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Social Sciences in Latin America and the Caribbean, I

The English-speaking Caribbean and Suriname Social Science Needs and Priorities

REPORTS AND PAPERS IN THE SOCIAL SCIENCES

The Reports and Papers are intended to present to a restricted public of specialists descriptive or documentary material as and when it becomes available during the execution of Unesco’s programme in the field of the social sciences. They will consist of either reports relating to the Regular Programme of Unesco and its operational programmes of aid to Member States or documentation in the form of bibliographies, repertories and directories.

The authors alone are responsible for the contents of the Reports and Papers and their views should not necessarily be taken to represent those of Unesco.

These documents are published without strict periodicity. Currently available.

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SS/CH 22 - SS/CH 23 - SS/CH 24 -

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International Repertory of Institutions Conducting Population Studies (bilingual: Enghsh/French), 1959. International Coaperation and Programmes of Economic and Social Development (bilingual: English/French), 1961. International Directory of Sample Survey Centres (outside the United States of America) (bilingual: Enghsh/French), 1962. The Social Science Activities of Some Eastern European Academies of Sciences, 1963. Attitude Change: a review and bibliography of selected research, 1964 (out of print in English, available in French). International Repertory of Sociological Research Centres (outside the U.S.A.) (bilingual: English/ French), 1964. Institutions Engaged in Economic and Social Planning in Africa (bilingual: Engllsh/French), 1966. International Repertory of Institutions Specializing in Research on Peace and Disarmament, 1966. Guide for the Establishment of National Social Sciences Documentation Centres in Developing Countries, 1969. Ecological data in comparative research: Report on a first International Data Confrontation Seminar (bilingual: English/French), 1970. Data archives for the Social Sciences: purposes, operations and problems, 1973. DARE Unesco computerized data retrieval system for documentation in the social and human sciences, 1972. International Repertory of Institutions for Peace and Conflict Research, 1973.

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The Unesco Educational Simulation Model (ESM), 1974. Social indicator: problems of definition and of selection, 1974. DARE - Information management system Social sciences in Asia: I Social sciences in Asia I1 Selected Applications of the Unesco Educational Simulation Model Social sciences in Asia: I11 Inter-regional co-operation in the Social Sciences Indicators of Social and Economic Changes and their Applications Indicators of Environmental quality and Quality of Life (in preparation) Review of Research Trends and an Annotated Bibliography Threat of Modern Warfare to Man and his Environ- ment: An Annotated Bibliography The effects of rural-urban migration on women’s role and status LT Latin America Social sciences in Asia: IV Peace Research. Trend Report and World Directory Employment Oriented National Youth Programmes in Africa: Situations, Problems and Prospects Selected Studies on the dynamics, patterns and consequences of mipation. I Mexico-city Interconcept Report: a new paradigm for solving the terminology problems of the social sciences Social Sclences in Latin America and the Caribbean, I World directory of Peace Research Institutions Fourth edition revised

\ Social Science Needs and Priorities in the

English-speaking Caribbean' I and Suriname

The Papers and the Final Report and Recommendations of the Unesco Expert Meeting, Bridgetown, Barbados, 29 January - 1 February 1980

Contents

Introductory Note ...................................................... Issues of fundamental social science theory in Suriname and the English-Speaking Carib-

New perspetives in the links between social science, history and cultural studies: notes on some closures and openings, by Stuart Hall .................................. Problems of inter-disciplinary researc in the social sciences in the Caribbean, by Basil A. Ince .................................................................. Social science research and government planning : some notes, by Jack Harewood ... Post-Graduate training in the social sciences in the English-Speaking Caribbean: An overview, by Acton Camejo Ph.D .......................................... Sub-Degree. level social science teaching in the English-speaking Caribbean, by Neville C. Duncan ...................................................... Problems of research and data collecting in small islands without a social science faculty, by Patrick A.M. Emmanuel ................................................. Problems of researchand training in small islands without a social science faculty, by Dean Walter Collinwood, Ph.D. ................................................ The infra-structures for research: Data collection and documentation in the social sciences, by J.E. Greene ......................................................... Formal and informal mechanisms for the Co-ordination of social science research in the

bean, by. M.G. Smith ................. .. ..................................

Caribbean, by Vaughan A. Lewis, Ph.D.. .................................... University planning and regional development by Betty Sedoc-Dahlberg ............ Funding for research in the social sciences, by Dr. Gerard Leckie ................ Final Report and Recommendations of Expert Meeting on social science needs and priorities in the English-speaking Caribbean and Suriname .............................. List of Participants .....................................................

ISBN 92-3-101962-7 French edition: 92-3-201962-0 Spanish edition: 92-3-301962-4

Published in 1982 by the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization 7, Place de Fontenoy, 75700 Paris (France)

Composed by ITC, Paris Printed in the workshops of Unesco 0 Unesco 1982 Printed in France

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SOCIAL SCIENCE NEEDS AND PRIORITIES IN THE ENGLISH-SPEAKING CARIBBEAN AND SURINAME

In January 1980 Unesco sponsored a meeting on Social Science Needs and Priorities in the English-speaking Caribbean and Suriname (28 January - 1 February 1980). This was an important meeting bringing together not only social scientists from what are known in the Caribbean as the ”campus and non-campus territories” but also bringing together the ”first generation” of Caribbean social scientists, some of w h o m now work abroad, with the younger generation.

The discussion at the meeting underlined that a Caribbean social science has indeed emerged, marked by the specific history of the area: a history of a plantation economy, of slave and other unfree labour, of colonial rule and post-colonial society.

While, however, there is a ”Caribbean social science”, it would be a mistake to consider this as of no importance beyond the Caribbean. The first papers by M.G. Smith, by Stuart Hall and some notes by Jack yarewood address issues general to all social sciences.

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Papers on post-graduate training or data collection indicate problems that the Caribbean shares, in the first instance with Latin America, but also with other developing countries.

It is hoped therefore, that the publication of the following papers will both provide information on the state of the social sciences in the English-speaking Carib- bean and Suriname, as well as indicate areas in which there are common concerns between social scientists in this sub-region, and others.

The interim Comittee, set up on the recommendation of the Meeting, has an important role to play in the development of social science. This interim Committee for the social sciences, of the Universities of Guya- na/Suriname/West Indies, was established by the Meeting and is now an active sub-regional Caribbean organization for the planning and co-ordination of universities training and research.

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ISSUES OF FUNDAMENTAL SOCIAL SCIENCE THEORY IN SURINAME AND THE ENGLISH SPEAKING CARIBBEAN.

M. G. Smith

The societies with which this paper deals include, besides all of the former British West Indies and Suriname, the American Virgin Islands, the Bahamas, Providencia and other Caribbean territories in which English is the most widely used language. Martinique, Guadeloupe, Puerto Rico, Bermuda, Haiti, Cuba, Cayenne, Santo Domingo, and their dependencies do not fall within our purview.

By "social science", I understand any and all of the following disciplines : anthropology, demography, economics, education, geography, history, jurisprudence, linguistics, political science, psychology and sociology. There may be others, applied or theoretical.

By "issues of fundamental social science theory", I understand any data or questions relevant to or arising from studies in Suriname or the English-speaking Carib- bean that either enable or require us to reexamine or develop basic concepts and models of social science theory andlor method. Accordingly, the following discussion is concerned less with topics of urgent practical concern to these Caribbean countries and their social scientists but more with ways in which certain theoretical structures of social science may benefit from studies undertaken in these Caribbean societies. To pursue this objective as I understand it, we must therefore concentrate on the most general and abstract topics and avoid engage- ment in specific subjects such as ethnicity, population, family studies or the like. In effect, then, this discussion can only be rather abstract and general. It is to be hoped that it may be useful nonetheless.

The following general perspectives have probably been most influential in Caribbean studies over the past two decades : (1) the conception of the Caribbean as a sub-region of "Plantation America", in which societies originated and developed within plantation frameworks ; 1 (2) the conception of Caribbean societies as plural societies characterized by ethnic and cultural differences within their populations, and established, modified and maintained primarily by political and military means, to which the economic organisation, though clearly very important, remains subordinate ; 2(3) an earlier view, which stressed the rich cultural heritages of these regional societies and advocated "acculturation perspectives" for their study, - perspectives that apply equally to Amerin- dian, Hindustani and other populations, as well as Africans ;3 and (4) the view held by some structural-

functionalists that Caribbean societies are "consensual normative systems" integrated mainly by what Leo Despres has called a "reticulated model" of social stratification. 4

Three other perspectives should also be noted. These are : (5) a basically race relations perspective ; 5 (6) a variety of economic interpretations of social patterns and developments which range from vulgar Marxism to detailed economic historical studies ; sand more recently emerging concerns with the political and industrial characteristics and organizations of these societies. 7

For brevity we may label these alternative orientations : - Plantation society ; Pluralism ; Accultura- tion ; Normative consensus ; Race relations ; Economistic ; Political-industrial. Though clearly these are not the only social science approaches to the Carib- bean community, they are perhaps the most comprehensive and influential ones.

Thus listed, several features of these divergent perspectives immediately spring to mind ; for example, most of these perspectives have various versions or applications. Thus van Lier, Hoetink, Despres and I all offer somewhat different models of pluralism for Carib- bean societies. 8 Likewise, acculturation studies are as appropriate for Javanese, Hindustani (East Indian), Chinese or Amerindians, as for West Indians of African descent ; they are equally appropriate in such fields as language, religion, family, marriage, sport and politics ; and they may also be undertaken to indicate measures and processes of both "creolisation" 9 and of assimilation to European norms. The economics and race relations perspectives each have a comparable variety of particular approaches. Within the past decade a variety of explicitly Marxist analyses of Caribbean conditions have appeared, stressing inter alia such phenomena as plantations, dependence on overseas capitalism, and incorporation into the world capitalist economy. 10

A second notable feature of these several perspectives is their interdisciplinary scope. Virtually all are heavily concerned with history and geographical distribution as well as with various current social forms ; and most have generated useful historical research into the foundations of contemporary social patterns. Non- etheless, some perspectives are more consciously inter- disciplinary than others. For example, Marxists consider

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the integration of politics and economics in their concept of ”political economy” as the core of the social formations to be studied. The variable inter or multi- disciplinary implications of these differing theoretical orientations accordingly raise a number of fundamental issues in social science theory and organisation which concern the adequacy, differences, exclusiveness and integration of the various disciplinary perspectives in social science. For example, we may ask whether the ”Marxists” stress on the unity of ”political economy” as a particular field of phenomena and a discipline is preferable to the more conventional Western division between economics and political science. Which approach delivers better results, and by what criteria and on what scales are these measured, and how objectively ?

Much the same may be said of the Marxist view of sociology and social philosophy ; but many non-Marxist lawyers, historians, and linguists may also disagree as to whether or not their disciplines belong to the social sciences.

A third feature of these diverse perspectives in Carib- bean studies is their many overlaps and convergences. This is immediately obvious among the perspectives of pluralism, race relations, acculturation and plantation society, together with certain economic and political science approaches. Even the work of Lloyd Braithwaite and R. T. Smith 1 1 incorporates data that illustrate theses of plantation society, acculturation, economic and political models. Indeed, almost every one of these distinct theoretical perspectives presupposes conditions and structures that are adopted as central points of departure in each of the competing frameworks. Thus, for example, pluralism clearly acknowledges the realities that underlie the political, economic, plantation, race relations and acculturation approaches, and employs structural- functional analyses, while rejecting the postulate of normative consensus as the basis of social order in these Caribbean societies, both historical and contemporary. In the pluralist perspective, the nature and basis of social order in contemporary Caribbean societies is more properly an object of investigation than a matter of assumption.

The problems presented by such frequent and complex overlaps of competing perspectives merit further attention. First, it is not surprising that each approach appropriates data from a common pool for re-study and presentation in its own distinctive anlytical framework. The frequent use of common data by scholars of such differing persuasions clearly illustrates the deep historical roots and functional interconnections of those patterns that have central significance for these Caribbean societies. One effect of such intricate and multivalent relationships is that each major historical process or social institution has a variety of aspects, any one of which may be adopted and elaborated as a framework for analysis of all the others. The key questions generated by such phenomena are twofold. First by what criteria, method and reasoning can we firmly rank these competing dimensions and perspectives in order of their significance and utility as bases for a comprehensive analytic framework to guide the study of these Caribbean societies? Secondly, assuming that we are able to answer

the first question successfully, so as to be able to rank these alternatives on logically convincing grounds, what significance, if any, attaches to each of these ranked perspectives for analyses of Caribbean phenomena? Further, do these ranked perspectives have a constant relevance or meaning in all contexts, however different the phenomena or purposes of study?

These questions may perhaps raise some of the most profound issues for general social science theory to emerge from the field of Caribbean studies. Let us try to restate some of their implications simply and clearly. First, as noted above, we ask how defensible are the criteria by which the subject matter and approaches of the various social sciences have conventionally been distinguished. How necessary, useful or defensible are the contemporary divisions and boundaries of these social sciences, in terms of method as well as of substance? If we assume that the preceding questions are positively resolved to reaffirm the contemporary Western division, organization, approaches and orientations in social science from this brief review of contemporary social science approaches to the Carribean, we must then ask: by what criteria and procedures, can we rationally and convincingly demonstrate the objective analytic superiority and relations of either of these competing perspectives for the study of West Indian societies, and their respective usefulness for our understanding of the Caribbean and other societies ?

I shall try to formulate, separately, some of the many basic issues of social science theory and method which are inevitably taken together in the preceding questions. For example, some scholars assert, as a functional prerequisite, that no human society can be established or persist except on the basis of shared common values, and stratification. Theories of social pluralism normally deny that plural societies exhibit common values and frequently challenge the stratification postulate. To date, despite much ink, there has been no agreed criteria or method for resolving this contradiction except the evidence of history. Yet, in social theory, the confrontation of pluralists and consensualists is paralleled by the opposition of Marx and Engels on the one hand and Durkheim, Weber and Talcott Parsons on the other. H o w does social science resolve such direct and basic contradictions ? By what procedures, criteria, reasoning ? T o what ends ? For example, are the Davis-Moore ”functional theory of social stratification” and its later Parsonian elaborations, or antecedent which attempt to list the ”functional prerequisites of society” non- negotiable tenets of modern social science ? If so, why and how ? But if not, what do we have in their place ?

Secondly, how and by what criteria and procedures may we convincingly demonstrate the relative significance of economic, political, cultural and other factors in the structuring and development of these Caribbean societies? This confronts us with the issue of demonstrating the ”determination” of social events and structures by ”cau- sal” factors of differing kind. This question underlies the clash between Marxists, and a variety of non-Marxist theorists, about the foundation and evolution of social structures and affairs far beyond the limits of the Carib-

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bean. For example, at what level of significance as a decisive factor in the ”determination” of social action and social structure must we place the factors of racial, ethnic or religious difference ? O n what logically and empirically defensible grounds may this be done ? While theorists of a liberal or Marxist persuasion commonly derive racism from socio-economic conditions, others reverse these relationships. Setting aside all humanistic values, how can social science theory adequately embrace these opposed pespectives and objectively dissolve their conflict?

Yet another perspective which has recently subsumed these Caribbean societies emphasizes their progressive incorporation as peripheral regions, since the early sixteenth century, into the expanding world system of European capitalism. 12 As regards social science theory, the fundamental questions raised by such perspectives are twofold : namely, what are the appropriate units of study for intensive or comparative purposes, given this assertion of progressive incorporation in the capitalist world economy ? What are the real boundaries of these societies as systems, and how can we convincingly demonstrate them ? These are old and highly variable versions of a contemporary issue in social theory : namely, given recent trends towards a single global society, what other units may w e convincingly employ for analysis, and in what contexts, for what purposes ? Is it any longer appropriate for us to treat such analytic units as systems of any type ? More generally, using Caribbean data as our basis, we might surely ask for what purpose, when, and how is it presently appropriate for us to use ”societies” as units of sociological or ecoiomic analysis, given the present and increasing levels of interdependence and unity of human society across the globe ? When is it appropriate, under what conditions and by what criteria, for us to treat a given social field or unit as a discrete ”system” or unit of any type for analytic purposes ? Again, given the severe criticism and limited value of functional analyses in the study of Caribbean societies, what unifying theoretical schema may w e put in their place ? Marxism ? Hardly - except in its global forms as world system or dependency theory, both of which invite severe criticism, and both of which, to an older generation brought up on Lenin and Hobson, are more familiar as imperialism. 13

These questions of the appropriateness of societies as separate analytic units despite differences of size, composition, historical period, economy and political situation, implicitly raise the issue of criteria of comparability for analyses of societies or ”social formations” ; for if we adopt the global perspective as the only appropriate one, then, necessarily, no less a unit will seem sufficient or appropriate for study ; but it is of course patently absurd to analyse social processes of all kinds and levels only within a global framework of reference.

The English-speaking Caribbean includes a number of minuscule societies such as Carriacou, Bequia, Union, Providencia, San Andros, the Caymans, Turks and Caicos, for which these questions of boundary and in- tegrity are more obviously appropriate than to such moderate-sized units as Jamaica, Guyana or Barbados. However, if size and scale are criteria for independent

sociological study, then, given their great variability within this region, we must ask by what criteria and at what points such societies should be treated as subordinate sections of larger entities for purposes of analysis, and if so, entities of what kind ? This question of the appropriate framework for social science study corresponds closely to that already mentioned concerning the validity or invalidity of disciplinary divisions and approaches in social science itself, and the relevance of history and time-depth to most or all of these competing approaches to Caribbean study.

Let m e briefly list some other issues inherent in Caribbean studies that seem to raise fundamental questions for social science theory. (1) In the light of the historical demography of Carib-

bean societies, can social science appropriately maintain the present boundaries and relations of demography and sociology, and other disciplines ? Is it not already evident that some wider, more inclusive perspective is required to integrate and theorise the relations of population and society in this region and, accordingly, beyond it, in societies of similar and different type and situation ?

(2) Given the history and structure of Caribbean societies, what methodology and what theoretical framework are best fitted for the study of such units ? Could these quetions also raise fundamental theoretical issues for social science generally ? Surely Caribbean societies float in the no-man’s-land between conventional anthropology and sociology, with respect to method m d analytic models. Ever since their foundation, these Caribbean

societies, all created de novo by immigration from Europe, Africa and Asia, immigration which eliminated or suppressed the indigenous peoples of these areas, have undergone ceaseless change. Such change has had many modalities, variable rates, conditions, dimensions and levels, such as the economic, demographic, political, etc. It is normally unequal and uneven in its incidence and scope. So, given these conditions, how best then may social science study and analyze the development and structure of societies that are so continuously and variou- sly in process of change ? In what frameworks, by what methods, concepts and criteria ? For what purposes ? To test what hypotheses ? T o formulate what gener- alizations? And, given that other larger and stabler societies are likewise in the process of change, even though sometimes at slower rates and rather more stea- dily, by what combination of theory and method may we best grasp these phenomena, understand them and extract their significance ? Clearly the structural-functional method and rather stationary models of Parsonian theory are ill-suited to Caribbean realities and to many non- Caribbean societies as well ; perhaps increasingly to all. Yet, if these and their Marxist alternatives are excluded as inappropriate, what particular combinations of social science perspectives, methods and principales may best serve to encompass and penetrate these diverse Caribbean realities so as to unlock their hidden significance? It seems clear from all recent work in this region that if there is any set of superior perspectives, this will take history

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fully into account, and will be intrinsically multi- disciplinary in focus.

Finally, Caribbean studies confront social science theories with three challenging questions - namely, theory for what, for whom, and how ? The issue here turns on the application of social science to the practical affairs and interests of these societies. For many social scientists, fundamental theory eschews such practical application almost by definition. For others, and not only for

Marxists, social science theory without application or praxis is worthless and void. The Caribbean societies we have been discussing are acutely impoverished, unstable and at risk of collapse as the global economy plunges further and faster into chaos. Can there be any "fundamental theory" of social science or of such societies that rejects or eludes application ? Indeed, more generally: can we conceive a social science theory removed from praxis altogether?

REFERENCES

1. Charles Wagley

Pan American Union

Elena Padilla

George L. Beckford.

2. R. A. J. van Lier.

3, 9,

M . G. Smith

H. Hoetink

Philip D. Curtin

Leo A. Despres (ed) 9, 9,

David Lowenthal Colin G. Clarke

3. M. J. Herskovits M . G. Smith, G. E. Simpson and Peter B. Hammond George E. Simpson

9, 9,

Morton Klass

Arthur Niehoff & Juanita Niehoff Daniel Crowley

Barton M. Schwartz (ed)

Plantation America : A Culture Sphere. In Vera Rubin (ed), Caribbean Studies : A Symposium. Kingston, Jamaica, Institute of Social & Economic Research, 1957, pp 3- 13. Plantation Systems of the N e w World. Washington D.C., Social Science Monographs, VII, 1959. Peasants, plantations and pluralism. In Vera Rubin (ed) Social and Cultural Pluralism in the Caribbean, Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, vol. 83, art 5, 1960,

Persistent Poverty : Underdevelopment in Plantation Economies of the Third World. N e w York, Oxford University Press, 1972. The Development & Nature of Society in the West Indies. Amsterdam, Koninklijke Vereenigeng Indisch Instituut, 1950. Frontier Society. The Hague, Martinus Nijhoff, 1971. The Plural SocieQ in the British West Indies. Berkeley & Los Angeles, University of California Press, 1965. Some Developments in the Analytic Framework-of Pluralism. In Leo Kuper & M. G. Smith (eds), Pluralism in Africa. Berkeley & Los Angeles, University of California Press, 1969, pp 415-458. The Two Variants in Caribbean Race Relations : A Contribution to the Sociology of Segmented Societies. London, Oxford U. Press, 1969. T w o Jamaicas, 1830-1865: The Role of Ideas in a Tropical Colony. Cambridge, Mass. : Harvard U. Press, 1955. Ethnicity & Resource Competition in Plural Societies. The Hague, Mouton, 1978. Cultural Pluralism & Nationalist Politics in British Guiana. Chicago, Rand McNally, 1967. West Indian Societies. London, Oxford University Press, 1972. Kingston, Jamaica: Urban Growth & Social Change, 1692-1962. Berkeley & L o s Angeles, U. of California Press, 1975. The Myth of the Negro Past. New York, Harper & Bros., 1941. The African Heritage in the Caribbean - and Discussion. In Vera Rubin (ed) Caribbean Studies: A Symposium, op. cit., 1957, pp 34-53.

pp 837-842.

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I Jamaican Revivalist Cults. Social & Economic Studies, 1956, voll. 5! The Shango Cult in Trinidad. Rio Piedras. Caribbean Monograph Series, no. 2, 1965. (Institute of Caribbean Studies). East Indians in Trinidad : A Study in Cultural Persistence. N e w York, Columbia Un- iversity Press, 1961. East Indians in the West Indies. Milwaukee Public Museum, Publications in Anthropology, no. 6, 1960. Cultural Assimilation in a Multiracial Society. In Vera Rubin (ed) So4ial& Cultural Pluralism in the Caribbean, op. cit., pp. 850-854. Caste in Overseas Indian Communities. San Francisco, Chandler Publishing Co., 1967, pp 43-212.

