Answer:
The problematic debate of economic growth in the developing societies in 50s and 60s has been replaced by the aspiration of the new wave of democratization. Despite the dominant beliefs in the past decades, neither the achievement of political independence nor the practice of the market economy in these countries has resolved the problem of underdevelopment. Yet, many argue that democracy is a prerequisite of economic growth in these countries. Recent economic growths in a few authoritarian societies on one side, and the experiences of sustained democracy with below the average economic growth in other underdeveloped countries demonstrate that democracy alone is not the magic key to the long persisted underdevelopment. Democratization of society, however, through industrialization, economic growth, education, expansion of the middle class (not necessarily through a market economy) wo holds a demand for political participation, is a fundamental step toward a stable and authentic democracy. This can be achieved by the recognition of the new status of the developing societies as the potential competitors of the industrial world in the global market, and with the technical assistance and cooperation of the West.
