
• DEEPTHINKING: The claim that no country achieves national progress without controlling population growth is dense and contestable, but the structural-lag framing is the genuinely reusable idea here.