4. Lloyd Braithwaite

,, 7,

Raymond T. Smith

9, 9,

Leo A. Despres, 5. Eric Williams &

Frank Tannenbaum Eric Williams

H. Hoetink David Lowenthal

M. G. Smith

6. Richard Hart

Lowell Joseph Ragatz

Douglas Hall

Eric Williams Richard Sheridan

Norman Girvan

Norman Girvan & Owen Jefferson

7. Morley Ayearst

Wendell Bell (ed)

A. W. Singham Trevor Munroe

Trevor Munroe & Rupert Lewis (eds) Leo A. Despres Carl Stone

Carl Stone & Aggrey Brown (eds)

8. Morton Klass A. & J. Niehoff Morton Fried

Andrew Lind

Social Stratification in Trinidad. Social & Economic Studies, vol. 2, nos. 2 & 3, 1952,

Social Stratification & Cultural Pluralism, In Vera Rubin (ed) Social & Cultural Plur- alism in the Caribbean, op. cit., 1960, 816-836. Social Stratification In the Caribbean. In Leonard Plotnicov & Arthur Tuden (eds) Essays in Comparative Social Strattfication. Pittsburgh, U. of Pittsburgh Press, 1970,

Social Stratification, Cultural Pluralism & Integration in West Indian Societies. In S. Lewis & T. G. Mathews (eds), Caribbean Integration : Papers on social, political and economic integration. Proceeding of the Third Caribbean Scholars’ Conference, Rio Piedras, Institute of Caribbean Studies, 1967. British Guiana. London, Oxford University Press, 1962. 1967 op. cit., pp 17-20. Race Relations in Caribbean Society. in Vera Rubin (ed) 1957 op. cit., pp 54-66.

pp 3-175.

pp 43-76.

The Negro in the Caribbean. Washington D. C., Associates in Negro Folk Education, 1942. 1967 op. cit. Race & Color in the West Indies. New York, Daedalus. vol. 96, no. 2, 1967, pp 580- 626. Race & Stratification in the Caribbean. In M. G. Smith, Corporations and Society. London, Duckworth & Co. 1974, pp 271-346. The Origin & Development of the People of Jamaica. Montreal, International Carib- bean Service Bureau, 1974. The Fall of the Planter Class in the British Caribbean, 1763-1833 : A Study in Social & Economic History. New York, Octagon Books, 1963 Free Jamaica, 1838-1865 : A n Economic History. New Haven : Yale University Press, 1959. Capitalism & Slavery. Chapel Hill, U. of N. Carolina Press, 1944. Sugar & Shvev: A n Economic History of the British West Indies, 1623-1775. Barbados, Caribbean Universities Press, 1974. Foreign Capital & Economic Underdevelopmetn in Jamaica. Kingston Jamaica, In- stitute of Social & Economic Research, 1973. Readings in the Political Economy of the Caribbean. Mona, Jamaica, New World Group, 1971. The British West Indies : The Search for Sev-Government. London, Allen & Unwin, 1960. The Democratic Revolution in the West Indies. Cambridge, Mass., Schenkman Publishing Co., 1967. The Hero & the Crowd in a Colonial Polity. New Haven, Yale University Press, 1968. The Politics of Constitutional Decolonization : Jamaica 1944-1962. Kingston, Jamaica, Institute of Social & Economic Reserach, 1972. Readings in Government & Politics of the West Indies. Mona, Jamaica, Dept. of Government, University of the West Indies, 1971. 1967 op.cit. Class, Race & Political Behaviour in Urban Jamaica. Mona, Jamaica, Institute of Social & Economic Research, 1972. Electoral Behaviour & Public Opinion in Jamaica. Mona, Jamaica, Institute of Social & Economic Research, 1974. Essays on Power & Change in Jamaica. Mona, Jamaica ; Extra-Mural Department, University of the West Indies, 1976. cf. R. A. J. van Lier, 1950 op. cit.; 1971 op. cit.;

Leo A. Despres, 1967 op. cit. ; H. Hoetink, 1967 op. cit. ; M. G. Smith, 1965 op. cit. ; 1969 op. cit.

1961 op. cit. 1960 op. cit. Some Observations on the Chinese in British Guiana. Social & Economic Studies,

Adjustment Patterns among Jamaican Chinese. Social & Economic Studies, 1958, vol. 1956, vol. 5, pp 54-73.

7, pp 144-164.

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S. W. de Groot A. de Waal Malefijt P. Kloos M. J. Herskovits & F. S. Herskovits Edward Braithwaite

F. G. Cassidy 10. George L. Beckford

Norman Girvan Norman Girvan & Owen Jefferson Andre Gundar Frank

11. Lloyd Braithwaite Raymond T. Smith

I, 9,

12. cf. Immanuel Wallerstein Daniel Chirot W. Arthur Lewis

13. V. I. Lenin

J. A. Hobson

Djuka Society & Social Change. Assen, van Gorcum, 1969. The Javanese of Surinam : Segment of a Plural Society. Assen, van Gorcum, 1963. The Maroni River Caribs of Surinam. Assen, van Gorcum, 1970. Rebel Destiny : A m o n g the Bush Negroes of Dutch Guyana. N.Y. 1934.

The Development of Creole Society in Jamaica, 1770-1820. London, Clarendon Press, 1971. Jamaica Talk. London, Macmillan & Co., 1961 1972, op. cit. 1973 op. cit. 1971 op. cit.

Latin America : Underdevelopment or Revolution. New York, Monthly Review Press, 1969. 3ocial Stratification in Trinidad (1952 op. cit.) The Negro Family in British Guiana. London, Routledge & Kegan Paul, 1956. 1962 op. cit. The Capitalist World-Economy. London, Cambridge U. Press, 1979

Social Change in the Twentieth Century. New York, Harcourt Brace, 1977. . The Evolution of the International Economic Order. Princeton, N.J. Princeton Univer- sity Press, 1978. Imperialism, the Highest Stage of Capitalism. N. Y., International Publishers, (1916) 1939. Imperialism: A Study. London, Allen & Unwin (1902) 1948.

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NEW PERSPECTIVES IN THE LINKS BETWEEN THE SOCIAL SCIENCES, HISTORY AND CULTURAL STUDIES :

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Notes on some closures and openings ... I Stuart Hall I

The arkument of this paper can be summarized as follows/: (1) There is a crisis in Western social science. Its great

paradigms have lost their generative impetus. Though institutionally alive and well, its normal practice has begun to fragment. The ”mainstream synthesis” is disintegrating. This is not merely an intellectual phenomenon, but part of a wider set of transformations. This constitutes the ”closure” of m y sub-title.

(2) N o new synthesis has emerged to take its place. There is a general sense of chaos - a hundred and one theoretical flowers bloom. Nevertheless, there are also some emergent, openings - new problematics ; reformulation of old problems within the disciplines ; the possibilities of new connections with other disciplines. These could have a strategic significance for the social sciences. I try, selectively, to indicate some.

(3) I report on this state of play against the background of m y own work in postgraduate training and research in the United Kingdom in an interdisciplinary area of the social sciences. The report is therefore contextually specific and highly ethnocentric. I do not offer this experience as a model but as a point of reference, perhaps of heuristic value for developments in the region.

(4) Nevertheless, there are some very good reasons why the social sciences in the region cannot insulate themselves from this disintegration of the ”mainstream”, and some even better reasons why they should not attempt to do so. They might, indeed, be extremely well placed to profit from them. They should be organized in such a way as to do so. The ”closure” coincides with a shift in the index of

dominance away from the synthesis which mainstream American social science first established in the 1940s and then powerfully exported on a world scale in the 1950s and 1960s. It was deeply influential on the whole pattern of social science development in the ”First” and ”Third” worlds. At its centre is the collapse of the explanatory paradigms which supported the great theoretical synthesis around the themes and concepts of the varieties of structural functionalism and ”pluralism”. These paradigms have not lost their coherence for purely intellectual and theoretical reasons. Their dominance had

ideological and political conditions of existence which no longer pertain. Essentially, they have broken down face to face with historical and contemporary social realities which they could not adequately explain. For a time this synthesis was virtually synonymous with ”The Social Sciences” as such. They thoroughly recast the whole field. For example, the rich ”classical” European sociological tradition was largely reconstructed under its ”functionalist” theorization. (Consider the brilliant but brutally limiting manner in which Weber and, especially, Durkheim were expropriated, and Marx marginalized, and then absorbed in that massive work of intellectual colonization - Parsons’ Structure of Social Action.) The split was enforced between its ”philosophical” and ”empirical” wings. Problems of class formation, historical process and structural conflict were written out ; normative integration and moving equilibria took their place. So far as European sociology was concerned, this was true intellectual ”dependency”. Similarly, the social sciences in the Caribbean were integrated into this mainstream, though from another direction. Despite the rich theoretical contrihutions made to the modification and rectification of the functionalist paradigm - that is ”plural society theories” - normal practice in the region has continued to show the marks of a ”dependent develop- men t”.

The construction, institutionalization and disintegration of this synthesis is of the first importance for the social sciences. It affects the way in which the history of the discipline - the foundation of graduate teaching and research - is taught. It also poses theoretical problems concerning the ”unity” of the social sciences and the nature of their ”scientificity”. ”Theory” cannot be taught without the conditions of existence of theoretical paradigms being themselves ”theorized”. The self- presentation of social science as a ”unified field of knowledge” looks, against this particular history, increasingly like a public relations exercise. In fact, the dominant paradigms articulated the social science, as a function of their conceptual structure and ideological presuppositions, into its existing regional specialisms, established and institutionalized the existing limits and thresholds and defined its relations of neighbourliness and exclusion. They constituted the social sciences as a specific intellectual formation or discursive field. These

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dispositions are not inherent in the subject matter of social science but in the way mainstream social science con- structed its objects of knowledge and practice. They will certainly not survive its disintegration.

”Scientificity”, like ”unity”, sometimes seems a little like whistling in the dark. The social sciences have not been able to define themselves exclusively at the level of logical or conceptual coherence. Their functioning - including the essential activity of theorization - depends on specific historical and contextual conditions. These theories have never been free of ideological and evaluative elements. Theoretical coherence and objective knowledge are matters of the utmost importance. But the ”scientific neutrality” of the social sciences is an administrative - technical fiction. In the conditions of economic austerity, persistent social divisions, deepening political antagonisms and major reversals in the global disposition of power, the synthesis looks less unified, less scientific, less neutral, more historically relative and more ideologically inflected. Above all, deeply provincial.

The contrast in the Caribbean case with historical studies is pertinent. Caribbean historical research also drew on external traditions, but it quickly put down indigenous roots in the rich historical background of the region. The social sciences by and large, do not appear to have made a corresponding development. Historical research provided an intellectual matrix in which the relations of the Caribbean to other ”histories” and to world historical development could be reconstructed and redefined. In the bridge it provided between specialized research and popular consciousness and memory, history has served a wider intellectual function - it has been something of a theoretical organizer. The social sciences have only fitfully played this role. Their tendency has been more to assimilate the rich social realities of the region to models and concepts forged elsewhere. Their development has been less organic.

One significant ”opening” is the renewal of the historical dimension. This is less a matter of contracting new relations between social science and historical studies, more a question of the internal recovery in social science of its proper historical basis. Narrative and typological frameworks are beginning to be rethought in terms of greater historical specificity, historical process, and questions of periodization. This is occurring at a moment when both European (feudalism/capitalism) models of transition and development have lost their absolutist ”classical” status.

This has made possible the construction of new comparative historical frameworks, with connections which cut through and across the old given historical alignments. Problems of transition, of the peasantry, of city/countryside, of centre and periphery of the articula- tion of modes of production within the same social functions, regroup their materials and instances within frameworks which establish new and illuminating cross- comparisons and contrasts. At the same time, the giving of real content to the concept of ”uneven development” permits the conceptualization of these comparisons as parts of a real, historically - differentiated and periodized ”world historical” development. This undercuts assimila-

tion of these real historical differences to either a prescribed ”classical model” or to the collapsed prospectives of ”modernization” or ”acculturation”. In- creasingly, the objects of sociology, economics and political science are understood as complex historical- social formations and the systems of historical relations between them.

A second emergent ”break” is that within political science. I cannot disguise the fact that I consider much of what has passed for ”political science” in recent years as a caricature of scientific activity. (The absence of a proper theory of the state, in liberal-pluralist political science is little short of scandalous). Without developing this further, recent work on political regions, on regional theories of ”the political” in relation to economic factors, above all work on the types and functioning of the state (including pre-capitalist, ”exceptional” and post-colonial forms) represent a significant break-through.

Undoubtedly, part of the weakness of political theory can be laid at the door of the marked atrophy which overtook the analysis of social structures and class formations. Against bi-polar simplifications, stratification theory represented a real advance. But it has often degen- erated in turn into a technical exercise, far removed from the real complexities of social structure and relations in both developed, developing and under-developed social formations. Against this background, the new analysis of class formations, of internal strata and fractioning, of emergent social categories, and the complex relationship betwen the economic and political constituents of the social division of labour, constitute a positive resumption of the classical social scientific tradition on more advanced and sophisticated conceptual ground.

The absence of an adequate theory of class formations within sociology, and of an adequate theory of the state in political science was matched by the absence of a theory of ideology in the cultural sciences. Culture was indeed ascribed a pivotal integrating and normative place, often - in an idealist reprise - making social structures virtually synonymous with their normative order. But culture itself remained an empty space. This closure too has been broken. There is a remarkable development in the analysis of ideological formations, apparatuses and processes, and theories of the organizing effects of ideologies which go well beyond the normative, on the one hand, or ascriptions of ”false consciousness” on the other. Similarly, work is developing on the structures, traditions, lived practices and formations of culture. The practical functioning, material basis and effectivity of ideological formations and cultural traditions is at the centre of the new interdisciplinary area of cultural studies, drawing into the orbit of ’social science disciplinary regions hitherto occupying a largely marginal role - e. g. linguistics. This development, in a region where race, culture and religion have played so central a role, does not need to be stressed further.

In the European context, many of the emergent developments which I have briefly indicated have begun to establish themselves within the social sciences in the form of a revival of Marxist theory and research. There are complex reasons behind this unexpected ”recovery” of

1 1

what most Western social scientists until recently regarded as an obsolete ”philosophy of the world”, which cannot be entered into here. There is still a tendency among Caribbean social scientists to contrast - whether for good or ill - ”Social Science” and ’Marxism” - the latter being conceived as essentially the old ”political economy” (a misnomer if ever there was one, but one used equally as a term of abuse and as a badge of ”correct thinking”). In fact, in terms of developing theory and an active and expanding research programme, that fixed and dogmatic Marxism is indeed ”dead” and long deserved to be so, even if its theoretical traces are still around among other conceptual husks, and weigh like a nightmare on the brains of the living, as Engels promised they would.

But the varieties of ”Marxism” which have arisen in their place are of an altogether different construct (set of constructs is more accurate, given its great internal varia- tion). Increasingly they are setting the agenda of problems and issues which ”social science” is obliged to address. These are theoretically rich, conceptually sophisticated and epistemologically rigorous. They work, of course, within the theoretical limits and approaches of classic materialist theory. But in this respect they seem less different in their impurity than other social science alternatives. The important difference from older versions lies in their rejection of a dogmatic prescription of premises, and their resumption of an ”open” and critical path of development and they are critical, of both the economistic

or historicist - reductive varieties. They have contracted fruitful relations with advances in other branches of knowledge - e. g. historical research, linguistics, structural theory. They have opened up the much- neglected ”regional study” of politics and the state. They have made a useful return to some aspects of advanced class formations. They have questioned the old transitive or ”expressive” relations between the economic, political and ideological levels of social formations, and the pivotal importance of ”uneveness”. And they have begun to make some headway in the virtually unknown territory of cultural and ideological ”superstructures” in relation to ”hegemony”.

These advances certainly do not provide a synthesis or form a single integrated approach - there is much internal divesity and much contentious argument and debate. But the fact is that, in every significant ”opening” in the places where the old synthesis has been forced to yield to new theoretical developments, it is increasingly some var- iant or other of the Marxist research programme which is giving them theoretical support. This is not posed as a prescription, but because the erosion of the mainstream social science approach and empirical problem-areas must be of concern to the future planning and organization of postgraduate training and research in the region, if the old gaps and dependencies are not to be reproduced anew.

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PROBLEMS OF INTER-DISCIPLINARY RESEARCH IN THE SOCIAL SCIENCES IN THE CARIBBEAN

Basil A. Ince

The development of Social Sciences at the University of the West Indies

In order to gain some insight into the problems of inter- disciplinary research in the social sciences in the Carib- bean, we propose to examine the development of the social sciences at the University of the West Indies, the historical development of the social sciences in general, the need for inter-disciplinarity and, finally, the problems confronting inter-disciplinary research.

It will be recalled that when the University first came into existence it was a College of London University and was called the University College of the West Indies. The result was that social sciences at the College were modelled after the British fashion. In fact, it was not until 1960-61 that the Faculty of Social Sciences was established. As late as 1952-53, no social science subject was included in the B. A. Degree granted by the Faculty of Arts. Some years were to pass before Economics was to be included in the B. A. Degree in the Faculty of Arts.

When the Faculty of Social Sciences was created in 1960, Economics, Government and Sociology were the subjects offered for the B. Sc. (Econ.) Degree. In addition, a Diploma in Public Administration was also offered. As time passed, the subjects that were the core of the Faculty of Social Sciences found themselves under more specialized categories. A Department of Economics appeared, while Government and Sociology remained another Department, only to split finally on the St. Augustine Campus in 1973. From the humble beginnings of three disciplines being offered in the Faculty of Social Sciences in 1960-61, the Faculty of Social Sciences Offers degrees in no less than ten areas, namely, Accounting, Economics, Government, Sociology, International Relations, Public Administration, Social Administration, Social Sciences, Social Work and Management Studies.

Several conclusions can be drawn from this brief resume of the Social Sciences at the University of the West Indies : (1) That the Faculty of Social Sciences was established

(2) That in the early years the three Social Sciences

(3) That as time progressed, separate Departments

late in comparison with other Faculties ;

taught were taught in one Department ;

emerged in the Social Sciences. In short, the trend in the Social Sciences at the Un-

iversity of the West Indies was towards specialization, as in many Faculties of Social Sciences in universities throughout the world. T w o factors should be mentioned, however, that would negate the impression that the inter- disciplinary approach to the social sciences was furthest from the mind of the University. The first is that students were permitted to take other social science options outside of their area of specialization and, secondly, the Institute of Social and Economic Research employed researchers in various disciplines of the social sciences. This latter fact obtained even when a Faculty of Social Sciences was non-existent.

It is well known that the notion of a social science emerged from social philosophy and that the first specialist social sciences appeared in the eighteenth century in the forms of political economy, demography and the sociology and philosophy of history. Almost at the outset there appeared this tendency towards the splitting up of the social sciences and the quest for the preservation of the social science as an integrated unit, which still persists today.

The emergence of Marxism was a step in this direction, since it was the first complete system, the first cosmogony explaining all social phenomena. Duverger has added ”One can also argue that as no other cosmogony has succeeded in replacing Marxism, no other system developed since has been as complete and no other has had an audience beyond a small group of specialists”. 1 The unity of the social sciences is guaranteed by the specialists’ acceptance of the Marxist cosmogony, by their belief in the same basic philosophy. It is precisely because of the lack of an accepted cosmogony in Western countries that there has been considerable difficulty in achieving the unity of the sciences.

Auguste Compte, regarded as the founder of sociology, fully supported the unity of the social sciences since he believed that ”social phenomena are fun- damentally connected with one another”. Despite the strivings of men like Marx and Compte, the social

1. Maurice Duverger. Introduction to the Social Sciences, London : George Allen & Unwin, 1964, p. 5.

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.

sciences have splintered into many disciplines, among them, Ethnograpy, Social Psychology, Anthropology, Economics, Demography, Ecology, Linguistics, Sociology of Law, Political Science, etc. Three reasons may be adduced for this state of affairs. First there is the complexity of social facts and the diversity of techniques employed for observing them. This complexity induces specialization since no one sociologist can take in the whole of social reality unless by second-hand, relying on the results of specialist researchers. Even in Marxist -countries, where a cosmogony serves as a unifying force for the social sciences, there has been a certain amount of specialization and it is possible to find there economists, sociologists, etc. Secondly, reference has already been made to an accepted cosmogony in the case of the Soviet Union and the Socialist countries and its absence in Western countries. Since there is no global theory of the social sciences in Western countries, social scientists are forced to construct partial theories within the framework of each discipline.

Finally, the universities have assisted in the business of specialization in the social sciences and, consequently, their division by departmentalizing them. Specialists are trained wifhin departments and are permitted minimal time to be exposed to the other disciplines in other departments.

This encapsulation of the history of the social sciences demonstrates that social scientists have always been concerned with the unification of the various disciplines, but a variety of factors militated against such unification. This encapsulation has also demonstrated that what has happened in the history of the social sciences has also occurred on a micro level in the University of the West Indies. At the University, we have noted that when the Faculty of Social Sciences came into existence, all courses were taught under that rubric without there being a departmental structure. As time progressed, there was fusion within the Faculty resulting in the birth of separate departments. The University of the West Indies, like universities throughout the world, was responding to the pressures of specialization. It could not be otherwise when it is recalled that the University began as a College of London University and continued to pattern itself for quite some time along the lines of London University. It was dificult for the University in the periphery to resist what the University in the metropolis had been unable to avoid. In addition the reasons that we have advanced as leading to the growth of specialization of the social sciences in the Western world are equally applicable to a university in a new State.

The title of the paper suggests that inter- disciplinarity should be the norm in the social sciences. This is the case, and indeed, at a conference on Methodology and Change which examined the problems of Applied Social Science Research Techniques in the Commonwealth Caribbean, one conclusion that had un- animous acceptance was ”that in the context of Caribbean Social Science, research had to be both inter-disciplinary in scope and thrust.”’ The thinking that led to this conclusion ran thus : ”Hard and fast distinctions between Sociology, Political Science, Economics and their

respective sub-disciplines might constitute convenient points of departure for the division of intellectual labour. But it does not follow, nor is it true, that the individual citizen breaks his life into little segments which corres- pond to the ”tribal” boundaries of those who earn their living from studying the ways in which other people behave”. 21t is possible to study a social system or social phenomena from the viewpoint of one discipline, but such a study would be incomplete because social systems or phenomena, to be well understood, should be subject to inter-disciplinary analysis since a variety of factors have an effect upon them. As Wallerstein has observed ”When one studies a social system, the classical lines of division within Social Science are meaningless”. 3

W e have assured ourselves that the inter-disciplinary approach is desirable in the study of social phenomena. But what do we mean by inter-disciplinary ? According to Gusdorf, ”the expression ”inter-disciplinarity” figures on the agenda of contemporary intellectual life. Un- fortunately, it is an ill-defined notion and sometimes more like a slogan to be made use of in season and out of season in the ideological debate”. 4 To Gusdorf, inter- disciplinarity conjures up a ”different image of space. It is not merely a question of juxtaposing but rather of pooling knowledge. Interest focusses on the borders and in- terections between disciplines ; on knowledge of, or knowledge at the limits, which establishes a common ownership between the various occupants of mental space an creates the possibility of a dialogue between them”. 5 Carl Stone’s definition is not as extensive, but similar. H e defines inter-disciplinary in the context of comparison with multi-disciplinary, the former as ”crystallizing a number of perspectives that integrate a variety of disciplines”, while the latter tries ”to bring together a variety of convergent interpretations and theories from parallel disciplines”. Whatever inter-disciplinary may mean, it does not mean a ”layer-cake” approach to the study of the social sciences. It is what emerges from a well-integrated number df the Social Science disciplines. What is aimed at in inter-disciplinarity is more practical knowledge than the pursuit of ”pure” science. It represents the integration of knowledge, an element that has become a part of the power structure. It is to be utilized for the solution of problems by decision-makers. According to Mohammed Sinaceur, it is to be governed by ”pragmatic ends which determine the way the phenomena to be studied are cut up ; this is the way these phenomena are transformed into the required objectiva- tion, that is to say, their ”scientific” presentation”.

