Abstract
Based on Galtung's theory of information flow, this study attempted to discover something about the role information (as measured by the number of information services/ centers) may play in the socio-economic development of developing countries (as measured by the value of the Physical Quality of Life Index [PQLI]). The study used internationally recognized, published sources, including the World Development Report, the World of Learning, and the Encyclopedia of the Third World. The hypothesis that developing countries with high numbers of information centers will have higher PQLI values than those with low numbers of information centers was tested at a level of significance of alpha = 0.05. For the analysis, a random sample of nine developing countries was selected from 119 developing countries. "Center-peripheral proximity effect," i.e., the effect of proximity to one of the developed countries within the three underdeveloped regions of Africa, Asia, and Latin America was controlled by using a 3 x 3 Latin Square experimental design. The study found that the developing countries in the sample with high numbers of information services/centers had higher PQLI values, implying that the flow .and availability of information is associated with the socioeconomic development of Third World countries. The researcher believes that this study will serve to: 1) encourage international aid and development organizations to insist that part of their economic aid to developing countries be spent on projects that facilitate the diffusion of knowledge through increasing the number of information services/centers; 2) provide a justification to Third World governments to adopt aggressive policies that encourage investment in institutional and human development for the acquiring and effective dissemination of information within their countries.
Zegiorgis, Seyoum Simange (1993). Developing nations in the information age : the role of information in the socio-economic development of Third World countries. Texas A&M University. Texas A&M University. Libraries. Available electronically from
https : / /hdl .handle .net /1969 .1 /DISSERTATIONS -1470486.