ABSTRACT
The proponents and advocates of the Radical Disengagement Thesis propose that the Third World should totally sever its ties with modern science and technology and should engage instead in the revitalization of its own science and technology traditions. One of the most significant assumptions shared by the advocates of Radical Disengagement is modern science can not be described as an embodiment of universal rationality. There are competing and contrasting perceptions or worldviews about how Western science and technology should be defined in the Third World. For a full understanding of the problem of capacity-building in science and technology in the Third World, a systematic understanding of these varying perceptions and worldviews holds great import. this chapter discusses three major sets of arguments are identified in this literature. They are the Radical Disengagement Thesis, the Limited Disengagement Thesis, and Radical Engagement Thesis.