1.

2. 3.

4.

5. 6. 7. 8.

Louis Lindsay, (ed.), Methodology and Change : Problems of Applied Social Science Research Technique in the Commonwealth Caribbean, Mona : ISER, 1978, p. iv. Ibid. Immanuel Wallerstein, The Modern World System, N e w York : Academic Press, 1967, p. 11. Georges Gusdorf, ”Past, Present and Future in Interdisciplinary Research,” International Social Sciences Journal (vol. X X I X No 4) 1977, p. 588. Ibid. Carl Stone, ’’Issues in Social Science Research”, in Lindsay op. cit., p. 2. Ibid. Mohammed Attal Sinaceur, ”What is Interdisciplinary”, International Social Science Journal (vol. X X I X No. 4) 2971, p. 576

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Sinaceur cites operational research as a field in which a model type of inter-disciplinary practice has emerged. The virtues of this inter-disciplinary approach for decision- makers in the Third World, where there are a number of problems to be solved, can be readily appreciated. Johan Galtung substantiates this view by seeing’’ ... a particular need for a coherent presentation of the whole field” 2 in developing countries.

There are a number of difficulties involved in adopting an inter-disciplinary approach to the social sciences. In a sense, we have already treated most of these difficulties above. The historical connection weighs heavily on the development of social sciences in this region because Western social science has been, by and large, uni-disciplinary in approach and this approach was transmitted from the universities in the metropolis to the branch universities in the periphery. The departmentaliza- tion of the Social Sciences in British universities found its way into the University of the West Indies. Finally, the Social Sciences at the University of the West Indies have been affected, like their counterparts in Western universities, by the absence of an accepted cosmogony. But, in addition to this historical baggage, there are also other practical difficulties. For example, to produce social scientists employing an inter-disciplinary approach means that individuals should be trained in Economics, Sociology, Linguistics, Political Science, Anthropology, etc. The traditional time limit for a degree makes it difficult for the student to cover all the areas. If it were to become acceptable to cover these areas in the normal time, this could probably only be done superficially. In addition, who is to teach the students? Many of the teaching faculty are products of the uni-disciplinary approach from metropolitan universities. Yet there are those who have been exposed to more than one of the Social Science disciplines. It is not known exactly how the teaching of students would work, but it is not unusual for sociologists to point out that political scientists who use

sociology in their research are writing bad sociology. T o lengthen the time required for an inter-disciplinary degree would compound the financial problem faced by most students wishingto pursue graduate work at the University of the West Indies. In addition, the University would not wish to offer a watered-down inter-disciplinary Social Sciences degree. The question of re-training faculty begs the issue of the shortage of financial resources confronting the University of the West Indies.

In the face of these historical and practical difficulties. the climb to inter-disciplinarity is an uphill one. W e cannot state that the University of the West In- dies had opted out of this climb. The Institute of Social and Economic Research has for years brought together a number of academics on its staff who are trained in various disciplines of the Social Sciences. The holding of the Conference on Methodology and Change, which examined the problems of Applied Social Science Research in the region, is evidence itself of the recognition by social scientists in the region of the advantages of the inter- disciplinary approach. The Institute of International Relations is another segment of the University which brings together scholars from the disciplines of History, Economics, L a w and Political Science. Even if there is not a truly integrated inter-disciplinary approach in teaching, students are at least exposed to the layer-cake approach and cannot depart without making the connection between the separate disciplines. It is important both for teachers and students to focus on the inter-disciplinary approach in the Social Sciences in the Caribbean because the knowledge gained could be of asdistance to policy- makers in government. And of what good is a university if it cannot contribute to the solution of problems in its environment ? ,

2. Johan Galtung, Theory and Methods of Social Aesearch, London : George Allen and Unwin, 1967, p. 2.

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SOCIAL SCIENCE RESEARCH AND GOVERNMENT PLANNING :

Some notes by Jack Harewood

I have been asked to write a few words on ”Social Science Research and Government Planning”. First of all we must agree what I a m to deal with. What is meant by ”Govern- ment Planning” ? Are we concerned only with formal planning such as is done in the various Planning Units in Government - (Economic Planning Unit, Education Plan- ning Unit, Manpower Planning Unit) - or are we rather interested in all Government ”decision-making” ?

And what is meant by ”social science research” ? Again, is our interest limited to formal research, and more particularly academic - often theory-related-research, or more generally, any work by social scientists within their subject specialization, as an imput to Government decision making ?

For the present discussion I shall assume that in each case we are interested in the broader area.

A great deal of social science research is, of course done within Government service, that is within the different Planning Units such as those mentioned above, in various ministries, the departments of statistics, the Central Banks and so on. This research is almots entirely problem-oriented, usually concerned with obtaining immediate solutions for immediate problems. A number of eminent social scientists of the Region have been involved in research related to Government planning while they have been employed within the Planning Units. Arthur Browne of Jamaica and Wiliam Demas of Trinidad are two well-known examples.

In addition, Governments of the Region have, from time to time, commissioned social scientists from outside the country to undertake special assignments. For example, Arthur Lewis and Teodore Moscoso were invited to assist with the preparation of Trinidad and Tobago’s first five-year development plan in the mid-1950s and very recently M . G. Smith has been involved as special adviser to ‘the Government of Jamaica.

Locally-based social scientists, usually those attached to the various university campuses, have been commissioned to assist in some aspect of government planning or decision-making. These have been included on various ”task forces”, commissions of enquiry etc.

The Universites and other national organizations in the various countries have from time to time been involved in special studies at the request and expense of the Governments. For example, the Institute of Social and

Economic Research in Trinidad has undertaken fertility and KAP studies of females and of males at the Government’s request, and the ISER in Jamaica has been involved in the evaluation of sites for Low-income housing and in the evaluation of the National Family Planning Programme. Regional bodies, such as the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), the East Caribbean C o m m o n Monbret (ECCM), the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) and foreign and international organizations - the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) and others - have also been involved in social science research in various countries in the Region, their research being relevant to the planning and decision-making of the Government concerned.

Much of the academic research done in Universities in the Region is irrelevant for Government planning while, of course, being totally legitimate and necessary. But to the extent that ”relevant” and ”irrelevant” research are published together (perhaps in some ”learned” journal), the relevant research may not be forcibly brought to the attention of Government planners and decision-makers. It may be necessary to take special steps to separate and highlight for the benefit of such persons, the results of research that would be of interest to them as government officials. The ISER in Trinidad has attempted this to some extent by separating its O C C A S I O N A L PAPERS into two series of which one, the H u m a n Resources series, is likely to be of greater interest to Government planners.

One problem that occurs in most, if not all, of the countries of the Region, is that some social scientists and some social science research are evidently ”hostile” to the Government in power. Such research, however relevant, is unlikely to be either offered by the social scientists to the Government, or accepted by the Governments if offered.

A considerable amount of important and ”relevant” research can be done on statistics available in Govern- ment departments. It is well known that in most countries the central statistical organization utilizes most of its available resources in the collection of statistics and in providing some simple tables, but is unable to become involved in any serious analysis or research of the data collected. There is however, a problem of ”confidentiality” which makes it difficult for ”outsiders” to have access to the data other than in the form of the published tables. It is important that efforts be made to

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overcome this problem, perhaps by outside social scientists taking the necessary oath of secrecy with respect to a particular project. This, of course, could only be practicable in a situation of trust and good will on both sides.

Even when a topic of research is relevant, there is the problem that the language (jargon ?) in which the research is written up, as well as the advanced research techniques used, may result in it being considered as ”irrelevant” to the two groups of persons in Government concerned with decision-making - senior civil servants and political policy makers (ministers). It may well be that there is need for communication specialists who can interpret the research and organize the conclusions and recommendations in such a way that they are most meaningful for the decision-makers.

With reference to the possibility of outsiders undertaking analysis of data in central statistical departments, this points to the usefulness and advisability of these outside social scientists being involved, perhaps on advisory committees, in the planning of the projects of data collection. In such a case, there may be useful additions to or modifications of the data to be collected, as well as special attention to concepts and definitions which could make the statistics more useful and relevant for all concerned. There have been a number of instances where social scientists have been invited by the statistical agencies to participate in this way. The practice should be extended.

I would like to end with a few comments on an attempt by the ISER in Trinidad, to institute a programme of research into the human resources problems of the Re- gion as imput into data for policy-making and planning on the part of the regional Governments. The ISER decided that all members of its staff would make an input each year into this H u m a n Resources Research Programme in addition to any other research in which they might be involved, and that this should be treated as the Institute’s principal programme for the time being.

A conference was held with university social scientists from the three campuses of UWI as well as from UG attending, in addition to senior government officials, mainly from Trinidad & Tobago (the conference was held at St. Augustine). A comprehensive research and training

programme was drawn up, following this conference,‘ and the over-all programme was sent to a number of likely national and international agencies with a view to winning financial support to undertake special projects and employ additional research staff for this research programme. Among the foreign and international bodies which at one time or another have expressed interest are : UNFPA, USAID, and IDRC. However, none of them eventually agreed to give any assistance, nor has any assistance been received from any non-Government bodies.

O n the other hand, the Government of Trinidad and Tobago has met the cost of a study of the need for high- level manpower and the implications of this for education and training programmes. Also, at the request of the Trinidad and Tobago Government, a special study has been done within this programme on the future need for veterinary surgeons, in relation to the proposal to set up a veterinary school at the St. Augustine campus of U W I . The Trinidad and Tobago Government has also agreed to meet the cost of the printing of the special HUMAN RESOURCES. series within the Institute’s OCCA- SIONAL PAPERS J O U R N A L .

Within this Human Resources research and training programme, the ISER (St. Augustine) has also assisted the Government of Guyana, through its Department of Statistics, in the planning and carrying out of two labour force surveys in 1977 and 1978. Unfortunately, because of problems with computer data processing, the Statistical Department has not yet completed reports of these two surveys. The ISER is trying to obtain appropriate computer tabulations from these surveys for some special studies.

This last point emphasizes a special problem for empirical research based on survey data in the Region - the difficulty of obtaining satisfactory and timely computer tabulations. It is to be hoped that soon it will be possible for the Institute to have access to a computer in the Region, preferably in Trinidad, which can take SPSS or some other suitable package programme, so that timely computer tabulations can be obtained without dependence on programmers who are extremely scarce and over- involved in other major programmes of work.

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POST-GRADUATE TRAINING IN THE SOCIAL SCIENCES IN THE ENGLISH-SPEAKING CARIBBEAN : AN OVERVIEW

by Acton Camejo Ph. D

The social sciences as a whole, Professor Lloyd Braithwaite observed, 1 were late in their development in the British West Indies presently referred to as the English-speaking Caribbean. In this connection, he was concerned to note that although this developing area was one which was desperately in need of the social sciences, it was highly doubtful whether the society as a whole was sufficiently aware of its needs or of the disciplines concerned and in what way, if any, these disciplines could contribute in this regard.

More than twenty years after this comment by Braithwaite,2the need for the social sciences in the Carib- bean is even more pressing, but the attitudes in societies in the West Indies havemot changed significantly in so far as the social sciences are concerned. There still seems to exist a lack of sufficient general awareness of society’s needs, and the usefulness of the social sciences in being able to provide the necessary knowledge which could lead to a better means of identifying, understanding, and interpreting those needs in a rational way.

At the University of the W e s t Indies, where it can be said that the social sciences gained their first sign of recognition, that recognition was very slow in coming. As Braithwaite put it ”the social sciences crept into the College as one of the latest faculties to be established.” 3

The then University College of the West Indies which had been conceived as one of the provincial universities of Britain, enjoyed a ”special relationship” with the University of London. Indeed, social sciences at the College were thus modelled in the British fashion. 4 One striking consequence of this dependency relationship was the way in which, according to Braithwaite, the British model was projected in the treatment of the social sciences and in particular, sociology. Being ”relatively late- developers in the British academic field, the social sciences were not projected in the new environment except as research subjects.”5

Accordingly, post-graduate training in the social sciences which is generally given its meaning in the milieu of the university, naturally sprung up in like fashion in the English-speaking Caribbean, under the control and direction of the University of the West Indies committed to the British model.

This paper proposes to assess the present position of post-graduate training in the English-speaking Caribbean

with a view to identifying some of its problems in, and probable prospects for, development. Although much of my thinking has been influenced by an intimate association and experience with the discipline of sociology at the University of the West Indies, it can be said that the same holds true for postgraduate training in the other core social sciences, economics and politics or government, as well, at the University

Post-graduate training in the social sciences is largely shaped and directed by the Faculty of Social Sciences at the University of the West Indies. 6 Regulations governing the award of post-graduate degrees state that in the Faculty of Social Sciences, the Master of Science degree will normally be awarded on the basis of a written examination or a written examination and thesis.

The Doctor of Philosophy degree is a research degree and is awarded on the basis of a thesis or disserta- tion. In the case of the Master of Science degree, the department concerned, with the sanction of the governing body, the Board for Higher Degrees, normally determines which one of the methods is to be adopted for pursuing that degree.

Available records of the University of the West In- dies, since it became independent in 1962, show that between 1963 and 1974, theses were accepted for the awards of higher degrees in the social sciences; were for the award of Master of Science degrees and for the award of Doctoral degrees.

The distribution among the disciplines was 6 M . Sc. degrees, and 2 Ph. D. degrees in Economics ; 26 M . Sc. degrees in Government or Politics, and 1 Ph. D. degree ; 13 M. Sc. degrees and 1 Ph. D . degree in Sociology.

Although the information was not readily available on post-graduate students who completed their degrees between 1975 and 1979, if we were to take the average annual output of social science post-graduates as 4 based on the preceding twelve-year period, it can be safely said that figure has certainly not been surpassed. M y guess is that it is likely to be less. In sociology for certain, there have not been more than 4 M . Sc. and 1 Doctoral degrees completed.

A quick survey of the success of students in completing their graduate training, and their achievement of occupational and professional objectives suggest, im- plicity, that the primary goal of the post-graduate

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programs in the Faculty of Social Sciences was to provide post-graduate education for the purpose of fulfilling a pressing need of faculty resources for teaching, particularly at the under-graduate level in the context of the West Indianization process. This was one of the major problems which the University was beginning to face up to in its process of development.

It is remarkable that of the 49 successful post- graduate students, 25, that is at least 50 per cent have been lecturing mostly at the University of the West In- dies ; 10 are employed with island governments, having in most cases worked with their respective governments before pursuing university education, and 14 could not be positively located. It is also noteworthy that most of the post-graduate students who are now lecturing were recruited on the basis of a Master of Science degree. At least 6 of these persons now lecturing who went on to do a Ph. D degree, did so abroad at foreign universities which were in most cases British.

The records seem to suggest a concentration of efforts of post-graduate training in the social sciences at the Master of Science level, with little or no emphasis being placed on the nurturing of a doctoral programme. Since the Master’s Degree seemed to satisfy the condition for recruitment of a much needed West Indian teaching staff at the University, staff members who were recruited with that level of post-graduate training, seemed little stimulated to pursue a Ph. D degree. Some persons thought it not necessary to pursue a higher degree, while others, although willing to go on, became bogged down with teaching duties and found it difficult to go on for a number of reasons. These will become more evident in our discussion of the problems facing post-graduate training in the social sciences, in the English-speaking Caribbean.

There are several fundamental problems facing post- graduate training in the social sciences and perhaps post- graduate training in general, in the English-speaking Caribbean. Borgatta6 in his critique on graduate education with special reference to sociology, summarizes quite succinctly the nature of these problems as they relate to graduate education in a developed country, but his discussion is equally pertinent to, and instructive for an assessment of post-graduate training in the social sciences in the Caribbean.

The most crucial of these problems he identified as being in what has been referred to as the ”necessary” and not merely ”sufficient” conditions for effective training. 8 In this connection, he argued that facilities, graduate faculty, record of the graduate department, and the calibre of graduate students were necessary conditions for any good graduate programme.

Speaking specifically about sociology, Borgatta 9 claimed- that in terms of physical facilities, a good research library was necessary for graduate work. It was desirable, as well, to have a specialized reading and periodical room which, if combined with related disciplines, could probably be even more useful in providing a broader array of ”easy access” literature.

Other important requirements for sociology graduate students were seen as reasonable space for studying and carrying out research activities: access to desk

calculators, adding machines and other equipment such as tape recorders, projectors and so on in conjunction with access to the most up-to-date technology, so that all the relevant techniques for analysis can be viewed in perspective.

Indeed, this latter requirement impinges upon the requirement of graduate faculty since it presupposes the presence of faculty staff or resources readily accessible to introduce students to the relevant analytic procedures for the discipline. One such set of resources which comes to mind immediately would be computer resources, given modern methods of treating social science data.

asserted, was more crucial than physical requirements. H e argued that a graduate programme, unlike the undergraduate course of study, implied contact with faculty and exposure of the graduate student to new knowledge. There is need for resources, therefore, which could provide for faculty members with a sufficient array of specialisms for training in sociology.

H e claimed also that the past record of a graduate department is important in terms of the size of its graduate student body, their performance on graduate record exams, and the success of students in completing their graduate training.

Finally, the graduate students themselves, were to be seen as an important and integral part of the graduate programme. Borgatta noted that the quality of students entering the programme was important in setting the milieu for graduate work. It was argued that if, in general, students were just minimally acceptable, this condition would undoubtedly set limits to the atmosphere of intellectual stimulation which is expected to exist among graduate students. It was, therefore, necessary to set high standards for entry to the programme.

It was desirable to accept students with demonstrated ability to pursue graduate work in the discipline, and who have manifested some well defined occupational or professional objectives, consistent with the demands of academic pursuits. Borgatta 1 1 stressed that financial support was necessary if graduate students are to be encouraged to devote the expected hours to working full time, and consistently. H e observed that graduate students usually arrive with the expectation of ”support” whether it is in the form of work in on-going projects, fellowships, scholarships, or teaching assistantships. Some forms of ”support” such as work on projects which can later be extended to research assistantship provide the basis for a kind of ”apprentice” relationship between faculty and student which can contribute immensely to the training process.

Borgatta’s critique of graduate education has been presented here in some detail. Although it has dealt with post-graduate training in a developed country with specific reference to sociology, it provides a useful framework for analysis which may be applied to post- graduate training in developing countries as well. It is the case in the contemporary Caribbean that suggestions for the use of or even allusion to things ”foreign” is usually met with criticism which seldom takes account, seriously, of the realities of the situation. Here, however,

This requirement of a graduate faculty, Borgatta 10

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Braithwaite’s considered view must be seriously taken into account. It is that ”all underdeveloped countries, and more particularly small societies like those of the West In- dies, will always be dependent on substantial intellectual assistance and contact with the more developed societies.” 12

If, therefore, post-graduate training in the social sciences in the Caribbean is expected to measure up in its own right to international intellectual standards, then the ”necessary” conditions for post-graduate training must be met.

In the English-speaking Caribbean where post- graduate training in the social sciences is based in the Un- iversity of the West Indies, the major problems in this level of training stem from deficiencies in those ”necessary” conditions.

Physical facilities, such as access to a good library, specialized reading, and periodical room for related social sciences, adequate study research space, basic research equipment such as desk calculators, adding machines, tape recorders, are a problem.

Non-physical facilities are equally a problem, if not a more acute one. The availability of adequate expert staff for the post-graduate programme and staff resources particularly at the senior academic level (Professor, Rea- der, Senior Lecturer) required for sustained development of a post-graduate programme, are stringently limited.

The post-graduate departments in the Faculty of Social Sciences have no outstanding record in relation to success of students in completing their post-graduate training. As we have seen, most of that training has been concentrated at the Master of Science level with very little completion of the Ph. D degree : the reason for this, I would suggest, has been the lack of facilities which could have motivated students to that end.

Finally, not many good students seem to be motivated to pursue graduate education since, in terms of occupational expectations in societies in the Caribbean, a Bachetor’s degree is an acceptable level for what might be considered a reasonably good occupational position. Students, however, who choose to do post-graduate work, do have some expectations of ”support”.

In the Faculty of Social Sciences the key form of ”support” that has been available to students is University post-graduate sholarship awards, which are more often than not seen as inadequate by students. Tutorships, teaching assistantships, and research assistantships are other forms of ”support” available which can supplement scholarship awards.

If these ”necessary” conditions for post-graduate training in the social sciences are, if not ideally but adequately met, the prospects for development must be seen as good. There can hardly be any dispute about the need of the social sciences in the English-speaking Caribbean but that need can only be met by professional training in the disciplines which implies post-graduate training. In this regard, it is important to mention that the core function of any post-graduate training programme can be viewed as being in research. This observation inevitably brings us back to the question of facilities both physical and non-physical which would make social sciences

research viable. The fulfillment of this condition will ul- timately depend on the provision of resources which immediately raises the question of the provision of these resources for social sciences at the University of the West Indies.

Without going into any great detail about the question of funding, it is well known that the University of the West Indies is financed almost entirely by English- speaking Caribbean Governments, Trinidad & Tobago being one of the major contributors. The thinking of this Government in relation to university education is clearly expressed by its head of state, Dr. Eric Williams in his pamphlet entitled The University in the Caribbean in the late 20th Century 1980-1999. T w o of his comments are indeed revealing and will have serious implications for post-graduate training in the social sciences in the English-speaking Caribbean.

Firstly, with respect to financing, Williams asserts that ”the main line university development in the Carib- bean will probably take in the last two decades of the century is quite clear : the Governments, paying the piper, will more and more call the tune.”13 Secondly, he questions any university thinking of expanding graduate facilities, as he says, ”following overseas patterns” when more and more potential undergraduates are knocking at the door. 14 Yet the Soviet-inspired structure of higher education in technical and scientific studies with a nucleus of the curriculum in the physical sciences is seen by Williams as the panacea for university education. H e warns that ”:his is an innovation which the University of the West Indies with limited resources, will have to consider - if not the contributing governments will do it for the university.” 15

It is clear that the provision of resources for the development of post-graduate training in the social sciences at the University of the West Indies has political implications. The need for research in the social sciences clearly exists but the facilities for training experts in these disciplines are also clearly lacking. The only way that the social sciences can develop in the Caribbean is by having indigenous persons trained at the highest level in these disciplines so that the region does not have to depend on foreign experts.

Such facilities as the development of a social science data library which provides social sciences data on significant populations in the Caribbean as distinct from the published analyses of data are sadly lacking. Such a library can be significant in the evolution of research strategies.

