Based on an experiment with 5452 kindergarten school children from 15 cities, this article examines the effect of a customised spiritual education programme (SEP) on their quality of life. Results showed that treatment group kindergarteners who participated in the SEP had higher scores on the Pictured Child Quality of Life Self-Questionnaire in…

With fewer than three years until the planned end-date of the United Nations Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), attention is rapidly turning to what will follow. The elaboration of the next global development agenda is a complex, multipronged process that is academic, political and practical, involving experts from a myriad of social and…

World social development has arrived at a critical turning point. Economically advanced nations have made significant progress toward meeting the basic needs of their populations; however, the majority of developing countries have not. Problems of rapid population growth, failing economies, famine, environmental devastation, majority-minority…

In this paper we focus our attention on an examination of the four-step process adopted by the World Health Organization (WHO) in its systematic campaign to promote physically active lifestyles by older adults across the 193 WHO member states. The four steps adopted by the WHO include (1) Building Consensus Among Professionals; (2) Educating the…

This series of articles cites a variety of sources and synthesizes a number of studies on the working conditions and the welfare of workers from several countries. (SSH)

Presenting a statement of faith in the future of intercultural understanding, the essay suggests a humanistic framework of dignity and well-being for people which would be based upon acceptance of value conflict, genuine respect for others, and mutuality in relationships. The outgrowth of a program of international inquiries by scholars over a…

This book examines what countries and international organizations can do to meet the great educational challenges they face. Higher living standards, better health, increased productivity, improved well-being for women and their families, and good government all depend on widespread education. The book is divided into three parts with 12 chapters.…

This book contains the partial proceedings of a symposium dedicated to concern for basic education for the masses. The book includes a position paper that focuses on education in relation to its cultural setting, socio-economic context, and partnerships in research. The result of the meeting was the identification of research that seemed…

The responsibility of the U.S. House of Representatives Task Force on Hunger is to investigate the causes and dimensions of world hunger and to develop legislative recommendations addressing the issues raised. At this hearing, the issue discussed was of basic education as a crucial link in expanding opportunities for poor and hungry people to…

Although women are a crucial element in national rural development, their role continues to be neglected in plans and programs for change--especially in Third World countries. In addition to the burden faced by rural people generally in developing countries, women carry a double burden because of their low social status, high illiteracy rate, lack…

The report, third in a series of annual publications, examines some of the difficulties and prospects in areas of social and economic progress and human development which developing countries face during the next decade. Distinguishing oil-importing from oil-exporting developing countries, the first part of the report presents global and regional…