The Central Liberal Truth: How Politics Can Change a Culture and Save It from Itself [Hardcover]

Lawrence E. Harrison (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 1, 2006

Which cultural values, beliefs, and attitudes best promote democracy, social justice, and prosperity? How can we use the forces that shape cultural change, such as religion, child-rearing practices, education, and political leadership, to promote these values in the Third World--and for underachieving minorities in the First World? In this book, Lawrence E. Harrison offers intriguing answers to these questions, in a valuable follow-up to his acclaimed Culture Matters.
Drawing on a three-year research project that explored the cultural values of dozens of nations--from Botswana, Sweden, and India to China, Egypt, and Chile--Harrison offers a provocative look at values around the globe, revealing how each nation's culture has propelled or retarded their political and economic progress. The book presents 25 factors that operate very differently in cultures prone to progress and those that resist it, including one's influence over destiny, the importance attached to education, the extent to which people identify with and trust others, and the role of women in society. Harrison pulls no punches, and many of his findings will be controversial. He argues, for example, that Protestantism, Confucianism, and Judaism have been more successful in promoting progress than Catholicism, Orthodox Christianity, and Islam.
Harrison rejects the Bush administration's doctrine that "the values of freedom are right and true for every person, in every society." Thus nations like Iraq and Afghanistan--where illiteracy, particularly among women, and mistrust are high and traditions of cooperation and compromise are scant--are likely to resist democracy.
Most important, the book outlines a series of practical guidelines that developing nations and lagging minority groups can use to enhance their political, social, and economic well-being.
Contradicting the arguments of multiculturalists, this book contends that when it comes to promoting human progress, some cultures are clearly more effective than others. It convincingly shows which values, beliefs, and attitudes work and how we can foster them.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Must-read new book about the impact of culture on politics and economic development."--Thomas Friedman, The New York Times

"It is not often that a book appears of such intellectual force and power that it can completely change the debate on an issue. Larry Harrison's book The Central Liberal Truth has done that for development theory. He has made an argument so compelling that it can not be ignored by even those who disagree with his research. This book is a must read."--Andrew Natsios, former Administrator, U.S. Agency for International Development

"Nothing is so important and tenacious as culture (values and institutions) in shaping economic performance, and nothing so decisive as economic performance in determining political and social possibilities and structure. This book is a global, historical, empirical approach to these connections, as exemplified by the major stories of success, failure, and cases in between. I can think of no better entrance to the topic, both for what it teaches and the way it invites and prepares the reader to continue. A gateway study."--David S. Landes, author of The Wealth and Poverty of Nations: Why Some Are So Rich and Some So Poor

"Lawrence Harrison's previous writings have made him a leading, perhaps the leading, scholar exploring, analyzing, and documenting the central impact of culture on how society develops, or fails to develop, economically and politically. In The Central Liberal Truth, he draws on his immense knowledge and long experience to spell out the ways societies suffering from cultural attributes unfavorable to development can overcome these obstacles. The Central Liberal Truth is an impressive, persuasive, and indispensable book for anyone interested in improving the conditions of human life in poor countries."--Samuel Huntington, author of Who Are We: The Challenges to American National Identity and The Clash of Civilizations and the Remaking of World Order

"Authors who emphasize the role of culture in development are often accused of consigning whole peoples to backwardness because they are locked into the wrong values. Larry Harrison takes culture seriously, but shows that culture evolves, and offers a practical agenda for cultural change."--Francis Fukuyama, author of Nation-Building: Beyond Afghanistan and Iraq and The End of History and the Last Man

"A book of enormous importance and startling originality. Harrison has pulled off an amazing intellectual feat. He has drawn our attention both to the centrality of culture in historical outcomes and to the ability of good public policy to reshape economic and political history."--Fouad Ajami, Majid Khadduri Professor and Director of Middle East Studies at Johns Hopkins University, School of Advanced International Studies