Post-graduate training programme in the social sciences also need to be more closely integrated with the research arm of the University, The Institute of Social and Economic hesearch. The core function of the post- graduate training programme, that is to say, research, must be emphasized. In this connection the ”hard nosed” 16 concern with methodology and empirical approaches must be stressed if the usefulness of the social sciences is to be appreciated, and if they are to have any impact on society. W e cannot afford the luxury of preoccupation with historical and philosophical concerns in developing societies of the English-speaking Caribbean

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if w e have to deal with the harsh realities of the ”real” support for such a programme at the University will ul- world. timately depend on the contributing governments’

The fulfillment of all these needs, however, will have recognition of such needs within the context of their con- to depend on support of a post-graduate training ception and evaluation of research in the social sciences in programme oriented to ”hard nosed” research. But relation to need priorities.

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SUB-DEGREE LEVEL SOCIAL SCIENCE TEACHING IN THE ENGLISH-SPEAKING CARIBBEAN

Dr. Neville C. Duncan

There are very few certified programmes offered in the social sciences at the University of the West Indies below the bachelor’s degree level. There are Certificate Programmes in International Studies, Management Studies, Public Administration, and Social Work. These programmes are available to (1) non-graduates who have not been granted graduate status on the basis of a special examination ; (2) matriculated students of the University ; (3) students who have, in the opinion of the University, practical experience or other qualifications or general standard of education of special relevance to the course ; or, (4) as a discretionary feature, to students who are deemed capable of doing the standard of work required for the certificate.. Additionally, any candidate for a certificate may, at the discretion of the Faculty, be required to sit an entrance examination and/or successfully complete an introductory course before being granted permission to read for it. Special provisions are normally made for mature students, who do not possess the necessary qualifications outlined above. All in all these are very flexible regulations which allow any serious candidate to obtain a chance at university level education. The duration of these Certificate Programmes of full-time study covers a period of not less than one academic year (from October to June), and for part-time study of not less than two academic years.

As can been seen, the range of programmes is extremely limited. The programmes, themselves, tend to be general rather than specific and technnical in nature. Possible programmes in areas, such as, Demography, Criminology, Urban and rural planning, Project analysis Accountancy, and so on, have never been seriously considered. It is true that there are provisions for specially admitted and occasional students by which persons, normally graduates of the University itself, can pursue two or three courses in the social sciences, but it is the practice to discourage undergraduate level registration.

There are no short-range programmes covering periods of three, seven, twenty-eight, and eighty-four days duration dealing with, specific issues, problems, and needs of the working world. This i? especially difficult in a situation where there is a chronic non-availability and shortage of trained and skilled personnel in the public and private sectors. This is further compounded by the well-known

difficulty of employers not being able or willing to allow their staff time off with pay to purse programmes of longer duration.

There are of course, several reasons for this state of affairs. One relates to the non-availability of statistic on man-power needs and projections of training needs consciously worked into national development plans. Another reason relates to the paucity of University teaching staff in the social sciences and the heavy teaching (and sometimes administrative) loads which they bear. The general lack of support staff, such as research and teaching assistants, do not permit lecturers to do more planning and organization of new and shorter courses. Furthermore, the way in which the actual courses taught are structured and scheduled does not allow for a number of discrete, phased and well-timetabled units of study within each course. More generally, there is the traditional, but no less unfortunate, antipathy of Caribbean Governments to the dangerous social sciences, with the result that there has been gross under-provision for staff in the areas of sociology and political Science. Nonetheless, even with the currently limited staff more effective use could be made of it if there was an adequate Staff Development Programme. Through such a programme it would be possible to retool and prepare staff to mount short-term and limited-range programmes, which in turn would call for full knowledge and use of all the modern learning resource techniques.

At the present time, in the Caribbean, some social science teaching of the short-term and limited-range type is being conducted by a number of non-university institutions. In Barbados, for example, the Barbados In- stitute of Management and Productivity (BIMAP) set up by the Chamber of Commerce, and being the recipient of fairly sizeable funding through government support, offers a number of such programmes. Very recently a new management consulting company, SYSTEMS, has started offering a number of six and twelve days’ intensive programmes in areas of management studies. Some of the programmes conducted by the Trade Unions’ Colleges in Barbados, Trinidad and Tobago, and Jamaica have some social science content. With the exception of economics, no social science subjects are taught in the secondary schools most of which have no, or grossly inadequate, civic programmes.

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Over the last few years a variety of international funding agencies have been having discussions with, and have offered financial and technical assistance to, Caribbean Governments, and regional institutions, such as, Carib- bean Community (CARICOM), and the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB). The Eaton Report on a Technical Cooperation Mission on behalf of the Inter- American Development Bank on Training needs in Pro- ject Administration (identification, preparation, appraisal implementation and evaluation) formed the basis of a Conference at the CDB headquarters in Barbados. Participants from all the major international agencies and the regional governments were present and pledged assistance, and so too were representatives of the Carib- bean Governments and of the University of the West In- dies. In addition to this CDB located programme there is another one designed to enhance the capabilities of public administrations in the Caribbean communities to plan and implement development programmes and to administrer basic social and economic services sponsored by USAID/ECCM/CARICOM. There is also a tendency for externally organized and funded short programmes to be offered in various Caribbean territories outside the purview of the University of the West Indies.

A number of comments are necessary on these various developments. There is a clear bias towards programmes in public and private management, the rest of the social sciences remains terribly underdeveloped, although their importance for balanced growth and general development cannot be over-stressed. Secondly, the multiplicity of controlling agencies and their national and regional locations cannot but be counter-productive and expensive when university teaching in social sciences remains underdeveloped. The very success of these minor programmes requires adequate research, full library resources, adequate technical equipment, and continuous organization, evaluation and programming which can best be performed by and through the university. The Cave Hill Campus is well located to render effective service in these areas if given adequate staffhg and related back-up support. It would remove much of the ad-hoc nature of existing planned programmes.

It is the view then that all major sub-degree level training should be located at, or organised from, the Cave Hill Campus of the University of the West Indies (notwithstanding the interesting innovative programmes being mounted at the University of Guyana). It is the firm belief that this Campus should not be more concerned

with duplicating programmes and facilities at the Mona and St. Augustine Campuses of the University than with concentrating on making available a large number of intensive, short-term and limited-range programmes tailored to meet the specific needs of the micro-states of the Leeward and Windward Islands. Since most of these programmes would be of a specific nature, language barriers may be less significant, and it may be possible to draw on the teaching resources of the French Caribbean and Suriname. Their shorter duration means that these programmes could be taken to the respective Caribbean countries without detracting seriously from work in one’s own university/tertiary institutions. The provision of adequate and specialized staff at the University would make more man-hours available as well as help to provide the technical competence required to make a success of such effort. Furthermore, the integration into a University system makes it posible to offer certification under the University seal, and to make it possible for students wishing, at a later date, to pursue a bachelor’s degree, to obtain exemptions based on their successful participation in a number of these programmes. The question of the status of the programmes and of their utility for continuing students would then be adequately settled.

The actual programmes to be organized and taught will require careful planning by academics who will undoubtedly rely somewhat on their insights concerning Caribbean developmental needs even where governments have different ideas and emphasis. However, it would be absolutely foolish to ignore the need, in each territory, for an adequate man-power survey based not only on existing needs and government development projects and plans, but also on more objectively determined needs based upon a country’s human and material resources and the social and political aspects involved. It is not our view that the Caribbean exists to become a micrososm of the advanced societies of the world. Unless we are careful to ensure that important emphasis is placed not only on administrative sciences and economics but also on sociology, psychology, political science and related disciplines normally embraced under the term ’biological and environmental sciences’, the fear is that such a situation would arise with all its attendant ’social’ problems. It is part of our duty to ensure that small states find other and more meaningful life on this recognition.

A positive start on supporting a teaching programme should, however, not be delayed until the results of manpower and related surveys are available.

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PROBLEMS OF RESEARCH AND DATA COLLECTION IN SMALL ISLANDS WITHOUT A SOCIAL SCIENCE FACULTY

Patrick A.M. Emmanuel

This paper focuses on problems of research and data collection in the non-campus territories affiliated to the University of the West Indies, i.e. mainly the seven Leeward and Windward territories of Antigua, Montserrat, St. Kitts-Nevis, Dominica, Grenada, St. Lucia and St. Vincent.

The University of the West Indies operates three campuses located in Jamaica, Trinidad and Barbados. Each of these campuses has a branch of the Faculty of Social Sciences of which the core consists of teaching departments responsible for undergraduate and graduate instruction in Economics, Political Science and Sociology, 1 as well as branches of the Institute of Social and Economic Research.

The branches of the Institute of Social and Economic Research, which began in Jamaica in 1949 and expanded to the newer campuses in the Eastern Caribbean in the early 1960s, have the major responsibility for research and publication in the social sciences in the Caribbean. While there is no firm geographical division of focus, the Barbados branch of the Institute is especially charged with research and data-collection responsibilities covering Barbados and the non-campus territories of the Eastern Caribbean. The I.S.E.R., whose volume of publications has grown impressively in recent years presents research funding in the form of books and monographs, occasional and working papers, its basic quarterly, Social and Economic Studies, and; a bi-monthly Bulletin of Eastern Caribbean Affairs (published in Barbados).

In the non-campus territories themselves the Univer- sity has long maintained Extra-Mural Departments, now styled University Centres. The principal functions of these centres have been the arrangement of extra-mural instruction for students in the various territories taking subjects in secondary certificate examinations, dissemination of information on the University’s regulations, degree programmes etc., and the sponsorship of local lectures, exhibitions and other cultural activities. The headquarters of the University Centres publishes a journal, Caribbealt Quarterly, which often contains articles presenting research conducted in non-campus territories .

Historically, the character of research conducted in the Caribbean has been shaped by a few basic factors, including the political history of the area, the establishment

of the University of the West Indies, and the proliferation of various theories and methodologies, invariably derived from metropolitan centres, and focusing on the definition and resolution of fundamental social, economic and political problems in the region.

(a) Colonial research Prior to the establishment of the University and the transfer of political power to national institutions and representatives, the primary responsibility for the researching of social and economic issues rested with the imperial power, Britain and its Colonial Office. There was a body of official serial publications in the form of blue books, annual estimates of revenues and expenditure and departmental reports which provided official data on a wide range of governmental activities from year to year. The colonial authorities also instituted the decimal cen- sures which still constitute perhaps the largest single store of basic data on Caribbean populations.

Going further than the mere presentation of hard data were the occasional appointment of Commissions of Inquiry, or of lesser committees, which researched and an- alysed problems and policies in major areas of governmental or societal activity, including agriculture, wages and living conditions, the supply of housing and so forth. The Report of the West India (Moyne) Commis- sion, completed in 1938, is the landmark regional, encyclopaedia work of this kind. Succeeding Caribbean Governments, in the 1950s and 1960s, tended to continue the practice of setting up commissions to investigate urgent public issues. However, in more recent times, for a combination of political and technical reasons, the official commission as a method of research and data collection has been little utilized, giving way in part to the expert ’task forces’ of regional and international organizations.

(b) Academic research The establishment of the University of the West Indies in 1947, and even more so the subsequent setting-up of the I.S.E.R., and the social science teaching departments

- 1. In Jamaica and Trinitad there are also Departments of Management Studies

while in Barbados plans have been laid to expand teaching in Administrative Studies with particular emphasis on the needs of the public sector.

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(from1959) provided the local institutional basis for the conduct of research into Caribbean societies.

Viewed broadly, the general body of work issuing from scholars working in the region over these last three decades reflects differing levels of preoccupation with theory and data. In the same way over time, changes in methodilogy and techniques of data collection have influenced the attitudes of scholars to questions of both theory and data, highlighing new problems of research and data collection.

In the 1950s, sociology and anthropology led the way in the orientation towards concepts and theories, with economics in second position. Political Science was in- distinguishable from political history, its emphasis being on descriptive accounts of political evolution, and the constitutional machinery of government.

In the 1960s both economics and political science ex- perienced qualitative improvements in respect of theory and methodology. In the case of economics, there was the development of plantation economic theory, followed by a concern for the use of dependency theory as models for greater understanding of the inner dynamics of Caribbean economic systems as well as their relationships to the global capitalist economic system. In the case of political science, there was the importation of American political science in the form of behaviouralism and systems theory as well as a variety of theories of political development and instability. The overall thrust of these orientations was towards a certain democratization of political science in terms of introducing, inter alia, research and analysis of the political life of the man-in-the-street (or country road), his culture and institutions as legitimate and necessary objects of study, instead of the older institutionalist fixation on rulers and their formal ruling institutions.

By the 1970s, two not unrelated developments affected Caribbean perspectives on the role of the social sciences and social science research as well as the content of on-going research and publication. It was not that these ideas had been absent from previous debate on social science in the region; it was that their time had come, that they were consciously shaping more and more of the philosophy, theory, empiricism and methodology which now characterize research in and about the region.

The first idea was that the bourgeois-academic division of the study of social phenomena into relatively rigidly compartmentalized 'disciplines' (with separate controlling bureeaucracies) was inimical to the proper understanding of social reality, and hence to the prescription of relevant solutions. The gradual acceptance of this idea at the formal level has expressed itself in academic terms in repeated appeals for the development of 'interdisciplinary studies'; although, it must be remarked, many who pay lip service to this appeal fail to reflect its meaning in the nature of their own work.

At the deeper level, the second, related force influencing Caribbean social science in the 1970s is the rise of Marxism as the dominant guiding philosophy of society; a feat which has been accomplished in the face of a history of both crude and subtle attempts to suppress it inside and outside of the University of the West Indies, and notwithstanding the fact that the majority of the

current staff of social scientists are not themselves Marx- ists. Leading Caribbean social scientists, reflecting this seminal development, now speak and write in the perspective of political economy, instead of more 'political science' or 'economics.'

(c) research in the era of independence

The achievement of political independence in the Carib- bean formally transferred the responsibility for social, economic and political development to the Caribbean peoples and their governments. The assumption of these responsibilities has called for the governments to take on some of the functions of socio-economic planning. In consequence, there has been a proliferation of institutions and roles manned by trained personnel. A n essential function of this new technocract is research and data collection. The need for institutionalizing the scientific investigation and analysis of problems and policies is emphasized by the fact that socio-economic development plans now depend for their success on the assistance of a wide range of foreign governments and international organisations whose modus operandi demands the use of scientific methods the local preparation of projects, economic report etc. Whether in the larger or smaller (non-campus) territories, Caribbean-based technocrats have to satisfy the exacting standards set by such organizations as the Caribbean Development Bank, the World Bank, and the International Monetary Fund others.

What this latter development has meant is that modern research and data collection have become important, routine tasks of governments in the Caribbean. There has therefore been an increased demand for technocrats in the public services. Interestingly, part of the pattern of response to these demands has been that, in the larger (campus) territories, technocrats have moved from the University into the government agencies, whereas in the smaller (non-campus) territories there has been a reverse brain-drain trend from the governments into the regional institutions (e.g. CARICOM, CDB) or the University.

The title of the paper suggests that there are special problems of research and data collection to be faced in non-campus territories - in the Eastern Caribbean. While this is so, it is helpful to bear in mind that there are general problems of research and data-gathering which affect all Caribbean territories whether endowed with a campus or not.

'Non-Campus' is a euphemism for smaller and poorer. A territory does not have a campus because it is smaller and poorer (in the socio-economic senses) and because it does not have a campus it is poorer (in the research an general intellectual senses). Having stated this basic relationship, we can now explore some of the main problems of research which have arisen in the context of small, poor, non-campus communities.

Part of the problem lies in the arena of politics and government - or the inconveniences of decolonization. The imperial power was committed to the keeping and, to a lesser extent, the publication of official records and statistics. (Researchers in the region will be aware of the established practice whereby documents kept mainly at

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the Public Records Office in London are released for study thirty years after their creation. Such a practice, of course, had the effect of converting contemporary materials into historical records, hence giving new lease of life to the discipline of Caribbean history).

Additionally, the imperial power had organized colonial governments into departments (of education, health, treasury etc.) with a head, accountable for their functioning. One instrument of accountability was the preparation of annual departmental reports providing detailed information on the implementation of public policy in each of these areas. By these and other media a regular fund of data (even though sometimes of dubious reliability) was made available to the public.

Constitutional decolonization and its concomitant, the growth of local politics, particularly political competition, has radically altered the bases for the assessment of governmental information, and hence, its availability to public or researcher. If the imperial authorities had reason to bury data, present-day Caribbean governments can find even more. Hard data have a political value and can be used to promote the aims of a government or of an opposition party or of a foreign government or institution against national or partisan interests. Thus the management, control, manipulation of information, i.e., the science of propaganda, is today a principal function of governments. This function is largely independent of the size of a Caribbean state, although at times while the government of a larger state might be anxious to cover up what it knows, governments in the smaller islands might be more concerned to cover what they know not. Func- tionally, many ‘Official Secrets Acts cover less ground than they were intended to.

The decline of the old departments with their absorp- tion into Ministries headed by elected politicians has been both a cause and consequence of the new politicization of data. Ministries do not publish annual or other reports, although in speeches or replies to parliamentary questions, ministers may deliver a deluge or trickle of information affecting the performance of their departments, as the situation is seen to warrant. But there has been a general decline in the breadth and depth of official data available to the public in Caribbean territories, in particular, the smaller, non-campus ones.

However, some compensation, even expansion, is being provided by the growth in the number of regional an international agencies dealing with the socio-economic problems of the smaller territories.

Originally, following the collapse of the Federation of the West Indies in 1962 and the search for a new Eastern Caribbean Federation embracing the Leewards, Windwards and Barbados, the I.S.E.R. in Barbados was designed as the research and data collection agency for

the expected Federal Administration. Indeed, in its early years, under the distinguished guidance of the late Dr. Carleen O’Loughlin, this branch undertook and published a number of basic studies on the economic resources and potential of these territories.

But later as the federal idea collapsed and each island went its separate way constitutionally, a variety of organs came into being to continue basic research on the area. These include the British Development Division, the Eastern Caribbean C o m m o n Market Secretariat, the CARICOM Secretariat, the Caribbean Development Bank as well as the I.M.F., I.B.R.D., the Canadian Inter- national Development Agency, CIDA, and others. Among them, these bodies have undertaken the greater part of data collection done on the economies of the non- campus territories over the last decade or so.

The absence of social science personnel in these territories has meant that research and data collection conducted from Barbados or Jamaica or Trinidad can be costly and time-consuming since good research requires long stays for familiarization, establishment of reliable contacts, etc. At the same time the experience of several research agencies visiting and searching for the same data can cause frustration both to local officials and researchers themselves.

The use of interviews for data collection has been one of the innovations of behaviouralism. It has been applied with varying effectiveness in some of the larger states, but is virtually unknown in the non-campus territories. Quite apart from considerations of cost, its difficulties tend to stem largely from its application in small communities, in which category all Caribbean societies can be subsumed. There are well-known problems affecting the level and reliability of responses to interviews in small tradition-oriented communities. Participant observation by accepted persons can more than compensate for these drawbacks.

Researchers in these types of communities will also be hampered by the absence of a good press. Little attention is paid to the dissemination of hard information. More often than not, newspapers are the mouthpiece of conventional political parties more prone to hurling abuse than imparting data and dispassionate commentary.

This short paper has attempted to outline some of the principal issues surrounding the conduct of research and data collection in the smaller, non-campus territories. We have tried to point out that not all the difficulties stem from the absence of a campus per se, but that at the same time the absence of a campus is associated with other political, sociological and technical factors which in themselves are the legacy of these small, ex-colonial societies.

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PROBLEMS OF RESEARCH AND TRAINING IN SMALL ISLANDS WITHOUT A SOCIAL SCIENCE FACULTY

Dean Walter Collinwood, Ph.D.

A little over four years ago, the Bahamas had neither an institution of higher learning, nor students of the social sciences, nor a social science faculty. Today, the country boasts a college located on a prominent, palm tree-lined avenue, attended by nearly 2,000 students, and staffed by a faculty of 140, including over a dozen who teach in the social sciences. Effecting such a dramatic start in higher education has not been an easy task for the Bahamas, and the process is far from over today. Yet, there are several lessons one can learn from the Bahamian experience to date which may contribute to a more untrammeled introduction of social science research and training programmes into other small Caribbean islands which are currently without social science faculties.

While the initial discussion below will treat problems which arose in the Bahamas largely as a result of internal governmental policies and decisions, serious difficulties face all small island societies in consequence of the expectations of external groups and institutions, and therefore, the second half of the discussion will highlight some of these external impediments to social science progress in the Caribbean. Discussion of both types of constraints will at the very least indicate what ought not to be attempted, and, hopefully, will be suggestive of positive and constructive approaches for countries initiating programmes and projects in the social sciences. Although many small islands are currently without social scientists, a growing interest in the potential of social science from within and without the region will soon alter the status quo. Attention in this paper, therefore, is directed away from problems of the status quo and toward the near future when the leaders of small islands will be confronted with the responsibility of selecting and training research personnel and designing social science projects for the first time. The experience of the Bahamas in meeting this responsibility will shed light on a few region-wide problems.

In fulfilment of a political campaign promise, the government of L.O. Pindling proceeded in the mid-1970s to organize the Bahamas’ first comprehensive college. The type of local personnel selected ‘to staff the social science programme of the emerging college presented the first serious hindrance to sound social scientific progress on the island. There were, of course, many Bahamians with advanced research training in the social sciences, but

having had no institutionalized outlet for their skills, many of these potential contributors to Bahamian society had been lured away to academic posts abroad, and others had taken up positions in local business and in the bureaucracy. The personnel selection task was further muddied by the absence of a clear-cut definition of the mission of the college generally and the social science faculty specifically. There were no strictly defined government or privately-funded research projects through participation in which new recruits could learn research skills; nor was there a dominant, conscious theoretical or ideological philosophy with which the new faculty could identify. Rather, the assignment was, far too simply, to just ”do social science”.

To find somebody to ”do social science,” the authorities turned to the public high schools and hired the best, i.e., the most upwardly mobile, social studies teachers they could find. The immediate consequences of this perhaps poorly envisaged selection were two-fold: first, it left greater gaps of competence in social studies training in the already under-staffed high schools, so that students were more ill-prepared than ever to succeed at college-level work. Secondly, it forced the teacher-turned- professors into the position of being expected to accomplish tasks, e.g., research supervision, for which they had neither the interest nor the skills. Those selected were, without a doubt, exceptionally energetic and devoted to their task, but four years taking up posts at the college, some faculty still viewed their role as identical to that of public school teachers; as one chairperson expressed it, nothing much had changed from high school ”except the age of the pupils.”

Despite the technical handicaps of the new faculty, college authorities still expected the faculty to be engaged in research whenever time permitted. In practice, however, time never did allow these new social scientists to im- merse themselves in community or world studies or attend faculty development seminars. Besides a sixteen-hour teaching load, the faculty were daily called upon to perform numerous housekeeping tasks pertaining to the organization of a large and entirely new institution of higher learning. Perharps most detrimental to the establishment of a firm social science programme was that the college officials had a pressing need for chairpersons, deans, and other administrative officers for the college,

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and being under pressure from the government to avoid appointing expatriates to positions of authority if at all possible, they began to raid the comparatively vocal and energetic social science faculty to fill this or that administrative post. It often appeared that those with the mostscholarly potential were the very ones rendered in- capable of engaging in scholarship due to administrative responsibilities.

