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Political Culture and Development: Some Pervasive Themes in the Study of Indian Politics

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  28 November 2008

William Vanderbok
Affiliation:
University of California, Los Angeles

Extract

One of the most common themes in the literature on political development is the assumption of an elite—mass gap based on differing educational, occupational, income and social class backgrounds. The saliency of such differences are presumed to be more important in developing than developed nations because of an overlay of Westernization to be found in the elite sectors and a strong traditional orientation among the masses, particularly the rural masses. Urban dwellers are often thought of as residing in a transitional limbo between the old and the new, between a disintegrating traditional self-identity and an emerging modern one.

Type
Articles
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1978

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