We Like It So?: The Cultural Roots of Economic Underachievement

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In We Like it So? Terrence W. Farrell explores the socio-cultural factors which have been negatively influencing the economic performance of Trinidad and Tobago and arguably the former other former colonial territories in the West Indies. It is intended for a wide readership of Caribbean leaders, persons with an interest in the Caribbean, as well as economists and other social scientists exploring the resurgent area of culture and economic development. The author identifies and discusses eight (8) cultural attributes – Ambivalence; Status, Respect and Respectability; Rules, Authority and Contingent Rule Following; Amusement and Leisure; Risk-taking and Non-possession; Inter-generational Thinking; Corruption and Trickery, and Conflict and Cooperation. These factors are analysed using both historical and contemporary sources - academic, journalistic, and folk. Based on the analysis of these cultural attributes, the author discusses: How We Work, How We Invest and Innovate, and How We Make Decisions. The author proposes that by operating 'counter-culturally' in the workplace, Trinidadians and Tobagonians (and West Indians) can improve productivity and economic efficiency and promote economic progress. However, the leaders in Trinidad and Tobago society have to modify their own attitudes and behaviours and the society has to eschew ethnic competition if it is to be successful in achieving cultural change and improving economic performance