Those who were not thus distracted found themselves inhibited in other ways. For example, many of the former high school teachers had only ”majored” or specialized in their discipline as undergraduates, any further degrees, if any, were in teacher education. Had they been relativelly unen cumbered socially they might have gone abroad during the summers for specialized research training in their disciplines, but as married men and women with complex family, church and community commitments, leaving home would have been a major sacrifice, if not an im- possibility, especially for those who were the sole support of their families.

The combination of the demands and deficiencies cited above, as well as high enrolments, resulted in a decision to import large numbers of faculty from abroad. In 1978, nearly 60 percent of the college faculty and a large majority of the social scientists were expatriates. At the same time that many of the newly arrived expatriates were undergoing the usual psychic dislocations associated with culture shock and subsequent cultural accommodation, some Bahamian faculty were experiencing the discomfort of being intimidated by the different professional orientation of many of their foreign colleagues. This was due not as much to actual educational superiority as to perceived superiority; that is, excepting a handful of Ph.D.s and one or two others, most of the expatriates were no more qualified as researchers than were their Bahamian counterparts, but their possession of disciplines-related higher degrees as against teacher education degrees, and their more vociferous self-identification as sociologists, psychologists, geographers, and so forth, produced a somewhat timid response from the indigenous faculty. For example, at the first meeting of a new faculty research committee, virtually all the attendees, including the chairman, were expatriates, although the committee was intended to include all interested faculty. Later, when the College attempted a faculty research newsletter, not a single Bahamian faculty member contributed, despite the fact that some Bahamians were engaged in very newsworthy endeavours.

The presence of large numbers of expatriates (largely from Britain and the United States, although nationals of india, Pakistan, Jamaica and one or two other Caribbean nations were also included) had other repercussions as well.’For example, some of the foreign scholars wished to further their careers through regular participation in scholarly conferences or through engaging in local research projects. They therefore began to request travel grants, reduced teaching loads, more secretarial help and other academic necessities and amenities to which they had become accustomed at other institutions. All of these requests were very negatively received by Ministry of Education and other goverament officials who

did not wish public revenues spent on imported personnel, and who, furthermore did not appear to understand the need for such expenditures. The requests, therefore, were systematically refused, and these and other government- related frustrations eventually caused many expatriates to contribute much of the behind-the-scenes support for a general boycott of classes in 1977 and to assist anonymously in an acerbic media war-of-words with the national government, actions which threatened for a time to close the College.

It is interesting to note that almost all of the leadership for the campaign against the government’s college policies came from the social science faculty, who in this regard acted much as many social scientists have in other countries. Regretfully, however, these faculty were capable only of pointing out some mistakes in the administration of their country; they did not have the research skills to discover objectively and propose scientifically-sound alternative policies. The fear of selective government reprisals, i.e., dismissal of Bahamians and deportation of expatriates, moderated the action from the beginning and eventually stifled it altogether, with the only single change being greater antipathy on the part of the government toward the college faculty.

Although the topic of faculty development was frequently discussed by social science and other faculties, attempts to inculcate a research orientation as well as needed skills in the local faculty were hampered by numerous factors. Among the most obvious were poor, library resources, inadequate faculty office space (as many as seven faculty members in the social science division of the College shared one small office room), sensitive reluctance to instruction by their expatriate colleague or more knowledgeable Bahamians, and, as cited, an overburdened teaching and administrative load which virtually eliminated ”re-tooling” opportunities. Thus, while the Bahamian Government was successful in recruiting a small group of delicated and energetic faculty, they had neither the advanced skills to do social scientific research, nor the time to acquire those skills.

Although national pride iestrained moste Bahamians from commenting too openly on the obvious problems, the general public did not grant much confidence to the social science faculty. Local, private financial support for research was non-existent, because, in part, would be benefactors were loathe to contribute research funds to people w h o m they still remembered as just grammar and high school teachers. In addition, the minority of well- educated elites manifested their lack of confidence in the colleges and universities abroad whenever possible.

Despite these rather substantial obstacles, the introduction of the social sciences to the Bahamas is successfully underway: some faculty are squeezing in time for graduate training through the University of Miami extension programme, research projects are being discussed, and Bahamian youth are slowly acquiring a greater social

1. Richard Rose, ”Disciplined Research and Undisciplined Problems,” International Social Science Journal, 38 (1976): 99-121.

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awareness. There is no question that, despite the hardships, an important step forward has been made in the Bahamas. Other Caribbean islands should be able to succeed even better, if they carefully avoid those decisions which hampered the Bahamas.

However, even with extreme care taken to avoid the obstacles that the Bahamas encountered, there will be other pressures which will beset small islands and indeed all countries which they will be very fortunate indeed to escape. Ironically, the problems do not originate in the internal material and manpower constraints of an island, but rather in the unfounded illusions regarding the characteristics of social scientists’ images which emanate in distorted form from the world social scientific community. It may be, in fact, that these distortions are the most stubborn roadblocks to the establishment of relevant research and training projects in small islands which do not now have social science faculties. It is very likely, for instance, that world expectations, as interpreted locally by non-social scientists, about what constitutes a ”proper” social science programme or what kind of people represent ”true” social scientists influenced the Bahamian Government’s unfortunate decision to fashion the social science programme of the College of the Bahamas in the manner described above. And, it is quite possible that similar images are currently entertained by leaders in other Caribbean islands or will shortly be acquired as a result of contact with outside agencies, groups and scholars.

What then are these mind-set which have so ill-fitted the Bahamas and which may aect others? There are, in fact, two images. The first is a more or less accurate reflection of what most social scientists do, and the second is a seriously distorted and rose-coloured caricature of the first. The second image is an impossible myth and the first, if practiced in small Caribbean islands, would probably wreak considerable havoc.

The image of the role of social scientists as seen by the world academic community and which appears to reflect what most social scientists actually do is plainly revealed by Rose (1976) who, in summarizing the opinion of discussants of the Committee on Political Sociology of the International Political Science Association and the In- ternational Sociological Association described a social scientist as a ”free professional, capable of exploring ideas unconcerned by their implications for organizations.” 21 His language of communication is highly specialized and its tone is technical, detached, and to the layman sometimes sacrilegious or incomprehensible. For peers, he chooses international scholars rather than neighbours, and he usually publishes his research findings abroad ,where only the scholarly and not the local populace can read them.

In addition, he sees himself as an interpreter of social acts to whom all behaviour is researchable, nothing is sacred. H e delights in holding up a mirror to the face of society so it can see itself for what it ”really” is. In the name of objective observation. however, he frequently removes himself for long periods from much of the very social behaviour he is observing by withdrawing to the privacy and assumed legitimacy of the university, which

place is considered by himself and others to be a repository of superior wisdom and intelligence, and thus capable of conferring upon its inhabitants an elite status and envied lifestyle.

As presented, this is not a particularly flattering description of our modus operandi, especially to the ears of an ”uninitiated” citizen of a small Caribbean society. By way of illustration, let one suppose that an agency or association decided the time was right for a particular island to be opened up to the social sciences and that contacts with local authorities were made for the purpose of defining the objectives of the proposed project and discussing the type of persons to be involved. Imagine the likely response of government leaders if they were told that the social scientists involved, whether imported from outside or local persons socialized by world colleagues, would : (1) Expect to be allowed to do research unconcerned for

its effect on island organizations or institutions; (2) want to investigate, for pay, all aspects of island life,

including, perhaps, details of the lives of political elites, the handling of church donations, the possible exploitation .of women, and so forth;

(3) involve themselves in island society largely for the purpose of obtaining information, that is, there would always be an ulterior motive;

(4) expect to be respected as social critics, including en- joying the right of outspokenness and the right to publish both locally and to the world findings about any people or groups on the islands;

(5) on occasion turn social activists, leading others in demands that some feature of social, religious, political, and family life be changed;

(6) be allowed to enjoy a lifestyle generally above the majority of island inhabitants, including opportunities for travel, public acclaim, and other amenities. As described here, such a social scientist could be

nothing but threatening to newly independent or soon-to- be independent nations with both emerging social and political institutions, as well as entrenched status hierarchies. Can there be any question about how political elites would respond to such a proposal? Can a small, often mono-crop, island economy afford the expense of such free-floating professionals? Would local businessmen and political elites be rash enough to pay a social scientist to ”explore ideas unconcerned by their implications for organizations?” Is there a local publishing house which would attempt to market to a small population a book which was highly technical (i.e., incomprehensible), stubbornly detached (i.e., unmotivating), and finely specialized (i.e., pedantic)? H o w long would the church, the school, the government and other established socializ- ing institutions tolerate outspoken social critics and social activists? Could a group of social scientists survive for long in a small society if they were seen by politicians as a competing power elite?

Obviously, it was not this image which Bahamian leaders apparently had in mind when they initiated the

1. There was also a suspicion that funds donated would not be distributed to their intended recipients due to the government’s control of college funds.

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social science programme in Nassau. The establishment of the programme almost seemed to be based instead on facile observations of what social scientists appeared to be doing in other places - e.g. community colleges in Miami - rather than what they really did. The reasoning seemed to be that, since other social scientists were part of a college, the Bahamas must have a college too; since social scientists taught students using the language of the social sciences, the Bahamas must choose teachers of appropriate vocabularies - thus the influx of high school social studies teachers. Other social scientists were seen to be engaged in useful (i.e., publicly proclaimed) research, so Bahamian social scientists must do research, too (whether there was infrastructural support for it or not). Apparently, social scientists were recruited in the Bahamas on the assumption that they would be able to solve social problems and bring prestige to the country . T o date, neither of these objectives have been achieved, and it is not likely that they will be in the near future.

Is there not a more appropriate vision? And can one combine a new vision with practical improvements learned from the Bahamian experience to propose a more trouble-free introduction of social scientific research into heretofore neglected islands? While it is not the objective of this essay to spell out specific programmes or approaches, the experience of the Bahamas may at least suggest some tentative components of a new approach.

For instance, it is quite likely that social science can progress more easily in some societies without the encumbrances of affiliation with a college or other large organization. Office {pace could be borrowed from the local government and library needs could be met through an inter-library loan system established between, say, the University of the West Indies and the local public library. And it is possible that personnel in business or industry - on part-time loan - might be more likely candidates for research training than those in the public school system. For instance, government statisticians, market analysts from the business sector, medical doctors, lawyers, and others, could, with some guidance from one or two outside experts and with released time from some of their regular duties, conduct highly relevant research projects in the social sciences. And, while outside expertise is a necessary requirement in establishing research and training programmes initially, such personnel should probably be kept to a minimum and phased out altogether within a few years.

Furthermore, there is no reason to assume that those conducting research or being trained to do research need be full-time researchers or be required to identify themselves as social scientists. Housewives, exceptional

high school students, politicians, and a few others could be brought together in a sort of ”citizens coalition”- directed by a highly qualified social scientist and organized to find in, say, one year of week-end and vaca- tion time work, a viable solution to a narrowly-defined social need. While the finding of a solution might be the ostensible objective, the desired by-products would be threefold: (1) an increased awareness among all sectors of the population of the need for and complexity of social research, (2) the diffusion of research and analytical skills among the population, and (3) the moral and financial co- operation of the business and especially the political sectors.

In addition, efforts could be made to ensure that funding agencies, especially local government, see real value and not threats in the type of research conducted; to this end, it would seem that projects to be carried out should have not only government approval, but also government involvement in the form of participating government researchers of periodic advice and consulta- tion about the conduct and findings of the research. There is no substitute for government co-operation, and if researchers involved in social science projects see themselves as contributing to broad government objectives however distasteful that may be, scholars in some cultures and however divorced that may be from the traditional image of the social sciences then criticism of government is likely to be minimized and moral and financial support from the government thereby maximized. 1

If the initial venture were successful in accomplishing the three major by-products listed above, then action in subsequent years could proceed along similar lines, rotating some members of the research team and discovering those who had the interest and talent eventually to assume leadership of the project. After a few years, there would be a sufficiently large number of skilled researchers to enable the, government to consider a more permanent and full-time research institute type of operation if desired.

While a research institute might be the long-range result of the efforts described here, it is not in any way the major objective. A more relevant vision for the contemporary Caribbean is one which assumes that social science is, of itself, exciting, and that if ordinary citizens can be introduced to it in a meaningful and non-pressured manner, it will ”sell” itself.

1. Nathan Caplan, ”Social Research and National Pollcy: What Gets Used, by W h o m , for What Purposes, and with What Effects.” Infernational Social Science JUUrnQl, 38 (1976): 187-194.

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THE INFRA-STRUCTURES FOR RESEARCH: DATA COLLECTION AND DOCUMENTATION IN THE SOCIAL SCIENCES

LE. Greene

W e have truly entered the era of the integrated media total information system (Herbert Coblans,

multi- 1964)

Research programmes require information support systems, that is, systems which provide researchers with the material necessary for their work. Information support systems may vary in concept and function: they may exist in the form of a traditional library whose service is essentially based on secondary material such as books or journals, and whose technology is also rudimentary. At the other end of the scale, they may exist in the form of a comprehensive information system which one exponent on this subject referred to as including ”not only the more common computer and communication devices, but also those related to optical character recognition, microfilm, fascimile, word processing, video recording and display, audio reponse, photo composition and others”. ‘Any plan to devise structures to facilitate research in the social sciences (as well as any other science) must take into account the dominant trends in the research itself so as to determine the appropriate information support system that may be used. O f particular interest to the researcher is the existence of a wide variety of information technologies - from the most traditional to the most complex - for storing, retrieving and disseminating research material. In this regard, several general questions emerge:

H o w are the technologies developing and evolving? Which ones are more appropriate? What are the alternatives? What are the possible effects on the nature and scope of future research?

More specifically, a researcher attempting to review and assess the development of mechanized Information Support system in the 1980’s will need answers to such questions as:

- Is it bibliographically desirable? ~- Is it technically possible? ~ Is it economically feasible? - Is it satisfactory for the present research trends (i.e. to

the users)2?

In order to answer these questions, w e identify the main developments in contemporary social science research in the English-Speaking Caribbean; the range of available information support systems; and the rationale for mixing research and its support systems.

Elsewhere, w e suggested that a relevant social science research programme in the contemporary Carib- bean is one which aims at influencing the formation of public policy. While not denying the importance of basic research in advancing knowledge generally, we argued that developmental research ought to be primarily concerned with increasing the social well being of man, and to improve the quality of life of society. The underlying assumption for this priority in the direction of research is based on assessments of the needs of the region, plagued by pressing developmental problems and paralleled only by scarce ressources. Chief among these development problems are the relatively high levels of unemployment, the need to increase the propensity of these small states to food, house and clothe their populations and generally to improve their levels of living and economic viability.

The most recent trends in social science research at both the governmental and university levels, have focussed predominantly on developmental issues. What has emerged is a multi-disciplinary approach to research in which the core disciplines within the social sciences draw upon the resources of interactive disciplines in the environmental and physical sciences. The need to address issues of public policy has caused previously exclusive disciplinary boundaries to recede and become absorbed by what is now being referred to as the Development Sciences.

Some recent research projects undertaken by the institute of Social and Economic Research, University of the West hdies, and the Institute of Development Studies,

Day, Melvin S. and Ben Erman, “New Trends in Information technology”, unpublished paper presented at FID Conference, Edinburgh, August 1978. These questions were raised by S. Keenan, ”Development of Mechanized Documentation”, Journal of Documentation 34, December 1978, pp. 333- 341. Greene, J.E., ”Research Trends in the English-speaking Caribbean”, in (Greene and Carol Collins ed.) Research and Documentafion for fhe Development Sciences in the English-Speaking Caribbean, Kingston, I.S.E.R.. 1977, pp. 19-51.

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Univesity of Guyana, for example, have underscored this multi-disciplinary trend. 1 These have had important methodological implications. Among the core discipline of the Social Sciences, there already exists a wide variety of methodologies ranging from library research, participant observation and content analysis to more scientific approaches requiring sample survey, the use of mathematical models and statistical tests. When therefore the interactive disciplines are superimposed on those of the social sciences, the methodological mix has important implications for the structure and functions of information support systems.

Our major concern is how these systems may be organised at the general (superstructural) level and what are the specific infra-structural requirements for making them effective.

Strategies for organising documentation services for the social sciences in the Caribbean must therefore be sensitive to the research trends and methodologies if they are to provide adequate support functions. Several initiatives exist at the national, regional and international levels, the application of which can assist in rationalizing the documentation facilities for the Caribbean states in- dividually and collectively. At the national level, only Jamaica has so far devised a comprehensive plan for organizing its documentation, information and library system.2 Incorporated into the plan is a social science network, co-ordinated by the National Planning Agency. This network is conceived of as a capability centre for social science information. Together with the Science and Technology, Physical Planning and Legal networks, its information is to be fed into a national referral service to be known as the National Library of Jamaica.

At the regional level, there are two initiatives. The first one is sponsored by the Caribbean Development and Co-operation Committee (CDCC), 3 an intergovernmental organisation including Haiti and Cuba. This Committee has close links with the Latin-American Centre for Economic and Social Development (CLADES) and has embarked on a survey to identify information needs. These include the Centre’s priority users and their information requirements: analysis of the existing documentation services in the Caribbean that fulfil the user’s information requirement, and a comparison of information demand and supply for each type of information required. Among the main aims of CDCC is one which hopes ”to foster the creation of national documentation centres within the Caribbean region and to help to standardize information handling systems in order to facilitate the flow of information among Caribbean countries and between them and regional as well as international systems”. 4

The other regional initiative of relevance to the social sciences is the efforts of the Institute of Social and Economic Research (ISER), U.W.I., to create an information system (DOERS). Its role within Caribbean research and documentation possibilities was fully discussed in a report on a workshop which it sponsored on Research and Documentation for the Development Sciences in the English-Speaking Caribbean, in 1977. Suffice it to say here, the main aim of the project is to collect and

disseminate documentation and hard data on contemporary social, ecomomic and political happenings in the English-speaking Caribbean, primarily to contribute meaningfully to the development process in the region.

Taking into consideration the proposed national (Jamaica) and regional information systems (CDCC), the Institutes plan is to create a Data Centre based initially on the vast array of primary data generated from its projects. Implicit here is a distinction between ”primary” and”secondary” data. By primary data we mean those which exist in raw form and require analysis so as to be used for teaching, research and policy-making. These may be quantitative but much is also textual. Secondary data are often what is referred to as ”bibliographic material”, the object of which is not the manipulation of data themselves and correlate various aspects of these data, but the retrieval of citations in published information such as books and periodical articles. It is increasingly the view of planners and researchers that primary data provide vital empirical inputs without which policy making and research findings tend to be vague or general.

The three initiatives to which we have referred are more or less at the formative stages of development, but point to the possibility that, with good planning, information support systems for the social sciences may be co- ordinated at both the national and regional levels. However, if these are to play any meaning-ful role in Caribbean Social Science research, there are certain basic functions that they must perform. In the first place, there is need for a survey of documentation and research services as a means of knowing what information actually exists, and where to find it. Hence, a survey of the infra- structural requirements of information support systems will include i) Compilation of a directory of research agencies and

individuals involved in development science projects on the English-speaking Caribbean.

ii) Identification of projects that are being done by these research agencies and individuals, with an indication as follows: a) complete; b) on-going; and c) proposed.

iii) Evaluation of the methods and findings of research projects so as to provide abstracts that include information on the types and locations of data used in the respective projects.

iv) Provision for annotated bibliographical listings of development science research resulting from (i) - (iii).

Among others are two projects undertaken by the Institute of Social and Economic Research in collaboration with the Institute of Development Studies, University of Guyana, ”The Transfer of Technology”, and ”Carib- bean Public Enterprises” projects. Each of these involved over twenty-five researchers drawn from Social Sciences, environmental and physical sciences. See, Plan for a National Documentation I$onnation and Library System for Jamaica, National Council on Libraries, Archives and Documentation Services, Kingston, Jamaica, 1978. See, United Nations Economic Commission on Latin America Documentation Centre to serve the Countries of fhe Caribbean Develop- menl Co-operative Comitfee (CDCC). Port of Spain ECLA Office for the Caribbean, 1977 (E/CEPAL/CDCC16/Rev. 1). See Wylma Primus, ”Rationalizing the Documentation Activity in the Caribbean”, in Greene and Collins op cit, pp. 196-197.

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v)

vi)

A n detailed evaluative survey of library- documentation services that are involved in development science information in the English-speaking Caribbean. Re-assessment of the method of documentation and of linking documentation and research.

While the information support systems proposed by CDCC and the I.S.E.R. between them include the survey functions mentioned above, there are ongoing infra- structural activities relevant to the social sciences in the Caribbean which require some mention. These include the Automatic Index Retrieval Service (AIRS) of the West In- dia Reference Library of the Institute of Jamaica, and the Caribbean Social Science Index (CARINDEX) sponsored by A C U R I L and put out by the Daily Gleaner newspaper since 1975, using the Multi-file Keyword in Context (KWIC). The second, is an author-subject index of Carib- bean social science material using a Preserved Context In- dexing System (PRECIS) of word groups and phrases. More recently, I.S.E.R. has produced an accumulated subject-author index of the social and Economic Studies Journal 1953-1977.1

There is however a distinction between basic and dynamic infra-structures. In the former, the information support system is mainly concerned with reproducing bibliographical guides and identifying sources; in the latter, the information system is itself a function of the research establishment and an integral part of a process of refining, testing and analyzing material generated from research projects. In this respect, dynamic infra-structures for social sciences ought to be associated with the processing of primary data, i.e. establishing data libraries instead of data archives, and data banks instead of automatic documentation centres. A data archive is mainly concerned with systematic collection of data files for posterity, while a data library exists to provide data services for which it must not only collect and store data files, but also analyze them. Both automated documentation centres and data banks use electronic data processing methods, i.e. a computer, in order to retrieve information. However, automatic documentation is concerned with finding the documents to be consulted, whereas a data bank seeks to provide elementary information units. In this way automatic documentation may be described as a subset of the data bank and what distinguishes the two is simply the degree of rafhement of the information provided. Jean-Paul Trystram aptly descibes this distinction:

"The automatic documentation process stops at the moment when the computer has given the reference for a document, which almost by definition contains a very large number of items of information whether it is a book, an article in a review or a rep0 rt.... the data bank is concerned with basic information ..... not just the reference but the information itself '. 2

Dynamic infra-structures required for information support systems are therefore the same as those required for a good social science research institute doing policy- oriented studies among others. These include. i) Competent researchers in the core disciplines,

i i)

iii) iv) v) vi)

vii)

Collaboration and formal links with researchers and institutions in the interactive disciplines, Data analysis and information scientists, Physical space for storing information, Computing facilities, Legitimacy as a research unit: i.e. acceptability by governments, international agencies and the public at large as a reliable and objective collector and an- alyser of information, Media for disseminating information in various forms to local communities, academics, policy makers and international organizations,

viii) Mechanisms for collaborationg and sharing information with other local, regional and international organizations involved in development science research,

ix) Mechanisms for feedback such as seminar lectures at all levels including the target groups in the communities, the private and public sector which provide the data for specific projects. There is, .however, an additional dynamic infra-

structural requirement: the establishment of a training component to information support systems. Such a proposal has already been put forward by the I.S.E.R. Based on the documents and data within the system, consideration should be given to sponsoring a series of workshops on Caribbean Social Policy Research (CSPR). The main aim of the CSPR should be to offer instruction in research design and data analysis. While primarily methodological in focus, the programme should provide a point of departure from the conventional statistics and computer design curricula, which form the basis of courses in the normal process of academic training. The CSPR should therefore be designed in such a way as to. i) Convey technical skills to a cross-section of scholars,

graduate students, practitioners, documentalist- librarians interested in social policy in the Caribbean;

ii) Orient techniques involved in social policy research to a process of learning-by-doing mode of training and instruction. Such a programme could serve several purpeses,

among which that of utilizing the data within the Informa- tion Support System as a basis of applied research. This will bring users of information into an active process that has potential for keeping the techniques of the proposed documentation continuously tested and therefore dynamic.

