Socio-cultural indicators in Malaysia

Abstract

With the realisation of the inadequacies of the Gross National Product (GNP), as a general measure of human welfare, the social indicators movement emerged with alternatives. The changing patterns of development with emphasis on economic growth, changing life-styles in an effervescent environment of information and technology, neccessitated a re-think of the concept "development" itself. Economic dynamism in itself as important catalyst to growth however ignored the changes in the environment. In addition, the rapid changes in productive technology, information revolution, institutional changes and the economy itself brought to question how societal values and indeed the social system as a whole is affected.