ABSTRACT
Access to safe water, to the medical care that supports longevity, and to the education that conveys literacy certainly require social organization as well as individual action. In low-income countries, social change substantially exceeded the global rate on each of the measures and on others. Although the relationships between gross domestic product (GDP) per capita and both individual life condition and social organization are very strong, the character of those relationships varies considerably. There may be global changes in ideas or culture that are affecting aspects of social organization such as level of democracy. Over time the character of the relationship between GDP per capita and social condition shifts significantly, often suggesting that social condition has improved over time regardless of GDP per capita. Scenarios for change in social condition obviously depend very heavily on changes in population and GDP.