There are unlimited benefits to be derived from a scheme such as CSPR, given the need for such training and the demand for such skills. It is one of the most ex- peditious innovations around which to build a graduate programme, and from which to generate policy oriented work as well as outreach activities. What is more important however is the extent to which is could be one of the

1. Robb, Reive (Corn.), Social & Economic Studies, Aufhor and Keyword In- dex to Volumes 1-26, 1953-1977. Kingston. I.S.E.R.. (jorthcoming).

2. Trystram, Jean-Paul, "From Automatic Documentation to the Data Bank", Infernational Social Science Journal XXIII (2), 1971, p. 285.

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most effective ways of consolidating the links betwereen research and documentation, thus enhancing our capabilities for coping with the developmental challenges posed by the societies to which we have already referred.

Within the Caribbean, data bases are being generated principally for bibliographic information, thereby facilitating more efficient and up-to-date abstracting and indexing of social science information. However, data banks which contain factual 'hard' information have yet to be established. Several International agencies have established On line systems to provide a search capability from a number of computer files stored on a remote computer. Examples of this kind of service are BLAISE L I S/DIALOG,SDC/ORBIT and more recently PRESTEL, a view data-type service developed by the Post Office which can be transmitted to specially modified TV sets located in the Office, library or home.

There is another type of mechanized data system established for special subject areas. International agreements have led to the establishment of systems covering nuclear information (INIS), Agriculture (AGRIS), Food Science and Technology (IFIS); and more recently Development Science (DEVSIS). The latter is relevant to our concerns insofar as it is specially designed to accommodate the core and interactive disciplines within the development science. The system design has made provision for participants to collaborate and exchange information while maintaining control over the distribution of their data. This has been made possible by the implementation of a two file system: 1

International information systems like those mentioned, demonstratesthe range of possibilities available to

Caribbean social science researchers and the existence of a trend toward the total Information System. It is at this stage that we return to the specific questions we raised earlier.

The limitations of financial and physical resources make it expedient for information support system to adopt the strategy of a "man-machine" interface, i.e. moderniz- ing where possible and improvising with manual techniques relevant to the needs of Caribbean social sciences. In this respect, there are two models among others from which to choose. The first is a highly centralized system in the Soviet Union where traditional libraries and specialized ones merge under the umbrella of a centralized referral system. The other is the German Information Develoment Systems (DSE), which functions as a set of decentralized units, each of which is an Information Support System to specific research agencies (government and university) which deal with policy research. At the national level, however, the various units are co-ordinated by the German Institution of Development Research.

Given the geo-political factors, the varying levels of development of information systems and research In- stitutes within the Caribbean region, it seems realistic to opt in the first instance for some formulation, such as, the German model. In this way research and documentation can be combined with both basic and dynamic infra- structures that are manageable in terms of personal capabilities, cost, and the needs of users.

1. DEVSIS: Preliminary Design of the International Information System for the Development Sciences, Ottawa, I.D.R.C., 1976.

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FORMAL AND INFORMAL MECHANISM FOR THE CO-ORDINATION OF SOCIAL SCIENCE RESEARCH IN THE CARIBBEAN

Vaughan A. Lewis Ph. D.

We take as our central focus the co-ordination of social science research in the countries of the Caribbean C o m - munity (CARICOM) area. But we will in the course of this discussion look at the relevance of co-ordinating such research between institutions in this area and institutions in a wider relevant environment beyond it.

The geographical character of the area (CARICOM), it should be noted, is a relatively important factor in determining the nature of organized and collectively undertaken research. The physical separation of the relatively small number of social science researchers in these sometimes even non-contiguous islands already inhibits ease of communication and easy concentration of disciplinary expertise. But this is ex- acerbated by the increasing cost of air transport for economics, and therefore the institutions within them, faced by competing demands for increasingly scarce financial resources in general.

As is obvious, a fair amount of what can strictly be called social science research is no longer conducted solely in social science faculties of the Universities of the Region. Members of the faculties, organized in departments (economics, government, sociology, management studies) and in research institutes (Institute of Social and Ecomomic Research on the three campuses of the U.W.I., Institute of Development Studies. University of Guyana, Institute of International Relations, U.W.I., Trinidad), are still the main agents of long-term research devoted to the exploration of theoretical problems as well as to public policy type applied research.

But it is a fact that, certainly in the last decade and a half, a variety of institutions, essentially governmental in nature and therefore strictly policy-oriented, have come into existence, and have generated substantial data and short-term policy analyses of relevance to the academic researcher. Such institutions, both national and regional, include the planning agencies of governments, normally attached to Ministries of Finance and Development, the research sections of the Central Banks and Monetary Authorities, Central Statistical Offices or Departments (some of which have been in existence for some time), the Caribbean Community Secretariat and the Caribbean Develoment Bank.

In an era in which there is much pressure on the Un- iversities to become, "relevant" to the needs of society and

to the requirements of government, or to so justify the financial allocations which accrue to them, it is often argued that most of the "meaningful" (in the sense of relevant policy-oriented research) is conducted in these institutions rather than in the academic social science institutions. This in fact raises an on-going question in the area about the types of research activity that are "relevant" - in the sense of being theoretically viable, while suggesting some policy relevance, as applied science in the sense of being directly based on and focused towards the need to make immediate (Government) policy decisions; as one area of research showing some utility, theoretical or applied, vis-a-vis some other possible area, given the limited financial and other resources available at any time for academic research in general.

In some measure, the locations and orientations of the various institutions outlined above determine, from the perspective of the academic, the categories into which problems of co-ordination fall. Broadly, there are (i) problems of co-ordination within and between disciplines on a single campus location (ii) problems of co-ordination between the academic researchers and researchers based in policy-oriented institutions, national or regional (iii) problems of regional co-ordination among academic researchers on different campuses within and between disciplines. This latter problem is in some measure similar to that of the first, but complicated by scale differences and thus, in our context, by difficulties of communication.

Traditionally, within the originally single campus Faculty of Social Sciences, two mechanisms for co- ordination came into existence, the Institute of Social and Ecomomic Research (ISER) which in fact preceded the teaching departments and the university-wide research and Publications Committee. The latter, faced with a large number of constituents (increasing as the University staff has grown) and limited funds, is now clearly inadequate for the demands placed upon it. In fact, because of the existence of the ISER, it has been argued that research and publications funds should not in any substantial way be devoted to social sciences research. (Such an orientation was facilitated by the fact that at a certain time the ISER and at least one department became the recipient of substantial Foundation funding for research and staff development).

The ISER, sometimes referred to as the "research

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arm of the Faculty” is in fact, institutionally, more than this. One of its responsibilities is to sponsor and support research being planned or undertaken by the members of the teaching Departments. This function, encompassing both financial and other kinds of material support required for research activity, has been extended to the other two campuses as these have come into existence (with complementary branches of the Institute).

During part of the 1960s and much of the 1970s this function was enhanced by the receipt of a series of grants (now concluded) from the Ford Foundation. Such financial resources permitted not only support for individual researchers - in terms of so-called ”project support” but fellowships for teaching staff to permit them to engage in full-time research for periods of between three and nine months. It also was utilized initially for recruitment of potential teaching staff then resident in one or other of the metropolitan institutions and thereby permitted these individuals to undertake or complete doctoral and other advanced research in Caribbean ”field conditions”.

This recruitment function also provided (and in some degree still does) an important increment of individuals in one or other discipline, assisting thus in the creation of a ”critical mass” of core disciplinary groups - a prerequisite of the effective academic debate and discussion that is a necessary aspect of research production.

These external financial resources, part of which could be used for regional travel, contributed to a solution of the ”critical mass” problem by providing periodically for conferences on various disciplinary problems, bringing together the experiences of researchers from differing geographical ” fields”. 1

Such arrangements also have an additional function. They permit the development of approaches to the comparative study of Caribbean problems based on the specificity of territorial characteristics and orientations. Though there has always been an assumption, in our regionally-oriented research, of a certain degree of homogeneity across territories (especially as there has been in fact a degree of institutional homogeneity), the extent of differentiation is still large. As researchers have concentrated on ”micro” approaches to research, the arqa for comparison and thus for sharpening of theoretical tools can widen.

But as the universities become indigenous, researchers tend to concentrate on the problems of their national territories. It cannot therefore be taken for granted that the emphasis on comparative research will increasingly sustain itself without firm and systematic institutional support and the material basis necessary for this.

The basic faculty and ISER structure (joined in recent years by the Institute of Development Studies of the University of Guyana) has, in addition tb what has been discussed above, been underpinned (in addition, of course, to university basic funding for their establishments), by their structures of research of a temporary - though sometimes for continuing periods - character provided by both regional and international sources.

We can make reference here, first, to research of a national and regional nature, but within an essentially

single disciplinary area (or sub-area, to be more precise): the Regional Programme of Monetary Studies funded by the Central banks and Monetary Authorities of the CARICOM area, but undertaken, without government in- terference, mainly by academic researchers under the aegis of the ISED, and later of the ISER and the I.D.S. of the University of Guyana. The programme is dependent on the co-operation of the research sections of the Central Banks for access to relevant data, for co-operation in actual research, and for imputs indicating relevant research paths that go beyond immediate short-term policy needs.

A programme such as this one has gone through an evolutionary process corresponding to the very development of the research capabilities within the Central Banks themselves. Initially, when such capabilities were minimal, the academic side concentrated on systematic data collection as well as analysis. Now, with well developed data collection facilities in most of the Banks (in most cases more sophisticated than those possessed by the academic institutions), academic researchers are largely dependent on the monetary authorities for collated data. The present problems of joint research inhere in finding an adequate division of labour based on adequate access to material sometimes deemed ”confidential”. (The CARICOM countries and public institutions have in- herited and largely accepted British notions of confidentiality and ”official secret”).

A n appropriate division of labour in a programme such as this requires constant communication and the developmemt of a feeling of confidence on the part of the public oficials that academic researchers can, through communication, develop a sensitivity to what are ”relevant” research areas, even though the process of intellectual clarification and proposal of policy measures may take a longer period than public policy research geared to Government decision-making normally requires. Though the Programme has served as an important training base for individuals subsequently entering the public service, no system has yet developed for the short-term exchange of researchers between the academic institutions and the Banks. This appears to be an objective worth pursuing, but as in many Third World countries, its essential element is the maintenance of a ”proper” atmosphere between social science academics and the public (political) system. 2

We now turn to a second area of structured research of a temporary nature. We refer to recent areas of inter- disciplinary research utilizing academics on a regional basis emphasizing comparative analysis and public policy solutions.

In two recent projects, Caribbean Technology Policy Studies andCaribbean Public Enterprises (both funded by an external agency), an attempt was made to co-ordinate a

1. See for example, Louis Lindsay (ed.), Methodology and Change. F’roblems of Applied Social Science Research Techniques in the Commonwealth Caribbean Working Paper No. 14, 1978, 370 pp.).

2. This problem is also seen as relevant in D. Ghai, ”Social Science Research on Developmemt and Research Institutes in Africa ”, The Social Sciences and Development, Papers presented at a conference in Bellagio, Italy, February 12-16, 1974 (IBRD, 1974).

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number of researchers of differing disciplines. In the case of the project on technology policy, these disciplines involved both the social and natural sciences. In the case of an earlier evaluative project of low income housing self- help construction, carried out on a national basis in Jamaica, social science disciplines along with that of architecture were employed. The technology policy study area, a relatively new one, involved the co-ordination of interdisciplinary as distinct from multidisciplinary research.

Such a project, conducted between two regional social science institutes, raised problems of the appropriate mechanisms for facilitating a "regional co- operation" approach to research among autonomous institutions. It also indicated the acceptance of an orientation in which economic and social development should provide the essential focus and emphasis (the dominant criterion) of the problem areas chosen for academic research in the contemporary era. But it also indicated that this focus might at times entail coping with and integrating non-social science analyses and methodologies. A substantial task of ensuring intellectual coherence then devolves upon academics chosen to manage such research endeavours.

What is clear is that substantial resources need to be devoted to this kind of regionally-managed research requiring both the case-study approach to ensure relevance for particular countries and comparative analysis. A n important basis for this is contiuous communication between institutions in the CARICOM region so as to ensure, to the extent that this is possible, harmonious assumptions for approaching agencies supporting such research.

Finally, in proposing research of the kind discussed above, consideration must be given to ensuring that proper cognisance is taken of size and therefore resource differentials characterizing the countries of the Sub- Region. This problem involves not only ensuring that assumptions about size and resources held by policy planners in the different countries are considered; but also ensuring the adequacy of data from smaller countries, and ensuring human resource inputs from such areas.

T o ensure that such considerations are given proper emphasis, the ideas of having advisory committees drawn inter alias from policy planners has been suggested. So far, for a variety of reasons, such Committees have not functioned in an optimal fashion.

The problem referred to in the previous paragraph is really a reflection on a larger scale of that of co-operation in research between academic researchers and researchers and policy-planners in national public institutions.

Most research institutions in the Caribbean have a strong awareness of the importance of applied policy research. From their point of view such research is relatively easily undertaken due to access to data, when governments make direct requests for the institutes to undertake specific pieces of research on their behalf. Evaluations of on-going government programmes would fall under this area. It becomes more difficult when the research institutions indicate, from their end, research priorities in areas which they believe are, or will in the near future, become important areas for policy and decision-making.

A formal, institutional mechanism for ensuring "right" choices of priorities, access to data, and periodic critical evaluation by those in the public sector, is that of an Advisory Board for the particular research institution composed of both academics and knowledgeable public servants. This is the case, for example, with the I.D.S. of the University of Guyana, but it does not exist in the ISER. The ISER, as indicated previously, has had advisory committees for particular projects or programmes. The Institute of International Relations has a Governing Board composed of both University and Government representatives.

But perhaps even more important than over-arching Advisory Boards whose purpose would be to discuss and set research priorities, may be the need to establish an maintain at least partially formalized relationships with key public sector institutions - National Planning Agencies or Planning Commissions, Ministries of Agriculture, certain kinds of statutory corporations, especially, for example, in the area of public utilities, industrial development corporations.

Regular discussions are of course useful in this connection. But what may be required is a system whereby the research ,institutes could directly - through their staff or academics under their aegis - participate in certain kinds of research and planning activities underway in these public institutions. This could be done either through contractual arrangements, (some already exist) or through short-term integration of academic staff into the particular public bureaucracy.

Such an arrangement has relevance for the adequate training of applied social scientists in what might be called the tight market for social scientists that has characterized the sub-region during the last decade or so when both the economies and public sectors of the Carib- bean were expanding significantly.

The market for social scientists, increasingly diver- sified beyond the university sector to the public and private sectors, has not only placed a strain on the staffing requirements of the universities and research institutions, but has also brought into the public sector numbers of social scientists whose knowledge of the ways and requirements of the public sector have been minimal. And this, especially in an environment which, from the point of view of training had traditionally tended to rigidly disciplinary modes of education, and non-policy-oriented analysis.

Mechanisms, such as those suggested above, might go some way towards obviating the dangers of this situation. But, at least in some countries, if research priorities are established between public systems and research institutes that are not on the agenda of immediate policy- decision, financial ressources for research might not be available from the public sector. In such cases recourse might be made to public or private international agencies, and research institutions might even be helped - in their task of ensuring (when seeking external funding) that indigenous priorities do not become distorted - by having the support and seal of approval of a government agency.

T w o major inter-governmental institutions in the C A R I C O M region have been responsible for generating

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substantial data and analysis in recent years, in the areas of trade and planning for economic development - the CARICOM Secretariat and the Caribbean Development Bank CDB). As yet no really meaningful mechanisms seem to have been developed for declassifying data and analyses, in a manner that respects the confidentiality prerogatives of their governmental members. This situation is detrimental to the activities of the University research institutions, creating as it does a time-lag in the availability of data, ignorance about on-going policy research, and inadequacy of relatively available material for post-graduate training within the Universities.

The task of finding some mechanism for resolving this problem is urgent, and requires adaptations on both sides. Proposals have began to be made for adapting research institutions’ librairies and documentation systems for acquisition of data from governmental institutions. But resources from within the Universitiy systems are clearly inadequate to this process of institutional modernization. 1 Apart from the I.D.S., which has representatives of both the C A R I C O M Secretariat and the C D B on its Board, there is yet no systematic institutional connection between the research institutions and these organizations.

In respect of the Wider Caribbean and Latin American area, one fundamental historical fact should first be noted. As objects of Anglo-Saxon colonial domination, the members of CARICOM group have had minimal intelectual relationships among themselves. This applies (in spite of extensive migrations at particular times) as much to the non-Anglophone states of the Carib- bean archipelago, as it does to the countries of the South American continent. Minimal formal relationships exist, for example, between the ISER, IDS and IRR on the Un- iversity of Puerto Rico on the other.

Semi-formal associations like the Caribbean Studies Association and the Association of Caribbean Historians as well as the Association of Caribbean Research In- stitutes and Universities (UNICA) have, in recent years, gone some way towards providing forums for multidisciplinary, multilingual contact among Caribbean scholars. But these are essentially voluntary in nature and have no assurance of long-term financial support. 2

Research into science and tehnology policy conducted at the UWI and the University of Guyana has recently opened to CARICOM social scientists the large array of

scholars and materials in the research institutions of the South American countries in at least one area. Similarly Caribbean scholars have known for some time of the research into international trade and production undertaken by Latin American scholars, but have had little acess to and contact with such scholars in terms of their ongoing work. 3

The problems here are two-fold: first, ensuring access to Hemispheric international agencies - OAS, IADB, ECLA SELA for example. This aspect is similar to the problems faced in terms of the C A R I C O M regional institutions.

Secondly, however, is the problem of continuity of relationships with research institutes and Faculties of social science, given language barriers and physical communication difficulties. Often such relations are established through the mediation of funding agencies engaged in supporting similar types of work in different geographical locations. This is necessarily important at this stage though on the other hand project specific to the particular funding agency. 6

Little funding exists within the Caribbean universities for exchanges of scholars working on the Latin American continent. Such funding as exists is in fact essentially directed to the North Atlantic centres (the visits of externas examiners for example).

The Institute of Social and Economic Research is moving towards seeking funding for the support of projects which require comparative analyses of, in particular the ecomomic, problems of C A R I C O M countries and countries of relatively similar sizes in the Central American area and the smaller South American countries. International support for endeavours of this nature would go some way towards intitiation the co-ordination of research in a practical, specific-result-directed manner.

See J.E. Greene and Carol Collins, Research and Documentation in the Development Sciences in the English-Speaking Caribbean, (ISER 1977). Proposals have been made and plans are afoot for the formation within the CARICOM area of a University Political Science Association and a Carib- bean Economics Association. See Norman Girvan, ”The Development of Dependency Economics in the Caribbean and Latin America” Social and Economic Studies. Vol. 22, No. 1, 1973, pp. 1-33. However, it should be observed that the Institute of International Relations (IIR) has obtained funds for study-visits by its students and staff to Cuba for example.

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UNIVERSITY PLANNING AND REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Betty Sedoc - Dahlberg

The role of the University within the framework of planning in the social sector has very broad dimensions. This entails the recognition that a comprehensive approach is the only meaningful one to planning. For whether or not one is concerned with the national, regional or sectoral level, there are always interactions between components of the planning model. M y main concern will be the educational component in social sector planning. This is however related to development in other sectors.

Adjustments must be made in other areas since all components are inseparably related to one another. I a m here referring to the education component and its relationship to housing, medical care, etc, all of which fall within the category of the social sector. Within the education sector the sub-components, with regard to both level and vocational orientation, should be considered in relation to one another.

It is also useful to make a distinction between policy and planning, since such a distinction provides insight into problems which are related to decision making, goal formulation, alternatives and means. In this regard, the administrative sector plays an important part in relation to policy-making and planning.

The views of Third World scientists on roles of universities in their countries weigh heavily in m y thinking because many of them have addressed themselves to the urgent need to introduce innovations which could bring university courses nearer to development needs in their own countries. In so doing, they have had reject some of the approaches in universities in the industrialized world and also to alter the direction of many third World universities and other institutions of higher learning whose curricula had been determined in pre-independent eras by foreign or local academics trained abroad with in a western frame of reference.

Though the whole Third World experience provides the background for this paper, our main concern will be with the Caribbean in its post-colonial period. Due to the lack of comparable statistically relevant data, the approach to the subject will be of a thematic character, and some supplementary observations will be made on political and social independence in relation to education and research at universities.

The premise that the granting of political independence necessarily brought an end to colonialism is false.

This falsehood stems from the notion that political independence implies social independence. In fact all historical patterns of reference (socially, culturally and politically) were either adopted from the colonial period or imposed by the colonial European countries and are still dominant in many of our states.

Many problems derive from this. In the first place, development concepts, the philosophy related thereto, and the values and standards derived therefrom, are embedded in the structure of interests of the former colonial powers, and cause stagnation in the process of defining development objectives tailored to the needs of our own societies.

This is not the case in all Third World countries, some of which clearly indicate in what manner and by what means they intend to bring about their development. In this respect they do not apply a number of values stemming from colonial patterns as central standards, by contrast a number of solutions are based on concepts derived from interpretations of their own social and economic needs. These countries attained a certain measure of social independence, defined as the capacity of a nation to attempt solutions to a number of its development problems in accordance with what it deems relevant in its own social, economic and political system.

I do not advocate rejecting of all values originating in the former colonial European countries, but the determining factor should be that the criteria should be relevant and meaningful. The term "social" is to be interpreted in its broadest sense, namely: "everything that is concerned with people". Interpreted in that sense, it includes technology, economics, politics and social and cultural factors.

Striving to achieve social independence or self- management entails the need to train local and regional intellectual cadres that are able to make essential contributions to defining relevant problems, to finding adequate solutions and to providing managerial expertise required for overall development. Universities in the region should therefore be viewed as having an important development role.

Co-operation between governments in the region and universities is essential in order to give substance to the contribution expected from the university.

Where a development philosophy is non-exsistent in the region, governments cannot make a substantial

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contribution towards this end. The innovating, criticizing and counselling nature of the university is socially effective only when, governments and universities in the region are striving for the same objectives in the development process and are co-operation with. Research and expertise are both necessities for generating a well-aimed develoment process.

