Participatory development helps a society to build their own capacity and self-reliance. It gives people in the community an opportunity to be part of the development process. Their participation allows communication between community members and stakeholders. In the case of South Africa, a prime example would be the Supplier Development Initiative (SDIC) which gives small businesses credibility and growth.

Women In Development (WID)

It gave women the opportunity to have a voice and encouraged them to speak up about their treatment in society. Women should therefore be granted equal access to resources and basic needs in order to improve their independence (usually economically) and also have the provision of more equal opportunities in education and employment. Although it limited women, it also increased their visibility in development.

Women and Development (WAD)

It comes from the perspective that equality is imperative to improving womens' positions in society. It also frames change in a sense of providing women with access to the productive sector. It also draws much from dependency theory and neo-marxist approaches to underdevelopment.

Women in development is essential in South Africa because women are still regarded as inferior. Given the Gender Based Violence cases, women are still subject to mens' superiority and should be given equal rights and needs to fulfil their independence.

Modernization is a process of social, economic and cultural transformation. countries usually follow five styles of development which are; the Traditional Society, Pre-conditions for take off, Take off, the drive to maturity and High Mass consumption. Countries are considered modern when they have political, economic ad social freedom.

Dependency is the failure of a country to be modernized in a sense that it did not address the underdevelopment of the third world countries.

1. Modernization

Many development theorists state that development requires societies to move from their traditional ways of living to more modernized ways. A country or society in general is considered modernized and developed when it has access to advanced technology and modern systems. Economic development also influences modernisation theory through economic, industrial, socio-cultural and political transformation.

2. Growth and Structural change

Development occurs in three stages; the primary, secondary and tertiary sector. Less developed countries attain their development through the primary sector, which involves farming, fishing and mining.

3. Distribution of income

It influences the society since it determines the country's economy and other factors that affect the society. In South Africa, distribution of income is still unequal because there are still parts that are more developed than others and some stull do not have access to basic needs all because of the unequal distributions.

4. Rural to Urban migrations

Many people migrate to urban areas to seek better jobs and education. Given the fact that urban areas are the centre for economic growth, many people leave their rural areas to improve their conditions and aim to have better futures.

Critical Theory

It characterizes the society based in certain standards such as social class, race, gender and others. therefore the society is constantly changing, meaning it is also at a higher risk of conflict of interests between people. for example, in the case of racism, educated blacks, especially those from the townships, are seen as threats rather than 'hope' for a better future. Since many black people do not have the opportunity to go to universities, they become insecure and think that the educated will have the power over them and exploit them.

Feminist Theory

This theory emphasizes that society is filled with gender inequality where women are surbodinates in many dimensions such as social, political and economic life. women have always been seen as the household keepers, that is to raise children, clean the house and cooking. they were not given the opportunity to have a formal education. A man is however seen as dominant in a sense that he has to be the one to get a formal education and perform hard labor in order to feed his family. society must give females a feminist orientation to give women the voice they never had and abolish sexism in science and research.

According to experts, poverty must be explained by looking at a society's standards of living, whether peoples' needs are met.  Poverty therefore varies from society to society because whatever a particular society considers a 'need' may happen to be a 'want' for some society.

Poverty is defined as a situation whereby an individual or a family in a society does not have the resources to obtain the basic needs such as food, clean water and good living conditions. 

People who usually find themselves to be in poverty often resort to violence. However, there can be some benefits for a person or people living in poverty.

Firstly, poor people can develop new skills, such as farming or community works. This may help build certain characteristics that may be required in future.

Secondly, they may receive help from the government by means of receiving stipends or food parcels. They may even receive free medical services. Thirdly, the community may come together and tackle the situation by donating food or clothes and other necessities and also by establishing "community farms" which will help supply food.

1. Depression

Depression is a social problem in the sense that it affects mostly the youth. Due to the pandemic many people have saw themselves lose their jobs and ohers having to close down their businesses because they could not make ends meet. Many factors such as high numbers of unemployment and economic inequalities also contribute to the latter.

2. Smash-and Grab

It is a social problem because it is a criminal offence that threatens the safety of the society. It is caused by poverty, unemployment and other social patterns. Strict laws on crime and harsher sentences may stop these criminal activities.

3. Fast Food

Fast food is not a social problem. I mean it does not have a negative impact on the society as a whole. Of course it has many health problems, there's no evidence that fast food threaten the way society should be.

4.Rape

Rape is definitely a social problem because women and children are mostly victims. It therefore poses a threat to the safety of other women and children. Women therefore become scared to speak out against these offences and end up suffering from psychological and physical problems.

5.HIV/AID 

It is a social problem because many people contract the disease by not practicing safety measures such as having unprotected sex and/or being in direct contact with the body fluids of a person who has the disease. Infected people cannot perform their daily work, which leads to the inability to get income and feed their families. Poor infrastructure leads to poor health services in some communities and therefore people with the disease do not receive proper treatment. People can reduce the spread of the disease by changing their sexual behaviour and promote and educate others about the effects of the disease.