"Harrison takes up the question that is at the center of politics today: Can we self-consciously change cultures so they encourage development and modernization...? Harrison observes that gigantic investments in education, and especially in improving female literacy, usually precede transformations. Chile was highly literate in the 19th century, and in 1905, 90 percent of Japanese children were in school. These investments laid the groundwork for takeoffs that were decades away. Harrison points to many other factors--leaders who encourage economic liberalization, movements that restrict the power of the clerics--but the main impressions he leaves are that cultural change is measured in centuries, not decades, and that cultures are separated from one another by veils of complexity and difference."--David Brooks, The New York Times

"This important book represents the culmination of a decades-long process of professional experience, research and writing, the achievement of which is a major enrichment of the study of both the nature of societies and of their strengths and weaknesses."--Vineyard Gazette

About the Author

Lawrence E. Harrison directs the Cultural Change Institute at the Fletcher School at Tufts University. He is the author of Underdevelopment is a State of Mind, Who Prospers?, and The Pan-American Dream, and co-editor, with Samuel Huntington, of Culture Matters: How Values Shape Human Progress; with Jerome Kagan of Developing Cultures: Essays on Cultural Change; and with Peter Berger of Developing Cultures: Case Studies. His articles have appeared in The New York Times, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, Boston Globe, Atlantic Monthly, Foreign Policy, and The National Interest, among other publications.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 288 pages
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA; annotated edition edition (May 1, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0195300416
• ISBN-13: 978-0195300413
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.3 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,030,741 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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73 of 76 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Essential reading and an excellent resource, June 1, 2006

By 

Dr. Jonathan Dolhenty (Port Orford, OR United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: The Central Liberal Truth: How Politics Can Change a Culture and Save It from Itself (Hardcover)

I would hope (probably in vain) that Lawrence Harrison's "The Central Liberal Truth" be required reading for all those involved in the making of foreign policy, especially those within the government of the United States. I specifically mention the United States government, not because other countries need not reflect on their foreign policies but simply, as the world's only remaining superpower, American foreign policy is crucial and virtually defines the status of contemporary international relations. While recognizing that the history of the United States is fraught with foreign policy mistakes and disasters, it must also be recognized that it does not stand alone in this area. The past two centuries have experienced many bullies in the global arena and, at least, the United States has not been responsible for as much human destruction as that brought about by Germany under Hitler, the Soviet Union under Stalin, and Communist China under Mao. I will not join those who think the U.S.A. is always wrong, the greatest threat to world peace, or the planet's "Great Satan."

Now, with that disclaimer taken care of and before I get into Harrison's book, I need to bring up something which I found confusing at the outset. The book's description includes the following statement: "Harrison rejects the Bush administration's doctrine that 'the values of freedom are right and true for every person, in every society.'" I assume that this inclusion had the author's approval. Nowhere in the book, however, do I find a definitive rejection of this so-called "Bush doctrine." The actual text in the book (p. 2) is this and it relates to the influence of "culture": "It [culture] is also a key factor in foreign policy, with particular relevance to the Bush administration's keystone policy of promoting democracy: '[the] values of freedom are right and true for every person, in every society.' If culture matters in making democracy work...and as the disappointing experience of the United States in promoting democracy...suggests, then the keystone is likely to crumble under the pressure of cultures averse to democracy, as in the Arab countries..."

I'm sorry, but I don't see this as a "rejection" of such a "doctrine" (or "principle" as I would call it). I agree that making democracy "work" in a country that has no history of democratic ideas or institutions or is fundamentally averse to democracy in the first place might be virtually impossible, but that does not mean that the ideal of the "values of freedom" are not universally "right and true." I would like to interpret Harrison to mean that, while the "ideal" is universally true and desirable, it is not a "realistic" and immediate goal at the present time in the current international situation. After all, it took England centuries to evolve its democratic institutions and the United States itself was built on this tradition and it still took the U.S. many years after its founding to give women the right to vote and grant civil rights to certain minorities. In fact, America is still in the process of evolution in this regard. Bush's foreign policy regarding promoting democracy in the Arab lands may be naive and misguided (as I believe it is), but the ideal, in my opinion, remains viable even though practically unrealizable in the present moment.