In many countries of the Third World universities have not succeeded in giving sufficient content to the formulation of a number of relevant problems and in in- dicationg solutions. Research done within the universities is too often determined, less by priorities related to development needs of the countries, than by individual spheres of interest. Much of the work was done by for- eigners and certain subjects hardly received the attention they deserve.

For example, a comparative research of development models can be envisaged. Research of this nature could provide important information about the relation between a development model and, for instance, the spreading of welfare and the participation of the population in the labour process. Or at the micro level one can consider problems relating to planning and implementation of projects.

There is an obvious need to shift from partial and fragmentary research to more integrating and synthesiz- ing studies that address themselves to the society, social structure and economy in their entirety. Since the attain- ment of independence, significant changes have occurred in the political systems of many countries.

The process of modernization has brought about fundamental changes in the social and economic structure and a great number of varieties in the approach of development have been introduced in several countries. This offers a unique opportunity to scientists to undertake analytical and interpretative studies on the transformation process and on new orientations of our societies and economies.

A similar phase in the history of the present-day industrialized countries has led to the production of a range of classical works that succeeded in defining the dynamic forces of emerging societies and in characterizing their form. Only a small number of such books have been published in the Caribbean countries.

Secondly, it should be observed that for a realistic analysis of the nature of development problems it is essential to liberate oneself, to some extent, from methods and theories that have been worked out in the context of the industrialized countries.

There is need. in all disciplines that fall within the category of social and economic sciences, for the development of new concepts including analytical categories and models that fit within the situation which is characteristic of our countries. Similarly statistical methods applicable to developed countries should be adapted to the conditions of our economies in order to be serviceable to development goals, policy and planning.

The empirical research methodology which is still dominant in social sciences in the Western societies has, to some extent, contributed to the views held by the social scientists in our countries with respect to social problems.

For a long time there was an aversion to so-called finalities (goal - means).

In this conception of science strongly dominated by positivism, the central question was the explanation of phenomena, so-called empirical research.

The starting point was the so-called principle of falsification, whereby verification offered the possibility to reject is not to reject hypotheses. The emphasis laid was not on uniqueness but on the uniformity of phenomena under identical conditions.

For a policy-making and planning, the central issue is how to induce change. The pivotal question is the goals- means relationship in other words, not only causalities, but finalities are at the centre of interest. Hence, not only the so-called doctrine of the empirical scientific methodology is at issue, but also the methodology of decision-making, sometimes referred to as the normative theory, since priorities on the basis of alternatives are the main concern here.

The central point is not the principle of falsification, but the principle of rationality.

For our purposes, therefore, empirical methodology and normative theory are both important. Empirical research results help to modify normative prescriptions. Emphasis has been placed on decision-making or the normative theory rather than on empiricism which presupposes central theories on the basis of which hypotheses can be formulated. For it is often premature and restricting to accept truths that may be relevant only for other societies, without having a good insight into our region and own societies.

Finally, to achieve greater efficiency of policy- oriented research, it is mandatory to go further than the technical analysis of a given develoment problem. Special attention should be paid to the political and administrative feasibility of the totality of applicable political instruments. Attention should also be paid to the various groups and classes that will be affected by the proposed changes. Nor can a policy-oriented research neglect: a. the means and methods to get the support of those

groups that are involved in the proposed changes and b. the steps necessary to diminish and neutralize the

counter action of groups with divergent vested interests. Research of this nature can only be succesful if the

scientists have a thorough understanding of institutions, traditions and value of the populations in the countries.

The training of experts and the creation of expertise at universities is of major importance within the framework of the struggle to achieve social independence. Practically all studies on the universities in developing countries focus primarily on the formal material aspects of education.

For example, there is a constant ongoing discussion on innovation in the curriculum. Although the importance of this cannot be underestimated, it is striking that little attention is paid to civics. For it is precisely they which are associated with the transfer of values and standards as they occur in the halls outside the lecture rooms, the commenting on a variety of domestic and foreign affairs, the

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attitude of the lecturer in a conflict, the manner of dress- ing all of which. I should like to classify under the "unwritten", hidden curriculum, which I deem invaluable in training of young people to achieve social independence.

Often indigenous values that serve as central standards to assess a number of major social problems are not dealt with through lectures but through informal contacts, especially staff with members with critical and analytical minds. It may concern reference to the colonial cultural pattern, or reference to modern conceptions in the former colonial country, or it may concern the adoption of an attitude of consistent aloofness. In all three cases certain values are transmitted to the students.

It is frequently asserted that there exists an identity problem in many Caribbean countries. But w e should bear in mind that w e can speak about an identity problem only when there is alienation from the familiar environment without accommodation into the new one, or in cases where there is only a partial adaptation.

In so far as the identity problem is relevant, it important to train people who, on the basis of involvement in their own societies, are able, with expert knowledge, to recognize and to formulate development problems, and to indicate adequate solutions.

I shall now refer to two problems that are extremely relevant.

Costs of universities in The Third World countries are continuously increasing. The fact that the growing expenditure has not gone hand in hand with a comparable growth in employment for graduates is criticized in publications on universities in the Third World. It is stated that the education policy has resulted in an increase of the number of unproductive university trained experts. Lack of planning has resulted in enrollment of students for various studies without consideration of future manpower needs. Increases in the number of students enrolling for courses every year are due to: a. the status and material remuneration accorded to

holders of university degrees, and b. the fact that secondary education in the region is

primarily geared to further training at universities. It is worth noting that in our societies there is also a

liberating aspect of university education. The desire to bring about structural reforms in the social and economic areas also implies the promotion of social mobility: offering to people from all walks of life the opportunity to acquire their talents, interests and capacities.

The annual growth of the number of jobless academics has led, in many South-East Asian countries, to efforts to introduce a more selective education rather than mass education.

The solution ignores the structural nature of the problems, for it will be possible to solve the problems relating to supply and demand of the growing number of university trained people only if there is an insight into the future need for manpower in various sectors.

Providing scientific education and conduction research are important functions of our universities which can make significant contributions to regional development. But their ability to do this will be limited if they

function as exclusive institutions for producing elitist cadres in society. At the same time, universities embedded in exogenous value systems can contribute very little to the development of the country. Monumental problems also arise where university is made into an instrument of a government-imposed and strictly defined development programme derived from an explicit socially doctrinal context. Such a university does not train scientists who will be able to give substance to the principal tasks of the development-oriented university, such as the innovative, critical and analytical monitoring of a planned development process.

The policy of the university can be entirely or partially formulated by the government or more or less be entirely a concern of the university istself. One can therefore envisage a continuum from total absence of autonomy, to almost total autonomy.

Unesco has carried out a study number of universities, most of which were situated in Third World countries, the results of which were published in four volumes entitled : "Planning the development of universities'' 1974.

It can be concluded from the title that comprehensive planning is desirable for "the whole and the component parts", even when proportional growth is the central theme. The common practice among universities is restricting themselves to tailoring financial planning to physical planning. There is need for greater rationaliza- tion and a more structural approach to university planning.

Higher education is multifunctional and multi- stratified. Its functions include training of experts, contributing to science by the practice of science, provision of education, and undertaking of relevant research in technology and socio-economics. The multi-stratified character is reflected both in the range of qualificatios universities confer and the wide variety of lectures given.

Three prime functions of our universities need to be considered : a) scientific, b) social and c) training of students.

Whether regional universities should concern themselves with scientific problems focused on by universities in the industrialized world, or whether they should meet the requirements of development-oriented universities to design models, to contribute to technology and science, to draft strategies based on their own societies is a matter of great concern. Univesities in the Caribbean also belong to the international university community and co-operation in a regional context can considerably widen the scope for research. C o m m o n position should be formulated on the practice of science and on development and, since scientific standards are related to academic attainments of the staff, qualitative improvement must also receive consideration. This can be determined through professional attainments of lecturers, through scientific and socially relevant research and through the setting of high standards. In this context, the content of education is relevant to achieving progressive, scientific, technological and socio-ecomomic development.

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The professional qualifications of young staff can be improved through study leave, and active participation in regional and international scientific meetings.

Consideration should be given to the socio-economic needs of the country in enrolling students. There is a quantitative imbalance in the supply of and demand for graduates. In countries with scarce financial means where manpower planning is not practised, universities themselves should carry out surveys on job opportunities for graduates. The results of such surveys can help to rationalize intake of undergraduates. A start could be made through an annual survey relating the number of graduates to employment opportunities for them.

Development Institutes in the region can help to provide greater orientation of students toward Caribbean needs by exchanges of lecturers and by offering courses for both students and citizens in general. The L a w Faculty of the University of Suriname has already set up such a course.

Activities of this nature can be institutionalized to great advantage. They could lead to inter-faculty activities, to multidisciplinary approaches to development problems, to increasing the access of the community to the university, to broadening regional experiences, to increasing the level of the university and non-university staff members and students, and to intensifying the contact between lecturers and the community.

The university must also reflect on the training of academics. Apart from the intellectual achievements, per- sonality development is also important to our society. Recruitment of staff exclusively on the basis of intellectual qualities does not ensure that the teaching staff will pay attention to all aspects of student development.

It is only in certain socialist states that both the professional training and the mental training have been incorporated as general objectives. In view of the fact that in many Third World countries it is chiefly the university

that trains the executive and managerial cadres of the society and that, because of the shortage of these cadres, academics in most countries are called upon soon after graduation to bear great responsibilities, it would seem desirable for universities to pay much more attention to character development.

There are many restrictions and constraints to good university planning in the region.

A n information system: in order to take right decisions, it is desirable to have an insight into regional problems in their full dimensions. To this end a good information system is a prerequisite. Data are required on students wastage, the costs of various study programmes and activities, and insight into the patterns of applied information systems. This will require both the re- organization of existing information, and also the collection of new information essential for decision making. In this respect a first step in the right direction might be the publication of a regional university information bulletin through which interested groups with in and outside the universities in the region could be informed on development within universities.

This preliminary examination of some problems in regional universities shows that apart from the socio- ecomomic, financial, pedagogical and political fields, there are demographic constraints. The number of disciplines which can be offered in the university must be related to the minimum number of students required to run a course. One of the ways of overcoming this problem is co-operation between universities in the region.

Regional concern with these and other constraints is important for comprehensive university planning, Even if governments show little enthusiasm for planning, universities should seek among themselves to establish closer links in efforts to overcome regional problems in the field of education.

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FUNDING FOR RESEARCH IN THE SOCIAL SCIENCES

Dr. Gerard Leckie

In this paper I do not intend to deal with all aspects of research funding in the social sciences. Nor is it m y intention - this would be almost impossible - to give definite anwers to the questions involved. More and more the importance of fundamental research in the social sciences is stressed. For the Caribbean and similar developing regions in the world, research in general is an essential component of a planned development; this also holds good for research in the social sciences. Research in social sciences and the stimulation of such research have more or less extensive financial consequences. The reader will look in vain for ready-made answers to the funding problem. What can be expected rather are a few thoughts on the basic issues. I hope that a fruitful discusion can take place on the basis of the aspects brought forward have which are not necessarily of a financial nature.

For the sake of convenience, I shall use the following description of social sciences: "The totality of sciences which seek to use several (experimental) methods of studying the behaviour of man in society".

Many disciplines are considered social sciences, these include economics, political sciences, sociology, social psychology, ethnology, athropology, etc .... Research tries to give answers to questions in which w e are interested: sometimes there is an accurate description of a phenomenon, sometimes one might be interested in the coherence of phenomena. Research tries to bring forward new views or perspectives. Research is a scientific activity which aims at producing valid or true knowledge.

The pursuit of social science entails two closely related but distinct education in the social sciences and; research in the social sciences. In the framework of this paper I will be dealing primarily with the research aspect. Research can be defined as an activity which aims to produce valid or true knowledge. For the time being, no distinctions will be made between knowledge on the cognitive level or knowledge on the proficiency levels. Nor will a distinction be made between knowledge as related to theory and knowledge as related to application (technology).

It is difficult to speak of universally valid knowledge in the social sciences. In the social sciences, the production of knowledge depends upon the concrete situation in which it is produced. It is therefore important to

determine whether this knowledge is valid mainly for the region in which it was produced.

This raises the question of the conditions under which data is collected, since data is used to generate knowledge. There would seem to be indications that the circumstances under which scientific knowledge is gathered in Third World countries are modified by specific characteristics. This implies that the knowledge should neither be taken for granted non examined outside its social context.

What kind of situation obtains in scientific research in the Caribbean and in the Third World countries? T o outline this situation effectively, it is necessary to look briefly at the circumstances in which research takes place. The socio-economic and political context in which the Third World countries are, cannot be disconnected from the past colonial and present neo-colonial situation. This situation has led among other things to the development of socio-economic structures - partly approved and partly protested against - which were imposed by the so-called mother-country and still exist in many Third World countries. Characteristic of the colonial and neo-colonial period is economic and social dependence. This dependence can also be seen in scientific fields including research. This condition continued for different reasons in the so-called post-colonial period, despite the considerable financial aid reveived through agreements for assistance or co-operation concluded by the Third World countries after independence.

The fact is that in the case of co-operation there is only one-way traffic, with little question of interaction, because the situation is characterized by partners who are in fact unequal.

Agreements for co-operation concluded under these circumstances necessarily lead to the conclusion that the post-colonial period can also be characterized as a dependent situation. This dependence is expressed once again in many fields. This paper deals mainly with the scientific dependence, which is embedded within the broad framework of socio-economic and political dependence. In the scientific field this situation is expressed most clearly in the form of knowledge-dependence.

The social sciences that are pursued in the Third World originated in the developed countries, where they were also developed further. The Universities and research

43

institutes played an important role in this. With the setting up of our own universities and research institutes, a step was taken towards our own way of pursuing science. The circumstances under which research is carried out in the Third World countries are far from ideal. There follows a tentative summing up of what may be considered the relevant factors, although these are not complete: 1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

the western world takes a central position with regard to social science research, the accumulation of knowledge takes place mainly in the western world, the transfer and distribution of the accumulated knowledge is still insufficient in the Caribbean, the testing of legitimizing of the knowledge developed in the field of social sciences is not done sufficiently within the regions concerned, the process of testing takes place with the help of theories and methods that are not quite suited to explain reality in the regions concerned, a lack of a research-tradition, since the accumulation of endogenous knowledge in the Third World countries is checked by restraining factors such as a lack of means (facilities, equipment, libraries, archives, funds, literature), a lack of properly trained cadres with regard to the financing of research, there is still an insufficient flow of money in the Caribbean.

Before going deeper into research funding in the social sciences, it might be useful to indicate what starting-points can be used in the countries of the Carib- bean or in other Third World countries when doing research. In the first place, social science research must have as its object to increase the knowledge of the community or region concerned, with the emphasis on the increase of insight into relevant societal problems..In the second place, the knowledge thus acquired will have to be distributed in such a way that it becomes available to everyone interested in the subject.

In the third place, one may expect research in the social sciences to aim at gathering and interpreting the knowledge that is needed for the further development of society, in other words, the object of the research must be not only to broaden scientific insight, but also to make available relevant information, on which policy and planning can be based. Finally, social science research can be expected to contribute to education in this field and to training experts to do research.

These starting-points have been formulated to make clear that social science research must be relevant and must contribute to further development. Social scientists, however, should take care not to oversell their sciences. We have to remain aware of our possibilities and limitations, and acknowledge that the present state of affairs within the social sciences makes a modest approach necessary.

If we look at the financing of social science research, it might be useful to give a broad outline of how research is now taking place in the Caribbean. Social science research in the Caribbean is being carried out by the following institutions: Universities and their research

institutes; Government research departments; Private research agencies.

The universities of the Caribbean and their research institutes for social science do research mainly on their own initiative, mostly to support education, or because a researcher or group of researchers is interested in the subject. Sometimes the research institute is asked to do research for a third party, for which it may be paid. Un- iversities do not work to make a profit, so the research is done on the basis of covering expenses. Social science research at the universities of the Caribbean is primarily aimed at subjects that are not too extensive and that can be studied through small research-projects. N o w and then larger, long-term research-programmes are set up on a limited scale, and as a result the research institute will usually specialize in the subject. Much of the research is done as part of the curriculum. So far, the distribution of knowledge has not been adequate.

The government research departments carry out research with an eye to collecting policy-supporting knowledge and insight. The selection of subjects is made according to their relevance for policy and planning. In a few cases multi-annual research projects are set up.

A n example here might be the departments at the Statistics Offices which are involved with social indicators and social statistics.

A rough insight into the scope of the research shows that the contribution of the government research . . . . departments is not great.

Thee are also a few private research agencies involved with social science research. These agencies work only when they are asked to carry out research and are purely commercial. Their contribution to the scope of social science research is not very great. The government is their most important principal.

H o w is social science research financed? What the institutions involved with social science research do, may indicate where they get their financial aid.

The Universities and their research institutes are aided to a great extent by the Government. In a few cases, the universities are asked to do research for which they are paid. Such requests usually come from the government or from private foundations and.the payment is made through grants, allowances and scholarships. It is m y opinion that only a small part of the budget for social science research at the Universities of the Caribbean is used for research. It might be interesting to carry out an investigation to see how much money is actually spent on social science research in the Caribbean. The relation to other aspects of the social sciences might then be ascertained much better. The investigation could also include the scope (in financial aid) of University research aided by a third part. To illustrate the point let us take Suriname. In 1979, 8,6% of the budget of the Faculty of Social Sciences was spent on research. Financing by others in that year was nil.

Research by government research departments was financed 100% by the Government. The amounts are specified in the budgets of the Ministries involved. I believe that here, too, only a small percentage of the means available was used for this kind of research. A

44

comparative investigation would very likely provide interesting data.

There are also private research agencies that carry out research whenever they are asked to do so. They are commercial. Even here a comparative investigation might throw more light on the scope of the research done by these agencies.

The data concerning research funding in the social sciences are very summary and incomplete at the moment. A n investigation as to the scope and the nature of such research would supply more exact data. It is m y opinion that not much social science research is done in the Carib- bean as yet; for this I take into account the possible scope of this research in terms of available financial means. The necessity for good and useful research in the social sciences is acknowledged throughout the world. Therefore, more means and funds have to become available. The financial means available so far for social science research can be summed up as follows:

Financial aids from the primary source of money: all means that come directly or almost directly from the government, for instance, subsidies to the universities and their research institutes, and to the departments at the ministries involved with social science research.

The financial means that are made available to Third World countries through development aid may also be considered to belong to the primary source of money. These funds almost always become available via the government.

A preliminary evaluation of the scope of this kind of financing shows that not much money has been spent on social science research so far. I, therefore, think it would be desirable to try and increase the share of the social sciences in two ways: an increase of the government contribution so that the social sciences receive their just share, or, a re-orientation and a redistribution within the budget of the university itself. In the latter case, the policy of the university will have to take a different course and give higher priority to social science research, something which is necessary and can be achieved.

The financial means from the secondary jlow of money: all means that become available through official international or regional organizations, often through the intermediary of the government. Some of these international organizations are U N E S C O , U N D P , OAS, ILO and C D C C . The impression here is that the scope of financing is very limited with regard to social science research. It is not impossible to try and increase the flow of money, but in such a case government assistance is important and often indispensable.

The financial means from the tertiaryjlow of money: all financial aid that becomes available through other agencies and organizations. These are usually private organizations that wish to contribute to research in the social sciences. Subsidizing or financing usually takes place on the basis of a project description, while the scope or duration of the project is not too large or too long. Organizations that might belong to the group tertiary flow of money are: the Ford Foundation, the Friedrich Ebert Stiftung, Carnegie, and others.

Financial means made available by industry for

research (very limited in scope so far) also belong to this kind of financing. As far as the social sciences are concerned, this form of financing is still insufficient, especially in the Caribbean.

I have tried to give an impression of the possibilities for financial aid and means for social science research, with the accent on the Caribbean. There are no systematic and trustworthy data available on the scope of this aid up to now. A n investigation of this would throw more light on the subject. It is clear that much more has to be done to promote social science research. The result or such promotion may be that more financial aid will be given to carry out social science research. It should be noted, however, that social scientists must not oversell their sciences: they have to be aware of the possibilities and im- possibilities. They must know which questions they can answer adequately and to which they have no answer. But this does not mean they should not be aware of the contribution they can make to the further development of their science in general and especially for the community.

The characteristics of the Caribbean countries make further notes necessary. Most, if not all, countries of the Caribbean are characterized, among other del things, by what may be called ”small-scaleness”, or a very small population with all the consequences this entails. Of course this also has consequences for social science research. It seems imperative that the Caribbean countries begin to work together. Co-operation will prevent un- necessary duplication of activities and will moreover lead to an increase and improvement of expertise. The ”small- scaleness” of the Caribbean countries has another consequence that is still incalculable. There will be a time when we will have overcome the problem of shortages of academically or university-trained cadres and then education will have to provide the other cadres necessary in view of the natural growth of the population. At that time the social scientists, who have been mainly involved with education, will have to engage in other activities.

A more or less adequate solution to this problem can be found by reserving more time for research. The educational staff will thus become more and more a research staff. Naturally there are other aspects and problems attached to this solution. But now is the time to think of a solution.

Finally, some remarks on what might be called the automomy of science. Discussions about this are eternal. Autonomy for whom? In regard to whom? With whose help? Autonomy for what purpose? It is necessary to discuss things with one another to get a clear ideas of what we are talking about which is a first requisite in science. T o what extent can organizations and institutes be really autonomous? When talking about the funding for social science research it is important to consider the autonomy of the university itself. Is it not true that autonomy ceases on the threshold of the financier or the provider of funds?

I make this statement at the end intentionally, for when we have to set priorities for social sciences in the Caribbean, we also have to take this into account. T o what extend can one speak of an autonomous pursuit of science? And what are the consequences for research funding?

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UNITED NATIONS EDUCATIONAL, SCIENTIFIC AND CULTURAL ORGANIZATION

Expert Meeting on Social Science Needs and Priorities in the English-speaking Caribbean and Suriname

(Bridgetown, Barbados, 28 January - 1 February 1980)

FINAL REPORT AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Chairperson Locksley EDMONDSON Dean, Faculty of Social Sciences University of the West Indies Mona- Jamaica

Vice-Chairpersons: Betty SEDOC-DAHLBERG Vice-Chancellor Univesity of Suriname Paramaribo - Suriname

Perry MARS Dean, Faculty of Social Sciences University of Guyana Turkeyen - Georgetown Guyana

Rapporteur : Raymond SMITH Professor of Anthropology University of Chicago Chicago - Illinois - U.S.A.

I. INTRODUCTION

1.

2.

46

The work of the meeting will be considered under three broad, but integrally related headings and its results and recommendations will be presented in this sequence rather than in strict order of presentation of the papers. The areas of concern were: (i) The development, disintegration and ordering of

theoretical paradigms and perspectives; (ii) research - its nature, organization, relation to

graduate education and relevance to public policy formulation and implementation;

(iii) Training in the social sciences at all levels.

In setting out these broad themes, an attempt wili be made to integrate into the discussion the many sub- sidiary questions that were raised, as well as to maintain a clear focus upon the problems of sub- regional, regional and wider international communication and co-operation. Some recommendations are embedded in the text of the report in

general form but the specific recommendations of the meeting are presented together on pages 15 to 20.

