Misleading Metaphors: Culpable Optimism Concerning Development

Metaphors are very common in the field of development. Some have to do with economic growth: most obviously, the concept of ‘take-off’, implying an analogy with an aeroplane rising into the sky. Some have to do with the distribution of economic benefits: the notorious ‘trickle-down’ effect, for example. In the field of development assistance, more specifically, there are several metaphors which imply that a small input by the aid donor will result in a disproportionate return: for example, the notion of a ‘catalyst’. Metaphors such as these exert considerable power over the development discourse, and they have a real influence on policy. But they are misleading – because they are not well-founded in empirical experience. Worst of all is the core metaphor of ‘development’ itself, which implies that growth has no bounds. These metaphors all display unjustified optimism regarding the associated policy outcomes. I call this ‘culpable optimism’ because the outcomes are suffered not by the proponents of the policies but by others distant in space or time.