The major reason I think this book is vitally important is because it emphasizes "culture" as a prime ingredient in constructing any foreign policy. Harrison defines culture as "the body of values, beliefs, and attitudes that members of a society share," and which is influenced by many factors such as religious practices, educational systems, information sources, interpersonal relationships, and so on. For all too long, in my view, foreign policies have been shaped only by politics, economics, and military considerations. This I believe has led to the disastrous results we see in America's attempt to change other societies into "progressive democracies," particularly in Latin America and the Middle East. What I am trying to say is that churning out a foreign policy without considering the "culture" of the country toward which it is directed is most likely doomed to failure. This also explains, in my opinion, why our current Iraqi occupation is problematic (to say the least!) and will lead to one of two outcomes: (1) American troops will occupy Iraq for many decades and forcibly "impose" a sham democracy, or (2) American troops will be pulled from Iraq and the country will revert to tribal and religious warfare, resulting most likely in an authoritarian government of some sort. (Bush would have been better off consulting philosophers, theologians, and anthropologists before invading Iraq and then deciding it was probably a hopeless cause.)

Harrison's book contains much valuable information. I was especially impressed with the chart in chapter two illustrating a "Typology of Progress-Prone and Progress-Resistant Cultures." Four main categories are included -- Worldview, Values/Virtues, Economic Behavior, Social Behavior -- and these contain 25 items under an appropriate category. The chapter then discusses in some detail each of the items included, bringing together much recent research from a wide variety of resources. Also of particular interest to me was his chapter on "Religions and Progress" which also contains a "Religion Summary Chart" with references to such items as literacy, fertility, freedom, corruption, etc., delineated by religious category and country. He discusses various religious traditions and indicates how they are either progress-promoting or progress-resistent. And he provides the empirical data to support his conclusions and generalizations. There are a lot more good things to say about "The Central Liberal Truth" but, unfortunately, word-count restraints prohibit me from discussing them.

Let me, however, conclude with this evaluation. This is an "excellent" and, moreover, thoroughly "realistic" book on this particular subject. Furthermore, in my view, American foreign policy will not be consummately "realistic" in any sense until the suggestions proffered by Harrison and his colleagues in the numerous studies cited in the book are taken seriously and put into practice. Highly recommended!

43 of 46 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Reality is the cure for ideology., November 11, 2006

By 

lighten_up_already2 "lighten_up_already2" (Kirkland, WA USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)   

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This review is from: The Central Liberal Truth: How Politics Can Change a Culture and Save It from Itself (Hardcover)

I must say that reading this book was a quantum leap from the last several political books that I've read, which were written by pundits. This book is a bit dry at times, but it contains real reasearch about reality.

The "take home lesson" I got out of reading this book is:

First, "Freedom and Democracy" isn't for every nation because a nation, or culture, must have certain values internalized before freedom or democracy can work. This is a rebuke to ideologues on the "right" who think that we can superimpose our style of government on any nation out there.

However, this book is also a stinging rebuttal of the leftist who believes that John Lennon's "Imagine" expressed the ideal for humanity. "Imagine no religion..." No, we really can't afford to "imagine no religion" because it seems that decentralized Christianity (Protestantism) gave the world the most "progressive" culture that has even been. And, we can't "Imagine no possessions" because it is the possibility of home ownership that gives people a stake in their society.

Finally, this book delivers a body blow to "multiculturalism". Some cultures are sick, and this book explains how they can get better.

I could go on, but my point is that an exhaustive study has been completed that ties culture to "progress", and it's probably not what anyone who is narcissistically attached to a particular political ideology wants to hear. However, it is in this book, which I would recommend to anyone interested in politics and culture.

19 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Foreign Policy Makers Must Read!, August 14, 2006

By 

NSA (Boston, MA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Central Liberal Truth: How Politics Can Change a Culture and Save It from Itself (Hardcover)

Professor Harrison's book is a well researched, timely and necessary study of why some cultures do better than others and how outside forces may or may not affect change when desired. The cases described within are necessary background for decisions being made today,and I sincerely hope our policymakers will study them. This book is a perfect complement to the Jared Diamond thesis and one should not be read without the other. A pivotal book for our times.