11. THEORETICAL PERSPECTIVES

1. Broad agreement was reached on the fact that the most general theoretical paradigms which guided research in this area during the 1950’s and 1960’s increasingly have been called into question and are gradually being abandoned. This is part of a world wide phenomenon in the social sciences; lvhether one considers structural functional theory in its various forms, theories of pluralism or classic Marxist determinative theories, radical reconsiderations have been set in motion by the inherent limitations of the theories themselves and by the changing international political atmosphere of the past twenty years. There were differences of opinion about new perspectives relevant to the‘ problems of this region - differences reflecting wider difficulties of paradigm construction, but the meeting agreed upon the need to ground our understanding of Caribbean societies in the specificity of their historical formation and experience, and in an appreciation of their ideological and cultural constitution, as well as in the study of economic and political structures. These theoretical considerations must inform innovations in teaching as well as research programmes, and it is believed that the richness of the Caribbean social experience, with its wide variety of languages and cultures, constitutes a fertile ground for the deveoppment of new theoretical perspectives. One might instance the highly creative work being done in the linguistic analysis of so-called Creoles and pidgins, research that challenges the very concept of bounded ”languages and grammatical systems and formulates models for understanding the creative aspects of the use of language in pragmatic social contexts.”

1. No attempt has been made to provide a definition of the social sciences. but in the sub-region with which we are concerned, it includes a wide range of disciplines including anthropology, economics, sociology, political science, psychology, etc ....

2. A general recommendation stemming from this part of the meeting is that students in the social sciences at all levels should be trained to understand critically the development of social science concepts, the manner in which problem selection is guided by theory and the way in which the ”facts” themselves are dependent upon prevailing theoretical paradigms. It is vitally important that teaching curricula be revised periodically to Fake account of changes in theoretical concerns and perspectives, while at the same time maintaining an awareness of the relation between theory building and the more general social and intellectual milieu.

111. RESEARCH

The discussion of research was dominated by a few very practical issues: The persistent shortage of funds to sustain research and training in the social sciences; the necessity for research to be relevant to social needs; the problem of providing infra-structural supports at all levels from that of small ”non campus territories” to that of the sub-region as a whole 4 consideration of the ways in which social science research can be used in government planning; and the manner in which graduate training can best be related to research projects and programmes. It was quickly decided to recommend the rapid extension of the In- formation Support Systems which have already been started by the Institute of Social and Ecomomic Research of the University of the West Indies. A full discussion of these systems will be found in the paper by Dr. J.E. Greene and the specific proposals are spelled out further on page 7 and in appendix 1 to this report. Essentially these proposals would provide for the continuous monitoring, recording and dissemination of information on research projects, agencies and individuals as well as aiming at some evaluation and abstraction of results. In the next phase of development of the recommended infra-structural supports there would be provision for storing, refining, testing and analysing research materials which are eventually lodged in data banks where they are available for retrieval and analysis. The establishment of such infra-structures to serve the region as a whole would involve considerable expenditures on the provision and maintenance of equipment as spelled out in the detailed proposal, but it is crucial that the groundwork be laid now if the research needs of the next twenty years are to be met.

The establishment of facilities of this kind has to be linked with a heightened awareness of the theoretical issues discussed above. There is need for constant critical evaluation and interpretation of the data so assembled, whether they appear in the form of apparently ”hard facts”, or the more obviously im- precise documentation of personal, cultural or historical materials. It would be a backward step to

become so preoccupied with the mechanics of research procedures, data assembly and technical analysis that one forget the need for constant review of the most basic presuppositions which underly data collection. Theoretical, and even philosophical awareness must inform the most practical and seemingly useful research.

With these considerations in mind the meeting agreed that the provision of infra-structural facilities of this kind would greatly strengthen the institutions in the area, avoid the waste of resources which results from needless repetition of work, and facilitate research relevant to long-term social needs. A development of this kind would serve as a crucial mechanism for co- ordination and collaboration in research, both across disciplines, between academic and policy-oriented research, and between the different campuses of the region. It was pointed out by the Director of the In- stitute of Social and Economic Research that specific projects on which researchers from different areas can collaborate are a most effective means of communication since they involve people, perhaps from different language areas, in the actual processes of joint research.

The problems of collaboration and co-ordination were discussed in considerable detail, and apart from the measures just mentioned reference was made to extending ties to existing regional agencies such as C A R I C O M , as well as strengthening both the permanent research institutions and the more temporary structures such as special medium-range projects which provide an important on-going process for training research assistants and technicians.

Finally, it was remarked by several participants that there are special problems in relation to the smaller territories which do not have extensive university facilities in either teaching or research. Here there is just as much need for data collection and analytical research, but problems arise in both. One suggested solution was to find some means whereby a research scholar could spend long periods of time in one small territory, developing relations with the bureaucratic and general population, collecting information and bringing a heightened awareness of the meaning of social science research to the island population.

A possible research project of great interest to the participants is the writing of a history of the Carib- bean region. In keeping with our conviction that social science must recover that broad historical perspective which was largely neglected by positivist social theories, the research for such a history should

1. The term ”sub-region” is used in this report to make specific reference to the English-speaking Caribbean and Suriname, whereas ’’region” refers more properly to the Caribbean as a whole. However, it is something stylistically cumbersome to report to ”sub-region” and it is hoped that the context will make clear the sense in which the terms are used.

/

/4 7

be a social science activity as well as drawing upon the humanities and cultural sciences. It would aslo provide a research activity base involving scholars from all the language areas of the region and establish working relationships between historians and scholars from the more traditional social sciences.

IV.

1.

2.

3.

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TRAINING

Training is the crucial means by which the community of Caribbean social scientists will both reproduce and improve itself. That training must be based in a broad general education, taking into account the linguistic and cultural diversity of the area, upon which on can build both a sense of critical awareness of social issues and a highly developed technical expertise in the research skills of a particular discipline. The development of an improved graduate programme, closely linked to research activities, is the most important element in the proposals which emerged from the meeting for it is only by a programme of this kind that the range of research activities can be expanded and the quality of the social science base, upon which future creativity will be built, can be deepened and enriched.

It is evident from the papers which have been presented that post-graduate training in the English- speaking Caribbean, especially at the Ph. D. level, is unsystematic and those who complete the Ph. D. Degree do so in the face of grave difficulties. M.A. and M.Sc. programmes have been aimed primarily at meeting the immediate need for trained faculty to teach the greatly expanded number of undergraduates in the social sciences during the period of West India- nization. However, funding for graduate study and training has, in the past, been totally inadequate. Some of the recipients of M.A. and M.Sc. degrees have gone on to complete Ph. D. degrees at overseas universities, but many have not received further training even though they are now a part of the teaching staffs. These matters are discussed more fully in the paper by Dr. Camejo, but here attention is drawn to the unsatisfactory state of graduate training for professional social science careers, whatever the reasons may be for that state of affairs. It was recognised that there are several successful post-graduate diploma programmes offered by various compuses in the region in such fields as education, management studies, hotel management, international relations, public administration and the like, and the value of these courses is not underestimated. However, they do not cater to the needs highlighted here.

For these and other reasons it was agreed, to propose that for the sub-region as a whole there should be an expanded programme of social science training and research, the aim of which would be to link the training of highly skilled independently critical scholars to

the development of research which would be relevant to policy formation and implementation but which also expand the range of social issues being brought under serious investigation. It was remarked by several participants that in the past there has been considerable neglect of aspects of social life which are less obviously linked to economic development, but which constitute a most important part of the world view and motivational system of the people of the region. Religion is an obvious example, but the same is true of a broad range of matters which are, or should be, of salient interest to social science.

The expansion and improvement of graduate training must involve both the teaching departments a n d h e research institutes and may require the formation of some formal mechanism such as a regional graduate school of the social sciences to oversee and co- ordinate post-graduate training. This is a matter for discussion by the existing academic institutions; the meeting merely draws attention to the need for some administrative mechanism to co-ordinate and integrate post-graduate training and research.

The existence of vigorous research institutes engaged in extensive programmes of project-based, policy focused research provides the opportunity to incorporate Ph. D. students into collective, team research through the provision of fellowships and studentships which provide both project financing and training in research skills and methodologies. This aspect of doctoral training will be greatly enhanced by the provision of the infra-structural supports reffered to in the section on ”Research” above. However it is important that not all fellowship and student support should be tied to institute research since departments will have a crucial role to play in the research training programmes.

The meeting recognised that the necessary basis for a good Ph. D. education must be laid at an earlier stage of the students career - at school, in undergraduate education and, most importantly here, in a well conceived M.A. or M.Sc. programme. A review should be undertaken of existing and planned Master’s degree programmes with the aim of re-structuring and refashioning the curricular basis of these programmes in the light of selective theoretical, intellectual and policy objectives, changing theoretical paradigms, methodologies and disciplinary foundaries and the need for interdisciplinary approaches. In view of the great importance attached to historical awareness in the discussion of theoretical issues, Caribbean history should be centrally featured in such programmes and serious consideration could be given to a more formal recognition of the role of history and historical research as an integral part of the social sciences.

In the discussion on post-graduate training, as in the discussion of research, attention was paid to the need for comparative perspectives and an increased

awareness among students and professionals of the importance of regional and international problems and collaboration.

Central to any graduate training programme should be exchanges of graduate students and teaching staff, as well as researchers working on common projects. Given the linguistic and cultural diversity of the region, and the hemisphere, (itself the source of the value of comparative study), special attention will have to be paid to expanding facilities for language training, translation, publication of research ideas and results across and between the linguistic communities of the region. The provision of intensive courses in language skills for persons at all stages of their careers would seem to be one of the most effective ways of fostering a wider scholarly communication and under standing.

8. Although the provision of post-graduate training was central to the discussion, it was recognised that there is urgent need for social science training at many other levels and in other directions. Attention was drawn to the need for social sciences expertise in the development of social studies at the pre-university level, including the secondary schools. Dr. Duncan’s paper dwelt at some length upon the need for short- term courses, some of which could be tied in to degree work, which would be made available for students who, for one reason or another, are unable to undertake prolonged study. It was pointed out that some courses of this nature are given, both by the universities and by non-university bodies, but consideration could be given to their expansion.

V. CONCLUSION

This meeting has taken place at a crucial stage in the development of the social sciences in the region. The formative stages of a locally-based social science tradition are complete and for many years the demands upon a less than securely established research and teaching establishment gave been very great. There is a desperate need to strengthen and expand the base upon which further progress can be made. A series of general recommendations are embodied in this report and further specified below. Some of these call for new organisational structures to facilitate the recommended activities. Foremost among these is the establishment of a professional association of social scientists which would not only bring together scholars and graduate students from different disciplines for the exchange of research findings and theoretical ideas, but would also establish the standards by which professional conduct is measured, professional status is attained and a scholarly ethos is generated.

The important action to be taken now would be to capitalise upon the momentum generated by this meeting to establish a working committee which would examine further the problems and possibilities

involved, explore the needs and sources for financing and maintain contact between the different interest groups involved.

RECOMMENDATIONS

I. GRADUATE TRAINING PROGRAMME

It is recommended that an expanded programme of social science training be undertaken, building upon the existing departmental and research institute structure, but paying particular attention to a revised and strengthened Master’s degree curriculum, an enhanced programme of doctoral research within departments and institutes, and stressing exchange of students and staff throughout the region. A n experimental graduate school for the social sciences should be set up, comprising a consortium of the Univer- sities of Guyana, Suriname and the West Indies, respectively. It should bring together students from different parts of the region especially for training at the Ph.D. level. In addition, its programme should enhance the existing facilities for graduate training by focusing on inter- disciplinary studies and by drawing upon the teaching and research resources in the social sciences within and outside the Universities in the region. Examination should be made of the possibility of establishing an Experimental Consortium Graduate School of the social sciences for the purpose of organising instructors, arranging exchanges, securing and distributing training funds. Such a school should incorporate the existing strengths of the graduate programmes in the region but prvide a mechanism for co- ordinating and enhancing existing graduate programmes.

A n additional function should be the establishment of a programme through which staff could meet to review new developments in social sciences and develop new curricular structures for undergraduate and graduate training, including interdisciplinary studies in policy and planning.

11. RESEARCH INFRA-STRUCTURAL SUPPORTS

That there should be an expansion in the provision of research infra-structural support systems on a territorial and regional basis. This would involve not only the preparation of directories, indices of research materials and the like, but also the establishment of computerized research information systems. (See Appendix I). This provision of infra-structure clearly should be linked to the question of establishing a programme of research priorities as outlined in Recommendation IV.

111. RESEARCH PRIORITIES

It is recommended that a meeting be called for the purpose of establishing research priorities. In preparation for such a meeting surveys should be undertaken to

49

document trends and make a critical assessment of V on Exchanges and Joint Research, contain the ex- theoretical directions in the various disciplines. pressed intention to include social scientists from other

linguistic areas of the Caribbean than those represented here, yet there is cause for some reservation. The assump-

IV, PROPOSAL FOR A STANDING CONFERENCE tion is that there is a particular need to start the OF CARIBBEAN SOCIAL SCIENTISTS organizational base in the territories represented here. M y

reservations are as follows: firstly, there is no logical rea- The Meeting recommends the formation of a STANDING CONFERENCE OF CARIBBEAN SOCIAL SCIENTISTS as an interdisciplinary body (including for example anthropologists, economists, historians, psychologists, linguistic analysts, managements studies specialists, political scientists and sociologists), comprised of a core category of: (i) University-based social scientists (including

graduate students) within the region; (ii) Social scientists employed in governmental and

inter-governmental institutions in the region; (iii) Others within the region engaged in social

science research and training. The core membership of the Standing Conference may invite the participation of others who do not fall within the core category of participants. The organization of the Standing Conference initially shall be based in Suriname and the English-speaking Caribbean in order to facilitate and co-ordinate the initial problems of organization. As soon as the organization is established it shall move to establish contacts with parallel organizations in other parts of the region with a view to creating at the earliest opportunity a truly Carribbean organization. The Standing Cdnference which shall be convened annually or biennially is designed to serve the following purposes: (i) provide a forum for pursuing on a continuing

basis discussion of selected themes of fundamental importance to regional research;

(ii) regularize dialogue about research priorities and research collaboration across disciplines between specialised social science associations within the region and across territorial and linguistic boundaries within the region;

(iii) provide a regular mechanism for researchers (including graduate students) on the basis of scholarly papers or research-in-progress reports to exchange views;

(iv) in the light of the immediately foregoing, especially to encourage less established scholars / researchers to present papers, progress reports in order for them to benefit from such interchange of views;

(v) to regularize contacts between university-based social scientists and social scientists located elsewhere in the region.

Mrs Susan Craig requested that the following per-

son why the organizational centre should begin in this sub-region without the participation of social scientists from the wider Caribbean region in this decision; secondly, given the history of isolation and fragmentation in the region, I fear that the good intentions expressed may not be carried out in practice; thirdly, the stress in the two proposals mentioned above seems to be in liaising with existing structures on a kind of "federal" basis rather than on creating an "organic" organisation of regional social scientists.

V. EXCHANGES AND JOINT RESEARCH

The meeting underlined the need for concrete measures to improve communication and joint research with other sub-region and linguistic groups both in the wider ,Carib- bean and with Latin America.

The systematic exchange of students and lecturers within the wider Caribbean and Latin America, the exchange of publications, a programme of translations and specific joint research projects need to be elaborated and implemented. The meeting feels that the Standing Con- ference of Caribbean social scientists should be empowered to enter into contract with other Latin American and Caribbean social science organisations and universities in order to work out a joint programme of exchanges, publications and research.

VI. The meeting recommends that an interim committee be established to carry forward the work of this meeting by exploring ways and means to implement the proposals set out in the above recommendations (I, 11, 111, and IV) and that this committee be asked to prepare, in consulta- tion with all interested parties, a proposal or proposals, by July 1980 suitable for submission to funding agencies.

The interim committee should consist of three representatives from each campus as follows: - University of Suriname - Vice-Chancellor, Dean of

social sciences, Director, Institute of Ecomomic and Social Research.

- University of Guyana - Dean of Social Science, Director, Institute of Development Studies, and one other.

- University of the West Indies - two members of the Social Science faculties from each campus. Representatives of UNESCO and UNDP should be

invited to attend as observes and technical advisers on sonal statement be incorporated in the record of the meeting.

The proposal is a good one. However, it seems to me that though the proposal for a Standing Conference of Caribbean social scientists, in conjunction with Proposal

certain aspects of the proposals. In addition to the above general recommendations

agreed upon by the meeting, certain specific needs of a more limited character form the subject of the following recommendations which are supported in principle:

50

A. This meeting endorses the project for the writing of a regional Caribbean history and urges that here be a substantial social science input into this project.

E. It is recommended that careful consideration be given to the mounting of short-term courses to cater to the needs of non-degree students or persons unable to pursue full-time study.

C. It is recognized that there is a need for social

scientists to be involved directly in the development of social studies at the pre-university (including secondary school) level, especially in tems of:

(a) curriculum development; and (b) teacher training.

D. It is recommended that specific courses in policy planning and policy issues be introduced into the undergraduate curriculum.

51

APPENDIX I

LIST OF PARTICIPANTS: * - Stuart HALL* Participants:

Franck W. ALLEYNE Vice-Dean, Social Sciences University of the West Indies Cave Hill P.O. Box 64 BRIDGETO W N - Barbados Felix BETHEL College of the Bahamas NASSAU - Bahamas Lloyd BRAITHWAITE University of the West Indies ST. AUGUSTINE - Trinidad & Tobago Acton CAMEJO* Head, Department of Sociology University of the West Indies ST. AUGUSTINE - Trinidad & Tobago Susan E. CRAIG Lecturer, Department of Sociology University of the West indies ST. AUGUSTINE- Trinidad & Tobago Neville C. DUNCAN" Head, Department of Government and Sociology University of the West Indies Cave Hill BRIDGETO W N - Barbados Locksley EDMONDSON - Chairperson Dean, Faculty of Social Sciences University of the West Indies MONA - Jamaica Patrick EMMANUEL* Research Fellow (on leave) Institute of Social and Economic Research (ISER) GRENADA J.E. GREENE" Lecturer, Institute of Social and Economic Research (ISER) Faculty of Social Sciences University of the West Indies MONA - KINGSTON 7 - Jamaica

Professor of Sociology Faculty of Social Sciences The Open Univesity Walton Hall MILTON KEYNES MK7 6AA - U.K.

- Jack HAREWOOD* Institute of Social and Economic Research (ISER) University of the West Indies ST. AUGUSTINE - Trinidad & Tobago

Acting Director, Institute of International Relations University of the West Indies ST. AUGUSTINE - Trinidad & Tobago

Faculty of Social and Economic Sciences University of Suriname PARAMARIBO - Suriname

Institute of social and Economic Research (ISER) University of the West Indies MONA - KINGSTON 7 - Jamaica

- Perry MARS - Vice Chairperson Faculty of Social Sciences University of Guyana TURKEYEN - GEORGETOWN - Guyana

Professor, Department of History University of the West Indies Cave Hill BRIDGETO W N - Barbados

Officer-in-charge Institute of Social and Economic Research (ISER) University of the West Indies Cave Hill BRIDGETO WN - Barbados

Faculty of L a w University of the West Indies Cave Hill BRIDGETO WN - Barbados

- Basil INCE'

- Gerard LECKIEO

- Vaughan A. LEWIS"

- W.K. MARSHALL*

- John M. MAYERS

- Peter D. MAYNARD

52

Betty SEDOC-DAHLBERG;' - Vice-Chairperson Faculty of Social and Economic Sciences University of Suriname P.O. Box 1464 PARAMARIBO - Suriname

Department of Anthropology Yale University

Raymond T. SMITH - Rapporteur Professor & Chairman Department of Anthropology University of Chicago 1126 East - 59th Street CHICAGO - Illinois - USA.

M.G. SMITH"

NEW HAVEN - CT 06520 - U.S.A.

(ii) Observers.

- Economic Commission for Latin America: Caribbean Development and Co-operation Committee (EC LA/C DC C) Jean CASIMIR

- United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) - Jamaica

- United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) - Trinidad

Yacoub J. JOURY

Masaru ISHIZUMI - Caribbean Community (CARICOM)

Archibald MOORE - Latin American Faculty of Social Sciences (FLACSO)

Gonzalo ABAD, President, Board of Directors Jean CASIMIR, Member, Board of Directors

- High Council of Central American Universities (CSUC A) Carlos M. VILAS

Stafford C. MARTIN ( Barbados) Robb REIVE (Jamaica)

- Institute of Social and Economic Research (ISER)

(ii) Members of UNESCO Secretariat:

- Marion O.'CALLAGHAN, SS/IDS - Ginette GIRAUDEAU, SS/IDS

53

APPENDIX I1

AGENDA

MONDAY - 28 January 1980 - Opening Session - Election of Oficers - General Discussion - Issues of Fundamental Social Science Theory in Sur-

iname and the English-speaking Caribbean Paper presented by M.G. Smith.

TUESDAY - 29 January 1980 - New Perspectives in the Links between Social Science,

History and Cultural Studies: Notes on some Closures and Openings Paper presented by Stuart Hall.

Sciences in the Caribbean Paper presented by Basil A. Ince.

English-speaking Caribbean Paper presented by Neville C. Duncan.

- Problems of Inter-disciplinary Research in the Social

- Sub-degree Level Social Science Teaching in the

- Post-graduate Training in the Social Sciences in the English-speaking Caribbean: A n Overview Paper presented by Acton Camejo.

WEDNESDAY - 30 January 1980 - The Idra-structure for Research: Data Collection and

documentation in the Social Sciences Paper presented by J.E. Greene.

Islands without a Social Science Faculty Paper presented by Patrick A.M. Emmanuel.

of Social Science Research in the Caribbean Paper presented by Vaughan A. Lewis.

- Funding for Research in the Social Sciences Paper presented by Gerard Leckie.

- Problems of Research and data Collection in Small

- Formal an Informal Mechanisms for the Coordination

THURSDAY- 31 January 1980 - Social Science Research and Government Planning

introduced by J. Harewood - Recommendations - Discussion of Final Report - Adoption of Final Report and Recommendations.

54

U NE S C 0 P U BL I CAT1 ONS : NAT I ONAL D I STRI BU TORS

Argentina Australia

Austria Belgium

Benin Bolivia Brazil

Bulgaria Burma Canada Chile

China Colombia

Congo

Costa Rica Cuba

Cyprus Czechoslovakia

Denmark

El Salvador Ethiopia Finland

France French West Indies German Dem. Rep.

Germany Fed. Rep. of

Egypt

Ghana

Greece Hong Kong

Hungary

Iceland India

Indonesia

Iran

Iraq Ireland Israel Italy

Ivory Coast Jamaica

Jordan Kenya

Republic of Korea Kuwait Lesotho Liberia

Libyan Arab Jamahiriya Luxembourg Madagascar

Malaysia

Malta Mauritania Mauritius

Mexico

Monaco Mozambioue

Japan

Netherlands Netherlanh Antilles

Yew Zealand

Niger Nigcria

Norway

Pakistan Peru

Philippines Poland

Portugal Puerto Rico

Romania

Senegal Singapore Somalia

South Africa Spain

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